By Edward Epstein, CQ Staff

For the second Congress in a row, the House is poised to pass a resolution seeking to protect Christmas, which some conservative TV personalities and authors say is under assault from secular forces.

The resolution (H Res 847), offered by Rep. Steve King , R-Iowa, and placed on Tuesday’s suspension calendar, would recognize the “religious and historical importance of Christmas and the Christian faith’’ and reject “bigotry and persecution directed against Christians, both in the United States and worldwide.’’

The 109th Congress passed a similar resolution, sponsored by the late Rep. Jo Ann Davis, R-Va. (2001-07), that called for protecting the “symbols and traditions of Christmas.’’

The back-to-back resolutions coincide with criticism from Fox News commentators Bill O’Reilly and John Gibson about what they call attempts by retailers and governments to drop the word Christmas from holiday events.

But Barry Lynn of Americans United for Separation of Church and State said the resolutions represent a congressional drift into religious affairs, where it doesn’t belong.

“This stuff is way beyond what the framers expected Congress to be spending its time on,’’ Lynn said.