Comedian Bill Maher is no friend of religion. He has called God “a psychotic mass-murderer,” claims that “faith means making a virtue out of not thinking,” and believes that “religion must die for mankind to live.”
And yet, when Maher was interviewed recently by Charlie Rose, he became a passionate defender of Christianity. Rose tried to claim that “a vast number of Christians” hold beliefs that are as radical as those of ISIS. Maher countered: “No, that’s not true. Not true. Vast numbers of Christians do not believe that if you leave the Christian religion you should be killed for it. Vast numbers of Christians do not treat women as second class citizens. Vast numbers of Christians . . . do not believe that if you draw a picture of Jesus Christ you should get killed for it.”
Maher’s right, of course. But it’s hard to find such support for Christian faith in the news today.
For instance, this week the American Humanist Association announced a “Don’t Say the Pledge” campaign, trying to get the phrase “under God” removed from the Pledge of Allegiance. The National Freedom from Religion Foundation is working to get Gideon Bibles removed from university hotel rooms. Atheists are protesting a cross on a war memorial in an Indiana state park, as well as a pizza restaurant in Wisconsin that gives a discount to people who bring in a church bulletin on Sundays.
In your opinion, is our culture’s moral trajectory getting better or worse? Are we living more by biblical truth, or less? What can believers do to make a difference?
We often hear that “the truth will set you free,” and that’s true. But there’s a caveat: Jesus told a group of followers, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples.” Then and only then, “you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:31-32). To know the truth, we must know the One who is the Truth (John 14:6). The best way to reverse the moral slide of our day is to help people meet Jesus. It is to pray, speak, and act in ways that lead others to him. It is to define success by the question, Did I help people follow Jesus today?
This question motivates our ministry every day. The Denison Forum engages contemporary issues with biblical truth, offers biblical teaching on practical life subjects, and provides devotional resources to help you encounter God more deeply. God has grown our ministry so that we now reach more than 85,000 people in 203 countries every weekday, and our websites have received more than 3.3 million page views so far this year.
Twice a year we ask our readers to help us financially. We are a donor-based ministry, depending entirely on the support of those who give to us. So we are participating today in North Texas Giving Day, an annual fundraising event that has raised more than $60 million for nonprofits in our community over the last five years.
North Texas Giving Day provides a unique opportunity for organizations like ours because Communities Foundation of Texas has raised $2 million in bonus and prize funds. Every gift given online of $25 and more will receive a portion of these funds. And every gift matters. Last year, 54 percent of our donors gave $100 or less. A gift of $25 enables the Cultural Commentary to grow by 13 new subscribers around the world.
Please click here to give a gift between 6 AM and midnight today. And know that I am personally grateful to you for your help. Without you, this ministry would not exist. Together, we can share the One who is “the light of men,” knowing that “the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it” (John 1:4-5). It never will.
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