Ho-ho-no: a relic believed to contain a bone of Saint Nicholas has been destroyed after a man allegedly broke into a French basilica and stole it.
The unidentified suspect entered the Basilica of Saint Nicolas-de-Port in Lorraine over Halloween weekend, shattered a glass display and took the small reliquary containing the remains associated with the saint who inspired Santa Claus.
According to a statement from the parish, the man later burned and crushed the relic.
“Beyond the patrimonial value of this object, it is above all a profound attack on our history, our faith and the devotion of generations of pilgrims that touches us today,” the 15th-century Catholic church said.
The suspect was arrested on Nov. 2 and confessed to the destruction, saying he had a “desire to destroy” the relic because he viewed it as a “symbol of fetishism,” according to the French Catholic outlet Catholix.
Authorities have not released the man’s identity. He is expected to stand trial in December, the publication reported.
“Saint Nicholas is the patron saint of Lorraine,” Luc Binsinger, mayor of Saint-Nicolas-de-Port, said. The town celebrates the saint’s feast day on Dec. 6.
“Saint Nicholas is where the heart of Lorraine beats every December 6th. As soon as someone attacks it, it creates a particular emotion and a kind of inner revolt for each and every one of us,” Binsinger said, according to FranceInfo.
This is not the first attack on the Basilica of Saint Nicolas-de-Port.
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On Feb. 4, vandals started two separate small fires inside the basilica, blackening a statue of the Virgin Mary, according to the outlet.
Meanwhile, Nancy, a small city in Lorraine, has drawn hundreds of protesters amid nationwide demonstrations that have filled streets across France every Saturday for the past five weeks.
Classified as a minor relic, the 2-centimeter bone fragment was displayed on a patronal altar beneath a statue of Saint Nicholas in the church’s chapel.
The basilica’s principal relics, including a larger fragment believed to come from one of the saint’s fingers, remain secured in the church treasury.
Thousands of Catholics are expected to gather at the basilica for the annual torchlight procession on Dec. 5 and 6.
Saint Nicholas was a fourth-century Catholic bishop of Myra, a Lycian city in what is now southwestern Turkey. He took part in the Council of Nicaea and became renowned for his generosity and secret gift-giving.
According to the Marians of the Immaculate Conception, one of the saint’s miracles involved secretly tossing three bags of gold coins through the window of a poor family’s home. The gift prevented the father from selling his daughters into prostitution.
The gold reportedly landed in the family’s stockings, a story that helped inspire the Christmas tradition of hanging stockings, according to the organization.
