OUR COLUMNISTS The Antidote to Barna's Stats Guest Commentary by Matt Friedeman The Barna Group has an annual listing of their findings that is capable of putting the optimist in a blue funk. But there is hope -- and it won't be in sitting around thinking through what's wrong with the Church. New Year's Resolutions: Another Kind of Diet Commentary by Jane Jimenez Resolving to make the New Year better, this is the perfect time to consider a new kind of diet. Knee-Jerk Unions Commentary by Brad Locke The basic concept of unions is good, but there is ample room for abuse -- and unions also tend to cultivate mean-spiritedness and an almost cult-like mentality. Christmas As It Was Originally Celebrated Commentary by David Sisler Christmas used to mean more than great deals on computers and peripherals. The conception of Christmas used to be a teenaged girl, pregnant before marriage, drenched in sweat. She had just pushed her first child into the cold night air of an unheated, smelly barn. What's Really Behind the First Noel? Commentary by Mark Creech Why does the Christmas story hold a place of adoration in the hearts of millions throughout the world? I suggest it is because the evidence in favor of its truth claims far outweighs the declarations of skeptics.

...Christian author Os Guinness says disasters like the south Asian quake and tidal waves "are terrifyingly beyond our control." For secularists, Guinness says natural disasters are just part of a meaningless universe. But he says Jews and Christians believe in a God who "has scars" and suffers with them. Guinness says the Bible emphasizes the importance of offering practical help to victims. But he says, "Natural disasters are nothing compared with the horror of the evil of other human beings" whose wars and genocides killed 100 million people in the 20th century. Guinness's upcoming book Unspeakable examines the reality of evil, its meaning and how people should respond. Meanwhile, Buddhists in Washington's Maryland suburbs are raising money and praying for the victims of the south Asian quake and tidal wave. Nihal Jayasekara has relatives in Sri Lanka, one of the hardest-hit countries. They are safe, but he has Sri Lankan friends who have lost family members. Jayasekara and other members of a Buddhist temple in Wheaton, Maryland, are collecting funds that their monk plans to deliver to Sri Lanka within the next few weeks. [AP]

...A unique reality-TV show that puts viewers in the shoes of modern day missionaries will soon be airing its second season. Travel the Road is a television show that follows the real-life adventures of Christian witnesses Tim Scott and Will Decker as they journey through various parts of the world sharing their faith. Mike Scott, producer of the series, traveled with the pair through Vietnam. He says the series gives viewers a clear picture of the dangers and challenges missionaries face. Recounting one misadventure, he says he and the two young men "got lost in the jungle and actually were attacked and eaten by leeches, of all things. It's a pretty wild episode to see and check out." The producer says the adversity the two young missionaries go through runs the gamut from war zones to wild animal encounters. "You name it, they're involved in it," Scott says, "but there's a purpose behind it, and the purpose is really to get back to these tribes and these people who have never heard the gospel and share with them." The second season of Travel the Road will premiere on TBN next summer. [Allie Martin]

...A media analyst says people should not be surprised that media giant Clear Channel Communications has decided to drop CNN News and carry the Fox News Channel on its 100 news and talk stations. Clear Channel says it made the decision because Fox News was the clear choice from both a listener and a business standpoint, and the broadcasting company's own audience research indicated that Fox is the preferred news brand of its news/talk listeners. According to Rich Noyes, director of research at the Media Research Center, the ratings tell the tale. "Fox has been cleaning CNN's clock all year," he says. "It is now the unquestioned number one in cable news." Noyes predicts that over the next few years, as contracts expire and networks are no longer obligated to carry CNN, many broadcasters "may switch to Fox because it is what their audience wants, and you're going to see Fox's margin over CNN expand even further," he says. It is not Clear Channel's fault, the media expert adds, that "the only successful radio talk shows, nationally, are by conservatives" and their listeners prefer Fox News over liberal CNN. [Chad Groening]

...A Washington, DC-based judicial studies think-tank says some Supreme Court justices are rejecting the very document that establishes their authority. Several high court judges have voiced their intention to rely on international laws to influence their decisions -- a fact that alarms Trent England of the Center for Legal and Judicial Studies at the Heritage Foundation. "I think it's a really disturbing trend," he says, "and of course, when we're talking about what, for example, the First Amendment to the Constitution means, I don't think Americans really care -- nor should we care, nor should our judges care -- what sort of concepts of free speech they have in countries in France or Zimbabwe, or anywhere else for that matter, beyond the boundaries of the United States." Yet Justices Sandra Day O'Connor, Anthony Kennedy, and Ruth Bader Ginsberg have all cited foreign laws as having an impact on their decisions, and O'Connor has even suggested it is time for the U.S. to start learning from other nations' laws. But England contends that these justices' attitude and actions are in violation of the Supremacy Clause of the United States Constitution, which is the very source of their judicial power. [Bill Fancher]

...Conservative military pundit and former Reagan defense team member Frank Gaffney says he's not optimistic about the chances that Iran will give up its nuclear program through negotiations. Nor, he adds, would it be easy to take those operations out by force. Secretary of State Colin Powell was fairly sanguine in his assessment, saying that diplomacy appears to be working when it comes to ending the nuclear weapons programs in Iran and North Korea. However, Gaffney -- with the Center for Security Policy -- strongly believes the radical Islamic regime in Iran is unlikely to give up its nuclear weapons development without a fight. "The government of Iran is going to pursue and ultimately, unless it's stopped, acquire nuclear weapons. It's a question of how long it takes." he says. The Iranians have concealed their weapons well, Gaffney continues, "and it will probably be beyond the capacity of the Israelis -- and maybe even of the United States -- to destroy it." At best, the security policy analyst says the U.S. could probably disrupt the Middle Eastern nation's weapons development operations. But in the meantime, Gaffney says, it is regrettable that some government officials are pretending they have accomplished something in the negotiations process that will dissuade Iran from pursuing its nuclear program. [Chad Groening]

...Jewish patrons of Bowlmor Lanes, a popular bowling alley in Manhattan, New York, have been surprised to learn that one of its investors was the late Yasser Arafat. The revelation has prompted the owner of the establishment to return more than a million dollars in funding. The upscale bowling alley has customers that include Jewish high school and university groups, the National Council for Synagogue Youth, and even former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani. WorldNetDaily reports that Thomas Shannon, CEO of the company that owns Bowlmor Lanes, did not know that the money came from Arafat, primarily because the investment was done through Onyx Funds, one of the late Palestinian leader's holding companies. Shannon says he immediately returned the investment of $1.3 million when he learned of the connection through a Bloomberg News report just before Christmas. The recently deceased former head of the Palestine Liberation Organization was thought to have millions or possibly billions placed in bank accounts and investments worldwide, money that some critics allege Arafat took from funds designated to help his people. [Ed Thomas]

...A state official in Colorado says he's sorry for sending an e-mail from his work account to staff members and fire chiefs across the state Colorado -- a message that, in part, praised Jesus Christ. Paul Cooke is the director of the Colorado Division of Fire Safety. His Christmastime e-mail said, "May we give thanks for the blessings God has granted to each of us and rededicate ourselves to helping those in need." Cooke also wrote that Jesus' words and works are, quote, "central to our lives and must guide us and inspire us." Public Safety spokesman Lance Clem says the message was inappropriate and violated department policy against personal messages in e-mail. But he says Cooke will not face disciplinary action. Cooke has issued a statement indicating that he understands how some people might have taken offense, and that he will find a more appropriate way to extend his wishes to colleagues in the future. [AP]

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