Amanda Tyler

Amanda Tyler

Amanda Tyler Executive Director, Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty (BJC)

Bio

Bio verbatim from Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty website:

Amanda Tyler is executive director of BJC. She leads the organization as it upholds the historic Baptist principle of religious liberty, defending the free exercise of religion and protecting against its establishment by government.

Tyler often speaks in churches, educational institutions and denominational gatherings, and she provides commentary on church-state issues to the media. A member of the Texas and U.S. Supreme Court Bar, Tyler has experience working in Congress, in a private legal practice and serving as a law clerk for a federal judge.

Called a “powerful advocate” and “rising star in the sector” by The Nonprofit Times, she was named one of the nation’s top 50 nonprofit leaders in 2018. Tyler was named “Baptist of the Year” by EthicsDaily.com in 2019 for her work leading the Christians Against Christian Nationalism campaign. She also co-hosts the Respecting Religion podcast series, and she serves on the board of the Center for Faith, Justice, and Reconciliation.

Originally from Austin, Texas, Tyler grew up hearing about the cherished Baptist principles of religious liberty and the separation of church and state as a member of Highland Park Baptist Church. Because she was committed to these principles, Tyler sought out BJC when she moved to Washington to attend Georgetown University, and she began volunteering in the office.

Tyler graduated from the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown with a bachelor’s degree in foreign service, magna cum laude. She was hired by BJC to serve as assistant to the general counsel, working closely with Brent Walker, James Dunn, Melissa Rogers and Holly Hollman. During this time, she wrote columns for Report from the Capital, drafted statements on religious liberty issues, presented educational programs and coordinated the broad coalition in support of the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act.

Tyler left BJC to enroll in The University of Texas School of Law, where she received her J.D. with honors. Following law school, Tyler worked in private practice and served as a law clerk for a U.S. district court judge in Dallas, Texas. She later joined the staff of U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett in Austin and Washington, D.C.

In Austin, Tyler served as the congressman’s district director, leading the staff in the development and execution of an outreach agenda for a 7-county congressional district, as well as serving as a spokesperson for his office. She later served as Rep. Doggett’s counsel for the Ways and Means Committee.

A member of First Baptist Church of Washington, D.C., she lives in the city with her husband, Robert Behrendt, and their son, Phelps. You can follow her on Twitter: @AmandaTylerBJC.

National Public Radio Profile

National Public Radio profiled Christians Against Christian Nationalism in a broadcast hosted by Sarah McCammon released July 4, 2021 titled "Faith Leaders Speak Out Against Christian Nationalism":

"This week, Vote Common Good, a nonprofit aimed at influencing religiously motivated voters, is partnering with Christians Against Christian Nationalism, a large group of faith leaders, to launch a new curriculum aimed at confronting Christian nationalism in churches across the country. Here to tell us more about it are Amanda Tyler, the executive director at the Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty, and Pastor Michael Mills with the Agape Baptist Church in Fort Worth, Texas."

[...]

MCCAMMON: Amanda, I want to start with you. For people who don't know, can you just define what Christian nationalism is exactly? And tell us more about the recent rise we've seen in this country.

TYLER: Sure. So it basically says that to be a "true American," in quotes, that one must be a Christian, or to be a real Christian, one has to be an American. And this ideology has been with us for a long time. But we've really noticed - we at Baptist Joint Committee and other groups that we work with noticed a rise in Christian nationalism and saw it as an urgent threat not just to our democracy and our unity as Americans, but also to our faithful walk as Christians.

Christians Against Christian Nationalism Statement

Amanda Tyler signed the Christians Against Christian Nationalism statement, which says in part:

"Christian nationalism seeks to merge Christian and American identities, distorting both the Christian faith and America’s constitutional democracy. Christian nationalism demands Christianity be privileged by the State and implies that to be a good American, one must be Christian. It often overlaps with and provides cover for white supremacy and racial subjugation. We reject this damaging political ideology and invite our Christian brothers and sisters to join us in opposing this threat to our faith and to our nation."

Letter to Trump about 'Religious Liberty'

Amanda Tyler signed a letter to President Donald Trump dated April 4, 2019 requesting affirmation that religions other than Christianity and Judaism "make outstanding contributions to the United States". The letter was initiated by "three chairmen of U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops":