American Enterprise Institute: Tim Tebow and the Atheist's Dilemma

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4. Sidenote II - The Czech Santa is an invisible flying Baby Jesus

From a missionary in the Czech Republic, 2004:

Since coming here, I have become increasing dissatisfied with the concept of Santa Claus. The Czechs have a day for Saint Nicholas (a real historical Saint who despite modern American folklore did not live in the North Pole or wear red. Actually, he lived in Turkey in the 12th Century). For all the faults Santa Claus has, at least we can poke fun of him for what he is – a tool of modern corporate America.

Czech Christmas means that a flying invisible Baby Jesus delivers presents. Czech children have a similar feeling of letdown upon discovering that it is actually not Baby Jesus but Mom and Pop who are putting the presents under the tree. The result is that I can read journals from my students that say "I believed in Jesus as a child" in the same way an American lad might bashfully remember believing in Santa Claus.

So if I tell Czechs I am a Christian, it is not something that smacks of intelligence to them. At worst, I am mocked in the way one might mock an adult who insisted on Santa Claus existing. At best, I may receive a pained expression of wanting to believe but wondering "how in the world do I believe in Santa Claus all over again, only this time as a personal God?"

http://atheism.about.com/b/2004/08/05/czech-republic-missionaries-having-trouble.htm