#St. Nicholas of Myra

[thepastisalreadywritten]

SAINT OF THE DAY (December 6)

On December 6, the faithful commemorate a bishop in the early church who was known for generosity and love of children.

Born around the late third or fourth century in Lycia, Asia Minor, St. Nicholas of Myra is more than just the inspiration for the modern day Santa.

As a young man, he is said to have made a pilgrimage to Palestine and Egypt in order to study in the school of the Desert Fathers.

On returning some years later, he was almost immediately ordained Bishop of Myra, which is now Demre, on the coast of modern day Turkey.

The bishop was imprisoned during the Diocletian persecution. He was only released when Constantine the Great came to power and made Christianity the official religion of the Roman Empire.

One of the most famous stories of the generosity of St. Nicholas says that he threw bags of gold through an open window in the house of a poor man to serve as dowry for the man’s daughters, who otherwise would have been forced into prostitution.

The gold is said to have landed in the family’s shoes, which were drying near the fire.

This is why children leave their shoes out by the door, or hang their stockings by the fireplace, in the hopes of receiving a gift on the eve of his feast.

St. Nicholas is associated with Christmas because of the tradition that he had with the custom of giving secret gifts to children.

It is also conjectured that the saint, who was known to wear red robes and have a long white beard, was culturally converted into the large man with a reindeer-drawn sled full of toys because in German, his name is “San Nikolaus,” which almost sounds like “Santa Claus.”

In the East, he is known as St. Nicholas of Myra for the town in which he was bishop.

But in the West, he is called St. Nicholas of Bari because, during the Muslim conquest of Turkey in 1087, his relics were taken to Bari by the Italians.

St Nicholas is the patron of children and sailors.

His intercession is sought by the shipwrecked, by those in difficult economic circumstances, and for those affected by fires.

He died on 6 December 346.

[stjohncapistrano67]

A modern Traditional Catholic image of St. Nicholas of Myra giving the heretic Arius what all heretics deserve at the Council of Nicea. Arius started the Arian heresy. The legend of Santa Claus is based on him. And you thought coal in your stocking was bad? 😏

[secretmellowblog]

I've said this before but the funny thing about the Cosette adoption chapters is that, from Cosette's perspective, she literally just got adopted by Santa Claus. Valjean is a mysterious kind semi-magical white-haired figure who arrives on Christmas eve to give Cosette her dream gifts, and then drops a coin in her shoe as is a Christmas tradition! And then he gives Cosette the best Christmas gift of taking her away to the North Pole Paris. Even outside of the Cosette stuff, all the parallels between Valjean and the historical Saint Nicholas of Myra are really funny...The fact that he breaks into people's houses to secretly give them money, for example, is a very St Nick Thing(tm). He also makes toys out of straw for children in M-Sur-M! But the interesting thing is that the historical St Nicholas was, among other things, the patron saint of repented thieves and children. He was known for saving people from poverty, execution, and unjust prison sentences, which are thematically relevant. But yeah. Good on Cosette for getting swept away by Convict Santa. Sadly i don't think the sleigh and reindeer were part of the legend yet and that's super sad, bc they couldve helped against Javert later u_u

[catholic-saint-tournament]

About St Barbara

About St Nicholas

PRE-SCHISM SAINTS ROUND 1 WINNERS/ROUND 2 BRACKET

[stairnaheireann]

#OTD in 1798 – United Irishmen Rebellion | Battle of Carlow begins; executions of suspected rebels at Carnew and at Dunlavin Green take place.

The Rebellion continues with a number of bloody skirmishes throughout the country involving ill-trained, enthusiastic rebels fighting professional English soldiers. The Battle of Carlow sees an estimated 600 Irish rebels killed with only nominal English casualties. Twenty-eight prisoners are executed by the local garrison in the British army barracks base of Carnew Castle, Co Wicklow and…

[principiumindividuationis777]

[streetsofdublin]

WHY IS FRANCIS STREET STILL A WORK IN PROGRESS AND WHERE IS THE BICYCLE LANE

It is a one way street but there is no sign of a bicycle lane despite the fact that there is a DublinBikes Docking Station at one end.

16 FEBRUARY 2023 HIGH-RES SLIDE SHOW It is a one way street but there is no sign of a bicycle lane despite the fact that there is a DublinBikes Docking Station at one end. Here is an extract from the mission statement: “Francis Street Environmental Improvement Scheme aims to upgrade the public realm of this key part of Dublin’s street heritage through the realignment of the street and…

[schweizercomics]

Companions of Christmas, Day 3: Père Fouettard

Père Fouettard was a butcher and cook whose tavern was visited by three children on their way to boarding school. Seeing their nice clothes, wicked Fouettard assumed that they must be rich, and, being children, would be easy to rob. He killed them with his carving knives, chopped them up, and closed up their remains in a pickle barrel, intending to serve them as meat to his unwary customers to get rid of the evidence of his crime, pocketing the money that they had carried and congratulating himself on how efficiently he had performed this dastardly deed.

That night, his tavern had a visitor – Nicholas, Bishop of Myra, who was ever aware of the plight of children in danger. The evil Fouettard did not want the saintly bishop in his establishment, so when Nicholas requested a hearty supper, Fouettard replied that he had no meat.

“What’s in that barrel, then?” asked Nicholas, who clapped his hands, and the three youngsters, miraculously returned to life and wholly intact, leapt from the barrel. Fouettard was brought to his knees in terror by the evidence of Nicholas’s miraculous goodness, and begged Nicholas to show him mercy.

Nick suggested that the most merciful thing he could do would be to give Fouettard the opportunity to right his wrongs through contrition and service, and ever since that day Père Fouettard has been Nick’s cook, working first to feed the hungry of Myra during Nick’s earthly lifetime, and then as the head cook at the North Pole, satisfying the appetites of the Clauses, their companions, the elves, and any visitors who might stop by.

Though reformed in spirit, Père Fouettard is still short-tempered and surly, and kids in France, Belgium, and the French-speaking cantons of Switzerland know to steer clear of him when he accompanies St. Nicholas on his holiday visits.

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Happy December, friends! Each year around this time I post up drawings of Christmas and other winter holiday figures, along with narratives to explain the practices with which folklorists and holiday buffs might be familiar. When stories exist, I use them; when they don't, I do what I can to piece together what folklore surrounds them to fill in the gaps (or, in some instances, defer to the theories of my friend and fellow narrative reconcilianist Benito Cereno). I hope you enjoy them!

[thepastisalreadywritten]

SAINT OF THE DAY (December 6)

On December 6, the faithful commemorate a bishop in the early church who was known for generosity and love of children.

Born on 15 March 270 in Lycia, in Asia Minor, St. Nicholas of Myra is more than just the inspiration for the modern day Santa.

His wealthy parents, who raised him to be a devout Christian, died in an epidemic while Nicholas was still young.

Obeying Jesus' words to "sell what you own and give the money to the poor," Nicholas used his whole inheritance to assist the needy, the sick, and the suffering.

As a young man, he is said to have made a pilgrimage to Palestine and Egypt in order to study in the school of the Desert Fathers.

On returning some years later, he was almost immediately ordained Bishop of Myra, which is now Demre, on the coast of modern day Turkey.

The bishop was imprisoned during the Diocletian persecution. He was only released when Constantine the Great came to power and made Christianity the official religion of the Roman Empire.

After his release, Nicholas attended the Council of Nicaea in AD 325.

One of the most famous stories of the generosity of St. Nicholas was when he threw bags of gold through an open window in the house of a poor man to serve as dowry for the man’s daughters, who otherwise would have been forced into prostitution.

The gold was said to have landed in stockings or shoes left before the fire to dry. This led to the custom of children hanging stockings or putting out shoes, eagerly awaiting gifts from Saint Nicholas.

St. Nicholas is associated with Christmas because of the tradition that he had in giving secret gifts to children.

It was also conjectured that the saint, who was known to wear red robes and have a long white beard, was culturally converted into the large man with a reindeer-drawn sled full of toys because in German, his name is “San Nikolaus,” which almost sounds like “Santa Claus.”

In the East, he is known as St. Nicholas of Myra for the town in which he was bishop.

In the West, he is called St. Nicholas of Bari because, during the Muslim conquest of Turkey in 1087, his relics were taken to Bari by the Italians.

St Nicholas is the patron of children and sailors. His intercession is sought by the shipwrecked, by those in difficult economic circumstances, and for those affected by fires.

He died on 6 December 343. He was buried in his cathedral church, where a unique relic called manna formed in his grave.

This liquid substance, said to have healing powers, fostered the growth of devotion to Nicholas.

[barbucomedie]

The Tournai Font from Tournai, Belgium dated to the Mid 12th Century on display at Winchester Cathedral in Winchester, England

The font is made from Tournai marble in Belgium and depicts scenes from the Miracles of St Nicholas of Myra on it's four sides. It was thought to have been commissioned by Bishop Henry of Blois in Belgium and shipped out to England in parts to be assembled upon arrival. The font is still used today for baptisms and Winchester Cathedral.

Henry of Blois was the younger brother of Stephen of Blois the king of England from 1135 to 1154. Despite his brother being king he initially supported the Holy Roman Empress Matilda during the Anarchy. However he later changed sides to support his brother and led a successful defence of Winchester from the Empresses forces.

Photographs taken by myself 2023

[planet-gay-comic]

Santa is already on the way with his crew!

Nikolaus (Santa) and Christ Child: Who brings the gifts?

December 6th is Saint Nicholas Day, the commemoration of Saint Nicholas of Myra, a bishop who lived in Asia Minor in the 4th century. Nicholas was known for his charity and dedication to the poor and needy. After his death, he was canonized, and his feast day was introduced in the Catholic Church.

In the Middle Ages, in some regions of Europe, there was a custom of distributing gifts on the evening of December 24th. However, this custom was not associated with St. Nicholas but with the Christ Child. The Christ Child was considered a heavenly messenger of Christmas and was regarded as the bearer of gifts.

In the 16th century, Protestants began to oppose the veneration of saints by the Catholic Church. This also affected St. Nicholas, who was venerated as a Catholic saint. Luther himself was a staunch opponent of saint worship, considering it a form of idolatry and a violation of the biblical command to turn only to God.

In his Christmas sermon of 1531, Luther criticized the veneration of St. Nicholas and urged Protestants to celebrate the Christ Child instead. He referred to the Christ Child as "an innocent child" and "a true child of God."

Luther's sermon had a significant impact on the Protestant tradition. In the following years, the custom of distributing gifts on the evening of December 24th became increasingly associated with the Christ Child. St. Nicholas was gradually pushed into the background.

Text supported by Bard and Chat-GPT 3.5 These image is generated with StableDiffusion v1.5. The poses and the backround were obtained with ControlNet v1.1.410 via open pose. Faces and background overworked with composing and inpainting.

[secretmellowblog]

"He smiled to avoid speaking, and gave to avoid smiling..."

Another Madeleine drawing :3

[catholic-saint-tournament]

About St Nicholas

About St Martin de Porres

Losers' Bracket Round 1

[nepentheisms]

I appreciate how efficiently this chapter sets up Wolfwood's character. He introduces himself as a clergyman, but he can hardly be called holy in his comportment, and the way he talks about his profession comes across as playful and nonchalant in his conversations with the bus passengers and driver. But then we get this moment, when the mask slips a little. He's not just a priest, he says, and there's a sense of hesitation and unease in the way he expresses himself. Whatever he's hiding clearly eats at him; probably makes him feel like he falls terribly short of saintliness. And yet.....

What follows is Nicholas D. Wolfwood performing an act of charity that brings to mind his namesake, Saint Nicholas. After all, some of the most well known stories about Saint Nicholas of Myra emphasize his generosity and gift-giving. In one story, St Nicholas secretly delivers three bags of gold to the daughters of a man who had fallen into desperate poverty. Artwork of St Nicholas, in reference to this story, will often depict the saint with three golden orbs, three sacks of money, or THREE COINS. Interesting that here, Wolfwood gives one coin to each child and then keeps the third for himself (HHhhhmmm what could it mean??!! Guess we can find out later as we learn more).

Summary of symbols surrounding St Nicholas can be found here