| Thursday, December 6, 2012 |  |
A St. Nicholas Day Message from Fr. Dan
 Before jumping into this year's Christmas season, let's remember a saint whose humility and charity are an example to all of us. St. Nicholas was a fourth-century bishop of Myra, in southern Turkey. Not only is he recognized by the Catholic Church, holidays honoring St. Nicholas' works of charity are celebrated by more than forty countries.
Our American Santa Claus custom descended from a secularized St. Nicholas tradition. The name Santa Claus actually comes from the German Sankt Nikolaus, a tradition brought here by German immigrants. Want more on St. Nicholas? Consider this title from our Catholic Update series: St. Nicholas: The Original Santa Claus.
More titles you might enjoy during this giving season include: A Catholic Family Advent by Susan Hines-Brigger, Kathleen M. Carroll's A Mary Christmas, and Holding Jesus by Fr. Alfred McBride, O. Praem.
Since 1893, we Franciscans have been organizing and building teams of people to help spread the Gospel through our magazine. You can be part of that mission by helping us provide for the needs of those who cannot afford to purchase St. Anthony Messenger magazine or who can be reached only through our e-newsletters and daily features.
Did you know we provide St. Anthony Messenger to hospitals, prisons, and rehabilitation centers? At the request of chaplains and pastoral ministers, we provide books, magazines, and newsletters. You can share in this work by offering a donation and by praying for the spread of the Gospel in these areas.
As we prepare to celebrate the coming of the Lord in our midst, would you consider sending $50, $75, or $100? Your tax-deductible donation in any amount helps us pay the cost of our publishing outreach, including this e-newsletter.
Use our secure online donation form or mail a donation payable to the Franciscans, Franciscan Media, 28 W. Liberty St., Cincinnati, OH 45202. If you prefer, you may phone in a credit-card donation for our evangelization ministries at 513-241-5615 or, in the U.S., 800-488-0488.
Peace and every blessing,
Fr. Dan Kroger, O.F.M.
Publisher, Franciscan Media
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