Santa Claus is Dead

There, I said it. I feel like I can say that without too much reprisal since Christmas is over. I don't mean it to sound harsh, but it's true. He has been dead for over 1500 years. There is a very nice and short article over at Pastor Mark Driscoll's blog that is a great read.

Nell and I decided back when Zeke was a baby that we were just going to be up front about Santa. We have always told our kids about St. Nicholas and why he became famous. We just don't tell them that he lives at the North Pole, flies a magical sleigh, and slides down our chimney to enjoy milk & cookies. I know some people think we are monsters for corrupting the youth of our children. I'm okay with that. But I just don't get it. Most parents would not tell their kids Scooby Doo, or the Ninja Turtles or Batman is real. Well, Batman is real...

Now that being said, we do enjoy Santa. We have Santa decorations up, sing Santa songs, and watch Santa movies. In fact, Nell and I both grew up with Santa when we were little and somehow we miraculously turned out okay. I never look down my nose at any family who "does" Santa. It's all fine and dandy, it's just not for us.

I love the last sentence in Driscoll's blog post-

"...we keep the center of Christmas focused on Jesus; it’s probably what Nicholas would have wanted"

Now, if you'll excuse me, Batman is going to be signing autographs down at the mall in a few hours.