The fullness of your grace is here
with me.
The richness of your beauty
is all I see.
The brightness of your glory
has arrived.
In your presence God,
I am completely satisfied.

The birth of Jesus probably has been one of the greatest or THE greatest story that was ever passed on to mankind. Each one of us was told in one way or another how a single baby 'saved' mankind. But as the years wore on, there were various interpretations of how His story happened that was presented to the public. From the modern interpretation of It’s a Wonderful Life, to the gut wrenching realistic portrayal of The Passion, it seems that every culture has its own views and version on the Son of God's story.

In The Nativity Story however, the tale of Christ’s birth was chronicled through the eyes of its two main witnesses---Joseph and Mary. The whole movie was set a year before Mary gave birth and how she and Joseph journeyed to that fateful night in Bethlehem .

It’s probably one of the most Hollywood-ized version of this story with a great cast and a great setting but let’s face it, people do get wary of straight out of the book 'Religious films' since Bible stories have been exploited in every shape and form ever since man learned how to tell stories in the proscenium of the world. (I am honestly an example of that.)

Still, this version is a dime a dozen and will truly be amongst the favorites of family movies for the years to come. Not because of the obvious reasons (It’s Christ's birth, hello? ) but of the fact that the whole movie showed two YOUNG ADULTS followed the Will of God even if they really had no idea on what to do.

For you, I sing, I dance
I rejoice in this Divine Romance
Lift my heart and my hands
to show my love, to show my love.

We human beings live in times where love is being taken for granted and often times in media, it’s being downplayed to ridiculous levels. But in this movie, they showed how Mary and Joseph took this daunting task with undaunted faith in God.

Mary was a teenager when the movie started, she was hanging out with her friends like most teenagers do while Joseph looks on quietly like a forlorn admirer. Both of them never realized the responsibility that they were about to face. These two people, these two ordinary people were living in a time when being ostracized is the result of going against tradition and the law. They followed God's Will not for them but for the baby that was to be born.

A deep, deep love
an ocean flows from you
A deep, deep love
it shall fill up a room
Your innocent life has
washed my guilty life
And in your presence God,
I'm completely satisfied.*

I was also thankful that a movie had portrayed a worthy Joseph. Though Mary (played by Keisha Castle-Hughes, Whale Rider, Star Wars, etc) was exceptional, no one has presented what Catherine Hardwicke (Director, Thirteen, Logs of Dogtown) and Michael Rich (Scriptwriter, Radio, the Rookie and Finding Forrester) created for the audience. The world knows who Mary is but we only have one verse of Joseph, describing him as a righteous and just man. (Matthew 1:19).

Asked on how he tackled the role, Oscar Isaac’s (Joseph) response was a deep reflection on what righteousness means to him. And as he did the role, he realized that righteousness for Joseph means selfless, humble love, love for his God and love for the woman that he cares deeply for.

It’s just like in the true and honest reason why God sent His only son to us. The Nativity Story may be from Hollywood but it reflects an age old story---God loves us, deeply and unconditionally, no matter what.

*Divine Romance lyrics from Divine Romance by Phil Wickham, 2006

Nice Malijan,s 24, is currently working on her 2nd Sundance Film project.

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