Deep Cove Catholics are praying someone will return their fibreglass saviour.
When worshipers arrived for the traditional New Year’s Day mass at Saint Pius X Catholic Church on Mount Seymour Road, they found the manger in the Christmas nativity scene empty.
The theft likely happened between 10 p.m. on Dec. 31 and 7 a.m. on Jan. 1, according to parishioner Kevin Smith.
“I’m sure it probably is just revellers, walking through, although they had to go to a bit of work because it was actually wired into the crèche it sat in and straw was around it. It wasn’t like you could just pick it up,” Smith said.
While the amusement of the prank has likely worn off, parishioners — especially kids in the congregation — are saddened by the loss, Smith added.
The nativity scene used to adorn front of St. Vincent’s hospital in Vancouver before it closed. When Father John Horgan took over at St. Pius in July, he brought the antique figures with him. This was their first year on display on the North Shore.
North Vancouver RCMP members attended the scene and have opened a file on the theft but so far, there’s little to go on.
“Our members, along with 15 others from the parish, searched the surrounding wooded areas with negative results. We’re certainly advising our members to be on the lookout for it,” said Cpl. Richard De Jong, North Vancouver RCMP spokesman. “We’re hoping someone, out of good conscience, returns it to its rightful manger.”
