Best selling author, lecturer, and prominent Christian Zionist, Joel Rosenberg, suggests that by setting the date for Judgment Day, Christian radio broadcaster Harold Camping is being "unbiblical, wrong and misleading," and "invit[ing] ridicule, scorn and discredit upon followers of Jesus Christ who study the Bible seriously and teach the Word of God -- including prophecy -- carefully and soberly."

Joel Rosenberg, prominent Christian Zionist, best-selling author of fiction and non-fiction books enmeshing apocalyptic visions with Biblical prophecy, and a sought after speaker on issues related to the Middle East and The Rapture, is no stranger to the End Times business.  You might say that he has been milking it for all it's worth, carving out a nice little niche for himself. But no matter how many times he cites scripture when talking or writing about events in the Middle East (what he calls the Epicenter) presaging an End Times scenario, he is careful to avoid the one thing that could put the kybosh on his cottage industry: he never offers a specific timetable for when the Final Days will unfold.

As any good businessman might when he feels his territory is being violated, last week Rosenberg had some tough words for Harold Camping, a long-time Christian radio broadcaster, who is claiming to have come up with the exact date for Judgment Day. The 88-year-old Camping, who is president of Family Stations, Inc., an Oakland, California-based religious broadcasting network, has done something that most End Timers definitely do not appreciate; he set the date for the first day of the Day of Judgment (May 21 of this year), and the date for the end of the world (October 21).

The punchline to my story title? - Unless the Air Force considers the Military Religious Freedom Fundation's objections and rescinds the invitation, one of that pilot's colleagues will be the keynote speaker at the US Air Force's February 10th National Prayer Luncheon at the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs. The USAFA suggests the event is modeled after the National Prayer Breakfast, a yearly event run by the Washington neo-fundamentalist group The Fellowship. First, a bit on The Fellowship, then I'll get to the B-2 "Stealth" bomber pilot.

Longtime Fellowship head Douglas Coe has likened his group to "the mafia" and encouraged Christians to follow Jesus with the same level of zeal as young Chinese Red Guard cadres who, during Mao Tse Tung's Cultural Revolution, were willing to chop off the heads of their own mothers and fathers, for the communist cause (here's the footage of Mr. Coe saying that, during a 1989 speech in Colorado Springs.) Another charming aspect of the Fellowship concerns journalist Jeff Sharlet's identification of Fellowship Uganda member David Bahati as principle author and legislative backer of Uganda's so-called "Kill the gays bill" which Sharlet has characterized as "possibly genocidal."

(This post was written by Mike Ludwig, and originally published at Truthout.org.)

During the first two weeks of February, military bases and schools across the country will join dozens of other organizations is holding annual "prayer breakfasts" and luncheons in coordination with the controversial National Prayer Breakfast in Washington, DC.

While military chaplains are expected to provide non-denominational options to those in uniform, critics charge that prayer breakfasts sometimes favor conservative and evangelical brands of Christianity that are intolerant of other faiths and perspectives.

Consider professional motivational speaker Lt. Clebe McClary, a veteran from South Carolina whose web site features praise from right-wing Christian leaders like Jerry Falwell and Billy Graham. McClary is a retired Marine, who was wounded in Vietnam and now serves the "Lord's Army," and believes that USMC (US Marine Corps) will always stand for "US Marines for Christ," according to his web site.

They are always committed, often enthusiastic, and admittedly have occasionally been discouraged over the years, but later this month, when anti-abortion forces gather in Washington on Monday, January 24 for their annual March for Life -- marking the 38th anniversary of the Supreme Court's Roe v. Wade decision -- they are likely to be as optimistic as they've been in years. If Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), long-time abortion foe and co-chairman of the bi-partisan Congressional Pro-Life Caucus, is right, this Congress is "arguably most pro-life House ever."

Christianity Today's Alicia Cohn recently reported that Speaker of the House John Boehner (R-Ohio) has stated that, "he wants to be the most pro-life Speaker ever." The blog "Suzy B: The Voice of Pro-Life Women in Politics," pointed out that Boehner "has been a consistent pro-life voice in Congress, shown by his 100% pro-life voting record." And, earlier this year, Americans United for Life chose Boehner for its 2010 Defender of Life Award.

Tea Party Nation's Judson Phillips puts United Methodist Church in his crosshairs.

In 1983, when folks at the Institute for Religion and Democracy helped convince producers at CBS' "60 Minutes" to run a segment on the National Council of Churches and the United Methodist Church, the world changed dramatically for all three organizations.

The NCC and UMC were blindsided; treated to an old-fashioned television mugging. While they were taking heat, the Washington, D.C.-based IRD's profile soared in conservative circles.

Now, nearly three decades later, Tea Party Nation's Judson Phillips has put the United Methodist Church in his crosshairs.

In a year that Sarah Palin (or familia) appeared to be everywhere, Tea Partiers continued providing the strange and unexpected, BP spilled its guts into the Gulf, President George W. Bush spilled something less than gutsy in his memoir, Republicans emerged with a resounding victory in November after a year of being unalterably committed to destroying the presidency of Barack Obama (who, by the way was doing a good job of that himself), unemployment rose, and the outrageous bonus returned (did it ever leave?) to Wall Street, wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and military actions elsewhere, and the freakin' WikiLeaks, you indeed may have wanted to be sedated, and despite all your rage you likely still felt like a rat in a cage. If there was dancing in the streets, you probably sat on the sidelines and if you were in the mood for love, you knew it wouldn't be easy.

Here's twenty stories from 2010. They're not necessarily the top stories of the year. And, they might not make your list, but they are certainly worth considering as we ponder what now lays behind us.

(Pssst ... This is an almost Tea Party-and-Sarah Palin-free zone.)

(This is dedicated to my wife, Gale Bataille, who helped with this piece; my daughter Leah, for whom "A Christmas Carol" was a yearly tradition; my eighteen-month-old grandson Alton, who I hope to read it to in the future, and to all the Fuelners'/Scrooges' of the world that could use some good old-fashioned transformational ghostly visits.)

'A government check can't look you in the eye and offer advice about how you can turn your life around. A food stamp won't find you a job,' writes The Heritage Foundation's Ed Fuelner

I've never been a big fan of The Heritage Foundation's Ed Fuelner. However, deep down in the pits of my stomach - where the twisted me tends to dwellith -- I've kind of admired the guy. I've admired how steadfast he has been in pursuing his organization's goals; how he's helped build enduring political relationships with key conservative operatives and organizations; how much mainstream media play his researchers and writers receive; and how he has raised extraordinary amounts of money for what has now become Washington, D.C.'s premier conservative institution.  

If Fuelner was a basketball player Fuelner would be setting picks and grabbing rebounds; doing all the dirty, but essential, work in the paint. He's been one of the enduring workhorses of the conservative movement.

On Saturday, the U.S. Senate voted to repeal the so-called "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy that banned openly gay and lesbian Americans from serving in the armed forces. The Religious Right is not pleased.

To hear Religious Right leaders tell it, the end is nigh. How soon before the North Koreans come rolling down Pennsylvania Avenue?

In the topsy-turvy world that is right wing politics, anti-gay conservative groups are attacking a venerable civil rights organization, accusing it of  `character assassination'

I'm sure you've heard this before -- and it will not surprise you one bit -- but a liberal organization is once again under attack from the right. This time, however, there are no phony journalists with hidden cameras trying to entrap cooperative staff members (a la forays against ACORN and Planned Parenthood) into compromising their organization's mission.

Now, without a smidgeon of irony, Tony Perkins' Family Research Council (FRC) has come out swinging against the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) accusing it of "character assassination" for having announced that it will be listing the conservative Washington, D.C.-based anti-gay lobbying group as a hate group.

(This column is dedicated to the late Rev. Andrew J. Weaver, an ordained United Methodist minister, a research psychologist, and a kind and gentle man who was one of the key organizers of the campaign to keep the Bush Library off the SMU campus.)

With his new book, 'Decision Points,' heading the New York Times best-seller list and the building of the George W. Bush Presidential Center at SMU now underway, inquiring minds want to know: Will Bush escape the harsh judgment of history?

Sarah Palin represents a remarkable brew of celebrity, politics, religion and sex appeal. To borrow a construct from Esquire's Stephen Marche, she "is nothing if not a product of [her] time": instant celebrity, blissful ignorance, a lack of truthiness, and boundless self-esteem.

Whether you like her and get a kick out of her spunk and snark, revel in her celebrity, and find her absolutely fascinating, or you can't stand her, think she's obnoxiously ill-informed, and are tired of hearing and reading about her and her family, Palin is hands down the most compelling political figure in the country.

The extremist anti-abortion activist is hanging out with future Speaker Boehner's staff, criticizing impotent mainstream pro-life groups and urging anti-abortion activists to join him in supporting the airing of a graphic anti-abortion ad during the Super Bowl.

Randall Terry has a plan. And, if he can pull it off it will likely be his most spectacular accomplishment ever. All he needs is about $2.5 to 3 million dollars. Although his plan will culminate on Super Bowl Sunday in Dallas, Texas, it has nothing to do with the actual football game. It doesn't even have anything to do with Ronald Reagan's 100th birthday, which, coincidentally, will be celebrated on the very same day as the Super Bowl.

Terry aims to rock your world just as you and your friends have settled down to some fabulous food, a late afternoon-early evening of Super Bowl football, and a handful of spectacularly hyped ads.