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The saints

St. Nicholas

The real bishop behind Santa Claus, who gave in secret.

Feast: 6 December · died about 343 · The early Church · Myra, Asia Minor

Read the story 1 min read
Icon of St. Nicholas in bishop’s vestments, blessing and holding a Gospel book.

Unknown author, 2008. Wikimedia Commons, Public domain.

Home / The saints / St. Nicholas

Myra, on the coast of modern Turkey

We know very little for certain about Nicholas, except that he was bishop of Myra in the fourth century.1

The stories about him, though, spread across the whole Christian world.1

The best-loved one says he secretly threw bags of gold through a window at night so three poor sisters would not be sold.

Patron of children1; bakers1; brides and grooms1; travelers1; pawnbrokers1; Greece1

01St. Nicholas

Giving in secret

The gold was for their dowries, so they could marry instead of falling into slavery.1

That story is why children still find gifts in their shoes and stockings on his feast.1

02St. Nicholas

From Myra to Santa

His relics were taken to Bari, Italy, in 1087, and devotion to him spread through Europe.2

Dutch settlers brought Sinterklaas to America, and he slowly turned into Santa Claus.1

Live it this week

Give something in secret

Nicholas gave at night so no one would know it was him. This week, anonymously pay for something for someone who is struggling (a bill, groceries, a gift card in an envelope) and never tell.

Notes

How we know · 2 sources for this page
  1. Franciscan Media, Saint of the Day: “Saint Nicholas”. franciscanmedia.org. franciscanmedia.org
  2. Catholic Encyclopedia (1913), “St. Nicholas of Myra”. New Advent edition. newadvent.org

The Catholic Encyclopedia (1913) is in the public domain; we quote the New Advent edition. Texts of the Holy See are quoted briefly from vatican.va. Scripture: World English Bible, Catholic edition (public domain); Verse numbers are modern, with Douay-Rheims numbers in brackets where they differ. Photographs: Wikimedia Commons, credited under each image; full list on the photo credits page.

Lines in the narrator’s voice, without a note, are our reflection, not a historical claim. Stone & Incense restates Church teaching in plain words; our wording is not an official Church text. Report an errorCorrections.