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But There Really Is a Santa Claus...

© Arden Davidson

Many parents stress over when to tell their children the "real story" about Santa Claus, but sometimes they aren't completely clear on what the real story is. People tend to think of St. Nick as just a fantasy character, but in 280 AD he was as real as could be. The real St. Nicholas, the man behind the legends of Santa Claus, lived in the city of Lycia, in Asia Minor, where he was known as "the gift giver of Myra." He delivered his gifts in the middle of the night so that he could remain anonymous, although later on he traded in his anonymity for the honor being named the patron saint of children, sailors, Russia and Greece.

Although St. Nicholas didn't have a factory full of elves to make his gifts, he probably could have afforded one. He was a wealthy philanthropist with a generous nature who simply enjoyed bringing smiles to people's faces...just like Santa. And although the real St. Nicholas may not have had a list to check twice to decide if kids were being "good", he did want kids to go to bed early, so that he could continue to protect his identity. Even then, parents warned their children that if they did not go to bed and do as they were told, St. Nicholas would not come. And though the real St. Nick didn't acutally slide down chimneys to deliver his gifts, he did begin the tradition of placing gifts inside stockings. This ritual came about when St. Nicholas met a poor man who had no money to give to his three daughters on their wedding day. He secretly placed bags of gold into the stockings which the girls had left to dry by the fire and the tradition has continued ever since.

St. Nicholas was a Christian Priest and later a Bishop. According to the Catholic religion, Saints are people who have lived such a holy life that, even after death, they are still able to reach down from heaven and help people on earth. If this is true, than the spirit of Santa Claus is still alive. So before we jump to the conclusion that we must someday confess "the truth" to our kids about the existence of Santa Claus, we must consider if what we've been saying is really a lie.

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