It appears that if you replace Santa with God in your question, then the outcome seems to be positive for many people. It looks like God is an adult's version of Santa complete with legions of defenders of the faith who try to make belief in God appear to be respectable. Any person who raises objections is denounced as a heretic or an inquisitor, as ironic as that may be. It is painful for many people to doubt their God is real because he is seen as their only hope, and that's why we see so much anger on the part of the religious.