UCC staff and stuff have built a rubble-strewn nativity scene as a symbol of solidarity with the people of Gaza.
The university elected to display the unique nativity scene to highlight the tragic occurrences in the war-torn regiomn.
Research from Amnesty International which has found sufficient basis to conclude that Israel has committed and continues to commit Genocide against the people of Gaza.
The crib scene depicts the Christmas star shining above a destroyed Gaza, while the baby lies wrapped in a keffiyeh amongst the rubble.
The nativity characters, Mary and Joseph, the angel, the three wise men, the shepherd and the animals are searching through the rubble for the baby - symbolising what so many Palestinians had to do over the past year.
The nativity characters, Mary and Joseph, the angel, the three wise men, the shepherd and the animals are searching through the rubble for the baby.
The scene was inspired by that of the Evangelical Lutheran Christmas Church in Bethlehem, and by the nativity scene in the Vatican.
The donkey present in the scene was made and donated by Cork Deaf Enterprises.
UCC staff highlighted how in present-day Gaza, donkeys are often the only means for Gazan families to ring all their belongings from one side of Gaza to another and back again as they have been continually displaced
Staff say their nativity scene was inspired by a similar display in the Evangelical Lutheran Christmas Church in Bethlehem and by the nativity scene in the Vatican.
They've invited all who wish to view the rubble-strewn scene to pause and spare a thought for the people of Palestine this Christmas.
