I haven't really decided which way to go with Tyler, whether he's real or not. I think it's manipulative the way it's used in my family and I've never cared for it. I never believed because my dad didn't let me, and my mom says she's going to tell him that he's real no matter what I say - so I'm torn. He won't really start to understand until next year or the year after, so I still have time to decide.
A part of me wants to approach it from a "spirit of Christmas" approach, with Santa being a wonderful part of all of us, and we all do our part to bring him alive every year by being kind, giving, merry, etc. But I think that's super abstract and I would have no idea how to teach him that way, specially when all the other kids and my mom are going to be pushing for him to be a REAL actual person.
I think lying to our kids is wrong, basically - it's like - if you are lying to protect him when he asks you a question about something, that's one thing - but to bring up a lie out of no where - that's what bothers me.
Jesus of Nazareth was middle eastern or black it's the only possibility as he was in the middle east in early times the races hadn't spread that much yet if at all he couldn't have been white as we think of white that being european or american
As for santa if he theoretically lives in the north pole he would most likely be white because I believe all northern native people in history historically have been white
Vulture wrote:
Santa is just some made-up type of hero of a guy named St. Nicholas who used to give presents inside people's shoes for Christmas back in the days. That's when they started calling him Santa, lol.
I see this as the most logical way to explain "Santa Claus" because it's actually true. But, if people want to say Santa was a purple unicorn from Oz, let them believe. I also believe Jesus should be interpreted how the viewer sees it. (Jesus is a girl btws...)
*cough* there is no proof that Jesus actually existed. Unlike Saint Nick...
Edited by Boxith on 12/17/2013 17:35:59
Stop pissing me off...
I'm running out of places to hide the bodies.
za heystarface wrote:
I haven't really decided which way to go with Tyler, whether he's real or not. I think it's manipulative the way it's used in my family and I've never cared for it. I never believed because my dad didn't let me, and my mom says she's going to tell him that he's real no matter what I say - so I'm torn. He won't really start to understand until next year or the year after, so I still have time to decide.
A part of me wants to approach it from a "spirit of Christmas" approach, with Santa being a wonderful part of all of us, and we all do our part to bring him alive every year by being kind, giving, merry, etc. But I think that's super abstract and I would have no idea how to teach him that way, specially when all the other kids and my mom are going to be pushing for him to be a REAL actual person.
I think lying to our kids is wrong, basically - it's like - if you are lying to protect him when he asks you a question about something, that's one thing - but to bring up a lie out of no where - that's what bothers me.
You can always just leave some buttered toast out for the jolly Christmas Llama. (and then give me the toast because toast is amazing.)
Edited by llamas on 12/17/2013 17:54:33
Santa Claus - The depiction of present day Santa Claus can be traced from several different sources. The first source is Saint Nicholas of Myra, a Greek bishop from of the 4th Century who has a light-brownish skin color based on the archaeological electronic findings (forgot the link to video). The second source is Germanic/Scandinavian folklore (most notably "Sinterklaas", which I'm pretty sure is white. The modern depiction of Santa Claus is created by someone in Coca-Cola, with Santa Claus' costume as Coke's colors (red and white). I think he made Santa Claus resemble more like "Sinterklass" with some St. Nicks' influences, which is why Santa Claus today is white-skinned.
Jesus-He is originally a Galilean Jew from Bethlehem (modern day Palestine), which is different Ashkenazi Jews (mostly European Jews with lighter skin colors). Jesus, in reality, looks more like Middle Easterner than an European since that is where he came from, although I won't go as far to say he resembles more like an Arab because I'm not sure. Btw, Arabs are considered White in the U.S. Census.
Source: quick peek at Wikipedia
Which one are you?
Santa (St. Nicholas) was white and Jesus (No matter what religion you believe him from) was an Arab (Middle Eastern says it all, need any more info than that?). That's all. xd
Vulture wrote:
Santa is just some made-up type of hero of a guy named St. Nicholas who used to give presents inside people's shoes for Christmas back in the days. That's when they started calling him Santa, lol.
I see this as the most logical way to explain "Santa Claus" because it's actually true. But, if people want to say Santa was a purple unicorn from Oz, let them believe. I also believe Jesus should be interpreted how the viewer sees it. (Jesus is a girl btws...)
*cough* there is no proof that Jesus actually existed. Unlike Saint Nick...
Actually, there is evidence that a man named Jesus Christ existed. There's no proof that he performed miracles, but there's proof that the man did exist.
The same applies to Saint Nick. Saint Nick was almost certainly a real person. There's no proof that he magically mass-produced gifts and flew them around on a reindeer-driven sleigh, but the man existed, and he most likely did give gifts while alive.( or he might still, nobody knows )
And as Bvigil pointed out, Jesus was definitely middle eastern. Races had barely spread world-wide at the time he's stated to have been alive, so it would be extraordinarily odd for him to be visibly white in Bethlehem, and somebody would certainly have mentioned it somewhere if he was.
Santa (St. Nicholas) was white and Jesus (No matter what religion you believe him from) was an Arab (Middle Eastern says it all, need any more info than that?). That's all. xd
That's racist, not all Middle Eastern People are Arabs. What about Kurds and Persians? Gosh someone's never taken an Anthropology class. (I'm being a dick cause who really cares?)
My name is Julius Augustus Octavianus Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin Brutus
I am DrkInferno in case you didn't know. booooooo (didn't change that) Actually the other way around.
There isn't actually any racism here so far. Some people are just assuming that all generalisations are racism.(and facts, such as the fact that the majority of native Bethlehem folk were dark-skinned)
It isn't racist to call someone black. It's just racist to otherwise insult a black person just for being black in the first place. So anyone who makes accusations of racism is in the wrong here, as noone is actually being racist
Anyway, I forgot to mention that Santa Claus might not actually be Saint Nicholas, so it may possibly be fine to assume that Santa Claus is any race.
Jesus Christ on the other hand is very unlikely to be white, and I see no reason why he should be portrayed as white for the sake of it, since he's not somebody anyone should strive to become regardless. He's just a powerful figure whom you might look to as a guide or as a protector. Becoming like him is obviously impossible, and it would be rather risky to allow your kid to see him as an idol, since he kills himself for the sake of the world, which nobody else(/no mortal) should do unless absolutely necessary.
And there's no reason why you should need your protector/guide/god to be the same race as you. Suggesting that they should be is kinda racist.
Edited by SpartanJaz on 12/18/2013 13:04:49
Santa (St. Nicholas) was white and Jesus (No matter what religion you believe him from) was an Arab (Middle Eastern says it all, need any more info than that?). That's all. xd
That's racist, not all Middle Eastern People are Arabs. What about Kurds and Persians? Gosh someone's never taken an Anthropology class. (I'm being a dick cause who really cares?)
Did I even say something racist? >_>
I said that Jesus was born in the Middle East. Was Jesus born in the United States, Canada, or any other countries like that? I'm not arguing here based on religion saying that "Oh yes, Jesus was definitely a Christian, a Muslim, or a Jew, or something like that." All I said was that he was born in the Middle East. So people have their own beliefs on whatever religion he can be, but just one fact as I mentioned was that he was born in the Middle East. As for St. Nicholas on how Santa folktale was created, he was a white guy named St. Nicholas.
