In a century when celebrities have big voices, comments such as those recently made by Elton John, saying, "Religion promotes hatred and spite …" and should be banned completely, can make the Christmas season more difficult for faithful believers interested in reaching the same audience as Elton John.

Ironically the singer-songwriter also said he loves the ideas of the teachings of Jesus. That’s a similar sentiment for most Americans, who also favor Jesus and personal religion over organized religion or church affiliation,

So religion gets a bad rap and Jesus remains great. Well, Jesus himself reserved his most scathing criticism for the religious leaders of his day.

Fast forward to Christmas 2006 and one Jewish rabbi who became the poster child for the nation's annual war over Christmas by threatening a lawsuit in Seattle that cleared out the Christmas trees at Sea-Tac airport faster than you can get through security. (They’re back, the lawsuit is off and I don’t know if the menorah is on.) Rather than including everyone’s religion in tacky holiday decor, it almost makes one want to side with the atheists and call the whole thing off.

But USA Today editorial blogger Tom Krattenmaker had something smart to say today on the subject of throwing away the baby Jesus with the bathwater of religion. He found his Christmas spirit in an outreach to the homeless of Portland, Oregon.

He wrote: "Looking for Jesus in the eyes of a homeless person. Contrast that with a different, and decidedly less inspiring, face of faith more often on display in the media and public square. Leaders of the Christian Right continue to scapegoat gays and lesbians and emphasize other wedge issues, with little to say publicly about the ‘least of these,’ unless they happen to be as-yet unborn. … In Iraq, religious differences are fueling rising levels of bloodshed between Shiite and Sunni Muslims. Civilians are being killed by the hundreds—in the name of religion?

"These ugly, destructive appearances of religion make it tempting to accept the arguments of atheist writers such as Sam Harris, who asserts that religious faith has become a dangerous force that must be eradicated if the world is to overcome its violent divisions and intractable problems. … But it's hard to indict all religion when you see the way faith manifests under the Burnside Bridge [an outreach to the homeless in Portland, Oregon.] The features of hard-edged Christianity that many find repellent—condemnation, exclusivity, belligerence—are absent [there.]"

It is radical compassion rather than radical religion that is so compelling, Krattenmaker writes. Yet Jesus’ love included a love for the Church, an institution he said would be like his bride. Can we redeem the tarnished image of this seemingly hateful and destructive bridezilla? Maybe, but that’s not our job.

As believers we are charged to spread the news of Jesus and create more followers of him. That’s seems much more doable, since people already like him, especially at Christmas. And if people such as Elton John really love Jesus’ ideas perhaps it wouldn’t be too much to ask for the Church to spread them, making them clearer and more well-known—not just in words, but in actions.

(Yule) Blog here.