Bishop Jim Lowe gives Glenn an update on the latest happening in Birmingham

June 11, 2015

Writer

Bishop Jim Lowe of Guiding Light Church will be hosting Glenn on 8/28 in Birmingham, Alabama for the five-year anniversary of Restoring Honor. Ever since Glenn made the announcement on Monday, people have been flooding the church's phone lines to get more details and make it known they will be there. The event is already starting to get bigger than anyone anticipated, and Bishop Lowe gave Glenn the latest information on what's been happening in Birmingham since the announcement.

Find out more about the 'Never Again Is Now' campaign from Mercury One.

GLENN: Bishop Jim Lowe is our guest. I wanted to get him on the phone and find out how things are going in Birmingham, Alabama, where we'll be at his church, Guiding Light Church, on August 28th. The five-year anniversary to Restoring Honor. Bishop, I have a feeling this thing will grow a little out of control in a good way.

JIM: Well, it looks like it's doing that already. We're getting a lot of people asking questions from all over the nation.

So we're ready to try to see what we can do in order to make this be a great event and to have people come together.

GLENN: I have a feeling. It will be Friday and Saturday.

JIM: Yes, sir.

GLENN: And let me tell you what happened at 8/28, five years ago. We went and we rented the Kennedy Center, and we did a deal at the Kennedy Center. And I had all the pastors and everybody gathered there. There was about -- what was it? 3,000 people that went there?

PAT: Uh-huh.

GLENN: The next day, we did something open for everybody at just an open space in the mall. There were 500,000 people that were there. I don't think we'll hit that or anywhere close to that. But I have a feeling there will be a lot of people there. A lot of people.

JIM: The phone lines have been lighting up. And like I said, got people coming from all over. This looks like it will be a great thing to do when people come to Birmingham, where -- you know, this is where the civil rights struggle was. The struggle for civil rights. And now as we're coming together, we're talking about all lives matter. And the rights of every human being. This seems like this is a good place for that.

GLENN: It sure does.

JIM: To launch forward.

GLENN: So, Bishop, I did notice that you posted something on Facebook. And I know you had a meeting either tonight or last night. With your -- with your congregation because it seems to me that -- the post I read on your Facebook page, seems to me you're getting pushback on being with -- well, with me and apparently I have a Klan mask someplace, so...

JIM: Well, is it in your pocket? Do you have it in?

GLENN: Well, I don't actually have one.

JIM: They say all kinds of things. Quite frankly, Glenn, I don't care about that. What I'm concerned about is the fact that we're unifying together on a principle that we can agree upon. I think people have to recognize and stop looking at one another by the color of their skin or even by what their thought processes may be. We have to learn to join together for principles that are greater than our things that separate us. This thing about all lives matters is what's important. We can agree on that whether you're black or white. If I could get a Klansman to agree that my life is important, I mean, that's good.

GLENN: Okay. I want to make it clear. I'm not a Klansman.

[laughter]

GLENN: So, Bishop, let me ask you this, because this is on your Facebook page, and I don't know why you meant by this.

The question may be asked why I, Jim Lowe, a black man with my background would be willing to work with Glenn Beck, a white man, with his background. My first and most accurate response is, as Jim Lowe, the black man, I would not. But the truth is, I refuse to be defined by the color of my skin and see myself defined by any other man.

Explain that a bit. What do you mean by this?

JIM: Well, listen, Glenn, here's the problem. When people start putting labels on people, they define them. And if you define somebody and a person believes what you define them to be, then their destiny is based upon how they're defined. If I'm told by my parents that I'm dumb. I'm not going to be anything. Then my destiny is affected by the thoughts they have created in my mind. If you can label me and get me thinking that I won't amount to something because of some name that you'll give me. Then that limits me because of how you define me. I refuse to be defined by what some individual wants to call me. I have been defined by my Creator, my God who has created me. And only he has a right to determine what I am to become. No one else. And so if I'm defined by people to be a black person, a black man, then I'm limited to what the concepts of what are acceptable norms for black people. I refuse to be put in a box and be labeled by what humankind says I am, when I have a divine kind that has proclaimed that I'm much more than what man can say I can be. Does that make sense to you?

GLENN: Yes, it sure does. Bishop, let me -- what do you think -- what do you think is happening here? Because I think -- you know, you're -- I've done this. And so I know this audience. And I know what's coming. And I just know how this will work out. But that's not the world you live in. What do you think is happening? What are you feeling?

JIM: Glenn, I believe that God has a purpose for all of us. And I believe that this message that the love of God must be heard and it must be heard at times like these when our streets are -- are being torn up by riots of people talking about justice. No -- no justice, no peace. You cannot do things like this if you expect there to be justice. The message of the truth of the Gospel of the Word of God must be preached. And people must hear. The pulpits must proclaim it. People must speak out for what the truth is and be unashamed of the Gospel. I'm not ashamed of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It is the answer that is the answer to the problems of the world today. I'm more intent on being biblically correct than politically correct. And if that means that some people will be challenged by the things I say, so be it. Because I'm not defined by a political doctrine. I'm defined by what God says.

GLENN: You and I both know that I didn't pick Birmingham, and you didn't pick me.

JIM: No. No.

GLENN: You and I were both there. And thank goodness we have witnesses of it because it sounds nuts.

JIM: It does.

GLENN: But when I saw you in an audience that I was speaking to, I knew I had to talk to you. And I didn't know -- do you remember what I said to you when I first walked up to you?

JIM: Yes. Like, I don't know what I'm supposed to say to you. But I feel like the Lord is telling me I need to talk to you.

GLENN: And you said back to me, well, I just wrote you a letter because the Lord told me to write you a letter and I didn't know I was going to be here.

JIM: No, I didn't know that. It was my surprise that we wound up being in your studios. I didn't know that. I didn't control that.

GLENN: Right. Right. And so -- and I still haven't seen your letter. So I don't know what you even wrote to me.

JIM: Glenn, I didn't even mail it. I was thinking -- I thought to myself -- I mean, when I heard you speak about things you want to do, I felt something saying, you need to talk to this man. You need to meet him. And I'm saying, okay, yeah, really, Glenn Beck? Then we wind up getting an opportunity to come to Dallas. Then we wind up that I'm going to be in your studios. I didn't plan that.

You know, the thing about it is that we have a choice in our destiny of what we want to do. But God, he's the one that works the purposes out. He's the one that fulfills our plans, who orders our steps. I was sent there to you by God.

I know people think that's crazy, but that's okay. I'm a man of God. What else do you expect me to say? All glory and honor to God.

GLENN: That's right. And I will tell you this, Bishop, there are -- there are plans and things that I saw in my own head that I don't have the capability, I don't have the staff, I don't have the finances, and everything else to do the things that I want to do. And you and I, through our people I guess, have been talking back and forth. I know what's happening in your city now, and I think exactly what I thought was going to happen -- what I think I've seen is going to happen now, and there's no way I could have pulled it off myself. There's no way any of that. And here you are a guy who is saying, hey, I think we should do this. You're putting something together that I've already seen without knowing what I am seeing. Why do you suppose that God picked Birmingham, Alabama, and your church?

JIM: Listen, Birmingham has been known -- it's known a lot of times because of the racial strike that occurred in the '60s. And it's been known because it's one of the places that they talk about. They always talk about the firehoses and the dogs and everything. My father grew up in this city. And I grew up in this city. I'm familiar. I saw the firehoses. I saw the dogs.

I made mistakes sometimes of going to a white fountain, and my mother hollering at me, move -- you can't go there. You can't go there. I've had to go to the bathrooms that were the colored bathrooms. I know about all of that. That's what our history is of Birmingham. But I choose not to remember that history. I choose to remember that we've overcome those things. That we've achieved a great mighty things in the city of Birmingham. We have a black mayor now. We have city council predominantly black. We do things. We're excelling. We're moving forward.

We don't need to always look back at our past and point the finger at somebody. We need to look at the future and look at how we can come together. And what I believe, it's through the love of the Lord that we come together, that we join hands.

If you came to Birmingham now, if you look for it, you may look to find trouble and racism. But you know what, I live here. I don't see that much of that. There may be others that do because they look for it. But I look for the human beings that are here, that have a heart, that are looking to make this city better. And that's what Birmingham is becoming. That's what Birmingham can show the world.

GLENN: I find it remarkable that the guy who walks in to my studio is the guy who is not only at the city where Martin Luther King began, but also at a time when the country is pulling itself apart, was the epicenter of some of the worst stuff of the 1960s. And we're going to be able to show an explosion of black and white and love coming together. I mean, I think only God could design something like this.

JIM: I give credit to him. I give that glory to him. And to be able to be a part of this is an honor to me. But all I want to do is to let people know, even for my city, I want them to know that it is because of Almighty God that we've been able to hold together. You haven't heard anything like what happened in Ferguson or Baltimore. You haven't heard of that. In most of the South, you don't hear of it. Because what we have in our churches, in our black churches and our white curches, most of all, you're getting taught the Word of God. You're not getting the watered-down mixture of what God says or what some man feels. You're getting the truth. And it's that truth that holds us together. That's what unifies us. When we begin to understand the brotherhood of mankind that all people, black and white, whatever, Asian, Hispanic, that we're all creatures of God and all of our lives we've been created by God for a purpose. And when we honor that, we fulfill what God has for us to do. We learn to work together. To share together. To build together. Because God put us here together.

If he didn't want us to be together, he would not have put us together. And that goes for you and me, Glenn.

GLENN: Bishop Jim Lowe. He is from Birmingham, Alabama. The Guiding Light Church, where we'll kick off a tour and a speaking engagement all around the country. This is the only one that we've announced, and this is the first one. And this is going -- I believe this is going to become historic. All part of our Never Again is Now campaign to bring attention to wake up our churches and bring attention and aid to those in the Middle East who are being slaughtered in Allah's name because they either don't worship Allah, they don't worship Allah enough. They worship a Christian God, a Jewish God, or they just live a different lifestyle than what ISIS says is acceptable. That must stop. And we must stand together as one.

JIM: We must stand together for what's going on in the streets of America too. We must stand together and evergreens that the lives of those blacks and whites and policeman, they all matter also. Listen, if I can rise up above -- in the -- in my church where above, they tried to kill me and how many others there, and I'm ready to still stand together in love for other people, all lives matter. If I can overcome it, others can overcome.

GLENN: Bishop, I love you. Thank you very much.

JIM: God bless you.

'Rage against the dying of the light': Charlie Kirk lived that mandate

PHILL MAGAKOE / Contributor | Getty Images

Kirk’s tragic death challenges us to rise above fear and anger, to rebuild bridges where others build walls, and to fight for the America he believed in.

I’ve only felt this weight once before. It was 2001, just as my radio show was about to begin. The World Trade Center fell, and I was called to speak immediately. I spent the day and night by my bedside, praying for words that could meet the moment.

Yesterday, I found myself in the same position. September 11, 2025. The assassination of Charlie Kirk. A friend. A warrior for truth.

Out of this tragedy, the tyrant dies, but the martyr’s influence begins.

Moments like this make words feel inadequate. Yet sometimes, words from another time speak directly to our own. In 1947, Dylan Thomas, watching his father slip toward death, penned lines that now resonate far beyond his own grief:

Do not go gentle into that good night. / Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Thomas was pleading for his father to resist the impending darkness of death. But those words have become a mandate for all of us: Do not surrender. Do not bow to shadows. Even when the battle feels unwinnable.

Charlie Kirk lived that mandate. He knew the cost of speaking unpopular truths. He knew the fury of those who sought to silence him. And yet he pressed on. In his life, he embodied a defiance rooted not in anger, but in principle.

Picking up his torch

Washington, Jefferson, Adams — our history was started by men who raged against an empire, knowing the gallows might await. Lincoln raged against slavery. Martin Luther King Jr. raged against segregation. Every generation faces a call to resist surrender.

It is our turn. Charlie’s violent death feels like a knockout punch. Yet if his life meant anything, it means this: Silence in the face of darkness is not an option.

He did not go gently. He spoke. He challenged. He stood. And now, the mantle falls to us. To me. To you. To every American.

We cannot drift into the shadows. We cannot sit quietly while freedom fades. This is our moment to rage — not with hatred, not with vengeance, but with courage. Rage against lies, against apathy, against the despair that tells us to do nothing. Because there is always something you can do.

Even small acts — defiance, faith, kindness — are light in the darkness. Reaching out to those who mourn. Speaking truth in a world drowning in deceit. These are the flames that hold back the night. Charlie carried that torch. He laid it down yesterday. It is ours to pick up.

The light may dim, but it always does before dawn. Commit today: I will not sleep as freedom fades. I will not retreat as darkness encroaches. I will not be silent as evil forces claim dominion. I have no king but Christ. And I know whom I serve, as did Charlie.

Two turning points, decades apart

On Wednesday, the world changed again. Two tragedies, separated by decades, bound by the same question: Who are we? Is this worth saving? What kind of people will we choose to be?

Imagine a world where more of us choose to be peacemakers. Not passive, not silent, but builders of bridges where others erect walls. Respect and listening transform even the bitterest of foes. Charlie Kirk embodied this principle.

He did not strike the weak; he challenged the powerful. He reached across divides of politics, culture, and faith. He changed hearts. He sparked healing. And healing is what our nation needs.

At the center of all this is one truth: Every person is a child of God, deserving of dignity. Change will not happen in Washington or on social media. It begins at home, where loneliness and isolation threaten our souls. Family is the antidote. Imperfect, yes — but still the strongest source of stability and meaning.

Mark Wilson / Staff | Getty Images

Forgiveness, fidelity, faithfulness, and honor are not dusty words. They are the foundation of civilization. Strong families produce strong citizens. And today, Charlie’s family mourns. They must become our family too. We must stand as guardians of his legacy, shining examples of the courage he lived by.

A time for courage

I knew Charlie. I know how he would want us to respond: Multiply his courage. Out of this tragedy, the tyrant dies, but the martyr’s influence begins. Out of darkness, great and glorious things will sprout — but we must be worthy of them.

Charlie Kirk lived defiantly. He stood in truth. He changed the world. And now, his torch is in our hands. Rage, not in violence, but in unwavering pursuit of truth and goodness. Rage against the dying of the light.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.

Glenn Beck resurrects the 9-12 Project to support Charlie Kirk's family

Glenn Beck is once again calling on his loyal listeners and viewers to come together and channel the same unity and purpose that defined the historic 9-12 Project. That movement, born in the wake of national challenges, brought millions together to revive core values of faith, hope, and charity.

Glenn created the original 9-12 Project in early 2009 to bring Americans back to where they were in the wake of the 9/11 attacks. In those moments, we weren't Democrats and Republicans, conservative or liberal, Red States or Blue States, we were united as one, as America. The original 9-12 Project aimed to root America back in the founding principles of this country that united us during those darkest of days.

This new initiative draws directly from that legacy, focusing on supporting the family of Charlie Kirk in these dark days following his tragic murder.

The revival of the 9-12 Project aims to secure the long-term well-being of Charlie Kirk's wife and children. All donations will go straight to meeting their immediate and future needs. If the family deems the funds surplus to their requirements, Charlie's wife has the option to redirect them toward the vital work of Turning Point USA.

This campaign is more than just financial support—it's a profound gesture of appreciation for Kirk's tireless dedication to the cause of liberty. It embodies the unbreakable bond of our community, proving that when we stand united, we can make a real difference.
Glenn Beck invites you to join this effort. Show your solidarity by donating today and honoring Charlie Kirk and his family in this meaningful way.

You can learn more about the 9-12 Project and donate HERE

The critical difference: Rights from the Creator, not the state

Bloomberg / Contributor | Getty Images

When politicians claim that rights flow from the state, they pave the way for tyranny.

Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) recently delivered a lecture that should alarm every American. During a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing, he argued that believing rights come from a Creator rather than government is the same belief held by Iran’s theocratic regime.

Kaine claimed that the principles underpinning Iran’s dictatorship — the same regime that persecutes Sunnis, Jews, Christians, and other minorities — are also the principles enshrined in our Declaration of Independence.

In America, rights belong to the individual. In Iran, rights serve the state.

That claim exposes either a profound misunderstanding or a reckless indifference to America’s founding. Rights do not come from government. They never did. They come from the Creator, as the Declaration of Independence proclaims without qualification. Jefferson didn’t hedge. Rights are unalienable — built into every human being.

This foundation stands worlds apart from Iran. Its leaders invoke God but grant rights only through clerical interpretation. Freedom of speech, property, religion, and even life itself depend on obedience to the ruling clerics. Step outside their dictates, and those so-called rights vanish.

This is not a trivial difference. It is the essence of liberty versus tyranny. In America, rights belong to the individual. The government’s role is to secure them, not define them. In Iran, rights serve the state. They empower rulers, not the people.

From Muhammad to Marx

The same confusion applies to Marxist regimes. The Soviet Union’s constitutions promised citizens rights — work, health care, education, freedom of speech — but always with fine print. If you spoke out against the party, those rights evaporated. If you practiced religion openly, you were charged with treason. Property and voting were allowed as long as they were filtered and controlled by the state — and could be revoked at any moment. Rights were conditional, granted through obedience.

Kaine seems to be advocating a similar approach — whether consciously or not. By claiming that natural rights are somehow comparable to sharia law, he ignores the critical distinction between inherent rights and conditional privileges. He dismisses the very principle that made America a beacon of freedom.

Jefferson and the founders understood this clearly. “We are endowed by our Creator with certain unalienable rights,” they wrote. No government, no cleric, no king can revoke them. They exist by virtue of humanity itself. The government exists to protect them, not ration them.

This is not a theological quibble. It is the entire basis of our government. Confuse the source of rights, and tyranny hides behind piety or ideology. The people are disempowered. Clerics, bureaucrats, or politicians become arbiters of what rights citizens may enjoy.

John Greim / Contributor | Getty Images

Gifts from God, not the state

Kaine’s statement reflects either a profound ignorance of this principle or an ideological bias that favors state power over individual liberty. Either way, Americans must recognize the danger. Understanding the origin of rights is not academic — it is the difference between freedom and submission, between the American experiment and theocratic or totalitarian rule.

Rights are not gifts from the state. They are gifts from God, secured by reason, protected by law, and defended by the people. Every American must understand this. Because when rights come from government instead of the Creator, freedom disappears.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.

POLL: Is Gen Z’s anger over housing driving them toward socialism?

NurPhoto / Contributor | Getty Images

A recent poll conducted by Justin Haskins, a long-time friend of the show, has uncovered alarming trends among young Americans aged 18-39, revealing a generation grappling with deep frustrations over economic hardships, housing affordability, and a perceived rigged system that favors the wealthy, corporations, and older generations. While nearly half of these likely voters approve of President Trump, seeing him as an anti-establishment figure, over 70% support nationalizing major industries, such as healthcare, energy, and big tech, to promote "equity." Shockingly, 53% want a democratic socialist to win the 2028 presidential election, including a third of Trump voters and conservatives in this age group. Many cite skyrocketing housing costs, unfair taxation on the middle class, and a sense of being "stuck" or in crisis as driving forces, with 62% believing the economy is tilted against them and 55% backing laws to confiscate "excess wealth" like second homes or luxury items to help first-time buyers.

This blend of Trump support and socialist leanings suggests a volatile mix: admiration for disruptors who challenge the status quo, coupled with a desire for radical redistribution to address personal struggles. Yet, it raises profound questions about the roots of this discontent—Is it a failure of education on history's lessons about socialism's failures? Media indoctrination? Or genuine systemic barriers? And what does it portend for the nation’s trajectory—greater division, a shift toward authoritarian policies, or an opportunity for renewal through timeless values like hard work and individual responsibility?

Glenn wants to know what YOU think: Where do Gen Z's socialist sympathies come from? What does it mean for the future of America? Make your voice heard in the poll below:

Do you believe the Gen Z support for socialism comes from perceived economic frustrations like unaffordable housing and a rigged system favoring the wealthy and corporations?

Do you believe the Gen Z support for socialism, including many Trump supporters, is due to a lack of education about the historical failures of socialist systems?

Do you think that these poll results indicate a growing generational divide that could lead to more political instability and authoritarian tendencies in America's future?

Do you think that this poll implies that America's long-term stability relies on older generations teaching Gen Z and younger to prioritize self-reliance, free-market ideals, and personal accountability?

Glenn's Show Prep