Exchanging good wishes and drinking toasts
name, distorting it over the days until it became "Niklaus," and the Spaniards added the word "Santa" in place of "Sint," meaning the saint... Yet the "Santa Claus" of this age, with his red suit and his white beard, bears no kinship to Saint Nicholas, who was a pastor in one of the parishes of Holland.
The Church owes to Saint Francis of Assisi the writing of the simple carols, suited to the understanding of the common people. These carols reached England by way of the acting troupes, and were sung between the acts of the religious plays; they pleased the people, who grew attached to them. Once the worshippers' fervor rose so high that they went out into the public street singing these carols over and over.
The credit for that belongs also to certain English schoolboys...
For shortly before Christmas they would write to their parents, adorning the letters with drawings of their own making to show off their skill. This inventive method pleased Mr. Henry Cole, who sent to an artist asking him to draw cards for him to send to his friends; and the first card came onto the market in 1858.
Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace...