The real St Nicholas and the secular counterfeit

St Nicholas was a priest, an abbot, and a Catholic bishop of Myra in the 4^th century. He once helped a poor man who had three daughters that could not afford a proper dowry for marriage. This meant that they would remain unmarried and probably, in absence of any other possible employment would have to become prostitutes. Hearing of the poor man's plight, Nicholas decided to help him but being too modest to help the man in public, (or to save the man the humiliation of accepting charity), he went to his house under the cover of night and threw three purses (one for each daughter) filled with gold coins through the window opening into the man's house and landing in a stocking hung up to dry. This is how the story of Santa Claus was born. Mean while other parts of modern Santa story came from Norse Mythology. Thor was portrayed as elderly with a beard who had a chariot pulled by two horned goats named Cracker and Gnasher with elves and dwarves around them and they lived in the Northern Lands.  The Real St Nicholas was known for his holiness, zeal, and astonishing  miracles–even raising people from the dead. He was cast into prison during the persecution of Diocletian but he was released after the accession of Constantine, and was present at the Council of Nicaea in 325 ad. He died on December 6 in 345 ad. His feast day is thus on December 6. He is the patron saint for mariners, merchants, bakers, travelers, and children.

Although the spirit of charity that St Nicholas models is good, the secular culture has turned him into something contrary to the faith. The current St Nicholas (Santa Claus) is now someone with magical powers which is condemned in Deuteronomy 18:10. He is immortal (Hebrews 9:27 man is appointed to die once then the Judgment). He knows the lives of everyone and in a sense judges the heart of the individual for being good or bad (huh I thought God was the only one who could do that). He flies around with reign deer so fast that he reaches to be reasonable 3 billion houses in 24 hrs. That is 34722 houses per second. Not even superman could do that.  Now if anyone can explain to me why lying to you children that this fictional person is real, and this is a good thing, I would love to hear an explanation. Every year I read articles about how it is a good thing for christians to do with their children, in hopes that maybe someone will have a new argument that will change my mind. I hope for this because so many devout Catholics say it is okay and I disagree. The following are arguments I have heard and each one falls short.

A decent counter to this argument I’ve heard consists of this: “Jesus told stories that were not true. They are called parables.” This is how I respond: A parable is a story that pertains to real life so that the hearers can relate to them. Those stories could have actually happened or if they were a fantastic story the hearers knew it was fantastic. In the Santa story the hearer is led to believe the fantastic is real and is thus deceiving them. Having a fantasy story is fine but keep it a fantasy.

Another argument I heard is that Santa as a myth is not wrong to teach just like teaching kids about Greek mythology. The distinction is when you teach Greek Mythology you teach that it is something that people believed but is not real. When you teach about Santa you are teaching something that is not real as if it was real.

Another argument is that the Church baptized pagan things like they turned Samhain into All Hallows Eve, or the Christmas tree, or Mistletoe. It is more like a reverse baptism with Santa because you started out with a saint and then added the rest that was not true. Here is the difference. When you bring in a Christmas tree or mistletoe do you apply special powers to them or tell untrue stories about them? If yes then the same problem exists. If no then they are harmless traditions if they do not detract from the real reason for the season.

The best counter argument I have heard is that Santa instills in kids a sense of wonder that leads to Christ. This makes me wonder where in the mainstream Santa story does Jesus fit in. Drum roll, and Jesus is no where to be seen. For the sake of argument I will agree that in some way Santa can point to Christ for those who deliberately put Him in there. This brings up the real problem with this argument. If I steal a bible to learn about God is it a sin? Most people when asked if they could go back in time and kill Hitler as a baby they would answer yes justifying that it would save millions of lives. The answer to both of these questions is they are not moral and would be sin. The end does not justify the means. You can not kill an innocent to save lives. How does this fit in with Santa? You are lying to children to lead them to Christ. Think about that and how absurd it actually sounds.
Another argument is to not to stifle imagination and fantasy in children. Actually I don't believe kids believing in Santa involves their imagination. It is actually the imagination of the parents and the culture who are devising this whole fantasy story about Santa. This story is then imposed on the kids as if it were true. They are believing in Santa as if it were true just as believing that Jesus was born in a manger in Bethlehem. There is no difference in their mind. To them they are both true because you told them it is true.
Another argument is when your kid dresses up like spiderman do you tell them they are not spiderman or do you encourage their imagination. Here is the difference: The kid that dresses up like spiderman knows he is not spiderman. He cannot stick to walls and shoot web. He dresses up like spiderman because he wants to be like or be spiderman. This is imagination based on the truth that he is not spiderman unlike Santa which is based on a falsehood. The kid knows there is not a real spiderman swinging in New York City and if you asked people they would say spiderman is just someone in the movies. Santa on the other hand is "tracked" by NORAD and everyone says he is real.  
Another argument that CS Lewis and Tolkien loved fantasy and it even converted Lewis. I love fantasy too. Starwars, Star Trek, Marvel and DC universe. I also know these are fantasies and I am constantly reminding myself that I need to focus my thoughts more on the things of God that are real. The difference here again is I know these are fantasies but the child does not know Santa is a fantasy. The child believes Santa is just as real as Jesus. Does anyone see a problem with that?

You say it isn’t lying it is just fun. Let’s think about this. Did you say that Santa is a man who lives in the North Pole and flies around on Christmas Eve delivering presents to all the good children? If yes, does this happen as described? If no then it is intentionally telling someone something that is not true with the intent of that person believing that which is not true is actually true.

This is how the Catechism defines lying:


2482 "A lie consists in speaking a falsehood with the intention of deceiving."[280] The Lord denounces lying as the work of the devil: "You are of your father the devil, . . . there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks according to his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies."[281]

2483 Lying is the most direct offense against the truth. To lie is to speak or act against the truth inorder to lead someone into error. By injuring man's relation to truth and to his neighbor, a lie offends against the fundamental relation of man and of his word to the Lord.

2484 The gravity of a lie is measured against the nature of the truth it deforms, the circumstances, the intentions of the one who lies, and the harm suffered by its victims. If a lie in itself only constitutes a venial sin, it becomes mortal when it does grave injury to the virtues of justice and charity.

2485 By its very nature, lying is to be condemned. It is a profanation of speech, whereas the purpose of speech is to communicate known truth to others. The deliberate intention of leading a neighbor into error by saying things contrary to the truth constitutes a failure in justice and charity. The culpability is greater when the intention of deceiving entails the risk of deadly consequences for those who are led astray.

2486 Since it violates the virtue of truthfulness, a lie does real violence to another. It affects his ability to know, which is a condition of every judgment and decision. It contains the seed of discord and all consequent evils. Lying is destructive of society; it undermines trust among men and tears apart the fabric of social relationships.

You can instill wonder in your children by telling the real story about how God became Man who was born in a stable and not a palace. The Christmas Carol is a story about how a man was visited by ghosts of past, present, and future. Why aren't Santa promoters trying to convince kids that Scrooge was a real person and these ghosts are real? How about instead tell the story about how St Faustina was visited by the Holy Souls in Purgatory who asked her to pray for them and have Masses offered for them, or the story of Fatima where the children where shown Hell, or the story of how Padre Pio appeared in the clouds to direct WWII bombers away from a non military target. Open the treasure chest of the Catholic Church and you will have no trouble instilling wonder in your children. Of all the arguments I have heard I have to come to the belief that the Santa promoter connects fun childhood memories that included Santa and this good feeling is blocking them from seeing anything bad with it. An analogy may be teenager may argue that premarital sex feels good and we are in love so it can't be wrong.  Imitate the example of St Nicholas and remember the saint but don’t get caught up with the secular counterfeit.

The Church does not have an official teaching on Santa Claus so this reflects my opinion.