From: trh@jack.sns.com (Al Trh)
Newsgroups: soc.culture.turkish
Subject: Man turned into a myth, ST. NICHOLAS (from Haluk)
Date: 10 Jan 1993 23:12:37 -0600
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Haluk DEMIRBAG <TEX5HAD@cms1.ucs.leeds.ac.uk
 Man turned into a myth, ST. NICHOLAS

 By Fikri KARANiS

 The  jolly fatherly  figure of  Father Christmas  with his  white
 beard  and pink  cheeks  has been  eagerly  awaited by  Christian
 children at  Christmas for centuries.  This bringer of  gifts and
 protector  of  poor   and  needy  is  mush   beloved  until  that
 disappointing year  when children  discover one of  their parents
 stuffing  gifts  into  their  stocking and  realise  that  Father
 Christmas is just a figment of their imagination. Or is he?

 In  fact  Saint Nicholas,  alias  Father  Christmas, alias  Santa
 Claus,  was a  real person  who lived  near Antalya  in the  warm
 climate of Southern Turkey rather  than in the icy Arctic desert.
 Born at  Patara near Kalkan, he  spent most of his  life at Myra,
 140 kms southwest of Antalya.

 The scenic coastal road hemmed in by the towering Taurus range to
 one side and  the blue coves and beaches of  the Mediterranean to
 the other,  takes you to the  town of Demre. Here  is the ancient
 Lycian city of  Myra, set at the foot of  sheer cliff honeycombed
 with  rock tombs.  These  typical Lycian  tombs  are carved  into
 temple-like  facades  with  triangular   pediments  and  rows  of
 columns. A  lot of agility is  needed to climb the  cliff even to
 the lowest of the tombs, and  how the Lycian craftsmen managed to
 carve them out of rock is a mystery. Altough similar Lycian tombs
 are  to be  seen all  along this  coastline, these  are the  most
 spectacular and well preserved. There  is also an imposing second
 century theatre here,  as well as other  less easily identifiable
 ruins.

 Saint Nichholas was  eleceted Bishop of Myra during  the reign of
 Diocletian died here around 352 AD. The Church of St. Nicholas is
 not that  in which he  preached, but  was first built  around his
 tomb in 6th  century, and later rebuilt by  the Byzantine Emperor
 Constantine IX and  Empress Zoe in 1043.  The Church subsequently
 fell into disuse and Czar Alexander initiated restoration work in
 1862.

 The bishop was  renowned for his charitable deeds,  and after his
 death became the  most venerated saint of  the Orthodox Christian
 world and particulary  Russia. He was accounted  the patron saint
 of children  and seafarers,  and his tomb  drew large  numbers of
 pilgrims.  Of  the numerous  legends  told  about his  life,  one
 recounts he had helped three poor sisters who could not marry for
 want of a  dowry. After hearing of their plight,  the bishop took
 pity on  them and secretly  tossed three bags  of gold in  to the
 window of their house at night.

 Emperor Costantine had a dream in which Saint Nicholas interceded
 on behalf of  three soldiers who had been sentenced  to death and
 obtained their reprieve. He is  also supposed to have restored to
 life  three children  that  have been  murdered  and their  flesh
 salted by  a butcher,  and performed  numerous other  miracles of
 this  ilk, building  up a  reputation which  snowballed over  the
 centuires.

 Saint Nicholas  became so  celebrated that  in 1087  some Italian
 merchants said to  have raided the tomb and smuggled  some of his
 bones to Bari, where the famous  church of San Nicola di Bari was
 built to accomodate the saint's relics. However, sufficient bones
 remained to cast doubt on the authenticity of the Bari bones, and
 what are believed to be the  mortal remains of Saint Nicholas are
 now in Antalya Museum, Turkey. No  less than 25 other churches in
 his name was built in Istanbul and  45 in Rome, not to mention 40
 in Iceland.

 The feast  day of Saint  Nicholas has been  celebrated throughout
 Europe  since mediaeval  times. On  24 December,  the eve  of the
 feast  day  it became  customary  in  parts of  northern  Europe,
 particularly Germany  and Holland,  for a  person dressed  as the
 bishop to distribute gilt nuts, sweetmeats and other gifts to the
 children of  a family or  school. Meanwhile, St.  Nicholas became
 inextricably confused  with Kriss  Kringle the Christ  child, and
 this gave  rise to the  association with Christmas. Arrayed  in a
 fur cap, Kriss  Kringle was believed to visit the  bedroom of all
 good children, and leave them a  present in a stocking which they
 hung up before they went to sleep.

 Embroidered by  local pagan superstitions in  diffrent countries,
 Saint  Nicholas   gradually  made  the  metamorphosis   into  the
 red-suited character  riding in  a sleigh  drawn by  reindeer, so
 different yet with the same kindly heart as the ancient bishop of
 Myra.

 NEWSPOT, December 1992
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