Beer for Baby Jesus

ADELAIDE, Australia - An Australian brewing company is offering six cases of beer to anyone who returns a statue of the baby Jesus stolen from a nativity scene earlier this week, brewery officials said Thursday.

The South Australian Brewing Company offered the reward after thieves swiped the statue from the company's traditional nativity display earlier this week.

Managing Director Mark Powell said security footage showed a man scaling a fence and lifting the baby Jesus from his manger.

"We are very concerned about the well-being of baby Jesus and we are calling for his swift and safe return," Powell said.

A reward of six cases of beer would be given to anyone who returns the statue, he said.

Well maybe it was a Christmas tradition rigorist that took it. In Catholic tradition it is custom to only place the baby Jesus in the manger on Christmas Eve. So if they return it on Christmas Eve we will know the truth. I myself am in favor of this tradition as with the continuing daily celebration of Christmas up to the Epiphany. Not only does this give me a good excuse for not putting away the Christmas tree and decorations yet, but also allows me to continually listen to traditional Christmas music.

Now the idea of rewarding somebody with Australian Beer for kidnapping the infant Christ will only lead to more El Nino-nappings. Giving them some domestic American beer would serve as a more fitting punishment.

"That said, you would have thought that the incentive of a guaranteed exit through the right door after purgatory would be enough of an incentive in itself," Powell said. [Source] [Via CaNN]

That certainly is a theologically confused statement. There could figuratively be only one possible door to exit after purgatory and returning the baby Jesus figure could result in no guarantee. Just what kind of theologians are beer companies hiring now-a-days? Though at least he believes that Purgatory didn't go out with Vatican II.