ljnsy
old hand
Reged: 03/08/06
Posts: 857
Loc: NH
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I am 8 years old. Some of my little friends say there is no Santa Claus. Papa says, "If you see it in The Sun, it's so." Please tell me the truth, is there a Santa Claus?
Virginia O'Hanlon
Virginia, your little friends are wrong. They have been affected by the skepticism of a skeptical age. They do not believe except they see. They think that nothing can be which is not comprehensible by their little minds. All minds, Virginia, whether they be men's or children's, are little. In this great universe of ours, man is a mere insect, an ant, in his intellect as compared with the boundless world about him, as measured by the intelligence capable of grasping the whole of truth and knowledge.
Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy. Alas! How dreary would be the world if there were no Santa Claus! It would be as dreary as if there were no Virginias. There would be no childlike faith then, no poetry, no romance to make tolerable this existence. We should have no enjoyment, except in sense and sight. The external light with which childhood fills the world would be extinguished.
Not believe in Santa Claus! You might as well not believe in fairies. You might get your papa to hire men to watch in all the chimneys on Christmas eve to catch Santa Claus, but even if you did not see Santa Claus coming down, what would that prove? Nobody sees Santa Claus, but that is no sign there is no Santa Claus. The most real things in the world are those that neither children nor men can see. Did you ever see fairies dancing on the lawn? Of course not, but that's no proof that they are not there. Nobody can conceive or imagine all the wonders there are unseen and unseeable in the world.
You tear apart the baby's rattle and see what makes the noise inside, but there is a veil covering the unseen world which not the strongest man, nor even the united strength of all the strongest men that ever lived could tear apart. Only faith, poetry, love, romance, can push aside that curtain and view and picture the supernatural beauty and glory beyond. Is it all real? Ah, Virginia, in all this world there is nothing else real and abiding.
No Santa Claus! Thank God! He lives and lives forever. A thousand years from now, Virginia, nay 10 times 10,000 years form now he will continue to make glad the heart of childhood.
~Francis P Church~
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"Some cause happiness wherever they go; others, whenever they go." --
Oscar Wilde
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all2u
newbie
Reged: 12/20/06
Posts: 28
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Just my opinion as the mother of 9, and GrandMother of 8. I think as a Non- Denominational Christian That we should be honest about these issues with children. How can we teach our children to be honest if we start out by lying? We can still have all the wonderment of christmas, we just don't have to include a fictious character. We can still give presents mysteriously on christmas morning, we just don't say whom they come from. Let that be the thing to figure out as they get older. It's just as fun and you can still tell Santa Claus stories and all that, that implies. But tell it as a story, just like Mother Goose. Same applies for Easter, then your children grow up knowing the true meaning of the holidays. I mean in christian life, I would think that you would not lie about something as important as their Savior and Salvation. You certainly would not want anything to take their eyes off of the lord. Sants Clause does exactly that, as well as the Easter bunny. Think about it, If you were Satan and you wanted to hinder such a great celebration for christ how would you do it and when would you start?
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ljnsy
old hand
Reged: 03/08/06
Posts: 857
Loc: NH
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You are certainly entitled to your opinion but Santa Claus is a tradition that had been followed for hundreds of years in lots of different countries.
Tell me this...and I'm not saying I don't believe, but what REAL PROOF is there that there is REALLY a Jesus and a God? A book that was written by MAN?
We teach our children what we want to. We have the right to follow the traditions that have been in our families for generations. I am almost 41 years old. I DO believe in Santa Claus..becaue * I * am Santa Claus to my child.
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"Some cause happiness wherever they go; others, whenever they go." --
Oscar Wilde
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all2u
newbie
Reged: 12/20/06
Posts: 28
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[quote]You are certainly entitled to your opinion but Santa Claus is a tradition that had been followed for hundreds of years in lots of different countries.
Tell me this...and I'm not saying I don't believe, but what REAL PROOF is there that there is REALLY a Jesus and a God? A book that was written by MAN?
We teach our children what we want to. We have the right to follow the traditions that have been in our families for generations. I am almost 41 years old. I DO believe in Santa Claus..becaue * I * am Santa Claus to my child. [/quote]...................................................You are absolutely right! I was just giving folks, something to consider. That if you were satan you would want to plant that seed early in life to focus on the material part of christmas, instead of the spiritual. Santa is wonderful, and he is spin off of an actual person. I'm just saying, tell it like it is, and don't let christmas be ABOUT Santa in their minds> "IF" you are of Traditional Christian Belief. If not you should follow your own belief's and values. This is not meant to offend anyone, or to say that mine is the right and only way. ;)
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ljnsy
old hand
Reged: 03/08/06
Posts: 857
Loc: NH
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Both can be achieved. My son knows the true meaning of Christmas and he also believes in Santa. This will most likely be his last year to believe because he is 10 years old.
When he found out there was no tooth fairy recently he was not mad because he was "lied" to. He said to me "Mom, you're the Tooth Fairy aren't you?" I said "Yes, I am" He said "So there is no Tooth Fairy?" and I replied "There is a Tooth Fairy if you believe there is a Tooth Fairy." This answer was accepted very well and that same night he put his tooth under his pillow as he always had.
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"Some cause happiness wherever they go; others, whenever they go." --
Oscar Wilde
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