Make not my Father's House

As the cultural conservative factions continue to manufacture the so called "war on Christmas," [whereby they declare that Christmas is under seige by various unnamed and non-existant secular entities, and in actuality declare war on Christmas themselves], Bush's card is the latest thing to come under fire, ringing hollow.

Many people are thrilled to get a White House Christmas card, no matter what the greeting inside. But some conservative Christians are reacting as if Bush stuck coal in their stockings.

"This clearly demonstrates that the Bush administration has suffered a loss of will and that they have capitulated to the worst elements in our culture," said William A. Donohue, president of the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights.

Bush "claims to be a born-again, evangelical Christian. But he sure doesn't act like one," said Joseph Farah, editor of the conservative Web site WorldNetDaily.com. "I threw out my White House card as soon as I got it."

Isn't he supposed to be the staunchest, most unweilding Christian President Ever, on quest from God? Or was all of that mere political pandering and manipulation of a group of Evangelicals to maintain power, done with more disdain and contempt than appreciation?

But more distressing than Bush's religious cowardice are the factions of extremists parading in Christian garb and protesting the Other God of America- Consumerism:

One of the generals on the pro-Christmas side is Tim Wildmon, president of the American Family Association in Tupelo, Miss. "Sometimes it's hard to tell whether this is sinister -- it's the purging of Christ from Christmas -- or whether it's just political correctness run amok," he said. "I think in the case of the White House, it's just political correctness."

Wildmon does not give retailers the same benefit of the doubt. This year, he has called for a consumer boycott of Target stores because the chain issued a holiday advertising circular that did not mention Christmas. Last year, he aimed a similar boycott at Macy's Inc., which averted a repeat this December by proclaiming "Merry Christmas" in its advertising and in-store displays.

Yes. These Christian soldiers are protesting stores like Target, Macy's, and Wal-Mart because they didn't include the word "Christmas" in their consumer Catalog. Any body who has read the book of John in the New Testament should be outraged by this, and by all the profit garnered during the Christmas season in the greatest Consumerist nation ever made. But they're not. They want it- they want to remind everybody not that Christmas is the birthday of the Lord, but that Christmas, the birthday of the Lord, is when you buy a whole bunch of shit- and you'd better not forget it.

Right, Jesus?

2:13 And the Jews' passover was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.
2:14 And found in the temple those that sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the changers of money sitting:
2:15 And when he had made a scourge of small cords, he drove them all out of the temple, and the sheep, and the oxen; and poured out the changers' money, and overthrew the tables;
2:16 And said unto them that sold doves, Take these things hence; make not my Father's house an house of merchandise.