By Noel Piper
“Over the years, we have chosen not to include Santa Claus in our Christmas stories and decorations. There are several reasons.
First, fairy tales are fun and we enjoy them, but we don’t ask our children to believe them.
Second, we want our children to understand God as fully as they’re able at whatever age they are. So we try to avoid anything that would delay or distort that understanding. It seems to us that celebrating with a mixture of Santa and manger will postpone a child’s clear understanding of what the real truth of God is. It’s very difficult for a young child to pick through a marble cake of part-truth and part-imagination to find the crumbs of reality.
Third, we think about how confusing it must be to a straight-thinking, uncritically-minded preschooler because Santa is so much like what we’re trying all year to teach our children about God. Look, for example, at the “attributes” of Santa.
- He’s omniscient—he sees everything you do.
- He rewards you if you’re good.
- He’s omnipresent—at least, he can be everywhere in one night.
- He gives you good gifts.
- He’s the most famous “old man in the sky” figure.
But at the deeper level that young children haven’t reached yet in their understanding, he is not like God at all….”
I highly recommend the rest of the article at Desiring God
76 comments
The whole idea of Santa is fun. However, as you said, when we mingle this fairy tale into the celebration of Christ’s birth, Santa will win every time. He has really good PR and great bribery techniques to keep the attention on himself!
Great Post. I agree! We used to try to mix the two until about 18 or 19 years ago when a Sunday School teacher wrote SANTA on the board and challenged us to rearrange the letters and see what it spelled. Of course, it spells satan. He then explained how satan uses the focus on Santa to steal away the honor and glory and attention that should be going to Jesus, while also taking the attributes of God and applying them to himself, such as being all-knowing, all-wise, good, etc. — just as you mentioned in your post. Maybe I should blog about this myself — if I can carve out the time I will! 🙂 thank you for your great post!
Santa stopped visiting our house when my oldest was about 4 or 5. I was a newborn in Christ myself and was able to see the glaring similarities between Santa and the Lord. I couldn’t imagine myself in a few years saying to him, “Listen this whole Santa thing wasn’t true. Yes I broke a commandment & lied, but it was all in good fun. But let me tell you about God, he’s just like Santa in many ways, believe in Him instead.” I couldn’t see it going well, so I repented and apologized to him then. Hopefully, I have a more discerning child because of it.
Kelly,
Thank you for this article. We (our family) completely agree.
The History Channel has a documentary about the “history of Christmas” (I got it a few weeks ago from Netflix). It is not a religious film, but it is sobering when you see how much department stores/consumerism have taken over Christmas.
I agree SO much with this article. We don’t do Santa, never have in 23 years of parenting. Of course our family has always thought we are depriving our children, but that’s okay. We keep our focus on Christ over the Christmas season, so to us, by not doing that, we think it’s our family’s children who are being deprived.. of the Truth.
We don’t do Santa either, although we have even CHRISTIAN friends telling us that we must because it’s “all just good fun”. My husband cannot get over the “rearrange the letters and it spells Satan” thing, and I think he’s right in that it’s not a coincidence. I would have gone along with whatever he chose so long as he wasn’t teaching our kids that Santa was real. If he had wanted to teach them that Santa wasn’t real but something fun some people do at Christmas, I might could have gone along with it. But, I am SO GLAD that he didn’t want to do that and that Santa does not belong at our house at all.
In fact, when my sisters and I were growing up, he was called the “the gloryrobber” at our house (because he robs God’s glory at Christmas).
Thank you for the article; it articulates everything my husband and I have been thinking. We’ll have a little one next Christmas, and it’s nice to know that we won’t be the only “weirdos” not setting out cookies for the big man.
Though we’ll still hang and fill stockings–because really, who doesn’t love Christmas candy and treats?–but it will all be from Mom and Dad, along with any other presents.
Plus I never want to look into those sad little eyes and confirm that, “No, sweetie; Santa isn’t real.” How sad!
This is so thoughtfully written. I have always wanted to read her traditions book. i am so very thankful that we do not celebrate santa! Over the years as we have heard oh so many admonitions from well meaning Christian friends/family that we should practice this lie the Lord has graciously continued to confirm the decision to joyfully give HIM ALL the glory and focus. we have also been blessed by those around us that are seeking to do the same. very encouraging to read the comments. to all those that feel the same I say thank you and carry on! you may be the only ones not perpetuating a lie at your extended family gatherings BUT you are not alone! What a privilege and honor we have to proclaim that CHRIST ALONE is the reason for this season! blessings to you all! grateful to be celebrating CHRISTmas, Jen in al
We found it valuable to teach our children the truth about “Santa Claus”, how he is a legend that grew from a very real, very person known as Nicholas (later made a saint by the Catholic church) who really did bring gifts and helped the poor people (including children) in his area. Saint Nicholas
A lot of legends have grown around Saint Nicholas, and our current incarnation of “Santa Claus” has been just as commercialized as Christmas itself. But if you are going to teach the true meaning of Christmas, the story of the real Saint Nicholas is part of the truth.
Thanks for your comment, Lucy. I was going to say something similar. St. Nicholas was also a staunch defender of the divinity of Christ against the Arians. Also, “santa” means “saint” so I’m not sure how rearranging it to spell “Satan” is meaningful. I think the story of the real “Santa” is a beautiful reminder of the importance of Christian charity, especially in this commercialized season. It’s sad that he has been co-opted into a glorification of materialism.
funny story….when my son was in k4 he was going to our church’s kindergarten. we were able to explain/teach him why we don’t celebrate santa. we told him that santa is a tool of the devil. how the devil uses this tool in his tool box to fix what he wants and not what God wants….how if our eyes are on santa then our eyes are not on Jesus…that our eyes should always be on Jesus….you get the picture. WELL….Christmas rolls around and he has children in his class that celebrate santa and though our church DOES Not, kids go to school there who do….so when santa was mentioned by other kids at story time…my son let everyone know that “santa is a tool of the devil!” kids were upset, teacher was caught off guard and ms. rita had a talk with us.. he is ten now and like every ten year old they carry imaginary machine guns and santa gets blown up every time we are out and about! we did not apologize for telling him the TRUTH and never will! be bold in your walk…i know there are sensitive situations, but the truth can no longer be compromised! as long as we stay IN the truth, Holy Spirit will guide us in those situations! Jesus is worthy of all Glory!
I can’t understand why we, as Protestants, celebrate a Catholic ritual anyway? Some of the founding modern day church father’s we all adore were against it…Spurgeon, Tozer… I’m not so sure our family will be doing it after this year…IF we do, it is going going to be so revamped it will not even closely resemble what we have done up to this point. I’m feeling VERY convicted over it all. Last night we got some gifts wrapped and under the tree and it just reminded me of placing gifts (offerings) at the foot of an idol, as other religions do. YUCK! How does giving gifts to each other really glorify Christ again? The nintendo games my kids are getting aren’t helping Christ’s cause any! I can’t find any Christ glorifying thing about it anymore. This is virtually a “new” holiday for the world. The disciples didn’t do it, Christ never commanded us to do it, so why are we doing it again? Lots of christians (myself included) have convinced themselves that Christ is indeed a part of THEIR celebration but I exhort everyone to stop in the middle of opening presents, while the wrapping paper is flying, and ask your families, “now who is thinking about Christ right now?” All I know is what God is communicating to ME right now, and I feel convicted 🙁
I’m thinking about instituting something like what Ann Voskamps family does…it is the most Christ honoring way to observe it that I’ve heard of…Here’s the link if anyone is interested: http://www.aholyexperience.com/2009/12/4-ways-to-celebrate-christ-in-christmas.html
Brenda,
We have long had tugging thoughts similar to yours. Traditions are hard to break; but so few of us really do *think* about why we do things, or why we don’t.
A thoughtful decision…it at least needs to be that.
Thanks SO much for sharing Ann’s link…very thought-provoking. And real. Again, something we’ve talked about but never have made the move to do. To really give to “the least of these”, instead of filling up our houses with more things we don’t need, there must be such deep joy in that. And perhaps a far greater reward than joy.
Amen!!! I have no beef with St. Nicholas. But Santa?? A guy who eats cookies all night long…has elves making stuff for him…FLYING REINDEER?? And we’re supposed to teach our kids to be truthful? But it’s okay at Christmas, right? It’s ironic to me that at the time of year that we focus so much on the birth of TRUTH that we (as a culture) would use an imaginary figure why? To get our kids to behave? for the sake of “memories”? When I stand before my Maker I don’t want to have to try and defend that, especially if His Word tells us that not even careless words pass Him. Thank you Kelly for this!!
I liked Noel Piper’s article, Kelly. Thanks for sharing it.
Brenda, there are some very good aspects of celebrating true Christmas. As a missionary, I’ve found that people are more receptive to the message of Jesus’ love at Christmas than at any other time of the year. I also remember, as a child, that the traditional Christmas carols and the beautiful manger scene (ours was simple and rustic, and, I think, very old) seemed to help me understand Jesus and draw closer to Him that anything else that was a part of my life then.
Yes, I grew up as a Catholic, but I think that’s immaterial to what I’m saying. There’s a simple depth to the true parts of the Christmas celebration that speak to hearts the world over, regardless of their faith or even lack of it–especially little chlidren’s hearts, but not only theirs.
We always taught our children that Santa was make-believe and that the parents gave the children the presents. We didn’t make a big deal for or against Santa, not wanting to give it that much importance to children. We always told them Santa was not real. We tried to emphasize Christ in Christmas. I don’t think that the Santa turned around to spell Satan is any big deal because the word “santa” means “saint.” The story of Saint Nicholas is a nice one and we told our children that that is where the story of Santa Claus started. We have always celebrated Christmas in the traditional way, but definitely with a Christian emphasis. No presents under the tree this year: we spent all our money going to watch our older son graduate from Air Force basic training. Well worth it!
I’m not sure where this idea is coming from that Santa is a Catholic thing???
I think these points are all well and good. I would advocate telling kids Santa is something people do for fun around Christmas, and if you are so inclined, tell them how he may be based on Nicholas, and do that story.
I don’t buy for a second that “Santa” is “satan,” no offense to those of you that do.
Christmas should ultimately be (and this is actually taught in Catholicism -not Santa Claus worship)a time to reflect on not only the Incarnation of our Lord, but also to prepare for His Second Coming, by giving sacrifically, spreading the Gospel to others, and prayers and penitence. Advent is a penitential season – much like Lent- where we are supposed to be reflecting on preparing for the Lord when we meet him again. I would think that is something all Christians, regardless of denomination, could be sharing with their children.
Thanks for the points. We were convicted 2 years ago to tell our then 7 year old the truth: that we had been lying to her. We explained why we felt convicted to tell her and she graciously forgave us and accepted what we said. She still gets gifts in her stocking on Christmas morning, because I love her and want to bless her. As far as struggling with getting and giving gifts, I do not have a problem with it. In everything I do, whether word or deed, I do it all in the name of Jesus. I am blessing my family in the name of Jesus. And our family does focus on the verse that every good and perfect gift comes from The Father. We are grateful to Him first, then to the human giver. God always cares about the heart, where it is, what it’s focus is. If someone feels convicted (not guilty) then there may be something we need to offer up to the Lord so He can deliver us from it. Holy Spirit works on us all individually, and we must to submit to what He is saying to us. What may be OK for one person (participating in the whole tree and gift giving) may not be for another (the Bible states that even if something is not sinful to God, but YOU think it is and do it, you are in sin).
We focus on the less fortunate all year round so Christmas is no exception in our family. In fact, we step it up at this time of year to keep our hearts on God. I don’t think that it needs to be mutually exclusive. My final thought is this: God loves giving gifts to His children. We are being made into the very nature of God with each step of obedience. Why would that part of God suddenly become sinful? Just a novella…sorry.
Very good discussion and points that have been made. I would add to the thoughts one reason FOR keeping the celebration of Christmas, even if we did some things differently, is that all through Scripture God had His people *remember*. And the primary way of remembrance was celebrations, the keeping of feasts, etc.
He commanded them to “raise Ebenezers” for all sorts of important events and those times of remembrance were always tied to physical objects that facilitated the telling of God’s providence from one generation to another.
Our job, I think, is to make sure our Ebenezer is raised to the right thing and the important message of God’s love and redemption is the focus of why we celebrate.
For us, the hard thing is letting the giving of gifts (which I think, like Kelly said, is a blessing to give to each other) be a token and not take over.
“I can’t understand why we, as Protestants, celebrate a Catholic ritual anyway?”
– Well, we are brothers and sisters in Christ after all – maybe it’s nice to have things in common.
“Some of the founding modern day church father’s we all adore were against it…”
– this is an appeal to authority. While it’s important to learn from our religious forefathers, we must read them carefully and critically, and also make sure we’re understanding them in the proper context.
“How does giving gifts to each other really glorify Christ again?”
– “It is better to give than to receive..” Christmas is not the only way to teach this, but it is a gift to a child to give him an opportunity to give a gift and immediately see the result (a delighted face), and have that satified feeling. Not the only way, but a nice one.
“The disciples didn’t do it” That’s true, but the disciples would certainly have been observant of religious holidays (holy-days), with feasting and partying. In fact, every third year Jews set aside their tithe specifically for religious partying – and I do mean partying, not just prayer – part of that tithe was commanded to go towards the purchase of “strong drink.”
If you are feeling convicted to not celebrate Christmas with gifts or parties and your husband is on board then you should follow your conviction. Just making some observations.
For the record, I teach my kids that Santa Clause isn’t real, he’s a story built around the wonderful St. Nicholas (tell him about said saint), etc. I also didn’t grow up with the myth, and am thankful for it. I mean to address the other Christmas traditions, such as gift-giving.
We have been struggling greatly with the whole Christmas thing this year. A lot of my thoughts echo Brenda’s. Pastor James McDonald had an excellent post about the Santa subject last month titled “Dear Santa”. http://www.familyreformation.wordpress.com/2009/11/2007
I have written a poem which you will find at my Christmas blog about the commercialization of Christmas called ‘The Big Red Store’ which you might enjoy – it is humorous with a serious message but it conveys my feelings about santa and the ‘hijacking’ of the season by retailers. It also lets people know why I choose to celebrate a Christ centred Christmas and how I make it special for my family, friends and how we make a deliberate effort as a family to reach out and bless those around us. This year it will be even more special as my 7th baby is arriving soon – and I mean soon! Like maybe today or in the next few days!
Santa lives at the North Pole …
JESUS is everywhere.
Santa rides in a sleigh …
JESUS rides on the wind and walks on the water.
Santa comes but once a year …
JESUS is an ever present help.
Santa fills your stockings with goodies …
JESUS supplies all your needs.
Santa comes down your chimney uninvited …
JESUS stands at your door and knocks,
and then enters your heart when invited.
You have to wait in line to see Santa …
JESUS is as close as the mention of His name.
Santa lets you sit on his lap …
JESUS lets you rest in His arms.
Santa doesn’t know your name, all he can say is
“Hi little boy or girl, what’s your name?” …
JESUS knew our name before we were born…
Not only does He know our name,
He knows our address too.
He knows our history and future and
He even knows how many hairs are on our heads.
Santa has a belly like a bowl full of jelly …
JESUS has a heart full of love
All Santa can offer is HO HO HO …
JESUS offers health, help and hope.
Santa says “You better not cry” …
JESUS says “Cast all your cares on me for I care for you.”
Santa’s little helpers make toys …
JESUS makes new life, mends wounded hearts,
repairs broken homes and builds mansions.
Santa may make you chuckle but …
JESUS gives you joy that is your strength.
While Santa puts gifts under your tree …
JESUS became our gift and died on a tree….
The cross.
Not sure who the author is , found this online
After doing some of my own personal research regarding the origins of Christmas, I’m really not sure how one can focus on the birth of Christ but at the same time, still do all the “stuff” that goes along with Christmas (e.g., Christmas tree, gifts, decorations, etc.). Compare Matthew 6:24.
This year, my husband and I have decided to go “low key” on Christmas (no Christmas decorations in the house, and we decided to exchange only 2 gifts per person) until we can decide upon how (or even if) to celebrate this holiday in the future with Christ being the focus. Even with doing very little of the Christmas shopping and other Christmas activities, it still is quite stressful, and I am not seeing how being stressed in combination with the commercialism surrounding Christmas is supposed to connect with the importance of Christ’s birth.
Personally, I think Christmas is focused TOO much on spending, buying, and busyness, and if Christ is apart of it, He’s VERY FAR in the foreground. I think we (Christians) could do without Christmas (at least the way it is currently celebrated by most in the world today).
Liz, just type a search in for “origins of christmas” and you’ll get lots of results on the history of Christmas and who was responsible for initiating the observance of it 🙂 The word was originally Christemasse or Cristes mæsse, now shortened to Christ Mass or Christmas as we know it.
Even Santa (SAINT Nicholas) is a product of the Catholic church.
I hesitate to say this and I don’t want to start a big thing here, but I have a nagging feeling that it should be said…and I say it with all due respect…Protestants and Catholics are not brothers and sisters in Christ. To say that is to say that Christians and Islamics, or Buddhists, or Hinduists are brothers and sisters in Christ. Christians and Catholics have two very different systems. Sure, we share some similarities but don’t all religions?
We don’t avoid Santa. However, my kids are hilarious about it, telling other children, “Well, St. Nicholas was a real person but he’s dead now. We just tell Santa stories as a game to remember him.” Other kids stare at them dumbfounded.
But the most hilarious was the other day. In the car we had a radio station on that’s playing continuous Christmas music. “Santa Claus Is Coming To Town” came on. “He sees you when you’re sleeping. He knows when you’re awake….” My 5 year old son says, “Creepy.”
LOL!
Santa doesn’t bring gifts to my kids, daddy does (and I sometimes joke around and call daddy “Santa” and my kids think it is funny).
Even though Santa doesn’t visit our house, I think it a good idea to tell children the history of Santa Claus. I think it is a very educational thing to do, especially since “he” is everywhere.
Daja,
My children told my family “Santa is dead” last year. They were laughing when they said it, and my family was MORTIFIED. It was pretty funny and I think after their initial shock they all had a good laugh about it. Of course I had to explain to the family that my kids were referring to the true story. 🙂
Oops, when I said “he” is everywhere I was referring to commercialism.
Does anyone do an advent calendar? I ordered one to do this year. I spent a whole lot of time looking for the perfect one and then after I ordered it, they emailed me and said that they were backordered. So I gave up on getting one this time. I like the idea of lighting candles or telling stories, etc on the days leading up to Christmas!
I am glad you posted this article, Mrs. Crawford, it’s very good! The main theme throughout the post and comments seem to essentially agree that Santa isn’t appropriate to teach or celebrate. When you really do stop and think about it, Santa is taught to children as a being who is omniscient, omnipresent, and even omnipotent. But the most disturbing part about it is that we teach our children to fear Santa. This is the spirit of antichrist. We should be teaching our children the fear of the Lord, not the fear of a mythological deity. Jesus taught that the faith of a child is precious; should we destroy that faith with lies and deceit? It’s devastating for the child to learn later that it was not only a lie, but that the individuals the child trusts the most completely lied to them. I think we can all agree that the teaching of Santa is destructive and must be avoided.
But what many don’t know is where Santa really came from. Santa did not solely come from the Bishop of Myra (St. Nicholas), but from his companion Black Pete, who was often times switched with the character of Satan in medieval plays (btw, it was Satan who always said “Ho Ho Ho!” whenever he entered into the room in the plays and skits). This is where we get the gift-giving of Santa. However most of what we know of Santa and his power comes from Thor, the god of thunder in Norse mythology. Think Thor has little to do with our culture? Thursday is named after him.
Allow me to read an excerpt on page 6 from the book, Santa Claus, Last of the Wild Men by Phyllis Seifker: “The fact is that Santa and Satan are alter egos, brothers; they have the same origin … On the surface, the two figures are polar opposites, but underneath they share the same parent … On one path, he came to personify evil … On the other, he became the symbol of holiday, carnival, and new hope. From these two paths, he arrived at both the warmth of our fireplace and in the flames of hell.”
I’ve been studying books and researching the traditions associated with Christmas for over a year now and have been both fascinated and shocked by their meanings. But I hope and pray that you’ll begin asking more questions about Santa and other traditional elements of Christmas which all, and I mean ALL have a horribly pagan beginning to them. The most interesting part about it is how the birth of Christ got wrapped-up in this holiday. (If you look closely at Scripture and the Hebrew calendar you can clearly see that Christ was born sometime in September)
As Christians we should be Bereans. And as Bereans we should be teachable and back up everything we do with Scripture. If you can find the celebration of Christmas (and its celebration during the Winter months) in Scripture I’d be very interested to see it. It isn’t Christ’s birth that redeems us; it’s His resurrection.
A great place to start researching Santa is at the following link: http://www.av1611.org/othpubls/santa.html
I won’t add my thoughts about Christmas – though the significance of “Santa” and “Satan” is somewhat nullified for me by the fact that in England Santa is called “Father Christmas”! But Brenda, I had to point out that Spurgeon was not particularly anti-Christmas – in fact he was very careful to not condemn Christmas – see here: http://www.founders.org/blog/2005/12/spurgeon-on-christmas.html
Brenda – “Even Santa (SAINT Nicholas) is a product of the Catholic church”
– St. Nicholas is NOT a product of the RJ church. He was a product of God, a man made in His image. It is coincedental that he was Roman Catholic since that was by far the dominant church in Western civilization since the 5th century. Yes, he was formally sainted by the Roman Catholics, but he is still one of our church forefathers like it or not. We’re ALL the saints of God, so there’s no reason to take a beef with calling him a saint even if you don’t agree with the RC process.
“Protestants and Catholics are not brothers and sisters in Christ. To say that is to say that Christians and Islamics, or Buddhists, or Hinduists are brothers and sisters in Christ. Christians and Catholics have two very different systems.”
-You speak from gross ignorance, assumption, and presumption. I would not assert that all professing Roman Catholics are saved. But I would also not assert that all Protestants are saved. Please correct me if I am wrong, but I thought that to be saved, all you needed was to profess Christ as your Lord and Savior, that it is based on the imputation of Christ’s holiness on us; His perfect divinity/full humanity, death on our behalf and resurrection.
Roman Catholics also agree on this. That makes them our brothers and sisters in Christ.
Brenda, there was only one early church, the catholic one. Reformers broke away. At one point ALL christians were catholic, ALL christians celebrated christmas. There is no biblical command to remember the birth of Christ because the early christians believed Jesus would be returning at any moment.
Again, RC are recalling not only the Incarnation at Christmas, but getting ready for Him to come again, something that was certainly mentioned in the early church and in the bible.
As for not being brothers and sisters in Christ, I am flabbergasted. There is so much that I want to say here but I am going to bite my tongue in Christ’s name and not respond.
Lori – very well said, all of your comments. I think we can exchange one incorrect fixation for another, being human and all. False piety is as big a lie as commercial Christmas when it’s mistaken for righteousness. Surely there are better ways to serve each other, as Christ commanded, than to start Santa/Satan letter games and beating each other up for our personal relationships with Christ, whether they include St. Nicholas or firecrackers or Advent candles. I’m pretty sure Jesus has a better grasp on the meaning of being castigated over a straw argument than we’d care to know. I’m not playing that game. It’s dangerous.
We don’t do Santa. But we do tell the children where that tradition came from. St. Nicholas was a real man, and a real defender of the faith, long before the Catholic/Reformer wars got going (and I am living with some Jesus-loving, saved-by-grace Catholics, so I don’t participate in those wars anyway 😉 ). Because the Catholic church considers a person a saint does not mean that I as a protestant must automatically rule that person evil. lol I would also like to add that the Early Church (300-500 AD semi-Early, anyway) was battling over whether and when to celebrate Christmas, so it’s not like we modern people have anything new going here.
I agree that commercialism and extraneous traditions have all but obscured the very reason Christmas is celebrated. There’s no question about that. I celebrate Christmas because it marks the day when God became flesh and dwelt among us. His birth doesn’t save us, no. But I celebrate it nonetheless. Without it, there would have been no death and resurrection. And I think that “God With Us” is something to rejoice about. 🙂 There is a great deal to the story of the Nativity that is worthy to be marked and celebrated–it is a story of humility, obedience, and great glory. But whether one chooses to esteem the day, or not, do it unto the Lord. That is what we are commanded to do, not to spend our time in bitter infighting with our brethren.
“How does giving gifts to each other really glorify Christ again? ”
Because God gives us gifts and commands us to do the same. Every good and perfect gift comes from the Father, and He loves a cheerful giver. Everything we do can be done wrongly or as image bearers of the Almighty. Giving gifts at Christmas time is a tradition of the church, based on the Wisemen. In this way we remember God’s greatest gift.
The initial post and related article are talking about teaching the myth of Santa Claus to your children, which is a good debate considering the points given.
However, I am very disturbed by the comments by a few here, and by blog posts elsewhere on the web, which promote not celebrating Christmas, the birth of our Lord, at all. This is apparently a new trend among Christians. I don’t get it, and frankly I wonder “where” this thought is coming from. You can counteract consumerism easily and still commemorate the Incarnation. You could do homemade gifts, no tree or decor, read the account of Christ’s birth or sing related hymns. To say “no Christmas” is to me, the work of a sinister force far more dangerous than a Santa unscramble game.
I also find it telling, that in a time of economic downturn, people decide that suddenly Christmas is not a Christian holiday. If you choose not to commemorate Christ’s birth AT ALL, whether due to economic difficulties or a true belief that it is wrong, it is unfair to pass it off as more pious or righteous or biblical than those who choose to mark the day. While it is certainly one’s choice to “skip Christmas”, it is HARDLY more pious than acknowledging the Word made flesh. The Bible itself is filled with celebration and commemoration of special days, which makes it so hard for me to swallow that some really feel it is wrong to commemorate the Incarnation of Christ. This trend to me almost seems to be spurred onward by people who can’t afford or don’t want to give gifts. You can still mark the day without gifting. You could do an extra act of service, which is a gift in itself. I just don’t understand this.
Cottage Child, thank you.
Brenda, I apologize for using such harsh language. I do think you spoke without being informed, but I was too harsh. I apologize.
By the way, speaking of celebrating the Incarnation (from Dec to early Jan), I just wanted to point out that we’re following in the footsteps of millions of saints who went to Glory before us, and millions of other Christians around the world – the ancient churchs – the Coptic, the Syriac, the Armenian, the Greek; and then Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox, the Lutheran, the Anglican and Anglican branches, the many many other protestant denominations, on and on. All over the world. I think it’s stunning.
Elizabeth, you’ve got to be kidding. You’re not seriously comparing Santa to satan?? Santa didn’t come from satan, he came from a true figure of Christianity who served God; to even hint that he came from the devil is extreme ignorance to me. Saint Nicholas defied every single thing satan has ever stood for.
Santa is a fairytale; so are the figures of Halloween, but children are still able to enjoy them in fun. My memories of Santa are very dear, and I never once replaced my Lord with him.
Now, Sofia, it’s wrong to make decorations and have Christmas trees? Is it also wrong to dress children for Easter and dye eggs? To have harvest bundles out on Thanksgiving? To wave flags on the 4th of July because this might somehow distract us from celebrating God? You are quite right about commercialism, but as for the other implications.. Yes, it IS possible to take joy in the beauty of Christmas decorations and still think of God; it’s very possible to wonder at His blessings while sending gifts/cards of appreciation to the family and friends you’ve been blessed with. If one finds themselves overwhelmed and stressed beyond belief by this, change could indeed be required, but the two are not automatically mutually exclusive. My mother decorates our tree, organizes our house, and buys for her family with no thought of worship or reverence for anyone but the Lord she spent her life teaching her children about. The idea that such a thing is impossible, and especially the fear I see here by people marveling over the so-called amazing spectacle of “satan/santa” thing just blows my mind.
For the record, my sisters and I rather figured out the Santa thing by ourselves when we were old enough; we simply asked our mother for confirmation, and hardly felt anger for our parents “lying” to us. We didn’t require them to ask our forgiveness over the Tooth Fairy either.
Actually, as an interesting point, Christians not celebrating Christmas isn’t a new fad. The early American Puritans didn’t observe the holiday either. Ace Collins’ book on Christmas traditions is actually a great place to start for some interesting research on that score.
Choosing not to celebrate Christmas is not always a ploy for attention-grabbing piety; all of us would do well to rethink many of our traditions. Yes, Christmastime is a cultural reality that we can’t ignore, even if we forgo nominal Christmas traditions, and there are going to be brothers and sisters in Christ who disagree on the outcome of that reflection. However, Catholic vs. Protestant arguments aside (and I wholeheartedly disagree with some of the gross doctrinal errors regarding the Catholic church, as my Protestant forefathers did; despite that, I’m not one to say that a Catholic can’t be saved) a closer look at the why’s behind Christmas traditions definitely changes the way one looks at them. I know it has for my family, as well as for me personally.
I’m not arguing that it’s holier to celebrate than not, or vice versa; our focus should be on how best to glorify the Lord, not on what we think our brothers and sisters in Christ’s motives may be for making one decision or another. Having friends on both side of the fence who love the Lord dearly, I don’t happen to think Christmas should be a point of division. Pointing the finger at one another takes the focus off of Christ entirely, which is the “reason for the season” –and every season. 😉
But, back to the subject, Mrs. Kelly, that’s a great post by Mrs. Piper! I enjoyed it. =)
Yes, but the Puritans were notorious for taking every possible joy out of life. And yes, I know it’s quite possible to have joy without festivity, but they ignored certain commandments about celebrating God and did it for exactly the motive of attention-grabbing piety.
That should read “normal” Christmas traditions in the second paragraph, not “nominal.” And what I meant by that is traditions that we take for granted. Sometimes, as we research them, traditions either gain significance for us or they lose significance; some of them we might even do away with. And, most exciting, we may even create new family traditions from year to year. 🙂
Yes, very good points 🙂
Jennifer, still, I have to disagree with you. To state that all families who forgo Christmas celebration are doing it for attention-grabbing piety is as broad and unfair a statement as to say that all families who celebrate Christmas are doing it because they are materialistic and impious: both are unfair.
And you’re also being a little unfair to those “notorious” Puritans; having spent a lot of time reading them in their own words, I’ve found great respect for them –they have given me so much passion in my pursuit of the Lord! John Owen, John Bunyan, and Joseph Alleine, for instance, were spiritual giants, all of whom realized that the pursuit of true joy outweighed “fun” in the fleshly sense. And my favorite poet, Anne Bradstreet, is also a Puritan I enjoy reading about.
They weren’t “ignor[ing] certain commmandments about celebrating God” –they saw no such commandments in His Word; what they saw was a Catholic tradition that they chose not to partake of. Some of them did it quietly, as many families I happen to know; some of them did it rather loudly, to be sure. 😉
Two great articles that offer more perspective on the issue:
http://www.daveblackonline.com/why_we_no_longer_celebrate_chris.htm
http://www.daveblackonline.com/christmas.htm
Jennifer – “the Puritans were notorious for taking every possible joy out of life.”
– That is as mythological as the story of Chris Cringle and the toy-making elves. And it is spreading misinformation. It’s frankly slanderous. The puritans were so called because they wanted to purify the church, primarily of “Popish” influences (hence giving up celebration of Saint Nicholas). They had no desire to kill joy – on the contrary, their reliance on “sola scriptura” would have forbidden it! The Scripture is full of parties, celebrations, wine and strong drink, song and dance, and good (and undefiled) sex. And Puritans believed wholeheartedly in doing your best in all things for God’s glory. Please stop spreading misinformation about the Puritans.
Amen, Mrs. Lori!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A1oHJR2g7Tw&feature=player_embedded
This is actually a better one (in my opinion) by the Gaither Vocal band (Mark Lowery) than the one I just posted:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_U2G8wsbXBo&feature=related
Lori and Jasmine-my perspective on the Puritans comes from my own reading. Their cruelty towards those different from them, their over-piety in excess, and their generalizing condemnations were quite revelatory about their over-all character. Of course there were some exceptional people among them, but in droves and mobs they were just as violent and hateful as the Catholic mobs they hated.
“To state that all families who forgo Christmas celebration are doing it for attention-grabbing piety is as broad and unfair a statement as to say”
I said this of Puritans, clearly NOT of modern families.
I have spread no misinformation about the Puritans, but my own view of them based on my own reading of their actions; please consider before you make an accusation of slander at my door.
I did consider, and stand by my comment.
And I stand by mine. If they are offended by my “slander”, as you call it, based on reading their own documents of killing the innocent and using molestation to determine “witch marks” on the bodies of innocent victims, they can stand out of their graves and accuse me with their dead tongues themselves, as they did so many others.
“Their reliance on “sola scriptura””
They had no such thing, as evidenced by their own creation of non-Biblical rules.
Jennifer, no doubt the Puritans did things that were wrong. But that is not what you referred to earlier, and therefore not what I addressed (I was careful to quote exactly what I addressed). I was referring only to your comments on the Puritan perspective on joy.
And if you want to go around spreading your version of information, then when it could malign someone the burden of proof is on you. (read: quote w/ citation)
Thank you for clarifying Lori, though their actions did imply to me that certain members of them didn’t care much for true joy, or at least any that differed from their own methods.
“And if you want to go around spreading your version of information,”
Malign? We’re talking about a dead religion here, whose trail of slander and weird acts can be confirmed by looking at just about any historical document. Are you directly contradicting anything I said of their methods? I recommend you look into the work of Arthur Miller and Anya Seton, both of whom wrote works of fiction based on historical research and include such notes in their work.
First of all, you need to define who you are calling a Puritan. Second of all, you still need to share a primary source documentation *with quotations and citations.*
I am familiar w/ the witch hunts. They were terrible. If you want to talk about Cromwell, I might have something to agree with you on. I know nothing of “molestation” etc.
“Malign? We’re talking about a dead religion”
We’re talking about real people. I do not belive the fact that someone is dead (bodily) gives cart blanche to defame.
“certain members of them didn’t care much for true joy”
I could agree with this. But you mustn’t judge a group by a few bad seeds. And considering so many good seeds left beautiful legacies and manuscripts, it’s foolish.
I know we’re talking of real people, Lori. History is what defames them. And those “few” bad seeds were quite numerous when it came to multiple murders. Forgive me if I wasn’t clear, though I thought I was: Puritans, as in the people who resided in New England, conducted witch trials, believed in public shame and humiliation, and denounced those who practiced the wicked art of dancing, celebrating, card playing, etc. Do you need citations for each and every thing I just described? I daresay Google and just about every other search engine imaginable will bring them right up. As for molestation, a common belief back then was that a witch would have a third nipple and the Puritans, among many, were eager to search for one; the abusive treatment this would entail for female “witches” should be very plain.
To the thread as a whole: If there’s been a rift in understanding in the lines of communication here, pardon any part of it I might have caused. My observation that the Puritans stole joy was just that, an observation; I had no intention of passing such a thing off as fact and the idea that it might be taken that way stuns me. My opinion of the Puritans is based on facts of their own methods; they had admirable traits and I do love the writings of their superior members, but the practices of publically shaming children and adult sinners, casting sometimes permanent stigma on the latter, executing dozens of innocents, and mistreating those accused of witchcraft are practices very easily proven real and, from what I’ve seen, general common knowledge. It is from these practices that my shock and revulsion stems, which I perhaps showed in a misdirected manner earlier here. I don’t presume to know what was on the heart of every Puritan and certainly not families today which choose to shun tradition; my comments earlier were based on my displeasure at seeing unfairness in comments from others. The last thing I want is for a Christmas thread to become a smelly tangle, so I hope to set the record straight and refocus on the topic of this thread.
Jennifer – I see your last comment. I have asked you more than once for citation. You will not give it. I appreciate you giving your influences as that is academic honesty, but still heresay.
“A matter must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.” Deut 19:15
“Forgive me if I wasn’t clear, though I thought I was” No, truly, you were not clear. You are very specific as to what you call a Puritan. It’s very different from the one I gave, and even from the dictionary definition (http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/puritan)
“(the Puritans) were eager to search for (a third nipple.” Wow, so you can read emotional motive? I find you literally incredible.
I will not be dialoguing with you further.
Apologies, the first link is half vanished. Second try:
http://russell.gresham.k12.or.us/Meling/newcrimeandpunish.html
edit: you were not clear previously in what you considered a Puritan.
Apparently you haven’t seen my last comment, in which I posted three links. I’m more than happy not to dialogie with you further and find your own assumptions incredible.
For some reason, my comments are vanishing. You did not see my last, Lori, in which I very clearly gave citation.
I’m speaking of well-known history here and you ask for two or three witnesses? Speak indeed of incredulity. I offered three links, created by those who searched history and found documents from no doubt hundreds of witnesses. Whether these are evidence enough for you or not, I will be more than happy not to dialogue with you further.
Correction of the last link:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Witches'_mark
What happened to my comment with the links?? It’s disappeared.
Forgive me, that last comment was posted under my sister’s email address rather than mine. Here are the links again:
http://russell.gresham.k12.or.us/Meling/newcrimeandpunish.html
http://lonestar.texas.net/~mseifert/devil.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Witches'_mark
And in case that last one refuses to work again, here are the Google results I found regarding the Puritans’ search for a witch mark:
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=ISO-8859-1&q=witch+marks+on+the+body&btnG=Search
The first result seen on the above page is the site from which I linked my information about the witch’s mark.
Ugh, it’s the day of the rebellious comments: my original comment containing the links is now back up. Apologies.
Please have a great Christmas, everyone
I don’t know if anyone is still reading these comments, but just incase, Colossians 2:16 says, “So let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or sabbaths, which are a shadow of things to come, but the substance is of Christ.”
And chapter 3 verse 17 says,”and whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.”
I think that pretty well sums it for me.
Are you using those verses in reference to the Christmas holiday, Dawn? If so, well said.
Thanks for sharing this article. We are one of the few families I know that purposefully does not celebrate Santa.
Thanks Kelly for your work for the families out there, as always. Reading this post on Santa and knowing the origins of the Christmas holiday, caused me to cease celebrating it around 34 years ago. The ancient cultures celebrated the winter solstice around this time of year and the match-ups between it and the christmas re-vamping is amazing. With that said, Deuteronomy 12:29-31 says so much for hearing ears. “When the LORD your God cuts off before you the nations which you are going in to dispossess, and you dispossess them and dwell in their land, beware that you are not ensnared to follow them, after they are destroyed before you, and that you do not inquire after their gods, saying, ‘How do these nations serve their gods, that I also may do likewise?’ “You shall not behave thus toward the LORD your God, for every abominable act which the LORD hates they have done for their gods; for they even burn their sons and daughters in the fire to their gods.…” He does not want us to use those traditions, as in Christmas, to celebrate His son’s birth. (He was born in the autumn, by the way) Thanks Kelly. You are appreciated!