Saint Nicholas

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I have to say after reading the story of Saint Nicholas, I became interested on how he lived his life, many people consider Santa Claus, but his name is Saint Nicholas, he was born in the third century, and of course the ruler was Diocletian, and Saint Nicholas loved God ever so dearly, so Diocletian had persecuted a lot of christians, you might even recognize this saint-St. Demiana, of course Diocletian persecuted St. Demiana, but he also made all the christians suffer before persecution, Saint Nicholas obeyed Our Lord's words-"sell what you own, and give the money to the poor" Saint Nicholas helped the sick, the needy, and even the ones who suffered! He was truely a magnificent and outstanding Saint, as you know Christmas is coming soon, hopefully very soon, but I just wanted to share this story with you all. Diocletian exiled and imprisoned Saint Nicholas, but St. Nicholas did not give up, because he believed in God and had faith! In advance the prisons were full of Priests, Deacons, and Bishops, but there was no room for real criminals-murderers, thieves, and robbers! So how did they come up with the name Santa Claus you ask? In January 1809, Washington Irving joined the society and on St. Nicholas Day that year he published the satirical fiction, Knickerbocker's History of New York, which made numerous references to a jolly St. Nicholas character. Nicholas was shown in a gift-giving role with children's treats in stockings hanging at a fireplace. The accompanying poem ends, "Saint Nicholas, my dear good friend! To serve you ever was my end, If you will, now, me something give, I'll serve you ever while I live." Washington Irving's St. Nicholas strongly influenced the poem's portrayal of a round, pipe-smoking, elf-like St. Nicholas. Other artists and writers continued the change to an elf-like St. Nicholas, "Sancte Claus," or "Santa Claus," unlike the stately European bishop. We admire St. Nicholas as Santa Claus, but that's not him, it's St. Nicholas that we really need to admire as other saints, Santa Claus is just made up, and he does not live in South Pole, Alaska his real homeland was Patara, a village, which now is called Turkey, his parents were wealthy, and he learned a lot from them, even though they died when he was still a child! We can learn a lot from St. Nicholas, I would like to know what all of you think about this story, and what your comments are, they can be both good and bad!

I would like to thank:
http://www.stnicholascenter.org/Brix?pageID=38
http://www.stnicholascenter.org/Brix?pageID=35
For helping me get this great information!
I would really recommend for you all to check these links out, when you get the chance to, HOPEFULLY!

May this story give us a great feeling inside, and May God bless us, with this blessing of this story today! Share a story today!

Forever,
Coptic Servent

KBibo8

Did you know that the commemoration of his departure is Kiahk 10, this Monday? Here is the Synexarium reading.

The Departure of St. Nicholas, the Confessor, Bishop of Myra (Mora).

On this day also the righteous St. Nicholas (1), Bishop of Mora (Myra), departed. He was from the city of Mora, his father's name was Epiphanius and the name of his mother was Tona. They were rich, as well as God-fearing, people. They had no children to bring joy to their hearts and to inherit their wealth after their deaths. They remained without a son until they grew old and they were enveloped with despair. God had pity on them and gave them this saint. He was filled with the Divine grace since his young age. When he reached school age, he demonstrated, through intelligence and knowledge, that he learned far more from the Holy Spirit than he did from his teachers. He learned all the doctrine and the teachings of the church since his young age and was ordained deacon.

Then he became a monk in a monastery wherein his cousin was the abbot. He lived an ascetic and a righteous life, and was ordained a priest when he was 19 years old. God gave him the gift to work signs and wonders and to heal the sick.

St. Nicholas is too illustrious to describe all the signs that were performed by his hands, but an example of his good deeds and benevolent works follows:

There was a very rich man in the city of Mora who lost all his wealth. He had three daughters who had passed the age of marriage, and he could not marry them because of his poverty. Satan tempted the man to think that he should make his daughters live in sin so that they might get their food by means of fornication. God revealed to St. Nicholas the thoughts which were in this man's head, and what he intended to do. St. Nicholas took 100 dinars of his father's money and tied it up in a sack. During the night, secretly and without anyone seeing him, he threw the money into the window of that poor man's house. When the man found the gold, he was astonished and rejoiced exceedingly and was able to give his eldest daughter away in marriage. During another night the saint threw another hundred dinars into the man's house and the man was able to give his second daughter away in marriage. The man wanted to know who this charitable person was. The third time when the saint threw the gold into the house, the man was watching and immediately when he felt the drop of the sack, he ran out of his house to see who was throwing the gold to him. He found the kind bishop St. Nicholas and the man bowed down at his feet and paid him great homage and thanked him because he saved his daughters from poverty and from a life of sin. The saint refused to accept any thanks and asked them to thank the Lord Who put this thought in his heart.

St. Nicholas drove out the devil and his angels from people, he healed many sick people, and he blessed little bread to satisfy many people, with much more left over.

Before being selected bishop, he saw in a vision, a great throne and magnificent vestments placed on it and a man said to him, "Put on these vestments and sit on this throne." Another night he saw our Lady, St. Mary, giving him the vestments of the priesthood and our Lord Jesus Christ gave him the Gospel.

When the Bishop of Mora departed, the Angel of the Lord appeared to the Archbishop and told him the one who was chosen for this rank was Nicholas and described his virtues to him. When he woke up he told the bishops what he had seen, and they all believed that vision. They knew that it was from the Lord Jesus Christ. They took St. Nicholas and made him Bishop over the city of Mora.

Shortly thereafter, Diocletian reigned, and incited the pagan worship. When Diocletian arrested many of the believers, he heard about this saint. He seized him and tortured him severely for many years. The Lord Christ strengthened him, protected him, and raised him whole from all these tortures so that he might become a mighty branch of the tree of faith. When Diocletian was tired of torturing him, he cast him into prison. Saint Nicholas wrote to his congregation from prison to teach, encourage and confirm them in the faith. He remained in prison until God perished Diocletian and established the reign of Constantine the Just. Constantine brought out all the confessors from prison, among them was St. Nicholas, who returned to his city.

When the Council of Nicea convened in the year 325 A.D. to judge Arius, he was one of the 318 fathers assembled there.

Having finished his course and guarded his flock, he departed to be with the Lord. He sat on the episcopal throne for more than 40 years, and all the days of his life were about 80 years.

His prayers be with us and Glory be to our God forever. Amen.