Jesus is the reason for the season

"Here is a man who was born in an obscure village, the child of a peasant woman. He worked in a carpenter shop until He was 30. Then for three years, He was an itinerant preacher.

He never owned a home. He never wrote a book. He never held an office. He never had a family. He never went to college. He never put His foot inside a big city. He never traveled 200 miles from the place He was born. He never did one of the things that usually accompany greatness. He had no credentials but Himself.

While still a young man, the tide of popular opinion turned against him.

His friends ran away. One of them denied Him. He was turned over to His enemies. He went through the mockery of a trial.

He was nailed upon a cross between two thieves. While He was dying, His executioners gambled for the only piece of property He had on earth — His coat. When He was dead, He was laid in a borrowed grave through the pity of a friend.

Nineteen long centuries have come and gone, and today He is a centerpiece of the human race and leader of the column of progress.

I am far within the mark when I say that all the armies that ever marched, all the navies that were ever built; all the parliaments that ever sat and all the kings that ever reigned, put together, have not affected the life of man upon this earth as powerfully as has that one solitary life."

— This excerpt is from a sermon by Dr. James Allan Francis in "The Real Jesus and Other Sermons," a collection published in 1926 by the Judson Press of Philadelphia.

I am again devoting space to this message because so much of Christmas has been subverted by the American Civil Liberties Union and the secular progressives.

As more Americans come to realize how much of a threat the ACLU and its financial backers have become to the American way of life, it's worth pausing to remember the true meaning of Christmas.

Christmas is not a winter festival. It is not a designation of a retail season. It is not about Santa Claus, Frosty the Snowman, red-nosed reindeer and colorful lights. It is the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ, the Savior to billions of people. It is the second most important date in the Christian calendar, second only to the resurrection of Jesus, celebrated at Easter.

The commercialization of Christmas is not a new phenomenon. But the all-out attack on this most holiday day by the ACLU and its secular stormtroopers has reached a fever pitch.

Why are children being forced to immerse themselves in something called Kwanzaa (a harvest festival invented by a radical California college professor in 1966) but students are not allowed to study the historic and cultural significance of our Judeo-Christian heritage.

Why is Christmas an officially recognized federal holiday but no mention of it is allowed in schools. ACLU-apologists can spin it any way they want, but Christmas is the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ.

What can or I do to confront this anti-Christian tide? A few small things go a long way. Wish everyone a "Merry Christmas" instead of "Happy Holidays."

Don't patronize stores that put up "Season's Greetings" banners instead of "Merry Christmas" signs. Display the Nativity on your front lawn instead of Santa or Rudolph or Frosty. Rent "The Nativity Story" from the local video store. Attend a church service this Christmas.

Stand up to the secular fringe. The United States is a nation where 85 percent of the people are Christian. You are the majority. Stand up for your rights for a change. Demand that your local school board restore Christmas to an equal footing with "harvest festivals."

When it comes to the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ, it's time for Christians to stop turning the other cheek and stand up to the secular progressives.