St. Nicholas, Archbishop of Myra in Lycia
“Muslimism”?
Anyway, the real Santa Claus, St. Nicholas, was Archbishop of Myra in Lycia, which is in present-day Turkey. So it is not precisely true to say, as an Islamic supremacist spokesman says in this story, that Santa Claus has “nothing to do with our traditions and our culture.” But of course, that is all so much jahiliyya: worthless refuse of the “pre-Islamic period of ignorance.”
Re-Islamization of Turkey Update: “Anti-Santa campaigns heat up in Turkey as Christmas arrives,” from Hürriyet Daily News, December 24:
A Muslim youth group and a neighborhood authority led two separate anti-Santa campaigns on the eve of Christmas in Turkey.
The Istanbul University branch of a group called Anatolia Youth Association (AGD) released an illustration of a Muslim youth punching Santa Claus in the face and announced that it would make a press statement against Christmas on Dec. 26 in Istanbul.
The group announced the event with a statement titled “Muslim, return to yourself!” adding that “Christmas is a Christianity practice.” The group also criticized the celebration of New Year’s Day, saying that the two dates were “mixed” and “united.” It claimed that celebrating Christmas and New Year’s Day was “wrong” and constituted “a blow dealt to Muslimism.”
Earlier this week, the Åžirinevler muhtar, the head of the neighborhood, hung a banner making it clear that Santa Claus was not welcome on their streets.
“As in recent years, Santa Claus will not be coming to Åžirinevler since he is nothing to do with our traditions and our culture,” muhtar Galip KarayiÄŸit said in the statement. “[Turk legend character] Dede Korkut will come to our houses again, and will teach our children that they did not come into this world for pleasure, that they came to distribute justice.”