About Barry W. Lynn
The Rev. Barry W. Lynn has served since 1992 as executive director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, a Washington, D.C.-based organization dedicated to the preservation of the Constitution’s religious liberty provisions.
In addition to his work as a long-time activist and lawyer in the civil liberties field, Lynn is an ordained minister in the United Church of Christ, offering him a unique perspective on church-state issues.
An accomplished speaker and lecturer, Lynn has appeared frequently on television and radio broadcasts to offer analysis of First Amendment issues. News programs on which Lynn has appeared include PBS’s “NewsHour,” NBC’s “Today Show,” Fox News Channel’s “O’Reilly Factor,” ABC’s “Nightline,” CNN’s “Crossfire,” CBS’s “60 Minutes,” Fox News Channel’s “Hannity & Colmes,” ABC’s “Good Morning America,” CNN’s “Larry King Live” and the national nightly news on NBC, ABC and CBS.
Lynn is an aggressive and persuasive debater who’s never afraid to take on Religious Right leaders in any forum. Over the years, he sparred with Jerry Falwell, Pat Robertson, Tony Perkins, Jay Sekulow and a host of other Religious Right figures.
Always comfortable behind a microphone, Lynn served for two years as regular co-host of “Pat Buchanan and Company” and more recently did a weekly syndicated radio program, “Review of the News,” with Col. Oliver North. He is a regular guest on nationally broadcast radio programs, including National Public Radio’s “All Things Considered,” “Morning Edition” and “Talk of the Nation,” and has appeared on national networks such as CBS Radio, CNN Radio, ABC Radio and AP Radio. Lynn currently hosts his own syndicated daily radio program, “Culture Shocks.”
Lynn, a frequent commentator in the print media, has been quoted often by The New York Times, The Washington Post, USA Today, the Los Angeles Times, The Wall Street Journal and other major newspapers. His opinion columns have appeared in publications nationwide.
Lynn began his professional career working at the national office of the United Church of Christ, including a two-year stint as legislative counsel for the Church’s Office of Church in Society in Washington, D.C. From 1984 to 1991 he was legislative counsel for the Washington office of the American Civil Liberties Union.
A member of the Washington, D.C. bar, Lynn earned his law degree from Georgetown University Law Center in 1978. In addition, he received his theology degree from Boston University School of Theology in 1973.
Lynn, a native of Bethlehem, Pa., lives in Chevy Chase, Md., with his wife of 36 years and (occasionally) their two grown children. Piety & Politics is his first book.