Video: Alan Sears on Pulpit Freedom

In the video below, Alan Sears of the Alliance Defense Fund speaks about attacks on religious liberties at the FRC Values Voter Summit. He also speaks about a bold new initiative to take back some of that freedom: The Pulpit Freedom Sunday.

I attended a breakout session by the ADF at the Values Voter Summit the afternoon after this presentation.

ADF chief counsel Benjamin Bull pointed out that throughout history, American pastors have had complete freedom to speak out on issues--and candidates based on their stand on those issues--regarding independence, slavery, gambling, child labor, women's suffrage, and civil rights.

Pastors such as Henry Ward Beecher, William Linn and others once had complete freedom to speak out when they believed candidates held immoral or unbiblical positions.

It wasn't until Senator Lyndon Johnson got an amendment to the tax code passed in 1954 that pastors were muzzled on speaking out about candidates who supported immoral issues. This amendment received no debate and takes up only a small part of the official record, yet it has had tremendous impact in restricting the religious freedom of American pastors.

But the Pulpit Freedom Sunday intends to take on the unconstitutional 1954 infringement of religious liberty and restore this historic freedom to pastors.