Journal
0934 L Thu 6 Dec 2001
The first reading today is Isaiah 2:1-6 It is similar to parts of the Magnifcat, of Luke 1:46-55, particularly "He casts the mighty from their seats and raises the lowly."
Today is also the optional memorial for Saint Nicholas. According to the Divine Office:
He was Bishop of Myra in Lycia (now in Turkey), where he died about the middle of the fourth century. He is honoured throughout the Church, especially from the tenth century.
The Oxford Dictionary of Saints entry on him includes:
Perhaps the most popular result of his cult is the institution of Santa Claus. Based ultimately on Nicholas' patronage of children with its attendant custom in the Low Countries of giving them presents on his feast, it attained its present form in North America, where the Dutch Protestants of New Amsterdam united to it Nordic folkloric legends of a magician who both punished naughty children and rewarded good ones with presents.
Here is a photo of a $2 statue of him with the books:
Copyright J.R. Lilburne, 6 December 2001.