Mountain Views News, Combined Edition Saturday, December 16, 2023

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Mountain Views-News Saturday, December 16, 2023 


CHRISTOPHER Nyerges [www.SchoolofSelf-Reliance.com]

[Nyerges is an author / lecturer / educator who has written such books as “Extreme Simplicity,” 
“How to Survive Any-where,” “Guide to Wild Foods,” and other books. Information 
about his books and classes is available at www.SchoolofSelf-Reliance, or Box 41834, Eagle 
Rock,CA 90041]

Meet MILLIE & MISHA!

Meet Misha and Millie, a purr-
fectly adorable pair of siblings. 
These bonded sisters, aged about 
6 months, are on the lookout for 
their forever home together. 

These little furballs are shy but are blossoming each passing 
day into more confident kittens. Although they are not 
yet keen on being held and put into a car-rier, we are working 
on socializing them more every day with lots of pets and 
playtime. 

Misha is now a big fan of exploring new spaces and loves a good 
chin scratch. Her purr is just the sweetest! Millie is our couch potato 
and loves napping belly-up. She is also very food motivated and 
loves playing with her new toys. Turning a shy kitty into a more 
social one creates a very special bond. 

Go to www.lifelineforpets.org/millie--misha.html, or use this QR 
code to go directly to their page to see more. 


WHO IS SANTA CLAUS?

On a recent radio talk show, a woman complained that Santa Claus has 
gained a more prominent role during the Christmas season than the Jesus 
child. She argued that this was a sign that “we” have allowed secularism – 
and maybe even paganism – to creep into the Christmas tradition.

Really?

She obviously didn’t know that there really is a Santa Claus, that is, an actual historical 
figure upon which the modern “San-ta Claus” is based.

Nikolas of Myra was an historical 4th century Bishop in the Catholic church of Asia Minor 
(modern-day Demre, Turkey). Yes, he was a member of the still young and developing 
Catholic church, and he was a priest! He was born on March 15, 270, in Pataya, Lycia, 
in Asia Minor, now Turkey. At that time, howev-er, the area was culturally Greek, and 
was politically a part of the Roman diocese of Asia. He was the only child of wealthy 
Greek parents, who both died in an epidemic when Nikolas was young. Nikolas (also 
spelled “Nicholas”) inherited a fortune from his parents, and was then raised by his uncle 
(also named Nikolas), who was a Bishop of Patara, and who trained young Nikolas into 
priesthood.

Nikolas was said to be religious from an early age, and he al-ways fasted on Wednesdays 
and Fridays. 

Because of his outspoken beliefs, he was persecuted by the Romans and was imprisoned 
during the persecution of Diocle-tian.

In case you never heard of the “persecution of Diocletian” (I hadn’t – I was probably playing 
hookie that day and missed that history lesson), it was the most severe of the Roman 
Em-pire’s persecutions against Christians, simply because they were Christians. It was 
also known as the “Great Persecution.” In 303, four emperors issued a series of dictatorial 
laws which essentially did away with any legal rights of Christians. The edicts demanded 
that the Christians comply with traditional Roman “religious” practices, meaning, giving 
sacrifices to the various Roman gods. This persecution was severe, but weakest in the 
British colonies where the Empire had the least sway. It was the most severe in the Eastern 
provinces, where Nikolas lived. 

Nikolas refused to worship the Roman gods, so he was tossed into a prison, where he was 
reportedly hungry and cold for about 5 years. With the rise of Constantine, the persecutions 
came to an end in 313. Constantine is known for “Christianiz-ing” the Roman 
Empire, and re-naming all the Mythraic and so-called “pagan” holidays so they could all 
now be regarded as Christian holidays. With Constantine in power, Nikolas was re-leased.

Shortly after his return to his homeland in 317 A.D., Nikolas be-came the Bishop of Myra. 

He was later invited to attend the First Council of Nicaea in 325, the famous council where 
much of the modern dogma of the Catholic church was determined. Nikolas of Myra was 
one of many bishops to participate in the Council at Constantine’s re-quest. He is listed as 
the 151st attendee at the Council. There, Nikolas was a staunch anti-Arian. Arius, from 
Alexandria, held the belief that the “Son of God” did not always exist, but was created by 
the Father. Of course, no one could “prove” either point, but those are the sorts of things 
they all debated. Nikolas disagreed with Arius, and defended the then-developing ortho-
dox Christian viewpoint. According to stories told, Nikolas got so angry at Arius that he 
punched him in the face! Really? Pro-to-Santa Claus punches a fellow man of the cloth? 
Wow! That would make an awesome video! 

Back in his homeland, Nikolas became known as the generous bishop. Remember, he inherited 
wealth from his parents, and he would sometimes give gold and other valuables to 
those that he learned were in need. In one case, it is said that Nikolas tossed a bag of gold 
coins into a needy family’s yard, anony-mously. He was said to be humble, and didn’t 
want to be seen giving money to people, so he did it secretly. He was so famous for giving 
such gifts in private when he traveled the country-side, children were told to go to sleep 
quickly or Nikolas would not come with gifts. This, apparently, is the origin of telling 
children to go to sleep or that Santa will not come.

In one story, he apparently snuck into the home of a family where the three daughters of 
a poor man were about to get married. Nikolas put some gold into the stockings which 
the girls left by the fire to dry. This, apparently, is the origin of hanging up stockings on 
Christmas eve.

He was also well known for the gifts that he gave to newly mar-ried couples during the 
already-established Christmas season.

Nikolas was a complex man, part of the new Catholic tradition which celebrated the birth 
of Jesus on the already-observed winter solstice. (Early Judeo-Christians did not celebrate 
the birth of Jesus, a date that has been lost to history, but historian know that Jesus was 
definitely not born on December 25).

Nikolas died on December 6, 343, which is to this day known as “Saint Nicholas Day.” 
Upon his death, he was buried in the ca-thedral of Myra. He is revered as a saint in most 
versions of Christianity and is especially honored in Eastern Orthodox Christianity.

By the year 450, churches in Greece and Asia Minor were being named in honor of Nikolas. 
He was officially honored as a saint by the Eastern Catholic Church in 800. December 
6 began to be celebrated as Bishop Nicholas Day in France by the 1200s. 

As time went on, when ever someone received a mysterious gift, it would be attributed to 
Saint Nicholas! 

The Dutch called Saint Nicholas 
“Sinterklass,” which is the most 
likely manner in which the name 
Saint Nicholas gradually evolved 
into “Santa Claus.” Along the way, 
Saint Nicholas was given some of 
the attributes of Odin, the Norse 
God, who could travel through 
the sky and who had a secret home 
somewhere around the north pole. 
Come to think of it, even the Superman 
story borrowed from Odin. 
Remember how Superman some-
times went to a secret cavern in the Northern coldlands and conversed with his ancestors 
via ice crystals? 

The image continued to evolve over the years, with the Coco Cola company giving the 
world our modern Santa Claus, a somewhat sanitized and plumper Saint Nicholas with 
their ear-ly 20th century ads. This is when we began to see the fatter bearded man in the 
red suit. 

Today, the man you see in the mall is the condensation of fact and myth, embodying the 
generosity of one Catholic Bishop, the good will of all who gave gifts in his stead, and bits 
of the my-thology of Odin. Nicholas was not a “pagan,” and he was not a myth. He lived, 
and he continues to in the hearts and minds of all those who keep him alive.


Pet of the Week

 
Two-year-old Harmony is an adorable low-rider 
who will bowl her way into your heart. Or your legs, 
if you’re not paying attention! 

 This 60-pound bowling ball seems to move through 
life without a care in the world. When she gets “the 
zoomies” and runs around the yard at Pasadena 
Humane, she has the appearance of a mini tornado- 
one that is laughing with a beaming smile the whole 
time. 

 When she finally slows down for a minute, 
Harmony adores getting a nice belly rub as she rolls 
around in the grass. She kicks her legs in the air like 
it’s the best thing ever.

 Harmony has lived with other dogs, so she might 
like a friend with similar size and energy level. She’s 
also quite content to be the only apple of your eye!

 The adoption fee for dogs is $150. All dog adoptions 
include spay or neuter, microchip, and age-
appropriate vaccines. 

 New adopters will receive a complimentary 
health-and-wellness exam from VCA Animal Hospitals, as well as a goody bag filled with 
information about how to care for your pet. 

 View photos of adoptable pets and schedule an adoption appointment at pasadenahumane.
org. Adoptions are by appointment only, and new adoption appointments are available 
every Sunday and Wednesday at 10:00 a.m. 

 Pets may not be available for adoption and cannot be held for potential adopters by phone 
calls or email.

WHAT'S HAPPENING AT THE 

SIERRA MADRE PLAYHOUSE


Our holiday show begins this Friday! Cori Cable Kidder's Holiday Spectacular: A 1940s Christmas 
Revue will play on our stage from Nov 24 (the day after Thanksgiving) through Dec 23.

These original WWII-era military-themed holiday concerts star Sierra Madre Playhouse's Patsy 
Cline, Cori Cable Kidder, who received an Ovation nomination for her 2015 Sierra Madre Playhouse 
performance following a four-month run of sold-out performances of Always...Patsy Cline. 
You won't want to miss Cori performing military and holiday classics of the 1940s, with live musical 
accompaniment by Sean Paxton on piano and a 3-piece band. 


Mountain Views News 80 W Sierra Madre Blvd. No. 327 Sierra Madre, Ca. 91024 Office: 626.355.2737 Fax: 626.609.3285 Email: editor@mtnviewsnews.com Website: www.mtnviewsnews.com