Faceless figures and stolen Jesus: Why is Brussels' nativity scene so controversial?

With December now underway, nativity scenes are returning to Christmas markets around Europe.

In Brussels, the installation of a new nativity design on the city’s Grand-Place has turned into a scandal with the theft of the infant Jesus icon.

The figure was snatched from his crib between late Friday night and early Saturday morning after days of a maelstrom on social media over the faceless depictions of the scene’s holy characters.

It all started with a desire for change after 25 years of the same nativity design in the old historic centre of the capital. A spokesperson for Brussels Major Events, the organiser of the city’s Christmas market, told the Brussels Times that the scene “needed a rethink.”

Brussels mayor Philippe Close also said the old installation had deteriorated.

The new design by German-born artist Victoria-Maria Geyer was approved by both the local Catholic church and the City of Brussels.

Geyer — who described herself as a Catholic — crafted the nativity figures out of recycled cloth and omitted recognisable features, in hopes that “every Catholic, regardless of their background or origins can identify themselves” in the biblical story of the birth of Christ, she said.

But the artwork and its message were not to everyone’s liking and a row quickly erupted on social media before it was even formally inaugurated.

“We've hit rock bottom... and we're still digging,” Belgian football star Thomas Meunier said on X, while Georges-Louis Bouchez, the head of the right-wing Reformist Movement (MR) party, described Geyer’s nativity scene as “nonsense and an insult to our traditions.”

He compared the figures to what he called “zombie-like” people found at Brussels train stations.

His party, which is part of Belgium's ruling coalition, launched a petition asking for the design to be removed.

In a press conference on Friday, hours before the theft, Philippe Close and the dean of the city’s Cathedral of St. Michael and St. Gudula, Benoit Lobet, tried to diffuse tension and showed their support for the artist.

“During this Christmas season, we should all take things down a notch,” the mayor from the Socialist Party said.

Belgian authorities are investigating the theft and have already replaced the baby Jesus in the crib. Organisers and security have vowed to keep a closer eye on the manger.