Santa?

Pat - posted on 12/26/2010

i like the stocking idea....i was on the fence this year..i really want my almost 4 yr old to celebrate jesus, and the rest of my family is all about santa..they are not christians. so i did do some santa stuff and did the leaving the cookies out this year, but i regret it. i mostly did it cuz my 12 yr old has had an absolutely horrible year, was hating doing christmas this year, and i just thought she would have fun. i realize caving in to her was not a good idea, but yep..thats a good idea..small stuff in stocking from santa and all the real good stuff from mama!

Stormy - posted on 12/19/2009

Well, I'm going to be the odd one out here, but, that's ok. My husband is a minister and we do Santa. I have never been torn about whether to do Santa or not. I understand why some people chose to not engage in the fairy tale gift bringers (including the Easter bunny and tooth fairy), but I've never felt convicted that I should not.

I just see it as a personal choice.

Heather - posted on 12/19/2009

I actually talked with my sons teacher and let her know our beliefs. I pulled her aside with my son and had her tell him that the elf that she had visit her class wasn't real, just pretend for fun. You can roll with the punches with out giving in. Please don't let a teacher undermine you as a mother.

Krista - posted on 12/18/2009

I always taught my son that Santa wasn't real but helped us celebrate Christmas, kind of like the 3 wise men helped Jesus celebrate his first Christmas and this year at school the teacher told him Santa is real, all the kids told him Santa is real and of course the media... So now regardless of what I say mommy doesn't know anything because teacher said this or that and he is teaching his 2yo brother the same thing.
Sooo, moral of the story is sometimes you have to roll with the punches, go with the flow and figure out what works best in your situation.
(I still give gentle reminders that Santa isn't really real but my sons ignore me).

Ruth - posted on 12/18/2009

my husband and i told our daughter about the real st nick. and that he died a very long time ago. we told her to not hurt other kids feelings by telling them because there parents are telling them santa is alive its not the kids fault its the parents.

A - posted on 12/18/2009

Interestingly enough I just found this sermon today. I don't know if it will help exactly with the how to handle ackward situations, but it really opened my eyes. I never liked Santa even as a child. The past few years since I've been a mom it started bothering me the odd similarity between the fact that the Lord looks upon the good and evil, watches over us night and day, and keeps a record of all we do and whether we are in the Lambs Book of Life or not AND that Santa is supposed to basically do these same things. So, like I said I found this sermon and it blew me away! It's a bit long, but extremely interesting!



http://jamesknox.com/

On the right side of the page under news you'll find the link to listen to the Santa Sermon.

Tre Musica - posted on 12/18/2009

Quoting Katrina:

My children are 8 and 4 and from a young age they have nboth know of who St. Nicholaus, aka Santa Claus and who Jesus Christ is, the reason for the season. I love it because they still believe in Santa, but know that Jesus is why we celebrate this wonderful time of year.

A

Awesome!

I actually think that it's important to let your children know that Santa is a fictionized portrayal of someone real. But he's just a character like Superman or the Backyardigans. Jesus is real and Christmas is about him. (period).

That way they can partake in activities that are fun, (santa's playhouse for instance) but know that it's just pretend. like a Disney character.

Tina - posted on 12/18/2009

I forwarned all of friend parents that my kids may tell theirs that Santa isn't real. We do not do Santa either. We celebrate Christmas b/c of the birth of Jesus and presents come from the people who love them. Good luck, I hope this helps.

Chesslee - posted on 12/17/2009

I am a christian mom as well. I love the idea of santa but I have always told the story of santa and his work. Christ is the reason forth season and that needs to be the big picture, but some of m fav. memories growing up were santa memories and I just want our kids to enjoy it as well. However, I can understand alot of why peoples choice to not do the santa thing. God bless and merry christmas

Theresa - posted on 12/17/2009

We have never done Santa. My oldest son had some tough times when kids talked about Santa. We just told him that there was a man many years ago that would give gifts in secret to people in need. And he did it out of the love of Christ. That man did pass away and now he is with Jesus. We told our son that it is not up to you to tell your friends about santa but you can share with them how you celebrate Christmas. Every Christmas morning we have a birthday cake and sing Happy Birthday to Jesus.

Anne - posted on 12/17/2009

My 4 year old asked me last year after Christmas about Santa! She said mom Santa isn't real is he? I was caught off guard because just becoming a born again Christian I've been trying to change my lifestyle according to God's will and not what the rest of the world is doing! I told her the truth that she is right there isn't a Santa. I feel proud of my decision to be honest with my kids and not just tell them what they want to hear. I've heard many say if you lie about Santa then your children might not believe you about God either and feel this is very true! On the other hand my mom and sister attend another church and decide to have different beliefs than me that creates conflict! Like they participated in Halloween and we didn't. They talk about Santa to the kids! I feel all of this is wrong! I'm wondering what it will be like at family get together with my kids knowing the truth and my sister's daughter not. I've told my kids not to lie to other kids if they ask about Santa, but I also told them it's the parents job to tell their kids about Santa and the truth. So hopefully with that said things will go smoother, but I'm not guaranteed with my blunt 5 yr old daughter that she won't come out and say Santa isn't real during our family Christmas. The sad thing is my family has been talking more about Santa then Jesus! They're ignoring the real reason for the season! I'm afraid for their Christian faith as they go to church, but go against God's will many of times!

Teresa - posted on 12/16/2009

I went through this when my kids were little. I simply told my kids about the true meaning of Christmas, then explained what was going on in their friends homes. We read "The Night Before Christmas" to our kid and told them it was a fairy tale that was fun to think about. We told them that some people tell their kids that Santa is real and not to tell other children otherwise. I explained that that was a parents job. When their friends would talk about Santa our kids would just smile. It was funny when we would be out shopping or something and an adult would say "What is Santa bring you?" and their reply would be "Didn't your parent ever tell you the truth?" Good Luck

Heidi - posted on 12/16/2009

Thank you all for your stories of how you handled these things. I stated before my son is 6 but he is far beyond that in this thought process on things. We went through the same things with Halloween. We celebrated fall harvest. In the mist of talking about the scary things that have to do with Halloween he asked me why such good people want to celebrate such a scary day. He has a hard time with knowing what a Christian should be doing and yet the world does not act accordingly. He is beyond his years in this aspect.

Katrina - posted on 12/16/2009

My children are 8 and 4 and from a young age they have nboth know of who St. Nicholaus, aka Santa Claus and who Jesus Christ is, the reason for the season. My husband and I have both been very honest with them on who delivers the gifts and why we give them. And they also know about the story of St Nick and how he became what he is today. I love it because they still believe in Santa, but know that Jesus is why we celebrate this wonderful time of year.



A fellow christian friend actually celebrates St. Nicholaus day on December 16th that way there is no confusion for his children for Christmas day. On that day they do the gift exhange and have a dinner. Then on Christimas day, as a family they volunteer at a soup kitchen. I just love this idea and know that the family is truly blessed.



I hope this helps a little. God Bless!

Katherine - posted on 12/16/2009

I have 2 school-aged girls that think it is their duty to proclaim truth to their peers (ready or not...). The way I have handled it is to praise them for their love of the truth and then tell them that it's up to their friends' Mommies and Daddies to tell them about those type of things. I also tell them to just talk to their friends about God's goodness and all that He's done for us and skip the lessons on all things evil ie: things we don't invite into our home that may be commonplace for other kids and instead just pray for them. My oldest while in JK, at just 4 yrs. old, had a true burden for her classmates at Christmastime since she was the one and only that knew Jesus and the rest were all pumped up about Santa. Her prayer was truly from the heart and very consisent at home and as a result has witnessed to her friends and last year (grade 2) led her best friend to Jesus! :D The faith of a child is so precious and POWERFUL!!!

Heather - posted on 12/15/2009

I personally just let my kids be kids. Since we don't do santa, they do tell other kids. We can't chide them for telling the truth and then expect them to tell the truth about Jesus. I just remind them to tell the truth in love and do so gently.

Proverbs 15:1
A gentle answer turns away wrath,
but a harsh word stirs up anger.

Lora - posted on 12/15/2009

I don't do Santa as well. I remember when I was little finding out that Santa wasn't real and thinking well God must not be real either. So I just can't tell them that he is real. Anyway I have been telling my son. Just don't say anything about Santa when the other kids talk about it. If they do just tell them to ask their own moms and dads.

Heidi - posted on 12/15/2009

Linda that is excactly what we do it is just a fun thing to watch on tv.

Anne - posted on 12/15/2009

Our daughters are now 21 and almost 26 ,but we did the "Santa" thing. BUT they knew that Jesus was, is, and always will be the Real meaning! What we did with Santa was have him "bring" only the things for their stocking. The very size of the stocking limited what he could bring. We also told them that he sent a bill in January just like the Master Card Bill.
As far as your son not believing in Santa, I agree with Vanessa.

Linda - posted on 12/15/2009

I could never justify lying to my children about Santa, the tooth fairy, or anyone else. We focus on Jesus. They know about the story of Santa and have fun watching Rudolph and Frosty on TV, but it is just a fun story to them. I have told them that some children believe in Santa so they shouldn't be the one to tell them any different. This has mostly worked for us. It is important not to judge others, but at the same time, you as a parent must do what you feel is right for your family.

Heidi - posted on 12/14/2009

Thank you, my son is 6. I think he would understand it when we talk about it but may not remember it when it comes time to...



I allow him to watch things with Santa in them, and tell him he is a cartoon like person just like Hanny Manny or Mickey Mouse.

Vanessa - posted on 12/14/2009

Maybe tell your son that not everyone has the same beliefs and that we all need to respect one another's views. How old is your son? That may be over his level of understanding. Growing up, my parents told us that Christmas is a time to celebrate the birth of Christ and that the idea of Santa is that he gives gifts in honour of Christ's birth. We believed in Santa, but we also knew that Christmas was not only about getting gifts from some "jolly" man. I hope that helps a bit. May God Bless you:)