I believe in Santa Claus. I am not thwarted by my fellow classmates who told me otherwise, by my own Mother's handwriting on the tags, by the fact that the milk and cookies I leave out every year somehow end up by Dad's cup of breakfast coffee, or even by the time where my Grandpa came out dressed up as Santa Claus with the suit on backwards.
Okay, let me clarify my confession. When I say I believe in Santa Claus I don't mean I support what he has become - a pawn of our consumerist culture, but instead what he repersents for our culture. I love the part of Christmas where we as a family gather around the tree, some more controlled than others, and open the gifts that we gave one another. I delight in seeing the face of a loved one tearing off the wrapping paper in anticipation for what is inside and lets be honest I also really enjoy opening a pleasent looking box that says "Dear Katrina/Merry Christmas/Love: Santa Claus. Sure we may grumble about the busy stores, the tacky music, the awful lawn decorations, the consummerism, self focus, and the warrented concern resulting from the faulty focus. However, what we must keep in mind is that the reasons why, excpet for those blow up lawn ornaments... I admit there is no redemption for them.
Even now, I am having a hard time concentrating on writing this post because of the presents that are looming from under the tree - inviting me to peek. Is this bad? Maybe... I apologize for not wanting my gift to be a donation to CRWRC to send a lamb to Africa, I apologize for getting excited about gifts, and I apologize for believing in Santa Claus.
Can there be something sacred about the idea of Santa Claus? Can there be something secular about the birth of Jesus Christ. I sure hope so.
Don't get me wrong, the true reason for Christmas is not lost upon people like me. The story of Jesus' birth fills me with a joy, a peace, and a hope is incomparable. This story renews my excitment and wonder for my Saviour time and time again. Maybe, just maybe the whole idea of Santa, of gift giving, is a tiny glimpse or result of the joy, peace, hope, excitment, and wonder that we recieve at Christmas.
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
a christmas confession
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13 comments:
I believe in Santa too, Trine. I saw him ripping down the ski hill today while I was riding up the chair. He had this killer beard, so I yelled, "Nice beard!" and he yelled back:
"Thank You!" Ho ho ho!"
Not even kidding.
i think we can enjoy giving gifts in celebration of jesus' birth without trying to secularize or syncretize our christian holiday with the world's attempt at replacing it with something athiest. i think we should be fighting to win back our holiday and the reason for it instead of giving in to our culture and its secular demands. syncretism is never a good thing.
"christian culturing is not a counter-cultural movement" Seerveld.
I think as Christians were are given reign to play along with aspects of culture that bring joy.
not if they're trying to replace the truth. There are certain God given things that give joy that have been distorted by sin, and by all means, we should redeem them and take advantage of them. But there are certain things that are simply anti-christian, or simply sinful that we should stay away from. Not try combine them with our beliefs and in so doing water ours down.
combining santa clause with christianity, or evolution, or new age spirituality with Christianity (its the same idea), is not culturing. Its taking things that are anti-God and trying to combine them with Christianity. it doesn't work
but what if Santa Claus isn't replacing the truth?
not completely. but the idea of santa clause as it is today is to replace the idea of Jesus. People don't want to believe in God, and especially a God who had to come and die for us, so they make the holiday about something completely secular (hence the "happy holidays" instead of "merry Christmas") if christians "believe" in santa clause, they obviously still believe in Jesus. But what's the point? Why try combine our holiday with the world's attempt at replacing it? It's like "Christian Marxism". Marxism was created to remove religion and God. It was founded on completely athiestic principles. So why would Christians buy into that and try combine these anti-God beleifs with their own? It makes no sence. I think when the idea of santa clause started, it was just a cute idea, stupid (i think), but harmless. But today, it is complete materialism and secularism. Okay, maybe we can redeem the idea of santa clause. But that's a dangerous game, we are supposed to set ourselves apart from the world, and if we associate with the idea of santa, no one can see that we really beleive in the real reason for Christmas, and i think we would do better to stand up for Christmas and how its supposed to be.
You should read up on the origins of Santa Claus.
I agree that we cannot and should not replace the importance of Christ's birth. However, I still do not see the harm in participating in the tradition of Santa Claus. I do agree that there are definite lines that we should be drawing to set ourselves apart (ie. Christianity and Marxism), but we be cautious in drawing them. For every line we draw as Christians, demonstrates something about Christ.
If we don't consider Santa Claus, then should we allow the Tooth Fairy, the Easter Bunny, Fairies, or wishing on stars? And if we take those away, would we be erasing childhood memories and imaginitive stories that result?
And if we reject Santa, then we might as well reject the whole idea of gift giving. In essence the danger of the idea of Santa is when it alters the focus of Christ's birth, which gifts are very effective in doing.
I feel like there are ways that we can set ourselves apart with our celebrations of our Saviour's birth without either rejecting or redeeming Santa.
I've been trying to do it since I can remember.
I know the origins of santa claus. that's why I said earlier that when the idea of santa started it was essentially harmless. and I also said that maybe we can redeem the idea. but how are we setting ourselves apart from the world and showing that we believe that Jesus is the reason for Christmas, and not Santa, if we have santa decorations, and teach our kids about him (because that is what the kids will naturally focus on, and that is what the world will see)? Christ never asked us to give into the ways of the world so that our kids could have more fun. He drew very strict lines regarding setting ourselves apart.
That aside, I think you can encourage your kid's imagination in other ways than lying to them. I had a very fun, imaginative childhood without any of those things.
Ho Ho Ho!!
( that's me laughing.. santa style)
Not that this has much to do with anything ... Saint Nicolas was a man who in the third century AD was a pretty good guy, and did many anonymous charitable things. When a poor man could not afford a proper dowry for his daughters to marry, he threw three bags of gold in through his window over several nights, and when he knew the poor man was waiting for him the third night, he tossed it down his chimney instead. His feast day is December 6, which is also the day after Sinterklaas in the Netherlands. the way we know him today originates mostly from Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" and the poem "The Night Before Christmas". He wears red and white because Coca Cola depicted him that way in the thirties.
I believe in Santa. He's not real, but he's a reminder to me of the divine awkwardness that happens when God puts on skin. It's the mystery of Christmas! It's why we have consumerism and Christ-celebrating, mall rushes and family time, bad hymn-singing and good will, tramplings over Tickle Me Elmos and Shalom on earth, all at the same time of year. We humans just don't get it - I don't think we can get it. God becomes one of us and we freak out once every year in an explosion of emotions. And I have a feeling that maybe such a mysterious and mind-blowing thing as the Incarnation rightly causes freak-outs on our part. And Santa is part of the divine awkward freak-out that is Christmas - he's good will and consumerism all rolled up into one. I'm not saying that that's the way things should be, but I think that's the way they are, and no amount of Christian culturing on our part will be able to overcome this awkwardness because we are bound in our human selves, and the human self freaks out when God shows up in human form.
Grace + Peace,
Ben
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