• Video
  • Shop
  • Culture
  • Family
  • Wellness
  • Food
  • Living
  • Style
  • Travel
  • News
  • Book Club
  • Newsletter
  • Privacy Policy
  • Your US State Privacy Rights
  • Children's Online Privacy Policy
  • Interest-Based Ads
  • Terms of Use
  • Do Not Sell My Info
  • Contact Us
  • © 2026 ABC News
  • News

Toddler steals baby Jesus in hilarious Nativity play mishap

1:36
Toddler steals baby Jesus in adorable Nativity pageant mishap
ABCNews.com
ByGENEVIEVE SHAW BROWN
December 14, 2017, 4:37 PM

— -- A 2-year-old girl who is "obsessed" with baby Jesus just couldn't get through her church Nativity pageant without stealing him from the manger.

As for the 3-year-old playing Mary? Well, she wasn't having it.

In a hilarious and adorable video that was viewed on Facebook more than 5 million times and shared with ABC News, the mishap plays out as the audience roars with laughter.

Tana Benson, the mother of the sheep who started the onstage drama, said her daughter Teegan is a "spunky, strong-willed sweetheart."

The Dandridge, Tennessee, mom told ABC News she was sitting with the mother of Collia Weems, the little girl playing Mary in the show. "We were crying laughing," she told ABC News.

When the women asked little Collia what happened on stage at First Baptist White Pine Church, she told them: "Teegan jacked the baby Jesus, I had to jack him back. I didn't push her."

Benson described the little girls as good friends who "love each other." She described Collia as very bright and a very good girl. "She's a stickler for the rules," Benson said. "It was so hilarious because both girls were being true to their nature and just being themselves."

As for Teegan, her mom said perhaps she would have put the baby Jesus down, but "once she heard the crowd laughing, the more they laughed the more she strut her stuff."

Up Next in News—

Barack, Michelle Obama reflect on new presidential center, greatest White House legacy

June 17, 2026

British prime minister announces social media ban for kids 16 and under

June 15, 2026

Residents fight to keep AI data center campus away from Nashville Zoo

June 12, 2026

Mom says her 10-year-old daughter saved family from house fire

June 12, 2026

Shop GMA Favorites

ABC will receive a commission for purchases made through these links.

Sponsored Content by Taboola

The latest lifestyle and entertainment news and inspiration for how to live your best life - all from Good Morning America.
  • Contests
  • Terms of Use
  • Privacy Policy
  • Do Not Sell My Info
  • Children’s Online Privacy Policy
  • Advertise with us
  • Your US State Privacy Rights
  • Interest-Based Ads
  • About Nielsen Measurement
  • Press
  • Feedback
  • Shop FAQs
  • ABC News
  • ABC
  • All Videos
  • All Topics
  • Sitemap

© 2026 ABC News
  • Privacy Policy— 
  • Your US State Privacy Rights— 
  • Children's Online Privacy Policy— 
  • Interest-Based Ads— 
  • Terms of Use— 
  • Do Not Sell My Info— 
  • Contact Us— 

© 2026 ABC News