Right now in America there’s a cultural war happening.
One battlefield is the Feast of the Nativity – commonly called Christmas.
Slogans such as, “Keep ‘Christ’ is Christmas,” or “Keep the ‘Mass’ in Christmas” permeate social media.
However, has the traditional western manger scene (i.e., Christ born in a stable) also missed the point?
The tradition of the Orthodox Church, in both hymnology and in iconography, is to show the birth of Christ in a cave.
Why is that?
Which one is biblical?
LUKE DOESN’T SAY “THERE WAS NO ROOM IN THE INN”
Let’s start with the Bible.
Those wishing to define the manger as a stable turn to the Gospel of Luke.
“And she gave birth to her first-born son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.” (Luke 2:7 RSV)
However, that’s not actually what the Greek says!
It actually says that there was no place for them in the κατάλυμα.
This word actually doesn’t mean “inn” as we think of it – a hotel for travelers.
It’s used in two other places in Scripture. Note how it’s translated there:
“…and wherever he enters, say to the householder, ‘The Teacher says, Where is my guest room (κατάλυμα), where I am to eat the passover with my disciples?'” (Mark 14:14 RSV)
“…and tell the householder, ‘The Teacher says to you, Where is the guest room (κατάλυμα), where I am to eat the passover with my disciples?'” (Luke 22:11 RSV)
Κατάλυμα refers to the guest room of a house!
THE INN WAS ACTUALLY A GUEST ROOM!
In the ancient house was divided into several sections. There was a main room, a place for the animals, and a guest room.
The main room and the place for the animals, as shown in the drawing above, were side by side, and the animal’s manger (feeding trough) sat on the floor of the main room.
So, what the Bible is trying to tell us is that Jesus was born among family – not alone in a stable!
In fact, there were so many family members in the house that the guest room was full, so he had to be born in the main room of the house!
That’s quite the opposite image we are often given at Christmas time!
This makes sense.
If Joseph took his family to Bethlehem because his family hailed from there – then it makes sense that they stayed with family, even if they were distant cousins (Middle Eastern hospitality!).
Also, if shepherds went to glorify him at his birth, can you imagine them leaving him in a stable and not bringing them into their own homes? (Again, Middle Eastern hospitality!)
SO WHY DOES THE ICON PLACE CHRIST IN A CAVE?
So, if scripture tells us that Christ was born in a family home, why does the Nativity icon place him in a cave?
Well, iconography is not meant to be photographic evidence of historical events.
They are like papers that theologians write! In other words, icons have a language of their own, and they are theological pronouncements of historical events.
It’s like the famous painting of the Signing of the Declaration. All those men were never in that room at the same time to sign the Declaration, but the painting makes a statement about the men who signed it and their unity.
By placing Christ’s birth in a cave, the Church is making a theological reflection, and it’s quite neat!
THE CAVE APPEARS THROUGHOUT SCRIPTURE
To understand the Nativity cave, let’s first take a look at the cave throughout scripture.
Astute observers will notice caves (or cave-like structures) in these famous passages:
- When Lot and his daughters hid in a cave (Genesis 19:30)
- When Moses hid from God in the cleft of a rock (Exodus 33:22)
- When five kings hid from Joshua and his army (Joshua 10:16)
- When David hid from Saul in a cave (I Samuel 24:1-20)
- When Obadiah hid 100 prophets in a cave from Ahab and Jezebel (I Kings 18:13)
- When Elias (Elijah) hid in a cave (I Kings 19)
In all these cases, the cave functions as the ultimate protection against hostility.
If we carry this forward to the Nativity cave, we are reminded that Christ is born into a hostile world. Herod would soon be slaying thousands of innocent child to try and kill the Christ child.
The cave reminds us that, yes, Christ became human and was vulnerable to human frailty, and needed protecting.
THE CAVE ALSO REPRESENTS DEATH!
But those well versed in scripture will also say, the cave is also mentioned in the Bible as burial spots:
- The Hittites gave Abraham a cave to bury his dead (Genesis 23:11)
- Abraham himself is buried in a cave (Genesis 25:9)
- Jacob is buried in a cave (Genesis 49:29)
- Lazarus is buried in a cave (John 11:38)
- Jesus is buried in a cave, sealed with a stone!
In this sense, the cave represents death, or the realm of the dead.
Theologically, this is saying that Christ, by taking on flesh (the Incarnation), was entering the world of death, brought on by our sin (Romans 5:12).
In order for Christ to die and save us, he had to become subject to death.
As God this wasn’t possible. But as God in the flesh, this becomes possible!
THE CAVE BECOMES A SYMBOL OF SALVATION
If you continue looking through scripture, you’ll notice that the cave is also where many of the great “giants” of scripture are saved.
- Daniel is thrown into a cave with lions, yet he’s saved by God (Daniel 6; compared with Nehemiah 2:11)
- Jonah is thrown into the “cave” of a great fish, yet is saved after three days (Jonah 1:17)
- The three youths were thrown into the cave of the fiery furnace, yet were also saved (Daniel 3:19 ff)
The cave, as before, functions as a place of refuge from hostility, but also as a place of salvation.
CHRIST IN THE CAVE INDICATES THAT WE FIND SALVATION THROUGH DEATH
We’ve seen how the cave, in scripture, represents protection, death, and salvation!
So bringing it all together we see how placing the Nativity of the messiah in a cave says a lot!
It says that God willingly subjected himself to our humanity, including death, so that we could be saved.
It says that when God became human, he was entering into death!
It says that when God enters into death, it becomes our salvation!
THE CAVE IS A THEME IN MANY ICONS
The cave doesn’t just appear in the Nativity icon.
Let’s take a look.
It appears in the icon of Theophany. Do you see how the waters around Christ form a cave-like structure?
Of course the meaning of baptism is this:
“Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?” (Romans 6:3 RSV)
Again, it’s the image of salvation through death.
It also appears on the Descent into Hades icon.
Here the cave represents the realm of death, yet it’s our salvation!
Why?
Because “Christ has trampled down death by death!”
When Christ, who is Life-itself, enters the realm of the dead, he conquers death and raises us up with himself!
P. S. THE NATIVITY ICON IS ABOUT HOW GOD BECOMES HUMAN IN ORDER TO DIE FOR OUR SALVATION.
You can see, now, how the cave is very scriptural.
By placing Christ’s birth in a cave, the Orthodox Church is making a profound statement about God’s love for us.
“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son…” (John 3:16 RSV)
It also makes a profound statement about how we are saved, and how we draw near to God.
There’s one more icon I want to show you.
It’s the icon of the Empty tomb.
Here’s another image of a cave, which represents the tomb of Christ.
Here it represents death, but notice that it’s empty!
Why?
Because Christ rose from the dead.
And when we die with Christ, our tomb too will be empty!
Come this Christmas season and celebrate with the Orthodox!
St. Elias Services (2001 Asbury Rd, Dubuque, IA)
Sundays, 9:30 am
Or find your nearest Orthodox Church by clicking here.
Bibliography (and photo credit):
Kenneth E. Bailey, Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes: Cultural Studies in the Gospels (IVP Academic, 2008), pg. 25-37.
Jonathan Pageau, “The Cave in the Nativity Icon,” published on the Orthodox Arts Journal blog (click here to read).