is santa used like free drugs cigarettes to get kids hooked on relgion?

Question

is santa used like free drugs cigarettes to get kids hooked on relgion?


the main thing kids would not want to give up to be athiest would be santa and presents and christmas followed by easter and chocolate.


These things however could they be a get them hooked on irrational faith based belief as people dont want to spoil it for them.

And if they can believe in santa etc then god is a step up.

Instead of groeing up coldly rational...


but still liking the parties

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Actually you can apply the Santa concept to easter too.


As all that was origonally to cenebrate the Saxon fertily god.


ie think of a raunchier version of valentines day.

ie chicks, eggs, the easter bunny

Answer 1

It's not so much the material gifts kids get "from Santa", but the whole idea of believing in invisible, unverifiable beings like Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, and the Tooth Fairy.

Someone described that trio as "God Lite", preparing kids to accept a belief in an invisible, unverifiable being who's supposed to be objectively real, and in charge of the entire world, laying down rules for us (usually conveniently interpreted by people in power!) and promising eternal rewards and punishments that we somehow never see for ourselves ("Trust me! Your loved one isn't dead; s/he's alive in a Secret Magical Place!").

And rationalists need not be "cold", or eschew emotion and ritual: the Rev. James Huber said it much better than I in "The Day We Learned".

Answer 2

Santa was St Nick, a Greek bishop somewhere in Turkey who gave presents to orphans. Our version is a corrupted figure of Thor on his chariot with Coke's colours, he's not much to do with religion, just good fun. Had the feeling that Christmas has always been about excess, finishing off the last of the harvest in gorging yourself in booze and gluttony, so Santa being a symbol of commercialism is right and proper!
However he did get me hooked on having a huge belly.

Could be argued that when the Santa bubble is burst, it sets you for the same disappointment when you find out that religion's don't burn heretics anymore.

Could be that Eostre is the Saxon equivalent of Ishtar, the Mesopotamian Goddess of fertility. It's a spring fertility festival, eggs being a symbol of birth and bunnys humping like mad. Also of course, Christ being resurrected is a good symbol of rebirth too. Incidentally, the death then 3 day later rebirth could have been from the moon cycle (same with vampire myths).

Answer 3

Well Santa and Satan have the same letters... OK really I have to agree with you on the santa thing. But the Easter thing is actually pagan. The bunny, eggs, what does that really have to do with the "re-birth" of a man? Easter is a pagan holiday for a god named Estora, name sounds kinda familiar don't it?

Answer 4

Don't atheists like having any fun and eating chocolate? Do atheists celebrate anything? Could I become an atheist by attending your parties and really liking them? What rational parent uses SANTA to get their children hooked on religion? Jesus is the eason for the season and some kids don't get presents at all. SANTA is just for FUN like HALLOWEEN. Lighten up, man. My kids step-mom is an atheist and she is fun and doesn't judge me as a believer and I don't judge HER.

Answer 5

Neither. I've seen the damage that smoking can do. Chronic bronchitis, emphysema, lung cancer and other smoking-related illnesses are not easy things to deal with. If the world was a nicer place they would just ban cigarettes totally. It's an incredibly cruel way to die. The other drugs are no better. :-/

Answer 6

Santa has nothing to do with religion, especially Christianity. He's a reworking of a pagan symbol. He really has nothing at all to do with Christmas as a celebration of Christ's birth.
He also has nothing whatever to do with Easter celebrations be they pagan or Christian.
You really need to do a little research.

Answer 7

Father Christmas has got nothing to do with Christianity. Whats more Christmas is becoming less about the worship of Christ with every passing year.

There were celebrations of days a long time before anyone created the story of Christ, Easter Eggs etc..

and if it wasn't x-mas , there'd be something else.

Answer 8

Christmas and Easter are both usurped Pagan celebrations, used by christianity to popularise their religion.
Xmas being the winter solstice and easter is the festival of Eostra (from where we get Oestrogen) a fertility Goddess whose sacred animal was the hare. christianity just hijacked them and changed a few symbolic things so as to assimilate Pagans in to believing the christ myth.
xmas = birth of the new year (Pagan), birth of christ (xtian)
easter = re-birth of the fertile land (Pagan), resurrection (xtian)
Santa Claus was popularised much later as an extension, by christians, of the st nicholas story giving gifts to the poor. It has in recent times been hijacked by consumerism.
Hope that helps.

Answer 9

Christmas has very little to do with religion these days, now its all about commercial interests, big companies dictating that once a year we must spend every spare penny we have, on a load of present no one really wants.

Its training our children early to become good consumers.

Answer 10

Well, Santa Claus is not part of any religion, I don't think. You can believe in Santa without being religious. He is like the tooth fairy and unicorns and leprechauns. Just made up.

But don't let any kids see this - they will be MOST unhappy!