Did you know:
That we hang them up because of Saint Nicholas, the Christian Bishop of Myra?
So, who was this man whose actions we celebrate every year?
Well, first of all where is Myra?
It was, it is no more, on the south Mediterranean coast of Turkey, near the modern town of Demre.
At that time, it was one of the most important towns of the Lycian Civilization, which by the mid-1st century B.C. comprised of 23 cities. It’s fame in history is that it was the first known democratic federation in history. Each of the principal cities had 3 votes, while the smaller ones had 1 or 2 votes depending on their size.
At this time it was part of the Koine Greek speaking world, which had embraced Christianity. It was here at Myra that from December 343BC to March 270BC its bishop was Saint Nicholas.
Why did he go down in History?
The main reason he went down in history was that he had a habit, that became legendary, of secret gift-giving. It was for this reason that we took his name, Saint Nick, then made it into Santa Claus, and he became part of our Christmas.
There are many legends of his love of children, however, there is one in particular for which he is remembered above all others. It is the one that has led to us to leaving stocking out at Christmas.
The Stocking Story
It all came about, so legend tells us, because Saint Nicholas decided to save the virtue of three sisters. He heard that their poverty-stricken father didn’t have enough money for their dowry, he felt he had no option but to sell them into slavery.
The story is told that under the cover of darkness, Saint Nicholas threw three bags of gold through their window on three nights. Their father was naturally curious, so on the third night, he was on watch to see if he could catch their anonymous benefactor. It worked, he caught Saint Nicholas who pleaded with the father not to reveal his charitable act, however it eventually got out.
There are several different stories about this event, that kept growing, eventually, over time it was said he threw bags of gold down the chimney. Then it wasn’t a big link to claim that the gold had landed in stockings that the three girls put by the fire to dry.
So, began the tradition we have of hanging out stockings at Christmas.
On investigation we decided to write, and then publish Saint Nicholas – The Real Santa Claus so your children can enjoy and live the story. We specifically wrote it for children in mind, with no speech more than five lines and twelve original songs your children will remember for ever.
To hear two of the songs and read two pages of script please go to https://history-portal.com/index.php/product/saint-nicholas/
You can download it today!
Enjoy the show, as history matters.
More information on St Nicholas:
https://www.stnicholascenter.org/who-is-st-nicholas
https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/249794/5-things-to-know-and-share-about-st-nicholas
https://www.thearchaeologist.org/blog/saint-nicholas-of-myra-the-real-story-behind-santa-claus