Image by Freepik
For those who love to celebrate Christmas while Advent is just getting underway, this is your day. December 6 is the Feast of Saint Nicholas, celebrating the 4th-century bishop of Myra who inspired the image and tradition of Santa Claus. It’s an opportunity to learn about Santa’s roots but also a way to help youngsters appreciate the spirit of sharing.
Brittanica.com notes that he is the patron saint of Greece and Russia, as well as the patron of sailors and children. Dutch immigrants were a major contributor to spreading his fame throughout the Americas and the legendary generosity that keeps his memory alive today. Catholic Digest.com writes that the most common way of celebrating St. Nick was to leave a pair of shoes outside your door to be filled with small gifts. As Bishop of Myra, Nicholas would walk the streets of this second century metropolis in what is modern-day Turkey, leaving candles, small treats, gifts and coins in the shoes of poor children left on doorsteps and window sills.
Celebrate!!
Here are two means of celebrating St. Nicholas in your home or classroom:
Bless your candy canes: they are shaped like a bishop’s crozier (or shepherd’s crook) for this reason. Before you decorate with them or share them as treat, bless them with this prayer from StNicholasCenter.org:
Good St. Nicholas, we honor you on this your holy feast day.
We rejoice that you are the patron saint and the holy symbol of joy
for many peoples of many lands.
Come, great-hearted saint, and be our patron and companion
as we, once again, prepare our homes and hearts for the great feast of Christmas,
the birth of the Eternal Blessing, Jesus Christ.
May these sweets, these candy canes, be a sign of Advent joy for us.
May these candy canes, shaped just like your Bishop’s staff,
be for us a sign of your benevolent care.
We rejoice that you are the holy bringer of gifts and that so many have been delighted
through your great generosity. Help us to be as generous of heart. Wherever these candy canes are hung,
on tree or wall or door,may they carry with them the bright blessing of God.
May all who shall taste them experience the joy of God upon their tongues and in their hearts.
We ask God, now, to bless these, your brightly striped sweets
in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Consider making December 6 your stocking day: The little trinkets, candies and gifts that one might fill a Christmas stocking with make for perfect sharing on the Feast of Saint Nicholas. Hang them with care (or use your shoes) on the Dec. 5 eve and enjoy them the next day as a prayerful warm up to Christmas gift giving. More importantly, use the occasion to remind those you love that this is a season of sharing, a generous spirit of supporting others that can and should extend well beyond December 25.
