By Bonnie Culverhouse

Saturday night more than 2,000 people experienced life of the first Christmas during O Come All Ye Faithful, the second annual Community Wide Live Nativity in Minden.

Three churches were on Minden’s Downtown Historic District walking route – St. John’s Episcopal Church, Minden Presbyterian Church and First Methodist Church.

Pearls of Purpose member and Minden Main Street Director Sarah Overall said this event will definitely become an annual tradition.

“I couldn’t get over the amount of people,” she said.

The marketplace at St. John’s was dedicated to the memory of Howard McMurrian, a member who died shortly after last year’s Live Nativity.

Minden Presbyterian Church had live animals that would have been part of the first nativity.

First Methodist Church, Minden hosted a community choir that sang songs representing The Three Wise

Men traveling to bring gifts to Baby Jesus. The choir was directed by Dr. Dan Gibbs and accompanied by Helen Nelson and Aaron Wilson.

Other participants included
Minden Mayor Nick Cox
Minden Police Chief Jared McIver
Emmanuel Baptist Church
First Methodist Church
Friends of Minden Main Street
Lakeview Methodist Church
Liberty Christian Ministries International
Living Word, Minden
Minden High School Choir
Minden Presbyterian Church
Pearls of Purpose, Inc.
St. John’s Episcopal Church
St. Paul Catholic Church
Visit Webster Parish
Webster Parish Sheriff Jason Parker
Webster Parish Tax Assessor

(Special thanks to Kathy Dumas, Marilyn Miller and Mary Copeland for photos.)