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Results from: Answered Bible Questions, Answers, Unanswered Bible Questions, Notes Ordered by Verse | ||||||
Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
1 | Santa Clause or Jesus Christ? or both? | Deut 5:6 | jalanlambert | 128375 | ||
In a Bible discussion last night, a lady at our church said she didn't see anything wrong with teaching children to believe in Santa Clause. She thinks that it is harmless fun. I know this isn't the Christmas season, but I am interested to know how members of the forum would address this practice of including Santa Clause in the teaching of the birth of Christ during the Christmas season. What do you tell your children when asked about Santa Clause? I look foward to your response? Thank you for your time. JAL | ||||||
2 | Santa Clause or Jesus Christ? or both? | Deut 5:6 | DocTrinsograce | 128393 | ||
Hi, Jalan... I thought I'd throw in my two farthings. :-) Please forgive me for answering anecdotally, but sometimes anecdotes show things in a pretty clear light. (Not anywhere on the same level as the scripture, of course!) My mother taught my eldest sister the traditional Santa Clause line. Ultimately, of course, mom had to let her know that Santa had not, after all, been the source of her gifts at Christmas. My sister, though still quite young, thought all of this over. A little while later she came to my mom and asked, "Then is Jesus a lie too?" |
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3 | Santa Clause or Jesus Christ? or both? | Deut 5:6 | Hank | 128402 | ||
Au contraire, Doc, the anecdote rarely calls for apology, especially when it is used so aptly as yours was in your post. When our three children were very young, oh so many moons ago, my wife and I were young parents who made what I now view as a mistake in that we went along with the fable of Santa Claus. We were fortunte I suppose in escaping somehow the question your sister posed to your mom, "Then is Jesus a lie too?" For some reason our children seemed never to link the fable of Santa with the reality of Jesus. But looking backward, I can see the folly of teaching children to believe in Santa Claus. Inevitably parents will have to admit to their children the truth about Santa -- an admission that is tantamount to owning up to a lie. I'd much sooner take Santa out of Christmas than take Christ out of it! I've long sided with C. S. Lewis, who denounced what he called the commercial claptrap of secular Christmas. I find a great deal of sardonic humor in his observation that Christmas is a season when one buys gifts for people, some of whom he doesn't even like, largely out of a slavish sense of obligation -- useless gadgets and trinkets that no man in his right mind would ever think of buying for himself. I'm old enough now to be relatively free of the compulsion to make a fool of myself by "making a list and checking it twice" and otherwise engaging in the garish festivities of secular Christmas. Christmas, if it is celebrated by Christians, ought to be Christ centered, not Santa Claus centered. The treasured gift of Christmas is the Son of God, not the gift bought at the marketplace and wrapped in dazzling paper and ribbon. In summary, I see no potential harm that could ever befall parent or child as a result of being absolutely honest and truthful -- whose relationship from the beginning is dedicated to telling the truth about all things. Even Santa Claus. ...... The Christmastide carol should be "For unto us a Child is born," not "Santa Claus is coming to town." --Hank | ||||||
4 | Santa Clause or Jesus Christ? or both? | Deut 5:6 | Morant61 | 128409 | ||
Greetings Hank! A number of years ago, we had a problem with my sister in law. We had never taught our children that Santa Claus was real. Oh, we might make passing mention of him occasionally, but our kids always knew that Mom and Dad actually brought the gifts! :-) Well, it so happened that my sister in law had taught her kids that Santa Claus was real. They happened to mention it to our kids one day, who immediately began to explain to her kids that there was no Santa Claus. My sister in law came to me and just started to lay into me about this situation. I listened for a few moments and finally rejoined: "Let me get this straight!" "You're mad at me because you lied to your kids and my kids told them the truth!" :-) She immediately shut up! :-) Your Brother in Christ, Tim Moran |
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5 | Santa Clause or Jesus Christ? or both? | Deut 5:6 | New Creature | 128605 | ||
Just one word POWERFUL |
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