My sister in law mentioned yesterday how Santa Claus and
Jesus kind of fall into the same category for the unbeliever—bearded guys in
the sky with magical powers. That got me thinking about this Santa myth we tell
our children. I’m not a Santa hater (though Santa is just one ‘n’ away from
Satan), I love stories, eggnog, and presents. But as a parent who believes in
the second bearded guy in the sky and wants to teach that belief to his
children, the way we trick our kids into believing the Santa story gives me
pause.
The cynical interpretation of the story is that wonderful
and spiritual things are naive and should only be believed until the third
grade. Parents tell their kids something the parents know isn’t true and in
third grade (or highschool for me) the kid wakes up to find Mom and Dad stuffing
the stockings. Most kids aren’t traumatized by this realization, that’s not the
problem. But this process of discovery and loss of faith sets a precedent in
relation to other spiritual things. Since Santa and Jesus share the same
holiday and profession (judgment and joyspreading), does the death of one
weaken belief in the other?
An alternate interpretation of why we tell our kids the
Barbie and Legos under the tree are from Santa is that we want them to believe
that powerful forces of justice and good, though invisible, are at work in the
world. We want them to experience firsthand the tingly feeling of wonder when
you’re connected to something bigger than yourself, and to understand the
concept of anonymous giving. It’s a myth that asks us to question what our
parents tell us, but since it is such a benevolent deceit, we can accept the
allegory without feeling betrayed.
So, is Santa a faith-sucking tool of atheist capitalism, or
a friendly pagan prophet and type of Christ? I think he likely is somewhere in
between, but it was sweet to hear Ingrid ask last night if I could tell Santa to
be quiet so he wouldn’t be too loud and wake up Henry.
Here's a video of our friend Has trying really hard to believe in Santa: Hectic Hobo.
