About two thousand years ago, there was a young woman called Mary. She was married to Joseph, who was a carpenter and they lived happily in Nazareth.

         One day, while Mary was cleaning the house she received a visit of a Spirit who told her that she would have a little baby soon and she should name him Jesus. He also said that Jesus would teach everyone how to love.

         After some time, Mary was pregnant and she told Joseph.Joseph thought about it and on that same night he had a dream. In his dream a Spirit told him that he would have a son and he should name his son Jesus. The Spirit said again that Jesus would teach all of us how to love.

         Mary and Joseph had to go to Bethlehem, where Joseph was from, as they had to register themselves with the government. Back then there was no car so the journey took a long time. Mary was very tired and she was ready to give birth to baby Jesus.

         When they arrived in Bethlehem, all the hotels were busy and they had no place to stay. Finally, a man in the town offered them a place to spend the night. It was a barn where the animals where kept. Joseph and Mary were very happy as they now had somewhere to rest. The place was warm and comfortable.

         That night baby Jesus was born! There was no cot, so they laid baby Jesus in a manger. Mary and Joseph were very happy.

         Some shepherds were in the fields near Bethlehem, keeping watch over their flocks of sheep. A very high Spiritual Benefactor appeared to them and gave them the good news that Jesus, our greater brother, was born.

         The Spiritual Benefactors told the shepherds that they would find Jesus lying in a manger. The shepherds hurried into Bethlehem and found him, just as the spirit had told them. After they had seen Jesus, they spread the news, and everyone who heard it was happy.

         Sometime later, some wise men, or magi, from eastern countries saw a star in the sky that signalled the birth of a new king. The wise men continued on to Bethlehem and followed the star until it was directly above the barn where Jesus was. They brought Jesus gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh, some of the finest things in the ancient world. Everyone was very happy and grateful to God.

         (Frankincense was burned to make a sweet smell, and myrrh was an expensive perfume.)