Who was St. Nicholas?
There really isn’t much known about this particular individual although there are plenty of legends and stories. December 6 is the day that is celebrated in his honor.
St. Nicholas is thought to have been born around modern day Turkey in a city called Myra about 280 A.D. He has been one of the most popular saints in the Greek and Latin churches even during the times when the celebration of saints was discouraged. His existence isn't attested by any historical document and all we can really say is that he was probably elected bishop of Myra sometime in the 300s.
He was made a saint after his death, but from what is written, he wasn’t really known for the giving of gifts. It wasn’t until around 1300 that gift giving was actually associated with St. Nicholas.
History states that he was born to wealthy parents and when they died, he inherited a large sum of money that he eventually gave away. The most common story told is about he supposedly threw bags of gold through a window for three girls about to be forced into lives of slavery and prostitution.
He reportedly performed a couple of miracles while he was a boy earning him the name “Nicholas the Wonder-Worker”. His legend also has him nursing only two days a week and fasting the other days as an infant, bringing dead children back to life, and blocking an executioner to save the life of his prisoner. He reportedly saved 3 sailors from drowning by stopping a storm, and showered children with gifts by throwing them into their windows. These are all legendary with no historical documentation to support the claims.
He was Bishop during the time when Maximian and Diocletian began their persecutions of Christians, and he was imprisoned.
He was later released when Constantine became emperor. He began preaching only to find a new threat of Gnostic teaching called Arianism. Biographers on his history said he personally traveled to the Council of Nicea and slapped Arius in the face. This caused so much shock amongst the other Bishops that they were going to relieve him as bishop. But then Jesus and Mary supposedly appeared next to him and the bishops recanted. This is probably just legend because there were pretty good records regarding this particular church council and Nicholas was not mentioned. History also states according to a biographer that: "Thanks to the teaching of St. Nicholas, the metropolis of Myra alone was untouched by the filth of the Arian heresy, which it firmly rejected as a death-dealing poison."
During the reign of Justinian in 565, the emperor dedicated a church in Constantinople to him and by the 900’s people from east to west were giving him acclaim and glory. There were more than 400 churches dedicated in his honor during the late Middle ages in England alone.
His popularity grew and, in Germany, especially because of the gold-giving story, it became intertwined with others to the point that some of the legends are difficult to trace. Somewhere along the line, people began to give gifts in his remembrance on his feast day. This tradition waned during the Protestant reformation in most places except Holland. Here, his legend continued as Sinterklass. Martin Luther replaced this bearer of gifts with the Christ Child, or, in German, Christkindl and over the years, that became repronounced Kriss Kringle. In American history, it has taken various forms and has been less favored at time, but ironically it is now considered another name for Santa Claus.
And now you know the rest of the story!
St. Nicholas is thought to have been born around modern day Turkey in a city called Myra about 280 A.D. He has been one of the most popular saints in the Greek and Latin churches even during the times when the celebration of saints was discouraged. His existence isn't attested by any historical document and all we can really say is that he was probably elected bishop of Myra sometime in the 300s.
He was made a saint after his death, but from what is written, he wasn’t really known for the giving of gifts. It wasn’t until around 1300 that gift giving was actually associated with St. Nicholas.
History states that he was born to wealthy parents and when they died, he inherited a large sum of money that he eventually gave away. The most common story told is about he supposedly threw bags of gold through a window for three girls about to be forced into lives of slavery and prostitution.
He reportedly performed a couple of miracles while he was a boy earning him the name “Nicholas the Wonder-Worker”. His legend also has him nursing only two days a week and fasting the other days as an infant, bringing dead children back to life, and blocking an executioner to save the life of his prisoner. He reportedly saved 3 sailors from drowning by stopping a storm, and showered children with gifts by throwing them into their windows. These are all legendary with no historical documentation to support the claims.
He was Bishop during the time when Maximian and Diocletian began their persecutions of Christians, and he was imprisoned.
He was later released when Constantine became emperor. He began preaching only to find a new threat of Gnostic teaching called Arianism. Biographers on his history said he personally traveled to the Council of Nicea and slapped Arius in the face. This caused so much shock amongst the other Bishops that they were going to relieve him as bishop. But then Jesus and Mary supposedly appeared next to him and the bishops recanted. This is probably just legend because there were pretty good records regarding this particular church council and Nicholas was not mentioned. History also states according to a biographer that: "Thanks to the teaching of St. Nicholas, the metropolis of Myra alone was untouched by the filth of the Arian heresy, which it firmly rejected as a death-dealing poison."
During the reign of Justinian in 565, the emperor dedicated a church in Constantinople to him and by the 900’s people from east to west were giving him acclaim and glory. There were more than 400 churches dedicated in his honor during the late Middle ages in England alone.
His popularity grew and, in Germany, especially because of the gold-giving story, it became intertwined with others to the point that some of the legends are difficult to trace. Somewhere along the line, people began to give gifts in his remembrance on his feast day. This tradition waned during the Protestant reformation in most places except Holland. Here, his legend continued as Sinterklass. Martin Luther replaced this bearer of gifts with the Christ Child, or, in German, Christkindl and over the years, that became repronounced Kriss Kringle. In American history, it has taken various forms and has been less favored at time, but ironically it is now considered another name for Santa Claus.
And now you know the rest of the story!
posted by Anonymous at 5:40 AM
1 Comments:
And that completes the "blog trilogy" -- didn't read it in the Tribune!
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