Priceless.

A Massachusetts school system is embroiled in a war on Christmas debate after Santa Claus was initially banned from visiting elementary school children over “religious” concerns.

Since 1960 firefighters in the town of Saugus dressed up like Santa Claus and visited every elementary school handing out coloring books. But on Monday, the school superintendent told firefighters that they would not be welcomed into the classrooms.

“Certainly everyone acknowledges their holiday in a special way they want. But there is a conflict between the church and the state in that regard,” Superintendent Richard Langlois told MyFoxBoston.com.

However, Santa Claus is not a religious figure – and is not mentioned anywhere in the Biblical story of the birth of Jesus.

Regardless, the superintendent stood by his decision until word began to spread across the community. By late Monday, Santa had been given a temporary reprieve. The Saugus School Committee is expected to address the issue next month – meaning Santa’s days may be numbered.

“I couldn’t believe it,” firefighter Mark Gannon told MyFoxBoston.com. “There are so many things in the world going on – to see that all of a sudden Santa can’t go to the schools – what else are we going to give up?”

Gannon said he’s been participating in the Christmas tradition for the past 14 years – and said the children absolutely love to see Old Saint Nick.

“It’s a great thing,” he said.

Superintendent Langlois defended his Santa ban – saying he was simply enforcing the rules..

“I’m carrying out the orders of the school community,” he said. “I’m not overstepping my bounds.”

But the firefighters said there is absolutely nothing religious about what they are doing.

“There’s no religious content in the coloring books,” Gannon said, noting that the coloring books feature characters like Strawberry Shortcake.

At least one school committee member is supporting the firefighters, calling the Santa controversy a case of political correctness gone amuck.

A group of Christmas carolers was thrown out of a U.S. Post Office in Silver Spring, MD, after the post office manager told them they were not allowed to sing Christmas carols on government property.

A spokesman for the U.S. Postal Service confirmed the incident occurred Saturday at a branch office in the Aspen Hill Shopping Center. A trio of carolers walked into the building dressed in attire reminiscent of Charles Dickens and began singing.

“They were only a few notes into their carol when suddenly, out of the corner of my eye, I saw a scowling postal manager rushing to confront the carolers,” said JP Duffy, who was standing in a line with his wife and two-year-old daughter.

Duffy, who also happens to be a staff member of the Family Research Council, said he was stunned by what happened next.

“He told them that they had to leave immediately because they were violating the post office’s policy against solicitation,” Duffy said. “He told them they couldn’t do this on government property. He said: ‘You can’t go into Congress and sing and you can’t do it here either.’”

A spokesman for the U.S. Postal Service’s Capital Metro ARea said the carolers had “beautiful voices” but were told they could not perform in the lobby.

“Public assembly and public address, except when conducted or sponsored by the Postal Service, are prohibited in lobbies and other interior areas open to the public,” the spokesperson told Fox News & Commentary.

“We have rules and regulations governing conduct on postal property,” the spokesman said. “The only reason you should be inside is for postal business.”

The carolers explained that they had been performing at businesses in the shopping center for several years – including the post office – and they’ve never encountered any problems. But the post office employee refused to budge and ordered them to leave.

Duffy said that customers standing in line began to boo the postal worker.

“Over the last several years, we have watched militant secularists team up with federal bureaucrats in the effort to sterilize the public square of anything remotely connected to anything religious,” Duffy said. “This postal manager has clearly received the memo which has led him to stamp out Christmas caroling. But I have my own memo to all the Christmas carolers out there. Let’s not surrender to the secularist version of Christmas future.”

Duffy suggested that the U.S. Post Office follow the advice of its founder – Benjamin Franklin.

“So shalt thou always live jollily; for a good conscience is a continual Christmas,” Franklin once wrote.

“This is good advice that the U.S. Post Office and all of us would do well to heed,” Duffy said.

The Swedish Army Museum has decided to sell grenade-shaped Christmas tree ornaments in an effort to raise money for charity. Proceeds will go to Christian Aid, a charity that aids in disaster relief and those affected by poverty.

The museum states that these ornaments will be a subtle reminder of those who are less fortunate during the holiday season.

There are some, however, who feel that the grenade-shaped ornaments set a bad example and glorify the horrors of war. One museum visitor stated:

“Quite simply I think it’s distasteful, especially if they are raising money for charity. This is a museum frequented by children and it’s hard to explain to them why there are hand grenades in the Christmas trees. This is an Army Museum, but should still try to highlight a non-war perspective.”

Helena Martinsson, the museum’s division head, understands the negative viewpoints, but emphasizes that the money raised from the sales will go to a charitable cause.

This is not the first time a weapon-inspired Christmas tree ornament has caused controversy. In 2006, Urban Outfitters offered an ornament in the shape of a glittering gun. They recommended people to “bust a cap” in their Christmas trees.

On Sunday, the group Wisconsin Family Action put up a nativity scene of the birth of Jesus in the Capitol rotunda.

Wednesday, an atheist group responded with a much different nativity scene.

It has the same setup: wise men, a baby in a manger, angels, but its certainly not the nativity scene most people are used to seeing.

The wise men are Charles Darwin, Thomas Jefferson and Albert Einstein.

The baby is an African girl, to represent the birthplace of humanity.

The angels are an astronaut and the Statue of Liberty.

The group responsible for it admits they wouldn’t have even created it, if it wasn’t for the Christian nativity scene put up three days earlier.

“But, since it is a public forum, it didn’t look like legally we could do anything, so, we were left with putting up our own, natural nativity display,” said Annie Laurie Gaylor, co-founder of the Freedom From Religion Foundation.

FFRF is putting up a fight against what it calls the blurring of church and state.

“We think that the rotunda is getting too littered, we don’t think that it should be a public forum for religion at the seat of government,” said Gaylor.

The nativity scene controversy comes just a few weeks after Governor Scott Walker referred to the pine tree put on display in the rotunda as a Christmas Tree, instead of a Holiday Tree, which it had been called since 1985.

“Yeah, I feel like the fact that there was a statement that, ‘this is a Christmas Tree, not a Holiday Tree,’ does make it a little…those lines are merging and I don’t think that should happen in government, said UW Student Ali Bramson.

Others think the Christian references and displays are hurting anybody.

“I personally thought it was mockery not to call it a Christmas Tree down through these years, because it seemed like you couldn’t celebrate any of the holidays,” said John McNeill, a Christian.

While the controversy goes on, many wish both sides would simply go away.

“I would rather see neither,” said visitor Caroline Greenwald. “I believe that the state represents the people, and the people are very diverse and represents all sorts of religion or non-religious attitudes or feelings.”

“We certainly need separation of church and state, so I think its very unfortunate that it becomes an issue,” said Ray Nashold, a former state worker.

The nativity scenes are both permitted and will stay up through the holidays.