If thieves knew their target better, perhaps they would be less likely to steal. That’s the only answer I have for people who ponder the seasonal snatching of Baby Jesus from nativity scenes. Many will recall the theft of the Christ child from a South Arkansas nativity several years back. One of the newspapers’ reporters at the time stuck his head in my office and asked, “Who steals Jesus?”
That was the question asked last week by an East Texas business owner. Angie Buffington owns a Christmas decoration store and says thieves have long targeted one item on her shelves more than any other — Baby Jesus.
“It’s very startling,” Bullington, who owns the Christmas Store, located in Tyler, said. “How do you steal baby Jesus from outside a church? It’s bad enough inside a store but from a church?”
The store has been open since 1978 and according to Buffington, Baby Jesus historically, has been the most stolen item. While shoplifters have taken Jesus figurines of all sizes, she said those from nativity scenes and ornaments are most common.
“It’s just crazy that people could steal Baby Jesus,” Bullington said. “And how could you not feel guilty about that?”
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
Some people manage to do a lot without guilt or shame — and she has to look no further than a neighboring church for proof. It features a life-sized nativity scene with a note: “Please leave this Jesus for everybody to enjoy. Merry Christmas.” Someone stole it in 2015.
Stealing Jesus isn’t a new trend. Such thefts were so prevalent in 2009 that The Guardian (United Kingdom newspaper) featured a story on thefts that had occurred from public and private nativities across the U.S.
While the “who” is an uncertainty, a number of people believe the thieves are youthful pranksters which is highly possible — or people in need of dolls as gifts or for symbolic reasons.
As I conducted research for this article, I was reminded of the unfortunate hijacking of Christmas. The reasons for the season haven’t changed, but the focus for many these days is on shopping, selling and buying. As I surfed the search engine offerings on Jesus thefts, the sidebar advertisements offered links to locations that sold the baby and any other symbolic seasonal figures one might want — real bargains … $10 to $80, depending on the preferred size of Jesus.
I’m not sure if I am more struck by the people who are stealing Jesus or those who are trying to sell Him cheap. Something tells me they are walking the same wide path.
Shea Wilson is the former managing editor of the El Dorado News-Times. Email her at melsheawilson@gmail.com. Follow her on Twitter.com @sheawilson7.