Bad Texas Santa – Making a point about the significant difference between Christ and Santa Claus.

the story told to and written by: David Bash

This is a true story, told from the pulpit of a First AME church in Palestine, Texas, Christmas Eve Sunday by Pastor K Jackson. The minister said I could repeat it.
He, in his Southern-drawl revival-preaching tone [bye the way he is an excellent singer and lead guitar player] was making a point about the significant difference between Christ and Santa Claus.
The story began when he and his family visited relatives in another small nearby Texas town. Jackson was just an eight-year-old kid then. He looked forward with happy anticipation to Christmas. He came from a loving family “under the covenant” of the Church, he said. But in this town on Christmas Eve they practiced a different custom ─ a custom which was to “traumatize” young Jackson about Santa Clause for life.
Jackson said he was already having fun playing with some new hockey figures when some kids and friends from the neighborhood in the house said that Santa was coming to whip some kids, when the front door was soon opened to a big Black man in a full Santa outfit (white beard, red suit and all). But this Santa carried a big black belt and proceeded to ask the parents of the house which child needed to be whipped for misbehaving that year. Pastor Jackson said parents pointed out this child or that one and told Santa not to whip this or that other one, and Santa began whipping kids with that big black belt.
Jackson said he ran for cover, literally undercover behind a bed in a back bedroom in the relative’s house, and trembling with fear devised a plan to deal with this insane Santa if he approached the bed: if that Santa’s boots approached his cover he was determined to push the bed over and “crush Santa to death!” In short notice young Jackson sprang to the bedroom window and jumped out in a panic into the dark. In that Christmas Eve night he found the other boys (now his new allies) who had warned him about the approach of the whipping-Santa and they devised a plan to rid the community of this insane imposter: they each, all six of them, decided to get their bb guns and “wear him out.” He said they found the fake and did just that, raining down bbs from their trusted weapons until the red-suited nut took off running.
The next day the odd custom of that town’s Christmas Eve came under public scrutiny because of the boy’s determined resolution to change their community’s acceptance of what the boys had determined unacceptable sadistic behavior of a Santa Claus.
The adult Rev. K Jackson said he was forever traumatized by the frightening childhood experience and for him that’s why Christ is the reason for the season – “…not any Santa Claus!”