This will send nasty chills down your spine

[problematika]

...and then make you cry, quite possibly

Comments

[luludi]

Like I said...it's like fighting on all fronts.

I was thinking about your recent assignment, and had I brought up the subject of the Three Wise Men, a tradition in some countries similar to Santa Claus or Kris Kringle. It's where kids get gifts, right. Well, the Three Wise Men may not be so bad, but let's take a look at the Santa Claus tradition.

If you're good, you get gifts from Santa, right? OK, you then go to show off your gifts to friends, schoolmates, etc, right? But what if some children don't have anything to show off, or the gifts from Santa are not as impressive as some of the things other children got. That would mean that the child getting the more modest gift, or no gift has been bad, right? Or perhaps not as good as the other kids. Right? It couldn't mean that one child's parents were poor and couldn't afford as lavish a display of gifts as the children of the rich. Or does Santa favor the wealthy and their children over the children of the poor?

[problematika]

I'll make sure to inform Bubla that Santa doesn't love him :-)
I just have a hard time lying to kids, anyway. I know that may "kill the spirit of Christmas," or of magic or whatever, but I have a feeling I'll want to tell the kids pretty early on that the little Jesus or Santa Claus as gift-givers are really just metaphors (for...?). "Can you say me-ta-phor, Annie? Oh, don't worry, you'll get it by the time you're two and a half." :-)

[luludi]

But this is what I like about the Orthodox approach. Gift-giving is not a part of the picture. At least not literal gift-giving.

[jasonr_]

Here is the video from the project:

-Jason

[couri]

OMG, how horrendously depressing.