Italy Establishes National Committee for 800th Anniversary of First Living Nativity Scene

Italian Minister of Culture Dario Franceschini has signed a decree establishing a National Committee for the celebrations of the 800th anniversary of the first living nativity scene, organized by Saint Francis of Assisi in 1223 in Greccio, Rieti province. The committee, created by the 2021 Budget Law, will coordinate events across Italy in 2023, managing €1.3 million per year for 2021-2023, with 70% allocated to infrastructure and 30% to cultural initiatives. The committee includes 11 members: the mayor of Greccio (president), the director general of Education, Research and Cultural Institutes of the Ministry of Culture, the mayor of Rieti or delegate, experts from the Diocese of Rieti and the Province of San Bonaventura of the Friars Minor, historian Franco Cardini, project manager Laura Caruso, journalist Cristiana Colli, Linda Di Pietro from BASE Milano, Antonio D'Onofrio from Westpole, and Florinda Saieva from Farm Cultural Park. The living nativity tradition began when Francis reenacted Jesus's birth in Greccio with villagers and animals, later depicted in Giotto's frescoes in the Basilica of Assisi. Since 1972, Greccio has held an annual historical reenactment. The committee must submit infrastructure and economic plans to the Ministry by February 28, 2022.