Compatibility

Today I received many exciting gifts from friends and family, and I gave them things that I hope they will enjoy as well. One gift from my wife was particularly noteworthy. It was a Christmas tree ornament in which I had recently shown interest. I want to tell its story.

A few weeks ago, we attended a Christmas event that included a display of many “Nativity” or “Creche” scenes depicting the most widely accepted story of the birth of Christ. Among those displays, I found one small ceramic figure that I found fascinating. It showed a baby boy, loosely wrapped in white cloth, laying in a manger of hay. Opposite the baby was a modern Santa Claus figure with the full white beard, red suit with white trim, and black boots. He had removed his hat and was clutching it to his chest, revealing a bald head as he knelt before the child. It was clear that the Santa Claus figure was humbling himself before the Christ child in reverence and respect.

The juxtaposition of the two iconic figures struck me first as an incompatibility. Many Christians often complain that the Christmas holiday, which is, among other things, a celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ, has become too “commercialized,” and they often cite Santa Claus as a culprit. They do not like the idea that a day they use a religious holiday has been usurped by a figure that, for some, can be seen to stand for greed and obsession with material possessions. This almost makes the Christmas holiday feel like 24 hours of Dissociative Identity Disorder. Santa Claus or Jesus Christ—one or the other, but never both.

But it seems to me that some short-sightedness has come into play here. The American version of Santa Claus is not the only one, and his modern image is far-removed from its origins. Santa Claus was not always seen as a magical fat man who lives to bribe children with toys in exchange for good behavior. His story started with that of the philanthropic Saint Nicholas, an early Christian who must have accepted the Biblical account of the birth, life, and death of Jesus Christ and who, given the opportunity, would naturally have knelt at the manger.

Even the modern story of Santa Claus is not meant to incite greed and condone bribery. It can be used as an example of generosity, which is a trait that often seems sorely lacking in our society.

Some people claim that Jesus Christ is a myth and those who believe in him sorely misguided. More claim that Santa Claus is also a myth and that thousands of children worldwide are deliberately led down paths of inevitable disappointment and disillusionment. However, if we can for just a moment accept that both figures do exist, is it really that great a stretch of the imagination to believe that Santa Claus is just a man (with extraordinary abilities and means) who wants to follow the example of Jesus Christ (whom he has accepted as the son of God and as his savior) by doing some good for the rest of humanity by bringing smiles to the faces of the world’s children?

The two stories can be compatible… if we let them.