Kitty390
Christmas wasn't always a religious tradition...Santa didn't really come from the bible, i think. I'm not sure if he was born out of consumerism, but he is still a large part of a Christmas tradition.
Santa actually came from the legend of St. Nicholas of Myra (Myra was an ancient city in what is now Turkey). His feast day is December 6th. The name "Santa Clause" actually came from a the name used for St. Nicholas in the Netherlands: Sinterklaas
Sinterklaas ia a contracted form of Sint (saint) Nicolaas (Nicholas)
Saint Nicholas (and even Santa) existed long before the modern Christmas consumerism.
I'm not sure how he moved from Dec 6th to Dec 25th, but I'm not that supprised. St. Nicholas is the patron saint of children (among other things) and Christmas is all about the birth of a child.
