In the small town of Greccio, Italy, almost 800 years ago, St. Francis of Assisi celebrated Christmas with a live Nativity scene -- a simple portrayal of the birth of Jesus with cattle and donkeys brought in from nearby farms.

"I wish to do something that will recall to memory the little Child who was born in Bethlehem and to set before our bodily eyes in some way, the inconveniences of his infant needs, how he lay in a manger, how, with an ox and an ass standing by, he lay upon hay where he had been placed," Francis is recorded to have said, according to an early biographer, Thomas of Celano.

Last weekend at the Sanctuary of St. Anthony on the grounds of the Franciscan Friary in Ellicott City, Franciscan friars and Secular Franciscans followed the example of St. Francis by offering a live Nativity with actors who presented scenes of events surrounding Christ's birth.

"St. Francis originally wanted to understand what it was for God to become man," said the Rev. Mark L. Curesky, guardian of the Conventual Franciscan Friars of St. Joseph Cupertino Friary and director of the Companions of St. Anthony in Ellicott City.

"So he actually wanted to see it portrayed right before him. And that's why we do it, because we're Franciscans and we continue that tradition, trying to help people enter into this great mystery," Curesky explained

The friars call their pageant a "Greccio" after the Italian town where St. Francis held his Nativity presentation.

Franciscans are divided into three orders, said the Rev. Bart A. Karwacki, one of the Ellicott City friars.

The friars -- Friars Minor (or Little Brothers) -- are members of the First Order of St. Francis. Second Order Franciscans are cloistered women, also known as the Poor Clares. The Third Order, or Secular Franciscans, include men and women from the laity.

The Greccio was produced by the friars. After each performance, they handed out candy canes and offered cookies and hot chocolate in their dining room.

Most of the characters were played by members of the Secular Franciscans of the St. Joseph Cupertino Fraternity.

"As Secular Franciscans, we connect Christmas, of course, with Francis and his love for the infant [Jesus]," said Carolyn Proton of Ellicott City, a Secular Franciscan who assisted with the production.

Karwacki organized the first Nativity pageant -- an outdoor event -- for the friary seven years ago. Last year, Curesky began directing the Greccio and moved it indoors. Curesky also wrote the narration that accompanied the silent portrayal by the actors of scenes from the Nativity story.

Visitors to the Greccio in Ellicott City on Saturday and Sunday passed through a cloister, which was decorated with white Christmas lights, to enter the simple, handsome chapel of the Sanctuary of St. Anthony.

In the alcove at the front of the chapel, a small wooden stable stood between two lighted Christmas trees. Life-sized sheep figures occupied the hay-strewn foreground.

The Nativity scenes were enacted one by one as Karwacki narrated, others read biblical passages and the audience sang carols between scenes.

An angel announced the birth of Jesus to the Virgin Mary. Shepherds carrying fuzzy, white cloth lambs knelt at the stable. Three magi in ornate robes proceeded down the center aisle carrying gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.

"It was very inspiring," said Grace Adinolfi of Ellicott City. "It sets the whole scene for the coming of Christmas."

Her husband, Philip Adinolfi, noticed that some of the many children in attendance "had their eyes popping out" at the sight of the costumes and characters.

Robert Longo of Crofton played the part of St. Francis for the final scene, lifting high a wooden cross and a crown of thorns -- emblems, as the narration describes them, of the "fidelity of God to his promise and the great sacrifice he made out of love."

The spirituality of Franciscans is "very down to earth," Karwacki said. "The birth and the death of Jesus are the two hinges for our spirituality -- [showing] the humanity of Jesus, that God would become a human being."

The purpose of the Greccio, he said, is to visually "remind people of what the [Christmas] season is all about."