Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!rutgers!aramis.rutgers.edu!athos.rutgers.edu!christian From: conan@hilbert.berkeley.edu (David Cruz-Uribe) Newsgroups: soc.religion.christian Subject: Re: Santa Claus Message-ID: Date: 18 Jan 90 05:06:54 GMT Sender: hedrick@athos.rutgers.edu Organization: Math Dept., UC Berkeley Lines: 33 Approved: christian@aramis.rutgers.edu In article kw1r+@andrew.cmu.edu (Kevin Whitley) writes: > >Throughout the Christmas season I talked to various people and the >reaction was universal - Santa Claus is a perfectly harmless belief for >the children, why not let them believe. I cannot think this is right, >why should I lie to my children in this one instance? I sort of wonder >whether Santa Claus is part of a kind of secular cultural religion that >is just assummed by everybody (hence the incident at the daycare). This >makes me even more determined that belief in Santa Claus is >inappropriate for my children, who I am trying to raise with Christian >values and outlook. > Yes Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. :-) For the record, I "believe" in Santa Claus. As a mathematician with Platonist leanings, I believe in the reality of a whole universe of ideal objects--so I guess there is room for a fuzzy cheeked old man in a red suit. :-) Now admittedly, I do not expect children to have a grasp of the subtlties (sp?) of meta-physics. On the other hand, for children (IMHO) "make-believe" is quite different from reality, but is never-the-less just as real. As long as God does not end up in the make-believe category, the two will probably never get lumped together. While Santa Claus has become the principle totem of the secular Christmas, this does not mean that he needs to be banished from a Christian celebration. As an example, I recall seeing a statuette of a kneeling Santa Claus which was intended to be added to a Creche, thereby illustrating the reason for the giving. Yours in Christ, David Cruz-Uribe, SFO