Santa Claus

Dear Victorious,

How should Christian parents handle "the Santa Claus" issue? It seems that most Christian parents play along and give their kids the Santa Claus story until they're old enough to understand. Is there any room for this from a Biblical perspective?

Carly A. - Waco, TX

Dear Carly,

No, I don't think there is. Santa Clause, the Tooth Fairy, the Easter Bunny and other mythical characters have no basis in Biblical truth. They may be fun and seem harmless. But let's face it, they definitely obscure the true meaning of the holiday.

How does a child, for example, learn about Christ's birth and grasp its significance when he's sitting on Santa's lap and expecting Santa to come down through the chimney? Similarly, how does a child learn the significance of Christ's resurrection when he's waiting for the Easter bunny to show up with candy?

I don't want to seem like Mr. Scrooge here. But I'm convicted of the fact that playing along with these seemingly harmless cultural games makes it very possible to walk through the entire religious holiday without ever having any focus on God at all. When I look at religious celebrations in the Bible, they were definitely centered on God. And there was no room for distractions.

My own children have never been told about Santa Claus or the Easter Bunny. They've always known that Dad & Mom were the source of the treats on those holidays. And while we may watch the Christmas stories on TV, we watch them in the same context that we watch cartoons. In other words, we draw the line at any pretense that these mythical characters are real.