Liberty University, founded by the late evangelical minister Jerry Falwell, has long held a powerful sway in the Christian community. However, they are starting to show a different side about what types of Christians are and are not acceptable there. Essentially, those who are against President Donald Trump, who current University President Jerry Falwell Jr. supports completely, are not welcome on campus.
Jonathan Martin, a Christian writer who has spoken out against both Trump and Liberty University in the past, found this out on Tuesday night. Martin was a guest on campus of the band Johnnyswim, and was planning on hosting a prayer meeting after the band’s concert with like-minded students of the university.
Instead, Martin was escorted off campus by armed police during the show, and later posted this image to Twitter:
Tonight after the @JOHNNYSWIM show, 3 armed @LibertyU police officers (& I think 2 not in uniform)came & escorted me out of their green room pic.twitter.com/eigyE1LjaG
— Jonathan Martin (@theboyonthebike) October 31, 2017
If you are unable to read the restriction notice, it says:
“This is to inform you that you have been restricted from all property of Liberty University. This restriction is effective immediately and will be continued indefinitely until further notice is given.
Should you appear on the property of Liberty University, you will be arrested for trespassing in accordance with Virginia law.”
Not very Christian of them. The University defended their actions in a statement sent to Vox Media, stating that Martin had not gone through the necessary paperwork and procedures to protest on campus:
“While University community members can freely make arrangements for their events, those who are not members of the University community have a higher burden to be granted access to Liberty University’s facilities for their private purposes.”
Martin has been extremely critical of both Trump and Liberty University before. In an post from October 22, he criticized politicizing of Christianity:
“Jesus comes to set the captives free. American Christianity has too often come to make the captives mannerly.”
In another post, he directly criticized Liberty University, and explained why he needed to lead a prayer group there:
“[Liberty University is] ground zero strategically for the counterfeit faith that is sweeping many evangelical churches right now.”
Falwell Jr., who started running Liberty after his father’s death in 2007, has come under fire before for being both an evangelical Christian and supporting Trump. Here he is speaking with Anderson Cooper last summer about why he supports Trump:
Featured image via Flickr user Taber Andrew Bain / CC BY 2.0.
