“I extend my blessing to the participants in the great Three Kings Parade that is being celebrated in Warsaw and in many Polish cities,” Pope Francis said after the Angelus prayer.

On January 6, the feast of the Epiphany, the Three Kings Parade traveled through the streets of almost 900 towns and cities in Poland and abroad. This is a record in the history of the event to date.

About 900 Three Kings Parades were organized in Poland, but also in Germany, France, the United States, and Africa, among others. In Poland, 3 million faithful took to the streets to praise Jesus, celebrate, and sing Christmas carols. This year, the event was accompanied by the motto: a phrase from a Christmas carol: “In the cradle lies!” It is the largest street nativity scene in the world and takes place eight hundred years after the first nativity scene organized by Saint Francis in Greccio, Italy.

After the Angelus prayer, at noon, the Warsaw march left from under the monument to Nicholas Copernicus. He continued along Krakowskie Przedmieście Street to the Royal Castle Square, where the adoration of the kings and the giving of gifts took place. Like every year, the Three Kings Parade was accompanied by competitions for children, young people and entire families, including an art, nativity scene and poetry contest. At the end, all participants shared Christmas carols.

“He is an unsurpassed model; we feel his care for us; In this story of Jesus, Joseph and Mary there are many elements common to each family,” the Oleks tell Vatican Radio. They have eight adopted children; the youngest is his first biological offspring. She is a Germanist and photographer who has dedicated herself to the home; She is an IT specialist and entrepreneur.

For 16 years, the parade has been held in 23 countries. The Polish community abroad and missionaries also participate in its organization. The Three Kings Parade Foundation, which started this tradition in 2005, organizes the largest street nativity scene in the world: the Three Kings Parade in Warsaw.

Vatican News