PATHEOS LABS
PATHEOS PRESS
Shop
The Saint Who Would be Santa Claus
The True Life and Trials of Nicholas of Myra
by Adam C. English
“Adam English’s real gift is in resurrecting through his painstaking historical detective work a flesh-and-blood St. Nicholas, whose courage and Christian generosity are worthy of emulation.” —Greg Garrett, author of One Fine Potion
About the Book and Author
Beyond the myth and folklore, Saint Nicholas radically influenced the formation of Western history and Christian thought.
The Saint Who Would Be Santa Claus: Read An Excerpt
The history of Saint Nicholas is a tantalizing riddle of myth, folklore, and historical facts.
Praise for The Saint Who Would Be Santa Claus
"Thanks to English, we have tantalizing glimpses of what actually shaped the man into the saint, and both into an icon." Read what Phyllis Tickle and others are saying about this new book.
Video Q&A with Author
"St. Nicholas was a political leader and social activist of his time." Watch an interview with Adam English from Book Expo America.
Visit Adam English's Blog
"A blog site dedicated to chasing theological rabbits and sometimes catching a few. I am a university professor in the Baptist tradition (broadly speaking) who thinks that thinking matters."
Santa Claus Training
Adam C. English
Adam English's blog series on what he's learned from the real Santa Claus in the course of researching his book.
Book Club Roundtable
Have Yourself a Very Pagan Christmas
Jana Riess
Just about every aspect of this holiday has pagan origins. The Saint Who Would Be Santa Claus, which traces the development of legends around Nicholas of Myra (now regarded as jolly old St. Nick), demonstrates many of these juxtapositions.
St. Nick: Holy and Human
Greg Garrett
Who was this patron saint of children, patron saint of sailors, our primary image of gift-giving and generosity?
Introducing the Real Santa Claus
Frank Viola
If you're someone who has a penchant for learning history, and you've wondered if anything historical stands behind the Santa Claus legend, this is probably the best book you'll find on the subject.
What the Real St. Nick Teaches Us About Gift Giving
Ellen Painter Dollar
How can we allow the original St. Nicholas to inform our modern-day merrymaking?
In Which Arius Receives a Stocking Full of Coal and a Knuckle Sandwich
Alexis Neal
English cites heavily to Scripture, and the discussion of the Council at Nicea (where my man Nick punched a heretic, because Santa don’t play dat) certainly involves important theological doctrines.
A Saint to Imitate
John Turner
As English points out, a saintly action "need not be miraculous, angelic, or incredible." Nicholas is a saint we can all successfully emulate.
Was Santa at the Council of Nicea?
Susan Sevier
English invites me to stand with the saints that came before, and to try for just a moment to feel the excitement, the risk, and the calling that must have been true for those who struggled to protect and grow the fledgling faith that I now share with them.
Join the Roundtable Discussion!
Email us at books@patheos.com with your 300-500 word reflection on this book.
Selected entries may receive a free copy of one of our future book club books!
Join the Roundtable Discussion!
Email us at books@patheos.com with your 300-500 word reflection on this book.
Selected entries may receive a free copy of one of our future book club books!
Pro-Life Strategic Voting, 2016 
Are We Bringing Sin Into Paganism? 
Did New Testament Writers Understand the Trinity? 
The Re-Paganing of America and God's Eternal Word 
Abundance and Hoarding: There Is Enough 
Scotland's Jews and Their Gaza Concerns 
My Hijab Does Not Define Me 
"They Knew About It and Did Nothing" 
Please Stop Planting Churches 
"The Bicycle Thief": Humanizing Criminal and Crime Victim 
This Is the Most Powerful Argument Against Christianity 
Seeking Tanis: The Search for Enchantment Leads Back to the Church 
Wholly Righteous, Wholly Sinful: Reflections on War's Demise 
The Hand We're Dealt: On Fairness and Progress 
Engaging the Ferguson Declaration 
Modesty: More Than a "Your Body" Problem 
I Needed Someone to Hope Me: An Update on the Moral Revival 
My Sister, the Muslim 
Struggle to Perfect Your Loves Rather Than Baptize Them 
Learning to Listen, a Full-Body Experience 
When Ethics Conflict With the Law 
Evangelicals Still Having Problems with Interracial Marriage? 
Stop Helping: The Dangers of Religious and Secular Charity 
Facebook, Family, and Surviving the Election 
Follow us on: