Colors of Christmas

Catherine Poole, MFA

Saint Nicholas/Santa Claus

The legend of Santa Claus can be traced back hundreds of years to a monk named St. Nicholas. It is believed that Nicholas was born sometime around 280 A.D. in Patara, near Myra in modern-day Turkey. Much admired for his piety and kindness, St. Nicholas became the subject of many legends. A wealthy orphan whose parents died in an epidemic, Saint Nicholas became a bishop at age 17. At age 30 he became the bishop of Myra (now the city of Demre on the south coast of Turkey), near the beginning of the fourth century. Soon after his appointment, the government of the Eastern Roman Empire jailed all Christian bishops who did not publicly sacrifice to the gods of Rome. Nicholas remained in prison for nearly ten years until Constantine conquered the East - ending the persecution of Christians. So many Christians had defected that the sacrament of confession was created, so that the "traitors" could cleanse their souls before re-entering the Christian Church.

Saint Nicholas became the subject of many legends. Nicholas reputedly saved a sailor who fell overboard when the saint walked on water, retrieved the sailor and carried him back to the ship. Nicholas took pity on a poverty-stricken family with three daughters who faced the threat of being forced into prostitution because they had no wedding dowries. Legend has it he crept up to their house at night and threw bags of gold through a bedroom window for two of the daughters. For the last daughter, he threw a bag of gold down the chimney - which landed in a stocking she had set by the fireplace for drying. The traditional association of chimneys & stockings with Santa Claus comes from this story. Nicholas was also noted for his generosity with children - he would reward them with treats if they had studied their catechism & behaved well. Nicholas was therefore patron saint of schoolchildren & sailors.

The date of Nicholas's death - reputedly on December 6th, 326 AD - was widely celebrated as the feast of Saint Nicholas, but was abolished in many European countries as part of Martin Luther's effort to stop the veneration of saints. German Protestants had the Christ child (Christkindl) distributing presents on December 25th. In English-speaking countries He became Kris Kringle. But in the Netherlands celebration of Saint Nicholas Day (December 6th) continued, despite the rise of Protestantism. Saint Nicholas - with his long white beard and wearing his red & white bishop's robes - would ride down streets on his white horse distributing gifts to children. Even today, December 6th is the day children in Holland receive their gifts. In Catholic school, we would put out our shoes on the feast of St. Nicholas and they would be filled with candy.

The transformation of Saint Nicholas to Santa Claus happened largely in America - with inspiration from the Dutch. In the early days of Dutch New York, "Sinterklass" became known among the English-speaking as "Santa Claus" (or "Saint Nick"). In 1809 Washington Irving, a member of the New York Historical Society (which promoted a Dutch Saint Nicholas as its patron saint), created a tale of a chubby, pipe-smoking little Saint Nicholas who road a magic horse through the air visiting all houses in New York. The elfish figure was small enough to climb down chimneys with gifts for the good children and switches for the bad ones.

Symbolically, there are many explanations as to why we associate Santa with a red suit. As a cardinal, red was the traditional color worn. Red symbolizes martyrdom, and the blood shed for God. Nicholas was regarded as a Saint, although there are no records of his ordination. Red also brings with it the material, grounding, and all emotions that are human. Red is energy and celebration - all that the season evokes. Green, also a color of the Christmas season, represents the introduction of the evergreen, which is renewal and growth for the upcoming year. Green also represents love and relationships. This time of year has a focus on renewed relationships and the nurturing of established traditions. We wish for you this season the passion of purpose and the joyful celebration of new endeavors. Have a blessed year!

- Catherine Poole, MFA

(This article is from our 4th Qtr 2005 Newsletter)

Note: See more of Catherine's in-depth analysis of color and how it influences our lives at her website:

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