Earlier this month, President Donald J. Trump announced the creation of the White House Religious Liberty Commission, which has 13 commissioners and three advisory boards made up of religious leaders, legal experts, and lay advisors. Among those appointed to the commission are several prominent members of the National Religious Broadcasters (NRB).
The commission is tasked with advising the President and federal agencies on policies that safeguard religious liberty, both at home and abroad. As outlined in the official White House press release, the commission will “provide strategic recommendations for how the United States can lead by example, championing religious liberty as a universal human right.” This seamlessly aligns with NRB’s mission to protect free speech and promote biblical truth through media. It also supports NRB’s advocacy efforts in defending the rights of faith-based organizations, and Christian communicators at large.
NRB Members on the Commission
Two NRB members have been appointed as leaders of the Religious Liberty Commission: Franklin Graham, president and CEO of Samaritan’s Purse and the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, and Eric Metaxas, bestselling author, radio host, and Christian thought leader.
“It is a privilege to be asked to serve,” said Franklin Graham. “Religious freedom is a founding principle of our nation and remains as vitally important today as it was when our forefathers set out to enshrine it in the First Amendment.”
Graham continued: “I thank God that President Trump and the White House recognize the significance of religious freedom and its impact not only on our past, but on our future. It is a cornerstone of America that should be defended and preserved.”
Eric Metaxas echoed the sentiment, writing, “I’m so grateful for this honor.”
NRB Members Appointed to Commission Advisory Boards
Several other NRB members were named to the commission’s advisory boards, offering their perspectives and expertise:
Advisory Board of Religious Leaders:
- Pastor Jack Graham, senior pastor of Prestonwood Baptist Church in Dallas and host of PowerPoint Ministries.
Advisory Board of Legal Experts:
- Kristen Waggoner, CEO, president, & general counsel of Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), the world’s largest legal organization defending religious liberty.
Advisory Board of Lay Leaders:
- Dr. Alveda King, civil rights advocate and Chair of the Center for the American Dream at the America First Policy Institute.
- Ryan Tucker, senior counsel & director of the Center for Christian Ministries at ADF.
- Dr. Mark David Hall, professor at Regent University and scholar of church-state relations in early America.
- Abigail Robertson, co-host of “Heaven Meets Earth” podcast and longtime reporter with the Christian Broadcasting Network.
Each NRB member has a unique and valuable role in advancing the commission’s mission.
ADF’s Kristen Waggoner brings 25 years of experience defending religious freedom in courtrooms and legislative chambers worldwide.
“I’ve had the privilege of serving Christian clients who faced the loss of their jobs, life savings, and personal reputations for obeying Christ,” Waggoner said. “Those experiences will always stay with me. They taught me the importance of working tirelessly to ensure that the law upholds and advances religious liberty.”
ADF has won 15 Supreme Court victories since 2011 and handled roughly 2,000 active legal matters in the past year across five continents.
“This breadth of work has positioned ADF to advise law and policymakers on where threats to religious liberty are coming from and how best to address them,” Waggoner added. “I am eager to provide those insights to the Administration.”
Waggoner also addressed some of the most urgent threats to religious freedom facing Americans today, including “the rise of government-enabled censorship that seeks to exchange truth for lies,” pointing specifically to the pressure to embrace gender ideology and the increasing penalties faced by those who dissent from it.
“It doesn’t take courage to affirm what we all agree to be true,” she said. “What takes courage is speaking the truth in the face of opposition—but doing so with a Christ-like countenance that longs for people’s salvation and restoration, seeing them as souls to be won rather than enemies to be defeated.”
Her colleague, Ryan Tucker, will play a role on the Advisory Board of Lay Leaders, in his words, by “helping the commission prepare a report on the impact of religious liberty on society, threats to that freedom, and strategies to protect religious liberty across the country.”
Tucker, who oversees litigation efforts on behalf of churches, ministries, and religious schools, has witnessed firsthand the increasing legal pressure faced by Christians. Activists who push gender ideology have created major challenges across education and ministry settings, he explained. “When the law ignores reality, children pay the price.”
Despite these challenges, Tucker sees signs of hope: “People [are] standing for truth. … Those who demonstrate this unapologetic bravery ensure that their fellow Americans’ fundamental freedoms are protected from unwarranted overreach.”
Dr. Alveda King emphasized unity as a guiding principle to direct the country: “At this hour in the history of America and the world, unity is key. As voices united by faith in God, we are genuine evidence that unity is a viable key to the success we long for.”
“My priority at this time is unity in the spirit,” King said. “Conquering all division. Repenting quickly. Forgiving instantly. Judging never. Loving always.”
Dr. Mark David Hall underscored the historical foundation for religious freedom: “Supreme Court justices have made it clear that the First Amendment’s religion clauses must be interpreted in light of what the founders understood the clauses to protect and prohibit. They protected not only the freedom to worship, but the freedom to act upon religious convictions.”
“I hope my study of religious liberty and church-state relations in the American founding and throughout our nation’s history will inform our discussions,” Hall added.
Abigail Robertson, who spent a decade in the CBN News department covering a variety of topics on Capitol Hill, expressed deep gratitude for her appointment: “During those ten years, I had the privilege of interviewing and profiling many individuals at the forefront of some of the most significant religious liberty cases in the country. I’ve seen firsthand the personal cost people have endured to stand for their faith in the public square.”
She added, “I hope to bring not only my experience as a journalist who has covered these stories in depth but also a deep compassion for the people behind the headlines. My goal is to help ensure that no American has to walk through the kind of hardship and trauma that so many of these brave individuals have faced.”
Robertson also spoke to how her faith shapes her work and offered encouragement to fellow Christian communicators: “I always say: surrender your work to the Lord first. …I’ve seen time and again how He answers those prayers in surprising and powerful ways.”
“Our culture has been starved for truth,” Waggoner said. “The greatest danger of our time is not that we will become impolite. …It’s that we will succumb to the social pressures that try to suppress the truth, leaving the most harmful lies of our day unchallenged.”
As the Religious Liberty Commission begins its work, NRB applauds the inclusion of these excellent advocates committed to protecting foundational freedoms.