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Last week US Attorney General William Barr denounced progressives' push toward tyranny---driving religion out of the public square while praising Christian media for standing strong in the culture.
He told Christian broadcasters, "You are one of the last holdouts in the consolidation of organs and viewpoints of the press."
Be informed.
The case for Christian broadcasting.
Speaking to the National Religious Broadcasters Convention last week, US Attorney General William Barr told the broadcasters,
"We live in a time when religion---long an essential pillar of our society---is being driven from the public square. Thank God we have the National Religious Broadcasters to counter that effort."
This caught my attention. Throughout my life of Christian ministry, we have always tried to use the media to speak to the culture. And for many years we were active in the NRB.
I'm not suggesting Christian broadcasting is more important than the local church, nor should it replace the function of the local church. It is an extension of the local church---and it can be a very, very effective one.
AG Barr laid out a strong case why Christian broadcasting should strengthen and expand in the face of evil---the strong attempt to drive religion---particularly Christianity, from the public square.
He said,
"You have boldly shown that media can serve higher ends: the safeguarding of faith as well as the cultivation of the classical virtues of the mind and heart that maintain our republican experiment in self-governance."
Barr quoted Founding Father John Adams who said, "Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate for the government of any other."
"The reason," Barr explained, "religion protects against majoritarian tyranny, is it allows us to limit the role of government by cultivating internal moral values in the people that are powerful enough to restrain individual rapicity without resort to the state's coercive power."
He said,
"Experience teaches us that to be strong enough to control willful human beings, moral values must be based on authority independent of man's will. In other words, ,they must flow from a transcendent Supreme Being. Men are far likelier to obey rules that come from God than to abide by the abstract outcome of an ad hoc utilitarian calculus."
And he said this:
"In recent years, we have seen the steady erosion of religion and its benevolent influence---While most every one believes in separation of Church and State, this does not require that we drive religion from the public square and affirmatively use government power to promote a culture of disbelief."
The challenge to Christian broadcasters.
He said to Christian broadcasters, "This is where you come in...It's essential that you continue to supply the people with diverse, divergent perspectives on the news of the day...it is especially vital that your religious perspective is voiced."
This is at the very heart of why I do what we do in publishing this column every day, which is now read across the country and in dozens of other countries each day.
And it's at the very heart of why we prepare and broadcast ---live in its origination---a daily radio program that is now heard throughout Washington State on ACN radio network at 9 AM live, and Seattle's 820 AM at 11:30 AM, Tucson's KGMS 940 AM and Bakersfield, CA's KERI 1410 AM.
As our support grows, we will expand into more communities.
We never use this Faith and Freedom Daily column to fundraise for this broadcast ministry, but it is because of our supporters that we are able to do this. Thank you for your financial support. If you feel this is something you can support---thank you in advance.
Barr is right---as if we needed examples.
The City of Bixby, in Tulsa, OK is, according to ABC affiliate KTUL, considering "shutting down" a popular megachurch for being too loud in their worship.
Transformation Church could be shut down soon if they can't keep the "joyful noise" they've been making to the Lord, from bothering the neighbors.
And as we speak, a judge in Boston declares that Boston City Hall can refuse to fly a Christian flag while flying other religious and cultural flags. That, of course, would include the Gay Pride flag.
A Virginia couple had to take legal action to protect their constitutional right to host a Bible study in their own home.
This past Christmas, atheists demanded "Jesus Candy" be removed from military bases.
AG Barr concluded: "We need to support local journalism and local voices."
He said, "It's not too late to stem the tide" of progressives' push toward tyranny while driving religion out of the public square.
Indeed.
Be Informed. Be Discerning. Be Faithful. Be Bold. Be Prayerful.