Santa Claus… Good or Bad?

Every year, there is always the controversial discussion about the focus on Santa Claus during the Christmas season.  It does seem that he attracts undeserved attention when that attention should be placed upon Christ.  But is Santa Claus really all that bad?

Santa Claus is actually a modernized version of a historical person named Saint Nicholas of Myra.  Here was a man who knew what it meant to live the gospel.  There are, of course, several different legends concerning this man, but there is little doubt that there is truth about this man who would sacrificially give from his wealth to help the poor and the downtrodden of his day.  He grew up in a wealthy family and his parents were very generous people who loved to help others for the sake of Christ.  As far as what is historically accepted, Nicholas has gained the reputation of secretly giving to the poor by placing coins in the shoes of people who left them outside for him.  Of course, now we leave out our stockings on Christmas Eve for him to come and fill.  The point of all this is that this man truly understood the gospel.  He knew that God had blessed him with wealth so he could be an instrument of God to help those who were poor.

In Matthew 25, as Jesus is teaching about the final judgment, He shows us the marks of the true believer.  All of those people He received into heaven are those who showed their love for God by showing love for their fellow man.  He tells them that they visited Him in prison, fed Him when He was hungry, clothed Him when He was naked and so forth.  He explains that whenever they did that for the least of people, they were doing it to Him.  The book of James also tells us that the true religion is defined by our caring for the widow and the orphan, or in other words, helping those who cannot help themselves (James 1:27).  This is the life of St. Nicholas.  This is the wonderful beauty of Santa Claus.

I know and agree that there is much commercialization to Santa Claus that seems to steal attention from the true meaning of Christmas, which is Christ Himself.  But that’s not Santa Claus’s fault.  He lived his life to bring honor and glory to Christ through the loving care of the poor.  Why should we let the secular world corrupt this wonderful man?  I believe that we have a wonderful opportunity to allow Santa to once again bring glory to Christ through the giving that he does each year.  We can teach our children that Santa gives to us because he wants us to remember the greatest gift that was given over 2000 years ago.  And Santa wants us to learn how to give to those who are less fortunate than we are because that is one of the best ways that we can show our love for God and for others.  Jesus came and saved us so we could make a difference in the lives of others.  This is the great teaching of Santa as he brings his gifts to children every Christmas Eve night.  I plead with you, don’t shut Santa out.  Rather, bring him back to the place in which he desired in the beginning, as a humble servant that sought only to glorify Christ.

If used properly, Santa Claus can help teach children about the love and grace of God, our heavenly Father who has lavished such wonderful gifts upon us.