Nikolaos of Myra is a celebrated saint in Christian denominations, and the source of modern Christmas legends

As homes and storefronts hang their holiday decor, the jolly, rotund figure of Santa Claus features prominently. Santa Claus symbolizes universal values of cheer, kindness, and generosity. The more modernized and secular Santa Claus developed from the historical St. Nicholas. St. Nicholas also appears at Christmastime, often imagined with traditional style carvings of a gaunt and pious figure.

St. Nicholas is traditionally revered by members of different faiths, including many Protestants, Catholics, and East Orthodox Christians. The legends and stories of this courageous figure can now be brought to a wider audience. Spiritual men and women who become ordained ministers of the ULC (Universal Life Church) are able to bring together the wisdom of the world’s religions and build a ministry with compassion and integrity.

St. Nicholas was a 4th-century Greek bishop who lived and served in present-day Turkey. Nicholas’ strong faith compelled him to perform many good works. One story tells of Nicholas standing up to authorities and saving the lives of three wrongfully condemned and innocent men. In another, children are lured by a malicious butcher and cruelly murdered. Nicholas realizes what has happened and restores the children back to life. Nicholas is also credited with calming a storm at sea and bringing a sailor back to life. Because of these stories, St. Nicholas is the patron saint for children, innocents, and sailors.

The most famous legend has many, many variations, but the spirit is the same. In essence, there was a very poor man. His only treasures were his three precious daughters. The little girls that had gazed at him with such trust were becoming young women and the once strong father was growing old. He could not provide them with any sort of dowry. No dowries, no husbands, no security. The man wept. With no one to provide for them, the girls were faced with unsavory prospects of slavery or prostitution. St. Nicholas learned of this situation and was moved to help this family. Not seeking adulation, only wishing to do what is right, his humility drove him to deliver the dowries at night. The daughters, who treated their meager possessions with great care, often washed their stockings and hung them to dry by the fire. As the dowry was flung into the house, it slipped into the stocking. When each daughter woke and brought down her stockings from beside the fireplace, she discovered the dowry. Imagine her joy when she walked with her loved ones in her wedding ceremony, a short and wretched future transformed to a full life enriched by a united family.

Modern couples are often blessed with rich and varied backgrounds of faith and traditions. When these individuals decide to join together in marriage, they wish to have a non-denominational or an interfaith wedding ceremony. When you become ordained as an interfaith minister in the ULC, you will help couples create personalized celebrations. Use the legend of St. Nicholas to gently teach anxious pairs that doing what is right can only bring about a happy wedding.