There really was a St. Nicholas, you know.
I really liked this kneeling Santa, as it reflects
the attitude of the historical St. Nicholas. This and a lot of other
great graphics are available from Lisa at...
Over the years, of course, many delightful myths have grown up
around this figure. This brings us to that perennial question: "Is/was
there really a Santa Claus?"
However, children also want to know what is true and what is make-believe. Make-believe and pretend can be lots of fun, but children do want to know which is which. The amount of trust a child has in a parent is incredible. I can remember believing in the tooth fairy simply because my mom passed the legend on to me as truth. So we as parents have an awesome responsibility because of that trust.
In many cases, the same children who are eventually told that Santa Claus is not
"real" are also sent to Sunday School, where they learn many wonderful
stories that involve miraculous things being done, from Elijah calling
fire from heaven to consume his sacrifice, to Jesus walking on the water.
Yes, you guessed it! I am going to say how on earth are they supposed
to tell that the Bible stories are true, but that Santa somehow isn't?
Unfortunately, many seem to throw out all of the miraculous as something
belonging to childhood, and lose out totally on the fact that the
Child of Christmas is also the living Saviour who wants to be by our
side every moment we live! And as the real truth comes out, that wonderful trust that a child has for a parent gets whittled away.
In our family, we told our kids from the start that the Santa thing is simply a
wonderful story that we can enjoy. And they loved Christmas...still do!
My friend, ENJOY CHRISTMAS!! Jesus is the reason for the season!
Annie's Christmas Welcome Page
St Nicholas lived in the 4th century. He became Archbishop of Myra.
According to the report that has been passed down, he gave all the
wealth he had inherited to the poor, keeping nothing. At the First Ecumenical Council of Nicaea in the year 325, he slapped the
heretic Arius in the face for speaking against Jesus Christ.
Children, as you will see when you observe them closely, have a
wonderful ability to pretend. The fact that whatever game they are
playing may involve things that are not "real" in our adult sense of
the word, does not bother them in the least. They know full well that
they are pretending, and it does not at all detract from their game;
in fact, the ability to pretend makes the list of things one can do
almost endless.
Silent Night