WILMINGTON, Del. — A manger scene can make people feel good at
Christmas and that's what Patty Derrick and her friends in Rehoboth Beach were
aiming for when they spoke to town leaders about erecting a creche that has
been part of the beach town for about a half-century.
"We were so positive about it," said Derrick, a shop
owner and member of St. Edmond's Parish. "Everything was so positive, I
don't know what happened. No idea."
In early December, volunteers from St. Edmond's erected a creche
belonging to the local Kiwanis Club in the town square about 50 feet from the
city's Christmas tree at the bandstand in the center of town. The club has put
the creche up in town every year for at least 50 years, according Derrick,
including for many years in the same location in the downtown square.
Last year and for several years previous, the creche had been
displayed adjacent to a nearby bank while part of the town underwent a facelift
during construction, she told The Dialog,
newspaper of the Diocese of Wilmington.
This year, volunteers wanted to return it to its original
location. Derrick said she was asked by the pastor at St. Edmond's, Father
William Cocco, to contact Mayor Paul Kuhns for permission to put up the creche
near the Christmas tree.
She said she reached out to the mayor and later bumped into him
while she and Father Cocco attended an event in town. Derrick said the mayor
had no problem with the creche being put up and said they should speak with the
town manager, Sharon Lynn.
Derrick said they approached Lynn at the same event and she
expressed no opposition to the manger scene going up at that location. She said
Lynn asked them if they would reach out to other denominations to see if they
wanted to erect other holiday symbols. Derrick said she made the outreach and
volunteers proceeded with plans to put the creche up at the town bandstand.
So the creche went up — and came down the next day.
Derrick said someone at Lynn's office called the parish in the
morning and said if the manger scene wasn't down by noon, the town would
dismantle it.
Lynn did not return a phone message seeking comment, but Krys
Johnson, communications director for Rehoboth Beach, returned a message left
for Lynn. Johnson said the people who erected the Nativity did so "without
city knowledge."
Johnson went on to say the town had asked the volunteers to
approach different religious denominations about including other displays.
"It was communicated by the city for others to be
contacted," Johnson said. She said the town received complaints about the
creche after it was erected. She also said the issue could be included on the
agenda of the next meeting of the town commission Dec. 21.
Kuhns said in an interview that he has set aside a place on the
agenda to address the issue.
About two dozen volunteers and interested residents showed up at
a special meeting of town commissioners Dec. 7. Commissioners were told by the
panel's lawyer that they should not talk about the issue since it wasn't on the
agenda. Kuhns addressed the gathering at the start of the meeting by reading
from what he described as a letter from the Anti-Defamation League. The letter
from the special-interest group advised opposing creches on town property
because they "can be deeply divisive."
"They can send a message to religious minorities that they
do not have a place in government," Kuhns read from the letter.
"Is that an opinion?" Father Cocco asked at the
meeting. "Do we have to follow it?"
In a later interview, Kuhns described the ADL letter as
"just an outside point of view. It is a legal opinion that I've
considered." He said town employees and elected officials have been
subjected to disparaging remarks by way of telephone calls and emails since the
creche was removed.
Kuhns says he'd be happy to see a creche erected on private
property, but he does not expect a resolution to be reached this year or an
effort to put up a display on public property. He believes an association of
local religious groups should develop a plan to present an all-inclusive
proposal sometime next year.
Father Cocco said he welcomes other religious groups to
participate.
"Christmas comes from the birth of Jesus Christ,"
Father Cocco said at the meeting. "So even if you don't believe it, it's a
historic event."
Father Cocco said that he wishes the issue had been handled
differently.
"All we're asking for is permission," he said.
"We're not asking them to do it, or to use town money to do it. This is
sad. They're following the ACLU. It's ridiculous. It's city property. It
belongs to the people, not the mayor or the town manager."
Owens is editor of The Dialog, newspaper of the Diocese
of Wilmington.