The priest with the flattened nose began to speak in Polish. “Dear children, we are fortunate tonight to have with us a man who has proved to be our true friend. We are honored that he has agreed to speak to us during our mass. Is it not God’s work that he has been sent to protect us? Let us hear his words.”

The celebrant, with his acolyte, both in white robes, went behind the altar. The worshipers at the crib rose and returned to their former places. Then Isaiah C. Trumpelman appeared. There was a gasp, a murmur, and a few of the Jews started applauding. The Elder, hatless, taller than anyone, held up his hands. He spoke in Polish, too.

“Here I am, the same as I have always been, a poor Lithuanian Jew. I never tried to hide that from anyone. Some of you here were surprised to find out you shared that fate with me. The question is, what is a Jew? A lot of philosophers and big scholars have tried to answer that but they didn’t know anything about it. A Jew is whoever Horowitz says is a Jew. That’s why we’re all here together.

“But we’re also here because of the birth of this child. Soon heaven will bless me with a son of my own. That is why I cannot help feeling moved when I see this little baby in his mother’s arms. It’s an outrage that it has to be in a stable, with horses and cows. Even great kings have to kneel in the straw! I’m no expert on the life of this person. It’s possible I’ll say something that’s wrong. But wasn’t it because of the Conqueror’s tax? Yes, the family of Jesus made the journey so they could pay their debt to Caesar, and when they got there no one would give them a room at the inn. The child had to be born the way it’s shown here, in a cave. Then right afterward they had to flee again, because Herod, the king, wanted to seize him. When he couldn’t find Jesus he was like a madman, like a savage, and killed all the children who were less than two years old. All the little ones! Don’t worry! You don’t have to worry! That can’t happen here! No matter what Herod demands! In our orphanage the children are our number one concern!

“Next, the boy returned to Nazareth, and when he grew older he started to preach, telling all whom he met that the Kingdom of God was at hand. At that time the devil took him to the highest mountain and showed him the shining cities of the world and offered them to him as a gift. But Jesus rebuked him, and chose four fishermen, and other disciples, and traveled with them. Wherever he went he was followed by enormous crowds. He had the power of making sick people well. Just by touching them. There was a man with a withered hand, and he made it like the whole one. After Lazarus died and was in his tomb four days, Jesus called him out as a living person. He cured the deaf and the dumb. One time his disciples saw him walking on top of the water, to calm the waves. Another time he turned water into wine and five loaves of bread into five thousand.