Santa. Many people already know where this is going. WHY do people do Santa? I mean as Christians. At first I was just whatever about Santa. We never 'did' Santa when I was little, which makes me glad. I used to think, "well, I don't want to do it with my kids but whatever if people do." Mike and I had many talks about it b/c he grew up doing the whole Santa thing. The more we talked the more I wondered how believers can. I think it's something that is just not given much thought...which isn't a good thing. When you think about the meaning of Christmas, how do you explain it while including Santa as a real thing? How do you tell that lie and reconcile it with Christ birth and ultimately his death. Today it became even more clear to me. I was downstairs talking to Ava about it. We were listening to Christmas music and, as I always do when something about Santa comes on, I asked her if Santa is real. She, with her good little memory, said no. She then asked me why Santa isn't real. I told her that he was just like our cartoons and stuff. As far as the flying around and giving every kid presents for being good, its just made up. I then saw more clearly the glaring difference between Santa and Christmas. Christmas is Christ coming as a gift of life, not because we are good, but exactly the opposite...because we are not good. So I told Ava (and I know I will probably hear about this), "babe, Santa is Satan's way of subtly changing our minds about things. The idea of Santa is to make you think you can be good enough, but the whole reason for Christmas is because we were not good enough." SO, I don't think I'm sweet for my stand against Santa. I think it springs out of not wanting to be a sheep and just do what everyone else does, which isn't a good reason to do things either. Over time God has given Mike and I the right motives. We still do gifts, but with the explanation of the gift Christ was. We still have a tree, and LOVE it. We still watch Rudolph and elf and home alone, but we DO NOT believe in Santa. I do think that it should be given much more thought than it is. I would challenge anyone to give me a good reason to do Santa, or even a reason it shouldn't be considered sinful to allow your kids to 'believe'. As Gramma Tally says, "Satan isn't always a roaring lion." and as Uncle Paul says, "just rearrange the letters, Santa is Satan."
Sunday, November 16, 2008
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15 comments:
Love it~ for what its worth we have handled it the same way with our kids...caught some flack for "taking away the joy" but nonetheless never regretted it. You gave her some good answers, you go mama! :)
glad you are back blogging too!
good to know you agree. Now any advice you give will be taken as much more meaningful and wise. =)
If you don't mind, I would like to encourage my friends to read this by putting a link on my blog. I have lots of Christian friends who celebrate Santa, and I don't get it either - and I DID believe in Santa as a child. There is one hero we should be celebrating at Christmas, and that is Christ. When you teach Santa, regardless of what other spiritual things you say, Santa always outdoes Jesus. Children end up caring a lot more about the man in the red suit than the do about the baby in the manger.
yeah, I don't mind. I think unless someone else brings it up it's really hard to say, "hey, you know that santa thing you do....totally wrong...have a merry christmas."
Oh your horrible, not letting your kids believe in santa!! Outraged!
Just kidding. We don't do santa either and I find as Gavin gets older it gets harder to not do it. Everyone asks him what santa is bringing him or if he is excited about santa or if he wrote him a letter. Gavin just looks at me like, "huh?" I do have to say, I warn him a lot not to bring it up with other kids, though. I don't want him to be the one spoiling it for others. But I agree with everything you wrote. I want Gavin to see Christmas for what it really is about - CHRIST!
P.S. You and mike need to come and visit us soon! We would love that!
Preach it sister. You had good parents! Paul
you're a mean stupid child full of hate and venom, my little princesses need a happy fat little red man in their life to blot out the memory of the the dark hearted child i raised. ava and lie i love u and will protect u from this antisantiet.
grampa
anyone wondering why I am the way I am anymore?
throw in a dash of gramma tally and all doubt is removed.
I disagree. Here's an article with some arguments that I agree with.
http://deregnochristi.org/2007/12/21/do-you-believe-in-santa-claus/
I suppose the nazis will be after me now. :)
KATIE!!! I thought we were friends.
so...i went to the blog. I think its pretty weak. True to history as a person may be, to say that he flies around and gives your kids presents is a lie. That's not using his history as a good symbol of Christ, that's saying one things is really happening and it's not. There is no way to get around it. To teach your children how the thought of Santa can symbolize Christ is a stretch (which seams to be an attempt at getting around the guilt of teaching such things) but, to teach them he is a real guy still going around today is just not justifiable. Christ is a real figure in history, he was really nailed to a cross, he really rose again, he really will return. Those things are biblical. The blog I read didn't give me much biblical truth to draw me to the dark side. =)
Two points in my wife's defense and then I am outta here: 1) there is a difference between fiction and a lie and 2) every family who does Santa probably does it differently. Its probably much more important to ask whether we are getting sucked in by the materialism surrounding Xmas in our culture. Whether or not a family does Santa, this is the probably the greater danger.
I thought this post wasn't for the easily offended. :) I just offered the article as an example that there are other thought-out positions out there don't don't arrive at your same conclusion. To say that parents are probably sinning if they let their kids believe is weak and perhaps legalistic. I don't know if Luke really believes that Santa is real and if he flies around bringing presents. I don't care. I don't care if he believes that Narnia is/was a real place. I like reading him the stories, and it wouldx make me smile if he has the imagination right now to believe in places like that. I don't teach Santa doctrine to him. I do teach Christ to him; I pray that I do and try to when we walk and sit, every day. I do teach him that the story of Mary and Joseph and Jesus is no fairy tale, but that it really happened, and that Jesus offers us grace and salvation every day. I just don't think that him believing that there's someone called Santa Clause has much to do with that. Some people make more of Santa Clause than of Jesus in their home at Christmas; and that is sad and dishonoring. But to judge a parent as sinful and careless because his family "does" Santa is shaky at best.
NIC!!!! We ARE friends. If you weren't my friend, I wouldn't have even bothered to comment. :)
I agree with both of Chris' points. Katie, I know we are friends...I was totally joking. I'm glad you commented b/c it's good to think things through even if you feel confident in your position. I think maybe it's not clear what I mean...or maybe it is...I don't know...let me make sure a few things are understood. When I say parents who "do" Santa...I mean people who do teach Santa doctrine as you put it. Tell their kids to be good or he won't bring them stuff. That's the 'not true' part, and that's when the fun of the fiction becomes a lie in my mind. I think legalistic behavior comes in when you don't allow anything with Santa on it in your house or don't watch anything with santa in it. I choose to tell my kids that he isn't real and I want to make sure they know that. I don't condemn people for not making that a point in their parenting. I don't think its a big deal to make certain presents as 'from Santa' if it is understood that it's in good fun and not a result of a real guy who came in last night as they slept. I still don't see how teaching something that we know isn't true as truth is not sinful. If not for the confusion it may cause when it comes to the truth of Christ's birth, just the fact that you are telling a lie. This disagreement may be all in our wording. I like to read Ava fun stories that she may or may not believe as truth. Mike has read Narnia to her and we have the movie. =) I don't necessarily tell her every time something is fictional, however, I don't lie to her when she asks.
hey, I just read this and I know that i am a little behind. I agree nicole. I think Santa's stupid....I can't STAND hearing parents lie to their kids about him.
Heather
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