Should You Be Lying to Your Children About Santa Claus?

Last Updated: December 24, 2022, 10:34 ISTPeople have shared accounts of how they felt betrayed when they found out their parents had been lying to them. Some even talked about how

they thought they couldn't trust their parents anymore. (Credits: Reuters) It is a fun tradition kept alive by maintaining a small harmless lie. However, some experts believe lying

to children about Santa might be harmful.Santa Claus is a beloved figure among children all over the world. It is delightful and magical to know that a jolly old man delivers the

gift one most wants while riding on a sleigh pulled by a flying reindeer! Children often eagerly anticipate the arrival of Santa Claus, excited about the presents he will bring

them and leaving him milk and cookies to snack on. It is a fun tradition kept alive by maintaining a small harmless lie. However, some experts believe lying to children about Santa

might be harmful.People have long talked about how they feel uneasy about maintaining the Santa story. It requires them to lie to their children and often drum up fake evidence

(presents from Santa and a finished plate of cookies) to support the story. In almost any other instance, this would count as gaslighting. People have shared accounts of how they

felt betrayed when they found out their parents had been lying to them. Some even talked about how they thought they couldn't trust their parents anymore.Growing up in a

non-Christian home, my parents promoted Santa. When discovered he wasn't real, I started to believe I couldn't trust my parents—if they lied about that, what else did they lie

about? Don't lie to your children. Santa should be known to be a fictional character.— Nathaniel Jolly - Eph 4:29 (@NathanielJolly) December 22, 2022Unpopular opinion: It's weird

& not cool to lie to your kids about Santa.We hope as parents to build a foundation of TRUST with them from a young age, yet at 8 or 9 they'll discover we've been lying to them for

years.Just because it's NORMAL doesn't mean we do it.— Tyler Todt (@tyromper) December 16, 2022One Australian school teacher, Rebecca English, told The Conversation that “Santa

supposedly encourages imagination but… you're really asking children to suspend criticality and believe a fiction.” She further added that the "Santa story encourages children

to be consumers of others' ideas" instead of promoting wonder. Philosopher Peter Ellerton was also against lying to children about Santa. “Consider what must follow from the

Santa story. If only good children get presents, what does that say about poor families? What value judgments are being formed? What if the children themselves are poor? How does