American Religious Townhall
Encyclopedia
The American Religious Townhall is a syndicated weekly television program
in which clergy
from various religious denomination
s debate various religious, political, and social issues.1 The show was started in 1952 by Bishop A. A. Leisky and continued by his son Pastor Robert Leisky. The current moderator of the show is Pastor Jerry Lutz. The show is currently taped in Dallas, Texas
. A different issue is debated on each episode.
, educators and others may appear on this program and can declare their beliefs without hesitancy and the rest of the members of the panel will uphold and guarantee that American right to all who will appear, irrespective of race or creed
, so that the rest of the world can see that, here in America, we believe in civil and religious freedom, not only in theory but in reality."
Television program
A television program , also called television show, is a segment of content which is intended to be broadcast on television. It may be a one-time production or part of a periodically recurring series...
in which clergy
Clergy
Clergy is the generic term used to describe the formal religious leadership within a given religion. A clergyman, churchman or cleric is a member of the clergy, especially one who is a priest, preacher, pastor, or other religious professional....
from various religious denomination
Religious denomination
A religious denomination is a subgroup within a religion that operates under a common name, tradition, and identity.The term describes various Christian denominations...
s debate various religious, political, and social issues.1 The show was started in 1952 by Bishop A. A. Leisky and continued by his son Pastor Robert Leisky. The current moderator of the show is Pastor Jerry Lutz. The show is currently taped in Dallas, Texas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
. A different issue is debated on each episode.
Panelists
The show currently has nine regular panelists, but only six appear on any one given episode. The regular panelists are:- Rev. Msgr. Michael Olson —A Priest in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Fort Worth, TexasFort Worth, TexasFort Worth is the 16th-largest city in the United States of America and the fifth-largest city in the state of Texas. Located in North Central Texas, just southeast of the Texas Panhandle, the city is a cultural gateway into the American West and covers nearly in Tarrant, Parker, Denton, and...
. He is currently the rectorRectorThe word rector has a number of different meanings; it is widely used to refer to an academic, religious or political administrator...
of Holy Trinity SeminaryHoly Trinity SeminaryHoly Trinity Seminary is a Roman Catholic seminary residence in Irving, Texas, United States, in the Diocese of Dallas, Texas that is located within the University of Dallas campus. University of Dallas is an independent Catholic University with strong ties to the Diocese of Dallas...
in Dallas, TexasDallas, TexasDallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
. - Rabbi Jordan Ofseyer - RabbiRabbiIn Judaism, a rabbi is a teacher of Torah. This title derives from the Hebrew word רבי , meaning "My Master" , which is the way a student would address a master of Torah...
of Congregation Beth El-Keser Israel (1962–1970), of Temple Isaiah in Palm Springs, California and of Beth Tzedec Congregation in CalgaryCalgaryCalgary is a city in the Province of Alberta, Canada. It is located in the south of the province, in an area of foothills and prairie, approximately east of the front ranges of the Canadian Rockies...
, AlbertaAlbertaAlberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...
Canada - Dr. Allan Lane—Pastor of Fort Graham Baptist Church in the Lake WhitneyLake Whitney (Texas)Lake Whitney is a flood control reservoir on the main stem of the Brazos River in Texas. It is located on River Mile Marker 442 and controls drainage for of Texas and parts of New Mexico. The reservoir encompasses a surface area of more than 23,500 acres and of shoreline. The area consists of...
area of central Texas. - Dr. Prentice Meador —The former senior minister of the Prestoncrest Church of ChristChurch of ChristChurches of Christ are autonomous Christian congregations associated with one another through common beliefs and practices. They seek to base doctrine and practice on the Bible alone, and seek to be New Testament congregations as originally established by the authority of Christ. Historically,...
in Dallas, Texas. He held the Batsell Barrett BaxterBatsell Barrett BaxterBatsell Barrett Baxter was an influential preacher and writer within the Churches of Christ.-Biography:...
Chair of Preaching at Lipscomb UniversityLipscomb UniversityLipscomb University is a private, coeducational, liberal arts university in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. It is affiliated with the Churches of Christ. The campus is located in the Green Hills neighborhood of Nashville between Belmont Boulevard to the west and Granny White Pike on the east...
in Nashville, TennesseeNashville, TennesseeNashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
, until his death on 2008 November 25. - Rev. Tom Plumley —Senior Minister of First Christian Church in downtown Fort Worth, TexasFort Worth, TexasFort Worth is the 16th-largest city in the United States of America and the fifth-largest city in the state of Texas. Located in North Central Texas, just southeast of the Texas Panhandle, the city is a cultural gateway into the American West and covers nearly in Tarrant, Parker, Denton, and...
. The Church is affiliated with the Christian Church Disciples of Christ. - Rev. Ray Flachmeier —A pastor in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in AmericaEvangelical Lutheran Church in AmericaThe Evangelical Lutheran Church in America is a mainline Protestant denomination headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. The ELCA officially came into existence on January 1, 1988, by the merging of three churches. As of December 31, 2009, it had 4,543,037 baptized members, with 2,527,941 of them...
, now serving as assistant to the president of Lutheran Social Services of the South. - Othal Hawthorne Lakey —A bishopBishopA bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
in the Christian Methodist Episcopal ChurchChristian Methodist Episcopal ChurchThe Christian Methodist Episcopal Church is a historically black denomination within the broader context of Methodism. The group was organized in 1870 when several black ministers, with the full support of their white counterparts in the former Methodist Episcopal Church, South, met to form an...
, presiding over the state of GeorgiaGeorgia (U.S. state)Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
for his denomination. His office and headquarters are in Atlanta. - Dr. Bert B. Beach —A minister in the Seventh-day Adventist ChurchSeventh-day Adventist ChurchThe Seventh-day Adventist Church is a Protestant Christian denomination distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the original seventh day of the Judeo-Christian week, as the Sabbath, and by its emphasis on the imminent second coming of Jesus Christ...
, residing in Silver Spring, MarylandSilver Spring, MarylandSilver Spring is an unincorporated area and census-designated place in Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. It had a population of 71,452 at the 2010 census, making it the fourth most populous place in Maryland, after Baltimore, Columbia, and Germantown.The urbanized, oldest, and...
. He previously worked at the world headquarters of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Washington, D.C. for nearly 25 years in the areas of religious liberty and inter church relations. His is now officially retired, but his duties are still called upon as needed. - Rev. Cannon John Peterson—A minister in the U.S. Episcopal Church, serving as an official at his denomination's national cathedral in Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
- Jerry Lutz —Senior pastor of the SpencervilleSpencerville, MarylandSpencerville is an unincorporated community in Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. Spencerville is north of Cloverly. Spencerville has a post office with ZIP code 20868....
Seventh-Day Adventist ChurchSeventh-day Adventist ChurchThe Seventh-day Adventist Church is a Protestant Christian denomination distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the original seventh day of the Judeo-Christian week, as the Sabbath, and by its emphasis on the imminent second coming of Jesus Christ...
in Silver Spring, MarylandSilver Spring, MarylandSilver Spring is an unincorporated area and census-designated place in Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. It had a population of 71,452 at the 2010 census, making it the fourth most populous place in Maryland, after Baltimore, Columbia, and Germantown.The urbanized, oldest, and...
and also serves on the adjunct faculty of Washington Adventist University near Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
He has since become the moderator after Stephen Gifford's retirement. - Dr. Carl C. Trovall —Associate Professor of Christian Ethics at Concordia University Texas residing in Austin and ordained Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod minister.
Charter
Each episode closes with the moderator reciting the charter of the American Religious Townhall, which provides that "Roman Catholics, Protestants, JewsJews
The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
, educators and others may appear on this program and can declare their beliefs without hesitancy and the rest of the members of the panel will uphold and guarantee that American right to all who will appear, irrespective of race or creed
Creed
A creed is a statement of belief—usually a statement of faith that describes the beliefs shared by a religious community—and is often recited as part of a religious service. When the statement of faith is longer and polemical, as well as didactic, it is not called a creed but a Confession of faith...
, so that the rest of the world can see that, here in America, we believe in civil and religious freedom, not only in theory but in reality."