Before young Nic becomes the magical legend, Santa Claus, he grows into a man with a huge heart despite the violence of ancient Rome at the turn of the century, 300 A.D. Wise for his years, yet inexperienced in the ways of men, Nic completes his training as a Christian priest under the guidance of his uncle, before venturing out of his homeland. Along the way, he discovers potent spiritual gifts and resolves to introduce an era of peace and abundance to a fractured world of tribal and religious conflict. Join him, and his growing family of found companions, as they travel the world, meet historical figures, and change hearts with kindness and generosity. The journey begins with Book One, which takes Nic from his sunny home town of Patara to the snowy forests of Kyev for an unforgettable Christmas and his first experiences of transformational love. Book Four guides young Nic on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land of Israel, to follow the path of Jesus nearly three centuries after his death. A storm at sea lands him in Alexandria, where he saves three young orphan boys from a gruesome fate, and simultaneously transforms the life of their transgressor.
Before young Nic becomes the magical legend, Santa Claus, he grows into a man with a huge heart despite the violence of ancient Rome at the turn of the century, 300 A.D. Wise for his years, yet inexperienced in the ways of men, Nic completes his training as a Christian priest under the guidance of his uncle, before venturing out of his homeland. Along the way, he discovers potent spiritual gifts and resolves to introduce an era of peace and abundance to a fractured world of tribal and religious conflict. Join him, and his growing family of found companions, as they travel the world, meet historical figures, and change hearts with kindness and generosity. The journey begins with Book One, which takes Nic from his sunny home town of Patara to the snowy forests of Kyev for an unforgettable Christmas and his first experiences of transformational love. Book Four guides young Nic on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land of Israel, to follow the path of Jesus nearly three centuries after his death. A storm at sea lands him in Alexandria, where he saves three young orphan boys from a gruesome fate, and simultaneously transforms the life of their transgressor.
See the sun rising in the East. It shines over the crashing waves of the great ocean, the light dances through the sea spray until it finally warms a green peninsula with a sandy beach. Nic stands with his horse, Druja, at the most Easterly point of the world, staring out at the first rays of the day. Behind him extends a sharp mountain peak shaded with crooked trees. Tiers of rice paddies crawl their way up the hillsides until they meet jutting towers of rock like fingers dipping into a green pond.
See an Egyptian trading vessel approach a nearby port city where the mouth of the Yellow River opens to the North China Sea. This is where the Silk Road ends and the maritime trading routes begin. This is also where Pavel leaves his mother’s wooden cart behind with his Gypsy family, and they give their last goodbyes, hugging and crying all over again.
We follow Nic and his companions on the Egyptian trading vessel, returning to the West by sea, which takes months, but we see it in mere moments. They cross the Bay of Bengal and stop briefly on the island nation of Taprobana, rich in luxury silks and spices. Here, Hui pays his respects at a Buddhist temple at the peak of a mountain, climbing barefoot all the way to the top in only his orange robe. Continuing over the Arabian Sea and into the port of Jeddah, they then set out on horseback. Natesa covers her face from the dry desert wind, her blue robe matching her blue skin. They pass the ruins of an ancient burial site and Natesa deciphers the inscriptions on one tomb to discover the name of Eve. With Nic’s help, she is becoming quite a scholar of languages. Nic and Druja lead the way north into the Holy Land, home of the Israelites and of the Lord Jesus, who lived and died some 300 years prior. Nic’s dreams are filled with crosses of light and Acts of the Apostles.
Even further west, we see a magnificent temple at Ephesus, near the coast in Lycia. The classic white structure towering into the clouds honors the goddess Artemis. Large columns, each thicker than ten men standing together, support the carved stone pediment atop the massive building. A high priestess wanders through rows of delicate, white statues and delivers a letter to a young woman with long brown hair, who is busily painting a mural of ornate designs and figures on a blank wall. She stops painting to take the letter in her hands and bows her thanks to the high priestess, her green robe folding elegantly at her hips. Then she sits down slowly, gazing at the seal on the worn roll of parchment. Her heart quickens as she holds the letter to her breast for a few thoughtful moments before carefully opening it.
Dearest Annalina,
I have no way of knowing if this letter will ever reach you, but it is important for me to write it all the same, because I believe that you will read it one day. My belief is an expression of God’s love, so when I put it down in writing, it becomes clear and comes into the world to be shared. I have faith in God’s Word that flows through me, just as the Word came to the Apostles before me. Not to say that this is any Gospel.
I have memorized the stories of the Gospel, but imagining them in my mind has not been enough. I am called to see with my own eyes the real places that I have read so much about. I need to attach the sights, the sounds, the smells, the touches, and the tastes of these stories to my own experience. I know that God is guiding me on this journey to the Holy Land. If I am to know God as Jesus did, then I must do what Jesus did. He guided the 12 Apostles to walk His same path, and they also received the gifts of the Holy Spirit.
I am not naïve in my pursuit. I know that a pilgrimage to these places will not automatically grant me the same spiritual experiences, but it will confirm for me that it really happened in a way that nothing else can. And my hope is that these places will ignite something different but equally powerful in my purpose.
A unique pathway awaits that is meant for me alone. All I have to do is continue following the great love of God that guides me, more clearly now than ever. His calling comes to me nightly in my dreams; it sends words to me during the day. I dance and move in ways that I never imagined, I speak languages I have never studied, and I do not understand why, but I trust it. I put all my faith in God, and I know that He will lead me to a future that is brighter and better than any that I can vision alone.
I see you in that future. Not just in my dreams and memories, Annalina, I know that I will be with you again very soon. That brings me such joy to think of you next to me again. It has not been enough to only think of you, or to remember the beautiful moments we have shared; I desire to experience you again, to be in your life again. This gives me great motivation to continue, no matter what obstacles may be in my path ahead. My heart has always been yours, since I first met you on the farm. Has it really been ten years? I did not really know it or admit it until that horse ride on the beach, sealed by our first kiss. When I think back, though, I have loved you since the first moment.
And so, whether you read these words or not, I know you will hear my message, because my love and declaration is aligned with the love of God, which surpasses all of time and space. We are connected, you and I, even now. Jesus said he is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end, which I see is how we all experience the love of God, and the love of each other. I am already with you in your heart, and I know I will see you very soon.
Love Always
Nic
Holy Land and Sea, the fourth volume of this saga of The Young Saint Nic, begins with an introduction which appears to be a reflection on four concepts: Hope, Vision, Faith, and Trust. This becomes relevant throughout the book, as within it, Nicholas learns to grow in these virtues and instruct others in them.
Nicholas is on a pilgrimage, upon which he has found several children attached to him whom he has adopted and seeks to baptize. He takes with him also Pavel the woodworker. After having encouraged a bishop named Jacob who is dealing with guilt for a past sin, he is shipwrecked on Alexandria, where he saves three orphaned boys, turns their lives around in many ways, and helps also the man who sought to punish them.
Nicholas was a standout character throughout this entire book. Many Christians, especially more traditional ones such as Catholics, Orthodox, Anglicans, and others are often tempted to see the saints as far off spiritual standards to who are to be imitated but will never reach. More commonly among people in general, he is seen as a rotund old man in red who places sweets in people's socks, leaves presents, and eats one's mother's cookies. Perhaps the most amazing things Talmadge does is humanize him in a compelling way. He is a mentor and a guide, of course. He takes a fatherly role to the orphans, Galani, Husani, and Tumani, for example, yet is still kind to Casimir the butcher, who sought to harm them. He also shows the profound generosity at various points for which St. Nicholas is known in all legends and historical records. There is one point in particular where he shows remarkable self-restraint. Still, he never comes off as too perfect either for a human being capable of sin. Talmadge conveys him as a man struggling with doubt of his own as to what God calls him to do. This is conveyed in various ways, including multiple skillful and poetic dream sequences, as well as conversations which he has with Pavel and others and his own internal train of thought. This helps humanize Nicholas because it shows him as a man working towards virtue. It is that which a reader may be expected to emulate in a saint.
The plot of this volume is simple enough, being mostly about the orphans in question and Nicholas' relationship with them. He teaches them about Christ, the Bible, and books in general. He shows them kindness and mercy consistently, even when they misbehave. There is also a subtle parallel between Nicholas' life and Galani's. It is not spelled out, of course, but the subtlety only makes a choice Galani and the other orphans make later on all the more impactful.
The setting is good also. Though it is hardly described in extreme detail, Talmadge gives everything that is needed to give context to the story and characters and take the reader out of this era into another, such as when Nicholas has to explain to uneducated children about books. There is also an added mystery concerning an owl, which likely symbolizes God's guiding power, in contrast to Nicholas' doubt, but also gives a sense of mystery and perhaps magic to this story, which may well be further explored in the fifth volume.
One thing that might trouble readers, specifically those who are of certain more traditional Christian denominations, as well as perhaps some Patristic scholars, is the treatment of baptism. This book seems to convey that Nicholas espouses some form of anabaptism, specifically in his apparent denial of baptismal regeneration, as well as a suggestion of a Christian being baptized more than once. It does not really explain these practices in depth, so it might confuse some people as well.
Still, if one wishes this figure of history and legend to be brought to light to see a fictionalized spiritual journey of a real saint, The Great Adventures of Young Saint Nic: Holy Land and Sea is well worth reading.