The Monk who stole Christmas: a palimpsest, or evolution of 'Kris Kringle'



Before I do my best to communicate the history of this icon, let me warn you, again, that I am an irreverent SOB, who doesn't subscribe to any belief system whatsoever.  So, if you enjoy this day from any kind of religious or faith-based perspective, then please don't read this. 

Proceed at your own risk!  : )



 It's almost that time of the year again, Dear Reader:  the fat guy in his red suit, a reindeer with a baseball sized red flashlight for a nose, and Boris Karloff (yeah, that's right, you remember, the voice of the 'Grinch' you know you just have to watch it just once before the big day..).  We also must not forget other equally important traditions of the occasion:  obligatory opening of gifts, bad holiday sweaters, and drunken filial fights at the dinner table.


One of the persistent 'myths' surrounding this young commercialized holiday, is Santa Claus--the kindly old man who rides a sleigh, doling out presents to all the kiddies in the world-ee-poo.

Guffaw.  I hate to tell you this, Dear Reader, but I was (am) one of those terrible parents who told their child at the age of six, that Santa didn't exist, and then proceeded to explain some of the anthropological origins of the legend.  I also told my lovely daughter, when she was too young, that Christmas was only a modern manifestation of the Winter solstice festival (an oversimplification), and had nothing at all to do with the birth of someone in a barn.

Wow.  I was a terrible mother.

So, how did this



...and this



and this


Evolve from this?????





Now, this looks like a really fun guy.  I can totally see him climbing down the chimney.




Rudolf's right hand man.

Such are the traditional representations of the Christian "Saint Nicholas."  Who was he, you may ask.  Let's find out.



The man known as "Saint Nicholas" was probably born in 270 CE, near Patara, Lycia et Pamphyla.



It was a small city located on the coast of Turkey.


 
According to legend, Nick's parents were rich Christians, so his youth couldn't have been a total chore--not much opportunity for self flagellation, eh? One of the first 'urban myths' from his life, happens while he is a young man:  he heard through the grapevine, that three daughters of a poor man were about to be sold into slavery, because he couldn't afford their marriage dowries.  For three nights in a row, Nick supposedly dropped a sack of gold through the father's window, thus providing the marriage price for each daughter, saving them from a life of prostitution.

Other stories have him chopping down a tree that was possessed by a demon. 

Wait.  What?  

Oh, alright, I know.  Let's move on.  

At some point, in the latter part of his youth, Nick made a religious pilgrimage to both Egypt and Palestine.  When he got back home, he probably became the Bishop of Myra.  Now, this was not exactly a safe time to be openly Christian--the battle between the new faith and pagans was rapidly becoming red hot.  It was during the so-called 'persecution of Diocletian,' that Nick was thrown into jail, only to be released upon the accession of Constantine.  

Another legend swirling around our boy wonder, is that he was present at the infamous Council of  Nicea in 325 CE, but there is little (i.e. no) evidence to substantiate this.  One story describes how Nick resurrected three kids who'd been murdered and 'pickled' by a local butcher, because of a recent famine.

Ewwwwwwwwwwwwwwww.

And those paltry facts are about it.  We don't know much else about the historical St. Nicholas, except that over time, he became a patron saint for sailors and children.  The anniversary of his death on or about December 6th, was something of a holiday involving useless purchases and small marriages, by the early Renaissance.  

The beneficial aura surrounding Nick, was disrupted by the Protestant Reformation, as these dour sects disapproved of the worship of saints.  Idolatry, they termed it.  

Weren’t Reformation Protestants fun little bastards?

Moving on!

Here comes Sinter Klaas, right down Sinter Klaas lane!

Who? Well Dear Reader, this was the Dutch nickname for Nick the Saint.  It was through this avenue, that Santa begins to have an impact on our modern perception of xmas.  In this country, we have 18th century records of  Dutch communities gathering to honor Nick's death (i.e. early December).  By the early 19th century, one John Pintard, a member of NY's historical society, distributed some 'woodcuts' of a bearded man surrounded by decorated evergreens and *h*tloads of presents. 

Still later,  it appears that there was a merging between the religious figure of St. Nicholas, and the Dutch version, of the gift-giving, child-loving Sinter Klaas.  In 1809, Washington Irving's seminal work, History of New York included descriptions of the Dutch version of Saint Nicholas, encouraging a combination between 'Saint Nicholas' and 'Sinter Klaas'--two culturally different incarnations of the same historical figure.

 So, that's some help, in terms of understanding the modern incarnation of our jolly red-coat-wearing fellow.  But, I always think Sinter Klaas looks like this:


  I know.  But, watching this was one of my rituals, growing up in California (p.s.  I think that my sister enjoyed it too when we were both young!).

From this point, its' interesting to track how our contemporary Santa evolved, from an early Christian figure-see above--to this:

Next week, we'll take a look at December 25th, and its' possible association to an ancient Near Eastern god named Mithras.

Until then, Happy Holidays!



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