YES, VIRGINIA, THERE IS A CHRISTMAS. It is a great pleasure to publish the correspondence below.

Dear Editor:

I am 8 years old. My friend Bill O'Reilly says that Christmas is under siege and there's an anti-Christmas jihad! Papa says, If you hear about it on Fox, don't believe it. Please tell me the truth. Is Christmas under siege?

Virginia O'Hanlon

Virginia, your friend Billy is wrong. He is a "media personality" who does not always respect facts. Instead, he seems to enjoy spewing ridiculous and offensive "opinions." Perhaps he thinks that his audience is not smart enough to be disgusted by that. But just about everyone, young or old, is smart enough to see through his small-mindedness. In this great media universe of ours, there are many who value facts, knowledge, and intelligence.

Yes, Virginia, there is a Christmas.

Christmas may be the world's best-known and most popular holiday. Even Billy acknowledges that, among households in the United States, as many as 90% celebrate Christmas (even though studies estimate the Christian population of the United States to be around 75%-86% of the grand total). Isn't that impressive? How dreary the nation would be without Christmas, whether or not it were a federal holiday! It would be as dreary as if there were no Chanukah or Kwanzaa or Festivus--or people who would prefer not to celebrate anything at all. Without all that, there might be no opportunity to celebrate holidays and the true diversity that enriches our society. We might have no cultural tolerance, except in principle. What kind of example would that set for Canada?

Christmas under siege! You might as well think that gravity is under siege. You might not be able to visit the skyscraper where O'Reilly's company, News Corporation, is based in New York, but if you did you would find that it is located in one of the most diverse and tolerant cities ever. People from all around the globe have come to this city to live and work and even find protection from religious persecution. This year, as in years past, many of them freely and openly celebrate the tradition of strolling the many sidewalks and plazas near that building, admiring the elaborate displays in store windows, gathering among the illuminated trees and angels at Rockefeller Center, lining up for the Radio City Christmas Spectacular (if they can get tickets), and even attending the many church services in the area, such as those at St. Patrick's Cathedral (if they can get tickets). Anyone aware of such festivities, and the countless others across the United States at this time of year, would know that Christmas is doing just fine.

If you consider the origins of Christmas, you might even find that it is too popular these days! For many years, people have worried that Christmas has lost its religious context, that it has become too commercial, that it has become too much of a public phenomenon. Yet Christmas abides.

Silly Billy! He's like a cartoon character! But if you are still worried about Christmas, Virginia, you may find comfort in the responses to Billy that can be found at Salon and Media Matters for America. A smart man named Frank Rich also wrote a thoughtful article in the December 19, 2004 New York Times, but at this point you might have trouble accessing it on the Internet. (If you do, you might be able to find it at your local public library.)

Christmas under siege! Bah, humbug! Christmas is alive and well. You can expect the holiday to excite children, delight families, and enliven world culture for many years to come.

Thank you, Virginia, for writing! Here's wishing you a very Happy New Year, whatever your beliefs may be.