My husband and I are already in conflict about Santa - whether to tell our child that he's fiction right off the bat, but still do presents and enjoy the holiday. I want to make sure the holidays are still fun, I mean, a 4 year old can't truly comprehend what the birth of our Savior Jesus means, I don't think. So Santa kind of makes the holiday magical. I don't know. But I don't think our child would be 'offended' by a Santa hat, unless we taught him/her to act like that. (Are you listening, parents who complained?!?!?)
PS: this is a premature argument, as I'm only 12 weks pregnant. LOL.
Santa must be accepted by faith and later that faith destroyed ...
Jesus is also initially accepted by faith ... and later supported and fortified.
Your ball.
One July when my son was eight, he said, "Mom, if I ask you a question, will you tell me the truth?" "Of course, son," I replied. He then asked if Santa was real or was I Santa Claus. He caught me totally off guard, but I thought about it a moment and indeed, told him the truth. You wouldn't believe the size of the tears that started rolling down his cheeks.
Congratulations to you and your husband!
FWIW, 22 years ago, my wife and I decided to not lie to our daughter about Santa Claus (or anything else that concerned her). After she was born, we kept that promise, based on the premise that we wanted her to be able to trust us in all things. We told her the Santas in the malls and elsewhere were kind men who liked to make kids happy.
Young children believe in all things magical. From the day they are born things seem to magically appear around them. Believing in Santa is no different. When the child gets a little older logic starts to take hold, but most kids will willingly suspend their disbelief for a year or two just to enjoy the show.
When it comes time to tell them Santa isn't real, tell them in a way that lets them in on the secret. Kids love to be part of the adults secret and knowing something younger children don't.
The kids usually catch on sometime around age 6 or 7, either because they get told by another kid or just figure it out for themselves.
When asked, we told our kids 2 things:
1) Yes, Santa does exist, but he doesn't look like the pictures. He looks like your parents, who love you very much.
2) Now that they know about Santa, they shouldn't spoil the magic for the younger kids. It's a grown-up secret.
They seemed to take it quite well when presented that way.
Is he fiction? I thought he was a Christian saint. In any case, he always seems to make it to my home on Christmas.
I always told mine that Santa is "the Spirit of Christmas," as well as reading children's illustrated stories of the nativity. From year to year, kids ask questions and I was able to fill in more and more. When the child was ready to understand, and already had heard from me that Jesus' birthday was the main reason for the celebration, the question came about whether Santa was "real." I explained that a Spirit works through people to do God's work. So that we might see many people dressed like Santa but whose heights or faces are different. They are truly helpers of the real, and invisible, Spirit of Christmas, bringing joy to others.