The True Story of Santa Claus

This story is true.

Well, at least as much as any story can be. The facts may be wrong. But that’s not the important part.

The year was 325 AD.

Constantine was emperor of Rome.

He called for the Christian religious leaders to meet in a place called Nicaea and to come to agreement on certain doctrines.

At the time, there was a heresy that challenged the divinity of Jesus. A priest named Arius was spearheading this movement that would later become known as Arianism. And though it may seem a small blip in history and no big deal to us, it threatened the very cornerstone of man’s salvation.

A certain bishop tried to reason with Arius. But, no reason would get through. So the bishop grabbed Arius by the beard and punched him in the face.

Now, Some say it was just a slap. Some say he just pulled his beard a little. And others say he wasn’t even at the council of Niacaea and that all this is just fiction that became legend.

By our standards of “tolerance” today, this might seem harsh. But let’s give the guy a break. He wasn’t a bully.

You see, before Constantine was emperor of Rome there was Diocletian. And Emperor Diocletian led the largest Christian persecution the world had ever known.

Our punch-happy bishop was thrown into prison. He was tortured for his faith but refused to renounce the Savior. He was released from prison when Constantine became emperor and resumed his work of spreading the gospel through good deeds.

You can probably understand how a man willing to die for his faith isn’t going to simply let someone walk in and tear it to shreds from the inside.

But, I’m not here to make excuses or give explanations. I’m just trying to tell you the story.

This bishop didn’t have a reputation for violence or pushing his weight around. He was known for his kindness, generosity, and standing up for those in need.

When he was young, his parents died and left him a small fortune. He dedicated this wealth to providing for the poor.

One story claims that there was a man with 3 daughters. They were poor. The man had no dowery for them to get married. And for some reason the fear was that they would be sold as slaves or prostitutes.

But our bishop would have none of this.

He snuck up to the house late at night and tossed gold through an open window. He did this for each girl on separate occasions. And, the girls were able to be kept safe and marry. Sometimes the gold fell into a shoe or into socks that were kept by the fireplace.

Another story is about an evil Inn-keeper. There were 3 students passing through and chose to stay at the Inn that night. The Inn-keeper decided to murder them and take their possessions. He knew they wouldn’t be missed. He placed their dead bodies in large pickling jars.

It just so happens that our bishop was traveling through the same town that night and had a dream about the 3 students.

He found them and broke the jars open. They were miraculously revived. And the evil Inn-keeper was stopped. I’m not sure what the bishop did to the Inn-keeper. But since he was no stranger to using his fists when needed….I’d say that Inn-keeper got what he deserved.

But what does this have to do with Santa Claus?

Well, you’ve probably figured that out already.

This bishop that defended the faith…

Gave his riches to the poor…

And went to dark places to rescues those in need…

was named Nicholas.

He would later be canonized and come to be known as Saint Nicholas. Or St Nick to us.

The Dutch would call him Sinterklaas.

His feast day is on December 6th, which was the original day of giving gifts. Martin Luther would move the day to December 25th to place more emphasis on Jesus. And the Christkind would become the gift giver in many parts of the world. Christkind or Christkindl or Christkindel would later become pronounced Kris Kringle.

And here we are.

A blessed mix of legend, language, and tradition.

A story so true that it transcends facts and becomes interwoven into our souls.

So just remember, when people say Christmas is a pagan holiday, or that Santa Claus is some myth told to keep kids in line, you can tell them the story of Saint Nicholas. The real story.

You tell them…Yes Virginia, there is a Santa Claus.

And if they still won’t listen.

Just ask yourself what would St Nick do?

And punch that heretic in the face.