Traditions and Trivia: Santa

You see Santa at the mall, in hospitals, in Christmas movies and on Coke cans, but why in today’s world is there a man in a red suit with flying reindeer entering people’s houses to give their children gifts?

Where on Earth did such a fun myth originate?

St. Nicholas of Myra was a bishop in the 4th century according to www.stnicholascenter.com.

“St. Nicholas, [was a man] who showed his devotion to God in extraordinary kindness and generosity to those in need,” says the site.

However, during the protestant reformation in the 16th and 17th century, many saints were no longer revered.

“Nicholas would come every Dec. 6 and bring gifts down the chimney to children in Northern Europe as early as the 14th century; he was popular and much loved. This seems to have given him and his cult a kind of resilience when elsewhere the images and statues of saints were being razed, burned or smashed,” explained Jeremy Seal, writer of “Nicholas: The Epic Journey from Saint to Santa Claus (Bloomsbury) as posted on stnicholascenter.com.”

As the 19th century rolled around, Dutch and German immigrants slowly started influencing the rest of the United States to adopt their favorite traditions.

“What happened then was that gift giving, which had been until that time a local and seasonal exchange of homemade objects, exploded into something bigger,” said Seal.

The ‘something’ Seal referred to was the explosion of mass manufacturing, which drove simple gift giving into the commercial giant it is today.

In addition, an 1823 poem called “A Visit from St. Nicholas,” better known today as “The Night Before Christmas,” greatly influenced public perception of Santa Claus.

The image of him dressed in red, with nose like a cherry and belly shaking like a bowl full of jelly, are all descriptions taken out of the poem, which may or may not have earlier influences.

Slowly, churches started adopting more and more traditions brought over to the states by German immigrants, and started receiving more holiday participation as people enjoyed the celebrations.

The hybrid of Paganism and Christianity doesn’t seem to bother many anymore, as Santa Claus visits churches to ask young children what they want for Christmas.

 It would not appear that parents or churches are interested in taking away the ‘magic’ of Christmas anytime soon.