The Case for Lying to Kids About Santa – From a Philosopher
- camilarosiaz
- Dec 23, 2025
- 2 min read
I have a vivid memory of the moment I realised Santa didn’t exist. I was around six years old, sitting outside our back door, thinking about God. I realised there isn’t actually any evidence God exists. I only thought God existed because this is something people had told me.
‘Who are you calling fake?’ Stokkete
Then it hit me: if God doesn’t exist, by the same logic, Santa must be made up as well.
Perhaps this was the moment I became a philosopher. Certainly it gave me a sense of intellectual superiority to those around me. But now the tables have turned. Now I am a parent of young children, and I am the one enforcing myths about Santa.
Our culture expects parents to lie to their children that their presents were left by a jolly man who flies in a sleigh. And so one might ask, is this OK? Shouldn’t we set a good example by telling them the truth?
To which I would say: no. We shouldn’t be honest about Santa – at least not at first. It is morally OK, even morally good, for parents to participate in the Santa lie.
Why kids need Santa
When you think back to your first experiences of Christmas, would they really have been improved if your parents had been honest about Santa? Without the ritual of writing to him, leaving out treats, and waiting to see if “he’s been,” Christmas would be an arbitrary date when children are finally allowed to play with presents bought months in advance.
This also bears on how honest parents should be with children in general. Full honesty would involve sharing the wretched state of the world, financial worries, health concerns and anxieties. Would that really leave children emotionally healthier?
Think of Nietzsche’s argument that we need to be somewhat deluded about reality in order to bear it. As we grow up, we may need to believe the world is good and just — a place where nice children are rewarded and the naughty lightly punished. If not, would youngsters find it in themselves to fight for a better world?
When the lying should end
When children finally see through the myth, this can be good for their moral development. I didn’t feel angry at my parents, and research suggests only a minority of children do. Instead, I was left with a healthy suspicion of received wisdom.
‘I know that’s just cotton wool.’ Connect Images/Alamy
This is where the justification ends. Parents should maintain the myth while children are small, but answer honestly when confronted directly. When a child asks, “is Santa real?” — that’s when they no longer need the lie.
Ultimately, raising children is about shaping them. If we want to raise critical citizens with a belief that the world can be improved — and a healthy suspicion of those in charge — the Santa myth may be one way this begins.