Joe Moran was sweeping inside the Holy Child Jesus Church in Queens when he heard a infants cry.
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A nativity scene at in a Queens, NY City church contained a very realistic prop! He followed the wails to a nativity scene in front of the church, where an infant was found wrapped in towels – with his umbilical cord still attached – lying in a manger. Under “safe-haven” laws, churches are one of many places where babies can be surrendered by parents without being charged with a crime.
The parish priest, the Rev. Christopher Ryan Heanue, told The NY Times he had not seen a video that purportedly showed a woman leaving the child there, wrapped in a towel. He still had his umbilical cord.
According to the church custodian, there are already families within the parish who have asked if they could adopt the baby. She found in this crèche… this empty place where Jesus will be in a few weeks…as a home for her son.
NY state law allows for newborns to be anonymously surrendered at safe havens, which includes churches, police stations, firehouses and hospitals, as long as the infant is given to an appropriate person.
But it requires the child to be left with someone or for the authorities to be called immediately. A bishop at the church told WLNY the person who left the baby behind could be from the neighborhood and possibly even attend the church.
A baby in a manger is not anything out of the norm when it comes to Christmas decorations, but that baby is usually a statue of some sort.
“The baby was given a clean bill of health at Jamaica Hospital and was in the care of the Administration of Children’s Services Tuesday as cops try to track down the mom”.
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It’s not clear who the woman is from the video, he said, but police are investigating.
