St. Nicholas was a man of extraordinary sanctity, as indicated by the great esteem in which he has been held by both Latin and Greek churches. As early as the year 430, the Emperor Justinian built a church to the honor of this saint in Constantinople. Nicholas was born at Patara, in Lycia, which was a large ancient province in Asia. He became Archbishop of Myra in Lycia, and died in the year 342. Nicholas, like all saints, was eminent in different virtues, but he is especially renowned for his great charity towards the poor. The Russians hold him in the highest esteem. His relics were brought to Bari, Italy on the 9th of May, 1087.
St. Nicholas has been venerated as a patron of childhood, as he was from infancy, a model of innocence and purity.
The origin of the Santa Claus story can be traced to a distinctly Catholic practice in Germany. There it is connected to another feast, that of St. Nicholas, celebrated on December 6th. The saint was a great friend of children and it was his custom to distribute presents to his little admirers on this day. The custom developed into the practice, kept up each year in all towns, of a man dressed as a bishop, accompanied by a servant ringing a bell, who would visit homes and leave either a present or a switch for each child, according to the child’s behavior; naughty or nice. Shoes or plates were the receptacles for the presents, not the stockings of today. Holland, England and Germany kept up this practice for many years. The original German Sankt Klaus, popularly associated with this custom.
This tradition has been distorted in America into the transfer of the visit of Santa Claus from December 6th to Christmas Eve. This may be traced to the Puritans in New England, but the fact remains that St. Nicholas celebrations still take place abroad regularly on December 6, while here Santa Claus, to a more or less degree, usurps the place of the Christ-child.