The ‘Hidden’ Truth About Santa Claus (Father Christmas)

St. Nicholas is said to have been born of wealthy
parents and to have traveled to the Holy Land in
his youth. He was tortured and imprisoned
during the persecutions of Diocletian, and
released when Constantine ordered official
toleration of Christians. Nicholas is said to have
attended the famous Council of Nicea in 325
(although his name does not appear in the
official lists), where he became so infuriated by
the heretic Arius that he slapped him hard in the
face!

Many of the legends of St. Nicholas involve him
helping young people and the poor. In one tale, a
butcher lured three boys to his house during a
time of famine. While they slept, he killed them,
cut them up and placed the pieces in a barrel of
salt, intending to sell them for food. Nicholas,
who was told of this horrendous act by an angel,
hurried to the butcher’s house and restored the
boys to life.
Another popular legend has it that three
daughters of a poor merchant were about to be
forced into prostitution since they had no
marriage dowries, but St. Nicholas saved them
from a life of sin by dropping three bags of gold
into the merchant’s garden or chimney (versions
vary), enabling them to get married.
In the early 1950s Turks realized that the Bishop
of Myra, Saint Nicholas, was none other than the
western world’s Santa Claus or Father Christmas.
Just as the good saint had brought pilgrims to
Myra, and later to Bari, Italy, it was hoped he
would again attract tourists and pilgrims with
their lira, euros, and dollars.
The first Father Christmas Symposium, held in
1983, has become an annual event, lasting about
a week over the 6th of December, St. Nicholas
Day. Religious and scientific people come from
many countries for the Activities for World Peace
with Santa Claus, including the Santa Claus Peace
Award. This led to the establishment in 1991 of
the Santa Claus Foundation to promote peace,
friendship and brotherhood.
The saint was buried in Myra upon his death, and
a church may have been built over his tomb
soon after. If so, it would have been badly
damaged in the earthquake of 529 and repaired
along with Myra’s other buildings later in the 6th
century under Emperor Justinian. Damaged in
the Arab raids of the 7th century, the Church of
St. Nicholas of Myra was rebuilt in the 8th
century ; it is this structure that largely survives
today.
After his death, Nicholas became the patron saint
of sailors and seafarers, and many pilgrims came
to visit his tomb. Over the centuries, the legends
and great popularity of St. Nicholas of Myra led
to the Christmastime figure of the bearded man
who secretly brings toys to children. He is still
known as St. Nick in most of Europe (and he
brings his gifts on December 6, not Christmas),
but in America he came to be known as Santa
Claus.

The church suffered another Arab attack in 1034
and was restored in 1043 by Emperor Constantine
IX, at which time a walled monastery was added
nearby. In 1087, a group of Italian merchants
pushed past the monks and broke open the
saint’s sarcophagus. They stole the relics and
took them to Bari, Italy, where they were placed
in a shrine in the cathedral.

By the middle of the 19th century, the Church of
St. Nicholas was in very poor condition. Two
attempts by Russian groups to restore it were
only partly successful. The bell tower and upper
storey were probably added at this time.