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Because I cannot pretend that it's ok to entertain our kids after their Christmas program by inviting Santa to their party.I've never approved of it and never will. Getting close to church shopping time.AGAIN “Hell will be filled with people that didn’t cuss, didn’t drink, and may even have been baptized. Why? Because none of those things makes someone a Christian.”

Is this just the final straw? Has there been a pattern of other straws leading up to this Santa thing

Would you be offended if they invited a clown to their party? What if they invited someone dressed up as a cartoon character or a Bible character? Veggie Tales, maybe? At least the original, upon which Santa Claus is based, St. Nicholas, was a real historical figure.

Not a big fan of Santa either but in agreeing with QW my fatherly side says, why not let the kids have a little harmless fun ...I found out it pays off later in life some how Empty nest syndrome is for the birds!Email me at: [email protected] planters are focused on just one thing ...introducing people to Jesus!

Tell them you'll be okay with Santa coming so long as he takes some time during the party to punch heretics in the face. That's what the real St. Nicholas did, according to church legend.

Of course,I get it. It's just harmless fun. Let the kids have some fun. What's the harm in that? I love to have fun too. Life is too serious for most of us isn't it?My issue is based on the fact that Santa as he is known today,is a lie. Not talking about the original St. Nicholas. Talking about Santa who tells little church kids that he knows all about them,even to the point of being able to grant their Christmas wishes.Call me Scrooge,but I think it's highly hypocritical to permit this in any church, especially one claiming to be Spirit led.Scrooge out...Almost forgot, someone asked if there had been other straws and the answer is yes there have. I'm sure tomorrow I'll feel differently and file this away. As my wife says, what are you going to do,take on the entire COG “Hell will be filled with people that didn’t cuss, didn’t drink, and may even have been baptized. Why? Because none of those things makes someone a Christian.”

For what it's worth, FLRon, I agree with you in your convictions here. We don't do Santa Claus with our kids. We told them he's a fun thing to make-believe about, and that a lot of kids believe he's real and that they shouldn't ruin anyone else's fun, but IMO Christmas should be about reflecting on and rejoicing in the God who took on flesh so He could save His people from their sins. Santa's great, but sorry, my schedule's all filled up with that.

I am a recovering Puritan myself. For a few years, I actively campaigned to eliminate all pagan and/or unscriptural holiday observances from the church and from our home. Believe me when I say I understand the desire to have purity when it comes to things like Christmas, Santa, the Easter Bunny, Halloween, etc. Thankfully, I came to my senses before our two oldest got very big. I finally realized a couple of things that helped me a lot. Perhaps others may find them helpful. One, I recognized the importance of tradition. Traditions are not inherently bad. Two, I recognized that worldly/pagan things can indeed be sanctified, like the cross, for instance. What was once a pagan Roman symbol of terror, torture and death is now the quintessential symbol of eternal life, and we are all far better for it. Three, I recognized the importance (and blessedness) of childhood imagination and play. How this has worked out for us as parents is, we have

Having a Santa at church promising to grant wishes could definitely cause some problems, especially if the parents can't live up to it. Seems a bit over the top. I don't think we've ever had a Santa at church, either.We allowed our kids to believe in Santa as long as they would, but when they asked if he was real, we just told them, It's fun to believe he is. We never made a big deal out of it, but we let them be kids as long as they wanted to. I learned Santa wasn't real in a Christmas message at church when I was 5 years old. Not really the ideal way, IMHO.Will tell you a funny Santa story...when my youngest was around 8, he didn't really believe in Santa anymore, kinda questioning if it was real. My kids were home schooled for a lot of their childhoods, so they didn't have a lot of other cynical kids to deal with re: this. That year, he asked for roller skates, which I emphatically told him no, he was not getting roller skates for Christmas. At some point, I changed my mind & got him the roller skates he wanted. When he opened them, he said, I know Santa must be real, cause Mama would have NEVER gotten me this! LOL A very fond memory for me now, since I haven't seen him in 8 years...but I'm still praying & believing More of Him...less of me.twitter.com/camiracle77www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=691241499&ref=name

Good comment QW, that has been basically our family stand. I think it is solid Some facts but mostly just my [email protected]/