Aylan Kurdi: Spanish church stages nativity with drowned refugee boy taking place of baby Jesus
The San Anton Church integrated Aylan into the traditional Bethlehem scene to raise awareness of the plight of refugees
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Your support makes all the difference.A church in Madrid has recreated the nativity scene using a model of drowned three-year-old Aylan Kurdi instead of the baby Jesus.
The San Anton Church integrated Aylan into the traditional "Belén", or Bethlehem scene, to raise awareness of the plight of refugees, The Local reports.
The child's mourning parents take the place of Mary and Joseph. Instead of a stable, the trio are sheltered by a refugee tent and reproductions of drawings by refugees adorn the walls.
The nativity scene was designed by Spanish artist Ikella Alonson, The Local reports, for the Messengers of Peace Foundation, an NGO working with refugees.
Aylan Kurdi washed up dead on a beach in Turkey on Wednesday 2 September.
The three-year-old's family had been making the treacherous journey across Turkey to Europe when their boat capsized. His brother Galip and mother Rihan also died.
Three other children drowned in the same crossing, while seven people were rescued and two reached the shore in life jackets.
At the time, the UNHCR, the UN refugee agency, said the number of people crossing the Mediterranean had exceeded 300,000 in one year.
The San Anton Church has already earned a reputation as a forward thinking parish, admitting animals and allowing the faithful to confess through an iPad app.
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