St. Nick...
"For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord."
-Luke 2:11 (King James Version)
There has been quite a bit of complaining going on about the commercialization of Christmas...and rightly so.
However, even though Santa Claus (A.K.A. St. Nicholas) is sometimes vilified as a secular replacement for Jesus (whose birth it is that we celebrate) this "fictional" character is actually based upon a real person, who lived in the 4th century A.D. (That A.D. business also having been based on Jesus' birth)
According to Wikipedia:
Saint Nicholas (Greek: Άγιος Νικόλαος, Aghios ["holy"] Nicolaos ["victory of the people"]) (270–6 December 343),[3][4] also called Nikolaos of Myra, was a saint and Greek[5] Bishop of Myra (Demre, in Lycia, part of modern-day Turkey). Because of the many miracles attributed to his intercession, he is also known as Nikolaos the Wonderworker (Greek: Νικόλαος ο Θαυματουργός, Nikolaos o Thaumaturgos). He had a reputation for secret gift-giving, such as putting coins in the shoes of those who left them out for him, and thus became the model for Santa Claus, whose modern name comes from the Dutch Sinterklaas. His reputation evolved among the faithful, as is common for early Christian saints.[6] In 1087, his relics were furtively translated to Bari, in southeastern Italy; for this reason, he is also known as Nikolaos of Bari. His feastday is December 6.
So, let's not be so quick give this old guy a bad rap:
It seems that celebrating Christmas in the proper way is what he was all about...long before any of us were even born.
As for that commercialization of Christmas business?
Blame the businesses. ;-)
MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!
(↑ Go ahead, click it! ↑)
-Luke 2:11 (King James Version)
There has been quite a bit of complaining going on about the commercialization of Christmas...and rightly so.
However, even though Santa Claus (A.K.A. St. Nicholas) is sometimes vilified as a secular replacement for Jesus (whose birth it is that we celebrate) this "fictional" character is actually based upon a real person, who lived in the 4th century A.D. (That A.D. business also having been based on Jesus' birth)
According to Wikipedia:
Saint Nicholas (Greek: Άγιος Νικόλαος, Aghios ["holy"] Nicolaos ["victory of the people"]) (270–6 December 343),[3][4] also called Nikolaos of Myra, was a saint and Greek[5] Bishop of Myra (Demre, in Lycia, part of modern-day Turkey). Because of the many miracles attributed to his intercession, he is also known as Nikolaos the Wonderworker (Greek: Νικόλαος ο Θαυματουργός, Nikolaos o Thaumaturgos). He had a reputation for secret gift-giving, such as putting coins in the shoes of those who left them out for him, and thus became the model for Santa Claus, whose modern name comes from the Dutch Sinterklaas. His reputation evolved among the faithful, as is common for early Christian saints.[6] In 1087, his relics were furtively translated to Bari, in southeastern Italy; for this reason, he is also known as Nikolaos of Bari. His feastday is December 6.
So, let's not be so quick give this old guy a bad rap:
It seems that celebrating Christmas in the proper way is what he was all about...long before any of us were even born.
As for that commercialization of Christmas business?
Blame the businesses. ;-)
MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!
(↑ Go ahead, click it! ↑)
posted by camojack | 00:01
7 Comments:
I never forget what Christmas is all about, and I give gifts to people as a way to express the celebration of the Greatest Gift given to humankind...Jesus Christ.
A Merry and Blessed Christmas to you, Jack. :-)
Merry Christmas, my friend :) Hope those reindeer don't eat all your cookies!
Great post. Merry Christmas..
Bunny:
Exactly. St.Nick was all about giving gifts in honor of that greatest gift.
Merry Christmas!
Cassandra:
Good to "hear" from you; I hope that you and yours are doing well, and a Merry Christmas to you, too.
Allen Maddox:
I'm glad you like it.
Merry Christmas...or as they say where I'm going:
Mele Kalikimaka!
Hey Camo. As you know, I got my present a few days ago with my new job. Now the "fun" begins: living alone in temporary housing, looking for a home, meeting all new people, learning a new job in a new place, moving, etc. Whew! I get tired just thinking about it. But it certainly seems to be part of God's plan.
(:D) Merry Christmas!
On point as usual, Jack!
I had a bit of a Christmas gift given to my family a few days ago. You can read about it on this little used blog:
http://beerandfirkins.blogspot.com/
And have the best of Christmases, my friend!
Hawkeye®:
You got a good (and much needed) present, yes. Congratulations!
I can help you a bit with the "meeting all new people" thing if you wish, since I know some folks in the State you're moving to. Just let me know, and a very merry Christmas to you too, all 12 days of it.
Beerme:
I'm glad you liked it, mon ami.
I did read that "little used blog"; hopefully you can find the time to use it more often, but for now, thank you for sharing...and may your Christmas be among the best as well.
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