Animals are given the gift of speech for precious moments because they provided companionship to baby Jesus.
In Europe, cattle rise or kneel in their stalls to pay homage to the Christ child. Bees, in northern England, gather together on Christmas Eve to hum a carol.
Tabby Cat
When Mary gave birth to Jesus, a tabby had a litter of kittens. The babe was restless and couldn’t sleep, so Mary asked the animals to help her soothe him. They tried their best, but failed. Finally, one of the kittens crawled into the manger and snuggled beside the infant. The cat purred until Jesus fell asleep. Mary blessed the mother cat by placing the letter M for Madonna on her forehead and said that, in remembrance of her kitten’s kind act, all tabbies would bear the letter M.
Donkey
The donkey carried Mary to Bethlehem and on the flight to Egypt. The Nubian burro has a cross on its back because it was the donkey who carried Jesus, in triumph, to Jerusalem on Palm Sunday.
Robin
On that cold night, Mary was lying in the straw on the floor beside her son in the manger. She was too tired and weak to keep the fire going so they could stay warm. No one was there to help. The wind was raw; the fire, dying. Mary asked the oxen in the stable to help her by blowing on the waning embers. They didn’t respond. She pleaded with the donkey to breathe upon the waning flames, but he was so soundly sleeping, he didn’t hear her.
A female robin heard Mary’s pleas and flew into the stable. She saw the Madonna and Jesus suffering in discomfort from the cold. She flapped her wings until flames started burning brightly. Some sparks seared the bird’s breast, but the robin continued to stoke the fire until the stable grew warm. Mary blessed the bird for her courage, compassion and helpfulness. She said that from then on, every robin would have a red breast as a remembrance of the great deed the bird accomplished.
Stork
When Jesus was lying in the manger in Bethlehem’s stable, all the world’s animals went to greet the newly born babe. They knelt to pray and adore the Christ child. The ox, ass and others bowed in their places in the stable. Wild animals remained outside, hoping to catch a glimpse of the babe.
A white-feathered stork came to see Jesus. She felt empathy when she saw him lying in the straw-filled manger without a pillow. The bird knew she could provide soft feathers for one and tugged at the softest plumes on her breast to make the best pillow for the babe. When he laid his head on it, Jesus smiled.
Because of this, the stork is considered blessed and the patron of babies. Seeing a stork on the chimney or flying in the air is considered a lucky omen.
Spider
Tinsel decorates the Christmas tree to symbolize light, which was believed to ensure the forces of darkness wouldn’t have power.
A poor widow was determined to have a wonderful Christmas for her family, but she only had a tree. She had no decorations and fell asleep, feeling sad. Later that night, spiders wove webs all over the tree’s branches. Jesus turned the spiders’ webs into shining silver strands.
Another legend is that, as a child, Jesus decorated a tree. He was helped by angels whose hair caught on the branches and, as they left, it turned into tinsel.
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