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[budhaboy]

My wife has a typical Christmas sermon that posits Santa is a teaching device for faith. Kids, by learning to have faith in Santa, are able to transition to faith in God more easily. She typically preaches it once during advent

Comments

[busbeytheelder]

Yeah. finding out that santa was a lie perpetrated on me by my parents was what moved me from a devout catholic to an atheist in the span of a few months.

We had an actually accidental santa sighting when I was near 10. Turns out it was just that a neighbor did a santa gig and hadn't bothered to change on his way home.

Anywho, the problem with using Santa as a entry-way to faith is that it's one that inevitably gets exposed as based on empty faith. Once I realized Santa was false the skepticism flared and everything else got thrown out with it.

I always presumed this was a backwards way to end up an atheist, but then in Religulous I found out Santa is also what drove Bill Maher to atheism.

[budhaboy]

This is true, but most sensible theologians realize that with any serious understanding of faith, one MUST have it shredded THEN come back to it, for it to be meaningful. Clearly Santa is a myth, but the idea of Santa... the idea that there may be, plants the seeds for the possibility when one is an adult an needs such comfort later in life.

Personally, I was always a doubter. I was never a dreamer, in anything that wasn't practical (i.e. how can I make foo, as opposed to how can I get a magic pony to get me foo).

[annihsia]

How did you react when you saw right through it?

[budhaboy]

Heh... Didn't phase me a bit as I was always a doubter

[annihsia]

Let me preface this by saying I am very sleepy and haven't the time/mind power to edit myself