by Roxanne Dubarry

Created on: May 06, 2008   Last Updated: August 02, 2010

Belief in Santa Claus or Saint Nicholas need not distract from the true meaning of Christmas. The original Saint would give gifts to poor children. Santa Claus, the Western version steams from a late nineteenth century poem written by a concerned father at the bedside of an ill daughter. It is the tradition of the poem, "Twas the Night Before Christmas," that is still popular today.

Giving gifts as rewards to good behavior? Who can find fault with that? Of course reindeer really can not fly and Santa Claus does not live at the North Pole except in fictional literature and movies. However the books and movies are great harmless entertainment that can be incorporated in celebrating holiday festivals if it does not stop there...

Without the Virgin birth of Jesus Christ born in a manager in Bethlehem Judah, there would be no Christmas. During the reign of Caesar Augustus a decree was issued throughout the known Roman empire. Every family had to return to its city of origin. Since Joesph and Mary's city of origin was the same as the birthplace of their ancestor David, they had to journey from Nazareth to Bethlehem.

Of course the outside inns of Bethlehem's were already filled by the time of their arrival. A concerned inn keeper let Joesph and Mary find shelter in a sable. The sable was a cave for the housing of animals. Mary gave birth to her first born son, Jesus, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in the manager.

The heavenly angles were busy contacting Shepard's guarding their flocks by night. Of course the angelic messengers badly frighten the Shepard's. However, once their astonishment wore off, they accept the angel's messages with gladness! Shepard's were considered the outcasts of society during the first century. The fact that God the Father choose Shepard's to be the first human witnesses to his son's miracles verse speaks about his compassion towards the humblest of men.

The Shepard's had no gift to bring but themselves. Where did the giving of gifts originate? Not from the Sheppard's! There were wise men from the east who were students of the heavenly stars. They were astronomers and wise men. Tradition has it that they were believers in a newborn King because of the Jewish captivity by the Persian empires. One of the Kings could have come from Sheba because of the Queen of Sheba's visit to King Solomon. Another King is considered being of Asiatic origin. But wherever they came from, they were Kings on a divine mission given to them by

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