An unidentified man in France stole and destroyed a relic believed to contain a bone of Saint Nicholas, the figure whose legend inspired the modern image of Santa Claus. According to a statement from the parish, the man stormed into the Basilica of Saint Nicolas-de-Port in Lorraine on Halloween weekend, smashed through glass to take the relic, and then burned and crushed its remains. The parish described the attack as a profound assault on the town's history, its faith and the devotion of generations of pilgrims.
The suspect was arrested on Nov. 2 and admitted to the crime, saying he had a desire to destroy the relic, which he regarded as a symbol of fetishism, according to the French Catholic outlet Catholix. Authorities have not released his identity, and he is expected to face trial in December. The object was a minor relic, a 2-centimeter bone fragment kept on a patronal altar beneath a statue of the saint in the church's chapel, while the basilica's main relics, including a larger fragment said to belong to a finger of Saint Nicholas, remain in the treasury.S2
Luc Binsinger, mayor of Saint-Nicolas-de-Port, said Saint Nicholas is the patron saint of Lorraine and that an attack on him provokes a particular emotion and inner revolt in each resident. The town celebrates the patron's feast day on Dec. 6, and thousands of Catholics are expected at the basilica's annual torchlight procession on Dec. 5 and 6.S2
The basilica has been targeted before. On Feb. 4, vandals lit two separate small fires inside the church that blackened a statue of the Virgin Mary. The incident comes as Lorraine has seen protests, including hundreds of demonstrators in the city of Nancy, part of nationwide demonstrations held across France every Saturday for more than a month.S2
Saint Nicholas was a 4th-century bishop of Myra, a Lycian city in present-day southwest Turkey, who took part in the Council of Nicaea and was renowned for his generosity and secret gift-giving. A well-known legend holds that he dropped three bags of gold coins through the window of a poor family's home to keep the father from selling his daughters into prostitution, and the coins landed in the family's stockings, an event said to have inspired the Christmas tradition.S2
