November 3, 2005

Dr. Jerry Falwell Urges Thousands of Churches to Join Liberty Counsel's "Friend or Foe Christmas Campaign"

Orlando, FL - Dr. Jerry Falwell announced today that he is urging thousands of pastors and churches to join Liberty Counsel's "Friend or Foe Christmas Campaign." For the past 50 years, Dr. Falwell has been the pastor of the 24,000 member Thomas Road Baptist Church. He is also Chancellor of Liberty University, the largest evangelical university in the world.

In his weekly "Falwell Confidential" sent to a half million subscribers, including tens of thousands of pastors, Dr. Falwell stated: "I am calling upon thousands of pastors and churches to join Liberty Counsel's 'Friend or Foe Christmas Campaign.' We must draw a line in the sand and resist bullying tactics of the ACLU and others who intimidate school and government officials by spreading misinformation about Christmas. Celebrating Christmas is constitutional."

Thomas Road Baptist Church is sponsoring local newspaper ads promoting the Christmas Campaign. The ads, which are available in different sizes, point out that celebrating Christmas is still legal in schools, on public property and in private businesses. The ads also offer free legal assistance by Liberty Counsel to individuals facing persecution for celebrating Christmas. Liberty Counsel provides a free educational legal memo, with a pledge to be the "Friend" to those entities which do not discriminate against Christmas and a "Foe" to those that do.

The idea for church participation in the "Friend or Foe Christmas Campaign" began last year when the largest church in Alaska, Anchorage Baptist Temple, pastored by Dr. Jerry Prevo, launched the Campaign in Alaska by running newspaper ads. Commenting on the Campaign, Dr. Prevo stated: "The ads were a greater success than I had ever imagined. We received an outpouring of community support, and best of all, the preemptive measures resulted in not one incident of religious discrimination. I would encourage every pastor and church to participate."

Mathew D. Staver, President and General Counsel of Liberty Counsel, commented: "I am thrilled to see so many pastors and churches promoting the Christmas Campaign. For too many years we have remained silent while the ACLU and others like them have played the role of the Grinch. We will no longer remain silent. We have no intention of letting misinformation chase our religious liberty or our religious heritage from the public marketplace. It's time to set the record straight - Christmas is constitutional."

Earlier this year Liberty Counsel announced that thousands of public school teachers and administrators, who are members of Christian Educators Association International, are also joining the "Friend or Foe Christmas Campaign."

The sample full-page newspaper ad and a smaller version are posted on our web site in PDF format. Download free software to open PDF documents.

Eternal Vigilance -- Knowing and Protecting Your Religious Freedom

You cannot protect your religious freedom if you don't know your rights. You can get the informative 572-page book, Eternal Vigilance, for a donation of only $24.99 plus shipping and handling. To order, call 800-671-1776 or go to our online store.

To become a Liberty Alert Sponsor of the Month, please email liberty@lc.org or call 800-671-1776.

Make a tax-deductible online donation to this ministry

Request a complimentary subscription
to this informative "Liberty Alert" email

Liberty Counsel, headquartered in Orlando, Florida, is a nonprofit litigation, education and policy organization dedicated to advancing religious freedom, the sanctity of human life and the traditional family. On the campus of Liberty University School of Law in Lynchburg, Virginia, Liberty Counsel's Center for Constitutional Litigation and Policy trains attorneys, law students, policymakers, legislators, clergy and world leaders in constitutional principles and government policies.

Mathew D. Staver, Esq.
Liberty Counsel
PO Box 540774
Orlando, FL 32854
800-671-1776

Please forward this email to your entire address book. We respect your privacy and will not share your contact information with others.

Restoring the culture one case at a time by advancing religious freedom, the sanctity of human life
and the traditional family

Please request removal by email to liberty@lc.org, telephone or mail using the contact information listed above. Your request will be processed within 10 days of the receipt of your request.