With the holidays upon us and with the amount of information needing put up on the Web site to allow yours truly a chance to have some rest and relaxation, I needed an easy topic to write about for my blog this week. Then, I remembered a topic I focused on for several years that featured a story I read more than a decade ago; dated Dec. 9, 1999 to be exact and in a publication called “The Daily Gospel.”

 

While I don’t try to espouse my religious views on those who come to the blog, with it being the Christmas season I felt this was entirely appropriate. The piece is based off of Francis P. Church’s “Yes Virginia, There is a Santa Claus” that has ran in newspapers for more than a century. This piece, written by Frank Noto, is in the same theme, but replaces Santa with Jesus.

 

As we gather to celebrate this time of the year, I thought you would enjoy it. It never fails to bring a tear to my eye. Please take a second to read this and I would encourage you to share this with friends about the meaning of Christmas for those who believe. The article is in its entirety and does have some political tone to it so, if offended, please go no further. Even with that, it’s a beautifully written piece.

 

Yes Virginia, There is a Jesus Christ 

 

”Over one hundred years ago, in 1897, one of the most famous letters ever written, was sent to the editorial page of the New York Sun. A small child named Virginia had written the editors of the paper asking if, indeed, Santa Claus really existed. She asked: "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?"

 

The answer, from editorial writer Francis P. Church, was that yes, indeed, there is a Santa Claus. His reasoning was that; The most real things in the world are those that neither children nor men can see. This line, and the rest of his response have been repeated now, for over 100 years.

 

Recently, there have been many news reports about Nativity scenes being challenged in court by organizations like the American Civil Liberties Union. They claim that these crèches are dangerous to the community, and a violation of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. According to previous Supreme Court decisions, government entities cannot display a Nativity scene unless it is part of a larger, secular display, one that might include items such as Santa Claus, candy canes, reindeer, etc.

 

It is hard to imagine that such a controversy would have existed 100 years ago. In 1998, in St. Ann, Missouri, the ACLU has forced the city to remove a Nativity scene that has been displayed every year of the city's existence - 50 years. In light of this, today's Virginia might write a newspaper with this question: "I am 8 years old. Some grownups, including a group called the ACLU, say that putting up a manger in front of our city hall is dangerous. Is it dangerous because Jesus is real, or because He doesn't exist? Please tell me the truth, is there a Jesus Christ?"

 

Now, I can't speak for Mr. Church. The former son of a Baptist minister died in 1906. However, much of his original answer to Virginia can also apply to those who would have you believe that displaying a Nativity scene is dangerous, or, that Jesus himself might never have existed. After all, a Nativity scene is depicting an actual event. What is so dangerous about that? Or as Virginia might ask, Is it dangerous because he is real, or because he doesn't exist?

 

Church's reply today, much like the one 100 years ago, might sound something like this: "Virginia, these people are wrong. They have been affected by the skepticism of a skeptical age. They do not believe what they do not 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 Jesus Christ. 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. He really did live almost 2000 years ago, and his life was based upon love, and generosity, and kindness. Not only did He exist, but He continues to live. Denying His existence does not make Him less real. Just because you can't see Him, doesn't mean that He is not alive. People who choose to remember His birth in a tiny stable in Bethlehem are not a danger to others, even those who do not believe that He is the Son of God. Putting up a manger scene is no less threatening than celebrating the Independence of our country, or a memorial to the end of World War II, or honoring men like George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, or Dr. Martin Luther King with holidays. All of these events and people have shaped our country and our lives, and denying the existence of any of them would not make them any less real.

 

No Jesus?

 

Thank God He lives, and lives forever. It has been 2000 years since He walked the earth as a man, and a thousand years from now, Virginia, nay 10 times 10,000 years from now, He will continue to make glad the hearts of those who believe in Him.”