Heavyweight Fight: Santa Claus vs. Saint Nicholas Should there be a battle to see who is the best symbol of Christmas spirit?

BY CHRIS TEAGUE

It would be great to see the spiritual foundations of Santa Claus….Sankt Niklaus…Saint Nicholas make a comeback in the United States.   Obviously Santa Claus has been high jacked by the commercial interests in this country and therefore he is almost seen as evil in some fundamentalist circles.   But, I think Catholics families should want to help “devolve” Santa back to who he really is.  We need to bring out the REALITY of Santa Claus, and maybe Santa could once again become a symbol of Christ not just a symbol of Christmas commercialism.    At his core Santa Claus is still St. Nicholas however we simply fail to recognize the patron saint of children beneath all the layers of commercialism our culture has placed on him.

One article on www.stnicholascenter.org put the situation nicely,

“It's been a long journey from the Fourth Century Bishop of Myra, St. Nicholas, who showed his devotion to God in extraordinary kindness and generosity to those in need, to America's jolly Santa Claus, whose largesse often supplies luxuries to the affluent. However, if you peel back the accretions, he (Santa Claus) is still Nicholas, Bishop of Myra, whose caring surprises continue to model true giving and faithfulness.”

From a practical standpoint, I don’t know if it’s possible to truly purge Santa Claus from American Culture (or if we want to) however, I do think it is possible to restore his saintly heart….give Santa Claus a much needed spiritual makeover.   Use that symbol to promote Christ and His Church, not just to promote Coke and Wal-Mart. 

Below is another gem from www.stnicholascenter.org and was written by J. Rosenthal & C. Myer.

Santa Claus belongs to childhood;
St. Nicholas models for all of life.
Santa Claus, as we know him, developed to boost Christmas sales—the commercial Christmas message;
St. Nicholas told the story of Christ and peace, goodwill toward all—the hope-filled Christmas message.Santa Claus encourages consumption;St. Nicholas encourages compassion.

Santa Claus appears each year to be seen and heard for a short time;
St. Nicholas is part of the communion of saints, surrounding us always with prayer and example.
Santa Claus flies through the air—from the North Pole;
St. Nicholas walked the earth—caring for those in need.
Santa Claus, for some, replaces the Babe of Bethlehem;
St. Nicholas, for all, points to the Babe of Bethlehem.
Santa Claus isn't bad;
St. Nicholas is just better.

Chris Teague

Chris is the Evangelization Director for the Men of St. Joseph.