Gonna have to agree with you there, Arthur. If we teach kids that there is a Santa Claus, Easter Bunny and/or Tooth Fairy and they find out later that we were lying to them, I can’t help but wonder if they will think we lied to them about God, too.
No, Virginia, there is no Santa Claus.
I heard a girl say something along those lines about Jesus (i.e., that he was like Santa Claus, i.e., nonexistent and “something your parents tell you to try to make you be good.”) But I don’t know how common it is.
My parents didn’t tell us about Santa Claus or try to fool us into believing in him. I think all of us did briefly, but I had certainly figured it out by the time I was five, or even four.