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Who is he in his hometown?
Saint Nicholas looks four very different ways in Demre, formerly Myra, where he served as bishop and lived most of his life. Three prominent statues offer competing Nicholas images, showing him as Father Christmas, an Orthodox bishop, or like the Western Santa Claus. Differing ideologies are behind these alternate visions of the saint who has become a nearly universal gift-giver. For some he is a benevolent figure, caring for children. For others, he is first and foremost, one of the most important saints of the church. Still others see him simply as a jolly, secular and commercial symbol for holiday cheer. How to picture St. Nicholas is a particular challenge in modern-day Turkey—a country that is 99.8% Muslim,* yet officially a secular state. Tour guides say many come to find the historic and religious Christian saint. Others want to understand the cultural and historic roots of America's popular Santa Claus. Some just believe the red-suited Santa has simply replaced earlier understandings and images. The first public statue of St. Nicholas is a genial Father Christmas who stands in the garden of the Church of St. Nicholas. The large bronze benevolent figure wears a hooded robe, carries a gift bag over his shoulder, and is surrounded by three children. For almost twenty years, from 1981 until 2000, this image was the only Demre St. Nicholas. In December 2000 Russian sculptor Gregory Pototsky and Moscow mayor, Yuri Luzhkov, presented Demre with a striking bronze Orthodox Saint Nicholas. This figure, dressed in the vestments of an Orthodox bishop, stood atop a globe of the world. The globe itself was on a tall plinith in the town square, right in front of the Church of St. Nicholas. Busloads—up to eighty a day in the summertime—brought Russian tourists and pilgrims who knelt and prayed at the base of the statue. A new image appeared in February 2005, when the Demre town council removed the bronze Christian saint, replacing it with a bright bakelite Santa Claus. Demoted from the top of the world, the saint is now tucked into a space in the courtyard wall outside the church. Santa held forth above the street, arm raised to ring a large bell. Demre officials say Santa is universally recognized and more popular, because he belongs to the whole world. This change was controversial. International protests have come from Russia, the European Union, the Netherlands, and the United States. Despite pressure from the Turkish Foreign Ministry, wanting to preserve good relations with Russia, Santa still stood until December 2008. The most recent image, a new "Turkish Santa," was unveiled Christmas Day, 2008. Sculptor Necdet Can called the statue, "the authentic Santa of Likia. I was careful while making the features of the face and tried to make it look like Turks." The sculpture, commissioned by the Culture Ministry, is fiberglass over an iron frame. Sculptor Fray Okkan commented that the statue doesn't look like Saint Nicholas who lived in the 6th century. Turks didn't arrive in Antalolia until the 11th Century. So the controversy continues—who is Saint Nicholas and how does he look in his hometown? Four images of Nicholas in Myra (Demre) —
* Source: World Factbook back to Turkeyprint version |
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