The Christ in Prophecy Journal

Fighting for Freedom

NRB

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The National Religious Broadcasters is a Christian organization on the front lines of the battle to preserve freedom of religious speech in this nation.

The NRB was founded 65 years ago at a meeting held at Moody Bible Church in Chicago. Its formation was motivated by the fact that evangelical denominations were unable to obtain radio time because what little time was available for religious purposes was controlled by the mainline Protestant denominations through the Federal Council of Churches.

Today, the NRB is focusing its efforts on protecting churches in general and religious broadcasters in particular from government encroachment on their freedoms under the Constitution. Specifically, the NRB is trying to prevent hate crime legislation from curtailing the right of preachers to speak out against sins like homosexuality. The organization is also battling to prevent the pending Employment Non-Discrimination Act from requiring churches and ministries to hire homosexuals, lesbians, bisexuals, and transgendered persons.

The major battle the NRB is fighting relates to the “Fairness Doctrine.” The Fairness Doctrine was a government regulation, created in 1949, which required all broadcast media to give equal air time to opposing points of view whenever controversial issues were presented. For the 38 years that this regulation governed America’s airwaves, it had — by its very nature — a chilling effect on the freedom of speech and the free exercise of religion.

In 1987, the FCC, at the request of President Ronald Reagan, eliminated the intrusive and ill-conceived Fairness Doctrine. But there is a new effort to re-institute the doctrine in order to limit conservative talk radio and religious broadcasting. The NRB is fighting this effort and is supporting alternative legislation called The Broadcaster Freedom Act.

Finally, the NRB is the organization that is constantly calling on the FCC to enforce broadcast decency standards.

We are a proud member of the NRB, and I serve on the President’s Council. You can find their website at www.nrb.org. Put the NRB on your prayer list and pray for the success of its efforts to preserve freedom of religious speech in this nation.

(Editor’s Note: NRB Today reports breaking events as they occur in Washington D.C. concerning religious freedoms.)

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Dr. David Reagan

Dr. David Reagan is the Founder and Evangelist Emeritus of Lamb & Lion Ministries. He is a life-long Bible student, teacher, and preacher and he led over 45 pilgrimages to Israel. Dr. Reagan was the host of the radio then television program Christ in Prophecy for nearly 40 years.

4 CommentsLeave a Comment

  • i heard hate crime legislation already passed. that true? referendum 71 passed here in washington protecting gay marriage. it was a close (and in my opinion a suspicious) vote.

  • Here in Nicaragua, the freedom of speech is being eliminated little by little by the government.

    If you criticize the government or the President you run the risk of converting in a target of some intimidation groups.

    At least, we still can assemble in our churches, but we don't know for much how longer.

  • Donald, the USA is becoming much the same. At one time I think our House of Representatives was trying to get a law passed which stated that criticism of Barack Obama would be a felony and you could get time in jail for it.

    Also, in this country, our Department of Homeland Security said that Christians are terrorists because many of us disagree with Obama and his policies and we like our country just the way it was.

    I figure it will not be too long before people will start creeping into churches and turning in pastors who preach the Word of God and shutting down websites like this one.

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