Bishop’s Blessing Accompanies Unveiling of Nativity in California Capitol: On Sunday evening, December 18, 2016, a Christmas nativity display will officially take its place at the California State Capitol. At 5:30 p.m. (Pacific) the First Annual Opening Ceremony and Blessing of a Nativity Scene will begin on the Capitol building steps.  The ceremony will include Christmas caroling and a blessing of the Nativity by his Excellency, Bishop Myron J. Cotta, auxiliary bishop of the Diocese of Sacramento. This is the first time a nativity will appear at the California State Capitol, according to the Thomas More Society, which helped sponsor the project.

The Christmas crèche, including statues of the Holy Family – Jesus, Mary, and Joseph – and the Three Kings, will be housed under a handcrafted wooden stable, assembled December 17 and remaining on display through December 26. The privately funded and erected manger scene is hosted by the Sacramento Nativity Scene Ad Hoc Committee, a group of volunteers from Stockton and Sacramento, and represents classic free speech and free exercise of faith by private citizens in the public square.

“The nativity scene at the State Capitol represents constitutionally protected free speech and expression of religious faith by private citizens in a traditional public forum,” said Tom Brejcha, President and Chief Counsel of the Thomas More Society, a nonprofit law firm working with the Sacramento Nativity Scene Ad Hoc Committee. Brejcha explained, “The government is neither censor nor endorser of such religious speech. At the State Capitol, where political rallies are routinely held, the government is merely the gatekeeper upholding free speech.”

Corrina Konczal and her husband David were the lead organizers of this project.  Konczal shared: “We are proud to place this beautiful nativity scene on the steps of the Capitol during the Christmas season. It is a tangible expression of our privately-held faith.” She added, “The Capitol steps are a public space where all citizens can proclaim their values and opinions, and we are excited that the Christ child will now be part of the viewpoints represented in this space.  We look forward to continuing this tradition for many years to come.”

“It is an honor to be associated with, and to assist with, the nativity scene at the Capitol,” stated Tom Bielejeski, representing the Knights of Columbus at St. Michael’s Parish in Stockton, “The positive message it brings to Sacramento reminds us all of the true meaning of the Christmas season.”

The Christian Christmas nativity joins other privately funded displays of faith at the Capitol, including a Menorah hosted by the local Jewish community.

The Sacramento manger display becomes the thirteenth crèche in the American Nativity Scene Committee efforts to bring a Christmas nativity to every state capitol building in America.  Other state capitols that have featured nativities include Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Mississippi, Nebraska, Rhode Island, Texas, Washington, Wisconsin and the Governor's mansion in Oklahoma. Thomas More Society dedicates this Capitol Nativity Scene in Sacramento in honor of Mr. and Mrs. Charles Cale, of Los Angeles, supporters of religious liberty and free expression of religious faith in California.

Read The Sacramento Bee's feature on the Capitol's Nativity Scene here.