Hark! The Herald is a barn

by Stacy Rausch
Arlington Catholic Herald
12/16/09

Have you ever seen a crèche made almost entirely out of newspapers? Well, now is your chance. Father José E. Hoyos, director of the Arlington diocesan Spanish Apostolate, once again will be sharing his large collection of Nativity sets with the public.

Father Hoyos' collection of more than 400 sets takes up every spare tabletop, fills several curio cabinets and occupies every available shelf outside the Migration and Refugee Services office.

Father Hoyos started collecting crèches in his home country of Colombia while studying in the seminary. He inherited a set from his parents and grandparents, but he left them at home when he came to the United States.

In the early '90s, Father Hoyos helped display crèches made of candy and cookies in the basement of the Cathedral of St. Thomas More in Arlington and then in the entryway of St. Anthony of Padua Church in Falls Church. But due to problems with rodents and bugs, he had to change his tactics.

He started displaying his own small collection of crèches at St. Anthony, and he asked parishioners to donate their crèches from other countries to add to the display. What started as a collection of 50 has multiplied tenfold.

Each year, when diocesan families visit their home countries, they bring back Nativity sets for Father Hoyos' collection — each one with the distinct artistic style of the people who created it. The crèches range from tiny and abstract (one is made from a wine cork and painted matchsticks) to large and realistic.

This year, he received a Nativity set from a parishioner in the diocese made almost entirely from newspapers. Five figures with carved wooden faces and hands, an abstract crib, and a circular decorative piece were donated to the collection, but the Spanish Apostolate staff thought it needed one more item — a barn — which staff members made from recycled Catholic Herald newspapers.

When asked why he continues to add to this collection and show it to the public each year, Father Hoyos said he wants to "rescue Christmas and bring the tradition of putting out crèches at Christmas back to the attention of our parishioners. The holiday is about Jesus Christ, not Santa Claus."

If you go

Mon.-Fri., 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., through Jan. 6
80 N. Glebe Rd., Arlington