Description
Odd, lonely and outcast: a donkey's perspective on Christmas
Reflection accompanying image “odd lonely outcast donkey"
As the odd one out and the solitary representative of its kind in a field occupied by a small herd of cattle, this donkey stands alone. Its presence is incongruous, unexpected and surprising. It looks out of the photograph as though acknowledging this sad and uncomfortable fact. Looking through the Christmas narratives in the New Testament the donkey is striking not by its presence but by its absence, which comes as a surprise because we are conditioned from an early age to think that it was most definitely there as Mary and Joseph made their wearisome journey to Bethlehem. But it isn't in the texts and is left out of the composite biblical picture of Jesus' birth...
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