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Baby Found Abandoned in Nativity Scene in Queens Church

By  Anton K. Nilsson Murray Weiss and Ewa Kern-Jedrychowska | November 24, 2015 5:29pm | Updated on November 24, 2015 6:21pm

 The newborn child was found in a Nativity scene in a Queen church's and taken to hospital in good condition.
The newborn child was found in a Nativity scene in a Queen church's and taken to hospital in good condition.
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Father Christopher Ryan Heanue

QUEENS — It's a holiday miracle — just a little early.

A newborn boy with his umbilical cord still attached was found in the crèche of a Queens church's Nativity scene Monday, police and sources said.

The caretaker of the Holy Child Jesus Church, at 111-11 86th Ave. in Richmond Hill, recently put up the church’s Nativity scene inside the rectory, according to a source.

It was virtually complete except for the Baby Jesus in anticipation of Christmas services.

But at 1:30 p.m. Monday, the 60-year-old caretaker was stunned to find a baby boy wrapped up in a towel in the Nativity scene, sources said.

According to Father Chrisopher Ryan Heanue of the Holy Child Jesus Church, the caretaker was returning from lunch when the baby's cries alerted him.

"The beautiful story is that that crèche really went up too early, it wasn't supposed to be there," Heanue said.

"It's beautiful that it is in the church, that the church is the home for those in need," Heanue added.

The baby was taken by ambulance to Jamaica Hospital where he was found healthy but listed in serious condition as a precaution, according to the FDNY.

Police are looking for surveillance footage to help them locate the person who abandoned the child.

Churches are considered safe havens in New York where a baby can be left, shielding a parent from prosecution.