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Welcome to the American Religious Town Hall Meeting, Inc.
American Religious Town Hall Meeting is a non-profit organization dedicated to:
- The preservation of basic American civil and religious liberties including freedom of speech and freedom to worship God as one chooses.
- Fostering a spirit of unity among all religions and encouraging interfaith understanding in an atmosphere of cooperation without compromise.
- Educating the American public regarding varying viewpoints through weekly worldwide television broadcast
The Charter of the American Religious Town Hall Meeting provides that Roman Catholics, Protestants, Jews, educators, and others may come on this panel and declare their beliefs without hesitancy and the rest of the members of the panel will uphold and guarantee American rights to all who will appear, regardless of race or creed, so that the rest of the world can see that America really believes in civil and religious freedom not only in theory but in reality
We are currently broadcast on Sundays on a number of local stations across America plus Dish Network (Chanel 262 at 1:00 p.m. Eastern, 12:00 noon Central 11:00 a.m. Mountain and 10:00 a.m. Pacific) and Direct TV (Chanel 378 at 2:30 p.m. Eastern, 1:30 p.m. Central 12:30 p.m. Mountain and 11:30 a.m. Pacific)
American Religious Town Hall Meeting is a non-profit corporation operating six health-care facilities and a retirement center. Since its inception “The American Religious Town Hall Meeting” program has continued as a public service to foster understanding between people of all faiths. Bishop A. A. Leiske, our founder, believed that when people talk to one another, they can come to understand one another. The photo to the right shows our five founders as they meet to sign the original agreement on December 5, 1952. The first program was telecast in St. Paul, Minnesota, on January 10, 1953. Bishop Leiske introduced the program and the subject, introduced the panelists, and then the debate began, followed by a summary. The program follows that format to this day.
- The preservation of basic American civil and religious liberties including freedom of speech and freedom to worship God as one chooses.
- Fostering a spirit of unity among all religions and encouraging interfaith understanding in an atmosphere of cooperation without compromise.
- Educating the American public regarding varying viewpoints through weekly worldwide television broadcast
The Charter of the American Religious Town Hall Meeting provides that Roman Catholics, Protestants, Jews, educators, and others may come on this panel and declare their beliefs without hesitancy and the rest of the members of the panel will uphold and guarantee American rights to all who will appear, regardless of race or creed, so that the rest of the world can see that America really believes in civil and religious freedom not only in theory but in reality
We are currently broadcast on Sundays on a number of local stations across America plus Dish Network (Chanel 262 at 1:00 p.m. Eastern, 12:00 noon Central 11:00 a.m. Mountain and 10:00 a.m. Pacific) and Direct TV (Chanel 378 at 2:30 p.m. Eastern, 1:30 p.m. Central 12:30 p.m. Mountain and 11:30 a.m. Pacific)
American Religious Town Hall Meeting is a non-profit corporation operating six health-care facilities and a retirement center. Since its inception “The American Religious Town Hall Meeting” program has continued as a public service to foster understanding between people of all faiths. Bishop A. A. Leiske, our founder, believed that when people talk to one another, they can come to understand one another. The photo to the right shows our five founders as they meet to sign the original agreement on December 5, 1952. The first program was telecast in St. Paul, Minnesota, on January 10, 1953. Bishop Leiske introduced the program and the subject, introduced the panelists, and then the debate began, followed by a summary. The program follows that format to this day.
Current panel members are:
- Dr. Bert Beach, a Seventh-day Adventist minister who worked for years at the Adventist world headquarters as a specialist in religious liberty
This is our home office located in Dallas, Texas
- Bishop Michael Duca, Catholic Diocese of Shreveport, Shreveport, Louisiana
- Reverend Ray Flachmeier is a retired Lutheran minister living in Richardson, Texas. He serves in interim pastoral positions as needed
- Bishop Othal Hawthorne Lakey presides over the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church for the state of Georgia
- Dr. Allan Lane pastors the Fort Graham Baptist Church near Lake Whitney, Texas
- Rabbi Jordan Ofseyer is rabbi of Beth Tzedec Congregation, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
- Reverend Tom Plumbley is senior pastor of the First Christian Church in Ft. Worth, Texas
- Father Michael Olson, Rector, Holy Trinity Seminary, Irving, Texas
- Reverend Canon John L. Peterson, Center for Global Justice & Reconciliation, Washington National Cathedral, Washington
In addition to the panel members, the administrator of ARTH’s Arlington nursing home, Barbara Ecord, serves as program director, while Larry Thomas, a retired ARTH nursing home administrator, is announcer. The program is produced by AMS Production Group, Andy Streitfeld Chairman of the Board and Andy Sample, Production Coordinator.
We invite you to tour this web site. We are sure you’ll be impressed with the ministry of The American Religious Town Hall Meeting – our purpose is “to beam brotherhood to the world.” We also invite you to visit any of our facilities to see how “love makes the difference.”
This is our home office located in Dallas, Texas