Is this lie hurting our kids?
I can’t be the only mom on
the planet that cringes at the Santa questions. I think most of us would agree that we hate lying to our kids. Perhaps it’s
because we’re still recovering from the exposé of our own
childhood when that sixth grader on the playground robbed us of our innocence
by blabbing the "truth" about Santa Claus. Maybe some of you out there are really like me (I apologize) and even though
you don’t like fibbing to your kids you also cherish the years you had
falling asleep on Christmas eve waiting and wondering if Santa and those
reindeer would really, truly come to your house and deliver those shiny new presents that seemed to be blanketed in a layer of fairy dust. We want that for our children, we really do,
but the lies… the LIES!
Do you want to know I've discovered? We actually don’t have to lie. Let me explain.
You see, Christ himself taught in parables when he lived on the earth. So why not now? He’s not dead. He’s very much alive. So, doesn’t it make sense that he’s still teaching us today? And if he’s the same yesterday, today and tomorrow wouldn't it make sense that he’d teach us in parables now just like he did before? So the way I see it, Santa Claus, his reindeer, his kingdom up north,
his midnight ride around the world, his gift giving, his naughty or nice list, his
sled, his magic, his everything… is all a
parable, and this parable is given to us by our Savior to provide us with a simple, child-like way to teach our children about the Savior himself.
Let’s start with Santa in the North Pole, making
his list, checking it twice, finding out who is naughty or nice. If my theory is correct and if Christ himself
has truly offered the story of Santa Claus to us as a parable, what is he
trying to teach and who is Santa Claus a representation of? I think that Santa Claus
is a representation of Christ himself. Our
Savior, Jesus Christ, now a resurrected being, sits on his throne high in the
heavens as the judge of Israel. He sees us when we’re sleeping, he knows when
we’re a wake he knows if we’ve been good or bad and he pleads with us to be
good for goodness sake (or in other words, for the sake of the good
shepherd).
His red suit
is another symbol of Christ. I know what you’re thinking. Santa’s suite turned red the minute Coca-Cola
decided to use him as their money making mascot. But origins aside I believe
things happen for a reason and I feel that this one is on purpose. The color
red is very emblematic. Not only is it
one of the dominate colors of Christmas it is one of the dominant colors of
Christianity. Christ bled from every
pore when suffering for our sins, he administered red wine to his apostles at
the last supper and in the book of Revelations John tells us that Christ will
come “clothed with a vesture dipped in blood” Revelation 19:13. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that Santa Claus
comes bearing gifts to all the world in his own vesture of crimson red.
Although Christ was actually
born in the spring we celebrate Christmas in the dead of winter when a good portion of the world around us is iced over and
failing to thrive. Sure this may have
been a decision made hundreds of years ago to thwart off pagan celebrations but
this is too symbolic to be tossed aside as a mere coincidence. Before Christ comes again the earth will be
in its darkest state. Just when things
won’t seem to be able to get any worse Christ will come as bright as the sun
rising in the east. When all things in
the earth are cold, dark and dying, He will come to redeem all mankind. He is the light in the darkness and he
“cometh as a thief in the night.” 1 Thessalonians 5 (D&C 106:4) It makes
sense then that Santa Claus, too, would steel through the night, in the
coldest, darkest time of the year bringing joy to all who believe.
Isaiah tells us (66:15) that when Christ comes again the wind and the fire
will collect around him in the manner of a chariot. A chariot in ancient times pulled by a team
of horses might have looked something like this.
Look familiar?
Coincidence, you might
say. Blasphemy, you might even
accuse. But –in my many hours of
dwelling - I just can’t believe that these crucial comparisons are an accident. Can you?
The reindeer
that so valiantly pull Santa’s sleigh, I believe, are symbolic of those ancient
prophets and apostles who have come in the meridian of time to prepare the way
of the Lord. Elijah, John the Baptist,
Peter, James and John and several others have all been key in the ushering in
of the Second Coming of our Savior. They
come before the master and prepare the way of his coming just as those tiny
reindeer do for Kris Kringle.
How does Santa deliver all of
those presents to all of those kids in just
one night? This is a question that
every child has asked. And parents all
over the globe usually answer with one word, “Magic.” But the same question might be asked by
children and adults alike, “How does Christ know me personally? How does he know each of the billions of
people who have lived on the earth by name?
And even more importantly how is it possible that he suffered for each
of our individual sins?” Is it
magic? Well, no, but it is beyond our
understanding. I won’t even try to
answer this question because I have no idea but I know that God’s comprehension
of time far surpasses ours and I feel that Santa and his “magical” ability to
deliver gifts to all the world in so little time is symbolic of Christ suffering
for the sins of the world during his time in Gethsemane. His suffering was for all and this gift, this
sacrifice that he made was an individual ransom for our sins, our pains, our
sufferings. It’s hard to wrap our mortal
minds around how that is possible. But
as children we learn to have faith in things that we don’t understand and as
adults that faith is fueled by eternal truths.
Finally after a long, dark
slumber children awake to the hope that Santa has left presents for them under the tree.
We, as Christians, also have this hope.
We hope for the gift of eternal life and happiness that can’t be
imagined in this life time. We hope for
a time when our sorrows, pains and both physical and mental ailments will be a
distant memory and the gift of resurrection and a brilliant forever will be
ours to have and hold. And as the
children descend the staircase and peak around the corner, their hopes are
realized. For in front of the fireplace
lies a plate full of crumbs and under the tree are the gifts that were asked
for each labeled by name. Christ too will come; he will bring gifts of an
eternal nature that we can’t yet understand.
But his gifts are personal. He
knows us all. He knows our faith and our
struggles. He knows the good and the bad. And he’s merciful to all who can only
believe.
Of course there is a caveat. Because just like any gift from God that is
handled by man, the parable of Santa can be twisted into something ungodly that
would distract us from our belief in Christ.
But if used properly and in the way Christ intended I believe the
parable of Santa Claus can be an instrument in teaching our children about our
relationship with our Redeemer. I think
it’s natural that as Christian parents we grow concerned that if our Children
find out we were “lying” to them about Santa they might also think we’re
“lying” to them about Jesus. But Jesus
isn’t a lie. He lives and he will come
again and we can teach our children that Santa Claus is a symbol of the true
and living Christ. And by so doing my
hope is that as our children grow they will remember the lessons taught to them
as children, they will remember the lessons of Santa Claus and they will have a
more palpable and fortifying understanding of their relationship with our Savior.
