- Mhermitmom on Bah Humbug: Why We Don’t Do Santa: “When my kids asked if santa was real, I told them santa wasn’t a name but a job title. Whoever is santa gives the gifts. Everyone can be santa.” Dec 22, 21:51
- on Bah Humbug: Why We Don’t Do Santa: “My parents “did” Santa. I remember them driving us away from my grandparents’ Christmas party in Logan. I saw the red navigation light on a cell tower somewhere in the Wellesvilles and thought it was Rudolph. I’ve never forgotten that sense of wonder and always cherished the yearly rituals of leaving milk and cookies out and cleaning up the empty plate the next morning. We made sure to include some carrots for the reindeer. Mom and Dad never told me they were eating the cookies and arranging the presents. It just sort of dawned on me that the other kids probably had a point. But the Christmas season has always struck me as the richer for it. It’s the one time of year where we are encouraged not to be cynical, where we are encouraged to believe, where the best in mankind can yet be expected and people aren’t suckers for letting it out. It would not surprise me if God had angels sent abroad to foster that sentiment. What else would we call them, servants of He who loves little children? I suppose this is my way of saying that, after all these years, I still believe.” Dec 22, 20:27
- on Bah Humbug: Why We Don’t Do Santa: “Just be careful. My parents didn’t “do” Santa, so I (of course) told all the kids at school their presents weren’t from Santa, because he’s not real. I was not well-liked after that.” Dec 22, 19:05
- on Bah Humbug: Why We Don’t Do Santa: “@ Mark Ashurst-McGee: I like that way of threading the needle. It also reminds me of one of the funniest Christmas memes I saw where a child is sitting on Santa’s lap who asks him “Homoousios or homoiousios?” Santa reacts with a befuddled “what?” and the kid responds “you’re not the real St. Nicholas.” @RLD: Ditto, I have the same hangup; not to subtly disparage anybody who doesn’t have it, but I do. @ David Robbins: Oh dear, this is embarrassing. At least I was consistently misspelling it throughout. I went ahead and corrected it. @Carey F: That’s another profound way to see it.” Dec 22, 18:40
- on Bah Humbug: Why We Don’t Do Santa: “I think Santa is a great myth—not because it’s false, but because it’s formative. It gives young children a world charged with wonder, generosity, and surprise. For a short, age-appropriate season, they live inside a story where gifts are freely given, goodness is rewarded, and joy comes from something outside themselves. That kind of enchantment matters. It trains the heart before it trains the mind. What’s especially meaningful is that belief in Santa isn’t meant to last forever. It has a built-in transition. At some point, kids don’t really “lose” Santa so much as they inherit him. They cross a threshold from receiving the magic to creating it—quietly and anonymously—for the sake of someone else’s delight. They become Santa themselves. That cycle—first believing, then embodying—is doing real moral and even religious work. Early faith is mostly received as gift, story, and trust. Later, faith matures into responsibility, practice, and love enacted for others. The point was never to cling forever to the literal form, but to be shaped by it and then live it out. There’s also something deeply religious about the hiddenness of Santa. The goodness is real, the gifts are real, but the giver stays unseen. What matters isn’t recognition but generosity; not proof but trust; not control but love. In that sense, the myth quietly tutors us in how divine grace often works—indirectly, and through ordinary people who choose to give. So Santa isn’t really a deception kids eventually outgrow; it’s more like a ritual of formation. It teaches that goodness precedes us, that joy can be gratuitous, and that maturity means taking responsibility for the very grace we once received. That feels like a deeply religious pattern to me: being given life as a gift, and then learning how to give it away.” Dec 22, 16:57
- on Beyond the King James Version: The Church’s New Handbook Policy on Bible Translations: “Yes, there have been a number of instances of general authorities using other translations in general conference. I am glad the rank-and-file membership now has “permission” to do likewise. Here is an example of where a different translation might be helpful… KJV Lev. 19:33-34 And if a stranger sojourn with thee in your land, ye shall not vex him. But the stranger that dwelleth with you shall be unto you as one born among you, and thou shalt love him as thyself; for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God. NIV Lev. 19:33-34 When a foreigner resides among you in your land, do not mistreat them. The foreigner residing among you must be treated as your native-born. Love them as yourself, for you were foreigners in Egypt. I am the LORD your God.” Dec 22, 16:48
- on Bah Humbug: Why We Don’t Do Santa: “Side note from the orthographic police: it’s Santa Claus, with no e at the end.” Dec 22, 16:48
- on Bah Humbug: Why We Don’t Do Santa: “We didn’t do Santa either. At the time my rationale was similar to Stephen C’s, but in retrospect I just squirm any time I have to say anything untrue, no matter the reason. It takes a deliberate effort to put my brain in a mode that will let me play a game like Werewolf, and sustaining that for months wasn’t going to happen. This is not me bragging: Jesus was a pragmatist who didn’t get hung up on principles when they got in the way of helping people and I want to be more like that. As for that picture, I’d be pretty excited if Santa came to speak! But it would be an interesting room: either the organ is off to the left of the chapel or the pulpit is off to the right. (Also, the organ console needs either a mirror or a monitor, given its placement, or the organist can’t see the conductor.)” Dec 22, 13:39
- on Bah Humbug: Why We Don’t Do Santa: “We did Santa and I told the kids it was something fun to do in commemoration of Saint Nicholas, a godly man who lived long ago and gave children gifts. The story didn’t always stick. Even though i told them this every year, i would still occasionally get the question “is Santa Clause real” I would answer “yes, but he’s dead.”” Dec 22, 13:04
- on Bah Humbug: Why We Don’t Do Santa: “Lol. Yes, it is indeed AI; the people in the front row are just a little too excited to be at church.” Dec 22, 12:08
