Parents angry after bishop tells elementary school students that Santa isn’t real

Also said kids should not celebrate Halloween because it mocks the dead

Schott said, and told his family that his heart was broken.

“He isn’t real, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t in your heart . ... I’m not the only parent who had to explain early why he said what he said,” Schott said.

Ahlers said “all the kids are school are talking about it,” and even the very young children are sure to hear that the Bishop said there is no Santa.

Bishop Braxton was at Blessed Sacrement on Wednesday afternoon, the principal there said, and spoke to all the classes.

The students asked him questions – ranging from the sexual abuse scandal in the Catholic Church to famous people he has met – and he asked what they were learning, Principal Claire Hatch said.

He also asked the kids what they were going to dress as for Halloween “and was laughing with them,” Hatch said.

Some parents at other Catholic schools say they will pull their child from school the day that Braxton is to appear.

Jared Viviano’s daughter attends St. Teresa in Belleville, and he portrays Santa at the annual Santa Parade in Belleville.

“We’re at the point that we don’t want our child to go to Mass the day he’s scheduled to speak (at St. Teresa),” Viviano said. “If he’s going to go and tell Santa isn’t real ... she’s not going to school that day.”

“My message from Santa Claus is totally different than the fictional storybook character,” he said, drawing upon Saint Nicholas of Turkey, who used his wealth to help others. Bishop Edward K. Braxton, right, is applauded during his installation ceremony at St. Peter’s Cathedral in Belleville, Illinois, in 2005. The Bishop of Belleville, Ill., while visiting at Our Lady Queen of Peace in Belleville told fifthand sixth-grade students that there is no Santa Claus and they should not celebrate Halloween, according to parents.

“My message to the kids is ... ‘You don’t have to be rich to be kind to other people. And (don’t) need to have a red suit on to

be Santa Claus. All year long, have a good heart and help people.”

Parents at Queen of Peace said some of his remarks

there were against Halloween, saying that Halloween should not be celebrated, in part because it mocks the dead.