As the weather cools and family life shifts indoors, our Navajo community gathers for winter stories. What better time to share the story of the birth of our Savior? Terry Wildman weaves a retelling of the birth of Jesus into the oral Indigenous tradition in his new children’s book, Birth of the Chosen One. Wildman, editor of the First Nations Bible (InterVarsity Press), shares the joy of the Christmas story as seen through First Nations storytellers.
My 5-year-old granddaughter, Rosaleigh, and I took in the fullness of this ancient story together. The familiar characters sprang to new life with their Indigenous names rooting them in time and place. Wildman connects the biblical significance of each place and person with the traditional storyteller’s description.
Rosaleigh asked many questions about the names of Bitter Tears (Mary), He Gives Sons (Joseph), and the House of Bread (Bethlehem). She particularly loved the image of the Creator’s Mighty One (Gabriel) spreading the wings of the Holy Spirit over Bitter Tears with power and protection.
As the story unfolds with Bitter Tears and He Gives Sons looking for a place to rest and deliver the Chosen One into the world, we notice how similar the buildings in the House of Bread (Bethlehem) looked to Pueblo adobe structures in New Mexico.
Babies are cherished in every culture. Rosaleigh completely understood why the Seekers of Wisdom (the Wise Men) would travel far to find the Chosen One and then return secretly so the baby’s life would be spared.
In a beautiful moment of kinship, Rosaleigh pointed out that the stars that shine over our land today are the same that lit the sky as the shepherds shook with fear when the angel messengers proclaimed the birth of the Chosen One. What a powerful linkage to the love that the Creator of this world has for all children—past, present, and future!
Wildman brings this narrative home for children and adults through vibrant words accompanied by art from illustrators Hannah Noel Buchanan and Holly Buchanan. He connects each of us to the Good News of redemption and reconciliation, a promise that extends to all generations—including my granddaughter’s.
About the Author
Carol Bremer-Bennett is World Renew’s U.S. executive director. She was born to the To’aheedliinii (Waters Flow Together) Clan and born for the Todich’iinii (Bitter Water) Clan of the Navajo Nation. Bremer-Bennett has a B.A. from Calvin College and M.A. from Western New Mexico University.
