Around the world each December, Christians celebrate one of their holiest holidays by reenacting Jesus' birth more than 2,000 years ago in Bethlehem. Many productions are elaborate and professional, drawing thousands of visitors and donations. But many others, like this one at a local park in Savage, Md., are mounted in obscurity, void of pretense, and sustained by little more than faith.
And so, for 16 years, the First Baptist Church in this town of 6,000 has hosted a live outdoor Nativity. This year, the honor of playing the lead roles had been given to Ayo Tunde-Sanya and Clinton Azagba, each 17 and the children of Nigerian immigrants. It was a frigid Friday night in the middle of their senior year of high school, and yet here they were, without complaint.
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