Most agree that President Obama was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize prematurely. He hasn’t yet made progress in ending the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians. He has not convinced North Korea to repent of its human rights violations. He has not convinced Iran to abandon its nuclear ambitions. And, in a decision that has angered many on the Left, he has escalated the war in Afghanistan by ordering 30,000 additional troops.But there is one war Obama can take credit for ending-the war on Christmas.A recent article on Slate.com shows that the number of media reports about the so-called “War on Christmas” has declined significantly from recent years. The battle, if you are unfamiliar, is over retailers that use “Happy Holidays” in their marketing rather than “Merry Christmas.” Groups…

This timely post comes from Shaun Groves‘ blog:I’ve always ignored those people: The ones who get very upset at Target this time of year and decide to e-mail me and the rest of their address book about it. This year, to those people, I would now like to preemptively say: Simmer down. And also…There was a time in American history when Christians could be counted on to get angry about the right stuff - the stuff that seems to have made Jesus angry. In the 1920s, for instance, when Saint Nick became the patron saint of American consumerism, most Christians in this country opposed the holiday because of its inextricable connection to materialism and self-indulgence.In 1931, the New York Times surveyed Christmas sermons and found that they held…

Prepare to be offended. A billboard in New Zealand has just gone up that shows Mary and Joseph in bed together. Joseph looks dejected. The caption says: “Poor Joseph. God is a hard act to follow.” What exactly are people to conclude from such an ad–call the Holy Spirit for a good time?Here’s the craziest part–the billboard was put up by a church. A church! Who needs Christopher Hitchens with Christians like these around?If you recall, I wrote a few posts earlier this year about an atheist ad campaign that started on buses in the UK. The posters said: “There’s probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life.” Those ads created a lot of buzz and controversy. They’ve also spread from London to the US, Canada,…

Rick McKinley is pastor of Imago Dei in Portland, Oregon, and the guy behind the Advent Conspiracy movement. I first interviewed Rick for Leadership a few years ago. We also serve together on the Origins Project. A few weeks ago Rick interviewed me about The Divine Commodity for one of the Advent Conspiracy podcasts this month.

I’m pleased to see that even Time Magazine has caught wind of AC. The recent article juxtaposes Advent Conspiracy with the Religious Right’s crusade to keep Christ at the center of the shopping and marketing frenzy of this season. Folks on the Christian and political right are blasting retailers who use “Happy Holidays” rather than “Merry Christmas” in their advertising.

McKinley and Advent Conspiracy seem to have a better grasp not only on the purpose of Advent,…

The second installment of my Vocolo (Chicago Public Radio) conversation with host Brian Babylon is now available. Last Friday we talked about the birth of Jesus–a story familiar to many people. But the conversation focused on Mary, the strange events surrounding her pregnancy, and what a virgin birth would mean for our world today. We also looked at the cultural and political dynamics of the day.

Listen to the conversation here:

Listen to last week’s conversation about Jesus cleansing the temple:

In October I sat down for a brief interview with Brian Babylon, a host on Chicago Public Radio’s “Vocolo” (95.5 FM), about my participation with the Interfaith Youth Core conference at Northwestern University. We had a great conversation about matters of faith, culture, and the church.

In December, Vocolo is doing a series of broadcasts about faith. Brian invited me to be a guest each Friday this month to discuss familiar, but often misunderstood, stories from the Bible and how they apply to contemporary issues. I’ve had the privilege of doing a number of Christian radio programs before, but this was a first: 30 minutes to talk about the Bible and apply it on public radio.

December 4th was my first segment. I was able to do it in studio…

Promise Keepers new focus on women and messianic Jews:“Promise Keepers is not a men’s ministry. It is a ministry for men.” -Raleigh Washington president of Promise Keepers. Read more.

The Manhattan Declaration’s focus on abortion, gay marriage, and religious liberty:

“We argue that there is a hierarchy of issues. A lot of the younger evangelicals say they’re all alike. We’re hoping to educate them that these are the three most important issues.” -Chuck Colson. Read more.

Pastor on relocating to Chicago to plant a church:

“I just had one of those moments like ‘Holy crap … what are we doing?’” -Mark Bergin. Read more.

Rick Warren on paying $1500 for counseling early in his marriage:

“MasterCard saved my marriage!” -Rick Warren.

Zondervan’s decision to stop publication of a book deemed racist by Asian-Americans:

“The growing churches…