Santa Claus

  • Thread starter Thread starter Netty313
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
Netty313 said:
The truth is better than fiction!

The ‘Claus’ Clause
Click to expand...

If that sort of fiction is to be reckoned a lie, how are other fictions, such as fairy-tales, or novels, not lies as well ? But if they are lies because they are fictions, how does that not make parables in the Bible, & other Biblical examples of imaginative writing, a lie as well ?​

ISTM that he is confusing truth with fact. They are not the same - if they were, metaphors would be lies. Besides, where there is no intention to deceive, there is no lie. There is not even malicious intention. There is a moral difference between telling a child a fiction in order to take advantage of it (as a paedophile does), & saying what is not factually true, without such a purpose. It is hard to see how using Father Christmas as an explanatory device is morally different from telling jokes - & jocose fictions are not sinful. Even saying what is true can be a lie, & thus be a sin - jocose fictions, though they can be sinful, are not made so by being fictions.
 
Oh brother…now kids are not supposed to believe in Santa. People need to lighten up. A kid with good formation will not reject their parents or Christ.
 
irishpatrick said:
Oh brother…now kids are not supposed to believe in Santa. People need to lighten up. A kid with good formation will not reject their parents or Christ.
Click to expand...
It’s always good to be truthful, most especially to little kids. And they SHOULD believe in St. Nick! The “real” one, that is.
 
Adonis33 said:
Interesting link.

I told my wife - when we have kids, I will not have them beleiving in Santa Clause.
Click to expand...
Thank you for your comment. We told our children the truth of St. Nick, and I’m so pleased we did, and while our kids have been upset about this or that over the years, they’ve never accused us of lying, ever!
 
I’ve told my dd for 3 years that Santa isn’t real and she refuses to believe ME!!!
 
Netty313 said:
It’s always good to be truthful, most especially to little kids. And they SHOULD believe in St. Nick! The “real” one, that is.
Click to expand...
Yes, and for Catholics it was St. Nick that started the entire foundation for the Santa belief. Believing that there is a higher power for young kids is a very good prepartion for receiving the Gospel later. We Catholics forget that our faith is a very adult faith, kids do not get it until they get much older. Try explaining the Trinity to a kid, try explaining Jesus being truly present in the Eucharist to a kid…try explaining of our core beliefs to a young kid, none of them understand, yet they do believe. I think any kid who calls their parents liars for letting thme believe in Santa has other issues.
 
I had the same experience as the author of that article growing up: Santa Claus was taught alongside the stories about the Christ child. I didn’t understand the distinction between the far-fetched stories we were supposed to grow out of, and the far-fetched stories which were real miracles. I defended Santa Claus to my peers who said there was no Santa Claus, as strongly as I would defend the existence of God, no matter how hard it became, even when I was the only one left of my age group still believing in Santa Claus.

Then, like the author of that article, I found out that I had been made a fool of, and that my parents could not be trusted.

However, I’ve never known anyone else who experienced it like I did. I’m so happy to have read this article. I thought I was the only one :o

Anyway… maybe the moral of the story is that once your kids start really questioning Santa, its time to tell them it was just a story for kids.
 
Neil_Anthony said:
IThen, like the author of that article, I found out that I had been made a fool of, and that my parents could not be trusted.
Click to expand...
Really? You felt like your parents could not be trusted, over Santa Claus?
 
irishpatrick said:
Really? You felt like your parents could not be trusted, over Santa Claus?
Click to expand...
Well, I underwent a lot of humiliation at the hands of my friends and classmates, over a period of years, defending santa claus, out of fear of betraying my family’s religious beliefs.

I know, I was a weird kid 😉 But yes, I couldn’t take them at face value anymore after finding that out, and held a resentment for a long time. If they had just told me when I started getting into really deep attempts to understand what magic is, or how aerodynamics works with the reindeer and sled, etc., that would have been a lot better. At least it got me to learn about how airplanes works, it had some value. (I hypothesized that the skis could generate lift if the reindeers flew fast enough. however, … how did the reindeers generate thrust once their hooves left the ground? Magic? Oh, how does magic work… can I have a book on magic? etc).
 
Neil_Anthony said:
Well, I underwent a lot of humiliation at the hands of my friends and classmates, over a period of years, defending santa claus, out of fear of betraying my parents beliefs.

I know, I was a weird kid 😉 But yes, I couldn’t take them at face value anymore after finding that out, and held a resentment for a long time.
Click to expand...
That is a shame that you could not see that your parents loved you and wanted you to enjoy your true youth. It is also a shame that your “friends” were so mean to you. I think your story is the exception, not the rule. As the article I posted from CA states, most kids learn well before their parents tell them and many of those kids play along for the sake of their parents feelings.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top