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Good Ole' Saint Nick

by Jerry Ousley  
6/14/2007 / Holidays

There's been a lot of talk, confusion, and opinion over the past few years about, yes "Santa Claus;" good 'Ole St. Nick. So, what about him? Should the church discourage Santa Claus or what?

According to tradition, many years ago an elderly gentleman by the name of Nicholas wanted to help needy families by secretly giving food, shoes and toys for their children. He would get out his sleigh and go around leaving these gifts at their door then move on to the next house. Sometime later the Catholic Church made him a saint, hence the name "St. Nick." This is the story in a nutshell and there are many variations of it, but basically that's it.

Somehow, it was decided (probably by a group of ancient politicians) that St. Nick's tradition be kept at Christmastime. Over the years the tradition of buying gifts at Christmas gradually began to overshadow the holiday's true meaning.

Now, to make matters more complicated, there are those who say that Christ wasn't really born in December. Some believe it was really in the spring and others believe it was more like September. So they accuse the entire Christmas Holiday as being a farce and claim that it should not be encouraged by the church.

The good thing about Christ is that He usually made things simple instead of complicated. We take that simplicity and turn it into a confusing and demanding mess. This is my opinion for what it's worth: "Baloney!" Why do we have to take something good and wholesome and make such a big deal over it? Religiosity usually has a way of doing that. I say if we're going to give gifts why not do it when we celebrate the One Who gave the greatest gift of eternal life to believers? And as far as whether December 25th is really Christ's Birthday or not, well what does it really matter? At least we are taking a day and presenting it as an opportunity for the world to think about a Savior.

I say let's look past the hype, the fighting and bickering, and struggle for gifts and look to the real spirit of the Holiday. Have fun, enjoy it, eat a lot, and remember Christ.

Have a merry Christmas!

Jerry D. Ousley is the author of ?Soul Challenge?, ?Soul Journey?, ?Ordeal?, ?The Spirit Bread Daily Devotional and his first novel ?The Shoe Tree.? Visit our website at spiritbread.com to download these and more completely free of charge.

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