Was Liberty University Wrong to Give Mormon Glenn Beck the Platform?

Late last month, Christian Life News reported on Glenn Beck’s address at Liberty University—one that has garnered much criticism due to Beck’s Mormon faith and the university’s own staunch evangelical Christian theology.

On Monday, Christian columnist Jonathan Merritt published an emailed statement from Liberty University’s senior vice president for communications, Johnnie Moore, in which he addressed the controversy.

Moore’s email statement reads: 

“First, I must apologize for my delayed reply to you. As you well know, we just emerged from an unbelievable graduation weekend at Liberty. We had more than 34,000 people in attendance and we celebrated the graduation of more than 17,000 students. It was quite the celebration, and it consumed my time entirely until this very morning.

“Secondly, I would like to thank you for expressing your concern. Liberty takes concerns like yours extremely seriously, and that’s why I’m writing to personally address your concerns.

“You should remember that Liberty University’s Convocation is not a church service.

“We have explained over the decades repeatedly that convocation is an opportunity for students to hear from people of all faiths and from all walks of life. Liberty has also made it clear repeatedly that it does not endorse any statements made by any convocation speaker.

“By contrast, our faculty are all required to profess Liberty’s statement of faith and to affirm our doctrinal statement. Our students are all required to take many credit hours of theology and Bible courses, regardless of their major. Our students have no question about what Liberty’s doctrinal statement is. It is posted publicly for all to see. Our doctrinal statement is our public statement on Mormonism. It is the same statement that Liberty was founded upon and it will never change.

“College is about learning. How can you defend what you believe if you don’t understand what others believe? I believe our students are stronger in their faith because of our convocation speaker series and the wide diversity of views that they have been privileged to hear in person over the last few decades.

“Our president, Jerry Falwell, Jr. actually spoke to this during his remarks at our 41st annual commencement exercises this weekend. You can watch those remarks here.

“By the way, many conservative evangelical leaders who are closer to Beck than me have told me that they believe Beck has had a born again experience recently. I do not know his heart but our audience knows that he was speaking only for himself and expressing his personal opinions and beliefs, not those of Liberty University or even of Mormonism generally. As Jerry Falwell, Sr., our founder, often used to say about speakers at Liberty who had different views than him, Liberty students are smart enough to eat the fish and spit out the bones! I believe that’s as true today as it was in his day.:

Beck’s original convocation address can be found here.