We did all the usual Christmas stuff, including sherry and mince pies and carrots, without ever pretending Father Christmas was real. Worked just fine without the discomfort (for me) of outright untruths.
Edit: change the emotive “lies” to “untruths”.
We had turkey for lunch at our house
Oh my word - not even the tooth fairy. I can’t really get away with pretending fairies don’t exist - I would just be told that I was being ridiculous.
As for Guy Fawkes - I might have slipped up at some point and mentioned that he was very unlucky and that the horrible people were really nasty to him.
atheist, a position I have always regarded as a faith, since a negative cannot be proved!
This and your previous interpretation of the word “atheist” are not what I would recognise or accept. Without having recourse to a dictionary, let me offer my personal definition of what I mean when I say that I am an atheist. A good starting point for me is the semantic root of “a-theist” which just means “not god”. For me that means simply that gods, devils, prophets etc play no part in my world view or shaping my moral outlook. I don’t ever feel obliged or even interested to prove or disprove the existence of deities.
I am a scientist, as it happens, and have always applied scientific method only to issues which are amenable to scientific investigation. I have never felt that the existence or otherwise of untestable entities such as gods fall into that category. (Karl Popper, I believe, gives a sound basis for what may and may not be worth investigating “scientifcally”)
Some much-loved members of my family and much-respected friends hold religious beliefs and I have no difficulty in relating to them in all other matters.
As one who suffered because I was told Santa would go, leaving no,presents, if I opened my eyes and saw him, then had our cat come creeping in, where he wasn’t allowed to be…so I had to say “Please Santa, if you are here, please come back. I have to get up and put him outside my door.” - I would much have preferred prsents round the tree and no lies.
I had forgotten about that particular fairy. Well, might stretch a point there. 
This applies exactly to me too and when we were thinking abut the "Santa’ problem and our granddaughter, we decided in a similar vein that truth/lies starting position didn’t fit the bill. Instead we thought that a bit of magic is a lovely thing to have while it persists and I’d say that that’s a long time after it becomes obvious that Sion Corn brings the prezzies but Taid fits the batteries. After a while, it becomes a shared conspiracy and that’s fine too. Swerving back to gods, I like the Puck of Pook’s Hill idea that gods come and go with successive waves of people. I love the image of the gods who came to Britain from Scandinavia looking back to their homeland. The Swedish horses on our window ledge always face northeast
In this welcome spirit of joviality, may I offer the following anecdote about “faith” among scientists.
The Danish physicist, Neils Bohr paid a visit to the New Zealand physicist, Ernest Rutherford at his laboratory in Manchester (I suppose). On arriving, Bohr noticed a Horseshoe fixed to the laboratory wall.
Bohr: “I say, Ernest, you don’t actually believe in that stuff, do you?”
Rutherford: “I understand it works even if you don’t believe in it, Neils”
I know one other physicist joke but I save it for parties. 
Oh Huw, please tell!
Also, I get your point on proof, but I suppose I was made to agonise on this because I hugely admired a Christian and thought in depth. She was a particularly lovely, kind human being and no fool. I guess I wanted to believe what made her such a better person than me! Being an agnostic was,for ages, a sort of half way house! I could ignore planets and such, but saw her God in a deferent light.
I don’t see any faith at all in being an atheist. Like you say, you can’t prove that something doesn’t exist but if I hold my hand out saying there is a fairy sitting on it it would be up to me to prove it is there, not for you to prove it isn’t. Science shifts, as new factual discoveries come to light theories will be altered to suit. This is how I see religion. I have seen no provable facts to back up the existence of any deity, that’s why, as someone said earlier, religion is based on faith. If someone can prove scientifically beyond all doubt to the contrary then, and only then, will I change my status from atheist to agnostic.
Having said all that, faith is a wonderfully powerful thing and I have complete respect for that.
Oh Huw, please tell!
Well, if you twist my arm - ignoring the two risks:-
a) that Aran splits us off from this split-off thread
b) that my party invitations drop dramatically. 
Two balloonists floating above the countryside realised that they were totally lost. They spotted on the ground the tiny figure of a man out walking. One balloonist leant out of the basket and shouted down to the man below.
Balloonist: “WHERE … ARE … WE?”
Man on ground: “YOU ARE 117.3 METRES DIRECTLY ABOVE ME”
Balloonist: “THANK YOU. YOU ARE OBVIOUSLY A PHYSICIST. YOUR INFORMATION IS EXACT BUT COMPLETELY USELESS”
I don’t know Puck of Pook’s Hill (I gather it’s by Kipling), but I seem to remember Tolkien has a similar theme towards the end of The Lord of The Rings, with the idea that the era of the Elves is passing, and that they will gradually depart for “the West”, (taking Bilbo & Frodo with them, to die or go on to a kind of afterlife. Elves aren’t gods exactly, but they seem to be higher beings, and immortal, unless killed in battle, or unless they lose the will to live. After the age of the Elves is past, then it becomes the age of men. We know Tolkien was influenced by Scandinavian / Germanic myths and legends (and also Celtic ones I think).
Edit: There is a whole lot more about why Bilbo and Frodo go off with the Elves to “the West”, and where exactly they are going, here:
The more detailed stuff doesn’t come from TLOTR but from things like “The Silmarillion” that weren’t published until much later.
I’m not sure you can call atheism a faith. But this is my opinion, although it is can of worms. There is an argument that says that atheism is a faith position, as you cannot prove God exists and contrariwise, you cannot prove God does not exist. Stalemate. Paradox. Might be interesting to do a truth table, but I’m happy just stating my opinion. The definition of faith is a belief in something. So semantically and in my opinion, atheism is not a faith.
I think God is having a right good laugh at our expense, listening to us discussing (forever) the big questions!!
The Christian message is “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16”. It all starts there, by accepting by faith this message for yourself. What happens next is:-
“Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me. Revelation 3:20”.
That is the leap of faith. And if you choose to make that leap and stick with it, your faith will grow and it becomes yours, you will be convinced of it.
However, we all have free choice and that (ironically!) is God-given. But that’s only my opinion. It’s a personal thing and I’m happy with where I am.
I adore Lord of the Rings, but have only read it 19 times, it’s high-time I read it again. I don’t know much about the background, other than that Welsh was a great influence on his developing the Elven language.
“Welsh is of this soil, this island, the senior language of the men of Britain; and Welsh is beautiful” is how he thought of Welsh. And he was so obviously right!! Not that I am biased!! (Much…)
I can feel a Mr Logic from Viz mag coming on … neu beidio
I wish I knew how to send laughter from the iPad!
I have enjoyed reading it several times. I’m not sure how many times, but it’s not as many as 19. I enjoy it as a rattling good story, but don’t get too involved in all the detail.
However, reading some of the things in the link I posted, and Wikipedia etc, I notice that there was only one god-creator figure (“Illuvatar”) in the Tolkien mythology.
I was thinking that this, plus his idea of successive “ages”, allowed him to create a world that was still consistent in some way with his Roman Catholic faith. In his mythology, there was one creator, who created a variety of races, some of them immortal. Hobbits and men were mortals. Men were possibly descended from Elves who had fallen from grace and become mortal.
All the events he describes in his books could be said to have taken place aeons before the time of Christ or even before anything in the old testament of the bible (leaving aside the story of the creation and Adam and Eve which is obviously not recorded history). All of those stories are part of “the age of man”, and the bible, old and new testaments, can be said to be all about God’s relationship to man. By the time of the age of man, the Elves and other beings had long since left “Middle Earth”, and if they still exist somewhere, man has no way of contacting them or getting to them, and they no longer have any wish or need to come to “Middle Earth”.
I’m sure that Tolkien had no difficulty in his own mind in reconciling his “Illuvatar” with the god he no doubt prayed to each day. But he had no need to bring Christ into his mythology, because Christ (“the son of man”) only had a mission among mankind, by which time “the age of man” was well established, and the other races had long ago disappeared, and/or died out.
No doubt his was the kind of thing he chewed the fat over, along with a pipe and a pint, with the likes of C.S.Lewis among their fellow “Inklings”.
I’ve heard a mathematician version of that!!
Meanwhile, sin (x), cos (x-1) and tan (y+2) went into a pub and tried ordering drinks, but the barman redirected them to the Function Bar.
I have met and known very many atheists in my life but I have never met one who has set out to prove or disprove the existence of God. Why would they? - How could they? Nearly all content themselves with the “belief” that they can conduct a rewarding, fulfilling and “good” life without the need to involve or invoke gods.
I do agree with you that “atheism is not a faith”. I hope that you, @Garys, @gruntius and I, @hewrop have finally put that misunderstanding to bed.
There are two reasons that I don’t go round wearing an atheist badge or equivalent, however. The first is that it involves belonging to an “ism”. I have at various times been a “humanist” and “secularist” - other “isms”. I am no longer, because each of these “isms” imply shared values over a wide range of ethical issues - a bit like subscribing to a shared creed. I see myself as a “free-thinker” depending heavily on the faculty for reason we have evolved with.
The second reason is that, although I hold very strong views about all religions which would not be appropriate for this forum, I feel no right or motivation to promulgate my views - perhaps I should start.
I’m sure I don’t need to say that I respect 99.99repeating% of the views you have shared and contributions you have made to this forum, Gary.
I hope you will accept that the views I hold on this issue are as deeply and sincerely felt and as valid as your own views and faith.
I am of course intrigued to ask you further about your position and views as you obviously hold them very strongly. I think we could have a discussion without any kind of “persuasive” element to it, just restricting ourselves to description. You obviously have good reasons for having gone the route you have and each mans walk on this Earth is his own. In any case, I’m here on our forum to enjoy the atmosphere and am a moderator so support the ethos of the site. I’m going to the SSiW party next year and would love to buy you a drink, in fact I’d love to buy a round for the whole party… see you there!