Since we have begun talking about Advent Conspiracy this year the question I am most often asked is, “what about Santa“? This may not matter to you but I feel compelled to explain our view since the giving of gifts is such a major way we worship and celebrate the advent season.
If you do celebrate Christmas with Santa Claus being a part, I do not think you are a bad parent-Christian-American or anything else. This is a preference/conscience issue to us and I know MANY of you are wonderful, amazing and think differently. I would only encourage us all to think through what we do to celebrate Christmas and every event in our lives. Testing our actions against scripture to ensure that our lives and holidays are honoring to the Lord as well as fun and encouraging to our children.
Our sweet newborn Santa baby
F.A.Q.
Will Santa not be a part of your Christmas Celebration?
We will not be teaching our kids about Santa Claus per say. We will not be lying to them making up a character who judges them throughout the year on their behavior and then rewards them accordingly. Honestly, it seems anti-biblical to me to lie to my children. It seems that it would create the beginnings of legalism in their hearts- if I do good I get presents, if not I get coal.
We will relish with our kids in the great and glorious scriptural story of Christmas. We may even include the story of Kris Kringle explaining how he was the beginning of the Santa myth and encouraging them to be generous in giving gifts as this mighty saint of the faith was. When they are old enough I look forward to sneaking around and delivering presents in stockings, on door-steps, in the dark to encourage love and giving.
It is our hope that the entirety of our family traditions will be to worship God and love others. I can not seem to find an honest place for the modern myth of Santa in this experience.
Does that mean your kids won’t get presents?
As obvious from previous Advent Conspiracy posts, we believe in presents around here to show love and kindness to those we care about. Our children will receive presents as a part of the Christmas celebration. Their presents will say love mom & dad on the tags. The hope is that they will feel loved and cared for by us, by their family, not some creepy guy who sneaks in their chimney and eats up all the cookies. Think about it, pretty odd!
But Santa is such a big part of the holiday, won’t your children end up demented and chain-smoking-high-school-drop-outs if they don’t sit on his lap?
No. There are successful and well adjusted adults of many different faiths who had wonderful holidays growing up without Santa.
Are your kids going to squeal and ruin our Christmas?
I hope not. As we explain to them our family’s Christmas traditions and explain the traditions practiced around us we hope our kids will respect the beliefs of their friends and not ruin the fun and joy. However, even if they do, we must live, give, and worship God the in the ways we deem right. I will just go ahead and apologize a few years in advance, in case this happens, thanks for understanding.
What about you? Do you celebrate Christmas with Santa, why or why not?
BLESSINGS
P.S. I am giddy with excitement to share with you the Advent Calendar I have been working on for next Wednesday. It will be a great resource to encourage wonderful celebration with children of any age!
I like it!! That sounds like what we are going to with our little ones too.
We never did Santa growing up and none of us (four kids total) ever spoiled it for other kids. We also never cared that we didn’t do Santa. We knew the Kris Kringle story and there were a few Santa ornaments on the tree, but we didn’t believe the myth, because my parents never taught it to us. Christmas was wonderful and we got presents, but they were from our parents (or grandparents, siblings, etc…) not the man in red. That’s how my husband’s folks did Christmas also and what we’re doing with our boys and I think it’s perfect!
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I’ve been pondering this, too, so thanks for sharing your thoughts! I think we’ll probably do what you guys are doing in that focusing our attention on Christ yet for us, probably putting Santa in the background. Growing up for both my husband and I we were told [not taught] about Santa, but I really don’t remember ever really believing in him like he was real. I knew the reason for Christmas was Jesus’ birth, even though I was yet to know Him.
On my husband’s side, a long lived tradition has been doing Santa pics at the mall. We will probably do the same, as we did it last year, but it won’t be a focus of our tradition. I agree with you that the whole thought of the myth is creepy, but the Kris Kringle origin is really sweet.
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