Christkindlmarket Chicago Refuses Ads for Nativity Story

By Linda Orlando

New Line Cinema, the distributors of a film that tells the story of the Nativity, had committed $12,000 toward sponsorship of Christkindlmarket Chicago. The festival, which is the largest Christmas celebration in the city of Chicago, has been held every year since 1985. The Nativity Scene tradition at the Christkindlmarket used to be held in city hall, but a conflict between church and state necessitated that the festival be moved to Daley Plaza.

This year, the city website listed New Line as one of the sponsors of the event, but then their name was withdrawn. According to a statement by the company, the city of Chicago threatened to pull out of sponsoring the event if New Line didn’t withdraw their sponsorship first.

A statement from New Line said, "We were stunned that our paid sponsorship of Christkindlmarket Chicago was rescinded based on the "religious content of our film 'The Nativity Story.' We don't understand why our sponsorship would be rejected for religious reasons, particularly considering the fact that our film details the story that inspired the holiday season that Christkindlmarket was created to celebrate."

"The Nativity Story," which is scheduled to open on December 1, tells the story of the birth of Jesus Christ. The studio had planned to play a loop of the new film on televisions at Christkindlemarket. And since Christ is the man for whom the festival is named, it makes perfect sense for the distributors of the film to offer their support for the festival. But apparently the city doesn’t agree.

City officials said they never threatened to withdraw their sponsorship of Christkindlmarket, but their spokesman made it clear what the city’s point of view is. "Our guidance from the German-American Chamber of Commerce, was that this very prominently placed advertisement would not only be insensitive to the many people of different faiths who come to enjoy the market for its food and unique gifts, but also it would be contrary to acceptable advertising standards suggested to the many festivals holding events on Daley Plaza," said Jim Law of the Mayor's Office of Special Events.

According to Chicago television station WMAQ, public opinion about the issue varies to some extent, but most people are perplexed about why the movie wouldn’t be welcomed as a sponsor, especially in a location such as Daley Plaza. "It's an open space—people are free to move about," said one woman. "If they don't want to see it or hear it, they don't have to go near it."

Paul Braoudakis, a spokesman for the Willow Creek Association, a group of more than 11,000 churches of various denominations, said that the city’s bullying is particularly puzzling because there is a nativity scene in Daley Plaza and some vendors at the festival sell items related to the nativity. "The last time I checked, the first six letters of Christmas still spell out Christ," said Braoudakis. "It’s tantamount to celebrating Lincoln’s birthday without talking about Abraham Lincoln."

"It doesn't make sense," said one man interviewed by WMAQ. "If we're going to celebrate the spirit of the holidays and what it originally came from, it's about celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ."