The holiday season is a special time for families, filled with traditions, joy, and togetherness. As Christians, we love celebrating the birth of Jesus—the greatest gift the world has ever received. However, when it comes to some common Christmas traditions, like celebrating Santa Claus, our family has chosen a different approach. In this post, I want to share why we don’t focus on Santa in our Christmas celebrations and how we instead strive to keep Jesus at the center of our holiday traditions.
At the heart of Christmas is the celebration of Jesus’ birth. Jesus’ arrival on Earth is the reason we celebrate Christmas. It’s the story of hope, peace, and the greatest gift the world has ever received: God’s Son, sent to save us. When we choose to emphasize Santa Claus, the focus shifts from Christ to a mythical figure. While Santa can be fun, we want our kids to fully understand that Christmas is all about Jesus, His love, and His gift of salvation.
What We Do Instead:
We make sure our kids know that Christmas is about honoring Jesus. We spend time reading the nativity story from the Bible, singing carols about His birth, and focusing on what it means to celebrate the Savior of the world. We teach them that the best gift we can receive and give is love, and that Jesus is the ultimate gift.
Another option: I love this Abeka First Christmas Flash-a-Card! Shares the Christmas story with beautiful photos!
As parents, we believe in instilling a sense of honesty and truthfulness in our children. While Santa Claus is often presented as a fun part of Christmas magic, there’s a fine line between encouraging imagination and promoting something that’s not real. We feel that teaching our children about Santa Claus, especially when they’re young, could lead to confusion when they eventually discover the truth. Instead, we focus on telling them the truth about the real meaning of Christmas and the true character of Santa Claus, based on the historical figure of Saint Nicholas.
What We Do Instead:
We encourage our children to embrace imagination and wonder, but we help them understand that Christmas traditions, like Santa, are stories or legends. Instead of “believing in Santa,” we talk to our kids about how Saint Nicholas was a real man who cared for the poor and showed the love of Christ. By sharing this, we connect the tradition of gift-giving with the Christian values of generosity and compassion.
The commercialization of Christmas can be overwhelming. From advertisements pushing “must-have” gifts to the constant reminders of what Santa might bring, it’s easy to get distracted from the true meaning of the season. In our home, we want to be intentional about how we celebrate and ensure that Christmas remains Christ-focused. We feel that while Santa Claus can be fun, it can easily overshadow the reason we’re really celebrating.
What We Do Instead:
We try to simplify the holiday season and limit the distractions that can pull our attention away from Jesus. This means focusing on activities like advent devotionals, volunteering as a family, and making homemade gifts that reflect the love and joy we have in Christ. Our Christmas is centered around honoring Jesus, not on the hustle and bustle of gift-buying and rushing around.
Santa’s story often centers on receiving gifts and the anticipation of what you’ll get. While giving gifts is certainly part of the Christmas tradition, we want our kids to understand the true spirit of giving, which is based on love and sacrifice, just like Jesus gave Himself for us. We don’t want the idea of “getting presents” to be the focus of the holiday, especially for children.
What We Do Instead:
We emphasize giving to others as a family. Whether it’s donating toys, clothes, or food to those in need, or volunteering at a local shelter, we want our children to experience the joy of serving others. We also take time to talk about the gifts the wise men brought to Jesus and how they represent worship and reverence for our Savior. We remind them that true generosity comes from a heart of love and sacrifice, not from receiving gifts or material wealth.
While Santa is often linked to the idea of getting presents, we want our children to understand that gifts at Christmas aren’t about what we deserve or what we’re entitled to. Gifts are a reflection of love, just as God gave us the gift of Jesus because He loves us. By removing the emphasis on Santa’s “gift-giving,” we can help our kids appreciate the deeper meaning behind exchanging gifts at Christmas.
What We Do Instead:
When we exchange gifts, we make sure our kids understand that the gifts we give are a way to show love, gratitude, and joy. We talk about how the wise men brought gifts to baby Jesus, and we remind them that all gifts are from God. We also teach them the importance of being grateful for what we have and the blessings we receive throughout the year.
One of the best things about Christmas is the chance to create lasting family traditions that honor Christ. By choosing not to celebrate Santa, we’re able to make room for new traditions that bring us closer to the heart of the holiday. These traditions help our children grow in their faith and understand the significance of the season.
What We Do Instead:
We focus on traditions that point to Christ, such as reading the nativity story, baking birthday cakes for Jesus, making Advent crafts, and helping our kids understand the biblical history of Christmas. We also encourage our children to participate in family devotions and prayer during the season to help them draw closer to God.
For our family, Christmas is all about celebrating the birth of Jesus. While we love the joy and fun of the holiday season, we believe it’s important to keep our focus on Christ and His gift to the world. We’ve made the choice not to celebrate Santa Claus because we want our children to understand the truth of the season and appreciate the deep love that Christmas represents.
By focusing on Christ-centered traditions, we can give our kids a meaningful and purposeful Christmas that is centered on faith, love, and gratitude. We want to remind them that Christmas is not about presents, but about the incredible gift of Jesus Christ—the Savior of the world.
Check out my post here on Ways to Cultivate a Christ-Centered Christmas as a Family with Kids!
