On this holy day, Christians everywhere are celebrating the birth of our Lord and Savior, a Jewish baby named Jesus, and the civilization those two faiths have bequeathed to the world. As we pray for peace in the year ahead, we must seek God’s grace in countering those who threaten that peace. 

For example, in countries like Nigeria, Syria, Communist China, Iran and North Korea, Christians are being subjected to brutal persecution. 

And in each, the persecutors and their respective regimes seek to replace our Western civilization with one kind of totalitarian global order or another.

If we are to continue to enjoy, among others, the freedom of religion guaranteed by our nation’s Christian founders strongly influenced by the Judaic traditions Jesus honored, we must pray for His help in protecting America and Western civilization from those determined to destroy them. 

This is Frank Gaffney.