Richard D. Land (born 1946) is the president of
Southern Evangelical Seminary
Southern Evangelical Seminary is a Christian college in Matthews, North Carolina, United States.
History
The seminary was established in 1992 by Norman Geisler and Ross Rhoads. The college, Southern Evangelical Bible College (SEBC), was estab ...
in
Charlotte
Charlotte ( ) is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont (United States), Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, Meckl ...
,
North Carolina
North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...
, a post he has held since July 2013.
Formerly he served as president of the
Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission
The Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC) is the public policy arm of the Southern Baptist Convention, the second-largest Christian denomination in the United States, with over 16 million members in over 43,000 independent churches. Pr ...
(ERLC), the public policy arm of the
Southern Baptist Convention
The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) is a Christian denomination based in the United States. It is the world's largest Baptist denomination, and the largest Protestant and second-largest Christian denomination in the United States. The wor ...
in the United States, a post he held from 1988 to 2013, when he stepped down in the wake of his controversial comments about the
Trayvon Martin case. He announced his intention to retire effective October 23, 2013, and
Russell D. Moore
Russell D. Moore (born 9 October 1971) is an American theologian, ethicist, and preacher. In June 2021, he became the director of the Public Theology Project at '' Christianity Today'', and on August 4, 2022, was announced as the magazine's incom ...
filled the post.
Land hosted the nationally syndicated
radio program
A radio program, radio programme, or radio show is a segment of content intended for broadcast on radio. It may be a one-time production or part of a periodically recurring series. A single program in a series is called an episode.
Radio networ ...
''Richard Land Live!'' from 2002 to 2012. He is the executive editor of ''
The Christian Post''.
Education
Land received his
A.B.
Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...
in history from
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private university, private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial Colleges, fourth-oldest ins ...
in 1969. He later received his
Th.M.
Master of Theology ( la, Theologiae Magister, abbreviated MTh, ThM, or MTheol) is a post-graduate degree offered by universities, divinity schools, and seminaries. It can serve as a transition degree for entrance into a PhD program or as a stand ...
from
New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary
New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary (NOBTS) is a Baptist theological institute in New Orleans, Louisiana. It is affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention. Missions and evangelism are core focuses of the seminary.
NOBTS offers doctoral ...
and
DPhil
A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is a ...
from
Regent’s Park
Regent's Park (officially The Regent's Park) is one of the Royal Parks of London. It occupies of high ground in north-west Inner London, administratively split between the City of Westminster and the Borough of Camden (and historically betwe ...
,
University of Oxford
, mottoeng = The Lord is my light
, established =
, endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019)
, budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20)
, chancellor ...
, where he did his doctorate research on the
Puritan movement in 17th century England.
Public policy positions
Religious issues
In 2001, President
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...
appointed Land to the
U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom
The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) is a U.S. federal government commission created by the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998, International Religious Freedom Act (IRFA) of 1998. USCIRF Commissioners ...
(USCIRF), a federal agency, created by the
International Religious Freedom Act of 1998, for the purpose of monitoring the
freedom of conscience, thought, and religion abroad.
Land was the primary author of the "
Land letter
The Land letter was a letter sent to U.S. President George W. Bush by five evangelical Christian leaders on October 3, 2002, outlining their support for a just war pre-emptive invasion of Iraq. As its foundation for support, the letter refers t ...
", an
open letter to President George W. Bush by leaders of the
religious right in October 2002 which outlined a "
just war" argument in support of the subsequent
2003 invasion of Iraq
The 2003 invasion of Iraq was a United States-led invasion of the Republic of Iraq and the first stage of the Iraq War. The invasion phase began on 19 March 2003 (air) and 20 March 2003 (ground) and lasted just over one month, including 26 ...
.
Bush reappointed Land for a second term in June 2004, and was reappointed by Majority Leader
Bill Frist in July 2005. Land ended his term on the commission in 2011, after almost a decade of service. Bush appointed Land to serve on the Honorary Delegation to accompany him to
Jerusalem
Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...
for the 60th anniversary of the State of
Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
in May 2008.
Land has been appointed to a Board of Reference for the establishment of the Judge
Paul Pressler School of Law in
Shreveport
Shreveport ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is the third most populous city in Louisiana after New Orleans and Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Baton Rouge, respectively. The Shreveport–Bossier City metropolitan area, with a population o ...
,
Louisiana
Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...
. The facility, which intends to stress the Creator God,
inalienable rights, and original intent of the
U.S. Constitution
The Constitution of the United States is the supreme law of the United States of America. It superseded the Articles of Confederation, the nation's first constitution, in 1789. Originally comprising seven articles, it delineates the natio ...
, will be tied to Baptist-affiliated
Louisiana College in
Pineville.
Abortion and same-sex marriage
Land advocates for a literal interpretation of the bible on issues ranging from religious liberty to the economy. In 2005, Land was recognized as one of the "25 Most Influential Evangelicals in America" by
''Time'' magazine. In November 2009, Land signed an ecumenical statement known as the ''
Manhattan Declaration: A Call of Christian Conscience'', a statement opposing abortion and same-sex marriage. It was originally signed by about 150 prominent Christian clergy, ministry leaders, and scholars and was released at a press conference in
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
Sharia
In July 2011, Land spoke about
Muslims
Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abraha ...
and
Sharia
Sharia (; ar, شريعة, sharīʿa ) is a body of religious law that forms a part of the Islamic tradition. It is derived from the religious precepts of Islam and is based on the sacred scriptures of Islam, particularly the Quran and the H ...
. He said while using Islamic law in U.S. courts was unconstitutional, Muslims had the right to abide by Islamic rules, so long as they weren't imposed on the government. He concluded that Muslims had the right to have a
mosque
A mosque (; from ar, مَسْجِد, masjid, ; literally "place of ritual prostration"), also called masjid, is a place of prayer for Muslims. Mosques are usually covered buildings, but can be any place where prayers ( sujud) are performed, ...
near where they live, the right to use Islamic customs in their marriages, and the right to choose to
veil
A veil is an article of clothing or hanging cloth that is intended to cover some part of the head or face, or an object of some significance. Veiling has a long history in European, Asian, and African societies. The practice has been prominent ...
.
Gun rights
In the aftermath of the
Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting
The Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting occurred on December 14, 2012, in Newtown, Connecticut, United States, when 20-year-old Adam Lanza shot and killed 26 people. Twenty of the victims were children between six and seven years old, and t ...
in
Newtown,
Connecticut
Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...
, in December 2012, Land made the following comments in an
NPR interview regarding the use of a weapon: "If I find that someone is trying to do harm to someone else, I believe that I have a moral and Christian obligation to do what ever I can - with the least amount of violence necessary - but if necessary, ''lethal'' violence to stop them from harming others. That's loving my neighbor as myself. That's doing unto others as I would have them do unto me."
Immigration reform
At a November 19, 2012
American Enterprise Institute event on
immigration reform
Immigration reform is change to the current immigration policy of a country. In its strict definition, ''reform'' means "to change into an improved form or condition, by amending or removing faults or abuses". In the political sense, "immigration ...
, Land stated that he was "ashamed" of the
Republican Party
Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party.
Republican Party may also refer to:
Africa
*Republican Party (Liberia)
* Republican Part ...
in the
2012 presidential election
This national electoral calendar for 2012 lists the national/federal elections held in 2012 in all sovereign states and their dependent territories. By-elections are excluded, though national referendums are included.
January
*3–4 January: E ...
.
Trayvon Martin remarks and ethics investigation
On the March 31, 2012 edition of ''Richard Land Live!'', Land accused the
Obama administration
Barack Obama's tenure as the 44th president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 2009, and ended on January 20, 2017. A Democrat from Illinois, Obama took office following a decisive victory over Republican ...
and civil rights leaders of using the
Trayvon Martin case to deliberately stir up racial tension and "gin up the black vote" for Obama in the
2012 presidential election
This national electoral calendar for 2012 lists the national/federal elections held in 2012 in all sovereign states and their dependent territories. By-elections are excluded, though national referendums are included.
January
*3–4 January: E ...
. His comments were criticized by several black Southern Baptist pastors, who felt they reversed a long effort by the SBC to distance itself from a past history of racism. One of those pastors,
Dwight McKissic, even announced he would introduce a resolution repudiating Land's remarks. Land refused to back down, saying that he would not "bow to the false god of
political correctness
''Political correctness'' (adjectivally: ''politically correct''; commonly abbreviated ''PC'') is a term used to describe language, policies, or measures that are intended to avoid offense or disadvantage to members of particular groups in socie ...
". Soon thereafter he wrote an open letter of apology for "any hurt or misunderstanding" that his words might have caused.
On April 14, 2012, Baptist blogger Aaron Weaver discovered that Land's commentary on the Martin case had been lifted almost verbatim and without attribution from a column by
Jeffrey Kuhner of ''
The Washington Times
''The Washington Times'' is an American conservative daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., that covers general interest topics with a particular emphasis on national politics. Its broadsheet daily edition is distributed throughout ...
''. According to Weaver, while Land included a link to the article in show notes that were posted online, he did not disclose that his commentary was based almost entirely on that column. Weaver also discovered that Land had also lifted material in previous broadcasts from other sources as well and passed them off as his own words.
In response, the ERLC's executive committee removed the entire archive of past broadcasts of ''Richard Land Live!'' and launched an internal investigation. It also expressed concern that Land's comments about the Martin shooting "opened wounds from the past". The committee released the findings of its investigation on June 1. It reprimanded Land for using "hurtful, irresponsible, insensitive, and racially charged words" about the Martin case, and apologized to Martin's family. It also found that Land had used "carelessness and poor judgment" in lifting material from other sources without attribution, calling it a case of clear
plagiarism
Plagiarism is the fraudulent representation of another person's language, thoughts, ideas, or expressions as one's own original work.From the 1995 '' Random House Compact Unabridged Dictionary'': use or close imitation of the language and thought ...
. It found no evidence that Land had plagiarized any of his written work. The committee also announced that ''Richard Land Live!'' would be canceled as soon as its contract with distributor
Salem Radio Network
Salem Radio Network is a United States-based radio network that specializes in syndicated Christian political talk, music, and conservative secular news/talk programming. It is a division of the Salem Media Group.
Network information
Salem Rad ...
allowed it to do so, saying that the show was "not congruent with the mission of the ERLC". The next day, Land announced on the weekly edition of ''Richard Land Live!'' that the show was leaving the air, effective immediately.
Land was quick to praise the 2012 election of
Fred Luter
Fred J. Luter Jr. (born 1956 November 11 in New Orleans) is a former president of the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC). He was elected on 2012 June 19, and was SBC's first African-American president. According to Southeastern Baptist Theological ...
as the first
African-American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...
to preside over the
Southern Baptist Convention
The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) is a Christian denomination based in the United States. It is the world's largest Baptist denomination, and the largest Protestant and second-largest Christian denomination in the United States. The wor ...
.
Land was one of 25 nominees to an “executive advisory board” of evangelical pastors proposed by then-candidate Donald Trump in the runup to the 2016 Presidential election.
Selected publications
Books
*
*
*
*
Articles
"God and Immigration Reform" ''
USA Today
''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgini ...
'', 16 August 2010
"The Consequential Election of 2010" ''
The Hill'', 5 November 2010
"Don’t Ignore Social Conservatives" ''
New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
'' Room for Debate Blog: "What Next for the G.O.P.?", 15 November 2012
"Americans Don't Want a 'Truce' on Social Issues" ''
Wall Street Journal
''The Wall Street Journal'' is an American business-focused, international daily newspaper based in New York City, with international editions also available in Chinese and Japanese. The ''Journal'', along with its Asian editions, is published ...
'' 4 March 2011
See also
*
Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission
The Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC) is the public policy arm of the Southern Baptist Convention, the second-largest Christian denomination in the United States, with over 16 million members in over 43,000 independent churches. Pr ...
*''
Manhattan Declaration: A Call of Christian Conscience''
*
Land letter
The Land letter was a letter sent to U.S. President George W. Bush by five evangelical Christian leaders on October 3, 2002, outlining their support for a just war pre-emptive invasion of Iraq. As its foundation for support, the letter refers t ...
*
List of Southern Baptist Convention affiliated people
*
Southern Baptist Convention
The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) is a Christian denomination based in the United States. It is the world's largest Baptist denomination, and the largest Protestant and second-largest Christian denomination in the United States. The wor ...
References
External links
Richard Landat
The Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission Richard Land Live! Radio Program''PBS Frontline: The Jesus Factor''''Meet the Press'' transcript*
*
Video interview/discussionwith
Brian McLaren
Brian D. McLaren (born 1956) is an American pastor, author, speaker, and leading figure in the emerging church movement. McLaren is also associated with postmodern Christianity.
Education and career
Raised in Rockville, Maryland in the conservat ...
on
Bloggingheads.tv2nd Conversation
{{DEFAULTSORT:Land, Richard
1946 births
Living people
Alumni of the University of Oxford
Alumni of Regent's Park College, Oxford
American columnists
New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary alumni
People involved in plagiarism controversies
Princeton University alumni
Southern Baptist ministers
American anti-abortion activists
American anti-same-sex-marriage activists