Allen McFarland, the former chairman of Liberty University’s Board of Trustees, recently hinted that he was demoted from his position at Liberty for speaking out about former President Donald Trump.
“I began to notice things,” McFarland said at a recent SBC Virginia (SBCV) event.
“And I began to speak out to things that maybe I shouldn’t—say things like, ‘We’re raising champions for Christ, not champions for the Republican Party. We’re raising champions for Christ, not champions for Donald Trump.’ . . .
“I thought (the board) was supposed to be doing this. But I got in trouble, trouble big time.”
McFarland is senior pastor of Calvary Evangelical Baptist Church in Portsmouth, Virginia, and has served on Liberty’s board since 1991.
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He was named chairman of Liberty’s Board of Trustees soon after Jerry Falwell, Jr. resigned as Liberty’s president amid sexual scandal, and Jerry Prevo transitioned from Liberty’s board chair to the school’s president.
In April 2021, McFarland—the first African American to serve as Liberty’s board chairman— was replaced by evangelist, Tim Lee.
At the recent SBCV event, McFarland said that soon after making his remarks about Trump, he was surprised to find the election of officers on the agenda for the next trustee meeting. McFarland added that as chairman, he was supposed to set the agenda, yet this was the first he had heard of the impending election.
Even so, McFarland said he announced the agenda item at the meeting, and someone quickly nominated someone for chairman and someone vice chairman. (After the meeting, it was announced that Tim Lee had been named chairman. William Graham, the oldest son of Samaritan’s Purse CEO Franklin Graham, assumed the position of vice chairman.)
McFarland said there was no discussion or questions at the board meeting about the election, only a quick vote. He added that after the vote, no trustees encouraged or thanked him for the work he’d done as chairman.
McFarland then compared his experience on the board to the apostle Paul’s experience described in 2 Timothy 4:16: “At my first defense, no one came to my support, but everyone deserted me . . .”
He encouraged his audience, saying, “Sometimes, it’ll seem like you are alone, that no one is with you. But I want you to know, because God is looking for someone who will carry out His purpose on earth, He will strengthen that person for Himself.”
Exposed trustee quietly leaves board
The news about McFarland’s removal as chairman comes shortly after Liberty trustee Steven Snyder departed Liberty’s board amid scandal.
In July, the podcast Gangster Capitalism revealed that Snyder had attended a bawdy, booze-filled dinner in 2020 with former Liberty president, Jerry Falwell, Jr. Sometime in November, Snyder quietly stepped off the board.
The secretive manner of Snyder’s departure prompted criticism from abuse survivor advocate and attorney Rachael Denhollander.
“(Snyder’s) removal was very recent and with no investigation or transparency,” Denhollander told The Roys Report.
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10 Responses
I truly enjoyed his message and applaud his courage to speak up his convictions. I’m not sure if his political comments are the only source for his removal but either way, I’m glad he found comfort in the scriptures. We as Christians need to understand our thorny relation with state: Christ against culture, or Christ of culture, or Christ above culture, Christ of culture or Christ transforming culture. Choose one and live up your convictions. I for one I’m not married to any political movement but I embrace freedom as the best format .
I would want this verified some more, but it appears that view on trump is now a litmus test for some (christian-claiming) people… so sad
This story needs more information. It is missing context. This stand against Trump is comparable to Paul in jail? He said, “We’re raising champions for Christ, not champions for the Republican Party. We’re raising champions for Christ, not champions for Donald Trump.” Then, he compares his stand against Trump, his loss of being the chairman to the Apostle Paul’s defense of the gospel. Which Paul was locked up for and about to die. There is a gravitas that is missing. There is truth finding comfort in the scriptures. There is also a danger in making false equivocations.
Trump’s morality would disqualify him from being an elder. Paul’s epistles lays out the qualifications for an elder. Another perspective is, this country is in danger of drastically changing and it is affecting the church. I was Pro-Trump in 2020 under the umbrella of the Gospel. The Gospel eclipses the right wing agenda. However, the Biden agenda is more anti-gospel than Trumps view for the American church. The liberal agenda is an affront to the Gospel. It is the opposite of objective truth. Our only hope is in in Christ. The political climate is from the aroma of sin, not the aroma of Christ. McFarland’s situation is a political situation not a defense of the Gospel.
As you stated, this story is missing context. You however are speaking on Dr. McFarland’s situation calling it political “and not a defense of the gospel” when he clearly speaks on it in this clip. Liberty’s motto is to raise “Champions for Christ” but they’ve forgotten that focus and were pushing the Republican Party and Trump information so much that my children didn’t want to go to their weekly Bible convocations because it was always talking politics, student events political & Jerry Jr. should’ve been a paid representative of Trump as he talked of him weekly. So yes, instead of “Champions for Christ”, Liberty was acting like “Champions for the Republican Party” is what they really wanted the kids to be. Thus, Dr. McFarland’s comment makes perfect sense.
I wouldn’t expect you to fully understand this since you stated Trump was under the “gospel umbrella”. When he only uses the upside down Bible he held, just for photo ops.
Bottom line, Dr. McFarland was correct in his speaking on everything, Liberty was disgusting in the way they handled their first ever African American on the Board of Trustees, their first ever African American Acting/Chairman of The Board & one of their best professors. Their loss. This is a true man of God and he will continue to be blessed.
I think it is shameful and disgraceful that “Christians” that support Trump never call him out on ANYTHING. What are they so afraid of? Who is their King– Jesus or Trump?
I did. He is not qualified for the highest office. The church. I view the office of elected officials on a lower level than the church. That includes Trump. I think the gravity of the Trump following is that he isn’t a career politician. Biden? Where do you rank him? It is an either or. I believe that Biblical issues would deem one to lean towards the Trump way. However, I would never have Trump preach at my church. Yet, I would support some of his political actions.
Trudy, my comments on the “Umbrella of the Gospel” is that The Gospel is above Donald Trump. Donald Trump is unfit and unqualified to hold the highest office in the earth. The office of Pastor/Elder not President. That is the church takes president over the politics. I believe we need to raise a student that are biblically literate not politically aware. Because biblical thinking informs political issues and not the reverse.
The gospel is the lens by which I decide my moral and political perspective. Since I do not “fully understand” as you stated. Let me ask a question from one who does not “fully understand”. Would you rather have a president that supports the killing of innocent babies or a one that held a Bible upside down?
Dr McFarland may be an exceptionally qualified person. But the fact that race is attached to his name is falling the narrative of the world. The reason race issues has lost its value, is that the social media has hyper-inflated the narrative of racism. Everything is racism. Terms like “toxic culture” in the church is concerning because many times the exact toxicity is not explicit.
So just clarify what I meant and not how you interpret it. We have lost the element of asking and have just labeled everything. It is easier because it debunks healthy questions.
It’s not a choice solely between a President that has a Bible upside down and one who aborts babies. It is the whole package. After looking at all the facts we may vote in different ways but voting only because position on x,y, or z is a mistake. I would say that character is important enough that may be a basis for the entire choice
Sarah,
Since both candidates in 2020 and 2016 were quite deplorable, I either did write-in candidates or voted 3rd party. People really need to stop seeing it as a binary choice and take the red pill and wake up.
How many of the people here can say that?
Well, Sarah your right. It’s not just that. However, it is factually documented over thirty years of severe corruption in the Biden family. He has sexual allegations as well, his son on an energy company that paid him a lot of $$$ to get influence over Joe Biden, plagiarism, making decisions for optics to remove soldiers from Afghanistan which killed Americans and left people behind. Cutting pipeline jobs for Americans and giving Russia a sweetheart deal. Been fact-checked on a liberal site and found over 130 lies in the last 2 years. I’m not champion Trump, but Biden is by a lot of polling data. The most corrupt president in US history. Had he been a republican he would be impeached on at least 6 issues in the last year. Washington Post fact checkers said he mais 67 lies in the first 100 days.There is video evidence that he is a racist or at least made a few racial statements. Jonathan Turley, an attorney, well regarded legal scholar and a liberal. Has serious concerns about Biden corruption. That’s the whole package!!!