Saint Nicholas
Saint Nicholas (Santa Claus) was the Bishop of Myra (Turkey) in the
4th century. He is the patron Saint of children and sailors. He was
known for helping the poor, especially children. One story tells of
him throwing a bag of money down the chimney of a poor family to help
them take care of their children.
Saint Nicholas died on December 6th. Since Christmas is on the
December 25th and celebrates the birth of Jesus, Saint Nicholas has
become associated with the festivities. However, it should be
remembered that the real Saint Nicholas was more concerned with
helping poor children than with simple gift exchanging!