# Believing in Santa. Believing in God/Satan. **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [December 22, 2003, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/believing-in-santa-believing-in-god-satan/220544 "2003-12-22T22:47:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Meatros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Meatros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meatros)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2003, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/believing-in-santa-believing-in-god-satan/220544/21 "2003-12-23T00:33:18Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by ExecutiveJesus \* > \*\*Many children will tell you they have seen Santa. > > I know I thought _I_ did one night. \*\* Ah yes, but if you disappoint Santa the most you’ll get is a lump of coal. If you disappoint God (the type some Christian’s adhere to) you get to spend eternity suffering in a blaze of hellfire. This, in my mind, would lead a person to look for as much evidence as possible-to make sure the religion they adhere to is the proper one, as opposed to the one they were born into. ---
**Author:** ![ExecutiveJesus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a6a055/32.png) [@ExecutiveJesus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ExecutiveJesus)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2003, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/believing-in-santa-believing-in-god-satan/220544/22 "2003-12-23T00:40:01Z")
There is an ancient ritual which is reputed to stop witches in which you may spill a box of matches or needles and the poor compulsive witch will have to count each and every one before proceeding. With Old Nick you can attempt the sin of glutteny to bribe and dissuade Him. Leaving cookies and milk in your living room area is reputed to work although I have it from a good source that Jamaican rum and good cigars will work better. ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2003, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/believing-in-santa-believing-in-god-satan/220544/23 "2003-12-23T00:44:01Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Meatros \* > Maybe it’s just me, but I don’t think Satan would be giving out presents to all the good boys and girls. Sure he would. He wants to be popular, right? He wants to recruit kids to his “side,” right? Satan is behind everything in the world today. You just have to know where to look and how to interpret. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Meatros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Meatros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meatros)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2003, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/believing-in-santa-believing-in-god-satan/220544/24 "2003-12-23T00:46:44Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by ExecutiveJesus \* > **There is an ancient ritual which is reputed to stop witches in which you may spill a box of matches or needles and the poor compulsive witch will have to count each and every one before proceeding.** I thought that was either vampires or leprachauns (sp?). ---
**Author:** ![lekatt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lekatt/32/7269_2.png) [@lekatt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lekatt)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2003, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/believing-in-santa-believing-in-god-satan/220544/25 "2003-12-23T02:51:43Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by ExecutiveJesus \* > \*\*Excellent point. > > Though, I believe neither are in the least “real”, I would submit that they are provable by an equal value of evidence (substance). > > That is all my exercise is portraying. > > People say God is this and that. > > People say God is this and that. > > Isn’t that all we have to go by? \*\* Of course not, God can be experienced. Millions have experienced the presence of God. It is so awesome that you won’t mistake it for anything else. Love ---
**Author:** ![lekatt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lekatt/32/7269_2.png) [@lekatt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lekatt)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2003, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/believing-in-santa-believing-in-god-satan/220544/26 "2003-12-23T02:54:16Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Meatros \* > \*\*Ah yes, but if you disappoint Santa the most you’ll get is a lump of coal. > > If you disappoint God (the type some Christian’s adhere to) you get to spend eternity suffering in a blaze of hellfire. > > This, in my mind, would lead a person to look for as much evidence as possible-to make sure the religion they adhere to is the proper one, as opposed to the one they were born into. \*\* You will never disappoint God, only yourself. Love ---
**Author:** ![lekatt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lekatt/32/7269_2.png) [@lekatt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lekatt)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2003, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/believing-in-santa-believing-in-god-satan/220544/27 "2003-12-23T02:58:36Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by ExecutiveJesus \* > \*\*Many children will tell you they have seen Santa. > > I know I thought _I_ did one night. \*\* In defense of poor old Santa: [http://www.ndeweb.com/cgi-bin/discus/show.cgi?tpc=38&post=595#POST595](http://www.ndeweb.com/cgi-bin/discus/show.cgi?tpc=38&post=595#POST595) Love ---
**Author:** ![Meatros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Meatros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meatros)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2003, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/believing-in-santa-believing-in-god-satan/220544/28 "2003-12-23T03:02:01Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by lekatt \* > \*\*Of course not, God can be experienced. > > Millions have experienced the presence of God. It is so awesome that you won’t mistake it for anything else. > Love \*\* No offense Lekatt, but why do people have all sorts of different ‘experiences’ towards different deities altogether? ---
**Author:** ![Meatros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Meatros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meatros)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2003, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/believing-in-santa-believing-in-god-satan/220544/29 "2003-12-23T03:03:18Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by lekatt \* > \*\*You will never disappoint God, only yourself. > > Love \*\* What are you saying? God is not disappointed when I go to Hell? ---
**Author:** ![SkipMagic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skipmagic/32/20706_2.png) [@SkipMagic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SkipMagic)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2003, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/believing-in-santa-believing-in-god-satan/220544/30 "2003-12-23T03:33:50Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by ExecutiveJesus \*\*\* > > I just wrote it. > > Do you have a better site regarding God/Satan’s attributes? \*\* You just wrote what? The list in your OP? [That](http://www.geocities.com/SunsetStrip/2568/santa.html) [is](http://groups.yahoo.com/group/codthecultofdan/message/431?source=1) [doubtful](http://anekdota.dyndns.org/jotd3/0331.html). ---
**Author:** ![ExecutiveJesus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a6a055/32.png) [@ExecutiveJesus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ExecutiveJesus)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2003, 4:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/believing-in-santa-believing-in-god-satan/220544/31 "2003-12-23T04:43:29Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by SkipMagic \* > \*\*You just wrote what? The list in your OP? [That](http://www.geocities.com/SunsetStrip/2568/santa.html) [is](http://groups.yahoo.com/group/codthecultofdan/message/431?source=1) [doubtful](http://anekdota.dyndns.org/jotd3/0331.html). \*\* Question asked: Does Satan speak English as his primary language? My Answer: Yes. Rebuttal: Cite? My Answer: I wrote it. (pronoun “it” = Yes). The top ten list is not my own, nor did I claim it to be; I found it to be a fitting ending to my point. There is no copyright, or cited author. Please read what I write, in context of disclosure, before responding. ---
**Author:** ![ExecutiveJesus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a6a055/32.png) [@ExecutiveJesus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ExecutiveJesus)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2003, 4:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/believing-in-santa-believing-in-god-satan/220544/32 "2003-12-23T04:49:32Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by SkipMagic \* > \*\*You just wrote what? The list in your OP? [That](http://www.geocities.com/SunsetStrip/2568/santa.html) [is](http://groups.yahoo.com/group/codthecultofdan/message/431?source=1) [doubtful](http://anekdota.dyndns.org/jotd3/0331.html). \*\* Question asked: Does Satan speak English as his primary language? My Answer: Yes. Rebuttal: Cite? My Answer: I wrote it. (pronoun “it” = Yes). The top ten list is not my own, nor did I claim it to be; I found it to be a fitting ending to my point. There is no copyright, or cited author. Please read what I write, in context of disclosure, before responding. ---
**Author:** ![SkipMagic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skipmagic/32/20706_2.png) [@SkipMagic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SkipMagic)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2003, 5:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/believing-in-santa-believing-in-god-satan/220544/33 "2003-12-23T05:24:02Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by ExecutiveJesus \* > \*\*Question asked: Does Satan speak English as his primary language? > > My Answer: Yes. > > Rebuttal: Cite? > > My Answer: I wrote it. (pronoun “it” = Yes). > > The top ten list is not my own, nor did I claim it to be; I found it to be a fitting ending to my point. > > There is no copyright, or cited author. > > Please read what I write, in context of disclosure, before responding. \*\* Actually, judging from that post, the antecedent to which your valued pronoun refers can be easily misconstrued. Regardless, a discussion of endophoras was not my point. When you post what you did without an upfront acknowledgment of the origin of the majority of your OP (if you don’t know to whom you should attribute the list, at the very least you should mention from where you got it), it looks as if you _are_ claiming authorship. It shouldn’t be left up to the readers to discern when you have and have not lifted your writing. ---
**Author:** ![SkipMagic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skipmagic/32/20706_2.png) [@SkipMagic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SkipMagic)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2003, 5:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/believing-in-santa-believing-in-god-satan/220544/34 "2003-12-23T05:33:37Z")
In addition, keep in mind that copyrights don’t have to be present in a work for it to have copyright protection. To further clarify, that list was copyrighted [upon creation](http://www.copyright.gov/help/faq/faq-general.html): > [@](#): > > **When is my work protected?** > Your work is under copyright protection the moment it is created and fixed in a tangible form that it is perceptible either directly or with the aid of a machine or device. FYI. ---
**Author:** ![lynn73](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ebca7d/32.png) [@lynn73](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lynn73)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2003, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/believing-in-santa-believing-in-god-satan/220544/35 "2003-12-23T13:47:12Z")
Here’s a good link on Santa Claus, the great imposter: [http://av1611.org/othpubls/santa.html](http://av1611.org/othpubls/santa.html) ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Ashtar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ea924/32.png) [@Lord\_Ashtar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Ashtar)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2003, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/believing-in-santa-believing-in-god-satan/220544/36 "2003-12-23T17:58:28Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by ExecutiveJesus \* > \*\*No no, this is a humorous way to look at a logically sound arguement. > > Also, please do not _ad hominem_ this one… > > I beg you. > > Take it for what it is; and nothing more. > > Add substance. \*\* I’m taking it as seriously as you are. ---
**Author:** ![lekatt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lekatt/32/7269_2.png) [@lekatt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lekatt)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2003, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/believing-in-santa-believing-in-god-satan/220544/37 "2003-12-23T18:16:28Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Meatros \* > \*\*No offense Lekatt, but why do people have all sorts of different ‘experiences’ towards different deities altogether? \*\* They don’t, there is only the Oneness of God, or whatever name you wish to use. All see the same image, but through their filters of belief picked up in physical living. When they die, everyone sees the same as the same. Love ---
**Author:** ![lekatt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lekatt/32/7269_2.png) [@lekatt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lekatt)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2003, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/believing-in-santa-believing-in-god-satan/220544/38 "2003-12-23T18:20:02Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Meatros \* > \*\*What are you saying? God is not disappointed when I go to Hell? \*\* No, If you go to hell, it will be your choice. Why would you want to go there? God is Love all the time everytime. Unconditional Love Love ---
**Author:** ![Meatros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Meatros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meatros)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2003, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/believing-in-santa-believing-in-god-satan/220544/39 "2003-12-23T18:29:22Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by lekatt \* > \*\*They don’t, there is only the Oneness of God, or whatever name you wish to use. All see the same image, but through their filters of belief picked up in physical living. When they die, everyone sees the same as the same. > > Love \*\* And this happens to be the _Christian image_? Holding off on the Christian angle, if what you say is correct, then it would mean that all religions are wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Meatros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Meatros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meatros)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2003, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/believing-in-santa-believing-in-god-satan/220544/40 "2003-12-23T18:31:57Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by lekatt \* > \*\*No, If you go to hell, it will be your choice. Why would you want to go there? > > God is Love all the time everytime. Unconditional Love > > Love \*\* You didn’t answer my question at all, but you brought up a new problem. If it’s our choice whether or not we go to Hell (I assume you mean after death), then why is there a Hell? No one would rationally choose to go there. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/believing-in-santa-believing-in-god-satan/220544.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/believing-in-santa-believing-in-god-satan/220544.md?page=3)