I appreciate this phrase. It is like the appropriation of the flag by the American right. When extremists lay claim to symbols that belong to a much broader group, it is hard for the majority to regain control and title to what should be theirs.

I don't know what the answer is. There's an old word that used to mean something: heresy. Those in the Christian mainstream have every right to call Fallwell, and that crowd, heretics. They are. By any reasonable definition of the term, that's exactly what they are -- but the word no longer has any force. Given its bloodied history, I'm fairly sure that's more good than bad. Still, its lack leaves real Christians without much of a defense against those false prophets who would redefine their religion.