The recent election has rendered Grand Ayatollah James Dobson down on his influence.

The most obvious casualty for the Ayatollah is the rapidly approaching end of days of the Department of Faith (DOF, i.e., the White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives) – That pool of millions of public dollars, which the Ayatollah and his fellow theocrats have enjoyed under Dubya's patronage. (The stories of DOF reviewers laughing, when they received a proposal for funding from a non-Christianist group tells us what we know happens when the state sponsors religion; and the obscene millions that the DOF wasted on abstinence propaganda probably explains case studies like Sarah Palin's high-school daughter, who obviously could have used accurate information about the ease-of-use and effectiveness of birth control and the consequences of forging ahead without it.)

The Ayatollah's star is sinking into history – But not before he can issue his yearly bull about Christmas not being secularized to his liking. The Ayatollah has just published his yearly hit-list of retailers that do not utter Jesus's name with every ring of the cash register.

Your inspection of the list (which is reproduced below with the highlighting mine) might make you wonder what the Ayatollah's fuss is all about. The list clearly shows that most retailers celebrate Christmas in accord with the Ayatollah's preferences. But, the Ayatollah is an absolutist kind of guy. His theocratic spirit is irreparably offended by any deviation from his dictates. And when it comes to Christmas, Lord knows that this is the Ayatollah's season for getting his message of cultural divisiveness and theocratic hegemony into the headlines. (As opposed to, say, spreading the good news about Jesus's birth.)

Most of us grew up listening to protests about the commercialization of Christmas. We know you don't have to be religious to recognize a loss when the spiritual dimension of Christmas becomes conflated with the secular celebration of winter.

But that, of course, is not how the Ayatollah sees it. He wants Jesus's birth synonomized with buying presents and putting them under the tree. He wants Jesus inserted into every seasonal commercial transaction and every public holiday reference. He demands that Jesus trump Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and every other community and personal reason for celebrating at this time of the year.

The Ayatollah understands what we do not. That Jesus is diminished and made irrelevant when His holy name is not repeatedly, explicitly and noisily linked to commerce and the crassest of our holiday impulses.

Focus on the Family Action's 2008 Christmas-Friendly Shopping Guide
How Leading Retailers' Messages Rate
We welcome your use of these ratings in your shopping decisions. As an additional way to help you communicate with the retailers we evaluated, we are providing the convenience of a petition which you can sign by visiting focuspetitions.com.

Retailers will be presented with petitions – thanking those that embrace "Christmas," and alerting those that have purged or marginalized "Christmas" that you object to the secularization of Christmas. We hope you will "stand for Christmas" with us and encourage the continued acknowledgement of this historic Christian observance in our culture.

"Christmas-friendly" retailers – prominent acknowledgment of "Christmas"

Cabela's
Crate & Barrel
Dillard's
Eddie Bauer
JCPenney
Kohl's
L.L. Bean
Lands' End
Linens 'n Things
Lowe's
Macy's
Neiman Marcus
Nordstrom
Pier 1 Imports
Sears
The Home Depot
Target
Toys "R" Us
Wal-Mart

"Christmas-negligent" retailers – marginalized use of "Christmas"

Barnes & Noble
Bed, Bath & Beyond
Best Buy
Borders
Circuit City
Dick's Sporting Goods
GAP
KB Toys
Kmart

"Christmas-offensive" retailers – apparent abandonment of "Christmas"

American Eagle
Banana Republic
Bloomingdale's
Lane Bryant
Old Navy