A long time ago, there was a boy. His name was Leo. He was an eleven year old shepherd. He was trained under his father, but his father was not much for teaching. In fact, his father was not much for anything. Leo’s father was always tired and sick. Leo loved his father, so he did almost all the work with the sheep in order to help out.



Leo befriended a few other shepherds in the area, who helped him keep up with herding all his family’s sheep. The shepherds, Seneca, the oldest, Cato, the sliest, and Titus, the strongest, were kind to Leo. They showed him tricks, such as how to get the sheep to stay in a compact huddle or make sure none of them drowned while crossing a river. Many days, they even talked to him as a peer. Leo began to feel like a true man. After all, he had become the sole provider for his mother, two younger sisters, and father.



The four of the shepherds slept during the day and tended their sheep by night. Their lives revolved around the stars. Every night, the shepherds brought their sheep up the large hill to the lake from which they drank and field from which they ate. Once the sheep settled down a little bit, the men would take turns watching over their livestock while the others laid out to star gaze.
The herders soon noticed the view from up on the hill was much better than near their homes. The sky was clearer, there were less clouds, and more stars were visible. Every once and awhile, they saw a shooting star or caught a glimpse of a planet.
One night, they saw something remarkable, almost unbelievable. It was a clear night, but noticeably darker than most. It was a new moon, so they walked up the small mountain by starlight and the light of a single candle Cato held. There seemed to be a sense of anticipation in the air. Normally, they were excited to see the stars, but that night was a perfect one.
They settled down, as they always did, but they had two of them watch the sheep at a time, because it was darker out and there were more wolves and large birds of prey. They had lost a few sheep during the last full moon, so they couldn't afford to lose any more. Leo and Seneca were the first ones to stargaze while Cato and Titus tended to the herd.
Often, Seneca would tell stories of his childhood when he and Leo were alone together. But this time, he was silent. Leo felt that he was in deep thought and did not wish to be interrupted. Leo also knew in many families, young people, like himself, were not to talk unless they were spoken to, so he didn't try to start a conversation.
As they were sitting there in a meaningful silence, strange lights began to appear in the sky. They became brighter and brighter, bigger and bigger, closer and closer. Leo thought maybe they were shooting stars, like he had seen before. He had never seen any so close, though. He was afraid they would hit him.
He wasn't thinking about it, but somehow he ended up grabbing Seneca’s arm. As soon as Leo realized this, he let go as quickly as possible. He didn't want Seneca to think he was a little kid. He was still scared of what he assumed would be his death.
As the lights came closer, they slowed down a bit. By the time they came to a stop, Leo was shaking all over and he realized Seneca was even showing a little bit of fear. The other shepherds had run over to them, abandoning the sheep. They all stood and stared at the great source of light.
The lights were coming from beings that looked like humans. Leo quickly ruled out the possibility that they could be humans, because even the most powerful people couldn't fly. Maybe they were the star gods. They began to speak, and Titus fainted with fear. He quickly got up, pretending it hadn't happened because he didn't want to ruin his reputation of being one of the strongest men in the town.
The beings began to speak.
“Do not be afraid,” said one that appeared to be the leader. His voice was so deep and loud that it struck fear into all of the shepherds, except for Leo. The voice reminded Leo of his father and uncle. Their voices were low and loud, so it comforted him, and he stopped shaking.
Cato fell to his knees as if pleading for his life, but did not say a word.
“I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people!” added the leader of the light beings. There were people gathering around them now. Most of them were other shepherds from the village who lived near the hill. They must have seen the lights and wondered what was going on. Most of them were trembling now, too.
Leo was the only one who was not so scared that he could comprehend what the angel was telling him. Good news and great joy! What a wonderful promise! He was excited to hear more. Maybe the king of the stars was coming! His anxiety grew as he waited to hear more.
“To you is born this day, in the city of David, a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord,” claimed the same angel. This confused Leo a little bit. What did they need to be saved from? And who is the lord the angel was speaking of? And what was the city of David? He had never ventured outside of his little village, and never really had any interest of knowing what lied around its borders.
“This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger.” The angel finished. Leo turned around to see the other shepherds, most of whom he had never seen before. He opened his mouth to speak, but he was interrupted.
“Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he favors!” sang all of the angels. It was the most beautiful thing any of the shepherds had ever heard. The voices, thousands upon thousands of them, were all in perfect harmony.
The heavenly host slowly dissipated into a blur of light, and then nothing, only the stars. The stars seemed to shine a little bit more brightly, and there was one star was particularly bright. It grew brighter every moment, and became as bright as the moon.
All of the men who had gathered remained silent, and continued to gaze at the sky in awe of what they had seen. The silence grew thick and heavy with anticipation. Not one person spoke, but the atmosphere was obvious.
Leo, appearing to be the only one not paralyzed with fear, was the one to break the silence. He had to climb up on a rock to be seen by all in the crowd of about thirty. He was scared, not of the angels, but of the crowd. The only place he had seen a crowd this large was in the market in town. Then, he had always been with his father or Seneca.
Leo stood alone, gathering up the courage to be the one to break the heavy silence. All eyes were on him, and he knew there was no backing out. The only way to go was forward.
“Well, we've gotta go, right? I mean it was God’s messengers! I don’t know how we’re going to do it, but we've got to.” He said. For a few seconds after, no one spoke. Then, the crowd erupted into murmurs and whispers. “How can we pay for it?”, “What about our families?”, and “Where is Bethlehem?” were among the questions being thrown at Leo, as if he had all the answers.
An old man, a retired shepherd, stepped up onto the rock with Leo. The wise old shepherd put his hand on Leo’s shoulder, as if the man was proud of Leo, even though they had never truly met.
As the man took over control of the crowd, Leo stepped down from the rock, relieved. The crowd, on the other hand, was less pleased. He was among the few Jews in the little town, and was often separated from the other people, in the marketplace, and even near the field where most of the shepherds took their sheep.
“The city of Bethlehem is a holy city. The messiah is the savior of the world, he will save us all from eternal punishment. He will enable us to live eternal life in paradise,” he told them. For the first time, the other shepherds listened to him, and believed what he said because of the amazing sight they had seen.
“Go to your homes, and sell your sheep. Leave your family with some money, but take the rest with you. We will meet in the marketplace in the morning, directly after sunup. Go now, tomorrow we will be saved forever!”
Everyone left, without a word, but there was excitement in the air. Leo rushed into his home, and tried to wake his father. He didn't even roll over, so Leo woke his mother instead. They went into the living area of their home.
Leo’s mother was still half asleep and didn't even realize it was Leo, and not one of the younger kids.
“What? What is it Leo? What’s the matter? Has someone died?” She asked in a loud whisper.
“No, mother, no. It is quite the opposite! I have seen the most amazing sight! I cannot find the words to adequately describe it, but there were these people that were like lights, like stars. They were floating in the air and told us of a baby. A baby to save the world!” He told her in a similar tone of a whisper.
“I need the money father saved up from last year’s sheep. You have to sell the sheep and save the money. I don’t know when I’ll be back, but I know everything will be okay for you.”
Leo’s mother was shocked. She didn't know what he was talking about, but she trusted him. She gave him the money and they said their good-byes. Then he left in order to get to the marketplace at sunrise. On his long walk, he tried to comprehend the event of the night prior.
When he got to the town’s center that was used as the marketplace on Saturdays, about half of the men who had been on the hill the last night were there. Leo searched through the small crowd to find the Jewish shepherd. It was difficult, because they were probably the two shortest men in the square, if not the entire town.
Once they were finally united, it was clear the old man had been looking for Leo, too. They began to talk about the experience of the night before, and it became obvious that the Jew, Jacob, had been even more deeply affected than Leo.
“I knew when I went to bed something was going to happen that night. I felt it in my brain and in my heart and in my bones. Maybe, if I had listened to what God was trying to tell me, I would have been able to see the whole thing. I only came after I awoke by a bright light coming in my window. I told my wife to stay in our home while I saw what was going on. I wish I could have seen the arrival of the angels of God.” He sighed. He looked off into the distance, and then snapped back to reality.
“You were there, weren't you? You saw the whole thing! You know how the messengers of God came to earth. What happened? What was it like? Was it amazing?” Leo was surprised when the attention suddenly turned to him. Older men never addressed those younger than them with such excitement.
“Honestly, sir, I was terrified. It looked as if the stars were falling down towards us, hurtling towards the earth. It took us a few moments to distinguish their shapes, but when we did, we weren't any less scared.”
More and more men gathered in the square as the sun crept over the horizon. The crowd grew larger and louder as the pink light turned to blue. A few of the men had small bags on their backs, but most had no possessions on them. Jacob took control of the crowd with ease, his charismatic voice ringing in the silence of the square.
The men departed from the square and left the town. Jacob led; he obviously knew where he was going. Leo was close behind, asking him questions about God. The walk was long, so Leo learned a lot. Jacob talked about the beginning of time, when God made the world. He told Leo stories of prophets like Abraham and David. Leo was incredibly interested, and felt the stories Jacob was telling were true.
The men walked for a very long time. They walked all day, and all night, and another day. Then, they finally got to Bethlehem, the city of David that the angel proclaimed. At first, they did not know where to search for the babe, but soon realized he must be in the stable of an inn. The shepherds split up and looked in all the inns. They asked if there was someone staying in their stables.
Most of the shepherds, not finding the birthplace of the child, met back near the entrance of the town. One man, about twenty years of age, announced that he found an innkeeper who had let a couple lodge in his stable. At once, all the shepherds went to the inn. They asked permission to go to the stable to see the newborn, and the innkeeper agreed.
Leo was the first one to get behind the inn and into the stable. He was a bit confused by what he saw. At first, he saw only a man sleeping in a pile of hay. Then, after looking around, he noticed a woman standing by the feeding trough, called a manger in those days. Leo stepped under the low roof of the structure. The man lept up, startled and poised to defend the woman.
Leo stepped back with his hands raised in the air to show that he meant no harm.
The man stepped away, realizing it was only a boy. Leo, still in a bit of shock, took a few more small steps back.
“I have come to see the newborn king. An angel sent me, and some other shepherds, too. We traveled all day and night to find you. Is there an infant here?” Leo asked in a shaky voice. The other shepherds began to show up, but didn't interrupt the conversation.
“I’m sorry to have frightened you, my name is Joseph. This is Mary, and a few nights ago, she did give birth. We were both visited by angels, and they told us this babe would be the savior of the world, the messiah. The same angel told us we must name her son Jesus. Would you like to see him?” Leo nodded and, after Joseph moved out of the way, approached the child.
He looked into the manger and found, as the angel had told the shepherds, a babe wrapped in cloth. It was obvious this baby, born in the stable, was different than any other child. Jesus was quiet. He did not cry; he was sleeping peacefully and almost had a glow about him.
Leo was changed in that moment, and so were the rest of the shepherds. They were touched by God, and they felt the need to spread the good news. They asked Joseph questions about the angels and about God. Eventually, when they could not learn anything more from him, they headed to the temple. They talked to the Rabbi and told him of the holy child.
After a short visit, the shepherds went out, some back to the town where they lived, but most to cities they had never been to. They spread the word, praising and glorifying God. They told all the people of the newborn king who had come to save the world. In doing this, they became the first Christians.