How do I keep the spirit of the holiday for my child without deceiving her into believing in Santa?

Question

If I tell her to believe in Santa, then later down the road, she'll realize there isn't one and assume the same thing is true about God.

Answer 1

If you tell her there isn't a Santa, and that he's made up, wouldn't she assume the same thing about God, anyway?
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Let her enjoy Santa by playing Imagination! tell her to pretend for a while, and that it's a fun game to play. a very special game that only gets to be played one time a year.
Little children can understand game play. Let her in on the secret and magic, tell her you're going to be playing Santa tonight, and go ahead and get all excited about it. let her in on how you're going to perform your magical trick of bringing toys while she sleeps.
she'll be very excited to play along, and letting her imagine is a way of letting her believe without the deception.
maybe one year, you can pretend to go to bed nice and early, and let HER be Santa.
She will understand that it is a game, and a fun one.

Answer 2

I believed in Santa until I was 7. I'm 50 now and I still believe in God. Actually - I still believe in the SPIRIT of Santa. It's simply the spirit of giving.

If you don't want to "deceive" your daughter into believing that some guy in a red suit comes down the chimney - then just explain that he's a made up guy who represents the spirit of giving. He's like an "icon" - you know. It's important though - that you let her know that many other children believe in him - and that it's her job to make sure NOT to ruin the fun for them. Otherwise she'll be one of those snitty little kids who ruins the "deception" for others.

Answer 3

I had an ex-mother in law who would send us a santa every year, and I wanted to make sure my child knew the truth about Christmas, and that MOM WOULD NEVER LIE!!

This is what I did (mine is now 9 and very well socially adjusted):
1. Allowed 1 santa in each room. Explained Santa and Barnie are make-believe and FUN.
2. Bought children's books with the REAL Christmas story and read them every night from Thanksgiving to New Year. Also bought Veggie Tales, "The toy that saved Christmas" (highly recommended).
3. Taught him that MOM was Santa, and that other parents didn't tell their children the truth, so he couldn't ruin it for them.

It works. Oh, and he DOES believe in the tooth fairy, btw (accomplished without ever lying to a child. :)

On December 25, well after the fun, I make a birthday cake to Jesus, and I invite a few friends and we read Luke 2.

Answer 4

First of all there's no harm in Santa. He's brought alot of Joy to children and the season for years. You can teach her about "the reason for the season" (whoever or whatever that happens to be in your religion as I do not know if you are Christian, Jewish, Pagan, Muslim etc)

Also, just because a child learns that Santa isn't real doesn't mean that they would also begin to believe God isn't real either. And, anyway, what would it matter if the child did stop believing in God? Would you love your child any less?

Answer 5

Explain to her that many parents teach about "Santa" so that they can make Christmas seem more magical to them. Tell her the real meaning of Christmas, and tell her that the birth of Jesus was not on December 25. Explain that it is only a holiday so people can get and give presents. When I found out there was no "Santa", I felt like someone died. I asked my dad if that meant there was no God, and he finally explained to me that Santa, Easter Bunny, Tooth Fairy, etc were fake. But, God is real. Peace.

Answer 6

There is nothing wrong with believing in Santa. I believed in Santa my kids believed in Santa we turned out alright. Did you believe in Santa? My kids knew the true meaning of Christmas they would make Jesus a birthday cake on Chritmas when they were younger. To me Santa is spirit of giving and that shoud be done all year long not just on Christmas day. I know it is hard when you have kids to make the right choices in raising them. No matter what the answers are you have to do what you believe is right for your family. Good Luck & Merry Christmas

Answer 7

I don't think holiday spirit is all wrapped up in Santa. I think it is more about the family getting together and celebrating. I didn't lie to my children about Santa. The thought of some fat man in a red suit spying on them all year and then judging them worthy of gifts or not just doesn't sit well with me. My children didn't have the Easter bunny, tooth fairy, Santa Claus, or any other imaginary being in their lives and they have turned out just fine. Follow what feels right to you.
Love & Light
Sharon
One Planet = One People

Answer 8

Hi. We struggled with Christmas and Santa for years and years.

There are some good children's books out that talk about the real St. Nicholas... you can read about his life just by searching "saint nicholas" on-line.

We would sit down and read the books together as a family..

We always enjoyed our Christmas traditions - reading the gospel accounts of Jesus' birth, lighting candles that represented different aspects of the Christmas story, etc.

IMHO, it is wrong to deceive a child - whether it be about Santa, Easter bunny, tooth fairies or whatever...

god bless

Answer 9

I can appreciate that. I didn't teach my kids about Santa but they did pick it up from TV, other people around them asking, "SO, what is Santa going to bring YOU this Christmas"?? Cashiers at the grocery store ask, Aunts and Uncles ask. The don't mean any harm, but you don't really have to teach your child about Santa, they pick it from just seeing it all around and then the thought of a magical man bringing TOYS and CANDY is too much for them. They are primed to believe it. What you need to do is to make a decision if your going to tell her Santa doesn't exhist. We let both kids believe and didn't put any input into it until they asked and then we told the truth. We got about 2 Christmases when we got Santa pics and magical Christmases until they asked about it. They weren't really dissappointed when I told them the "secret" of what Christmas was all about.
I would suggest if you want to inform her from the get go, to fill Christmas with "magic" in other ways. Go for a drive and look at the best Christmas Light houses....sset up your own with her. If your Christian, let her help you with the nativity scene, letting her hold on to the baby Jesus until Christmas Eve. Fix up a charity box for Samaritan Purse and make extra special Christmas cookies. Make the stuff you do with her outshine a Santa experience.

Answer 10

God and Santa are not similar beliefs. To assume so is to simplify God. If you give your daughter a strong spiritual background, she will not stumble over Santa. Many Christians tell their kids about Santa and their kids don't abandon the church upon the "big discovery."

God is real whether you believe in Him or not.