The story of how Jesus was born in a manger has been depicted in thousands of ways over the last 2000-or-so years, but not with tampons.
At least until now.
A tampon version of the nativity is one of the newest additions to a collection of bizarre nativity scenes that Christian author Mark Oestreicher has been collecting for the past six years.
The collection, which is now up to 42 nativities, shows the birth of Jesus using bacon, spam, rubber ducks, mermaids and, yes, feminine hygiene products.
Although Oestreicher said the collection is meant to be whimsical and fun, he admits that he thought long and hard about including Baby Jesus as a tampon.
"However, the website where it came from -- tamponcrafts.com -- is a legitmate craft website," he told The Huffington Post.
When Oestreicher first started the collection, he titled it "the worst nativity scenes ever." However, in recent years, he's becoming more forgiving and more accepting.
"After posting these for years, most of them have moved -- in my thinking -- from worst to awesome," he wrote on his blog. "There are still a few i think hideous, due to my own subjective criteria, but calling it the '42 worst nativity sets' is probably no longer accurate, particularly as I own a few of 'em."
Loading Slideshow
Zombie Nativity
The birth of Jesus has inspired many artists and entrepreneurs to put their own spin on the tale. Christian author Mark Oestreicher has collected some of his favorites on his blog, <a href="http://WhyIsMarko.com" target="_hplink">WhyIsMarko.com</a>, including this one that depicts all participants as zombies in "Deathlehem."
Rubber Duckie Nativity
Oestreicher used to be bothered when he would see nativity scenes depicting Jesus, Mary and Joseph as rubber ducks, but now he looks at products like these as "whimsical attempts for people to engage in a mystery."
Meat Nativity
This depiction of the birth of Jesus "meats" all of Oestreicher's criteria for an offbeat nativity -- and has the added bonus of being able to feed peoples' stomachs and their souls at the same time.
Nativity Cupcake Toppers
At first, Oestreicher was taken aback by the use of obviously commercial products, such as these cupcake toppers, even though they "weren't morally wrong." But he has learned to enjoy them.
Mermaid Nativity
Oestreicher loves the craft that went behind this nativity scene, even though he finds the concept fishy.
Spam Nativity
This depiction of the Bethlehem manger in spam is surely made for Monty Python fans.
Snow Globe Nativity
Oestreicher is particularly amused by this snow globe nativity, mainly because of the way Mary and Joseph are looking at their child through a fishbowl.
S'mores Nativity
Oestreicher believes this nativity, which depicts Jesus and family as s'mores, is perhaps the worst nativity set he's seen.
Shotgun Shell Nativity
If there is a person in your life whose favorite religious ditty is "Praise The Lord And Pass The Ammunition," this nativity made from shotgun shells is sure to hit the bullseye.
Soap Nativity
Oestreicher's annual blog post of weird nativity scenes has become so big that some people send him photos of their work in hopes of inclusion, such as this soap nativity.
Tampon Nativity
Oestreicher initially worried about including this nativity scene that uses tampons, but decided to go ahead since it comes from a legitimate craft website that just happens to be dedicated to using tampons.
Moose Nativity
Oestreicher admits that he's not a fan of animal nativity scenes, because they lack creativity.
Meerkat Nativity
Halloween Nativity
Because some Christians are anti-Halloween, Oestreicher wasn't sure about the intent of the people who made this nativity scene, but after discussions with the creators, decided it was not malicious, just fun.
Frog Nativity
Color Nativity
This nativity scene, using only color blocks, is Oestreicher's current favorite, as it shows that the nativity is so iconic that it's possible to look at these abstract shapes and still tell what its depicting immediately.
Loading comments… 
