Being Jewish does not stop Rick Rosenthal working hard to keep the illusion of Father Christmas alive for thousands of children in his role as a professional Father Christmas.

Mr Rosenthal, an Orthodox Jew, is one of the many people to put on a red velvet suit and spend hours listening to children who tell him if they have been naughty or nice over the festive period.

The 66-year-old, who has grown a bushy white beard especially, told the JTA: “I’m a better person and a better Jew because I’m Santa.”

In order to observe the rules of Halachah he often has to sleep overnight in the buildings that he is working in if it falls on Shabbat, and he will only accept payment after nightfall.

Mr Rosenthal, who lives in Atlanta and attends Young Israel of Toco Hills, said he takes his job very seriously and he believes there is no contradiction between working as the symbol of Christmas and living as an observant Jew.

For him making children happy is all that matters and Father Christmas is a nonreligious figure who provides comfort to people of all ages.

“As a Jew, we are to be a light unto the world,” Mr Rosenthal said.

“That’s one of our jobs. If we can help make people’s lives better, we should do that. It’s a mitzvah. If we can ease tensions between Jews and non-Jews, we can do that.”

He has been playing the role of Father Christmas ever since he was 16 years old. It started as a joke, but he decided to do it professionally two years ago.

The move was in part brought on by the sad event of his parents dying within two weeks of each other.

As a result he grew his beard, in keeping with the traditional Jewish mourning period after a parent’s death, and began to notice the curious way that children would look at him.

Mr Rosenthal, who is a member of the International Brotherhood of Real Bearded Santas, once caught a young child staring at him so hard in the supermarket that he “knew” what the child was thinking.

He said to the child “‘don’t tell anyone you saw Santa buying tools for the elves.’”

Mr Rosenthal and his wife, Tracy, are so dedicated to the Christmas figure that they set up a school which trains other people on how to be the best Father Christmas.

The pair teaches everything from what makes the perfect costume to making sure the Father Christmases have the proper insurance.

They also run a national agency which people use to find the best Father Christmas. Their database of over 100 people is used by people looking for Father Christmases to come to private parties and events.

Being Father Christmas requires a lot of grooming. Mr Rosenthal said he curls his mustache every day and uses three kinds of conditioner on his hair and beard.

But the thing he loves the most about playing the Christmas figure is the way people of all ages “are in awe of you."

He said: "They’re intimate with you, they tell you really funny stuff, they tell you horrible stuff, and they do that because you’ve known them since they were born. You’ve known their parents since they were born.”