15 December 2011, 1:19
Other news

Posters appearing all over the UK this Christmas in bus shelters and advertising hoardings show the traditional nativity scene around the manger… but with Mary and Joseph, plus the Kings and Shepherds dressed in modern clothes.

It’s all part of a campaign called Christmas starts with Christ which has been running for the past two Christmases. The campaign, which is run by ChurchAds.net, aims to re-tells the Christmas story in modern, secular contexts to capture the general public’s attention and interest. Poster ads in previous years have set the nativity in a bus shelter and featured a dramatic ‘Jesus babyscan’. Radio ads have placed the story in a football match, horse race and pop chart countdown.

Research shows that 61% of people surveyed like the message ‘Christmas starts with Christ’, with 41% saying it makes them think more about the true meaning of Christmas.

ChurchAds.net says that this years poster came out of a very simple but dramatic idea. Says Francis Goodwin, chair of the group: ‘We wanted to re-set the nativity using modern professions and high street fashions. Shepherds become cycle couriers and plasterers. Wise men are successful entrepreneurs and their gifts are iconic “treasures” of modern culture: a Swarovski crystal perfume bottle, a Faberge egg and a highly decorated skull. All are sharply dressed. But the traditional nativity arrangement is unchanged, with Jesus as its clear focus. And the message is compelling: “However you dress it up… Christmas Starts with Christ”.’

In the final few days before Christmas, millions of people will be heading for shopping centres, and many of them will see the story of Bethlehem told in modern dress. Church leaders across the denominations have welcomed the campaign.