“Is There a Santa Claus?
“Of course, there is a Santa Claus!
How do I know?
Because I am He!”
Ooohhh…some people no longer believe in Santa, so they certainly cannot believe I am him. That’s okay. I think it’s too bad, though. A little sad, even. But I try not to let it bother me for long because all I need to see is a glint of hope, excitement, and awe in one child’s eyes, and my heart melts all over again. I am reminded and re-energized to keep doing what I have been doing for millennia.
Children have a marvelous capacity to believe anything is possible; they haven’t yet been hardened by criticism or fed the poison of doubt. They have an insatiable curiosity, fabulous imaginations, untarnished innocence, and a purity of heart. They love easily and unconditionally. Ahhh . . . the sweet wonder of being so young!
A very fine, invisible thread separates the beautiful innocence of those so young and the next stage of life where doubt is born, the need for proof, self-centeredness, and cynicism. If that thread is broken, it is hard to turn back. Do you remember when you were so innocent, when your heart was so pure, or when it all changed? We forget. An invisible cloak veils our eyes. Most people can’t remember anything before about three years old, and some as late as six or seven.
Christmas is the one time of year that holds the magic for people to reconnect with that lost part of themselves. Excitement, fantasy, hope, child-like awe—and even Santa Claus—can be seen if they open their hearts. If Christmas isn’t found in your heart, you won’t find it under a tree.”
There is nothing wrong with believing in Santa, even if you are all grown up. Many more adults than you might think approach me and exclaim, “You are Santa, aren’t you?” That tickles me as much as when a child asks. You see, I have not changed. The innocent believing heart of childhood has not changed. Man has changed. Societies have changed, and not for the better, I am afraid.
So, if you are on the fence of indecision or have fallen off into the side of disbelief, climb back up and listen, for I am about to give you many more reasons to believe.
In 1897, Dr. Philip O’Hanlon of Manhattan, New York, faced the same question from his then eight-year-old daughter, Virginia, that you are asking now—a question many parents have heard before, a question parents still face today, and the same question parents will hear a hundred years from now—”Does Santa Claus really exist?”
He thought about it for a moment and decided, rather than answering directly, he suggested that Virginia write to one of New York’s most prominent newspapers at the time, The Sun, assuring her that “If you see it in The Sun, it’s so.”
So, sweet, young Virginia wrote the following note to the newspaper…
Dear Editor: I am 8 years old.
Some of my little friends say there is no Santa Claus.
Papa says, “If you see it in The Sun, it’s so.”
Please tell me the truth; is there a Santa Claus?
Francis P. Church’s response to Virginia’s letter, published in the newspaper on September 21, 1897, has become the most reprinted editorial ever in the English language. It has since been the subject of books, films, and television series. In his response, Church went beyond a simple affirmation to explore the philosophical issues behind Virginia’s request to know “the truth.” He gently mocked the skepticism he had observed in American society since the Civil War. Mr. Church’s core message conveyed a reality beyond the visible world. His response is as follows:
“VIRGINIA, your little friends are wrong.
They have been affected by the skepticism of a skeptical age. They do not believe except they see. They think that nothing can be which is not comprehensible by their little minds. All minds, Virginia, whether they be men’s or children’s, are little. In this great universe of ours, man is a mere insect, an ant, in his intellect, as compared with the boundless world about him, as measured by the intelligence capable of grasping the whole of truth and knowledge.
Yes, VIRGINIA, there is a Santa Claus.
He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy. Alas! How dreary would be the world if there were no Santa Claus. It would be as dreary as if there were no VIRGINIAS. There would be no childlike faith then, no poetry, no romance to make tolerable this existence. We should have no enjoyment, except in sense and sight. The eternal light with which childhood fills the world would be extinguished.
Not believe in Santa Claus! You might as well not believe in fairies! You might get your papa to hire men to watch in all the chimneys on Christmas Eve to catch Santa Claus, but even if they did not see Santa Claus coming down, what would that prove? Nobody sees Santa Claus, but that is no sign that there is no Santa Claus. The most real things in the world are those that neither children nor men can see. Did you ever see fairies dancing on the lawn? Of course not, but that’s no proof that they are not there. Nobody can conceive or imagine all the wonders there are unseen and unseeable in the world. No Santa Claus! Thank God! he lives, and he lives forever. A thousand years from now, Virginia, nay, ten times ten thousand years from now, he will continue to make glad the heart of childhood.”
(Following is the original clipping from The Sun, Sept. 21, 1897).
Listen to your Heart . . .
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