Santa Clause and St. Nicholas..
(LAST POST FOR 2021)
The legend of Santa Clause has existed in some form or another throughout Europe for century's.
Though the modern image of Santa we know today as a jolly fat man clad in red and white is largely thanks to a marketing ploy by the Coca Cola company in the lat 1800's and early 1900's.
In old Norse traditions Odin would arrive on his eight legged horse Sleipnir and leave gifts for good children.
The Dutch have Sinterklaas.
Italy has the Christmas witch La Bafana.
there are several other traditions involving a magic figure bearing gifts, but for today we will focus on St.Nichols.
St.Nichols, Nicholas the Wonderworker, Saint Nicholas of Myra, Nicholas of Bari, Saint Nick etc..
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Saint Nicholas was a Greek saint from the early days of the Christian Church, born during the third century Roman Empire in the village of Patara At the time the area was Greek and is now on the southern coast of Turkey.
He lived from 15 March 270 – 6 December 343.
St.Nicholas is known as the patron saint of sailors, merchants, archers, repentant thieves, prostitutes, children, brewers, pawnbrokers and unmarried people.
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The earliest accounts of his life were written centuries after his death and recount several miracles attributed to him.
He is believed to have been born in the Greek seaport of Patara, Lycia to wealthy Christian parents who raised him to be a devout Christian, His parents died in an epidemic while Nicholas was still young. Obeying Jesus’ words to “sell what you own and give the money to the poor,” Nicholas used his inheritance to assist the needy, the sick, and the suffering. He dedicated his life to serving God and was made Bishop of Myra while still a young man. Bishop Nicholas became known throughout the land for his generosity to those in need, his love for children, and his concern for sailors and ships.
in one of the most well know story's Nicholas comes to the aid of a poor man with three daughters. In those days a young woman’s father had to offer prospective husbands something of value—a dowry. The larger the dowry, the better the chance that a young woman would find a good husband. Without a dowry, a woman was unlikely to marry. This poor man’s daughters, without dowries, were therefore destined to be sold into slavery. Mysteriously, on three different occasions, a bag of gold appeared in their home-providing the needed dowries.
The bags of gold, tossed through an open window, are said to have landed in stockings or shoes left before the fire to dry. This led to the custom of children hanging stockings or putting out shoes, eagerly awaiting gifts from Saint Nicholas. Sometimes the story is told with gold balls instead of bags of gold. That is why three gold balls, sometimes represented as oranges, are one of the symbols for St. Nicholas.
One of the oldest stories showing St. Nicholas as a protector of children takes place long after his death. The townspeople of Myra were celebrating the good saint on the eve of his feast day when a band of Arab pirates from Crete came into the district. They stole treasures from the Church of Saint Nicholas. As they were leaving town, they snatched a young boy, Basilios, to make into a slave.
The emir, or ruler, selected Basilios to be his personal cupbearer, as not knowing the language, Basilios would not understand what the king said to those around him. So, for the next year Basilios waited on the king, bringing his wine in a beautiful golden cup. For Basilios’ parents, devastated at the loss of their only child, the year passed slowly, filled with grief. As the next St. Nicholas’ feast day approached, Basilios’ mother would not join in the festivity, as it was now a day of tragedy. However, she was persuaded to have a simple observance at home—with quiet prayers for Basilios’ safekeeping. Meanwhile, as Basilios was fulfilling his tasks serving the emir, he was suddenly whisked up and away.
St. Nicholas appeared to the terrified boy, blessed him, and set him down at his home back in Myra. Imagine the joy and wonderment when Basilios amazingly appeared before his parents, still holding the king’s golden cup. This is the first story told of St. Nicholas protecting children—which
became his primary role in the West.
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Nicholas and the sea.
During his youth, Nicholas made a pilgrimage to the Holy Land.
To walk where Jesus walked in order to experience Jesus’ life, passion, and resurrection.
Returning by sea, a mighty storm threatened to wreck the ship. Nicholas calmly prayed. The terrified sailors were amazed when the wind and waves suddenly calmed, sparing them all. later he would be named the patron of sailors and voyagers.
Nicholas also saved his people from famine, sparing the lives of those innocently accused, and more.
Throughout his life he did numerous kind and generous deeds all in secret, expecting nothing in return.
Within a century of his death he was celebrated as a saint.
Today he is venerated in the East as a miracle worker and in the West as patron saint of children, mariners, bankers, pawn-brokers, scholars, orphans, laborers, travelers, merchants, judges, paupers, marriageable maidens, students, children, sailors, victims of judicial mistakes, captives, perfumers, even thieves and murderers! He is known as the friend and protector of all in trouble or need
Sailors carried stories of Nicholas along their travels, claiming St. Nicholas as patron, and told of his favor and protection far and wide.as a result several St. Nicholas chapels were built in many seaports.
As his popularity spread during the Middle Ages, he became the patron saint of Apulia (Italy), Sicily, Greece, and Lorraine (France), and many cities in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Italy, Russia, Belgium, and the Netherlands (see list). Following his baptism, Grand Prince Vladimir I brought St. Nicholas’ stories and devotion to St. Nicholas to his homeland where Nicholas became the most beloved saint.
Nicholas was so widely revered that thousands of churches were named for him, including three hundred in Belgium, thirty-four in Rome, twenty-three in the Netherlands and more than four hundred in England.
Under the Roman Emperor Diocletian, who ruthlessly persecuted Christians, Bishop Nicholas suffered for his faith, was exiled and imprisoned.
The prisons were so full of bishops, priests, and deacons, there was no room for the real criminal—murderers, thieves and robbers. After his release, Nicholas was said to have attended the Council of Nicaea in AD 325. Later legends claim that he was temporarily defrocked and imprisoned during the council for slapping the heretic Arius.
Nicholas's attendance at the Council of Nicaea is attested early by Theodore the Lector's list of attendees, which records him as the 151st attendee.
However, he is never mentioned by Athanasius of Alexandria, the foremost defender of Trinitarianism at the council, who knew all the notable bishops of the period, nor is he mentioned by the historian Eusebius, who was also present at the council. Adam C. English notes that lists of the attendees at Nicaea vary considerably, with shorter lists only including roughly 200 names, but longer lists including around 300. Saint Nicholas's name only appears on
the longer lists, not the shorter ones. Nicholas's name appears on a total of three early lists, one of which, Theodore the Lector's, is generally
considered to be the most accurate.
Nicholas Death..
He died December 6, AD 343 in Myra and was buried in his cathedral church, where a
unique relic, called manna, formed in his grave. This liquid substance, said to have healing powers, fostered the growth of devotion to Nicholas.
The anniversary of his death became a day of celebration, St. Nicholas Day, December 6th (December 19 on the Julian Calendar.
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Other versions of Santa
St. Nicholas’ feast day, December 6th, is celebrated with stories of his generosity.
In Germany and Poland, boys dressed as bishops begged alms for the poor—and sometimes for themselves!
In the Netherlands and Belgium, St. Nicholas arrived on a steamship from Spain to ride a white horse on his gift-giving rounds. December 6th is still the main day for gift giving and merrymaking in much of Europe.
In the Netherlands St. Nicholas is celebrated on the December 5th, the eve of the day, by sharing candies (thrown in the door),chocolate initial letters, small gifts, and riddles. Dutch children leave carrots and hay in their shoes for the saint’s horse, hoping St. Nicholas will exchange them for small gifts.
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Less than 200 years after his death, the St. Nicholas Church was built in Myra under the orders of Theodosius II over the site of the church where he had served as bishop, and his remains were moved to a sarcophagus in that church.
In 1087, while the Greek Christian inhabitants of the region were subjugated by the newly arrived Muslim Seljuk Turks, and soon after their church was declared to be in schism by the Catholic church, a group of merchants from the Italian city of Bari removed the major bones of Nicholas's skeleton from his sarcophagus in the church without authorization and brought them to their hometown, where they are now enshrined in the Basilica di San Nicola. The remaining bone fragments from the sarcophagus were later removed by Venetian sailors and taken to Venice during the First Crusade.
The Nicholas shrine in Bari was one of medieval Europe’s great pilgrimage centers and Nicholas became known as “Saint in Bari.” To this day pilgrims and tourists visit Bari’s great Basilica di San Nicola.
Today his legend lives on in the hearts of children worldwide who eagerly await a visit from Santa Claus.
Merry Christmas Everyone and have a great New Year.🎄🎅🎄
