According to a new study, a vast majority of Americans -- Christians and non-Christians alike -- continue to celebrate Christmas.

The report from LifeWay Research says nine in ten Americans personally celebrate Christmas, including 89 percent of agnostics, 55 percent of atheists, and 62 percent of individuals who associate with other religions.

"We surveyed over 2,000 folks on what they do for the Christmas holiday, what particular activities specifically -- putting up a Christmas tree, giving gifts -- [and] more specifically, reading or telling the Christmas story from the Bible and [attending] Christmas services," explains Lizette Beard, project manager for LifeWay Research...

In the annual battle over "Merry Christmas" and "Happy holidays," specificity wins out again.

A survey released this week by the Marist Poll showed that 61 percent of Americans preferred the "Merry Christmas" greeting, against just 35 percent who thought "Happy holidays" is more appropriate. The remainder said they were unsure.

"When it comes to holiday greetings, about six in 10 Americans want to throw political correctness out the window," the Marist pollsters wrote...

The Alliance Defense Fund is contacting school districts in Tennessee to correct some fallacies from the ACLU about celebrating Christmas.

"I think it's another story of the Grinch who stole Christmas," says David Cortman, senior counsel with the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF). According to the attorney, the American Civil Liberties Union of Tennessee sent a letter to every school district in The Volunteer State.

"...Basically saying," explains Cortman, "that if you're going to celebrate any aspect of Christmas at all, then you're constitutionally required to celebrate every holiday -- which of course is not true"...

(CNSNews.com) – As the Christian world prepares to mark the birth of Jesus Christ, the little town of Bethlehem has once again become a platform for Palestinians and their allies to use the seasonal spotlight to score political points against Israel.

In the crosshairs is the security barrier that runs between Palestinian Authority (P.A.)-controlled Bethlehem and the Israeli capital just two or three miles away. The project was launched by Israel in mid-2002 in a bid to prevent suicide bombings and other terror attacks of the type that had cost hundreds of Israeli lives since the outbreak of the “second intifada” 20 months earlier.

Traditional olive woodcarvers in Bethlehem have begun to incorporate the security wall into carvings of the nativity scene offered for sale to visitors, with the politicized versions reportedly especially popular with foreign diplomats and journalists...

A Tennessee town and a California county have bowed to pressure from the ACLU on Christmas decorations.

The City of Clarksville, Tennessee, has agreed to stop funding a nativity display to ensure that all groups have equal access to the park where it is placed. The American Civil Liberties Union of Tennessee says it received complaints about the display earlier this year and approached the city about the changes.

According to a news release from the ACLU, the city annually invites a private church to produce the nativity display, helps pay for the live animals used in the display, and promotes it as part of the city's "Christmas on the Cumberland" event...

A nativity scene is back up in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, thanks to a local law firm.

A nativity scene and menorah had been placed on the lawn of the county courthouse for years until the American Civil Liberties Union threatened a lawsuit. The financially strapped county then decided to remove the items to avoid costly litigation.

"We just felt very uncomfortable with the fact that that would be the ultimate outcome for the people here," says attorney Murray Ufberg with the law firm of Rosenn Jenkins & Greenwald. His firm has offered to represent the county free of charge and even donated a thousand dollars to place other holiday-oriented items in the display...

Officials in one California city have bowed to public pressure and won't be using the word "Christmas" in the name of its upcoming parade.

The town of Merced has held a Christmas parade every year since 1995. It was originally called the "Christmas Parade," but officials this year decided to change the name to the "Downtown Holiday Parade." The event is schedule for Saturday, December 5.

Nate Kellum, senior counsel with the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF), says acknowledgment of the Christmas holiday is protected by the U.S. Constitution...

Christians in Illinois are upset over an atheist sign being placed next to a nativity scene at the state capitol.

Illinois made history this year by permitting a private group to put a nativity scene at the state capitol. However, the state granted permission to the Freedom From Religion Foundation to display a sign next to it that reads: "Our message at this season of the winter solstice is may reason prevail. There are no gods, no devils, no angels, no heaven or hell. There is only our natural world. Religion is but myth and superstition that hardens hearts and enslaves minds"...

Washington's governor has put a moratorium on new holiday displays, after an atheist sign placed next to a nativity scene sparked a controversy.

Mat Staver, founder of Liberty Counsel, believes people have a right to be dismayed.

"The governor of the state of Washington has really made a mockery out of this situation in the State Capitol. At one time we had a nativity scene with a 25-foot-tall spruce Christmas tree and a menorah," he notes. "And then she allowed this Freedom From Religion Foundation plaque that denigrated the existence of God -- [it] said that there is no god, no angels, no heaven, nor any hell"...

A television special addressing attacks on Christianity and Christmas will air this weekend.

Coral Ridge Ministries is producing the program titled Is Jesus God? In the past few years, several media outlets have featured specials that question the authority of God's Holy Word, which is what prompted Coral Ridge Ministries to produce the show...