For most of our nation’s history, Christmas was a universally unifying celebration for all Americans. Embracing “peace on earth and good will toward all men” just wasn’t controversial for generations of Americans who were thankful for our manifest blessings. For the vast majority of Americans, taking offense to Christmas would be like denying the sunrise, so it just wasn’t contemplated. As communists and socialists gained a foothold in the USA, they spread the erroneous notions of atheism because would be tyrants cannot claim superiority to rule over their fellow man if there is a supreme being only and singly worthy of worship.

For some years now, the “war on Christmas” returns each yuletide season. It’s difficult to pinpoint exactly when these assaults on Christmas started. The first shot may have been the innocuous “happy holidays” greeting mandated by retailers, afraid of backlash from increasingly belligerent atheists. Shocked by the concept of dropping “Merry Christmas” on the occasion of our Lord’s birth, Americans rebutted that nonsense by enthusiastically emphasizing “Merry Christmas” salutations and explaining “Jesus is the reason for the season.”

Most Americans still cherish the true meaning of Christmas, but that faith has been steadily eroding because displays of Christianity are being driven from the public square. Malcontent atheist groups like to misconstrue the Constitution as prohibiting any public exercise of faith, so they petition to have every vestige of Christ chased out of Christmas and off public property or face endless lawsuits. The Constitution says “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion,” which means the government cannot favor any particular Christian denomination, but otherwise “prohibiting the free exercise thereof” which means exercising religion in every realm, including government , shall not be impeded.

Upon our founding, atheists were considered untrustworthy and unfit for public service and “Mohammadens” or Muslims were considered no different than pagan cults, so the founders never imagined Americans would ever seek relief from a Christian God because our entire concept of freedom flows from our “God given rights.” The Founders exercised their faith openly even establishing official days of prayer and fasting. George Washington declared Thanksgiving a national holiday for the nation to give thanks to God Almighty! The first Congress had Bibles printed and distributed to cultivate a better citizenry. They never meant for religion to be banned from public service.

Again, this year, the bah-humbug brigades are out trying to chase Christ from Christmas. In a typical kneejerk response to a random complaint, the Wallingford-Swathmore School District in Pennsylvania banned any Christmas decorations on school buses and prohibited employees from wearing any Christmas themed attire. It’s quite difficult for children to learn the importance of Christmas and faith if they never see it publicly displayed, but that’s the whole goal. Drive Christmas from the public square until the kids only remember the presents.

The citizens of Toledo, Iowa enjoy the annual Nativity put up by the Fire Department, but this year some out-of-town atheist was offended, even though he doesn’t live there. Claiming a First Amendment violation, he cowed the city into removing the Nativity. In response to the uproar by citizens, the city added a “Santa Claus” to make it more secular, so Jesus could come back out, and the atheists were satisfied! How stupid! The atheists mocked the Creator by making a local government justify God with a fictious character.

The whole secular charade is just cover to at least minimize Christ in Christmas, but really the goal is to eliminate Christ from Christmas. When militant leftists twist the Constitution to prohibit any religious expressions by our governments, voiding religion is only the first step. The real objective is to dismantle the Constitution. Leftists know that our Constitution as John Adams declared can only govern a “moral and virtuous people, it is wholly inadequate for any other.” The endgame is to destroy our Republic by eviscerating the seminal source of morality.

Tragically, most Americans do not understand what’s at stake. They consider the Christmas wars just political bickering, but it’s an existential spiritual battle. The domestic enemies of America understand that removing God from our culture, government, and society will doom the nation.

The absence of heat is cold. The absence of light is dark. The absence of sacred is secular. The absence of good is evil. The absence of Christ is not a vacuum, but that Satan rushes in. The leftists want you to believe that the secular is unbiased, benign, or neutral—it is not. Every moral code has some source, so the secular simply allows man’s choice for morals. But that begs the question, which man chooses? And by what authority?

We are free because God grants our rights, so why not use God’s moral code? Anything devised by man is patently inferior. Why would any man accept authority of another man, when the authority of the Creator is obvious?! The atheists and leftists want you to obey them, so they must eliminate the competition. Just like Herod, they are obsessed with killing Jesus in the manger.

The Satanic Temple convinced the state of Iowa to allow them to place a statue of Baphomet, a common image of the devil, in the state Capitol as part of the Christmas festivities. That is completely unconscionable. This is not just a difference of opinions. Inviting Satan to a Christmas celebration is like the Jews inviting Hamas or Hitler to Hanukkah.

A brave man in Iowa did what the government was either too afraid or too dumb to do. He beheaded the Satanic statue and trashed it. Before anyone screams freedom of speech, the First Amendment means we cannot stop you from saying vile things, but we don’t have to listen, and we certainly don’t have to give you a platform. The leftists go around every year trying to behead Christ from Christmas and most of us just watch. If America is going to survive, we must start fighting back against those intent on harming our way of life.

Thank the Lord for the gift of His Son that gave us salvation in heaven and freedom on earth. Merry Christmas!

“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace” (Isaiah 9:6).

Pete Riehm is a conservative activist and columnist in south Alabama. Email him at peteriehm@bellsouth.net or read all his columns at http://www.renewamerica.com/.