(April 7, 2015 at 9:48 am)Chad32 Wrote: It's like when I got to a certain age, people started telling me Santa Clause wasn't real. I was mocked if I told people I still believed in him. That didn't happen with Jesus, so I wasn't browbeaten into not believing in him. It's rather the opposite, with people browbeating others into believing in him if they bring up any doubts.
Exactly! It's the difference between somebody who is told that Santa isn't real, and someone who figures it out on their own. My wife thinks I'm crazy for being so careful in my approach to the Santa concept with my son. I never "confirm" anything for him. I just asked him questions, and when he asks me about the nature of Santa, my answers are always prefaced with "I hear that...", but I never tell him anything as if I think it's true. I am impartial. I wanted him to figure it out so when he is challenged, he can offer reasons when others rely on mockery. You know, teaching to fish rather than giving him fish? He figured it out this year when he was 5. The inability among Christians to recognize the parallel between Santa and God makes me think that many of them would still believe in Santa if a trusted authority had not "told them" not to.
