Roger Marsh: Welcome to Family Talk. I'm Roger Marsh and I hope you had a joyful and happy New Year's holiday. As we settle into 2023, there are so many opportunities before us, excitement of a fresh start and new possibilities. Now remember, we don't start new journeys alone. God has a divine plan for the path set before you. He's always present. Now, I want to take a moment to thank everyone who gave to our ministry recently. We are a listener-supported program and we are only on the air because of your generosity.
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Today's conversation features our co-host, Dr. Tim Clinton and his guests, Bethany and Ryan Bomberger. They recently released a new children's book called She is She. This book explores the beauty of being a girl in all of its meaning. Then coming in June, Bethany and Ryan will be releasing He is He, which is all about what it means to be a boy. You can find out more about both of these books by visiting our broadcast page at drjamesdobson.org/familytalk, and everything you need to know about today's guests is right there.
Bethany and Ryan started The Radiance Foundation with a vision to create a culture where every life has a purpose. Let's listen now to today's program here on Family Talk.
Dr. Tim Clinton: Our guests today on the program are Ryan and Bethany Bomberger. Ryan is an Emmy Award-winning creative professional. He also serves as the co-founder and chief creative officer of The Radiance Foundation. That's a faith-based educational life-affirming ministry that affirms every human life has God-given purpose. He was the creative force behind the first ad campaign to expose abortion's hugely disproportionate impact in the Black community. The extensive media attention enabled The Radiance Foundation and Ryan's personal story to reach millions. Ryan Bomberger sits at the cutting edge of the new pro-life movement and is there for such a time as this.
His wife, Bethany, is the co-founder and executive director of The Radiance Foundation. She's the author of the groundbreaking children's book, Pro-Life Kids! She has been an educator for two decades in both public and private sector. She has a Bachelor's degree in education and family studies from Messiah College and a Master's degree in Education from Regent University. Bethany spearheaded innovative educational programs in her classrooms and the communities where she lived. Her work with Literacy Kits for Children in Afghanistan and the United Way Makes a Difference Campaign have been featured in news everywhere. She travels across the country with her best friend and husband, Ryan, talking about the issues that are close to her heart. Together, they are the parents of Rai Rai, Kai, Aliyah, and Justice.
Ryan and Bethany, welcome back to Family Talk. Thank you for joining us.
Ryan Bomberger: Hey, it's great to be here with you.
Bethany Bomberger: Yeah, it is. It's great.
Dr. Tim Clinton: Ryan, let's go back to your story because at the heart of all this work that God's called the two of you to is that narrative and just share a little bit with our audience again about your past, your mom, and more.
Ryan Bomberger: Sure. I was adopted into a typical American family of 15. I have six brothers and six sisters. 10 of us were adopted. I was the first one. I was adopted at six weeks of age, out of the foster care system, and I am that example that so many still struggle with, even some pro-lifers. I was conceived in rape, but I was adopted in love. And my parents, Henry and Andrea Bomberger loved the mess out of all of us. They did not fixate on how we came to be, but they did focus on who God meant for us to be. All of our lives were changed because of adoption and because of that love.
So my dad is no longer with us. He passed away actually at the height of the pandemic in 2021, on the anniversary of Roe v. Wade. My dad, Henry Bomberger redeems that day for me. He left behind an incredible legacy of faith and love, and so I hope to carry a little bit of that out. In fact, we have Henry and Andrea Bomberger Adopted and Loved Fund through The Radiance Foundation to help families who are seeking to adopt. We issue grants to them. So that's just kind of an extension of my adoption experience. And now we're adoptive parents. Out of our four kiddos, two of them are adopted.
Dr. Tim Clinton: What a legacy. Bethany, I'd love for people to learn a little bit more about you and your background and how this all comes together because there's some special sauce here between the two of you.
Bethany Bomberger: Well, I will say this on a personal level. I grew up in church and in my late teens and early twenties, I really sort of went through this identity crisis and stepped away from the Lord for a little bit. And I ended up in really a scary, emotionally abusive relationship. And I became pregnant with our oldest daughter, Radiance. And through that experience, seeing her little heartbeat on the ultrasound, I had this defining moment with the Lord where I just felt him take my heart, her heart and just wrap it up in His heart. I don't know how else to explain it.
Hat night I went home and said, "Father, forgive me for just living so selfishly and being emotionally numb. I want to be somebody who is sold out and radical for you." And I opened this journal, and in the side margin it was Psalm 34:5, which says, "I sought the Lord. He delivered me from all my fears. Those that look to him will be radiant, and their faces will never be covered with shame."
That night, I named my daughter Radiance, and I just look at that moment as such a defining moment because I really believe that the Lord allowed me to pivot and to go after him like never before. So before Rai Rai was even one, Ryan and I, the Lord brought us together and we got married and I believe we just hit the ground running.
Ryan Bomberger: Yes, we did.
Bethany Bomberger: Passionate about life and pleasing the Lord. So when we started having our own family and we just experienced so much redemption and so much transformation by the God who loves us so dearly, it gave way into what we're doing now. And I believe that because we felt that personally, we could now tackle the lies that the culture is throwing at us.
Ryan Bomberger: Yeah, 100%.
Bethany Bomberger: Because if He transformed us, He'll transform anybody.
Dr. Tim Clinton: Well, God's doing something unbelievable through The Radiance Foundation. Ryan, share a little bit with our audience about The Radiance Foundation and just what you're trying to accomplish and it's pretty stunning.
Ryan Bomberger: Yeah, well thank you for that. And we just thank God for the opportunity just to be His voice and His heart in these matters. But "illuminate, educate, motivate" was kind of our slogan. We illuminate that every human life has God-given purpose, whether you're planned, unplanned, able, disabled, whatever beautiful hue of skin you have, you have God-given purpose. We educate on a myriad of these culture-shaping issues in that context of God-given purpose. And then we motivate because what good is our faith, what good is our knowledge if we don't put it into action? And so through The Radiance Foundation, combining her educational background and my creative background, well, our initials are R and B, we were meant to be together. And honestly, God knew what He was doing. He did. He put together these skillset that I couldn't do it by myself, she couldn't do it by herself. But together, He's enabled this incredible journey.
Dr. Tim Clinton: Ryan, you were the creative force behind the first ad campaign to expose abortion's hugely disproportionate impact in the Black community. I think it was TooManyAborted.com, it was like a big billboard campaign, et cetera. But I'm telling you what, it had an unexpected impact in the pro-life movement. Tell us a little bit about how that came about and the significance of it.
Ryan Bomberger: Right. Were we naive when we first started?
Bethany Bomberger: A little bit, a little bit.
Ryan Bomberger: We just, we had no idea. We just assumed, "Okay, news is going to report on what happens. They're going to report on what's true." And we found out really quickly how fake news is. So we were living in Atlanta at the time and we decided to take two of the easiest topics possible, abortion and race. And we were highlight, actually it was the first public ad campaign that dealt with abortion's hugely disproportionate impact in the Black community, where abortion rates are up to five times higher. In fact, in the state of Georgia, 60% of the abortions in that state are in the Black community. It is devastating. In New York City, the home of Planned Parenthood, more Black babies for years have been aborted than born alive.
So when we launched this billboard campaign, we didn't expect the kind of insanity that followed. New York Times, USA Today, CNN, I mean everywhere. And then I just thought, "They're going to love me because I've got this great story about adoption. We've got this great story of this..." I hate using the word "interracial" because we're one human race, but this marriage. I just thought, "People are going to love us." Well, mainstream media didn't love us and they were so fixated on promoting abortion. And so we found out really quickly that we actually had to be the factivist that God had designed us to be and speak that truth and love.
And it ended up with what? 600 billboards in major cities across the country, different messaging, Black and beautiful. For instance, we did in Oakland where the NAACP denounced us and then I wrote an article and then they ended up suing us because I called them the national association for the abortion of colored people. But we really found out that we have a choice. We can either just cower in a corner and be silent, which definitely not our thing. Or we can just stand up and choose to be courageous.
Dr. Tim Clinton: You guys do billboards, journalism, pretty much every media outlet opportunity you can with your messaging. Where's this going? You guys have come out with a new book called She is She and I want to jump into that just in a moment. But what really birthed this inside of your hearts, you guys? Because this is pretty radical. It isn't just something cool to do. This thing's born in something that keeps that drive alive, that brings this thing to life.
Ryan Bomberger: Right.
Bethany Bomberger: I think that as we've explored really the lies that are pervasive in our culture, we realize that especially as Christians, we don't have the luxury of remaining silent. And yet at the same time as a whole, the church doesn't always have the verbiage. They don't know how to articulate the heart of God to a dying culture. And so instead they remain silent. What we want to do is we want to create content that will allow folks to see God's heart, whether it's from a biblical perspective, a statistical or historical perspective, and then understand that they could put words to what they feel is the heart of God and then they become a voice and then their voice will speak into a dark, dead culture and bring light. So everything that we do, it's really out of that motivation that we would not only know what God says, but feel equipped to say it.
Dr. Tim Clinton: I wanted to ask you guys what led you to this new work called She is She? This becomes a really important message, especially for the parents. I want moms and dads everywhere, turn the dial up here because this is something that you've got to hear.
Ryan Bomberger: Yeah.
Bethany Bomberger: As we've moved into the culture and we've realized that this is an exploding topic, that gender ideology is creeping into our schools, our churches, on TV programs, there is an all-out assault on the identity of Christ in all of humanity. When we sit and we look at the statistics, we realize that there is a huge hit. It's like explosive when you look at the demographic of females that historically speaking, a lot of gender dysphoria and things like that really affected males, adolescent males for a long time and we're watching that change. In fact, in one study that I read, they were talking about how in the UK in the last decade, it has exploded. 4,000% more women are looking for gender treatment than previously seen. We know as Christians that this is an all-out assault on the identity of Christ, especially in women.
Ryan Bomberger: Yeah.
Bethany Bomberger: We decided one day, we were just sitting and chatting about maybe creating a book that just used pronouns and it ended up evolving into what is our new book She is She, which celebrates the beautiful biological difference of females.
Ryan Bomberger: Yeah, we live in Loudoun County, Virginia, and so we're in the middle of it. In fact, we have a public school just right outside our windows here, and they are leading this charge of indoctrination, not just in the high school level, but at the pre-K level. We have schools that are literally saying that, "We have the right to your child. We can transition your child, we can put your child on these blockers and counsel this child into another gender." And the parents can't even have a say. In fact, they think it's abuse for a parent to actually counter this LGBTQ plus plus plus propaganda.
People feel like, "Oh, it's not going to come to my town." It's social media, it's everywhere. And for people to not wake up and understand that our children are being targeted, and it's actually even more than just this whole attack on gender. It is truly, as you mentioned, attack on our identity in Christ. But it's really an attack on objective truths because when you can erase that, then those who are in control get to say whatever they want. And this moral relativism, we're seeing the devastating effects of it already, and the fact that our children are the main targets is terrifying.
Bethany Bomberger: And irreversible effects.
Dr. Tim Clinton: Bethany, I want to come back to your comment about this new book She is She. It's actually a book for parents to read to their children. And it's about celebrating, you say, women, girls.
Bethany Bomberger: Yes.
Dr. Tim Clinton: That girls are girls, that they're precious, they're beautiful, they're uniquely made, and that you want girls to love who you were created to be. Tell us a little bit more about how it came together and what's at the heart of it.
Bethany Bomberger: When I see children being lied to en masse, I literally can't sleep at night. But to create this work alongside with Ryan and help get these words correctly, my heart was to, age appropriately, address this issue. "She is she. She is not he. She is not we. She is she. She's a mama, she's a bestie, she's a granny, she's not a grampy." It's just a subtle way to really talk about all of these beautiful roles that we get to play as women and the things that we're able to do as women, men can't do. And that's not to say one is better than the other. It's just a beautiful biological difference.
Ryan Bomberger: Right. We're equal, but we're not the same.
Bethany Bomberger: Yeah.
Ryan Bomberger: And that's a very important distinction.
Bethany Bomberger: I want these girls to look at this book and see a reflection of themself as they grow older to sort of plant seeds, to remind them that they can have all different roles. And there is something just so special about the fact that God made you uniquely how you are.
Dr. Tim Clinton: Yeah, I saw doctor, employer.
Bethany Bomberger: Yes.
Dr. Tim Clinton: Leader, speaker, teacher, everything's in there. And again, it's to speak life and beauty into her so that she's free to be who God created her to be.
Ryan Bomberger: Yeah.
Bethany Bomberger: Yes, yes. And that's what all of this comes down to. There's this freedom that comes from understanding our identity in Christ. A freedom that allows us to be a light in a dark world. A freedom that comes from a deep, dark place in our soul where we connect with the one who created us. So we want girls to not just take on this feminist, "Yay feminist, we got to step on guys in order to be better." No.
Ryan Bomberger: No.
Bethany Bomberger: God's created us and there's space and room for all of us to be all that God has created us to be.
Ryan Bomberger: Yeah.
Bethany Bomberger: And to affect change.
Dr. Tim Clinton: Ryan, you also included in the book two segments that I thought were very helpful. One is, what does the Bible say about her and what does science say? I think a real resource for parents and they need to be able to have a reason for the hope or the truth that lies deep within them.
Ryan Bomberger: Right.
Dr. Tim Clinton: Tell us a little bit about that and why you included it and how it's a gift.
Ryan Bomberger: Absolutely. Well, foundationally having a biblical worldview is crucial in all this because without it, you're unmoored and you can be swung. Like Ephesians 4:14 talks about being blown to and fro by every new wind of teaching and being tricked by lies so clever, they sound like the truth. And that's the propaganda that we have because it sounds so good. I mean, "love is love" and "it doesn't matter who you love" and "be who you want to be". Well, that sounds great, but when it has the devastating consequences, we need to start challenging the propaganda.
But the Bible has very definitive things to say about, Genesis 1:27, "God created us male and female." It talks about too, why He created us and that He created us with purpose. I mean, that's what God does. He is a God of design and everything is intentional and there are beautiful and biological differences. We talk about some of the scientific aspect. Part of the rhetoric that we hear, kids are now being told, "Well, maybe you don't feel like the sex that was assigned at your birth." Even that phrase, your sex is not assigned at birth, it's actually determined by your DNA at the moment of fertilization. And it's so all these pseudo-scientific buzz phrases that get out there that little children are being bombarded with that aren't true, that aren't scientific. And science, which what we find over and over again continually affirms biblical truths. And when we veer from that, we see that devastation. We are already experiencing the consequences of our current sexual revolution, which is why you have detransitioners.
Now, the book doesn't go into that kind of depth because it is meant for young children, but what we will have on the website is for parents or other adults who want, or even teens who want to delve deeper, we will have other resources so that they can learn more. Because we have to be equipped from a biblical worldview. We have to understand what science says so that we have the context, which brings us clarity, and that's really our heart for this book, to offer that context and clarity so that we can actually act with compassion.
Bethany Bomberger: And when you give children information that allows them to have a standard, then they're able to weigh everything that comes in by that standard. We want that standard to be a biblical standard and a scientific standard because they do walk hand in hand. And we want to equip our children to be able to hear and be part of a culture when we're not physically with them and still be able to understand, weigh and determine where God's heart is in what's coming in-
Ryan Bomberger: Right.
Bethany Bomberger: ... to their hearts.
Dr. Tim Clinton: The book again is, She is She. It's just released. Something that you can go through with your children. Here's a gift, okay? Moms and dads are concerned about this gender identity, ideology issue in culture. They know their kids are being faced with it. And this is an opportunity to make sure, mom and dad, you have those conversations with your kids. Here's a great guidebook. I want to go a step deeper though, Ryan and Bethany. Moms and dads are also faced with, if you really were compassionate, you used the word compassionate a moment ago, Bethany, and you really cared, you would be gender affirming. That somehow you would come back and say, "It's okay for kids if they feel this in their heart." Or what have you.
And we know that people are saying that if you don't get behind these blockers or surgeries or what have you, that again, you're just a hater and there's this weaponizing of empathy that's taking place here. How do you guys respond to that? Because I know both of you, you love people.
Bethany Bomberger: Yes.
Dr. Tim Clinton: You love broken people. You love people who are on a journey, people who are confused, people who are angry. You want to step into their world, into their life, but you want to bring truth and radiate that in their heart. Can you speak to that issue for us?
Bethany Bomberger: It makes me think of 1 Corinthians, which says, "Love does not delight in evil, but it rejoices in the truth." And we love people enough to tell them the truth.
Ryan Bomberger: Right.
Bethany Bomberger: And everything that we're speaking to as it pertained to this issue is really couched in love because we know that love sets people free, truth sets people free. And so I believe that we're seeing really a culture that is counterfeit compassion when instead of standing up for the truth, we kowtow to things that sound like they should be empathetic, but really in the long run they're going to bring about hurt, harm and really not allow people to walk out who they were meant to be.
Ryan Bomberger: Right. And we have to keep in mind too, that it's these LGBT groups that are constantly distorting and propagandizing people, that these children and teens and adults are going to kill themselves, that they have higher suicide rates. A lot of that is such misinformation. Study after study shows that a lot of these kids dealing with this confusion have other psychosocial negative disparities that have nothing to do with, for instance, not embracing all things LGBTQ, but there are deeper underlying issues, and this is part of the problem. The progressive left always wants to celebrate the sparkles and the glitter on the surface and ignore the trauma that lies beneath.
And so that's why, for instance, in post-op men who've had this radical surgery, mutilating parts of their bodies, they still have suicide rates that are 20 times higher than heterosexuals. People are dying and increasingly so because they're embracing the lie.
Dr. Tim Clinton: What's interesting is, Ryan, I think you're right. The science doesn't even support this issue.
Ryan Bomberger: No.
Dr. Tim Clinton: When we talk about suicidality pre and post here, there is no science. And so there's so much more to look at. At the end of the day, highly emotional issue. Truth has to prevail at the heart of it, truth and love, and God give us wisdom and direction. You know what? I applaud you. I know on behalf of Dr. Dobson, his wife, Shirley, the entire team here, we thank you for being bold and courageous for such a time as this. These are the kind of conversations that we have to have and these are the kind of resources that we need in the midst of a culture that's spinning and it's chaotic. If people want to learn more about The Radiance Foundation, maybe other resources, things that you are pulling together and maybe looking at in the future, where do they go?
Ryan Bomberger: They can go to Radiance, R-A-D-I-A-N-C-E.life and SheisShe.com.
Dr. Tim Clinton: Thank you both for joining us and we will pray earnestly that God will lead you and keep you bold and strong.
Bethany Bomberger: Awesome.
Ryan Bomberger: Thank you so much.
Bethany Bomberger: Thank you Dr. Tim. Thank you.
Ryan Bomberger: God bless.
Roger Marsh: That was Bethany and Ryan Bomberger as they discussed the pro-life movement and how God doesn't make mistakes. Bethany and Ryan also talked about their new children's book, She is She with a version for boys coming out in June called He is He. If you got something good from today's program, you may enjoy our 2022 Best of Broadcast collection. For a suggested donation of $50, you can order the six CD set. Just visit drjamesdobson.org/bestof2022. That's drjamesdobson.org/bestof2022. To order by phone, just call 877-732-6825. I'm Roger Marsh. From all of us here at the JDFI, thanks for joining us and have a blessed day.
Announcer: This has been a presentation of the Dr. James Dobson Family Institute.