Who is a Christian? It seems like a simple question, but when I typed my inquiry into Google earlier this week, the answer came back in 20 million hits. I’ve always understood a Christian to be someone who believes Jesus was who he said he was and tries to live the way Jesus said to live. Period. But there are many people who find that answer lacking, apparently. What got me thinking about this question was a recent commentary by the syndicated columnist Cal Thomas, based in part on my interview with Barack Obama about his spiritual life back in the spring of 2004. Analyzing what Obama had to say to me, Thomas concludes that Obama is not really a Christian. This puzzles me. When I asked Obama to describe himself spiritually, he said he was a Christian, that he has a “personal relationship with Jesus Christ.”

(Cathleen Falsani is a columnist for the Chicago Sun-Times, and author of the new book “Sin Boldly: A Field Guide for Grace.”)