Leeds Parish Church (St Peter-at-Leeds) has welcomed the new addition of a Donkey Nativity Figure in time for Advent and Christmas.

Originally planned for Advent and Christmas in 2010 the near life-sized figure made by York based artist Richard Ison was delivered during Holy Week this Year. Cannon Tony Bundock Rector of Leeds to mark this special occasion has announced a competition to “name the Donkey”.

Canon Tony Bundock, Rector of Leeds said: The first of our near life-size figures, made for us by Richard and dressed by members of our congregation, arrived for Advent and Christmas 2008 with the Wise Men having been delivered first! The figures of the Holy Family arrived a week or so later, with the Shepherds being completed just a week or two before Christmas that year. And, of course, the camel arrived in 2009. The sheep and lambs, the calves, the original donkey, and the goats have been acquired “off the peg” from a variety of Garden Centres.

Richard the Artist said to our Senior Verger that the old donkey reminded him of the character in Shrek. “I can make you a much better one than that”, he said.

So this is the first Advent, Christmas and Epiphany season for which the new donkey is featured; hence the “name the donkey” competition, at a £1 a time, going on at the present time; for which I think we are probably going to have to draw the name out of a hat to determine the winner. The old donkey has not been discarded, by the way. It is in the stable at the back of Church with the other animals, awaiting the arrival of Mary and Joseph and the birth of our Lord.

A feature of the new donkey is that the neck and head are hinged; so that the donkey can look forward as – through Advent - it travels on to Bethlehem, carrying the figure of the Blessed Virgin Mary; but also so that, at Christmas time, the donkey can look down and gaze upon the manger in which Christ-child figure will be placed.

It was for Advent 2005 that, here at Leeds Parish Church, we first adopted the practice of creating “prayer stations” of the principal characters of the Nativity story dispersed around the Church. This has meant that we have been able to maintain the tradition of the Christmas Crib coming together on Christmas Eve whilst having the figures on display for our school parties and many others visitors during the Advent period . Thus the Nativity figures have been perceived through Advent as being, as it were, on their journey, to the stable in Bethlehem, with the Shepherds arriving at the Crib on Christmas Eve in order to worship the new-born king with Mary and Joseph; and the Magi still making their way to their destination in order to arrive for the Epiphany through until Candlemas.



Church Calendar
SATURDAY 24th DECEMBER ~ CHRISTMAS EVE
12.00 noon Children’s Crib Service
4.00 p.m. Choral Festal Evensong
Stanford in G – Vaughan Williams: The Blessed Son of God

11.30 p.m. Midnight Mass with Choir Carols during Communion
Charpentier - Messe de Minuit with Orchestra
Poulenc – Hodie Christus natus est ~ Rutter – Christmas Night &c
Celebrant&Preacher: Preacher: The Rector of Leeds

SUNDAY 25th DECEMBER – CHRISTMAS DAY
9.15 a.m. 1662 Holy Communion with Christmas Hymns
10.30 a.m. Choral Matins
Stanford in B flat – Rutter Mary’s Lullaby
Preacher: The Right Reverend John Packer, Bishop of Ripon & Leeds

NEW YEAR’S DAY – SUNDAY 1st JANUARY 2012
10.30 a.m. Holy Communion with Hymns – The Reverend Professor Simon Robinson

THE EPIPHANY – FRIDAY 6th JANUARY 2012
12.30 p.m. Lunchtime Organ Music – Winter Wonderland, Recital I
7.00 p.m. Choral Festal Eucharist with Procession of the Kings – Mozart in F
Leeds Parish Church

Sunday 1st January 2012
The Second Sunday of Christmas
10.30 a.m. The Eucharist with Hymns
Celebrant & Preacher: The Reverend Sue Wallace, Vicar Choral
No Evening Service this day

The Feast of the Epiphany, Friday, 6th January
7.30 p.m. Festal Choral Eucharist
Mozart in F [Missa Brevis K192] with orchestra
Celebrant: The Reverend Sue Wallace, Vicar Choral
Preacher: The Reverend Canon Tony Bundock, Rector of Leeds

<< Back to News