All posts tagged: Santa Claus

The real Saint Nicholas

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While our modern Santa Claus has taken on god-like qualities in our modern culture, the story of jolly ole Saint Nick finds its roots in a real man, Saint Nicholas, who served as the Bishop of Myra located in modern Turkey. The city of Myra, located on the Mediterranean, is briefly mentioned in Acts 27:5, as Paul, now a prisoner, was being transported to Rome by a centurion According to ancient tradition, Nicholas (270 AD – Dec 6, 343 AD) was born in the city of Patara, also located on the Mediterranean Sea. It was a city, that the Apostle Paul visited while on his journey to Jerusalem (Acts 21:1-2). Nicholas came from a very wealthy Christian family and for the first half of his life, he lived during some of the most horrific times of Roman persecution, under the emperor Diocletian (284 – 305). During this period, Roman soldiers were going door to door searching for copies of scripture. It was this persecution that spurred the early believers to canonize the Bible, as they …

Have researchers discovered the tomb of St. Nicholas?

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According to a Turkish news site, Demirören News Agency, researchers may have discovered the tomb of St. Nicholas, the Bishop of Myra while excavating the ruins of a third and fourth century church in Demure, Turkey, Breitbart reports. St. Nicholas, as his name suggests, is the man who inspired our modern Santa Claus. He was the Bishop of Myra prior to his death on December 6, 343 AD. The tomb is probably empty as the bones of St Nicholas were apparently transported to Bari, Italy in 1087 AD, and are now on display at the Basilica di San Nicola. Other bone fragments may have also ended up San Nicolò al Lido in Venice. Nevertheless, researchers believe the newly discovered basilica may still contain other relics associated with the infamous Bishop. Though little is known about St. Nickolas’ life, historical documents reveal that 250 years after his death people were making pilgrimages to his tomb in Bari revealing his growing fame. So how did his life pave the way for our modern Santa Claus? Breitbart provides …

Feast of Saint Nicholas being celebrated in Firbourg, Switzerland on December 6, 2009 Credit: Chlempi/Wikipedia

Have archaeologists found the grave of Santa Claus?

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A recent statement by Turkish archaeologists may throw a damper on this year’s Christmas celebration. They are claiming to have found the last remains of Santa Claus. While working on an old church in Demre located in Southern Turkey, an electronic survey revealed an opening in the ground beneath the church that probably holds the remains of Saint Nicholas. He is a fourth century bishop on which our modern Santa Claus is based. An initial look beneath the church floor revealed an undamaged shrine. Saint Nicholas was the Bishop of Mrya. The name of the city was later changed to Demre. According to tradition, he would secretly give gifts to children often by putting money in their shoes. Bishop Nicholas was imprisoned and tortured during the reign of Diocletian but lived long enough to see the Christian emperor Constantine come to power and was then released. When Saint Nicholas died on December 6, 343 AD (December 19 on the Julian calendar) he was buried at his church. Demre even has a museum dedicated to this saint. …

Credit: Scott Fiddelke/Flickr/Creative Commons

What should we tell our kids about Santa?

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My son was about five or six years old when he motioned for me to come to our front window. It was December and our front yard was blanketed with a fresh layer of snow. We lived on the edge of the city and wild life made regular forays into our front yard. As I went to the window I saw a trail of rabbit tracks wandering through the snow. My son then explained those were the tracks of Santa’s reindeer. He must have been in our yard the night before. My wife and I had decided to tell our children that Santa was not real, with the proviso that they were not to say anything about it to the other kids. But my son saw Santa in the malls and on TV. At his Christian pre-school, many of the kids were talking about Santa and my son wanted to believe in Santa as well and now he was trying to convince me those tracks were evidence Santa existed. I told him that those were …