“’Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house, not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse. The stockings were hung by the chimney with care, in hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there.”

    St. Nicholas, Santa Claus, Father Christmas, Papa Noel, Sinter Klaas…No matter what we call him, or how we picture him, he will always be the same person doing the same thing year after year.

    Our beloved Christmas elf, however, is actually not an elf at all. He was a living, breathing person at one point. His name was Nicholas, and he was born during the third century in the village of Patara. At that time, the area was Greek, and is now on the southern coast of Turkey. His parents were incredibly wealthy and they raised young Nicholas to be a devout Christian. They, however, 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 entire inheritance to assist the needy, the sick, and the suffering. He dedicated his life to serving God and was named Bishop of Myra while still a young man. Bishop Nicholas was known throughout the land for his generosity to those in need, his love for children, and his concern for sailors and ships. Bishop Nicholas died December 6, 343 AD in Myra and was buried in his cathedral church where a unique relic, called manna, formed in his grave. Manna is a liquid substance that is said to have healing powers. The anniversary of his death became a day of celebration, St. Nicholas Day, December 6^th.

    There are many stories of St. Nicholas, and the most famous is the story of the three daughters. In those days, a young woman’s father had to offer a potential husband something valuable –a dowry. The larger the dowry, the better the husband. Without a dowry, a woman was hardly likely to marry. This poor man’s daughters were destined to be sold into slavery because they had no dowries. Bishop Nicholas heard about this and decided he would do something about it. He went to their village once a year for three years, climbed up on their roof, and dropped one bag of gold coins down the chimney so that the bag would land in one of the girls’ stockings, which were hanging by the fire to dry. After two of his daughters had been married, the father was determined to find out who was helping them. So, he hid behind the chimney one night and along came Bishop Nicholas with another bag of money. When he was discovered, he asked the father not to tell anyone else. The father, however, wanted everyone to know what a good and generous man Bishop Nicholas was, so he told everyone he knew. That’s how the stockings by the fireplace tradition got started.

    Not only are there different stories, but St. Nicholas’s looks are different too. In 1931, Coca-Cola snatched up this beloved saint and changed his looks entirely. No longer was St. Nicholas a tall, skinny man with white hair and a beard that lived in Turkey and walked or rode a horse everywhere he went. Now he was a man with rosy cheeks and a nose like a cherry. His belly was round “and shook, when he laughed, like a bowl full of jelly. He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf.” He rode a sleigh pulled by reindeer, and lived somewhere in the North Pole. He travels on Christmas Eve to every house in the world, and drinks Coca-Cola, except for when he goes to people’s homes where he has the cookies and milk left out for him by the little children.

    The elf Santa may not be real, but know that St. Nicholas of Patara, Bishop of Myra, was as real as it gets. He loved children and was exceedingly generous. So before you go and tell that younger sibling or cousin of yours that Santa isn’t real, remember that he did live at one point.

    “But I heard him exclaim, ere he drove out of sight, ‘Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good-night.’”