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Why Is Defending Religious Liberty Important?

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As Faith in the Public Square Is Argued Nationally, Renowned
Apologist
Alex McFarland to Debate Mikey Weinstein, Founder of
the Military Religious Freedom Foundation, on April 11 in Colorado

CHARLOTTE, N.C.—Much of America is debating a possible wall between the U.S. and Mexico, but one group is sending a message about a wall of a completely different kind—the wall that supposedly belongs between church and state.

According to a Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) press release, a dozen new billboards are popping up throughout the Denver area that claim, “The only wall we need is between church and state.”

The group also claims the billboards are timely because of the impending confirmation of Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch, whom FFRF calls “threat to secular government and individual liberties, given his ‘natural law’ philosophy derived from religious principles.” An FFRF Denver chapter leader also said, “At no time in the history of the United States have our First Amendment rights possibly been more threatened than they are today.”

Religion and culture expert, national radio host and author Dr. Alex McFarland (www.AlexMcFarland.com) couldn’t agree more, but for much different reasons.

“The argument many have about the separation between church and state is grossly misconstrued,” McFarland said. “Our founders never intended that faith be stripped from the public square. In fact, in their zeal to remove all references of religion, many of these ‘freedom from faith’ organizations would have to take our founding fathers to court, too. These billboards are now popping up in the very state where I will engage in a debate and argue for those who live by faith to be able to do just that.”

One week from today, McFarland will debate the leader of an organization similar to FFRF. McFarland will take the stage with Michael L. “Mikey” Weinstein, founder and president of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF), for a live evening debate at Colorado Christian University. During the event, McFarland hopes to communicate to Christians the importance of knowing their faith and knowing how to defend it.

The debate is sponsored by the Colorado Fireline Coalition and will be moderated by Dan Caplis, morning radio host for KNUS 710 News/Talk in Denver. For the event, McFarland will be joined by Theresa Lynn Sidebotham, Esq., founder of Telios Law PLLC, and Weinstein will be joined by Scott Moss, who teaches and conducts research at the University of Colorado Law School.

WHO:       Dr. Alex McFarland and Mikey Weinstein

WHAT:     Debate on religious liberty in the public square

WHERE:  Colorado Christian University Event Center, 8787 W. Alameda Ave., Lakewood, CO

WHEN:    7-9 p.m. Tuesday, April 11, 2017

HOW:       The event is free, but registration is required online. Video recordings and live

                  broadcasting will be permitted, and a special section will be reserved for press.

                  For information, email info@cofamily.org.

DEBATE PARTICIPANTS

  • Besides being one of the country’s foremost apologists, Dr. Alex McFarland also hosts the American Family Radio Network’s “Exploring the Word” and the weekly television program “Viral Truth” on the National Religious Broadcasters Network. He has authored 18 books, including “Stand Strong America,” “The God You Thought You Knew,” “The 21 Toughest Questions Your Kids Will Ask about Christianity,” “10 Issues that Divide Christians,” “10 Questions Every Christian Must Answer,” “10 Answers for Skeptics,” “10 Answers for Atheists” and many more. He also serves as Director for Christian Worldview and Apologetics at the Christian Worldview Center of North Greenville University in Greenville, S.C., has spoken in all 50 states, has been interviewed by top Christian and secular media outlets, and has spent decades training teens and adults in biblical worldview reasoning. His writing, training and conferences in apologetics—the practice of defending the Christian faith in a world where faith in Christ has declined in the current cultural environment—continues to help numerous young people to find salvation in Jesus Christ.
  • Through MRFF, Mikey Weinstein, Esq., works toward the separation of church and state in the armed forces. Weinstein spent three years working for the Reagan administration as legal counsel, and served as the first General Counsel to Texas billionaire and presidential candidate H. Ross Perot and Perot Systems Corporation. Weinstein has appeared on many cable, television and radio networks, and his activism has been covered in print media including the Associated Press, The New York Times, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Denver Post, The Guardian, and many other national and international newspapers and periodicals. He is the author of “With God On Our Side: One Man’s War Against an Evangelical Coup in America’s Military” and “No Snowflake in an Avalanche.” Weinstein was named one of the 50 most influential Jews in America by the Forward, a preeminent Jewish publication, as well as one of the 100 Most Influential People in U.S. Defense. In 2011, Americans United for the Separation of Church and State presented Weinstein with its first-ever Person of the Year Award, and MRFF has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize seven times.
  • Theresa Lynn Sidebotham, Esq., practices litigation, religious law, appellate work and civil rights law. She especially focuses on First Amendment and religious liberties work. She represents religious organizations nationally and internationally on First Amendment issues, policy issues, employment law and investigations—historic and current. She graduated summa cum laude from Wheaton College and first in her class from University of Denver Sturm College of Law. She was recently honored as a Super Lawyer and received a Martindale-Hubbell AV Preeminent rating. She is married to Col. Bruce T. Sidebotham, Chaplain, U.S. Army Reserves, and they have four sons.
  • Scott Moss teaches and researches constitutional law, employment law and discrimination, and federal litigation at the University of Colorado Law School. Previously, he spent years litigating individual and class action employment cases. He still litigates, including at trial and on appeal, in Colorado state and federal courts as well as elsewhere, a range of claims, including the following in recent years: election-related First Amendment speech claims; discrimination and unpaid wage employment claims; defamation and related claims arising from spousal abuse allegations; and various commercial claims, including securities fraud, fiduciary duty breach, and legal malpractice. He also has served as a Boulder County hearing officer reviewing challenged employment decision-making.

McFarland has spoken to hundreds of thousands of young people over his career, teaching them to know what they believe and why they believe it. He has debated many atheists, secularists and progressives who doubt the very faith that grounds McFarland and millions like him. His newest book “Abandoned Faith: Why Millennials Are Walking Away and How You Can Lead Them Home,” explores why millennials are leaving the church and how those who love them can bring them back.

Co-authored with apologist and evangelist Jason Jimenez, “Abandoned Faith” features conversations with top Christian leaders and sheds new light on what Christian parents must do to reach their young adult children. “Abandoned Faith” also offers a strong voice of hope for parents, church leaders and others who serve and love the millennial generation.

View the media page for Alex McFarland here. For more information on Dr. Alex McFarland, visit www.AlexMcFarland.com or follow him on Facebook or on Twitter @AlexMcFarland.

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To cover the debate or book Dr. Alex McFarland for interviews, contact Beth Harrison at 610-584-1096, ext. 104, Media@HamiltonStrategies.com, or Deborah Hamilton at 215-815-7716 or 610-584-1096, ext. 102.

Alex McFarland

Alex has preached in over 2,200 churches throughout North America and numerous more internationally. He also speaks at Christian events, conferences, debates, and other venues to teach biblical truths and preach the gospel.

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