Christmas Carols and Their Stories
Puzzle 08 · Carols of the Middle Ages · Page 20 in print
The Greccio Nativity
In 1223 Francis shared his plan for the Greccio manger with Pope Honorius III, who approved it. A Giotto painting of Francis keeping Christmas at Greccio is preserved in the Basilica of St. Francis at Assisi.
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The words
Altar
Later built over the spot where the manger stood.
Assisi
Francis’s home town, where Giotto painted the scene.
Thomas of Celano (opens a new tab) · Donovan, ‘Crib’ (opens a new tab)
Brethren
The friars summoned to Greccio, who sang through the night.
Celano
Thomas of Celano, Francis’s first biographer.
Crib
The Christmas manger scene Francis made popular.
Deacon
Francis’s order of ministry, in which he sang the Gospel.
Giotto
The painter of the Greccio scene at Assisi.
Hermitage
The friars’ retreat at Greccio.
John of Greccio
The knight who prepared the manger and saw the vision.
Midnight Mass
The Christmas Mass celebrated over the manger.
Pope Honorius
Honorius III, who approved Francis’s plan in 1223.
Saint Francis
Francis of Assisi, who arranged the Christmas manger at Greccio.
Donovan, ‘Crib’ (opens a new tab) · Thomas of Celano (opens a new tab)
Tapers
The candles townsfolk brought to light the Christmas night.
Torches
Carried by the people of Greccio on Christmas night.
Sources
- Thomas of Celano, The Lives of S. Francis of Assisi, trans. A. G. Ferrers Howell (New York: E. P. Dutton, 1908); archive.org scan livesofsfranciso00thomInternet Archive
- Stephen Donovan, ‘Crib’, The Catholic Encyclopedia, vol. 4 (New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1908); New Advent transcriptionNew Advent
- St Bonaventura, The Life of Saint Francis, trans. Miss Gurney Salter (Temple Classics, 1904); archive.org scan TheLifeOfSaintFrancisInternet Archive