About St. Nicholas
Feast Day: December 6
St. Nicholas was a fourth century bishop who is recognized as the origin of the Santa Claus story. He was known for his generosity and his habit of secret gift giving.
Put Your Shoes Out
In many cultures the custom is for the children to leave a pair of shoes out when they go to bed on December 5. In the morning, they find that St. Nicholas has visited and left them a small treat or token. Here is how this tradition started:
It is said that there was a poor family in his village with three daughters. In those days, a girl needed a dowry to get married, but they did not have money to spare. St. Nicholas wanted to help them out but hew wanted to do it without anyone knowing. He didn’t want to become proud of sharing what he had.
One night, while the family was sleeping, he quietly went up to their front door. The girls had left their shoes outside, so they wouldn’t track mud in their little house. Nicholas put several gold coins in each shoe. It was enough for the girls to get married.
This is why we put shoes out on the eve of his feast day.
Patron Saint
St. Nicholas is the patron of children, coopers, sailors, fishermen, merchants, broadcasters, the falsely accused, repentant thieves, brewers, pharmacists, archers, and pawnbrokers.
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Catholic traditions for Advent
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Quote
The giver of every good and perfect gift has called upon us to mimic God’s giving, by grace, through faith, and this is not of ourselves.
St. Nicholas
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More about This Saint
This article has some more ways to celebrate this saint. Have a giving tree or pray to end global poverty.
In our house, St. Nicholas leaves a few small pieces of candy and a couple of quarters for each child. This is not a large gift giving extravaganza. One year, my young children left all of their shoes out (four or five pair per child). They were hoping that in would result in an increase in loot. It did not, but I found their way of thinking creative!