Santa Claus: Why Santa should not bring coal for Christmas

'Tis Christmastime. Many parents bring Santa Claus into the lives of their children. Most children grow up believing in Santa. However, all too often, parents take advantage of Santa and turn the whole thing into a behavioral modification tool. The fact of the matter is that punishment of any kind is against God's Law.

The Greek root word denoting parental entitlement is πλεονέκτης (Latin: pleonektés) and is defined as, officially speaking, wanting things from children, to the point of imposition. Unofficially speaking, parental entitlement is when an adult is sorely disappointed when children don't meet up to expectations, leading to an adult temper tantrum. Whenever you impose an expectation on a child, prepare to be sorely disappointed. Any anger on the part of an adult towards a child was considered parental entitlement in biblical times. A temper tantrum, under anti-entitlement tradition, includes hasty attempts to be controlling with a child, imposing a want onto a child, with intent to corner a child into behaving the way parents feel that they deserve. When the temper tantrum in parents was perceived as offensive or damaging by a child, it was deemed child abuse. See also Colossians 3:21 KJV:

Fathers, provoke not your children to anger, lest they be discouraged.

The Greek root word translated "provoke...to anger" is ερεθιζο (Latin: erethizo) and refers to damages or offenses, namely the slightest of personal offense perceived by a child, including, but not limited to, the slightest of offensive touch or speech perceived by a child, stemming from entitlement. This commandment was intended by the Apostle Paul, and was understood in its original context, as a moral statute prohibiting all forms of punitive parenting, including, but not limited to, any punishments, reprimands, or other controlling demeanor towards children. In the Old Testament, punitive parents were put to death by way of bloodletting, after punishing their children one last time. The parents who punished their children were charged with kidnapping, with "kidnapping" being defined under the Law as a slightest of damages or offenses stemming from hostage-taking - child punishment was seen in biblical times as holding your child hostage merely for things that they did wrong, thereby treating your child as a quartered slave. Paul here was lifting up the Law in order to convict a group of Greek Christian parents who brought their pagan custom of spanking and punishing children into the church. Paul, contrary to popular legend, was anti-spanking, and even took in a few orphaned children during his time as a deacon.

It is a common threat coming from parents. Many parents threaten to "call Santa" and with children getting "coal for Christmas". Santa should know better than to provoke a child to anger through threat of punishment. Any time you threaten to "call Santa", you commit the moral crime of provoking your child to anger. "Provoke...to anger" refers to any offensive or damaging speech or behavior perceived by a child, including the threat of "I'll call Santa if you keep it up".

I myself got threatened with coal for Christmas. I was a very willful child, and so getting coal for Christmas was a fear for me. That was until I asked for coal for Christmas. Yes, I asked for that. I was a strange child. At least it took the power away from adults to be controlling by punishing me for my behavior.

Coal for Christmas is considered child abuse even as a threat. This is because the slightest of personal offense can be understood as the slightest of emotional pain. Whenever you inflict emotional or physical pain onto a child, it is considered child abuse.

Most behavior in children is developmentally appropriate. What is developmentally appropriate is different from child to child. However, children under age 6, in the Early Church, lacked self-control, and also were unable to learn from their mistakes. Young children - under age 6 - cried a lot, as they wanted to stay right next to mom, while feeling separation anxiety. Children shouldn't be excluded from Christmas because they cry and pout, as that is what a parent gets for punishing cries due to separation anxiety. Most children grow out of separation anxiety starting at age 6. Children are going to cry and pout, and so they shouldn't have to "watch out" this Christmas season. Yes, I listen to that Christmas carol, in order to profile it.

Mary, mother of Christ, was an attachment parenting mother. She was terrified for Christ, and tried to script to Him what to say. Only, Christ knew what to say before Mary even finished her sentence. He was not punished by Joseph when running away to the temple. When he was found, the rabbis were astonished by Christ's knowledge of the Law, seeing such wisdom as shocking in an eerie way. Christ did not have to be trained up in order to be the Messiah - Christ was perfect from day one. There is no room for punitive parenting in God's Church this Christmastime, especially since Mary and Joseph were both gentle parents. 

The depraved and entitled parents who provoke their children to anger through punitive parenting will not inherit the Kingdom of God! Let them be cast forever into the lake of fire and burning sulfur, which is the second death prepared for Satan and his accomplices! Let them descend into the abyss which is ever-burning Hell of fire and torment, suffering God's Wrath day and night forever and ever! Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!