'Baby Jesus' laid among Gaza Rubble outside Christchurch Cathedral
'Christ in the rubble' challenges us to think beyond ourselves during the Christmas season; it invites us to see the image of Jesus in every child killed and pulled from under the rubble.
A nativity scene with baby Jesus among a large pile of rubble has been constructed outside Christchurch Transitional Cathedral, aiming to highlight the ongoing genocide of Palestinian communities in Gaza this Christmas.
The installation was placed there by Aotearoa Christians for Peace in Palestine (AC4PP), with the support of Sh’ma Koleinu – Alternative Jewish Voices NZ. It contains a ‘yahrtzeit’ memorial candle to mark the loss of loved ones, particularly following the recent terror attack on the Jewish community in Bondi, as well as a red candle as part of a global nonviolent movement for justice and peace in Palestine.
The scene mirrors an installation from December 2023 when Palestinian Pastor, Munther Isaac of the Christmas Lutheran Church in Bethlehem, laid baby Jesus in rubble – a pastoral act, declaring; “If Christ was born today, he would be born under the rubble in Gaza… Born among the occupied and oppressed as a sign of solidarity with those who are marginalised today.”
Dr Isaac, who this year published the book Christ in the Rubble, has been critical of Western churches for stopping short of condemning the ongoing genocide. “Calling for peace is a safe option. You don’t want to see people killed,” he told the Church Times in April. “You come across as holier-than-thou. War is wrong, and so on. Let’s love one another, and so on. But you’re not willing to call out war criminals and call for accountability, because that would create controversy, and you don’t want that.”
It’s a criticism shared by AC4PP “The display also acknowledges our own complicity” said Cole Martin, a Christchurch journalist who spend six months of this year living in Aida Refugee Camp in Bethlehem, documenting setter violence against Palestinians.
“For decades our churches, institutions, and faith community have blindly supported Israel’s campaign of domination and destruction across the Holy Land; manufacturing warped biblical justifications for violence and funding the machinery, technology, and weapons used to displace families, imprison children, demolish homes, and persecute entire communities. Today the church is crucifying Christ all over again.”
Many evangelical congregations, such as Aotearoa New Zealand’s Destiny Church, adhere to Christian Zionism, a belief that posits that for a Biblical prophecy to be fulfilled Jewish people needed to return to historical Israel. This world view in especially common in the United States.
“Some might feel this [nativity scene] takes away from the joy of Christmas, but this is precisely the meaning of Christmas. The birth of Jesus among us – not into wealth, safety, or power, but rather a difficult and messy birth in a cave of livestock under foreign military occupation, to an unmarried couple soon to become refugees fleeing a murderous political regime. Christmas is a very Palestinian story, and it gives hope that God turns up even in the most hopeless of places.”
Marilyn Garson, the co-founder of Alternative Jewish Voices who spent years working alongside communities in Gaza, commented; “Right now, we mark the hate-killing of Australian Jews at Bondi, but one grief does not blot out another. This week they are Jews. In Christchurch [March 2019], they were Muslim. None of us will ever be separately safe. We respond to Bondi, to Christchurch and to Gaza by refusing to be separate. We grieve every life lost and we protect whichever life is endangered. We stretch our hearts to hold them all.”
On December 14 two shooters, a father and son, killed 15 people attending a Hanukkah celebration, injuring dozens more in a terrorist attack inspired by Islamic State. The younger of the two shooters had been a follower of radical preacher and noted antisemite, Wissam Haddad, a man Sydney’s Muslim community had been warning police about for over a decade.
The 2019 terror attack in Christchurch was carried out by an Australian white supremacist inspired by the ‘Great Replacement’ conspiracy theory, and took the lives of 51 people worshiping and the city’s two mosques. Six of those killed were Palestinians.
Leading human rights monitors have warned Israel’s killing of Palestinians has not ended, with over 390 people killed since the so-called ‘ceasefire’. Over 70,000 people are confirmed dead, and the survivors face widespread starvation, malnutrition, and a harsh winter compounded by ongoing food and medical shortages due to Israel’s blockade. Most of the population are displaced, with over half of Gaza inaccessible and the majority of buildings destroyed.
Rev’d Matt Maslin of the Bryndwr Anglican Parish described the nativity scene as; “the perfect time to show solidarity with those who are violently oppressed, displaced and dominated because, at the heart of advent is the story of a God that has shown solidarity with humanity. The story of Christmas is one where God enters into the difficulties of humanity, to both empathise with and transform its suffering. This is a story we are invited to meaningfully participate in as well.” AC4PP say Christ in the rubble
“challenges us to think beyond ourselves during the Christmas season; it invites us to see the image of Jesus in every child killed and pulled from under the rubble. In those facing starvation and genocide in Gaza; those held captive, displaced, and living under domination in the West Bank; those mourning their loved ones violently taken from them in Bondi; those facing famine and genocide in Sudan and Congo; vulnerable communities being trafficked and exploited across the world; our neighbours in the Pacific and elsewhere already suffering the effects of climate destruction; those without food, shelter, safety, freedom and dignity.”
A vigil is being held at the Christchurch Cathedral on Monday December 22. The installation will remain at the Cathedral over the Christmas period, as a space for people to grieve, reflect, and pray. All are welcome.