Saint Nicholas
Bishop of Myra, Defender of Orthodoxy, Miracle Worker, Holy Hierarch
Born: 3rd century in Patara
Died: 6 December 343 in Myra
Venerated in: All Christianity
Major shrine: St. Nicholas’ relics are held in a crypt in Bari, Italy, but his great work was done in Myra.
Feast: December 6
Attributes: St Nicholas is usually portrayed as a Bishop, in whatever manner is appropriate for a Bishop in that particular Church’s practices.
Patronage: In the West, St. Nicholas is a patron of sailors and thieves, because his relics were stolen by sailors from his tomb and transported to Bari, Italy. In the East, he is more remembered for his defense against the Arian heresy.
Saint Nicholas (Greek: Νικόλαος, "Victory of the people") is the common name for Saint Nicholas of Myra, who had a reputation for secret gift-giving, but is now commonly known as Santa Claus. He lived in 4th century Myra in the Byzantine Empire's Lycia, the modern day Demre in the Antalya province of Turkey. This is as much as is generally known about him in the West.
This historical character was the inspiration for a mythical figure known as Nikolaus in Germany and Sinterklaas in the Netherlands and Flanders, which in turn was the inspiration for Santa Claus. Sinterklaas (a contracted form of Sint Nicolaas) is a major celebration in the Netherlands and in Flanders. Among Orthodox Christians, the historical Saint Nicholas is remembered and revered. Saint Nicholas is the patron saint of sailors, merchants, archers, children, and students in both Greece and Russia. He is also the patron saint of Barranquilla, Colombia and of Amsterdam.
This guide is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.
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