The Black Vault

Why is it that adults spend so much time trying to convince children to believe in things that are just not true? Why the attempt to indoctrinate our children with false beliefs? Theological discussions, one would think, should be for adults only. Did Christ actually arise from the dead? It's not hard to understand that children studying scripture can and do ask this question. Should the child be given to understand the resurrection of Christ as a literal or metaphoric interpretation? Is the Easter Bunny real?

I've never had kids, but had I, I would have never lied to them about Santa, the Easter Bunny or the Tooth Fairy.

I was really mad when I found out they lied to me about Santa. How can I trust these people who lied about Santa? And, they're telling me lying is wrong.

Santa is good for a few weeks worth of good behavior. Not to mention all kind of stories +/- morals. I predict that if you have kids, you will believe in Santa.

Why were these myths invented? To control the little hellions. Same as the "Grimm Fairy Tales." Keep them down and out, lower the self-esteem, keep them self-abused and they'll grow up....pliant.

Same as the religious myths...death tomes of consequences for behavior....scare them and they'll bow..and obey.

I like your way of thinking Q.

I've never had kids, but had I, I would have never lied to them about Santa, the Easter Bunny or the Tooth Fairy.

Is that what drove you to drinking?

Billions of kids thruout history have grown up with Santa and the Easter Bunny, and didn't come out of it with the feeling being lied to, or confused about the real meaning of Christmas and Easter. Growing up is hard to do as it is, and finding out Mom and Dad, might(still not proven) be Santa, the EB and TF usually is not a sourse of anger, but love. Santa and the Easter Bunny still come today to my kids and they are 27(for 4 more days) and 33. They also never knew a Christmas or Easter that replaced the meaning of, with either with them.

I've played Santa to our preschool for 5 years. If thats what you call lying and being horrible, I guess I'm a horrible person than.

Blame The Bards for their fireside tales of heros and the Brothers Grimm....running about Germany collecting "fairy-tales" then publishing them....then blame Disney...who keeps perpetuating dream-land....then off to Rowling...and on until morning....

Blame the Catholic Church for allowing St. Nicolas to spread...blame Jesus for his "parables."
Blame Aesop for his fables...Greeks and Romans for their lustful Gods and Goddesses...and all other novelists...who decided fiction was more interesting than fact....blame historians for the same offense.

Then..you might get an answer.

I would just tell them the truth immidiatly. So they don´t end up like stupid bastards at an older age
A child can´t be sad if you don´t lie to it from the beginning...

greeney2 wrote:

I've never had kids, but had I, I would have never lied to them about Santa, the Easter Bunny or the Tooth Fairy.

Is that what drove you to drinking?

Nope, that was my mother's doctor prescribing her Valium while she was pregnant with me.

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Well, it would be different if it was explained to kids that it is all pretend. I would have been fine with that one. But, claiming it is real is a lie. A "white" lie perhaps, but a lie none-the-less.

As far as the meaning of Christmas and Easter? Yup, I know the meanings. They were traditional Pagan holidays that the church stole to try to convert more people. Santa Clause was invented by a combination of Pepsi and Macys. The bunny for Easter is because of fertility, you know how well rabbits procreate. The egg as well is a symbol of fertility. Spring is the time to plant the crops and pray that the soil is fertile.

Which meaning of Christmas/Santa and Easter/rabbit were you talking about?

well, the "original" concepts being those such as Christmas being about the birth of Christ and Easter being about the ressurection, I assume....then the romans meshing those concepts or overlaying them with the pagan traditions of bunny for easter (fertility) such and so forth....least thats how i understood it....roman church went out of their way to involve as many people in their church as possible by implementing many concepts "borrowed" from other religions, mostly pagan, and intertwining these with christian concepts, so as to (in some way or another) get these people under the banner of catholicism as much as possible...again, this is how i imagine it to be.

the old roman belief in many gods was simply transposed over to belief in the various "saints" representing this or that....quite clever.