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Santa Claus is Real: A Philosophical Polemic
By Matthew A. MacDonald
Should parents tell their children that Santa Claus is nothing but a myth, or even an outright lie? A story based on a real historical figure but nothing more? A pagan invention? A commercial or secular distraction from the real meaning of Christmas, or something even more insidious? No, and I’m going to tell you why.
I have nothing but fond memories of Santa Claus. When I was four years old, he gave me my first camera for Christmas. It was a Kodak Brownie Hawkeye box camera and I remember taking pictures with it everywhere I went. I stayed up late one Christmas Eve when I was about seven, camera in hand, ready to bound down the stairs and catch Santa in the act — on film! Alas, I fell asleep before I got the chance.
Christmas was a magical time for me growing up. A big part of that magic was Santa (and all the Christmas lights, the snow, and going to church on Christmas Eve and lighting candles and singing Silent Night, but this story is about Santa). I…