SCL

More like Leprepro! Boom, that just happened. But seriously, I don't recall Lepreprawns as being green themselves…maybe they wore green, but 'little green men' is a term that we reserve in my house for 'aliens'. The kind from outer space. Which all of a sudden is a different blog post completely. Stuff Christians Like needs to address whether Christians should believe in aliens…and if so, we should definitely discuss the popular (and cheesy) cop-out line of "Well, if they do exist, I'm sure Jesus died for them too!" Blech!

I think you could tell her it is a fantasy, but then have fun with it.

What about the "other little green men" aliens? I was sent a video that says they are actually Nephillum. What's the ruling about the UFO's?

I believed in Leprechauns once, then Kindergarten rolled around and the self-righteous know-it-all in our class named Katie-Rose (cant you just smell the smugness rolling off her name) said some things that were inconsistent with my view-point of the tiny green suited men. She said they had left dust to make us fly, I was upset, because everyone knows leprechauns don't make you fly, they make you rich… stupid Katie-Rose.

Beyond that my teacher took us on a Leprechaun hunt and all I found at the end of it was the stupid leprechauns we had made out of glue and paper earlier that week… my belief in Leprechauns has wained ever since… Kindergarten was rough.

I think more than worry about if we'll cause our kids shock and pain when they discover the tooth fairy isn't real, we need to focus on teaching our kids the realities of moral decisions, Biblical Truth and how Jesus' taught us to live, so that when they do encounter more difficult pain, questions, doubts and broken relationships, they will be able to work through it with a solid foundation. Because there will always be pain and sorrow and confusion here. But then, there will be only joy.

For the record, no body in Ireland believes there are leprechauns. At least no one I've met!

Irish people love it when all you can talk to them about it leprechauns! I blame the Lucky Charms.

Sadly for us here, St. Paddy's Day is more about going out and enjoying too much Guinness (other beers are available) and less about St. Patrick and his faith.

You just refernece “Where the Red Fern Grows”. I am in awe and bow to your literary prowess.

Well here's a cross-cultural Christian conundrum! And a wicked alliteration to boot! I'm wondering if the corollary to the question is "If the Catholics are OK with leprechauns, can Christians be too?" I think if there was a Catholic as brave as Jon who would start a "Stuff Catholics Like" website, leprechauns would have to be in the top ten and I only say that because they have one hopping around the sidelines at every single football game in South Bend no matter how awful the team is on national television! And if perkyguy above is correct, that St. Patrick was a leprechaun as well as being a Christian (Catholic) and he got rid of all the snakes (blech!) then I say we jump on that little leprechaun bandwagon!

I say go for it. My kindergarten teacher took us outside for a leprechaun "hunt" on a big field…however, she was the one who caught the little guy, but apparently (according to her) when you catch them they turn into potatoes to protect their gold. Brilliant. So of course, when she opened her trap to show him to us, he was…a potato. And it blew my 5 year-old mind.

Also, when my brother and I were little, my mom would sprinkle green and gold glitter in the toilet and tell us the leprechaun had just been there…(Yes, they tinkle glitter. Duh). so I say let kids use their imaginations for as long as they can

My sister after an experience with a leprechaun is extremely scared of anything leprechaunish. Now as her younger sister She tortured me for years with nightmare on elm street. Any chance she had to scar the crap out of her innocent sweet younger sis she took it. I still till this day have issues over it….. So when this in happened. I jumped all over it and still do. When the leprechaun movies came out , she worked at a famous restaurant in l.a. where for st. pattys day they had a person dressed up like the scary leprechaun hang out at the restaurant. once this leprechaun discovered he scared my sis the game was on. She was tortured her whole shift by this thing. So till this day I scare her with leprechauns . Pay back …. Got to love it
And I thank leprechauns everyday for giving me this opportunity to right a wrong……..

when My first 2 kids were young… (they are 20 and 17) I'd have freaked… but I've chilled out on the demon /witch hunt thing.. really… occult is one thing- fable and cultural lore are another.
when My first 2 kids were young… (they are 20 and 17) I'd have freaked… but I've chilled out on the demon /witch hunt thing.. really… occult is one thing- fable and cultural lore are another.

I can teach my kid that there is a sweet story about leprechauns without renouncing Christ for pete's sake:P (Or maybe that should be for Pat's sake:)

Also: leprechauns are not green they WEAR green. Aliens are green. FACTCHECKfail.

i'm going to respond a bit biblically here:
it says in romans that on disputable matters that we can all disagree as long as each is convinced in his own mind.
So, some people can be anti-Leprechaun, others can be pro.
I personally don't see a problem with it as long as the child understands fact from reality. That's my problem with any type of fantasy book, esp HP, because if the kid expects something magical to happen and it doesn't, or if the kid (a bit older than kindergarten i'd say) tries to get into wizardry, eh that's a bad thing. And letting them believe in Santa, what if they came up to you and thought you lied about Jesus too? Saint Nick was a great guy tell them about that. Saint Patrick was an even better guy imo, tell them about that. However there is all sorts of fun in fairy tale, fantasy stuff. Go along with it. Last time I checked there was no "Thou shalt not mention leprechauns" in exodus 20.

I'm not sure it matters.

Maybe it's just me, but I don't think it's a huge deal. If it is, we might as well bring Cupid and Santa and the Easter Bunny in for trial too.

Were leprechauns originally devilish creatures? As far as I know, yeah, they were devilish little monsters in Irish lore (that being said, we could go on and on about fairy tales…the originals were pretty dark). But I think that you can let the kids have their glittery fun and enjoy their modern St. Patty's Day, then let them in on the real info when they're a little older.

My mum likes Vegemite.

And until this moment, I was under the impression I'd been to Ireland. Must've been a dream. Thanks for opening my eyes to reality Nathan.

Why stop with protesting Leprachuns? Let's raise our fists up against pixies, elves, trolls, and demand immediate dis-banding of the Girl Scouts because they begat the Brownies. Grrr!

Im 1/4 Irish (my biological dads dad was full blooded), so Im as about Irish as you get in NZ without having immigrated. In fact, I am probably the most Irish other then my dad. ANYWAY…In all for the lil wee fullas. As someone else above me posted, they are fairy tales, and as long as children a taught to define fantasy from reality, there is no harm. As for Santa…never grew up with the concept of him, I knew my friends knew who he was, and what they thought he did, but we never got a pressie from Santa, we (us kids) all knew Mum bought our presents. I think I'd do the same with my (biological) kids.

personally, I think it would be a silly thing to get all hot and bothered about. When it comes to this stuff, teach your kids what is true; what God says about it, how you feel about it as a family, etc… but to go to the school and put up a fuss over this? Seems like we'd be missing the point of why we're here. I really don't think these little men in green are damaging to the Gospel

But, my life motto is, TO EACH HIS/HER OWN

So true! An older woman who I really respect said that when Narnia movie first came out she wouldn't let her teens watch it because it had a witch. What the heck? I love this lady and she has been an incredible mentor but this just cracked me up!

Leprechauns are often associated with rainbows.

Rainbows are associated with the Flood as a sign of the Noahic covenant.

The Noahic covenant places all plants and animals under human control (Gen 9:2-3).

So leprechauns are OK, as long as they are subservient. Right?

My family says ‘Lepre-con!”

oh gosh come on, man. freakin'-A. there's *nothing wrong* with leprechauns/santa/red fern or any of this kind of stuff. not that i can speak for yahweh, but everything inside me tells me he could care less about this stuff. he's not up there going "man, this is so frustrating! they teach kids about santa and let them read harry potter! this is totally going to distract them from realizing how awesome i am".

just…calm. down.

oh gosh come on, man. freakin'-A. there's *nothing wrong* with leprechauns/santa/red fern or any of this kind of stuff. not that i can speak for yahweh, but everything inside me tells me he could care less about this stuff. he's not up there going "man, this is so frustrating! they teach kids about santa and let them read harry potter! this is totally going to distract them from realizing how awesome i am".

Come on Christians! Irish folklore and much of it's superstitous culture is extremely Pagan.
Be careful…especially with your kids..to entertain even wee Lil' Leprechauns as harmless fun. Fairies, banshees,goblins, trolls…You are allowing yourselves to be decieved by something very cute…and very imaginary.
There are sooo many more ways to capture the fun and playfulness of the Irish culture…I love being Irish but LOVE GOD much more than making "leprechauns" part of my family fun!
Seriously, I am anti-leprechaun…he could possibly be an O'tool of the devil.

My family was anti Harry Potter/LOTR/ disney movies. You name it, if it had a witch, witchcraft, fantasy, or began with once upon a time it was an evil book. I learned to a read and slowly and secretively I re-opened the worlds that had been closed to me. I would spend hours as a child at the library, reading one Narnia book after another. I still avoided HP because I saw a movie about how bad it was and I didn't want God to stop loving me.

Today, I left the church I grew up in over the disagreements I had over legalism. I listen to secular music. I've read and enjoyed all seven HP books, I watched and enjoyed Avatar, I am reading Stardust by Neil Gaimen currently. I'm still a Christian just one who follows the inner voice of God and not the outter rules of legalism. One day I intend to read my children Harry Potter, and Narnia, and LOTR, and edited versions of some other fairy tales that I love. I want them to believe in fairies for a little while because you only can once and it's only for a short time. And secretly believing in that stuff as a child never did me any harm. I'n short I'd rather know what they are reading, watching and listening to then not know.

whatevaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

Back when my kids were home, I thought it cut and dried — all these things were evil. Now, I look at them in the same way I do pre-trib/mid-trib/post-trib conversations. It doesn't REALLY matter — what matters is whether or not you know Jesus Christ as Savior. Arguing over "little" stuff is petty and unbecoming.

That said, I find it interesting that the most heated discussions have come when Harry Potter is spoken against. Interesting indeed.

Jon, it's a matter of the heart. Teach your children what is right and good and truth — sorta like we're supposed to THINK upon per James — and they will sort out the stuff that isn't.

As a final "gift" I leave you with a link to a video done by some guys in our church a few years ago. All about chasing the "wrong" thing(s). http://bit.ly/afNm33

I never really considered Leprachuns. I mean Santa is one thing, but a leprachun? I feel more obliged to let that one go. But I say absolutely NO to Santa. Mainly because, when I have kids, I want them to know that mommy and daddy love you that;s why you get presents, not some crazy big man who breaks into the house. Furthermore, I grew up in a very conservative Baptist church and they ALWAYS pointed out that if you rearrange the letters in Santa, you have SATAN! (kinda crazy but worth thinking about)

“Leprican’t” LOl!!!!

I LOVED that assignment in kindergarten. I was all into it. We did it every year until 3rd grade. I am now 16 and no, I do not worship little green men. Trying to catch one never established a demonic stronghold. I'm down with them. Just take it the same way you do Christmas and Easter, teach them about the ministry of St. Patrick who taught about the Trinity using a shamrock but it's okay if we have a bit of leprechaunish fun.

A prayer-buddy (at first i wrote fellow-intercessor, then felt like one of "those Christians" that liked to use too much lingo) of mine was just telling me a story about her pastor blocking off the back rows of the church and trying to squish everyone in the front seats so it looked like there were more people there.
Jesus help us all.

So this topic, and all the other cute lies we make up in the name of other holidays, just makes my blood boil. And I could rant for days if I weren’t typing with my thumbs. But the short version is this: lie to your own kid if that’s your idea of harmless fun, but leave mine out of it.

I also wonder of all this crap is funded by the glitter syndicate, because there is glitter in the reindeer oats, glitter in the leprachaun traps, glitter in the fairy dust. And we all know that glitter is from Satan.

Eh, well, when I was a kid maybe all that happened was my saying "Dad, what's that?" and him responding "A leprechaun." and then the subject of the conversation moving on within a few seconds, simply because that was the sum total of our interest in the things. More was mentioned about his going to a science fiction convention, named LepreCon. Now when raising my kids, they know any question they ask will be met with the truth as far as I know it. The only thing that makes me kind of uncomfortable about going on about leprechauns is that children may associate their behavioral traits with real people who happen to look like the stereotypical leprechaun. Same goes for all other holiday centered characters, that never seem to be discussed when their holidays are months away. Instead of stressing about this kind of thing, I would encourage all parents to teach their children about the real Word and world. This reality is much more interesting anyway, since it was created by YHWH Himself and not some collection of mere human minds.

I fully support my people! I'm Irish (or mixed in somehow Irish which is why "turn of the lights and I glow" has made it so big) and I was born on March 17! If Leprechauns (which is really really hard to spell…had to scroll back) didn't make media attention, then I wouldn't have my own holi/birth day. I get to pretend for one day that the entire world is celebrating me with green beer, parades, and silly charms.

Don't burst my bubble people! I'm on edge as it is

Considering that I look quite a bit like a leprechaun (high school was fun), I feel that I can respond. My theory is that leprechauns are okay, but only if you tithe the gold you find. Otherwise, you're going straight to hell. Think about it: Ever see a kid donate 10% of the legos he recieved at Christmas? Not a chance, which means that Santa = Satan (kind've freaky when you spell it out). Ever see a tenth of a Cadbury egg in your offering plate? Nope… Sinful. Hope that bunny likes warm weather…

But in all seriousness, I think sometimes we reference secular things (Santa, the Easter bunny, John Mayer) as evil, because it's easy to put that face on something which clearly isn't biblical. After all, it makes us look better to make them look worse, right? I wish we (myself included) could sometimes instead of attacking secular mascots (and also embracing them), could establish the fact that they're just mascots. Maybe it would help us get along just a little bit better.

Btw, nice job referencing the Irish without making drink jokes. It's just too easy these days.

Great question. If you figure it out, I'd like to know. My kid's teacher gave him the same assignment and spent more time perpetrating the myth of leprechauns than she did Santa Claus. Weird.

You may laugh, but Lucky Charms cereal was banned in our house. Not because of the ludicrousness of eating a bunch of artificially colored marshmallows for breakfast, but because they're "magically delicious". My parents even switched off the commercials so that we wouldn't be led astray by the leprechaun.