Rev. Rob Schenck "Faith and Action"

SARAH PALIN'S "PASTOR PROBLEM"

2008-09-09T05:38:00.000-07:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

The minute I was introduced to now Republican vice-presidential candidate and Alaskan governor Sarah Palin, I knew her faith would come under super-heated media scrutiny. Now she's being portrayed as a wild-eyed fanatical "The-End-Of-The-World" is near "fundamentalist."

The ever-hostile secular media is painting an ugly picture of the current pastor of the Wasilla Assembly of God, Governor Palin's former church. (He is still one step removed from the pastor who was there when she was growing up in the congregation!) In any case, the association is enough. Some suppose it's tit-for-tat after Barack Obama's former church and pastor came under such fire. Still, I think it's only right that if anyone's religious beliefs and associations are going to bear scrutiny, then all of them should.

That's precisely what I'm doing this week as I guest host the Adam McManus Show on San Antonio's KSLR Radio. Adam is a good friend and often asks me to sit in for him when he's traveling. This week he's in Senegal, West Africa with the Bible League. I've been doing his show from a remote studio here in Washington.

Yesterday the phone lines lit up as we talked about the two vice-presidential candidates and their spiritual formation. Today we examine Sarah Palin's faith in-depth. In my next slot on Thursday I'll look at the two presidential candidates and their spiritual roots.

You can listen in and even join in the conversation by logging on to www.kslr.com. The show airs from 4 - 7 PM Eastern, 3-6 Central and 2-5 Pacific. Hope to meet you on the air!

Blessings,

Rob

Rev. Rob Schenck

www.faithandaction.org

Faith and Action

109 2nd St, NE

Washington, DC 20002

202-546-8329

FOR NEW BLOG FROM RNC GO TO http://faithandaction.blogspot.com/

2008-09-03T12:03:00.000-07:00

IF YOU HAVEN'T SIGNED UP FOR MY NEW BLOG PLEASE GO TO http://faithandaction.blogspot.com/

BE SURE TO SIGN UP FOR NEW BLOG!

2008-08-25T11:24:00.000-07:00

be sure to sign up for my new blog: Faith and Action. (If you were on my old blog subscriber list--TenCommandmentsonCapitolHill, you need to re-up for the new feed. ) Just go to www.faithandaction.org and select Rev. Rob Schenck's Blog from the menu items in the middle of the page. Then, simply sign up as a subscriber. Do it soon so you don't miss any of my posts from the two political conventions!

MOVING MY BLOG!

2008-08-01T13:58:00.000-07:00

I'm moving my commentary from this address to a new one. Thinking Olympics? Please go to http://faithandaction.blogspot.com/ to read about our risky mission to China.

WONDERFUL WAUCHULA—AND MORE!

2008-07-28T07:43:00.000-07:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

I’ve just concluded a weekend of ministry at Florida’s First Assembly (of God, that is), another one of our Anchor Churches. Bet ya’ don’t know much about Wauchula. It’s central Florida’s little secret. Except for some attention during Hurricane Charley some four years ago, this little hamlet surrounded by not-so-little cattle ranches, orchards and orange groves has insulated itself pretty well from the urban sprawl of nearby Orlando. (Or should I say Disney World?) Well, notwithstanding the smallish population and feel of the place (everyone seems to know everyone at the only Saturday evening restaurant in town), Florida’s First Assembly remains a relative “mega-church.”

Pastor Bob Lecocq and his wife, Debbie, lead a vibrant, rock solid family of Christians who are effectively connecting with their rural community. Bob is a sharp, gifted, multi-talented man; a caring pastor and dynamic preacher who doubles as a professor of communications for two nearby colleges, one Christian, the other secular. This other vocation gives him a real advantage in “communicating” his Christian witness in his town and in many other places, including Washington and even the Royal Kingdom of Morocco! Yes, you read it right: Bob was a member of one of our Christian Friendship Delegations to the North African kingdom and was well received by our official government hosts there. He built a special relationship with King Mohammed VI’s minister of religion. I’ve asked Bob to pray about joining us on the next scheduled mission this fall.

I don’t want to leave the church’s “First Lady,” Debbie, out of this report. She is a leader in her own right. The daughter of distinguished missionaries who spent most of their career in Upper Volta, Africa (now Burkina Faso), her parents finished their call by supervising mission stations across the newly freed nations of the fallen Soviet Empire. As you can imagine, Debbie's seen a lot and she brings that rich experience to bear on the ministry she shares with her husband today.

A bonus to my Wauchula visit was a side trip to see old friends Charles and Belinda Nestor. Cheryl and I have known them since we were married—more than 32 years now. I’ve always valued long and deep friendships over short and shallow ones. Charles and I forged our “buddy-ship” in 1977 when he was chairman and I was director of a church sponsored home for troubled young men in Rochester, New York. Those were tumultuous days. Not only did we have to do all those things that go along with such an intense ministry, but also we had to deal with some very scary characters, including convicted murderers, predatory sexual offenders, child molesters and lots of heroine addicts and dealers. Cheryl and I even had to cope with a psychopathic neighbor who wore a Bowie knife and kept nine women as a harem in his house, all of them perennially pregnant, their children consigned to deplorable conditions.

Well, I digress. I got caught up in just what the weekend yielded and I left out the mysterious ten days of silence while I was in “Beautiful Branson,” Missouri. That was for the annual board meeting and conference for the Evangelical Church Alliance (ECA), America’s oldest association of Evangelical church leaders, dating to 1887. It was again an opportunity to strengthen existing friendships, alliances and strategic networking for our ministry. I have always believed in maximum accountability (I just have enough self-doubt to think I need it), and that’s exactly what the ECA offers. No one can exist as an island unto himself, particularly in the ministry. These outstanding men and women—pastors, ministry executives, missionaries and the largest number of active duty Evangelical military chaplains—keep me sharp and hold me and our organization to the highest standards. I appreciate that. In reciprocity, I serve them as chairman of the ECA’s Committee on Church and Society. As their missionary to elected and appointed officials, I also deliver to the conference attendees an annual field report on the state of the ministry here in Washington. This year I included a “sermonette” on using their spheres of influence to help God’s people know, “How to Vote.”

While I’ve been gone on this road trip, our ministry team has been as busy as ever with the behind-the-scenes work on Capitol Hill. You generally read about the exciting ministry “happenings” as they’re about to happen, are underway or are already over. There’s an enormous amount of work, though, that must go on continually behind-the-scenes to get ready for those events and to ensure their success. That’s what our chief-of-staff, Peggy Birchfield, does without a lot of fanfare.

Well, I’m on the plane and they’re shutting me down for the descent into the airport. Gotta’ go. Be back later when I’m safely on the ground!

Rev. Rob Schenck

www.faithandaction.org

Faith and Action

109 2nd St, NE

Washington, DC 20002

202-546-8329

TONY SNOW GOES HOME TO HEAVEN

2008-07-15T12:49:00.000-07:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck reporting:

I'll never forget a meeting of national conservative leaders when Bush Administration spokesman Tony Snow was on the hot seat. It may be surprising to some to learn that President Bush is not popular in many conservative circles, and he certainly wasn't with this crowd. The small group peppered poor Tony with demanding questions. I didn't share the disdain. My mind was on how sick the man looked. His hair thinning grotesquely; his skin that sickening cancer-color gray. I had no doubt he was dying.

Still, Tony kept his composure and gracious smile, doing his best to generously respond. At the appropriate moment I decided to break in and thwart the pillorying. Instead of thrusting another barb at the poor man, I turned the discussion. I told him that as a minister, I had a pastoral side that wondered what his journey through cancer had done for his spiritual life. What followed was one of the most grace-filled sermons on suffering I will likely ever hear.

With just a few words, Tony talked about how his disease had, more than anything else, drawn him closer to God, to his wife and children and to other people. Everyone in the room could see it was genuine. There were no cameras or reporters present and no one was allowed to comment to the media afterward. It was a small group--hardly an audience to impress.

Tony was known for his deep Christian faith. I know he kept company with the likes of Jerry Leachman, former UA football player and current Washington Redskins team chaplain. I would hear mention of his dropping in on Bible studies and prayer meetings around town. On that uncomfortable day on the hot seat, he spoke convincingly of his conversations with God. Mercifully, one of the venerable members of that group suggested we end with prayer for Tony. He humbly bowed his head as hands were laid on his perspiring neck.

I often wondered about the words of Psalm 116:15, "Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints." It's a funny thing to think of death being "precious" to God. When I think, though, of how precious this man was, I can see how God would like to reclaim him. My thoughts and prayers are with Tony's wife and young children who must miss him terrribly, as so many of us will in much smaller measure. At the same time, I can see how God Himself would rejoice over having this caliber of servant among his ranks.

See you in Heaven, Tony!

Rev. Rob Schenck
Faith and Action
http://www.faithandaction.org/
109 2nd St, NE
Washington, DC 20002
202-546-8329

VIDEO FROM 35,000 FEET!

2008-07-08T13:09:00.000-07:00

Check out my video post from 35,000 feet above Moscow. (The other Moscow, of course!) Somebody very important to my ministry makes a surprise cameo appearance . . .

http://gallery.mac.com/robschenck/100524

Rob

Rev. Rob Schenck

www.faithandaction.org

Faith and Action

109 2nd St, NE

Washington, DC 20002

202-546-8329

EVERGREEN CHRISTIAN COMMUNITY--ONE OF OUR ANCHORS

2008-07-06T17:15:00.000-07:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

Evergreen Christian Community is a dynamic church family nestled in the--well--Evergreens of Olympia, Washington, the capital of the "Evergreen State." Cheryl and I are out here as the guests of Lead Pastor Dale Oquist and his wife, Joni. The Oquists and their kids are terrific people--a lot of fun to be with--but they're also totally committed to the church and community they serve. Dale and Joni have birthed an enormously successful ministry, building a solid congregation of mature Christians while making sacrificial changes to connect with a new and emerging generation. Evergreen has quickly become one of our "Anchor Churches." Their support--from prayer to personal involvement--is critical to our success in Washington. Thank you Oquists, thank you pastoral team and leadership of Evergreen Christian Community, and thank you people of our Evergreen extended family for your encouragement and generosity in every way. We absolutely could not do what God has called us to do in Washington, DC, if you weren't doing so effectively what God has called you to do in Washington State!

Cheryl and I will stay out here another day and return Tuesday to the frenetic pace of Capitol Hill. The demand back home runs Monday through Friday (and sometimes weekends) from early morning until late at night. In order for us to make ends meet in a very expensive environment these last 15 years, Cheryl has always been employed. Of course she also loves what she does as an occupational therapist for disabled children in our public schools. Still, the demands of two careers and my frequent Sundays away to preach puts time together at a real premium. We're getting that time together over the next 24 hours and it's great!

Speaking of travel, I'll be in Scranton, Pennsylvania at the end of this week to attend a strategic meeting for the Institute on Religion and Public Policy. By now you know I serve on the Institute's board of directors. "IRPP" president Joe Grieboski is a good friend and advisor to me--not to mention a genius when it comes to religious liberty issues worldwide. We may not see eye-to-eye on every little thing, but Joe keeps me challenged, informed and well-humored. I thoroughly enjoy working with Joe and the Institute. He introduced me to my ongoing exchange with Moroccan government and religious leaders and took me with him on a formal delegation to Sudan, a life-changing experience to say the least.

My next trip is to a much closer place, though: Branson, Missouri. No, not for country music--but for another board meeting and conference. This time it's the Evangelical Church Alliance, for which I serve as chair of the Committee on Church and Society. The board meeting part convenes Monday and Tuesday, July 21 and 22; The conference part, July 23 and 24. I'll deliver my annual "Missionary Field Report" on Thursday, July 24. Then I catch a plane to Florida to guest preach for Pastor Bob Lecocq at Florida's First Assembly of God in Wauchula on July 27. Bob is a passionate preacher, caring pastor and gifted communicator. (His other job is as a college lecturer in public speaking and communications!)

As you can see, even when the Supreme Court and Congress have slowed down for the summer, I don't sit around drumming my fingers wondering what to do. In fact it's quite the opposite. Just this morning as I sat on the front pew waiting to be introduced to speak, I got an E-mail on my Blackberry from Jay Sekulow who's been in Israel and France for the last few weeks. We'll meet when he gets back in town July 15 to discuss a host of things he's working on. Jay's a good friend--one of the few people I can truly confide in. Washington can be a very lonely town, but Jay, my brother Paul, Pat Mahoney and a couple of others makes it survivable!

That's all for now. Thanks for being an important part of my wider "Family Circle!"

Rob Schenck

www.faithandaction.org

Faith and Action

109 2nd St, NE

Washington, DC 20002

202-546-8329

VIDEO POST FROM CREATION

2008-06-29T03:28:00.000-07:00

Check out my video post on the last two days of Creation--from 27,000 feet!

http://gallery.mac.com/robschenck#100512

The Third and Fourth Days of Creation

2008-06-29T03:19:00.000-07:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

Days 3 and 4 of Creation (The festival version in Pennsylvania--not Origin of the Universe Version of much greater substance!)

I wound up my part in this year’s Creation music festival by tossing the second half of my afternoon seminar to my twin brother, Paul. I had originally planned to finish it up and literally run for my waiting car so I could get to the Baltimore airport in time for my 6:50 flight to Tampa. I’m speaking Sunday morning at the wonderful Calvary Chapel South Orlando where my friend Charles Nestor II is pastor. The trip between the festival site and the airport was over three hours, making it a bit too close for comfort. So, at the last minute I asked Paul to take the second half of the presentation. To be honest, I felt he had a better handle on the material than I did. The title of my talk was “Juno’s Moment: It Has Fingernails.” Festival founder Harry Thomas had told me he was hoping for a pro-life message this year. I was all too happy to comply. As you know, Paul and I have given the last 20 years of our lives and ministries to championing this very first of our God-given human rights.

The title was taken from the film “Juno,” written by “Diablo Cody” (a pseudonym for writer . . .) and starring the precocious Ellen Page. It follows the most-time hilariously quirky main character, Juno McDuff, who at 16 discovers she’s pregnant. Her first impulse is to get an abortion, but after encountering a classmate holding a pro-life sign outside the clinic, she thinks twice about her “choice.” “Juno’s Moment” comes when Su Chin calls out to her, “Your baby has a beating heart ya’ know!” And then the zinger, “It has fingernails!” At that, Juno pauses but shrugs her shoulders. (It’s worth watching this scene on YouTube.) The idea germinates, though, and ultimately she decides to keep the baby and adopts her out to a well-deserving couple.

The film is enormously popular with young people. It garnered four Oscar nominations. (Although I’m not sure it won any.) When I asked the hundreds of kids who attended how many had seen it, a whoop when up and so did an overwhelming number of hands. The point of my talk was to come at this paramount moral issue from a completely different angle, and that is the question of “human rights.” One thing I discovered talking to kids at Creation is that they don’t list “abortion” or “the sanctity of life” as one of their top concerns. (We did scores of audio and video interviews.) When we asked them what they were concerned about, they said things like, “the economy,” “the war in Iraq,” “AIDS and poverty in Africa,” and “free health care and college tuition.”

As with any generational transition, these kids don’t use the same language or pursue the same associations as their parents. They want to make their own mark on the world—and serve Christ in their own way. I fully understand that. It was true of me 35 years ago. Back then I was a longhaired, counter-culture, last vestige of a hippie. Conventional “church religion” wasn’t appealing to me. The “Jesus People” movement was—and I grabbed on to it. Jesus was a radical who challenged the status quo. This generation is looking for a similar Savior—one who will buck the system and “speak truth to authority.” I don’t know about you, but I definitely see that Jesus in the Gospel. We can start there.

My brother made an interesting observation: The sin, sadness and problems of this time in world history is different from what shaped him and me as Christians. It goes without saying that it is that much different from what shaped their grandparents’ and great-grandparents’ worlds. The “enemy” in the world today is not communism or fascism, but killer diseases, tribal conflicts and what they see as rapacious capitalism that exploits the ignorant for financial gain. Whether they are right or wrong in these assessments, it is what is motivating them. Like the early apostles, we need to connect with those concerns and use them as platforms to deliver biblical and historically Christian truth in a way that connects with them.

My time at Creation was much more for listening and learning than for preaching and lecturing. I’m far from an expert in how to talk to these kids, let alone disciple, train and mobilize them, but we must. The average age of our Faith and Action support base is 55. We “senior Christians” may be older and wiser, but lack the energy, time and skills of these young people. The work of God needs them. “Of such is the kingdom of heaven,” Jesus said.

I thank God for the thousands of kids who committed their lives to Christ this year. (Our own Tanie and Jacqueline Guy supervised the extremely demanding prayer tent ministry.) Yet, these kids need a lot of spiritual care, teaching and training and direction. Pray for them and pray for us. I may be turning 50 this year, but I’m only now resolving to spend a lot more time with this emerging generation.

Thank God for our friend and Faith and Action trustee Harry Thomas who is older than me but more committed to kids than ever. He founded the Creation festival 30 years ago and is still giving it his all. Thank God for his partner Tim Landis and the more than 2400 volunteers who poured their lives into Creation this year. If you want to get the full impact, you have to come next year. If you’re over 45, bring earplugs—and an open mind and heart!

(Register now for a big discount at www.creationfest.com.)

Your grateful missionary to elected and appointed officials,

Rob Schenck

Faith and Action

www.faithandaction.org

109 2nd St, NE

Washington, DC 20002

202-546-8329

FIRST DAY AT CREATION

2008-06-25T06:59:00.000-07:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting from deep inside the woods of middle-of-nowhere Pennsylvania!

I've posted my first video blog from the fantastic Creation music festival in Mount Union, PA. Enjoy!

http://gallery.mac.com/robschenck/100483

Back with more video posts as this wonderful event unfolds. For more info visit www.creationfest.com

Rob Schenck

Faith and Action

www.faithandaction.org

109 2nd St, NE

Washington, Dc 20002

202-546-8329

CREATION IN FOUR DAYS RATHER THAN SIX!

2008-06-23T14:12:00.000-07:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

Tuesday I head up from Washington to Mt. Union, Pennsylvania, where I will once again experience Creation. (This is the four-day music festival version, not the far more dramatic Six-Day Origin-of-the-Universe version!) It all gets underway Wednesday, June 25 and concludes Sunday morning, June 29.

Creation Northeast '08 is the largest, longest running Christian music festival of it's kind. Started by my good friend and board member of our ministry, Harry Thomas, Creation draws tens of thousands of young--and old--people from every kind of Christian background. (It draws plenty of non-Christians, too.)

Harry asked if I would bring a pro-life message this year. As you know, Life is one of my passions, so it was easy to say, Yes! I speak on Saturday, June 28, at 3:00 PM, in the Woods II natural amphitheater. There's still time to register--just go to www.creationfest.com.

During the entire event I'll also be in our booth in the exhibit area conducting interviews for National Pro-Life Radio.net. To listen in logon at www.nplr.net.

Hope you'll be at Creation '08--Be there or be square! If not, hope you'll logon to www.nplr.net and listen in to my conversations with young people. If you're like me, you want to know what's on their minds and hearts, expecially as we approach the coming presidential election.

Meet you in Mount Union or online!

Your grateful missionary to elected and appointed officials,

Rob Schenck
Faith and Action
www.faithandaction.org
109 2nd St, NE
Washington, DC 20002
202-546-8329

LOTS OF "STUFF" GOING ON!

2008-06-20T10:11:00.000-07:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

There's so much "stuff" going on around here there isn't time or space to write about all of it, but I thought you'd appreciate something of an overview. I know you pray for this ministry, carry a concern for it and generously support it, so here's your well-deserved briefing:

Our team is feverishly working on these projects during the summer months--

1) The big "Ten Commandments" Supreme Court case. I use quotation marks because this case is really not a Ten Commandments case at all. That is, the real question is on free speech, specifically by a municipality. This case out of Utah involves a challenge to the city of Pleasant Grove that displays a Ten Commandments sculpture in one of its city parks. Jay Sekulow of the American Center for Law and Justice and a long-time friend to my brother Paul and me will argue the case. We handle this type of thing quite differently, though, then do legal groups like the ACLJ. Jay must rightfully argue this on the strict meaning of the law. We'll get that in, too, of course, but we use these legal platforms in another way. As you know, Faith and Action isn't a legal firm (like the ACLJ or Liberty Counsel) and we aren't a lobby group like CWA Action or the Family Research Council. We are an evangelistic outreach--proclaiming the Gospel and biblical truth to those in public office. So, we use these platforms to telegraph important truths and prophetic messages from Scripture and historical Christian moral instruction.

(A little side note: I recently helped host a forum that included one of the more outstanding Supreme Court justices. During his remarks the Justice said he takes the kind of brief we are submitting very seriously and tries to give them careful attention. Nice to know.)

2) Just as we're wrapping up the case with the Ten Commandments, another big one is brewing. Atheist activist Michael Newdow argued for the second time against the words "Under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals last year. They're expected to announce their decision on it any day. I pray I'm wrong, but I expect they'll once again strike down "Under God" as supremely illegal. (After all, that's what a court means whenever it declares something "unconstitutional," which I expect the Ninth Circuit to do on the Pledge, as they did in 2002. Remember, the Constitution is the highest law of the land. Whatever doesn't comport with the Constitution in the eyes of any court violates the highest law of the land, making it "supremely illegal.") We're preparing our team to respond with a news conference at the Supreme Court within hours of the decision. We're also working with a strategy group on a legislative response from the Congress affirming "Under God" as a permanent part of the Pledge and taking away jurisdiction from the courts so it can stay that way. (You may find this legal report on the record of the case interesting: http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1196762679367) I should also mention that we're working with the White House to have the Medal of Freedom conferred on 98-year old Dr. George Docherty, the minister who preached the famous 1954 sermon "Under God" that in part led to the insertion of the phrase into the Pledge.

3) In these waning days of the present administration, it's important to work on as many strong Christian appointments to office as possible. For strategic reasons, I can't tell you which ones we're working on, but we are prayerfully and diligently working on a few! Please pray with us that the right people will be placed into the right offices. (Like Joseph in Egypt, they'll be needed during a future famine!) This is not easy work--lots of phone calls, E-mail, letters, faxes, meetings, networking, etc., etc--and all this is extracurricular!

4) We've officially launched what has been until now our "unofficial" internship program, training up a new generation of missionaries to Capitol Hill! We have had interns work in our ministry center before, but to be honest, they've been more like office assistants. Our current intern is our test case for an actual mentorship. I'm still a young guy at 49 (!), but I won't be forever. If the Lord gives this nation a little more time, we'll need solid young people to take up the mantel. Please pray for this side of our work. It's more important than ever!

5) Speaking of young people, I'll be with a bunch of them next week. Wednesday, June 25 - Saturday, June 28, I'll be at Creation East '08, the largest, longest running Christian music festival of its kind in the world. Founder Harry Thomas is a member of our Faith and Action board and a very close friend. He specifically asked me to bring a pro-life message. I've entitled it "Juno's Moment," for a scene in the wildly popular youth film Juno. It's the story of a 16-year old girl who is pregnant and seeks an abortion. As she's entering the "clinic," she encounters a pro-life classmate who tells her, "Your baby has fingernails." That's the moment that changes Juno's life. Well, you can see where it's going! We'll also have a booth in the artists' tent from which we'll broadcast live on National Pro-Life Radio.Net (http://www.nplr.net/) I'll interview some of the nearly 100,000 young people who will be there about their attitudes on the Sanctity of Life, the upcoming elections and more. Be sure to join in!

6) Never one to waste a day, I'll step off the platform at Creation on Saturday afternoon and into a waiting car to zip off to the airport and fly to Florida where I will speak at the terrific Calvary Chapel South Orlando on Sunday morning. I've known Pastor Charles Nestor II since he was a little boy. (His dad, Charles I--I love how royal that sounds--is one of my closest buddies.) In fact, "Pastor Charles" (as the younger is known) was an intern at our church up in Buffalo, New York, all those years ago. During that time he lived in my basement--a trauma that no doubt still haunts him! Anyway, Calvary Chapel South is a great church. If you're within driving distance of Orlando on Sunday, June 29, come on by!

7) In addition to all the "regular" ministry stuff we do (and there's plenty of that), I have my other responsibilities: As chairman of the Committee on Church and Society for the Evangelical Church Alliance (I have a board meeting for that coming up in July and I'll speak at the annual convention in Branson, Missouri); I'm also on the board of the Nobel Prize nominated Institute on Religion and Public Policy. President Joseph Griebowski, who was recently awarded an honorary doctorate from Marywood University, has asked me to serve as the first Senior Fellow for Domestic Religious Liberty Issues. I'm honored and if, after being properly vetted I pass, I do plan to accept. My other board memberships are also ramping up demands on my time and attention: The National Pro-Life Religious Council, the Council for National Policy and the biblically faithful Methodist Episcopal Church USA. As you can see, I need to trim back, so please pray with me on which ones go. I love them all, so it's a tough call, but something's going to give over these summer months!

8) Finally--for now--we're gearing up for the annual Reese RoundTable, a forum named for our friends, the intrepid soul-winning culture warriors Bernie and Lee Reese. The RoundTable gives us a unique platform to address the hard things in an otherwise politically correct town. This year will be particularly dicey because the forum will be held practically on the eve of the elections. We're prayerfully looking at a red hot subject but I can't tell you what it is quite yet. Stand by!

We'll, I've hardly gotten through the list but I've probably exhausted your patience. I just want you to see that we don't sit on our hands around here. We're busy doing the Lord's work because that's what you've sent us here to do! Speaking of . . . I better get back to work!

Your grateful missionary to Washington, DC,

Rob Schenck
Faith and Action
http://www.faithandaction.org/
109 2nd St., NE
Washington, DC 20002
202-546-8329

MY VIDEO TRIBUTE TO DAD AND DADS THIS FATHERS' DAY

2008-06-15T04:39:00.000-07:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

Most important post for today is this video:

http://gallery.mac.com/robschenck/100459.

You may prefer to read this background, though:

It's a rare Sunday morning for me. I'm sitting in an airline terminal waiting for a flight back home to Buffalo, New York. It feels odd not to be in a church somewhere getting ready to preach. My normal weekend is last flight out of Washington to somewhere in the country on Saturday night, preaching two or three times on Sunday morning and retuning late Sunday night or Monday morning.

Today, though, is different. My dad, Hank Schenck, is in a Buffalo nursing home. (With my mom, Marjorie, thank God because they need each other.) Both my folks are in fragile health. I get home at least once a month to see them. Mom extracted a promise from me last year that I've happily and assiduously stuck to ever since. She asked if I would come every month to see her before she dies. I timed this visit to do double-duty: Meet my promise to Mom and celebrate Dad.

I love my parents and I've never had any doubts they love me and my three siblings. They were far from perfect parents, but join the club. I have so much to thank them for that holidays like Fathers' Day are easy. Dad gave me love, life skills and constant support that are gifts from God to me. I only pray I passed some of that along to my own adult children, but you'd have to ask them!

In any case, here again is my video tribute to Dad as I sit here waiting for my flight to be called:

http://gallery.mac.com/robschenck/100459

REQUIEM FOR RUSSERT

2008-06-13T15:02:00.001-07:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

The big news here in Washington is the sudden death of journalistic luminary Tim Russert, NBC Washington bureau chief and host of Meet the Press. He was just 58 years old—seems so young to me now.

While I’m sure Tim was on the other side of me on many political and perhaps even moral issues, there were a few commendable facts known universally about him. In this town he enjoyed a rare reputation for loving his faith and his family above anything else.

I just heard Howard Fineman of Newsweek magazine musing on live television that if he’d ever consider converting from being Jewish to Catholic, it would be because of Tim Russert. “He was a great fisherman for his faith.” Even more impressive from Fineman was this, “Tim was the kind of guy who never pursued false gods, he pursued the real one.”

Hmm.

There is, in fact, endless commentary on Russert’s devout faith—and that’s saying a lot. Almost 90% of Washington journalists claim no religious affiliation or involvement. Russert was the opposite. He was faithful in his church attendance and was unashamed of it.

Perhaps the reason I feel as surprising as I do about this otherwise “mainline journalist” is because he was so “Buffalo.” As you may know, I grew up in Buffalo, as Tim did. Buffalo has a pronounced culture—a way of being. It wasn’t just his accent; it was his worldview and his values. He was down-to-earth and blue collar. Those are the people that filled my world back home.

Perhaps I’m getting caught up in the romance of the moment, but I feel saddened by this loss. Russert was sincere, warm, friendly and consummately civil. He was a true professional but didn’t seem overly impressed with himself. He loudly championed the family and quietly championed his Christian faith. Too bad we never heard anything from him on the sanctity of life because he lived life so well.

American journalism will be poorer for Tim Russert’s absence. My prayers go out to his wife, son and father—and to all those who loved him.

Rev. Rob Schenck
Faith and Action
http://www.faithandaction.org/
109 2nd St, NE
Washington, DC 20002
202-546-8329

BACK ON LINE!

2008-06-10T05:08:00.000-07:00

Your missionary to Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

We may not be the most hated organization in Washington, but we certainly have our enemies. Once in a while they'll strike at us but it's mostly benign. We've had false charges of "illegal operations" lodged against us. The Baby Jesus in our annual Nativity Scene was kidnapped. Dead birds have been laid on our doorstep.

One of the most annoying harassments came over the last few weeks when an anonymous complainant filed an accusation with Blogger.com that I was sending out a "spam blog." That resulted in an immediate "lock out" from this blog, thus explaining my absence over the last week. Sorry about that. Looks like my name has been cleared, though, and we're back in business!

Being away from this blog for that long left me with a greater appreciation for my "blog family." I wasn't sure if I'd keep this up because writing is a much more laborious style of communication for me. Now, though, I realize you, Reader, have become a familiar friend--a welcome visitor. To get downright sappy, I missed your company!

OK, enough of all that and on to the "raw meat." Yesterday (Monday, June 9) I attended a very interesting briefing at the National Press Club on trends among religious voters. It was put on by the Henry Institute at Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

The briefing was based on partial results from an exhaustive survey of 3002 Americans. The event yesterday was concerned with what the survey showed about political attitudes and preferences towards the end of the 2008 presidential primary process. Although some of the report was predictable, other parts were real eye-poppers. (Watch for my full analysis of what we heard in an upcoming article at our website: www.faithandaction.org.)

Bottom line on this: Religious voters, especially "traditionalists" (i.e., evangelical "conservatives" and traditional Roman Catholics) remain one of the most powerful and influential voting blocks in the country. And, while there are significant differences arising within these groups, they (or shall I say, "we") also remain committed to the paramount moral imperatives of the sanctity of life, marriage and the family and the public acknowledgement of God. (On the last point, an overwhelming majority of all biblically religious voters support the public display of the Ten Commandments!)

The most pronounced differences in voting trends over the last few years appear among so-called "modernist" Evangelicals and Catholics. It wasn't clear from the presentation yesterday what exactly classifies one as a "modernist," but I think it's somewhat self-explanatory. Anyway, the modernists are beginning to break more toward Democrat and other parties as opposed to voting Republican, but their numbers at this point are miniscule. This shift will not change the outcome much--at least not in near future elections.

Still, there was a big lesson in this report: Neither party has a lock on the religious electorate going into the future. That, in my estimation, is a good thing. Christians owe our allegiance to only one Sovereign and His name is Jesus. "We have no king but Jesus," declared the American revolutionaries. I'd like to add, "We have no party but God's Party."

It's only those parties and platforms most reflective of God's Party and Platform that should enjoy the support of God's people--and only passing support at that. Christians are owned by only one master; we have been "bought with a price." (1 Corinthians 7:23) Our allegiance lies elsewhere. It's important we demonstrate that fact from time to time. Come to think of it, now is a good time.

Please check out the full Henry Institute survey report. Makes for very interesting reading.

Back with more . . .

Rev. Rob Schenck

Faith and Action

www.faithandaction.org

109 2nd St., NE

Washington, DC 20002

202-546-8329

A WORD ABOUT CHURCHES

2008-05-28T05:28:00.000-07:00

Your Missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

One of the great joys I have in this post is traveling to churches around the country, sharing what God is doing behind the scenes here in our nation’s capital. Sometimes I’m the guest preacher, sometimes a speaker for a missions convention or other special event, and sometimes I simply sit down with the pastor or missions committee members to explain the mission of Faith and Action and how it compliments the ministry of the local church.

Local churches—congregations—or parishes—whatever you want to call them—are vital to Faith and Action’s success. First, it helps us to get exposure. Much of what we do here in Washington is much too sensitive to broadcast widely. We need to “contain” the information that could compromise our access to important people and places.

One way to limit exposure is by restricting my report to a local congregation, again by way of preaching or speaking to a church group. (Maybe you’ve been present in a service when I’ve awkwardly asked the sound tech to stop recording, just to be sure delicate information doesn’t travel too far!)

Prayer support is another reason I spend so much time with local churches. Prayer is our lifeline. We depend completely on the prayers of God’s people. I know it’s been the intercession of the saints that has resulted in so many open doors on Capitol Hill, so many open hearts and minds among our elected and appointed officials, and so many extraordinary opportunities to adavcne the Gospel of Christ in the halls of government. (Prayer has also literally saved our lives—I’ll blog about that some day.)

Volunteers and donors are another reason. We need help here—from stuffing envelopes to doing missionary work among federal judges! Right now, we especially need basic help—a plumber, carpenter, electrician, painter, plasterer and a water sealant expert! Our buildings are over 100 years old and they’re showing their age! (If you’re licensed in these trades and could give a week of your time in exchange for a bed and dinner each day, give Peggy Birchfield of my office a call at 202-546-8329, extension 103!)

The local church is where we also meet virtually all of our high-end donors. Our ministry is built on a three-legged stool: Individual support (average annual gift to Faith and Action is $27 per year!), churches (most send monthly support, although more and more are sending it quarterly or annually) and major donors ($1000 or more per year).

My ministry visit to a church is generally the start of all three of these vitally important lifelines:

--I go to the church to preach or speak and an initial offering is received for Faith and Action. Then (as I always pray will happen) people will be burdened to support us and will take our literature to find out how. Almost without exception, a few people, often just one or two couples, will tell me they want to be part of our work in a special way, including an unusually high level of financial support. I generally spend personal time with these folks praying with them, answering their questions and explaining in great detail how and why we do what we do on Capitol Hill.

As you can see, the local church is fertile ground for us. And all this isn’t even to mention how refreshing it is for me to get “outside the Beltway” to get my mind and soul recalibrated!

You can help Faith and Action by introducing us to your pastor and church. If I’ve already been to your church, maybe it’s time for a return visit. If I haven’t been to your church, perhaps you’d take on a project to get me invited! I love to preach. In the course of a year I’ll be in just about every Christian church imaginable. Several pastors from leading churches of every denomination have put very generous words in writing about my ministry. (Often pastors want to know what their colleagues are saying about me before they take the risk of inviting me to their pulpit!)

Here’s are a few helpful hints in talking to your pastor about Faith and Action and me:

1) Faith and Action is an independent Christian missionary outreach. We are NOT a lobbying group and we are NOT partisans. (We do not favor a political party.) We are NOT litigators—that is, we don’t sue people in court.

2) We ARE evangelists, proclaiming and demonstrating God’s Truth to our nation’s top government officials.

3) Our core values are the Sanctity of Life, the Sanctity of Marriage and the Public Acknowledgement of God.

4) We are independently audited each year and an elected board of trustees governs us.

5) Our volunteers and supporters come from virtually every Christian tradition.

6) We have been a legal entity for 25 years and have spent the last 15 of those years on Capitol Hill.

7) Our ministry center is located right across the street from the Supreme Court, one block from the US Capitol and ten minutes from the White House! We’re right in the center of the action!

Everything your pastor needs to know about Faith and Action or about inviting me to the church can be found at our website (www.faithandaction.org). One thing to keep in mind: Most pastors don’t want to be pressured into having a guest they don’t know. (This is understandable, as one of the pastor’s primary responsibilities is to protect the “sheep.”) Instead of insisting the church should invite me, try to show how such a visit will compliment the pastor’s own ministry and satisfy the needs of the people of the church. I’ve met thousands of pastors and the majority of them care deeply about taking care of their flock. Yet, if enough people in the congregation want the kind of message and information I bring (which is also hopeful and uplifting), and you can demonstrate how Faith and Action can meet that desire, I’ll probably get the invitation from your pastor to come!

Arranging a visit for me to your church is really helpful to Faith and Action. Please prayerfully, sensitively and urgently work on this with your pastor and home church!

If you have any questions about this, write me at revrobschenck@faithandaction.org.

Blessings,

Rev. Rob Schenck

Faith and Action

www.faithandaction.org

109 2nd Street, NE, Washington, DC 20002

202-546-8329

SOLUTION TO RACIAL DIVIDE DISPLAYED IN COLUMBUS, OHIO!

2008-05-26T17:32:00.000-07:00

Your Missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

(Wrote this yesterday but was late posting. 24 hours hasn’t changed much—so here it is.)

I’m back in an airline terminal awaiting my flight home after a fabulous three days with my long-time extended family at the equally fabulous Christian Assembly in Columbus, Ohio. Pastors Torry and Marlyn Gligora warmly received me, as did Pastor Paulette Farina. Paulette’s late husband, Pastor Sam Farina, went home to the Lord six months ago. He had pastored this extraordinary church for 41 years and left a towering legacy. This was a bittersweet reunion for me because it was my first return visit since Sam’s death.

Pastoral transitions are always difficult times for churches, but Christian Assembly is virtually unique. Pastor Torry was Sam’s close associate, confidant and friend of 33 years—remarkable by any standard. It’s made the transition of leadership much smoother. Still, while Pastor Paulette has for years exercised a stunningly successful ministry in her own right, especially in music and arts, she was still one with her husband. It’s a hard time for her to go it alone and she asked for your prayers.

Every visit I make to Christian Assembly, Columbus, is special and yields up delightful surprises but I saw something this time I hadn’t seen before. It was right in the front row—vivid and beautiful. It was four couples, two with their little children beside them. All four were interracial couples. What made this so unusual is that nothing is ever said about it. It simply doesn’t command special attention; it’s just part of the everyday life of this extraordinarily diverse congregation. Black, White and Asian not only easily and comfortably mix with each other, they actually blend with each other.

This is the ideal of the colorblind church. It’s the realization of Martin Luther King’s dream. More importantly, it’s the realization of the promise inherent in the Gospel: The creation of a new people, a new community—dare I say a new race. It is the formation of the People of God among whom there is no Jew or Greek. (See Galatians 3:28) Even the most cursory read of history will bear out the animosity between Jews and Gentiles in the ancient near east. The Day of Pentecost erased those institutional differences. There would be no “preferred” ethnicity. All those in Christ would be one.

Considering humankind has been vexed for so long by the enormous tensions between races, tribes and nationalities, the Gospel offers a tremendous gift! Imagine a world where race was invisible. Such a world would be free of a huge class of human conflicts. To get a glimpse of it, visit Christian Assembly. While some churches lecture on race, brag about what they intend to do about racial divides or rant and rave about how incurable racism is, the people of Christian Assembly just live out their lives free of race consciousness. They are brothers and sisters in Christ, regardless of color or ethnic origin—and their sincerity jumps out from the first row!

God bless the beautiful and loving body of believers at Christian Assembly. As much as anything else, it stands as a testament to the man who knew no boundaries to Christ-like love, Sam Farina.

Thank you, Christian Assembly, for allowing me to be part of your blended community!

Your grateful missionary to elected and appointed officials,

Rev. Rob Schenck

Faith and Action

www.faithandaction.org

109 2nd Street, NE, Washington, DC 20002

202-546-8329

FIRST VIDEO BLOG POST!

2008-05-23T09:13:00.001-07:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

I decided to go with a video blog today because I'm on the road in Columbus, Ohio, being hosted by the wonderful people of Christian Assembly on Karl Road. I've been coming and going from this church for 20 years and it never gets old! (Of course, that's how I feel about them. You'll have to ask them how they feel about me!)

If you're within driving distance of Columbus, come out to join us:

Christian Assembly

4099 Karl Rd.
Columbus, OH 43224

614.261.8440

I speak at a nearby Christian school this afternoon at 2:00 (Tree of Life Academy) and then at the church tomorrow for a forum on the upcoming presidential election. But the big day is Sunday when I give the message and missionary field report at the morning service, 10:00. Check out their website at www.christianassembly.com.

Hope to see you at Christian Assembly, Columbus!

Your grateful missionary to elected and appointed officials,

Rev. Rob Schenck
Faith and Action
www.faithandaction.org
109 2nd St., NE
Washington, DC 20002
202-546-8329

WHAT NEXT AFTER CALIFORNIA SAME-SEX MARRIAGE RULING?

2008-05-19T10:15:00.000-07:00

Your Missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

The question hanging in the air after the California Supreme Court’s recent grenade lob into American family structure is, What do we do now? For an answer, I turn to nothing less bizarre than a Martin Scorsese film. Remember Gangs of New York? It was the unsettling and exceedingly violent film of five years ago, about the turf battles between mid-19th century Irish immigrants and long-established Nativists in Manhattan’s notorious Five Points slum. Like the recent There Will Be Blood, Gangs was another tour-de-force by actor Daniel Day-Lewis. In Gangs he plays Bill “The Butcher” Cutting, a brutal born-American warlord literally hell-bent on exterminating the newly arrived waves of Irish potato famine refugees. While the conflict was principally cultural and political, Scorsese casts it as religious since the Irish were very Catholic and the Nativists very Protestant. Ironically, the solution to the vexing and bloody feud would, in reality, be a religious one.

The film follows a compelling true story (albeit with great artistic license) that unfortunately ends romantically but frustratingly unfinished. What really happened to close this miserable chapter in New York’s story? (If I‘ve lost you, please rent the movie. Believe it or not, you can get a lot of meaning from it, including some fairly good theology—or perhaps I should say, harmartiology –from the Greek: hamartia, "missing the mark" or "sin." Once you’ve seen it, you’ll know why I keep focusing on, What really happened in the end?)

What really happened to end the Five Points’ turf war wouldn’t play well in Hollywood. First, it didn’t happen overnight. Idealists, artists and poets want peace and harmony over a single campfire. That doesn’t happen in the real world. What did happen, though, was none-the-less amazing. It’s best summarized in the words of then New York Catholic archbishop and Irish-born John Hughes. He was asked what he would do about the mess and answered curtly, “We are going to teach them their religion.” That, in fact, is what happened. Both priests and ministers were brought in to teach their respective co-religionists what the Gospel of Christ really commands. This spiritual reformation became a moral reformation. The results were dramatic—not only did the violence and hatred abate, but the enormously disadvantaged Irish would quickly rise from humiliating abasement to prominence in the community.

Why am I telling you this tale? Because the same solution applies now in the aftermath of the California High Court order on so-called “same-sex marriage.” What we are witnessing is the delayed evidence of a great demoralization in American culture. Supreme Court justices, whether on the state or federal level, reflect the general condition of society. We got the dreadful Dred Scott decision 150 years ago because American society was so morally degraded it would abide slavery and the dehumanization of blacks. In 1944, we got Korematsu because the culture would permit internment camps for Asians. Now we get Consolidated Marriage Cases out of California because the Justices, like the people of California, are ignorant of what marriage really is.

What’s the solution? “We will teach them about marriage.” Marriage is a sacred, time-honored and time-tested, universally beneficial institution involving a man and a woman pledged to each other in a unique covenantal relationship that includes physical, emotional and spiritual union with a view towards the raising of children as father and mother, respectively. Marriage is the foundation for what has proven over and over to be the best possible environment for child development: the married, two-parent of opposite-sex family structure.

Could it be that California’s Supreme Court justices don’t know this about marriage? You betcha! And could that be because California’s citizens don’t know this about marriage? Absolutely!

What then do we do? TEACH THEM ABOUT MARRIAGE! The most important and effective teaching tool is, of course, role modeling, but theory is also important. Who best to handle this material? Preachers, Bible and Sunday school teachers and religion instructors; parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles; even newlyweds! Our churches, synagogues and other houses of worship must become platforms for critical information about-- and joyous promotion of--Holy Matrimony.

It’s time for your church to have a special “Celebrate Marriage Sunday” that includes renewal of marriage vows--and a class on the joy and challenge of life-long marriage. It’s overtime for your home group or Bible study to take on this critical subject. What about your book club or discussion group? We need to pass around good material on marriage via E-mail and the Internet. And, let’s bring back anniversary parties—they’re showcases for enduring marriages.

All this to say that this is a wake-up call! Of course, if you live in California, you must immediately participate in the movement to pass a marriage amendment to the state constitution preserving the sanctity of this bond as between one man and one woman. That goes, too, for citizens of every state—because if this decision is allowed to stand, it will further encourage more states to do the same.

There’s a lot to do here—but the specter for success is good. Remember, people often need to reach rock bottom before they look upward. California and some other states have hit bottom on the holiness of marriage. There’s nowhere to go now but up!

I’m working with the team that used this same strategy in Hawaii 15 years ago and successfully overcame their morally corrupt court by passing an airtight constitutional amendment. The most important outcome, though, is what 19^th Century British activist Sir William Wilberforce called, “the reformation of manners.” For him it meant eradicating the slave trade, caring for the poor and even protecting animals from abuse.

Today we might call this, “The reformation of lifestyle.” For our times this means welcoming into life and protecting every human being, from the very youngest to the very oldest. It means watching out for the sick and disabled. And, of course, it means preserving and protecting the incomparably magnificent and enormously beneficial estate if marriage.

Are we up to the challenge? May God find us faithful!

Your missionary to elected and appointed officials,

Rev. Rob Schenck

Faith and Action

www.faithandaction.org

109 2nd Street, NE, Washington, DC 20002

202-546-8329

CALIFORNIA COURT ORDERS "CALIFORNICATION"!

2008-05-16T04:59:00.000-07:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

"And tidal waves couldn't save the world
From Californication."

-- From "Californication" by Red Hot Chili Peppers

My play on words is actually a hijacking of an album title by the alternative rock-pop band Red Hot Chili Peppers. (They released "Californication" in 1999.) Not only couldn't tidal waves save the world from what four justices of the California Supreme Court did yesterday when they ordered their state to issue so-called "same-sex marriage" certificates, but the act itself is, in fact, the beginning of a tidal wave. This decision is far more significant and consequential than the more predictable (and unappealing) but similar ruling of the Massachusetts Supreme Court. California is the largest state in the Union. In this case, the majority of the Justices are Republican appointees. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger is a Republican and has promised to obey the order. As one court watcher observed, this has completely changed the legal--and I'd add, political--landscape when it comes to same-sex marriage.

Now, before you jump to conclusions and accuse me of simply gay bashing, please read my reflections on homosexuality and homosexual relationships soon to be posted at my other blog: www.faithandaction.blogspot.com. I think you'll be surprised. For now, though, this posting deals with the California Court's opinion and its consequences there and around the country. So, I continue:

What the Court did in this case was redefine "marriage." Marriage is universally understood to be a ritual formalization of the intimate complimentarity between a man and a woman with a view toward procreation and / or the raising of children. Children need male and female role models to understand how human beings and human society work. Of course, as Christians, we understand and believe strongly that this is God's will and design, and that anything else is violative of this rule. You don't need to go that far, though. Marriage as between one man and one woman has been practiced by virtually every civilization since time immemorial. Its supreme benefit to individuals, to families and to culture is undeniable. The severely negative consequences of ignoring or deliberately rejecting conventional marriage and family structures is painfully obvious and can be seen from the anguish of plural families around the world to the single-parent homes of innercity neighborhoods in the U.S.

Marriage is not a legal arrangement of convenience. It is a recognition that men and women are different and in that difference improve one another. They each bring unique contributions that are uniquely strengthened and maximized through the marriage covenant and subsequent marital relationship. There are some things men do better than women and many things women do better than men. I know absolutes aren't in vogue but there are some things men can only do and some things women can only do. (Think anatomy here!) So, what four judges did in this opinion was to engage in a grand exercise of pathological denial. They said two men or two women can have exactly the same relationship that a man and woman can have. That's patently false.

A tidal wave (more correctly, a tsunami) can be powerfully destructive to anything in its path. The ruling of the California Supreme Court on same-sex marriage is a cultural tsunami, but here's a little fact of earth science: The backwash of a tidal wave is more powerful than its initial swash. A tidal wave-tsunami deposits material when it comes ashore, but its backwash removes more material than it deposits. The California Court's tidal wave decision awaits the inevitable backwash of the citizenry. As was the case in Hawaii a decade ago, when citizens there reacted to a similar court opinion by passing an airtight constitutional amendment preserving traditional marriage, this California ruling may just be the Big Wave moral conservatives have been hoping for!

More later . . .

Rev. Rob Schenck

Faith and Action

www.faithandaction.org

109 2nd St, NE

Washington, DC 20002

202-546-8329

THE THINGS THAT REALLY MATTER

2008-05-14T07:27:00.000-07:00

Your Missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

Last night I had the time of my life. No, it wasn’t some swank soirée on the Hill with movers and shakers—it was a night with the worn and weary men of the Central Union Mission.

The “mission men” have long and tragic stories. They wear those stories in the deep crevices of their leathered faces and in their rumpled clothing. Many of them suffer from alcoholism, drug addictions, violence and mental illness.

My responsibility was to preach their evening service in the chapel. It’s a bit of a raucous group, but only because of half the men. These are the ones who “call out” to the preacher in typical black church style, or yell and even complain. The others keep silent—utterly silent—and stoic or asleep.

I’ve gone to the mission before and I’ll do it again for two reasons:

One is, the Lord commands it (see Matthew 25:36). He instructs us to visit those in prison. The “mission,” of course, is only sort of a prison—but a very gracious one. Of course, anyone can leave if they wish. Some are put out prematurely for flagrantly violating the stipulated rules upon entrance. Yet, for the most part, the mission is a tough-love, regimented environment for broken human beings. Some feel trapped there because they have no other recourse.

Second is because I love being with these guys. They often have intriguing life stories and I collect those stories like stamps! (Others have sagas you don’t even want to ask about!)

Suffice it to say, the Central Union Mission is a wonderful collection of humanity that is delightfully transparent, genuine and humble. In other words, they are “real people.” The world is made up of a lot of pompous, pretentious people impressed with themselves, so, it does me good to get out with the “real people” and continue to experience the world from their perspective.

Because I don’t have a lot of money to give away (beyond my tithe, outgoing missionary support and my own little outreach project to a homeless woman at the Union Station rail depot), I try to offer something of intangible value to these men, but something that will last forever. I offer them God’s love through His Word as I preach it. More importantly, I give them respect and acknowledgment of their human dignity because they are made in the image of God.

What does it really cost us to show a person respect? A deferential handshake, a “Sir,” or “Madam,” a simple compliment: “You’re looking good my friend!” “Man, what a handsome smile you have!” “With that voice, you could sell anything. That’s worth money, man!” “God bless you, Sir!”

When somebody’s used to being blown off, ignored, insulted, demeaned, treated like a child or as if they don’t matter or don’t even exist, these simple verbal affirmations go a very, very long way.

Last night, one man, a disabled Viet Nam vet, cried when I addressed him as Sir and thanked him for donning the uniform and risking his life in service to our country and me as a citizen.

Earlier in the evening, as I had made my way over to the mission, my cab driver had asked, “Why would you go there?” It was clear he thought it highly unusual—maybe even improper—for a man in a coat and tie from Capitol Hill to go to such an unseemly place.

“Because Jesus is there,” I explained. Then I gave him a preview of my sermon. For my text, I took St. Paul’s letter to the Philippians, chapter 2, verses 5 – 10. Part of that passage reads, “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men.”

I told the cab driver, and later the men in chapel, “When I read these verses, I think of the lady at the US Supreme Court I call my ‘Kitchen Mama.’ She cooks up the best eggs you’ll ever eat, but she’ll never have a title beyond ‘cook.’ She’ll never wear a fancy robe, sit on a high mahogany bench or have reporters and photographers chasing after her, but she’s more like Jesus Christ than the Chief Justice of the United States. The Bible says Jesus emptied himself of his reputation and took on the form of a servant. That’s where you’ll find Jesus, among the servants!”

I got much more out of last night than I know those men did. A visit to a mission, especially after a day on Capitol Hill, centers me spiritually and in every other way. I love the Central Union Mission!

All this has made me think about the mentally ill homeless lady outside Union Station. When I passed her yesterday, she looked up from the broken magnifying glass she uses to read discarded newspapers and said, “Hi, Honey. You got anything for me today?”

She always asks so innocently. (Don’t worry, I’ve shed all my naiveté about homeless people—there are most certainly victims and victimizers among them. I have an almost airtight method for identifying the con artists, but that’s for another blog post.)

This time I said what I always do, “Of course, Madam, you’re my favorite spiritual partner.”

“How’s that?” She responded this time with a big smile.

“Because Jesus said there’s two things that really matter. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind, soul and strength, and the second is like it; you shall love your neighbor as yourself. When I take care of you, my neighbor, it’s like loving God Himself, and I like to do both.”

“Thank you, baby,” she said matter-of-factly, putting the $5 bill I gave her into her frayed bag. Then she went back to reading.

Of all the stuff I experience here with presidents, members of Congress and Supreme Court Justices, the men at the mission and the lady at Union Station bring me closest to God. They are the things that keep me focused and centered.

Gotta’ go now—I’m taking a small group to the Chinese Embassy to pray for the victims of the recent earthquake. Please pray our presence and our words will be a witness to this atheist communist regime—and more importantly—a sign of God’s love in Christ for the Chinese people!

Back later . . .

Rev. Rob Schenck

www.faithandaction.org

Faith and Action

109 2nd Street, NE

Washington, DC 20002

202-546-8329

HELPING A FRIEND

2008-05-13T05:20:00.000-07:00

Your Missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

You may have been with us last November for the 25^th anniversary of our ministry. It was a very special occasion for my brother, Paul, and me.

Among the guests that evening were Charles and Belinda Nestor, long-time friends, soul mates and allies. (He was the minister in the wheelchair who spoke so eloquently.) Paul and I met Charles and Belinda when he was pastor of a church in Niagara Falls, New York, near where we grew up. A short time later, Charles was elected president of the organization I served back then, a church-sponsored residential program for recovering drug addicts. We’ve worked together on one thing or another ever since.

When Cheryl and I accepted the call to minister in the nation’s capital, we moved to Manassas, Virginia, almost 40 miles from Capitol Hill, principally because Charles and Belinda lived in Manassas. By then he was pastor of the burgeoning Manassas Assembly of God, one of the truly great churches in the Washington metropolitan area.

Charles and Belinda helped my family and me immensely as we settled into a strange and extremely demanding place. They offered encouragement, love, prayers, information and money—yes, lots of money! (And we needed it—we arrived here in Washington from Buffalo, New York, and were in constant sticker shock over everything from the cost of a house to the cost of dry cleaning!)

A great sadness came when Charles, who had long suffered from multiple sclerosis, was forced to retire by his disease. They went to Florida, which had always been a second home to them.

By then I was so used to having Charles by my side whenever we had a big event or challenging situation in Washington, that I was disoriented by his absence. I missed him terribly. Over time, we would see each other once or twice a year, but it would never be like it was before.

Charles has done so much for me over the 31 years we’ve known each other. He has a brilliant mind, is a consummate preacher and is a terribly realistic guy with both feet planted firmly on the earth. (Well, not really anymore—MS has forced those feet to be firmly planted in a wheelchair.)

Charles is now the Senior Fellow for Public Policy at the National Clergy Council, the group my brother and I helped to form in the late 1980’s. From that “platform,” Charles now gives sharp, biblically informed insight and commentary on the crucial issues of our day. He does a lot of media; maybe you’ve seen him lately.

In any case, it’s now my turn to help Charles. Life has become much more complicated and difficult for Charles and Belinda as his MS has advanced. She is no longer able to help manage his weakened body. He’s had a number of falls that have become more and more dangerous with each episode.

One of the solutions to Charles' deteriorating physical condition—and one both he and his therapists have demonstrated will improve his life, his health and his ministry productivity—is a specially equipped van. Transportation in an electric wheelchair is problematic. Getting in and out of a conventional vehicle is downright dangerous for him. Knowing this, Manassas Assembly of God, the church he served so well for so many years, has raised $20,000 toward the nearly $50,000 cost of this equipment. I want to match their $20,000 so we can speed Charles toward the van he needs.

Will you help me help Charles and Belinda in their urgent need? If each of our supporters gave just $1 to the cause, we’d actually exceed the goal. Of course, as you and I well know, that won’t happen. Not everyone will, or even can, participate. So, would you kindly make up the difference? Would you make a tax-deductible contribution right now online at our website—www.faithandaction.org—of maybe $30, $50, even $100 or more? If you simply add $1 to any amount you give (e.g., $31, $51, $101) we will immediately know you want it to go to Charles' van (it's like a code) and your money will go 100% toward the purchase of this much-needed vehicle.

I can’t thank you enough for helping me to help a friend. Jesus said, “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” (John 15:13) Well, this is hardly laying down my life, but I would for Charles if I could. Raising some money is cheap in comparison.

Once we get the van for Charles, I’ll send you a photo of him in it!

Thanks for taking this request prayerfully and seriously.

Your grateful missionary to elected and appointed officials,

Rev. Rob Schenck

www.faithandaction.org

Faith and Action

109 2nd Street, NE

Washington, DC 20002

ALL OVER CREATION!

2008-05-09T05:42:00.000-07:00

Your Missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

Well, not exactly all over Creation, but I will be at Creation—Northeast, that is. If you’ve been there, you know Creation is the biggest, best and oldest Christian music festival in the world. If you haven’t been to Creation—you need to go! Make this year your year to be at Creation!!

You actually have two choices: Creation ’08 Northeast (where I’ll be, in Mount Union, Pennsylvania) and Creation ’08 Northwest, in Moses Lake, Washington. (I call Moses Lake’s gorgeous gorge the Grand Canyon in miniature!)

Creation co-founder Harry Thomas is a great friend to Paul and me, and a trustee of Faith and Action. Harry and his wife Margery are two of the most wonderful people in our universe. Besides being a talented musician himself, Harry is a retired pastor, missionary leader and Christian humanitarian—building orphanages and schools in Ghana and Haiti, and singularly boosting Compassion International’s child sponsorship program to exponential levels.

The Creation festival lasts four days, Wednesday, June 25 – Saturday, June 28, with an optional Sunday morning worship for stragglers who stay on. Creation is fabulous—but rustic--very "outdoorsey!" It’s a true camping experience. As you crest a hill outside the tiny hamlet of Mount Union, PA, you suddenly come upon a gigantic open field that always looks to me like a Christian refugee camp. (But much cleaner—yes, there are modern showers and bathrooms.) More and more people seem to be bringing RV’s. If, like me, that’s your style of camping, Creation can accommodate your machine.

In any case, I hope you’ll at least come on Saturday because that’s when I’m doing my seminar. This year I’ll address the sanctity of life in a session entitled, “It Has Fingernails!" I'm aiming it at young people (the vast population group at Creation) but more mature adults will like this message, too.

My seminar's at 3:00 in the afternoon and lasts about 45 minutes. I’ll also have a booth in the artists’ area (though I am hardly an artist) where we’ll feature the official launch of two new weblogs: revrobschenck.com and paulschenck.com. While this blog will continue to deal mostly with happenings here at Faith and Action, “revrobschenck.com” will allow me a forum to fully explore deeper subjects. My prayer is you’ll be helped and even delightfully surprised by what you find there. It’s not up and fully operative yet, but you can get a look at the framework at www.revrobschenck.com.

Please check out all the reports on recent Faith and Action events at our website: www.faithandaction.org. There’s been a lot going on lately. And, if you happen to be a pastor in town for Watchmen on the Wall, please come by today (Friday, May 9) at any time, 9-9, for a quick tour of our ministry center and a conversation about what’s going on behind the scenes—especially with the presidential campaigns and at the Supreme Court. (Which, of course, is just across the street, so you can see that, too!)

OK, I’ve typed enough. Please pray for us—these are very intense days in Washington. We’re grateful for your partnership and support!

Your Missionary to elected and appointed officials,

Rob Schenck

www.faithandaction.org

Faith and Action

109 2^nd St, NE

Washington, DC 20002

202-546-8329

STILL ALL WRIGHT ALL THE TIME!

2008-05-06T06:42:00.000-07:00

Rev. Rob Schenck, your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, reporting:

Until Rev. Jeremiah Wright came to Washington, I was busy doing the following:

- Working the National Bible Reading Marathon on the West Lawn of the U.S. Capitol

- Developing legal strategies for the two big cases surrounding the public display of the Ten Commandments and the impending ruling against “under God” in the Pledge of Allegiance.

- Continuing our efforts at ministering to the Supreme Court justices

- Prayerfully framing my talk for next month’s huge Creation Music Festival in Mt. Union Pennsylvania where I’ll speak on the Sanctity of Marriage

But now, in the Post Wright world everything is overshadowed by his much too memorable theological and polemical thunder. (Though all the above projects continue apace.) Jeremiah Wright has indeed taken the country by storm. He was the leading news story for more than a week, an absolute eternity by journalistic measure.

I have received hundreds of E-mails on Wright and his liberation theology. Dozens of reporters, editors and producers have called me. I’ve done several interviews about both for television, radio and print media.

Of course, if this were simply about theology the story would have quickly been relegated to the dusty, musty halls of academia. What’s really keeping this story alive is the question surrounding Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama’s relationship to Wright. This is a legitimate question, but for me it takes a little bit of a different turn.

I do think this is all about theology, the church and specifically, the black church. From my vantage point, these are the things that really matter. Partisan politics is predictably tempestuous, rancorous and filled with combat. Any weapon is fair to use, including one’s church affiliation, but for me, the critical questions are what Wright actually preaches and teaches and how that affects those formed under his religious tutelage.

I explore a lot of this in a series of recorded phone conversations with experts on the subjects of theology and the black church. They are posted at http://www.faithandaction.org/ and http://www.nationalclergycouncil.org/. (More installments will go up soon.) Please listen to these brief exchanges; I think you’ll find them enlightening.

As far as what we will do going forward on this: 1) We will continue to track and expose Reverend Wright and liberation theology, 2) We will continue to counter this “poison” (as one African-American scholar called it) and 3) We will continue to put forward the positive message of Christian faith.

My essay, “Why We’re Concerned About Wright and His Theology” (again, at http://www.faithandaction.org/ explains the reasons behind giving so much attention to this subject. Please read it and pass it along to concerned family, friends and fellow church members.

While I’m on this, let me set one thing straight: I do not disrespect Jeremiah Wright. He is an obviously intelligent, accomplished individual who is extraordinarily savvy about dealing with the media. He is also a man my senior in years and in ministry experience, so I will continue to be be deferential and civil in my challenges to him. I will also pray for him, his family and all those affected by him.

I do believe Wright is wrong. (I love that play on his name!) He is wrong on his understanding of God, the Christian faith and biblical religion. He is also supremely wrong on the paramount moral issues: The Sanctity of Life (he is for wholly unrestricted abortion and passionately defends Roe v. Wade) and the Sanctity of Marriage (he performs so-called “same-sex” weddings).

Barack Obama’s inexplicable long and continued close association with Wright will keep interest in liberation theology alive for a long time to come. Should Obama win the presidency, it will light Wright’s afterburners. The result will be an ever-greater interest in his peculiar brand of theology and ultimately a wider embrace of it—including here on Capitol Hill. This takes Wright, his black liberation theology and his ultra-liberal church from a religious sideshow to the religious main stage.

The concerns of others about Wright and the danger of his theology have led to some unlikely back-room conversations among Christian leaders concluding it would be better for Democrat-leaning Evangelicals, Catholics and other religious conservatives to vote for Hillary Clinton in the upcoming primaries. The reasons they give me for saying so: She doesn’t help propel Wright to national religious stardom and his heresy with him.

I never thought I’d hear pro-Hillary talk in religiously conservative circles, but I am now. I think I’m having a Roger Poger upside down day!

Be back . . .

Rev. Rob Schenck

www.faithandaction.org

109 2nd St, NE

Washington, DC 20002

202-546-8329

WAITING FOR NATIONAL DAY OF PRAYER

2008-05-01T08:23:00.000-07:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

I'm thumb-typing on my Blackberry hand-held as I sit in the stately Caucus Room of the US Cannon office building adjacent to the Capitol here in Washington.

In just a few moments Shirley Dobson will open the gathering and we will do what we we're here to do: Pray!

I've participated in these gatherings for several years now in addition to my usual pilrimage to the US Supreme Court where I lead the only National Day of Prayer observance at the seat of the Judicial Branch.

This is a wonderful exercise and I have no doubt God is pleased with it. As I sit here I think what this country would be like if it were to ban such prayer gatherings. We've teetered on the edge of that abyss more than once. God help us in His mercy to remain faithful to Him!

They're calling us to order so I better go. I'll be back to you later in the day. I go immediately from here to close the Bible Reading Marathon at the Capitol and then immediately to the Court to pray there.

Stand by for a full report at end-of-day!

Blessings,

Rev. Rob Schenck
www.faithandaction.org
Faith and Action
109 2nd St, NE
Washington, DC 20002
202-546-8329

FACE-TO-FACE WITH OBAMA'S PASTOR!

2008-04-28T08:23:00.000-07:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

I just got back to our ministry center after spending the morning as a guest at the National Press Club for an address by the highly controversial long-time pastor to Barack Obama, Dr. Jeremiah Wright. His purpose was ostensibly to explain and defend the Black church to a hostile audience, but I thought he went on to do more alienating than bridge-building.

In any case, I wanted to talk with him personally, and miracle of miracles, that happened! In an overflow room with very tight control and security, it seemed impossible to access America's newest religious celebrity. Never one to shrink back, I boldly introduced myself to one of his handlers and explained who I was. She was very warm and accommodating and immediately escorted me past the impenetrable rope line directly to Dr. Wright.

As always I tried to be as warm, congenial and deferential as I could. I introduced myself and extended a warm welcome on behalf of the National Clergy Council (my other hat in Washington), but quickly went to the matter at hand. With all due respect, I admonished Dr. Wright, warning him about the error of his Marxist informed "liberation" theology. I told him it was incompatible with the Gospel and was the source of his trouble.

That's when I realized Dr. Wright isn't all that interested in a "dialogue." A dialogue is exactly that, a two-way form of communication. It involves both parties listening as well as talking. Dr. Wright wasn't interested in talking to me, but quickly dismissed me and dropped his head into his notes. He then mounted the podium and went on what began as a thoughtful, carefully crafted defense of the Black Church and its history. It stayed that way as long as he stuck to his printed notes and teleprompter. As soon as he strayed, though, it quickly degraded into a sometimes diatribe against all those who don't understand his church or him in particular.

Instead of a noble and transcendent message--and a formal, humble defense--this became a "working out" of Jeremiah Wright's personal issues with a lot of people. I found particularly disturbing his intimidating behavior toward the young woman chairing the proceedings. It fell to her to simply read the questions posed by members of the audience by way of submitted index cards. (One of mine was selected: "Does God love the white racist in the same way he loves the oppressed black American?" Good answer--John 3:16!) Notwithstanding the reasonableness of the questions, Dr. Wright often leaned into the young lady, clearly violating her personal space, and acted as though she had authored the questions. At one point he seemed to almost physically bully her.

At no point would he concede that he had perhaps chosen the wrong words, allowed his temper to get out of control, or was the least bit wrong in anything he has said or done. He wouldn't answer the most controversial questions put to him. As time went on, he came off more and more dismissive and cocky.

Though I have been a critic of Dr. Wright, I went into this meeting with an open mind. I have spent a lot of time fostering relationships between white and black Christians. I have served in extended times of ministry in a large and all-black congregation. Our ministry has partnered with black organizations, often funding their efforts with no assertion of control or even visibility. We are right now co-hosting the annual National Bible Reading Marathon at the US Capitol, run principally by a black congregation pastored by a white minister. Sadly, Dr. Wright did little to strengthen such relationships and partnerships. I suspect he did more damage than good.

Please pray for Dr. Wright and his lovely wife and children. God help him to see the error of his ways and the power of Matthew 23:12, "And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted."

My assessment: I have a lot to learn, a lot to listen to and a lot to work hard to overcome, but so does Dr. Wright. May he have ears to listen and a heart to change!

More later . . .

Rev. Rob Schenck
Faith and Action
www.faithandaction.org
109 2nd St, NE
Washington, DC 20002
202-546-8329

PRAYING FOR UNITY: HERE'S A GOOD START!

2008-04-23T10:48:00.000-07:00

Your Missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

Yesterday I spent most of my time at a board meeting of the National Pro-Life Religious Council (NPRC). I’ve been a member of this group for a number of years. It’s a serious collection of pro-life leaders from every Christian tradition and denomination. For all the times I’ve heard people say, “We all need to work together,” NPRC is the answer to their prayers!

At this most recent meeting we had representatives from the following churches:

- United Methodist

- Charismatic Episcopal

- Lutheran

- Orthodox

- Anglican

- Congregational

- United Church of Christ

- Presbyterian

- Roman Catholic

- Evangelical

That’s a lot of Christendom in the room!

Beside our regular joint programs—like the National Memorial for the Pre-born (held in the US Capitol complex each year) and our publications (a pro-life devotional, compilation of pro-life sermons, various theological treatises on life issues, newsletter, etc.) each representative reports on their respective group’s endeavors. It’s exhilarating to hear about the enormously creative, effective and determined efforts to preserve, protect and promote the sanctity of life. (The Sanctity of Life is the first of our “Three Core Convictions” at Faith and Action: The Sanctity of Life, the Sanctity of Marriage and the Family and the Public Acknowledgment of God.)

Fr. Terry Gensemer of Birmingham, Alabama, is active with building a national pro-life youth culture. He reported on his denomination’s annual contest that rewards young people for their creative expression of a pro-life message with a trip to Ireland to work with pro-life youth organizations there.

Georgette Forney of the Anglican pro-life group asked for prayers as she and a host of others prod the worldwide Anglican bishops to declare the Anglican Communion to be a pro-life church during their decadal Lambeth Conference coming up. Such a declaration would imply a continuing rebuke to the apostate, liberal and pro-death American Episcopal Church—as much as lend strength to the witness of the biblically faithful African, Asian and South American Anglican witness!

Rev. Paul Stallsworth who heads the pro-life movement within the United Methodist Church announced they may see a decided turn toward greater biblical faithfulness and pro-life positioning at the U.M. General Conference that begins this week in Dallas.

And on and on it goes. Thank the Lord for talented, dedicated and highly capable servants of God who work tirelessly for the Sanctity of Life. It’s a huge undertaking and a constant battle for hearts, souls and, yes, lives. We’re in better shape because of these good people and I’m blessed to identify with them and keep their company!

Please check out the good work of NPRC on the web at www.nprcouncil.org.

Be back later . . .

Rev. Rob Schenck

www.faithandaction.org

Faith and Action

109 2^nd St, NE

Washington, DC 20002

202-546-8329

GREAT CHURCHES, GREAT PEOPLE AND HOW TO VOTE! (?)

2008-04-22T06:34:00.000-07:00

Your Missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

Sorry for the haphazard posting, but I’m still working toward carving out writing time every day. Let’s see if I get there by end-of-year!

Spent this past weekend with the 2200 great people of the Worship Center in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. I preached a message there entitled “How to Vote.” (Don’t worry—we looked at what the Bible says on “how to” not “for whom!”)

Worship Center pastor Sam Smucker and his wife, Sherlyn, have built a beautiful body of believers over the last 31 years. Like pastor--like people, the folks at Worship Center are exceedingly warm, gracious and generous in every way. This is a dynamic church with quality ministries for the whole family. They reach deep into their community, across the country and around the world. The congregation also maintains one of the largest Christian schools in the area. We’re grateful to the Lord and to the leadership and members of the Worship Center for their support of Faith and Action!

Incidentally, getting out into churches is one of the things I really enjoy about the “other part” of my ministry. I accept about 25 preaching engagements a year. I call this my “Pulpit Ministry.” Just as much as our team is called to serve our “target population” group (that is, elected and appointed officials serving in federal and state government), we’re also called to serve God’s people wherever they are assembled. We do the former by privately and publicly proclaiming God’s Truth here in Washington and in state capitals throughout the country; we do the latter by bringing instruction from God’s Word on exactly how we are to pray for our country and its civil leaders, as well as conduct ourselves as Christian citizens.

Speaking of conducting ourselves as Christian citizens, my visit to the Worship Center officially launched our “How To Vote Initiative.” This new emphasis will carry us from now until Election Day in November. This will be a very important focus for us. You’ll see a lot about it in the days ahead. We want to help you, your family, friends and fellow church members to prayerfully and carefully carry out your important civic responsibility and bring your Christian principles to bear on the voting process. Watch for “How To Vote” notices coming your way soon!

Finally, I had the rare privilege of giving a talk in the prestigious Mansfield Room of the United States Capitol yesterday. It was on the related topic of “Evangelicals and the Upcoming Election.” (My host’s choice of topic—not mine!)

The group I spoke to has in recent days hosted the likes of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas and Deputy Secretary of Defense Gordon England. They mostly wanted to know if I could predict whom Evangelicals will get behind for president. I couldn’t. I explained there is a clear and pronounced shift in Evangelical attitudes this time around. Upwards of 76% voted for George Bush the first time and for Republicans in general. That will not repeat. For a variety of reasons there is something of a disillusionment with the Republicans among Christian conservatives. John McCain hasn’t connected well with Evangelicals either. I recently talked with one of his top-level advisors about this, noting Evangelicals are relationally driven people and the McCain campaign has done nothing to build that relationship.

On the other hand, a growing number of “emergent church” leaders are looking at Barack Obama and even Hillary Clinton. This is especially true of younger Evangelicals. While I don’t think this yet represents a critical number—not even a significant minority—it does indicate a big change in the future. For now, it will likely mean a smaller majority will vote Republican--and perhaps in far fewer numbers. We could see a significant percentage of Evangelicals sit out this election because they either don’t know what to do or they just don’t like their choices—or choice, however you see it.

Can you see why we’ve launched “How To Vote?” Please help us to help other Christians—of every tradition—see the importance of bringing their voice and influence into the critically consequential process of selecting our next president and other elected leaders.

Before I close: Hope to see you at this year’s U.S. Capitol Bible Reading Marathon, April 27 – May 1, here in Washington. Check our website for more information: www.faithandaction.org

And pray for me as I go off today to an all-day board meeting of the National Pro-Life Religious Council, punctuated by a lunch with Jay Sekulow and his legal team working on the big upcoming Supreme Court case out of Utah.

That’s all for now . . . (as if it’s not enough!) . . .

Rev. Rob Schenck

Faith and Action

www.faithandaction.org

109 2nd Street, NE, Washington, DC 20002

202-546-8329

I LOVE BREAKING STEREOTYPES!

2008-04-15T12:11:00.000-07:00

Your Missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

During my April 9 appearance on a “Faith and Politics” panel at George Washington University here in the capital, I pointed out that ideological opponents often stereotype people like me. I made the point that I’m identified as an operative of the “Religious Right” even though I’ve never really known what that is. Of course, all of us do it, including me! To prove the point, I assumed all along that three of the panel members were Republican (including me) and three were Democrats (and I knew who they were). My assumption proved wrong when my ally on the panel, Christian “conservative” preacher Harry Jackson, revealed he is a Democrat! This is the Bishop Harry Jackson that just wrote a book with conservative icon Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council! Bishop Jackson is also black and a Harvard graduate. So, this “progressive” event got a religiously conservative, born again Christian, pro-life, pro-traditional marriage activist (who, by the way, is also on the board of the most powerful conservative policy organization in the country) and is NOT a white Republican. But there’s more . . .

When I challenged the stereotype of me, I noted that I am Jewish by birth. At that, David Brody, the senior Washington correspondent for CBN (Pat Robertson's Christian Broadcasting Network)—the “other conservative” on the panel—announced he, too, is Jewish by birth and upbringing! So, now they have two Jews and a black—and we’re all born again religious and social conservatives! Wow! I loved it!

To further prove my point, I uncharacteristically cited my life’s work. (I’m always a little embarrassed and hesitant to do that, not the least because the Bible warns against a man’s own mouth praising him.) Anyway, I had to mention that a very large part of my life and ministry was founding Operation Serve International, a Christian humanitarian organization that today dispatches hundreds of volunteers every year to provide medical and health care related services to some of the poorest children in the world. I also co-founded with my brother, Paul, Hearts for the Homeless, a mobile advocacy program for indigent children, women and men in my native Western New York State. I’ve also participated in numerous diplomatic religious delegations to Muslim countries like Morocco, Egypt and Sudan (including Darfur)--and I've raised a lot of money over the years for young unmarried moms and their babies.

The point is those who oppose our efforts to promote America as “one nation under God,” and to preserve the sanctity of life, marriage and the family, often revert to fictitious characterizations of religious conservatives as callous, avaricious prigs. Here are the facts: 1) Religious conservatives give more time and money to charity than any other subgroup, 2) Religious conservatives make 6% less than their liberal counterparts, 3) Religious conservatives are of every political persuasion, and 4) Most ethnic minorities are overwhelmingly conservative in both theology and morality!

What’s the anti-dote to this ignorant and sometimes malicious slander and libel against good people? Simply living out our principles. Don’t ever expect accolades. This is where I think some of my fellow Evangelicals make a big mistake. In their desire to gain acceptance and approval from the wider world, they compromise themselves and “downplay” the non-negotiable core convictions on life, marriage and public expressions of belief in God. In the end, what they’re doing actually works against the goal. It weakens the message and the messenger and leads to less respect.

Well, enough carping. Let’s concentrate on how we’re going to win this generation and reclaim our nation: By living out Matthew 5 – 8. I just read those chapters again and they’re so brilliant in their simplicity. We take those words seriously and we may still have enemies that malign us—but we’ll make a lot more friends for God, too.

Back later . . .

Your grateful missionary to elected and appointed officials,

Rev. Rob Schenck

Faith and Action

www.faithandaction.org

109 2nd Street, NE, Washington, DC 20002

202-546-8329

PASTORS APLENTY!

2008-04-10T06:13:00.000-07:00

Your Missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

I’m writing to you on Thursday instead of Friday because tomorrow will be too intense of a day to be posting. We will host our first “Preachers’ Circle” at the "O. House." It is designed as an intimate, but exhaustive experience for the pastors of our supporting churches, so they can gain exposure to all the elements of our work on Capitol Hill. This time some 16 ministers and their spouses will spend an entire day with us, doing what we do , seeing what we see and experiencing what we experience day in and day out! At the same time, they’ll have unique access to unique people and places. Here’s an overview:

We’ll begin our day with a discussion in the Wright Parlor of the O.House featuring Dr. Jim Hutson, the premiere American historian on the so-called “separation of church and state.” Here’s Jim’s bio from the Library of Congress website:

“James H. Hutson received his Ph.D. in History from Yale University in 1964. He has been a member of the History Departments at Yale and William and Mary and, since 1982, has been Chief of the Library's Manuscript Division. Dr Hutson is the author of several books among them: John Adams and the Diplomacy of the American Revolution (1980); winner of the Gilbert Chinard Prize, 1981; To Make All Laws: The Congress of the United States, 1789-1989 (Washington and Boston, 1989-90; 4th edition, Washington, 1990); The Sister Republics: Switzerland and the United States from 1776 to the Present ( Washington, 1991; 4th edition, Washington, 1998); Religion and the Founding of the American Republic (5th printing, Washington, 2000).”

It doesn’t mention Jim’s latest book, Church and State: The First 200 Years (Cambridge University Press). It’s the best treatment of this subject on the market. I highly recommend it to you. Don’t be afraid of it; Jim writes comfortably for the layman. “Church and State” is one of the most contentious fault lines in our American civilization, so we’ve got to get it right. That’s what this session for preachers will be all about.

After the discussion, we’ll go over to the Library of Congress itself and get a special VIP tour of areas not generally accessible to the public. (I can say no more!)

From the Library of Congress, we’ll go to the historic New York Avenue Presbyterian Church, near the White House, where each guest minister will be invited to mount the famous pulpit where Peter Marshall once preached—and where Dr. George Docherty delivered his famous “Under God” sermon while Dwight Eisenhower was in attendance. It was that sermon, atop a years long petition drive by the Knights of Columbus, that gave us the phrase “under God” in our Pledge of Allegiance.

After New York Ave Pres, we’ll make a brief stop at the White House for a group photo, then, go on to the U.S. Capitol for lunch and a prayer meeting led by U.S. Senate Chaplain Barry Black. You read it right: There is a prayer meeting held under the dome of U.S. Capitol! Senate Chaplain Black is a good friend and precious Man of God. (I had the pleasure of conferring the honorary doctor of divinity degree on Chaplain Black during a joint convocation of the National Clergy Council and the Methodist Episcopal Church USA.)He loves the Lord and has faithfully served Him since a teenager. Chaplain Black is the first military man to occupy this post (he's a retired Navy admiral and former Navy Chief of Chaplains) and the first African American congressional chaplain.

Following the prayer service, we’ll go across the street for an officially escorted VIP tour of the US Supreme Court. As you know, this is our primary mission field, and I want these ministers to get a good look at it—up close and personal!

Finally, we’ll gather for debriefing at the ministry center and enjoy a leisurely dinner at one of the nearby Capitol Hill haunts. It’ll be a full day!

If you think your pastor would enjoy one of these “Preachers’ Circle” events, please put us in touch. Have your pastor write to us at info@faithandaction.org and request information.

Watch for my End-of-Week Round-Up tomorrow. It’s been a very full five days—wait till you hear what’s happened. We are anything but bored!

Thanks for all you are to us--and all you do for us. You are God’s lifeline from heaven to this ministry!

Your grateful missionary to elected and appointed officials,

Rev. Rob Schenck

www.faithandaction.org

109 2^nd St, NE

Washington, DC 20002

202-546-8329

LIVE FROM CAPITOL ROTUNDA

2008-04-03T07:47:00.000-07:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

I'm thumb-typing on my Blackberry so please forgive any errors. I'm sitting in the presitigious Statuary Hall of the United States Capitol awaiting the start of "Renewing the Dream: A Celebration of the Legacy of Martin Luther King, Jr." Suprisingly--shockingly---I'm a guest of Speaker Nancy Pelosi! How I got on her VIP list, I just don't know. In any case, I'm representing our National Clergy Council at this observance.

While today I am much more critical of Dr. King's theology and politics, as a child I grew up admiring him greatly. He and those who worked with him were heroes in my home because they challenged injustice by putting their lives on the line.

Notwithstanding the spiritual and moral corruption in King's personal life, he continued to use scripture and Christian moral instruction as the foundational message of his struggle for civil rights. I'm astounded that most social historians consciously dismiss the fact that King was first a preacher and minister of the Gospel before he was anything else.

I'm hoping for some face time with congressional leaders--especially Speaker Pelosi--to ask when they will extend King's legacy on civil rights to all Americans--especially the most vulnerable, the pre-born.Perhaps I'll have opportunity to renew my challenge to Jesse Jackson offred ten years ago in this very same room. I asked him then why he once championed the right to life, but then abandoned it. He told me then, "We'll get together and talk about that." I called him but he never called back. Maybe we'll have that get-together today!

Please pray.

Your grateful missionary to elected and appointed officials,

Rev.Rob Schenck
www.faithandaction.org
Faith and Action
109 2nd St, NE
Washington, DC 20002
202-546-8329

READY TO DEFEND PLEDGE AS SOON AS IT'S ATTACKED

2008-03-30T08:23:00.000-07:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

For almost six years, Faith and Action has been busy defending the two most cherished words in our Pledge of Allegiance, "Under God." You may remember way-back-then, I personally (and gently) confronted notorious atheist activist Michael Newdow at a meeting we both attended in the National Press Club building here in Washington.

Newdow had just won his case at the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco. The judges ruled the Pledge's two-word phrase violated the so-called "separation of church and state." During that encounter, Newdow asked me why I thought we needed to confess that our nation is accountable to God. "Because I don't trust you, Michael, and you don't trust me. We must appeal to a moral authority greater than ourselves." He offered no rejoinder.

I'd say the same thing to Newdow now. As an atheist, Michael puts his ultimate trust in humans and human agencies. I don't. Sinful people will fail and so will the governments they establish and operate. The only safety from our our own proclivities toward evil is our confession that we need God. That's what "Under God" in the Pledge is all about. This rationale is woven into the history behind the insertion of these great words. That happened in 1954 when the God-fearing United States stood in stark contrast to the God-denying Soviet Union. Our country wanted to make abundantly clear that our world view was distinctly and diametrically opposite to a Communist-Humanistic worldview. I have a paper copy of the February 8-12, 1954 Congressional Record reflecting the fascinating debate behind this move, but I can't find it online. (If you know of a link, please send it to me at info@faithandaction.org--thanks!) It's really worth examining the original reasoning offered by congressional sponsors.

As you know, we've already been out front on this, making a case for why the people of the United States must continue to acknowledge God in the Pledge. The Ninth Circuit could come down with its decision on Newdow's second case any day. To protect the Pledge as it is now, a new law has been drafted and will be proposed the instant that the Pledge is threatened. We're part of the working group that drafted the legislation.

I expect the Ninth Circuit to indeed strike down the Pledge again as unconstitutional. At the moment it does, we will ask you to contact your members of Congress to urge them to pass this new law protecting the phrase "Under God. " Please stand by for details! I'm also asking you to ask your pastor to have a sermon ready. Pastors should be poised and informed to preach on this at the very next opportunity and to make statements from the pulpit and to the media in support of keeping the Pledge as it is. You should also call into your local radio talk shows and offer your opinions as well as write a letter to the editor of your local paper If we're going to save this vital part of our national life, there must be a hue and cry in the land!

I will discuss all of this with a special group of church leaders who will gather at our ministry center next week. Our guest will be America's foremost authority on the so-called "separation of church and state," Dr. James Hutson of the Library of Congress. Dr. Hutson has done unique, original scholarship on the subject and has a new book out, Church and State: The First Two Centuries, published by the prestigious Cambridge University Press. (We'll have the book available at our website shortly.) This is not a stuffy, scholars-only tome. It's a short paperback and a very readable, easy-to-understand examination of this very important subject. If you're looking for a truly authoritative resource on "Church and State," one that cannot be dismissed as "religious right" propaganda, get Dr. Hutson's book! (Pastors who attend our "Preachers' Circle," April 10-12, will get a complimentary autographed copy. For details contact Elizabeth Sowers at my office, 202-546-8329, extension 107.) We'll post an edited video of Dr. Hutson's talk to the "Preachers' Circle" after the event.

FYI: I'm posting this blog on Sunday, March 30. My friend, Jay Sekulow, the top lawyer and director at the American Center for Law and Justice, E-mailed me a few minutes ago announcing he expects some big news at the Supreme Court tomorrow morning, March 31. The Court met Friday in conference to discuss two Ten Commandments appeals Jay is handling. (Friday Conferences are the highly secretive sessions when the Justices talk about possible cases without anyone else present in the room.) Both cases basically amount to lower court orders requiring government approval of opposing displays. While the direct affect would be to allow atheistic and other counterpoints to Ten Commandments displays, Jay and his legal team argue this would ultimately lead to the absurd conclusion that government would have to allow the Statue of Liberty to be "balanced" with a "Statue of Tyranny."

I'll have breakfast with Jay in the morning at the Supreme Court, then we'll wait for "orders" to be handed down. If the Court does agree to hear one or both of these cases, I'll be back to this blog to explore them more fully and suggest more ways for you to get directly involved. For now, please watch and pray!

Back later . . .

Your grateful missionary to elected and appointed officials,

Rob Schenck

www.faithandaction.org

Faith and Action

109 2nd St, NE

Washington, DC 20002

202-546-8329

PRAYING IN THE US CAPITOL

2008-03-24T16:59:00.000-07:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

Today began for me the best way it could, offering a prayer in the United States Capitol. It was even nicer than that, though. I gave the prayer at the breakfast meeting that has met weekly in the Capitol for 35 years. You may recall it was this group of God-fearing Americans that was unceremoniously shown the door after the ascendance of the current congressional leadership. It took prayer and hard work to get us back in, but we are indeed baaaaaack!

What added insult to injury in the sudden eviction was the fact that many of these breakfast group members are true American heroes. They stormed the beaches of Normandy, landed at Inchon, flew missions over North Vietnam, tested our best weapons, fought in both Gulf Wars. To a one they are decent, caring, loving and enormously generous people. Yet, because they are perceived as benighted anachronisms they were dumped out on the street and told not to come back.

Well, it's a hopeful sign they couldn't be kept out. Yet not a one is a bit haughty about it. Instead, they are to a man and a woman grateful--deeply grateful to God and to this country that they can meet each week under the dome of US Capitol. Not a bitter word has been spoken in the group. They're just quietly going about their business. Each breakfast meeting begins with the Pledge of Allegiance "to the Flag . . .of the United States of America . . . and to the Republic for which it stands . . .one nation UNDER GOD . . ."

The Pledge is always followed by a prayer. Most often the prayer includes heartfelt thankfulness for everything good: family, friends, freedom and the men and women in uniform who for our benefit do what few of us would ever do.

Yeah, it was a great start to the day today. It wasn't hard for me to pray for this group; the words of gratitude always come naturally.

I'm off to Austin, Texas for tomorrow and Wednesday. Be back to tell you all about it.

Blessings,

Your grateful missionary to elected and appointed officials,

Rev. Rob Schenck

Faith and Action

www.faithandaction.org

109 2nd St, NE

Washington, DC 20002

202-546-8329

EVERY MEMBER OF CONGRESS EVANGELIZED!

2008-03-23T13:22:00.001-07:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, reporting:

That's right: Just before their Easter break, each and every member of the United States Congress--435 members of the house of Representatives and 100 members of the Senate--received a hand-delivered packet of materials from Faith and Action that included a full explanation of the Christian Gospel. You can see exactly what was in the packet at our website.

We hand-delivered these materials because it's really the only way to get them through to the actual recipients. Mail to congressional offices has always been fraught with problems, but since 9-11, it's almost assured that mail like ours will not reach its destination. First, it's routed off-site to a military base where it's tested for dangerous substances or enclosures. If it ever makes its way out of there, it's received by staff who use an essentially "cut and paste" process to respond. (Depending on the nature of the originating correspondence, young staffers generally pick from a menu of prepared sentences or paragraphs pertaining to the matter at hand.) Packages and printed materials are more often than not discarded.

Hand-delivery by-passes both of these steps. Generally, the package is received by the front-desk clerk and routed directly to the in-office sorter who in turn routes it directly to the member's desk. (In Capitol Hill lingo, a member of Congress--either a representative or senator--is generally referred to simply as "a member" or "the member.") Our congressional contacts confirm most of the packets do land where intended. The acknowledgment letters we eventually get from members every year indicate that, too. We'll soon post whatever notes we receive this year at our site. Some of them can be quite touching.

Over the years we've only had a few members of congress refuse the Easter / Resurrection packets--and the same goes for the similar deliveries we make just before Christmas. For the most part members are at least cordial if not enthusiastic. Our next delivery will be the Christmas package in early December. (It's not too early to pray for it's success!)

Not much more to tell you today because we were on the same Easter break as Congress last week. (Do check out the soon-to-be-posted article at our site on Rev. Pat Mahoney's success in defeating the rule banning Stations of the Cross at certain federal buildings. God bless Pat for taking on another limitation to our religious liberty!) The Easter break is one of the few luxuries our staff enjoys. Otherwise, during normal times, everyone works very hard for long days. Of course, we're back in full swing starting today. I leave tomorrow for meetings in Texas and return Thursday for the big planning session on this year's U.S. Capitol Bible Reading Marathon. More on that later this week . . .

Thanks for praying. Thanks for helping. Thanks for being a friend of this ministry!

Your grateful missionary to elected and appointed officials,

Rev. Rob Schenck

Faith and Action

www.faithandaction.org

109 2nd St, NE

Washington, DC 20002

202-546-8329

OH WHAT A TANGLED WEB HE WOVE!

2008-03-13T05:08:00.000-07:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

What a tangled web indeed! Soon-to-be former governor of New York, Eliot Spitzer, looks like he wove what may be an inescapable web. The hitherto rising star in New York--a Democrat super delegate pledged to Hillary Clinton--may face a bevy of charges related to his use of a high-priced prostitution ring.

The saddest part of this story is the Governor's family. He has three teenage girls and wife who is a high-achieving mom with a Harvard law degree. How is it that they weren't enough for him to stop his risky and even dangerous behavior? Before I explore that question, let me quickly say there is no excuse for Spitzer's egregious moral failure, the injury he has inflicted on family and friends and his alleged violation of law. He said so himself and I agree with him.

Still, it's worth exploring why people in such enormous positions of power do these things. Certainly pride plays a role. The Bible says, "Pride goes before destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall." (Proverbs 16:18.) Spitzer had a reputation for both. Pride makes us think we're above everybody else. They may get caught but I never will; even if I did get caught, law and punishment is made for the little people, not for me. It's hubris--arrogance--the Satanic sin: "I will rise above God!" (Isaiah 14: 12-15) Well, that's one possibility, but there could be another.

Whenever there is sin like this, you will find both victimizer and victim. The victimizer knowingly perpetrates a harmful act on others. He/she deliberately inflicts wounds and exploits and uses his / her victims. The victim allows himself / herself to be wounded, exploited and used. No doubt most people who are following the Spitzer drama would tag him solely as the victimizer, but it may not be so simple.

Based on his prior behavior in office, especially toward the good pro-life people who were trying to help women in crisis pregnancies, there's a strong victimizer in Spitzer. Still, most victimizers are both. Violent criminals, for example, are often discovered to have been victims of violence first. What could be in Spitzer's background that made him vulnerable to the kind of mutual exploitation of prostitution? It's clear the young woman we now know was his liaison got a lot out of this, including a swank Manhattan apartment. The so-called "Escort Service" got a lot of money, too. If Spitzer suffers from a psychological disorder, say a sexual addiction, surely someone suspected it. If they knew who he was, they probably figured that knowing his identity was a possible shield against their own future prosecution.

Watching all this, I was reminded of a line from the hit song Sweet Dreams by Annie Lennox:

"Everybody's looking for something.

Some of them want to use you
Some of them want to get used by you
Some of them want to abuse you
Some of them want to be abused."

Remember when Jesus encountered the woman caught in adultery? He in no way excused or justified her sin. He called it for what it was, but he also reminded the crowd they too were guilty. He lifted the woman out of her shame but commanded her to "sin no more." (John 8:10-12)

I have to be very careful not to gloat in my enemy's downfall, not to beat my chest in prideful satisfaction that I'm better than Eliot Spitzer. It's not even good enough to think I'm not as bad as Eliot Spitzer. The truth is, I'm just as bad as Eliot Spitzer: "For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God." (Romans 3:23)

The Spitzer spectacle is so much more than prurient entertainment. It has many lessons in it. It forces us to look at ourselves and others differently. My hope and prayer is that Eliot Spitzer will be changed by this experience. When he gave his resignation speech, I could hear echoes of spiritual--or at least moral--counselors. My guess is that when the speech was being discussed among his advisors, there must have been a venerable black preacher in the room. Spitzer's comments on "atonement" and "rising up" after a fall is not the common lingo of progressive Jews. (I know because all of my father's family are progressive Jews!) It is the language often used in black pulpits. (I know this because I spend a lot of time in black churches.) There was probably a rabbi in the room, too. The outline of redemption put forth by Spitzer was too perfect to have been authored by such an imperfect soul.

If my speculations are right, then there's hope for Spitzer as there is hope for all of us. He should pay his debt to society, just as so many of his prosecutorial subjects had to pay their debts. He should also find redemption, though, just as all of us can through the merits of the one who suffered, yet Himself knew no sin.

We'll keep mining this for more in the days ahead.

Rev. Rob Schenck

www.faithandaction.org

Faith and Action

109 2nd St, NE

Washington, DC 20002

202-546-8329

SPITZER SAYS RIGHT THINGS AND RESIGNS

2008-03-12T08:53:00.000-07:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

If you read my post of yesterday, you know I am no fan of soon-to-be former New York governor Eliot Spitzer. I must say, though, that his brief statement today announcing his Monday resignation was aptly put. He said the right things in the right order. I pray that indicates the Governor is getting good spiritual counsel.

Today Spitzer acknowledged his moral failure, its injury to his family, his need for atonement, and offered an apology to the people of New York. He spoke of remorse, gratitude for the love and compassion shown to him, and even alluded to the words of Jesus, "To whom much is given, much will be required." Then, he announced his resignation effective March 17, giving his replacement, Lt. Governor David Patterson, time for an orderly transition.

Rarely do we see a fallen politician articulate the proper path of redemption. Spitzer did so today. Our prayers are with him and his family. He has a long, rough road ahead.

More later. . . .

Rev. Rob Schenck
http://www.faithandaction.org/
Faith and Action
109 2nd St, NE
Washington, DC 20002
202-546-8329

NO SURPRISE FROM GOVERNOR SPITZER

2008-03-11T13:23:00.000-07:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

When the news broke that New York governor Eliot Spitzer had been implicated in a federal investigation into money laundering by a prostitution ring, it was no surprise to my brother, Paul, and me. You probably know, we're both from New York--and we know the dark side of Eliot Spitzer.

Governor Spitzer was attorney general during the years just after Paul and I left New York, but were still engaged in pro-life activism there. Spitzer was brutal on pro-lifers. He had sold his soul in a Faustian pact with pro-abortion groups and he paid them back in pounds of pro-life flesh. He abused his office by using the crushing arm of the law to intimidate, unduly punish and drive from public space any soul that dared to dissent from the prevailing pro-abortion orthodoxy. But he didn't stop at pro-life "protesters." The young attorney general went after pregnancy care centers, accusing them of practicing medicine without a license. He unabashedly announced his intention to shut down anything that advocated for Life.

Governor Spitzer's immoral and unethical bent was apparent long before his voice appeared on a federal wire tap. Any man who so zealously champions abortion must have an ulterior reason for doing so. Whether Eliot Spitzer's reason was to pay-off a political debt, justify a guilty conscience or ensure a way of escape from the consequences of his adultery, only God will likely ever know. The rest of it will be learned as prosecutors take up the case of The People of the United States V. Eliot Spitzer, AKA Client #9 of the Emperor's Club VIP.

Rev. Rob Schenck
Faith and Action
http://www.faithandaction.org/
109 2nd St., NE
Washington, DC 20002
202-546-8329

MY TRUE CONFESSION

2008-03-02T15:58:00.000-08:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

I'm making my confession. For years I've had a secret life. What I'm about to say may shock and even scandalize you.

Okay--I've got your attention. So, here goes:

I'm a closet listener to NPR--National Public Radio. In fact, I'm an addict. I know, NPR is generally no friend to Christians or to the issues that concern us, but I love the format, style, sound and depth of NPR reporting. I get really tired of sound-bite length stories that barely scratch the surface. NPR has always been great at depth--and that smooth, pleasant, calming pace with which they deliver the story. I always look forward to doing interviews with NPR journalists (and I've done many) because while they may not always be fair, they're always courteous and give me plenty of time to answer.

While I'm in this cathartic stream, I'll be even more transparent: I love the angle of Fox News and the national afternoon radio talk shows, but the older I get, the less I can stand their frenetic pace.

Thus, I have searched and searched for a source of news and commentary that delivers a Christian (or at least morally conservative) perspective on the big issues of the day, but without the frantic, breathless, superficiality.

I think I've found it! It's called Mars Hill Audio.

I'm sure you get the connection with the name, but just in case it slips your memory, Mars Hill is a location near the Acropolis in Athens. It's where the Apostle Paul engaged the Athenian philosophers on the identity of their "unknown God." (In that amazing sermon, St. Paul winsomely deals with his subject and his audience by connecting with their religious traditions and even their poetry. It wasn't only anointed, it was a stroke of absolute genius!)

Well, I digress. Back to the point.

A guy named Ken Myers put Mars Hill together. He has background experience with NPR and reflects the same sort of "sound" NPR produces. I've never been one for criticizing mimicry--it is, after all, a form of flattery. Then there's the old adage, "You don't have to reinvent the wheel." I agree. If you can get plans for a wheel rather than have to sketch it out from scratch, you're ahead of the game. NPR fell on a very appealing format and texture; it's about time a Christian version appeared. "There's nothing new under the son," as Ecclesiastes declares, so you know NPR got it from somewhere. Anyway, I'm the odd Evangelical that actually believes it was a great strategy for the early church to have taken pagan festivals and "converted them" by giving them new names and Christian meaning. God bless Ken Myers for doing the same with the "NPR sound."

All this to say I'm going to give the Mars Hill Audio Journal a try. Maybe you'll do it with me and we'll compare notes. If enough get on board and we see this is a real help to what all of us are doing together through Faith and Action, I'll prayerfully think about a major effort to promote this apparently wonderful contribution to the evangelization of our American civilization. Maybe I'll even get Ken Myers to do a future Faith and Action Live! Missionary Field Report webcast with me.

Two big headlines today: Tim Geoglein, President Bush's liaison to groups like ours, resigned Friday under a cloud after eight years with the White House. He admitted to extensive plagiarism in a regular column he wrote for an Indiana newspaper. Plagiarism is a violation of the Commandment against stealing (I treated it in my book, Ten Words That Will Change A Nation) and it can be a violation of law. Geoglein is likely not to face any legal or even civil penalties for his transgression, but sadly it has him leaving in ignominy. Please pray for Tim and his family.

Barack Obama has officially introduced New Testament theology into his presidential race. During a recent town hall style meeting on a university campus he defended his support of same-sex unions by citing the Sermon on the Mount and diminishing the moral authority of the Book of Romans. The Illinois senator also said his support for unlimited abortion does not make him any less a Christian. ("Okay?"--to quote him.) On the subject of his Christian faith, he stated for the record, "I am a Christian. A devout Christian. I have been a member of the same church for 20 years, pray to Jesus every night . . ." Here's the whole story:

I'll write more on these . . .

Rev. Rob Schenck

www.faithandaction.org

Faith and Action

109 2nd St., NE

Washington, DC 20002

202-546-8329

MORE ON THE GREATEST OF ALL HUMAN RIGHTS

2008-02-25T16:52:00.000-08:00

Your Missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

There was the notorious TIME Magazine cover of the late 1960s that declared, “God is dead.” No one ever produced proof of that assertion. In contrast, today I saw authoritative evidence the radical secularism that spawned such a ridiculous claim is absolutely dead-as-a-doornail.

This morning I participated in an informative meeting here in Washington dealing with the issue of international religious liberty. You may know I serve on the board of the Institute on Religion and Public Policy headed by my friend Joe Griebowski. It was in connection with that role that I attended today’s forum.

Several presenters shared insights, opinions and statistical analysis from a variety of viewpoints and data. We heard from experts who were religious and non-religious, political and non-political, government-based and non-government based, American and non-American, even communist—but they all came to the same conclusion: Religious liberty is a very important—if not the most important—of human rights and human concerns. Furthermore, the presence of religious liberty is inseparably linked to virtually every other positive societal factor.

Seems like a keen sense of the obvious right? Not to everyone. In fact, to very few in academia, law, government, international relations, politics and our U.S. State Department. (Note the State Department is the mechanism the U.S. uses to engage other countries.) I’ll concentrate here on what I found to be the most important aspects of what we discussed today:

1) - Religious liberty factors insignificantly on most government agendas—including our own. Notwithstanding that fact, the right to freely practice ones religion factors very high in polls conducted around the world.

2) - Most government entities—again including our own State Department—have operated for decades on a false model—that the world is getting progressively more secular. The numbers demonstrate otherwise—all parts of the world (with the predictable exception of Western Europe) are either becoming more religious or are holding steady.

3) - The consensus is that most governments and government officials, the media and the United Nations assiduously avoid engaging religious questions because they are the ones that are inordinately secularized!

4) - A clear 94% of the world’s population believe in God. An overall 87% consider religion to be an important part of their lives.

How is it that so little attention is given to things religious given these numbers? It’s not only scandalous and demonstratively incompetent to ignore such a vital factor—it’s an almost insane denial of reality.

The facts are clear and convincing: The world is a very religious place—sometimes a terribly religious place. In order to understand it, deal with it and resolve its most pressing conflicts, crises and needs, you must view it through a religious lens.

The Bible says, “The fool has said down in his heart there is no God.” Anyone running for office, running a government or trying to figure out what’s going on without taking religion, spirituality and all they entail into the most serious consideration is foolish indeed!

Your grateful missionary to elected and appointed officials,

Rev. Rob Schenck

ww.faithandaction.org

109 2^nd St., NE

Washington, DC 20002

202-546-8329

IN MEETING NOW ON RELIGIOUS LIBERTY

2008-02-25T07:44:00.000-08:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

I'm thumb-typing on my Blackberry handheld during a critical meeting in Washington on religious liberty around the world.(So please forgive typos!)

This is a collection of the top scholars and authorities on this life and death matter both for individuals and whole societies and nations.

It's a real mind-blower. We just heard from the top sociologists in the world on the question of whether religious freedom is connected to overall wellbeing--social, economic, security, etc. The numbers can't be challenged: Religious freedom has everything to do with respect for all other rights. This goes along with the philosophy of another group I serve with, the Institute on Religion and Public Policy (that's why I'm here), which says religious liberty is the foundation for all other human rights.

Think about it: The deepest, most passionate, consequential, and surely most important decisions a human will ever make has to do with God, spirituality and all-things religious. Such decisions have enormous temporal and eternal consequences. That's definitely important!

There are representatives of Congress, the Bush Administration and the UN here. The big question of the day has been, Why doesn't the question of religious liberty factor larger in American foreign policy and UN policy? The consensus seems to be that all the agents involved in this question are still working on a false model: that the world is becoming less religious and more secular. That theory is 100 years old but has been proven absolutely false.

The numbers presented here have been impressive and convincing:
The world is just as religious-or even more religious than it's ever been. A full 94% of the world believes in God. The only decline in belief is Western Europe. (Any surprise?)

Lots going on in the meeting at the moment. I'll break off and be back later. Watch for my video report on this meeting and all its related issues posted at this week's Faith and Action Live missionary field report.

Rev. Rob Schenck
www.faithandaction.org
Faith and Action
109 2nd St., NE
Washington, DC 20002
202-546-8329

MY VISIT WITH A LIVING SAINT

2008-02-18T09:27:00.000-08:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

Different religious traditions use the term “saint” differently. For some, “living saint” is an oxymoron. By this definition, anyone deemed a saint has already passed to Heaven. For others, all faithful Christians are at all times “saints.” In common American parlance a “living saint” is somebody who stands out from others because he/she has lived a God-honoring life that has benefited humanity. The top qualities of living saints reflect the two Great Commandments: They love God and they love their fellow human beings.

To my amazement, one such “living saint” is still, well, living—and I had the privilege of meeting him yesterday! He is George MacPherson Docherty, a retired Presbyterian minister. Now bedridden at 96, he carries the same dignity he did when he entertained presidents, lectured at universities and kept company with his golfing buddy Billy Graham. It was one of Dr. Docherty’s sermons that helped turn our nation back to God. In fact, it was his preaching that would lead to hundreds of millions of American citizens pledging their allegiance to the flag of “one nation under God.” It’s an amazing story.

For years I have known a little bit about how the Pledge of Allegiance was modified to include the phrase “under God.” It happened in 1954 at the height of the “Cold War” between the United States and the former Soviet Union. The conflict boiled down to one basic element: The acknowledgment of God as sovereign over humanity and nations. Americans have always been a God-fearing people, while the Soviet Union was an officially atheistic state. America’s founding document, the Declaration of Independence, states unequivocally that our most fundamental human rights come to us as irrevocable gifts from the Creator, not as privileges from the government. Soviet socialism sought to eradicate this notion of God-given rights and replace it with a purely secularist worldview and an all-powerful state.

In response to the advance of such radical secularism, the Knights of Columbus and other groups had launched national petition drives in the early 1950’s to insert the phrase “under God” into the Pledge of Allegiance. But it would be a single sermon and a president’s response to it that proved the tipping point.

On Sunday morning February 7, 1954, Dr. Docherty, the Scottish born pastor of Washington’s famed New York Avenue Presbyterian Church and the successor to pulpit luminary Peter Marshall, preached a sermon entitled “A New Birth of Freedom.” It was the church’s annual “Lincoln Day,” an observance in honor of the 16^th president who regularly attended services there nearly a century before.

Knowing then President Dwight Eisenhower would be in attendance, Dr. Docherty revised an earlier sermon, this time weaving in his proposal that Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address reference to “one nation under God,” be added to the Pledge of Allegiance.

“We face, today, a theological war,” he thundered from the pulpit in his impressive brogue. “It is not basically a conflict between two political philosophies, Thomas Jefferson’s democracy over against Lenin’s communistic state. Nor is it a conflict fundamentally between two economic systems, between, shall we say Adam Smith’s ‘Wealth of Nations’ and Karl Marx’s ‘Das Capital.’”

Then the preacher launched his proposition, “To omit the words ‘Under God’ in the Pledge of Allegiance is to omit the definitive character of the ‘American Way of Life.’”

(Ironically, it wasn't until 1960 that Docherty himself became an American citizen.)

Eisenhower liked the sermon and bought Docherty’s argument, as did two members of Congress present that morning. (The above photo was taken immediately following the service.) The very next day the legislative initiative was underway and in record time the House and Senate passed the new language for the Pledge. In a floor speech just days after Docherty’s prophetic message, Michigan congressman Charles Oakman said, “The tough moral fiber which has characterized this Nation’s growth to a position of world preeminence must not deteriorate. It was fed on the belief that our destiny was bound to the will of God. It cannot survive unless this spiritual fuel is maintained.”

In answer to a rhetorical question about violating the so-called “separation principle,” or the separation of church and state, Oakman said, “A distinction exists between the church as an institution and a belief in the sovereignty of God.”

The modified Pledge was signed into law four months later on Flag Day, June 14, 1954.

Of course, as you probably know, the notorious atheist activist Michael Newdow has recently challenged these words in court. As a result, in 2002, the powerful Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco struck down the clause “Under God” as unconstitutional. The US Supreme Court then extended a rare privilege to Newdow in 2004. Although the emergency room physician had only just completed a law degree and passed his bar exam, the justices lifted the normal three-year waiting period and permitted Newdow to argue his own case in front of them. It didn’t help; the case was dismissed and sent back to the lower courts to review again. Newdow just reargued it at the Ninth Circuit. No opinion has been rendered yet.

Regardless what the Ninth Circuit or any other court decides, the story of “Under God” in our Pledge reminds us all this struggle for the soul of our American civilization is not over. It will require constant vigilance. It also reminds us of the power of the pulpit. When God’s Word is faithfully proclaimed from the “sacred desk” it reshapes the moral landscape. “The king’s heart is in the hand of the Lord,” reads Proverbs 21:1. “Like the rivers of water; He turns it wherever he wishes.”

In the days ahead you’ll hear a lot more from me about George Docherty, his sermon and the Pledge to the Flag of “one nation under God.” While Dr. Docherty is still with us, I am working feverishly with members of Congress to petition the President to confer the Medal of Freedom on him. Dr. Docherty deserves such a great honor for his incomparable contribution to our country, but his receiving it will give the nation another opportunity to consider the profound meaning and consequence of these words. I’ll soon ask you for your help in getting this accomplished in short order. Dr. Docherty is a gift from God to this country, and I’d like to see us say thanks before he departs for Heaven!

Stand by for more . . .

Your grateful missionary to elected and appointed officials,

Rev. Rob Schenck

www.faithandaction.org

Faith and Action

109 2^nd St., NE

Washington, DC 20002

202-546-8329

A CHAPTER FROM THE MODERN DAY BOOK OF ACTS!

2008-02-14T05:52:00.000-08:00

Your Missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

Once in a while there’s a nice break in the intensity of Washington. The other day I enjoyed such a break—it was the best kind. I was on my way to the airport, which I usually drive in my car from my home in Northern Virginia. This time, though, I had to leave directly from our ministry center, and, because I take the train into the city each day, I didn’t have my car. Peggy Birchfield, our chief-of-staff, arranged for what is called the Super Shuttle. It’s a blue van that picks up multiple passengers at different locations and transports you to the airport.

Generally, the Super Shuttle is full of people by the time it reaches me, but this time it was empty. In fact, it remained empty the whole trip, which is quite unusual. The driver, an obviously African man, was listening to our local Christian radio station, WAVA. That, too, was unusual. The show that was on at the time was Janet Parshall’s America. It’s a talk format on issues affecting morality and spirituality in our culture. I know Janet and have done interviews with her a number of times. When I climbed into the back seat I remarked about that, telling the driver, Mr. Ekwa, that he was listening to a friend of mine. He was pleasantly surprised, but instead of asking me a typical question like, oh, what is she like? He said, “I am listening because I feel I need to become a Christian.”

It was positively Philip and the Ethiopian eunuch!

After briefly introducing ourselves to one another (I learned he was from Gambia), I asked what led him this way. He told me he was raised in Africa, oddly, in a Buddhist home, but that he was not spiritually satisfied. One day he just thought he needed to become a Christian. Then he made an evangelist’s job very easy--he asked me, “Can you tell me how to become a Christian?”

Of course, I assured him I could. I laid out the Gospel from the scriptures, shared my own personal testimony of faith, and invited him to pray a prayer with me based on Romans 10: 9, “if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.”

I asked Mr. Ekwa if he wished to pray this prayer with me and commit his life to Jesus Christ. Surprisingly, he hesitated, explaining that he was worried his wife would not follow with him. He expressed great concern for her and for his two young daughters. I explained to him the promise of God is for him and for his family, pointing to Acts 2:39, “For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call.”

With this assurance, he said he wished to continue and I led him in reciting a very simple, childlike prayer acknowledging his sin, asking God’s forgiveness in the sacrifice of Christ in the Cross, and pledging himself to Jesus as Lord, the boss of his life. He then asked the Holy Spirit to come into him and help him live in a way that is pleasing to the Lord.

After our prayer, Mr. Ekwa boldly asked me for a Bible. I promised to send him one and we exchanged addresses. (He’s already received it.) We then talked about how he might find a good church so he can get grounded in his faith and lead his family to Christ.

Please pray for our new brother in Christ. Of all the things I do here in Washington and around the world, nothing is more important than being used by God to help one person find the Savior!

More later . . .

Rev. Rob Schenck

www.faithandaction.org

109 2nd St, NE

Washington, DC 20002

202-546-8329

2008-02-13T15:31:00.000-08:00

Where Are We in the Elections?

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

OK, the field has narrowed and only a few viable candidates have momentum. Newcomer Barack Obama now credibly threatens Hillary Clinton, the heiress apparent to the Democrat nomination. On the Republican side, Mike Huckabee is arithmetically separated from overtaking John McCain. Left in the media shadows are Allan Keyes and Ron Paul, still very much in the race. Oh, and I keep forgetting about the lone pro-life Democrat. I’m embarrassed I can never remember his name, and I’m not sure he’s still in, but no announcement otherwise.

All this to say it’s boiling down to:

1) For the Democrats, obviously it’s either Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton. Policy-wise, most observers say that means little bottom-line difference in policy or legislative outcomes, but I say a huge difference in the way each would govern. And there will be an enormous difference in the culture-tone of their two White Houses. Hillary at least has a memory of church-going family life. Barack has no such formation. Still, his work within the black churches may offset some of that making his administration more congenial to religious groups. African-American churches also tend to be more morally conservative than white churches.

2) For the Republicans, it’s John McCain with the lingering question of what influence Mike Huckabee and Ron Paul can have on his platform. McCain has had a good record on pro-life (I did not say great, or even very good), a so-so record on marriage and the family (and that’s both public and private) and little to zilch on the public acknowledgment of God. So there’s definitely room to tutor him. I’m looking for that opportunity and hope and pray Huckabee and Paul might have it, too.

My observations:

The Democrats have ignited a “movement” with Barack Obama. Movements are very difficult things to contain. Notwithstanding Obama’s unexpected momentum, the Democratic Party establishment—the elites, the celebs, the mega-donors—are still largely with Hillary. She also holds the greatest number of political IOUs than any Democrat, ever. Hillary and Bill have been raising and giving away boatloads of cash for more than seven years. They have bought into all the strategic congressional districts by backing candidates they knew they’d need in this fight. That means she still has some good wins ahead of her. She also has a majority of the so-called Super Delegates, 700 plus, who carry exponential weight in the final voting. (I find the presence of these “more equal voters” to be an absolutely bizarre violation of “democracy” within the “Democratic Party.”)

Having said all this, the winds are shifting. In politics, everyone likes a winner better than a loser. They also like attention—and Obama’s getting a lot more attention than Clinton. It may not be long before a critical mass of voters, luminaries, donors and Super Delegates peel away from Hillary and glom onto “Beautiful Barack.”He may prove me wrong. I’ve been saying that she holds such a commanding ownership of Democratic Party machinery that it’s hers to lose. Well, maybe I’m still right, because she’s definitely the one losing it. She thought her party was still operated solely by the older white liberals. She was wrong. The Democratic Party is now energized by a new, young generation of “post-racial” kids. They’ve grown up with friends of every ethnic heritage and their heroes represent the full spectrum of human shapes and forms. Hillary and her people are out of touch with their own base. That looks more and more like it spells a loss for her and Bill, but we’ll see.

An Obama win will draw extremely sharp contrasts with a McCain ticket. Obama is fiercely anti-war and anti-military. He’s a child of multi-cultural intellectuals and religious skeptics. “Church” appears to be for him mostly an organizing tool to corral and deploy the best of humanitarian impulses. He uses the utopian language of “building the kingdom of God on earth.” On foreign policy, Obama is pro-Palestinian and leans anti-Israel. He has championed socialist-like government programs and attends Chicago’s Trinity United Church of Christ, one of the most liberal congregations of the most liberal denomination in the U.S.

In contrast, McCain is fiercely supportive of war in pursuit of the enemy and until full victory. He is not just pro-military, though, he is actually a scion of the military caste. (His father and grandfather were admirals and I believe four generations of McCains have been trained at the U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis.) As far as I know, he is pro-Israel and leans away from the Palestinians. The age difference goes without saying: McCain is a septuagenarian—he makes Hillary look young and the ageless Barack positively youthful. In today’s image-conscious culture, McCain’s age is a liability. On spirituality, McCain’s been flatter than Obama; a taciturn, “we don’t talk about religion at the table” kind of guy. McCain has also straddled a lot of fences. Down-the-middle rarely works in politics. As Jesus said, “because you are lukewarm I will spew you out of my mouth.” In this case, the majority of the electorate just may follow the Lord’s lead! Then, of course, there is the temperament difference. Obama is at least perceived to be a calm and cool conciliator, while McCain is known to be hotheaded and obstinate. On and on it goes.

The McCain ticket looks to me like a redux of Bob Dole. Dole couldn’t make it and, I’m afraid, neither can McCain. A great friend of mine who is a seasoned veteran (literally and figuratively) called to say he believes McCain is anointed of God for such a time as this. I want to believe that and I’m praying and working on it. God knows and so often confounds our finite reasoning. Still, this one is loaded with problems. Another seasoned leader and one of the most brilliant Christian minds in our country said to me today, “We have no leadership.” Amen.

Please watch my video blog on all this. Pat Mahoney joins me in the conversation. He’s a deeply spiritual guy and a real politiphile! (I made it up and have no idea how to spell it!)

Lets keep praying!

Your grateful missionary to elected and appointed officials,

Rob Schenck

www.faithandaction.org

THREE STATES VOTE TODAY

2008-02-12T04:48:00.000-08:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

I know, you're probably getting as sick of the subject as I am, but the fact remains: This presidential election will be the most consequential of the last 50 or more years. The reason is it will set the tone of our nation and its culture for a century or more.

The next president will select one or two US Supreme Court justices and scores of lower court judges. These judges make the big decisions on all the major moral issues: The Sanctity of Life, the Sanctity of Marriage and the Family and the Public Acknowledgment of God.

Your pick of the candidates will also send a message to whoever wins. For example, in the Republican primaries today in Virginia, Maryland and the District of Columbia, your vote for an Alan Keyes, Mike Huckabee or Ron Paul will send a strong message to John McCain that he must take the Constitution and religious conservatives seriously. I'm not sure what to say about the Democratic primary since I'm still convinced Hillary has the establishment on her side. I continue to project the "Super Donors" will go for her in the end, poking the electorate in the eye, but we'll see.

For today, I urge you to do both your civic duty and carry out your God-given stewardship obligation by voting in your primary. (If you live in Virginia, Maryland or the District of Columbia, that's today!) Vote your conscience after prayer. Don't worry who will win or who will do what. You are responsible to make your prayerfully informed choice. Whoever wins will then make their account before God for what they are responsible to do.

I'll be back with analysis of the outcomes. I'm praying for you and for our country today!

Your grateful missionary to elected and appointed officials,

Rev. Rob Schenck

www.faithandaction.org

HOW I WILL VOTE TOMORROW

2008-02-11T08:31:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow, February 12, is the “Potomac” primary—Virginia, Maryland and the District of Columbia—so I’ll be voting. I won’t tell you whom I will vote for because it will surely be misconstrued as an endorsement. However, I will tell you how I will vote.

My candidate must first pass what I call the Deuteronomy 17 test. Take a look there; it speaks for itself.

Second, my candidate must have unequivocal and personally credible positions (and realistically executable plans) supporting absolutely the first of our guaranteed God-given human rights: The Right to Life.

Third, my candidate will take an unapologetic but congenial stand for the absolute sanctity of marriage as between one man and one woman in monogamous life-long union. He / she will also make no room for so-called “same-sex unions,” which are simply a way to degrade marriage until it is no longer legally viable.

Fourth, my candidate will personally and publicly acknowledge the sovereignty of God over private and public affairs, including over our nation and indeed all nations.

Lastly, my candidate will be the one who most respects and assiduously applies the final rule of the U.S. Constitution in all matters pertaining to government.

And, if all the above are met, I might--and I emphasize might--take into consideration the candidate's electability; can he or she win?

If these pointers are helpful to you, I encourage to you to take and compare them to what you read on the candidates’ websites. Look too at our website and other sites you know and trust. If you’re voting tomorrow, take all that information with you and then pray. The Lord will help you to discern the right man or woman even as you vote.

Remember, your responsibility is to vote according to your conscience. Allow it to be informed by the Word of God, Christian moral instruction and prayer.

Check out my video blog to be posted later today at www.faithandaction.org!

Your grateful missionary to elected ad appointed officials,

Rev. Rob Schenck

www.faithandaction.org

WEEKEND FILLED WITH MINISTRY

2008-02-10T16:57:00.000-08:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

Ministering to government officials in Washington generally keeps me and our ministry team busy for long days Monday through Friday. Most weekends the staff has off, but on an average of two weekends a month, I get on a plane, train or into a car to make my way to a pulpit somewhere in the country. This is the other part of my life--what we call Faith and Action's "pulpit ministry."

This past weekend I was in Westlake, Ohio, just outside Cleveland, at the dynamic Church on the Rise pastored by the Reverend Dr. Paul Endrei and his wife, Patti. Pastor Paul and Patti have built a vivacious mega-church that places a premium on families, young people and children. Like Pastor like people, "COR," as it's known, is a very warm, hospitable, passionate congregation with an unusual mix of ages and ethnic backgrounds. Pastors Paul and Patti are also very busy conducting "ULTI-MATE" marriage conferences in churches across the country. Their newly released book on the secrets to a successful marriage, "Glue," is a sell-out everywhere they speak.

The Endrei's and COR has supported Faith and Action since its inception in 1994, the year we arrived on Capitol Hill!

While the travel part of pulpit ministry gets a little more difficult as time goes on, I still love going out and reporting what God is doing here in Washington, challenging God's people with a message from His Word, and meeting new friends who care about the soul of our American culture. If you'd like me to pay a visit to your church, talk to your pastor and congregational leaders. They can contact us by E-mail, phone or fax at info@faithandaction.org, 202-546-8329, extension 103, or 202-546-6864, respectively. (Please note: we can only respond to formal invitations from churches themselves or the official organizers of church or other events.)

Our approach to pulpit ministry is in keeping with our philosophy of "the sender and the sent." We could not do what we've been sent to Capitol Hill to do without your partnership as the sender. We depend on your prayers, your encouragement and your generous financial support. No one can be a "sender" alone; you can only be sent if someone sends you. That's where you come in for us. God has provided you as our "sender" so we can go!

Back with more . . .

Rev. Rob Schenck

Faith and Action

109 2nd St., NE

Washington, DC, 20002

www.faithandaction.org

202-546-8329

HUCKABEE, KEYES, PAUL REMAIN STRONGEST PRO-LIFERS

2008-02-08T04:34:00.000-08:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

I spent all day yesterday at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) here in Washington. This is the annual gathering of every kind of conservative political leader and grassroots activist. The content of the event spans the spectrum from the social-religious-moral to economic-Second Amendment-security issues. Sometimes it's a delicate mix, as it most certainly was yesterday.

While I was there I talked with a number of leading thinkers and strategists. I also talked with Mitt Romney and his wife Ann just before he so graciously bowed out by suspending his presidential campaign. By then, some 4 million Americans had cast their vote for the Governor, but it wasn't enough to stop the John McCain tsunami.

The political equation has now changed considerably. I'm greatly relieved that Mike Huckabee is no longer in a position of being used by the McCain camp to gain an advantage. Jim Dobson validated this by endorsing him today. The only way Huckabee could fall back into that trap is to accept a McCain invitation for running mate--something I pray Governor Huckabee would not do. It may be a moot point, though, after yesterday's clear rejection of McCain by the central core of conservatives. I was there. I heard the booing; I saw the bristling. He didn't go over well and he knows it. And everything I've heard about John McCain, including from those who have worked closest to him over many years, is that McCain has a very long memory. He's likely to punish conservatives by not naming one as a top figure in his prospective administration.

All this adds up to: Religious, social and moral conservatives should hold on tight to the candidate of their consciences. Huckabee, Keyes and Paul remain strong options on the Republican side; there are other party and independent candidates; and there's even a pro-life Democrat running, but I honestly can't remember his name!

It goes without saying that Democrats Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama will never connect with religious and moral conservatives. Relatively speaking, she's more conservative than he is, but that's not saying much at all. Both Clinton and Obama and their party remain utterly sold out to a pro-abortion, anti-traditional marriage platform.

This election season will not be an easy one. As you approach your primary elections, please pray, stay fully informed (a big demand in and of itself) and fully engaged. May the Lord grant us wisdom in these difficult times!

Back with more . . . and more . . . and more!

Your grateful missionary to elected and appointed officials,

Rob Schenck
Faith and Action
109 2nd Street, NE
Washington, DC 20002
www.faithandaction.org
202-546-8329

ME AND MIKE HUCKABEE

2008-02-06T13:39:00.000-08:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

By now I hope you've seen my video blog on the results of Super Tuesday. I'm still processing the information and prayerfully working through it. It's not easy. I'm usually an optimist, but not on this one!

Related: I just got off a call with a reporter who asked me if I am "against Mike Huckabee." I made it quite plain that I am not. I have met Mike Huckabee and I believe he is a fine Christian brother and able politician. He is most certainly a worthy opponent for anyone in the race. What I did explain is that his current trajectory is only helping John McCain to surge ahead--and that is seriously problematic for Christians and other moral and social conservatives.

The main reason I am "against" McCain is because he has no credibility on judges and justices. As I've pointed out before, he's the author of McCain-Feingold, a brazen violation of First Amendment rights. A sitting president couldn't possibly risk appointing judges that would deem the law that bears his name to be unconstitutional. Sadly, the only judges that will uphold McCain-Feingold will also be pro-abortion, pro-gay marriage and against the public acknowledgment of God.

Anyone who doubts my assessment of McCain's judicial picks need only look to the presence of former New Hampshire senator Warren Rudman among the top McCain advisers. Rudman is the guy who is singularly responsible for the extremely liberal David Souter being on the Supreme Court. (Rudman convinced President George H.W. Bush to nominate his fellow New Hampshirite.)

Of course, there's a whole lot more that does not commend McCain to Christian conservatives, but I don't need to go any further.

As you've no doubt heard, Dr. James Dobson has announced he will sit out the election rather than vote for John McCain. Many others feel the same. I heard from a venerable preacher and great Christian leader today who basically said the same thing. And it's not just Christian conservatives--look at the overall numbers: Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama are drawing out voters 2-1 over their Republican competitors. Low turn-out suggests a demoralized party and a lack of enthusiasm about the prospective nominee.

No, I'm not "against Mike Huckabee." I'm against John McCain and anything that helps him win the nomination. The numbers continue to add up to a McCain surge as long as the moral conservative vote is split, as it is now.

The only thing that might place me "against Mike Huckabee," would be if he gets on board a McCain-Huckabee ticket. That would be very bad indeed, and I'd have to work against it.

Maybe four years of a Hillary or Barack presidency would be judgment enough for the choice of wicked leadership. God has done it before; let's pray He doesn't have to do it again!

CLINTON SQUEAKS ACROSS DEMOCRAT FINISH; REPUBLICAN MCCAIN SHARES NIGHT WITH ROMNEY

2008-02-06T04:09:00.000-08:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

Last night was described as the political Super Bowl. If it was, it was the strangest of games: Four—arguably five—winning teams!

On the Democratic side, Hillary Clinton came in first with Barack Obama a hare’s breath away. They remain neck and neck, but I still contend she’s the establishment’s pick and it’s just a matter of time. Of course, as always, I could be very wrong.

On the Republican side, John McCain was challenged by second-place winner Mitt Romney. Mike Huckabee came in third taking states and delegates.

The real story here is not the candidates who won, but the voter turn out. Democrats out-voted Republicans 2 to 1. If that trend continues, it portends a Hillary or Barack victory in November and the most pro-abortion, anti-traditional marriage, anti-acknowledgment of God administration imaginable come January, 2009.

The counts so far:

The winning Democrat needs 2,025

Clinton 825

Obama 732

The Republican needs 1,191

McCain 615

Romney 268

Huckabee 169

I’ll be back with my analysis.

Rob

WHO SHOULD YOU VOTE FOR ON TUESDAY?

2008-02-04T03:05:00.000-08:00

Rob Schenck, reporting:

Today I write as a private citizen and not as the head of a Christian ministry organization:

Tuesday, February 5, will be a critical point in the process of picking the two major nominees for president of the United States. It may very well be the decisive day, but I certainly pray not. It will be a good thing for the country if the contest continues, and it's my opinion it would serve the American people particularly well if it continues right up to the respective Republican and Democratic conventions.

I've been asked by innumerable people now, Who should I vote for on Super Tuesday?

First, I offer a disclaimer: I see things from the vantage point of an evangelical Christian activist. I have lived the last 33 years of my life as an evangelical believer. I am an ordained evangelical minister. I graduated from an evangelical Bible college and an evangelical seminary. I serve on the board of America's oldest evangelical association of church leaders, and I head one of the most active national evangelical organizations based in Washington, DC.

I'll also say that I have carefully--and prayerfully--looked at each of the candidates, Democrat and Republican--and I have met some of them. I have talked to many of their top level advisors and campaign staff people, and I have even been with some of the campaigns out on the campaign trail. I have three close friends, each working for a different candidate, one of them working for Hillary Clinton. Though I have no personal contacts with Barack Obama, my soul mate, Dr. Johnny Hunter, head of the African-American organization L.E.A.R.N., has talked with the senator face-to-face; I also sent a research assistant out to Chicago to find out what she could about Obama. And then there was my one-hour sit-down face-to-face with the chairman of the Democratic Party, Howard Dean, in his office at Democratic Party headquarters.

(Two of the most interesting experiences I've had this campaign season was an intimate vetting question-and-answer session with Governor Mitt Romney and a prayer service with Congressman Ron Paul, but no space to further comment on those items!)

All this to say I've gotten a pretty good look at the field of candidates and their campaigns. With this in mind, let me offer my humble advice on casting your vote on Tuesday, February 5:

- Begin winnowing down your list by eliminating those candidates that are disqualified on their face:

1. If they don't get it right on the preeminent God-given human right, the absolute Right to Life, they can't possibly get anything else right. It's the reason the Founders listed the Right to Life first in the sequence of rights enumerated in the Declaration of Independence:

"We hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed, by their CREATOR, with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness."

Though I was born and raised in a dyed-in-the-wool Democrat family, I'm sad to say the Democrats have ruled themselves out by forcing their national candidates to tow the pro-abortion line. So, I have ruled out Democrats on their face until the Party changes it's position and respects the Declaration of Independence and every human being's God-given Right to Life.

2. Because so much is at stake in the election of this next president, we must balance our ideals with a realistic assessment of the candidates' chances for winning.

(A little sidebar: In my estimation, Hillary Clinton already has the nomination from her party. I say that for several reasons: 1) Hillary and Bill Clinton have raised more money for Democrats than anyone in modern history. They are owed more political IOU's than any politicians in this country. The Clintons own the machinery of the Democratic Party and they are the favorites of the Party's establishment. 2) Barack Obama is useful to Hillary because he whips up enthusiasm, brings hundreds of thousands of newly registered and energized Democrats to the table, and 3) Creates the appearance of a real Democratic debate inside the Democratic Party. But--and I may be crazy--I believe at the proper moment, the Party machine will pull the plug on him and ask, "Where are ya' gonna' go? To the Republicans?")

3. Whoever you pick has got to be able to win over Hillary, or on the odd chance, Barack, both of whom will be the absolute darlings of the overwhelming majority of print and broadcast media. Your candidate better be articulate, brilliant, energetic and telegenic, or he won't win in America's celebrity culture.

4. Once you narrow it down to a short list of those who get it right on the paramount moral issues, beginning with the Right to Life, but including the sanctity of marriage and the family and the public acknowledgment of God, then you must consider national appeal; who appeals to the broadest number of voters. Only coalitions win primaries.

Another sidebar: I like Mike Huckabee. He's the real deal. A true, born again, Bible-believing Christian. I don't agree with all his policy proposals or everything he did while he was governor of Arkansas, but he's a good guy with the right convictions on the big issues. The problem now is he's not been able to broaden his appeal beyond evangelicals, for the most part, and so his role has been reduced to spoiler for Mitt Romney. Therefore, I've concluded Mike Huckabee's only contribution at this stage is to draw votes away from Romney giving John McCain a clear path to victory on the Republican side. There is also credible information that Huckabee is being positioned to be McCain's pick for vice president. That, in my estimation, will be bad for evangelicals and for the country. I'll elaborate:

5. John McCain will be a huge disappointment for evangelicals and other religious, moral and social conservatives: McCain is not only a secularist, he has worked against the interests of evangelicals and other moral / social conservatives. His signature act in the Congress is a law known as McCain Feingold. This law severely limits the First Amendment rights of Christians and many others by restricting the liberties of groups to comment on the elections. It's a terrible violation of the Constitution. A vote for Mike Huckabee has been reduced to a vote for John McCain and that is bad for all of us, and a possible McCain-Huckabee ticket would be an equation for disaster.

6. John McCain will do anything to preserve the law that bears his name. That means he will pick liberal judges that are sure to uphold this unconstitutional law. These same liberal judges will also uphold Roe v.Wade, "gay marriage," and continue to limit religious expression in the public square. That's bad for us and for the country. By helping John McCain, Mike Huckabee does not help us.

7. Mike Huckabee's time may come in the future, but for now, he ends up being a dupe for someone who does not have our values or the Constitution as his first concern. I urge you to consider one of the other candidates who can go on to win this contest.

Look at the numbers, do the analysis, get out to vote in your primary this Tuesday, February 5, or whenever it is, and, pray; God will help you to be wise. The stakes are just too high to sit this one out. This next presidential election is as much about the Supreme Court as it is about anything else. Your children, grandchildren and great grandchildren will live with the consequences of your action--or inaction--in this primary!

I will update this blog throughout the day with more material--be sure to check back periodically.

WHIRLWIND WEEK ENDS IN LYNCHBURG

2008-01-25T16:42:00.001-08:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

It's been a whirlwind week for me. From Tuesday morning on Capitol Hill to today in Lynchburg, Virginia, there wasn't a second wasted. Thanks for praying us through the crisis at the U.S. Senate. As you probably read, we did have a National Memorial for the Pre-born service in the U.S. Capitol complex after all. It didn't look that way as late as last Thursday.

(I should mention that for the tenth year in a row I was back at North Carroll Assembly of God in Manchester, Maryland, to preach their annual Sanctity of Human Life Sunday service on January 20. Pastor Dave Olson is a wonderful man with a real shepherd's heart. I'm deeply grateful for the long-time friendship and support of this beautiful family of God!)

Only a few days before the 14th annual Memorial, we were told that when it came to pro-lifers on Capitol Hill, there was no room in the inn! That would have been the first time we were denied access to this incomparable venue. Our thinking is simple: Put the pro-life message where it counts--right in the center of U.S. Senate life by staging it inside the U.S. Senate office buildings. By now I hope you've read and watched my account of what transpired. We'll post a new video soon on YouTube--please watch for it and forward the link to your family, friends and fellow church members.

The Memorial itself was an overwhelming success. We once again had a standing-room-only crowd. World renowned singer, songwriter and guitarist Tony Melendez performed. Not only is he an extraordinarily gifted artist, he is almost unbelievable. Born without arms, he plays complex guitar arrangements with his feet. He also drives his full-size conversion van--with his feet! He even backed it into the narrow parking space behind our building--effortlessly! Many pro-abortion advocates would say that a pre-born baby without arms shouldn't be born. Tell that to Tony and to the countless number of people deeply affected by his music. Along with Tony Melendez, we heard another powerful message from Fr. Frank Pavone of Priests for Life. Fr. Frank is the "priest who preaches like a Baptist and prays like a Pentecostal!" I closed the historic gathering by announcing that despite the opposition, we had just had church in the U.S. Senate!

Meanwhile, as we were getting underway with the service at the Senate building, my brother, Paul, and our chief of staff, Peggy Birchfield, were at the White House for a strategic breakfast meeting hosted by President Bush and attended by other national pro-life leaders. Paul made it back just in time to introduce one of our honored guests, attorney and Christian philanthropist Stephen Peroutka. (The generosity of Stephen and his brother Michael are the reason we can maintain our National Pro-Life Action Center.)

On Wednesday I presented the Ten Commandments Leadership Award to Indiana congressman Mike Pence in a ceremony in his office in the U.S. House Longworth Building. Faith and Action and the National Clergy Council cooperate to confer this distinction on those who use their considerable stations in life to promote and model principles consistent with the Great Words of Sinai. Congressman Pence is an outstanding Christian witness on Capitol Hill and a tireless champion of the sanctity of life, the sanctity of marriage and the family and the public acknowledgment of God.

Thursday included a meeting with a gentleman I haven't seen in 24 years. Dr. Ray McCoy was a pastor in Western New York when my brother, Paul, and I first launched this ministry there. He now leads a Christian humanitarian effort to orphans in Nigeria and Burkina Faso, Africa. As an African-American, Dr. McCoy carries a great burden for the mother continent. We prayed together, talked and explored how we can network to benefit both of our missions. This is a good example of the many projects we assist each year that never get headlines. Our opponents in the struggle for the soul of American civilization often accuse us of being callous toward those who suffer. They don't care about the other side of our work and never give us credit for it. I don't think the secular media has ever mentioned that my brother Paul and I founded a relief agency, Operation Serve International, or a domestic outreach called Hearts for the Homeless. It doesn't matter. We don't do these things to gain the praise of men; we do it out of obedience to God and love of neighbor.

Finally, the week ended with my visit to the School of Law at Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia. This, of course, is the school founded by the late Jerry Falwell, and now lead by his two sons Jerry Falwell, Jr. and Jonathan Falwell. Mat Staver, a good friend of many years, is dean of the law school and founder of Liberty Counsel, a public interest religious liberty law firm. Mat is a former pastor turned lawyer who is leading the charge on many fronts to reclaim our nation for God. He's become a very important part of our effort to reach judges and justices with the Biblical truth. Mat was my host during my visit to Liberty. I also did several television broadcasts with him and addressed students and faculty in the law school's newly completed courtroom that is a replica of the U.S. Supreme Court chamber.

This weekend I'll travel to Fairless Hills, Pennsylvania (near Trenton, New Jersey) to preach for Pastor David Farina at the great Calvary Full Gospel Church. Please pray for me, that the Lord will use me to advance His will and our shared mission. If you live within driving distance, come out and join us!

That's all for now--be back soon,

Rev. Rob Schenck
Faith and Action
109 2nd Street, NE
Washington, DC 20002
http://www.faithandaction.org/
202-546-8329

TODAY'S THE DAY-MOBILIZE SOUTH CAROLINA!

2008-01-19T06:22:00.000-08:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

If you live in South Carolina, today's the day to go out and vote. If you don't live there, by all means call family, friends, old-time church members, colleagues or any contact who cares about the state of our nation.

Today four principal candidates will battle for the Republican nomination in South Carolina. In alphabetical order: Mike Huckabee, John McCain, Mitt Romney and Fred Thompson.

My last-minute thoughts after meeting and talking personally with each one:

Huckabee is a warm, friendly, gentle and humble man who truly loves the Lord, his family and his country. He's deeply interested in people's personal needs and cares especially about the ones who get the short shrift in life. He's a "Sermon on the Mount" man--a pastor in the true sense. His background in Christian ministry and even as governor of Arkansas is a consistent history of care for the poor, the stressed and the average Joe and Jane. He's a good man. He has rock solid, biblically informed convictions and prays and works continually to bring America back to her dependency on God. He's the most religiously impressive of the candidates. Of course some say this will limit him in winning a general election, but constituencies beyond Evangelicals and homeschoolers have begun gravitating to him.

McCain is different. He's strong on defense--a real "military man." We know he's a hero for choosing to stay with his fellow POWs and endure torture and deprivation rather than accept freedom because he was the son of an admiral. I know McCain on Capitol Hill as an adept deal-maker in the US Senate. He knows how back room politics works, but he can also be angry. His big problem is temperament. Something that shows even in his most famous legislation, McCain-Feingold, crafted with Democrat senator Russ Feingold. The law basically intimidates groups like ours from issuing commentary on elections. That's a big problem.

Mitt Romney is a class act. An enormously capable businessman, he is also a devoted husband and father. He admits he made a huge mistake backing pro-choice positions in the past, but I believe his conversion to pro-life is sincere. He runs an airtight campaign operation and is a skilled negotiator. He's cool, can be calculating (in a good sense) and carries himself presidentially. Some say he's too aloof, not warm enough with people, but I do think that makes him capable of making hard decisions and standing up against terror.

Fred Thompson is a good guy with an avuncular personality. He holds the right principles and has a pretty good history. When I met and talked with him he was quite comfortable to be with, relaxed and not terribly impressed with himself. But I wouldn't describe him as passionate. He just doesn't project "fire in the belly." His reputation from his days in the Senate are basically that he was good but slow to get things done. It takes an almost super-human level of strength and drive to be president. Thompson just doesn't project it. I like him, but it takes so much more than likability to be a successful candidate and chief executive of the United States.

Please do your duty as a citizen today and help your South Carolinian friends to do the same. It's a matter of stewardship over this nation that will have enormous consequences in the upcoming election. It will determine what happens in the war on terror, the economy, the choice of Supreme Court justices and whether or not we remain "one nation under God." Get out and vote or make those calls--please.

P.S. I will write about the Democrats in a future post. I've met Hillary Clinton and I even have a close friend working in her campaign--believe it or not! I haven't met Barack Obama, but I know plenty of people who have and I'll consult with them before I write.

Back later . . .

Rev. Rob Schenck
Faith and Action
http://www.faithandaction.org/
202-546-8329

MY FACE-TO-FACE WITH MIKE HUCKABEE

2008-01-18T13:51:00.000-08:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck reporting:

Today I was the guest of my dear friend Kumar Lakhavani. We were in Spartanburg, South Carolina for my long-awaited face-to-face with Republican presidential candidate and former governor of Arkansas, Mike Huckabee. I was impressed with the man and the people around him. (Please forgive any typos as I'm composing this on my Blackberry handheld while Kumar speeds us to the airport.)

Until now I've only been able to comment on Huckabee from a distance, but today I got the close-up. There's something about looking a person in the eyes. It's like peering into the soul. If you've wondered whether Huckabee is the real thing, I saw today that he is.

Now, I will punctuate this to say yet again that I do not--and probably never will--endorse a candidate. (I wouldn;t do so here in any case.) What I will do is give you the information I have and urge you to do your own further research.

Having said that, in the same way I learned Mitt Romney is the extraordinarily gifted business leader he appears to be, so I learned Mike Huckabee is the extraordinarly gifted spiritual leader he appears to be. He and the people around him clearly love the Lord, they love His people and they love America.

Here's what else I learned about this surprise headliner among Republican candidates:

Those closest to him are his friends of many years. (And that group always tells you a lot about a candidate; you're known by the company you keep.) I spent considerable time with Rick Caldwell, who has known the Governor since high school days. They also shared a dorm at the Baptist college each attended. Caldwell and Huckabee share a lot in common, including having married at 19.

Rick recalls being in the school dorm praying with "Mike" about "bringing our nation back to where it needs to be." That's why Rick, a former youth minister, says it's no surprise to him "to see the man standing at the presidential debate sharing from his heart the same vision he had when we were college students."

Rick adds, "Mike Huckabee did not become pro-life because he was getting into politics. He went into politics because he is pro-life."

When I asked the Governor himself what he most wanted you, my Faith and Action Blog friends, to know about him. He said it was his pro-life convictions. That they're the starting point for everything. He was emphatic about his passion for the sanctity of life.

According to the people who know him best, Huckabee marched for over twenty years for the sanctity of life, and he did so alongside the Roman Catholic archbishop in Arkansas. (Huckabee has historically been ecumenical--an extension, Caldwell says, of deep personal relationships with Catholic leaders and others.)

A woman traveling with the campaign named Linda told me she and her husband have known Mike and Janet Huckabee for over eighteen years. When I asked this woman what she would say about the Huckabees after such a long friendship, she instantly responded, "They're the same precious people they were eighteen years ago. No different. Absolutely transparent."

On the character issue, Mike Huckabee shines. He's the real deal. You'll have to judge for yourself whether that's enough to pick him to lead the nation. You need to evaluate his platform, policies and competence. But if you're asking if his heart and soul are right, in my estimation the answer is an unqualified YES.

More to follow . . .

Rev. Rob Schenck

Faith and Action

109 2nd Street, NE

Washington, DC 20002

http://www.faithandaction.org/

202-546-8329

MITT - HILLARY WIN MICHIGAN

2008-01-15T18:16:00.000-08:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

The big news out of Michigan was Mitt Romney's big win over John McCain. (No news from the Democrat side--Hillary Clinton was uncontested on the ballot.) The victorious Romney secured his place among top tier Republican candidates. It gives him significant momentum as attention now shifts to South Carolina.

Something else about this Michigan surprise: An impressive majority of Evangelicals and other conservative Christians gave Romney their confidence. I saw this personally when I was there. In talking about each of the candidates' religious sensibilities, a number of pastors and lay church leaders told me they had no problem electing a Mormon. That took me aback, given what attitudes have been reported to be. I consider this an important and positive development. (I took note that Romney publicly thanked our friend Jay Sekulow for his work on behalf of the campaign in Michigan and for Jay's efforts to "get good judges"--meaning, of course, good federal judges, including Supreme Court justices. Should Romney win the presidency, Jay will be a top adviser to him on nominees to the federal bench.)

Yesterday I received an E-mail from a woman in Pennsylvania telling me she had examined all the candidates and determined Mitt Romney was the best qualified, but she still had doubts about his religion. She asked what I thought of Mormonism. I won't repeat everything I wrote back to her, but I will mention these points:

1) Religious labels don't mean much in politics. Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton were both Evangelicals--Southern Baptists to be exact--just like Romney's contender, Mike Huckabee, but they are all very different people and hold very different values.

2) While Evangelicals and other orthodox, trinitarian Christians will have serious doctrinal differences with members of Romney's church (more correctly, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints--"Mormon" is a nick-name), LDS members do hold to the highest moral values. God, family and country are passions for Mormons as much as they are tenets of faith. The Ten Commandments are revered and repeated in the Book of Mormon.

3) Romney's official religious advisor to his campaign is an ordained, Bible-believing Evangelical minister.

4) The measuring rod for Romney and all other candidates is whether they adhere to these high moral standards and whether they have the ability to govern effectively. After my personal meetings with Mitt (and Ann) Romney, I'd have to say he clears the first hurdle. I won't say I'm an expert on the second, but many agree with this woman from Pennsylvania.

I have not--and will not--endorse a particular candidate, but I do want the most qualified person to win. Michigan was one more tine in the winnowing fork. Let's see what happens next!

Rev. Rob Schenck
Faith and Action
109 2nd Street, NE
Washington, DC 20002
http://www.faithandaction.org/
202-546-8329

MITVAH IN MICHIGAN!

2008-01-14T06:28:00.000-08:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

My feet are on Capitol Hill again after a quick jaunt to Michigan last week. I met many Republican leaders in the state. (While I was in New Hampshire the week before I talked mainly with Democrat Party leadership.) At one Republican function, anyone attending could have mistaken it for a church banquet. A state legislator opened in prayer—and I mean PRAYER—telling the attendees he was there to serve the people of his state, the members of his party and his Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ!

Mitt Romney was the only top-tier candidate making the rounds while I was there. I had met and talked with him before, so I didn’t even try this time. The frenetic schedules these candidates keep is exhausting just to watch, let alone try to engage. But I did do one mitzvah (a Jewish term for "good deed"). At the dinner function, I was milling around a private reception when I struck up a conversation with a diminutive grandma who was dressed to the nines. (Never mind that her sequined two-piece was probably from J.C. Penney and not Saks!) Anyway, she stood anxiously holding a Romney sign, furtively looking into the hallway. I asked if she expected to meet the governor.

“Oh, yes,” she said with little girl coquetishness. “I waited three hours in a restaurant the last time he was in town, but they changed his schedule and he never came. I was so disappointed.” She told me she wanted the photo to show to her 25 grandchildren and 27 great grandchildren--noting there were five more on the way--and she wasn’t even Mormon! I had to make this my cause for the evening.

“Tonight’s your night,” I assured her. “You’ll get your photo with the Governor if there’s anything I can do about it.”

When I talked to Governor Romney’s state campaign director, she flatly ruled it out. “He’s not doing any photos tonight,” she pronounced—and there was no route of appeal!

Undaunted, I looked for a window of opportunity. When Governor Romney arrived, he was immediately whisked into a side room off the dining area for a news conference. By now the reception guests had filtered into the main hall to take their dinner seats. It was a sea of people. I prayed, “Lord, if you mean for me to do this mitvah for this precious lady, you will have to help me find her.” With that, I looked out over the crowded room and the first person I saw standing was Grandma! I dashed over to her, took her by the hand and barked, “If you want your photo, come with me now!” She excitedly squealed, “I can still run!” and off we trotted.

Governor Romney was just concluding his remarks to reporters when we reached the side room. A secret service agent blocked the door and asked what we wanted. I said, “Grandma here just wants a photo for her 25 grandchildren and 27 great grandchildren."

“Well, you don’t look like much of a threat,” the agent teased, beckoning her closer.

When the Governor and his wife, Ann, turned to leave the room, I made sure I was the first in position as they exited. I extended my hand to Ann first. They both recognized me from our previous meetings, but there was no time for chit-chat.

“Ann, Governor, this little lady would love a photo for her 25 grandchildren and 27 great grandchildren.” I pulled her toward me. The Romney's graciously and immediately indulged us. I waved down the official photographer and Grandma got her prized picture. It was my greatest accomplishment yet in these campaigns!

Someone came up to me after Romney received a standing ovation for his keynote address and asked, “Did you get face time earlier with the Governor?” I simply said, “Yes, and we got a lot accomplished.”

On the official end, as you probably know, Romney and McCain are in a dead heat in Michigan with Huckabee trailing by ten points. I do want to note that Governor Huckabee has indeed been adding a good amount of substantive content to his stump speeches. That’s good and necessary in order to be judged as a truly viable candidate in the general election. Still, he remains weak on defense and international policy. It goes without saying he is the only Evangelical in the race and therefore commands strong backing from churches, pastors and conservative Christian groups. No major Christian leader has yet to explicitly endorse him, though, indicating some measure of doubt as to his platform, record and / or whether he is electable. We’ll watch and see.

Meanwhile, on the Democratic side, political warfare has ignited as Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama duke it out for first place. I still don’t see how the party machinery will ever give it up to a neophyte like Obama, but stranger things have happened. We will watch and pray!

Don’t miss my Faith and Action Live! field report this Wednesday. We’ll score the candidates on the major moral issues: Sanctity of Life, Marriage and the Family and the Public Acknowledgement of God. You’ll find a link at our website. Lots to more to talk about!

Your grateful missionary to elected and appointed officials,

Rev. Rob Schenck
Faith and Action
109 2nd St., NE, Washington, DC 20002
http://www.faithandaction.org/
202-546-8329

Oops! Pardon my mania!

2008-01-09T09:36:00.000-08:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

If New Hampshire does anything for campaign enthusiasts, it ought to sober us up. I’m embarrassed to be among those who got caught up in the political inebriation. Until New Hampshire, I had calmly assured everyone who asked me my opinion on what would happen that it would be Hillary Clinton and Mitt Romney. Then I got swept up in the noxious fumes emitted by hysterical pollsters and pundits. For shame, for shame! I actually said aloud, it looks like Barak Obama will swamp Hillary! To add insult to self-injury, I said McCain will bury his competitors.

None of this proved true. Hillary squeaked ahead of Obama by a nose, giving each an equal number of delegates, but giving her the comeback aura exploited so well by her husband in his bid for the White House. And McCain, while scoring a comeback of his own, only bested Romney by three delegates to the convention. (Romney is currently leading in the overall delegate count.) So, the contest continues apace. In other words, it’s far from over; it’s just started. So I’m back to where I started: Hillary is her party’s likely nominee. Whoever the Republicans pick better be ready for the battle royal. If there’s anything the Clintons are not, they most definitely are not quitters.

This should be enough to give my fellow Evangelicals pause. We were threatened with our own mania, acting as if God had delivered a new Moses in Mike Huckabee, but as one seasoned Christian leader recently wrote me, “Huckabee needs to get away from homilies and add a little substance.” This contest will be fierce—fiercely fierce, whether Hillary or Barack is the Democratic nominee. The pro-life, pro-family, pro-acknowledgement of God candidate will need to be formidable, substantial, articulate, tested and presidential. And, hold your breath and don’t hate me, he will need to appeal to women! Yes, women! Women voters will be a force in this election as never before. So, he better be attractive, nice and sensitive—and have a very good track record as a husband and father.

My point is we need a principled, experienced and appealing winner for the pro-life, pro-family and pro-acknowledgment of God platform. More importantly, he will need to be a highly capable and proven executive. It’s still way too early to pick a favorite. Evangelicals need to soberly, prayerfully and diligently examine each candidate. It’s not enough that he can “preach.” We’re not hiring an evangelist to conduct a week-long revival; we’re hiring the chief executive officer for the largest, most complex and consequential enterprise in the entire world. Just in terms of numbers, the next president will manage scores of agencies with millions of employees and contractors. He (or she) will control $3 trillion in spending—that’s $3,000,000,000,000! And, need we say any more about the awesomely demanding responsibility of guarding the safety of over 300 million citizens from countless unnamed and unknown threats?

OK, we got our cup of coffee and we’re seeing clearly again. Now it’s time to settle down, get ourselves together and fully appreciate what this is about. It’s about the most serious business in the temporal world. If it takes more than a good preacher to run a church, imagine what it takes to run the United States of America. We’re not done vetting our candidate, not by a long shot. Keep watching, keep praying, keep asking and keep probing. The slate is still wide open. If ever we Evangelicals needed to pick the right one, it’s this time. We did it with Ronald Reagan and we can do it again. But remember, we need a Ronald Reagan for this assignment, not a Billy Graham.

Your grateful missionary to elected and appointed officials,

Rev. Rob Schenck
Faith and Action
109 2nd St., NE
Washington, DC 20002
http://www.faithandaction.org/
202-546-8329

NEW TWISTS IN NEW HAMPSHIRE

2008-01-08T05:21:00.000-08:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

Once again, I’m writing to you from above the clouds at 34,000 feet. My brother, Paul and I are on our way back from Manchester, New Hampshire, where you know what is going on. As you’ll see in my audio and video postings, we’ve spent the last 30 hours in the Granite State watching . . praying . . . and reminding everyone we came in contact with just how consequential this primary vote will be.

The big surprise, of course, was the plummeting of Hillary Clinton from the presumptive Democratic nominee to a presumptive second-place loser. One poll (if you can believe polls) had her down by 13 points. In a minute I’ll give you my take on this from a spiritual perspective, but let me report just a little more:

From what we all saw on the ground, Barack Obama’s people were super-charged. They were bright-eyed, visibly excited, jumping up and down and very, very optimistic about their candidate. On the other hand, Hillary’s people were subdued, at times grim and resigned to her loss. At one dinner sitting, several of her top advisers inexplicably gravitated to our table. These were former top officials in her husband Bill’s administration. They wondered aloud by just how many points she would lose to Obama. (That’s not something any supporter wants to think about.) It took my brother’s gentle but prophetic confrontation of the Clintons’ track record on the paramount moral issues to convince them we were not prospects for their much needed 11th hour support!

(Oddly, I discovered I had more than a couple of mutual acquaintances with these folks. We didn’t get into it because of other things, but two of them told me they are involved in Bible studies in Washington that I have visited. Some day I’ll ask them how they square that with Hillary’s platform.)

I’ll admit now I never saw Hillary’s tumble coming. I had previously evaluated Obama as a shooting star who would go off with a bang but quickly flame out. After talking last year with top-ranking Democratic Party leaders, I was convinced there were so many Hillary IOU’s the Party would never turn on her. I’m beginning to think I was wrong.

There are two ways to view this from my perspective: 1) Hillary is getting her comeuppance (and God is a part of that), and / or 2) Obama, whose policies I believe would be in greater conflict with biblical principles than Hillary’s would be, is a judgment from heaven. Immoral leadership is an instrument God uses to chasten a people.

On the Republican side, the big surprise remains Mike Huckabee, but he’s expected to place only third in New Hampshire. The same network of fundamentalist leaning Evangelicals is not available to him in New Hampshire. Home-schoolers are divided, unlike the situation in Iowa. A lot of New Hampshire home school families are Roman Catholic and have different tastes, including for Ron Paul. That leaves a toss-up between John McCain, who doesn’t appear to me to have any vital faith, and Mitt Romney, who, while LDS, most certainly does.

All this is to say why we gathered with our good friend and frequent ministry partner, Rev. Pat Mahoney of the Christian Defense Coalition, for a beautiful prayer service Sunday night. Our host was Pastor Gary Hamilton of the First Assembly of God in nearby Aurora, New Hampshire. His worship team led in a beautiful time of praise and many visiting and local Christian leaders exhorted the crowd and led in prayers. My brother Paul led the prayer for the all the candidates. It was not recorded, so I thought you’d like to read it:

“Lord God, men and women strive for high public office for many reasons: only you know their true motives and intentions. In each one is a mixture of willingness to serve others and ambition for power. We bring before you each candidate - Republican, Democrat, conservative, liberal, progressive. We pray that he, or she, will turn to you for guidance and wisdom. We pray that he or she will acknowledge you as the source of knowledge and goodness. We pray that he or she will defend the sanctity of human life and the dignity of each person - from conception to natural death. We pray that he or she will uphold the sacredness of the marriage of man and women as you ordained it. You have said that blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord. In this primary election - help the citizens of New Hampshire to rely on their knowledge and consciences well formed by your word, in casting their ballots for the leader who will rely on you and not his or her personal ambition. Let us too heed your admonition not to rely on our own strength or prowess, but to say 'The Lord has given us this victory.'” In Jesus' name. Amen.

Before I took to the pulpit to close the gathering, I surveyed the room and was struck by the breadth of diversity among those that ministered that night. There was Starr Parker, the African-American woman who has lead in so much social development. Joining her was Norma McCorvey, the former Jane Roe of Roe v. Wade and now tireless pro-life evangelist. And young people—lots of young people—from all over the country who have taken up the cause of calling America back to God and ending the horror of abortion. A troop of them presented a deeply moving “human video” (a drama in mime set to music) that left everyone speechless.

I reserved my time to commend Pastor Hamilton for his courage in hosting such a meeting. A lot of pastors—and maybe most—would have been afraid to do so. I led in a prayer that God would multiply Pastor Hamilton’s number. With 30 million Evangelicals and millions more Roman Catholics and other Christians of conservative moral conviction in this country, the Lord has his forces in place. The challenge is in their doing the right thing. Pastors have a lot to do with whether people feel comfortable—or even responsible—to engage the political process. A lot of pastors stay away from the topic afraid of either alienating prospective church members or being bullied by the ACLU. May God give us pastors bold as lions who will challenge and equip their people to be salt and light!

I will not be endorsing a candidate for many reasons, but I did urge the people gathered in Manchester to take their responsibility seriously. They thanked me for it.

Today the people of New Hampshire will vote for who they want to represent their party in the presidential race. The net result will likely be fewer candidates next week. This is the process that’s winnowing out the field. As we narrow our focus we can say more about those who remain. Please pray God’s will be done in today’s important phase of picking our next president.

We will keep watching—and, more importantly—praying!

Your grateful missionary to elected and appointed officials,

Rev. Rob Schenck

EYE-OPENING IOWA!

2008-01-05T06:52:00.000-08:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

I’m propped at a lap-top counter at the Southwest Airlines gate in Chicago’s Midway airport en route home from frenetic—and extremely consequential—Iowa and its caucuses. I’ll have a day with Cheryl before heading off to New Hampshire to observe yet another round in this early stage of picking the ’08 presidential candidates.

The results were surprising. You know now that national political newcomers Barack Obama and Mike Huckabee swamped their more seasoned and well-heeled opponents, unsettling many a campaign strategy. From my vantage point on the ground, it appeared three elements combined to form this perfect storm. On the Democrat side it’s a surge in young voters for Obama. They told me Hillary is stale as last weeks’ bread and John Edwards is just phony. For the Republicans it was Mitt Romney’s unforgivable sin of going negative on Mike Huckabee, who was supported by a highly energized fundamentalist-leaning network of born again Evangelicals, mostly home-schoolers.

Let me give you a picture of what I saw and what happened: I watched common “heartland” folk who had organized and informed themselves, then braved very—very—cold weather with ice and snow, to make their way to the polling places. For Republicans it would have been an otherwise boring night sitting on folding chairs, listening to amateur speakers and trying to write something very important on a loose piece of paper supported only by their knees. Pen points frustratingly punctured the fragile leafs and no one knew where to put them when they were through. Still, they fulfilled their responsibility as American citizens. Good for them!
For Democrats the structure of the night was a bit more entertaining. I didn’t get to watch it (because I was at a Republican caucus meeting), but I was told it was pretty wild. Clusters of caucus attendees assembled in respective corners of their rooms, designated for the candidate of their choice. If that candidate didn’t achieve 15% representation of the registered voters present, he or she wasn’t considered “viable” and the “caucusers” could move to another candidate’s corner.

Most of this sounds as dull as a barn dance, but the outcomes were anything but! For the Dems, the less-favored Barack Obama bested Hillary Clinton by a full nine points. John Edwards squeaked just ahead of her by one point. (It was 38% Obama, 30% Edwards, 29% Clinton.) The Republican side was the real eye-popper. Going into caucus night, the former Arkansas governor, Huckabee, and the former Massachusetts governor, Mitt Romney, were in a dead heat. I knew Romney was in trouble when I heard the count announced at the Burlington, Iowa, 9th Precinct caucus. (I was invited there by the newly elected secretary of the body, the Reverend Morris Hurd. Pastor Hurd is an evangelical United Methodist and chairman of the Iowa Christian Alliance, a break-away of the old Christian Coalition.) The 83 voters in the room were the quintessential representation of all Republicans in Iowa: mostly silver-haired 55-plussers, a smattering of 30- and 40-somethings, and only a couple of young people. There were so many Romney lapel stickers in the room I thought for sure he’d have the edge. When Huckabee won the contest by two votes, for me it spelled a certain second place for the man who had once enjoyed a commanding lead in the Hawkeye State.

About the Republican upset, a lot of people have asked me if it was Romney’s Mormonism. I don’t think so. First, Iowa has a healthy LDS population. Burlington, the area I was in, has a relatively large number. It’s also close to Nauvoo, Illinois, a near sacred Mormon settlement. (It was while in Nauvoo that LDS founder Joseph Smith was jailed and later murdered by a mob.) I did not hear much objection to Romney’s religion. What I did hear was criticism—and even serious offense—at his campaign’s negative tactics hitting at Huckabee’s weak spots. Iowans are earthy, can’t-be-fooled-twice people who want a straight-up, “just-the-facts-ma’am” approach to politics. If there’s to be any swipes at candidates, they’ll make them for themselves, thank you very much.

One thing to keep in mind, Iowa has not historically done well picking presidents. Their early choices have rarely ended up the actual nominees and winners. I did say in a couple of media interviews that I think Iowa remains a good place to have the first contest, for precisely the above reasons. Iowans help expose the candidates’ strengths and weaknesses. Their no-nonsense approach helps weed things out. (Just as an aside, it is good to keep all this stuff in perspective. According to my calculations, 90% of Iowans did sit out this process. Still, when it comes to this sort of civic duty, 10% is an impressive number.)

This experience was renewing for me. To watch so many Iowans—in every way “ordinary” American citizens—fully engaged in the political process was heartening. (I only spoke with three people who didn’t seem to know what was going on: one sweeping the floor at the Walgreen’s pharmacy, the other behind the cash register, and the third, a waitress at Perkins. The waitress had a good excuse: she’s a single mom of an autistic teen. ‘Nuff said.)

May we all be as motivated as the tithe of Iowans at those caucuses. There’s much more to learn about the candidates—good and bad. The contest has only just begun. I urge you to be diligently attentive, prayerful and careful as we move ahead. The consequences of this next presidential administration will be enormous. Among other things, at least two seats on the Supreme Court are at stake. Presidents last only four or eight years, but the Supreme Courts they appoint last decades. This race is for our kids and grandkids. God help us to do the right thing.

Everywhere I went in Iowa I reminded God’s people to keep three things in front of them as they approached the caucuses and eventually the race itself: 1) We need a God-fearing president who unashamedly, unreservedly and unapologetically acknowledges we are “one nation under God” and that it is “in God we trust.” 2) We need a highly capable leader who can govern with strength and effectiveness at home and on the world stage during a particularly complex and dangerous time, and 3) We need a candidate with the stamina and resources to go the distance and finally win against a formidable opponent. Only one or two of these elements will not suffice; we need to the whole package. (I’ll take the same message to the Granite State.)

By the time you read this I will be in New Hampshire. I’ll try to post another audio report from the field. Watch for details . . .

Your grateful missionary to elected and appointed officials,

Rev. Rob Schenck (pronounced SHANK)
Faith and Action
109 2nd St., NE, Washington, DC 20002
www.faithandaction.org
202-546-8329w5

CHRISTMAS IS A FULL HALF OF THE WHOLE!

2007-12-17T08:05:00.000-08:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

Christmas should always be a special time. Of course, it’s not for everyone. I know all too well that Christmas can be a painful season for the lonely, the discouraged and for the depressed. Here in Washington I make an extra effort to reach out to the homeless, most of whom are mentally ill. Let’s all say prayers for these needy souls and do what we can to help them in practical ways. But for most, Christmas is a season for celebration and a festive time with family and friends. For true believers it’s an occasion for worship.

(For my brother, Paul, and me and our families, our Christmas this year will be saddened only by the departure of a dear, dear friend and Faith and Action supporter, the Reverend Dr. Samuel Farina of the incomparable Christian Assembly, one of Columbus, Ohio’s truly great churches. Sam and his wife, Paulette, and their entire church family have always been so gracious to us. Sam stuck with me through thick and thin, always a wise voice and kind heart, even during our most difficult days. Sam went home to heaven this week after a protracted illness. His life-long Addison’s disease rendered him incapable of fighting multiple infections. Sam’s a great gain for heaven, but a huge loss here on earth!)

Christmas has historically been one of the two high points on the Christian calendar. The other, of course, is Easter. These are the two anchors of our faith: Christmas marks the arrival, or Advent, of Immanuel—God with Us—our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. The other anchor, Easter, marks the Resurrection, without which Saint Paul says our “faith is in vain.” In many ways I think of Christmas as 50% of the Christian Gospel. (The other half comes in the Resurrection!) That makes both seasons pretty important. It’s between Christmas and Easter we live out all the implications of these two cardinal doctrines: The arrival of Christ and His Resurrection.

Think about it: What does the world need most? God and Hope. Christmas is God, Easter is Hope! Many think God has forgotten them, or that He is inaccessible, uncaring or unknowable. They long for contact with something larger, deeper and more powerful than themselves. We all desire to connect with the transcendent. It’s a primordial need to link back to The Creator. Christmas is the announcement of that longed-for reunion!

“Fear not, for behold I bring you good tidings of great joy, which will be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord.” (Luke 2:11)

This Christmas I pray you and yours will know and celebrate this Great Joy. If you do not know the Savior, this is a wonderful season to call out to Him in repentance. To repent means to turn—turn away from our own devices and towards the God who made us and loves us. God has a plan, a purpose and a design for your life, both in the here and now and beyond into eternity. Our greatest happiness comes when we embrace His will for our lives. This is why Jesus Himself taught us to pray, “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” Jesus took his own advice when He prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane, “Nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.” (Matthew 26:39) Here’s to making this Christmas about more than just good food, fellowship and gift-giving. It’s about surrender to the will and plan of God for our lives!

While we’re on Christmas, our ever-busy partner Rev. Pat Mahoney of the Christian Defense Coalition, spent this weekend in New York City where he set up the only approved Nativity Scene on public property—in the middle of Times Square! Maybe you saw it on one of the network news shows. We’ve joined with Rev. Mahoney in his Nativity Project, encouraging folks to obtain permits for Christmas displays in public spaces. We’ve also partnered with another friend of many years, Dr. Charles Nestor, who’s spearheading Operation Nativity, encouraging folks to display manger scenes on their own private property. These are easy, practical ways to bring Christ back into American Christmas observances, something badly needed!

And, speaking of bringing Christ back into Christmas, I had a talk with one of my covert accessories to ministry here in Washington. (We work with many people whose jobs are so sensitive, we keep their identities anonymous.) He’s a relatively new Christian and he expressed his growing distress over the utter commercialization of this season. He urged me to pray about a movement that would take us back to a more simple time when Christmas was exactly that, Christ-mas. He’s right—even Christians have succumbed to a supplanting of the real focus of this Holy Day with a bottom-line, profit-driven, frenetic earth-bound extravaganza. Please pray with me about this. Perhaps the Lord will grant us insight into how we can pull our American civilization back from the brink of neo-paganism, starting with reclaiming Christmas from Kris Kringle and Santa Claus and giving it back to Jesus Christ!

This post would not be complete without thanking all those who are sending in generous end-of-year gifts to help us balance the books here at Faith and Action. We’re just $50,000 away from being in the black. Please help us end this year strong so we can enter ’08 ready to go. It’s going to be one of the most intense years we’ve spent here on Capitol Hill, and we can’t let red ink weaken us! (The best way for you to help is to make your tax-deductible gift online using a credit or debit card at our website, http://www.faithandaction.org/.) Otherwise, you can mail your check or money order to Faith and Action, 109 2nd St., NE, Washington, DC 20002. So long as it’s postmarked before December 31, you can deduct it from this year’s taxes!)

By the way, a huge heart-felt thanks to all our friends at the marvelous Believers Life Family Church of Gretna, Louisiana, on the West Bank of that storied city of New Orleans. Pastors Randy and Cathy Cilluffo always make me feel like family. They did again this weekend when I preached there. The church's over-the-top offering comes like manna from heaven to us at this time of the year. Thank YOU, one and all, for your wonderful Christmas gift to this ministry!

For now, I’ll leave you with my prayers for you and your family—that God will grant you a peaceful, joyous time for sharing His love with your loved ones. May you all enjoy a blessed Christ-mas and New Year filled with His hope!

Be back in ’08!

Rob

Rev. Rob Schenck
Faith and Action in the Nation’s Capital
109 2nd St, NE
Washington, DC 20002
http://www.faithandaction.org/
202-546-8329

SO WHAT YA' THINK OF HUCKABEE?

2007-12-10T09:14:00.000-08:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

Read on to get the answer to the banner question on this post!

I’m a little late because last week was a whirlwind. It was delivery week for our annual Congressional Christmas Outreach: 535 hand-delivered Christmas packages. Every single member of the United States Congress (435 representatives and 100 senators) received a special Christmas card (to get their attention), a personalized letter from me (to warm their hearts and open their minds) and a colorful, well-written, crystal clear Gospel tract explaining the true meaning of Christmas using the appropriate scripture texts. In-other-words, everything a member of congress needs to know in order to find the Savior! Thank you to each who helped fund and pray for this all-important Christmas season ministry to our nation’s top elected officials!

That wasn’t all for last week. There were several planning meetings, including with our number one ally on Capitol Hill—the friend without which we could not do the most important aspects of our ministry work. (He remains nameless to protect his delicate position.) While this may sound oh-so-mundane, strategic planning is more and more a vital part of our work. Navigating the difficult waters of Capitol Hill has never been easy, but since the changes in leadership here—and the resulting escalation in hostility towards things Christian—it’s gotten that much more challenging. It reminds me very much of the frosty reception I got when I first arrived here back in those anti-Christian Clinton days in late 1994, just before the “Republican Revolution” brought so many Christians to Washington. The Bush presidency brought even more Bible believers and the spiritual winter here turned to summer. But alas, as the seasons change, so does the climate on the Hill and the cold winds blow again! All this is to say the current and more difficult environment demands more than ever we be as “wise as serpents.” It’s not as easy, so it takes better strategies, and we are busy prayerfully putting those strategic plans together for 2008.

Speaking about 2008, that was another part of last weeks’ frenetic activity. Just after recording my Faith and Action Live! weekly audio and video pod cast (get it at our website: www.faithandaction.org), I was invited to join Jay Sekulow and other Christian leaders at the George H.W. Bush Presidential Library in College Station, Texas, for a speech by presidential candidate Mitt Romney. Romney, as you well know, is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (LDS), otherwise known as “Mormons.” Mormonism, as you also know, differs significantly from “orthodox” Christianity on a number of points, not the least of which include the nature of God and Christ Himself, the reliability of the Bible and the way of salvation. Yet, Mormons are deeply religious and morally conservative people. There have been several recent instances of vitally important alliances between Evangelicals, traditional Catholics and Mormons on paramount moral issues, like the sanctity of traditional marriage. I believe this new alliance is so important I’ve begun a formal dialogue with LDS church leadership.

In any case, Mitt Romney’s religion has become such a big distraction in campaign media coverage, he felt it necessary to address the subject straight on. I’m glad he did. In fact, I had advised the Governor to do so more than a year ago, before he was a declared candidate. Whether I had anything to do with his final decision on going with this speech, I don’t know. In any case, it was a good speech; perhaps one of the greatest in campaign history. “Faith in America,” as Governor Romney titled it, was modeled somewhat after John F. Kennedy’s famous 1960 speech to the Greater Houston Ministerial Association defending himself against suspicions about his Roman Catholic faith.

I say Romney’s speech was great because it was extremely well-crafted, delivered sincerely and exquisitely, and touched on all the right dimensions of this difficult issue. (Not to mention the prestigious venue complete with an introduction by a former president!) The speech is also virtually unique because Governor Romney is the first Mormon to give such an address. (He’s not the first Mormon to run for president—that was LDS founder Joseph Smith in 1844! Other LDS candidates include Morris Udall in ’76, Mitt’s own father, George Romney, in ’68 and my friend, Orrin Hatch in 2000.)

Evangelicals like me have enormous differences with the LDS on matters of doctrine, but that wasn’t really the point of this speech. Whether you feel you could vote for a Mormon is a matter between you and your conscience as it is best informed through prayer and the Word of God. (But do keep in mind our American Founders wisely ensured there would never be a religious test for office when they passed the Sixth Amendment.) As far as making a case for those things we hold in common with many Mormons, especially the paramount importance of religious freedom and its place in public life, “Faith in America” was a bell-ringer. I encourage you to review the speech for yourself and make your own judgment. (http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2007/12/faith_in_america.html) I’m glad I was there, if for no other reason than to watch history being made! Do check out our soon-to-be posted religious profile of Romney as candidate, again at our website under “Presidential Candidates” along the left-hand menu.

Mentioning any of the candidates—and especially Mitt Romney—begs the above question, So what do you think of Huckabee? As I’ve said and will say over and over, I do not endorse candidates. That being said, I don’t know much about Mike Huckabee. I won’t make the mistake many did with Jimmy Carter in 1976 and assume that because he testifies to being “born again,” all is well. The big question with a presidential candidate is not simply are his principles right, but can he win an election and, once elected, can he (or she) govern effectively? Personally, as I examine each candidate I ask what does he believes and based on what? How do those beliefs express themselves publicly and privately? Is this person equipped to conduct a successful campaign? Once elected, is he able to translate those beliefs into action in office? There is no monster larger, more complex, more potentially dangerous or more stressful than the executive branch of the United States government. A candidate may be well-intentioned, properly oriented spiritually, possess a pleasing personality, good looks and all that, but in the end be an ineffective leader on such a grand scale. We saw that in Bill Clinton. He carried a big Bible; told of walking the aisle of a Billy Graham Crusade; golfed with a Pentecostal pastor buddy; could preach with the best of them, even in a black church pulpit; was the darling of so many—yet, Bill Clinton was a disaster in office.

All I can tell you on this one so far is pray, do your research. (You can’t make the call on this one based on 20-second sound bites and sensational headlines!) Ask the hard questions, know who and what your voting for, and find out what a president does and must do. What I will say is you must be fully engaged in the process. If we do nothing, we deserve anything. If we don’t do our part, we have no right to complain afterwards: Pray, research and act!

Last word: Yesterday I had a rare Sunday home with my wife at my own church. (I'm out preaching somewhere in the country the rest of the weekends.) Our pastor brought a powerful message on repentance. This is the theme I've been praying on, preaching on and acting on for the last several months. "Repent!" is the cry of the hour. If we're counting on the Lord giving this nation the righteous leadership it needs, it must begin with the people humbling themselves before Him--and that begins with God's people! Judgment begins in the house of the Lord: "If MY PEOPLE will humble themselves . . . turn from their wicked ways . . ." I'll have more to say about this in future posts. Pray with me!

Happy 7th night of Hanukkah! (View my Faith and Action Live Hanukkah special report at http://www.faithandaction.org/video/Faa_Live_Season_2_Broadcast_10.wmv)

Back with more . . .

Rev. Rob Schenck
Faith and Action in the Nation’s Capital
109 2nd St, NE
Washington, DC 20002
www.faithandaction.org
202-546-8329

A POST FROM HEAVEN—well, near heaven.

2007-11-30T14:17:00.000-08:00

This post is being composed at 34,000 feet above—well, I think North Carolina—as I head from Washington, DC, to Atlanta, Georgia. I’m traveling with Pastor Kenneth Barney of Baltimore’s dynamic and enormous New Antioch Baptist Church. We’re on our way to a historic gathering of African American Pro-Life activists. (I’m an honorary attendee, since I don’t quite qualify for official membership!)

(The parenthetical comment above begs another little sidebar: Some years ago I had a staff member who was white, but she was born in Africa. She still carried her native passport. My chief administrative assistant at the time was a black woman whose family had been in the US for many generations. The two got into a spirited but jovial debate over who really qualified as an “African American!” It was never resolved!)

Sponsored by LEARN (The Life, Education and Resource Network), the two-day event includes a panoply of speakers, musicians, medical professionals and church leaders. Among those on the program will be noted author and mega-church pastor Wellington Boone of The Father’s House in Norcross, Georgia. Well-known jazz hymnist Philippe Fields will give a tribute to Dr. Martin Luther and Coretta Scott King. Dr. King’s niece, Dr. Alveda King, will be there. She’s a tireless campaigner on behalf of post-abortive women. Pastor Barney and I will have platform time as well.

The founding national director of LEARN is dear, dear friend to my brother, Paul, and me, the Reverend Dr. Johnny Hunter. Johnny and his wife Pat have been very big parts of our lives and ministries for nearly 20 years. We’ve been through thick and thin together; I’d like to say to the gates of Hell and back! We’ve shared many experiences together: on our knees crying out to God, tag-team preaching in pulpits, leading prayer vigils on sidewalks in front of abortion mills, done jail time together for saving babies and their mothers, and even shared more than one podium in the United States Capitol!

There are few people with whom I share such a deep brotherhood. Johnny is like a triplet to my twin brother and me. (To use a hackneyed joke: He likes to say he’s the black sheep of our family!) But there are also few people I respect as much as Johnny. He’s gone where angels fear to tread. Taking a passionate pro-life message into the realm of prominent black churches is challenging enough, yet Johnny’s done far more. God has used him to mobilize large numbers of black pastors, some of whom lead their people right to Hell’s door. It’s astounding how many of the pastors Johnny has reached out to now take their people to pray, witness and minister outside the doors of abortion businesses. As a result many women, babies and men have been saved—spiritually and physically!

Please take time to learn about LEARN. This is the breakthrough in the minority community for which so many have prayed for so long. Minorities, especially African Americans, have a moral platform white folk just don’t have. The LEARN conference will be broadcast live over the Internet at www.prolifenews.tv beginning tonight, Friday, November 30, 2007, 7:00 PM and tomorrow, Saturday, December 1, 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM. For a rebroadcast schedule visit http://www.learnsummit.org/.

Please pray for Pastor Johnny Hunter and the good people with LEARN. And pray for Pastor Barney and me as we work to support and strengthen them.

Back with more . . .

JOINING YOU IN THANKS AND PRAISE

2007-11-26T05:42:00.000-08:00

We’re back in the saddle after a much needed Thanksgiving break. Our ministry center closed down last Tuesday as a bonus to our tired team. They had worked overtime and over the weekend on two big events: The 25th Anniversary Silver Celebration gala and the dedication ceremony for our front garden—where the Ten Commandments are displayed. It’s now the newly christened Cora Bieber Memorial Garden on Capitol Hill.

I didn’t get out of town until late Wednesday night. Tuesday and Wednesday afternoons I remotely guest hosted my friend Adam McManus’s daily talk radio show, Adam McManus Live! broadcasted out of San Antonio, Texas on KSLR. Over the years I’ve been a frequent guest of Adam’s. His is one of the most professionally produced shows of its kind in the country. While it’s getting tougher to take on extracurricular assignments like this one, I do enjoy Adam and his audience. Until I did these “gigs,” I could not appreciate the considerable mental and physical energy required to keep a three-hour talk show format going. Hats off to all the many hosts I’ve taken for granted all these years. You people really do work very, very hard!

On Tuesday’s program I was alone in the borrowed studio just a couple of blocks from our ministry center. (In case you’re wondering, it’s in the nearby Heritage Foundation building.) Sitting here in Washington in front of a microphone, I may as well be in San Antonio. The listeners there hear no difference. I am always deeply appreciative to Adam’s production staff in Texas and the local studio personnel. They keep me on track by barking directions to me through my headphones and on the computer screen!

Wednesday I had with me my old friend, Charles Nestor, whom I mentioned in last week’s post. Charles and his wife, Belinda, were here for our 25th Anniversary Gala. We got talking afterwards about his Operation Nativity, an effort to remind Americans of the true reason for the Christmas season. Charles retired from being a very successful pastor after he was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis, but that’s hardly put him out of business. He remains one of America’s great preachers and Bible teachers. He’s also senior fellow for public policy at the National Clergy Council and, of course, is spearheading this new initiative in promoting Christmas nativity scenes on private property. We talked about Operation Nativity for two hours on Wednesday’s broadcast, fielding lots of interesting phone calls. I think you can listen to the archived broadcasts as www.kslr.com.

As a result of our Thanksgiving Day appeal, my brother, Paul, and I received hundreds of praise reports from all over the country. With them came an equal number of prayer requests. We now have over 32,000 supporters from all 50 states and several foreign countries. This year we will have mailed almost 3 million letters and 1.5 million E-mails to our growing ministry family. As we continue to increase in size, we don’t want to decrease in our depth of friendship with you. I promise you—you will never become simply a database record number here! You are a friend, a brother or sister in Christ and literally God’s lifeline to us! That’s why we invited you to send in your praise and thanksgiving reports over the holiday, so we can join in thanking God with you and for you.

Please keep in touch. We’re certainly grateful for your generous financial support and prayers for this ministry. One way to express our gratitude to the Lord and to you is to join you in prayer—in the good times and the bad. Please always feel free to send us your prayer requests and praise reports. We’re your extended family in Washington, DC!

Thank you—and thank God for you!

More later . . .

2007-11-19T07:30:00.000-08:00

A Great and Memorable Anniversary

I’m not often caught short for words, but I am in describing how wonderful this past Saturday was for my brother, Paul, and me, our families and our ministry team. Nearly 350 friends packed the ballroom of the Washington Renaissance Hotel for an evening of good food, fellowship and challenge as Paul and I celebrated 25 years of unbroken Christian service.

Just walking into that elegantly decorated room made obvious all the very, very hard work done by our co-chairs, Faith and Action supporters Wayne and Melissa Newsome, and, of course, our dedicated staff team led by Peggy Birchfield. Joining them were many, many volunteers. What a table they set!

Perhaps you were there to hear the fabulous 60–voice New Antioch Baptist Church choir ensemble. They lit up the place! So did our long-time friend Pat Mahoney, the most energetic, entertaining and edgy MC we’ve engaged for an event like this. Pat was perfect—and hilarious!

Our speakers were dynamic and exceedingly generous in their comments about Paul and me and the ministries we’ve led. Jay Sekulow, chief counsel for the American Center for Law and Justice and one of the top constitutional lawyers in America (and around the world), spoke very kindly about our partnership over the last twenty years. Dr. Charles Nestor, one of the truly great pulpiteers left in this country, reflected on the 30 years we’ve walked together. (I say that with every bit of irony, because Charles doesn’t do much walking now. His body is bound to a wheelchair by MS, but his spirit is unquenchable!) Charles was as electrifying as ever once his elevated automatic chair brought him back to the sacred desk!

Others who spoke Saturday evening included pro-life champion Fr. Frank Pavone, senior United States Senator Orrin Hatch, Ambassador from Morocco Aziz Mekouar, Christian philanthropist and radio talk show host Steve Peroutka, former Navy chaplain Gordon James Klingenschmitt (who fought a victorious battle for the rights of chaplains to pray in Jesus’ name) and Pastor Kenneth Barney of the New Antioch church. Somebody said it well at the end of the night, “You held a dinner and church broke out!”

Speaking of church, we had plenty of churches represented in the room. Many of our supporting churches were there; congregational representatives from New York, New Jersey, Delaware, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Maryland, North Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Louisiana, and Utah, just to name a few of their home bases.

And there were plenty of old and new friends who lead great ministries themselves: Wendy Wright of Concerned Women of America, Bill Murray of Religious Freedom Coalition, Joe Griebowski of the Institute on Religion and Public Policy, Johnny Hunter of Life, Education and Resource Network, and precious Norma McCorvey, the once and former “Jane Roe” of the infamous Roe v. Wade case. Today, Norma is a tireless champion of the Gospel of Life!

A few other notables who joined us Saturday:

- Dr. Jim Hutson, premiere U.S. historian and top authority on Jefferson and the truth about the so-called “Separation of Church and State.”

- Rev. Pierre Bynum, pastoral ministry coordinator at the Family Research Council

- Harry Valentine of Capitol Hill Prayer Alert

- Ohio Judge Randy Rogers whose book, From the Bench, tells heartwarming stories of adoption miracles from his own courtroom.

- World War II hero General Mil Roberts, who stormed Omaha Beach on D-Day, surviving against incredible odds to penetrate deep behind enemy lines.

Paul and I will never be able to say enough to thank so many for making one night so memorable. But as I said in my short remarks afterwards, “it’s nice to look back, but it’s always challenging to look forward. It’s not so much what’s gone before, but what lies ahead that concerns us.”

Capital Club financial supporters will soon receive a CD compilation of Paul’s and my messages at the anniversary gala, together with the other speakers and photos from this special evening. Others will be able to order it online or obtain it for a contribution by calling 202-546-8329, extension 104. You’ll also see it at our materials table when I’m out in speaking in churches.

Thank you for making this first quarter-century possible through your prayers, friendship and partnership. I keep saying over and over, we couldn’t do what God has called us to do if you didn’t faithfully do what God has called you to do. God willing and delaying Jesus’ return, Paul and I now embark on our next quarter-century and longer. There’s still so much work to do!

Be back later . . .

YOU HAVE NO IDEA!

2007-11-06T06:13:00.000-08:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

It sounds obnoxious to many non-New Yorkers, but the phrase, “You have no idea!” fills my childhood memories. Mom said it a lot—still uses it, though she doesn’t talk much these days. I still find it useful, but after 13 years as a resident of Northern Virginia (we live 35 miles east of Washington, DC), it’s beginning to wear off.

I used it here to get your attention. I want you to know that “you have no idea” how important you are to my brother, Paul, and me and our ministry team! Because you do what God has called you to do, we’re able to do what God has called us to do. It’s that simple. It takes a team to do ministry; not one or two, or even three or four, but a whole team, to get it done.

In just 10 days, Paul and I will host our ministry’s 25th anniversary Silver Celebration here in Washington. (I hope you’ll be with us! You can still get tickets—and very cheap rooms. Visit www.faithandaction.org for details!) When I think of the people who will be in that banquet hall on November 17, I am speechless. I wonder sometimes why they’ve been so generous with their time, talent and treasure. Then I realize it has nothing whatsoever to do with us or our ministry. All these friends are the provision of God to get HIS WORK done on this earth. God is the great chess master—developing His strategy and lining up His moves long before any of this enters our minds.

As we approach the Silver Celebration gala, my mind goes to a car ride with Ed Schoonmaker in 1977. I was in Bible college. Ed was probably in his fifties; I was still a kid. We talked theology, ministry and life. He handed me a check for $1000 towards the work I was doing then. It laid the groundwork for what would eventually lead to the ministry we have today. These 31 years later, Ed and his precious wife, Marian, still send us financial support, including a recent check for $1000. It’s more precious to me now than it was then—and that’s saying a lot!

I think about Dr. Dave Martinke and his family. Dave was still in medical school when he first sent us support. He later volunteered for various ministry outreaches we did. Then, he virtually gave himself to leading and developing our international work through Operation Serve; not only funding much of it, but training short-term missionaries, supervising the work in the field and developing an overall strategic plan. Dave was the first to accompany me on my fact-finding visit to Washington, DC, in 1994. He and his wife, Daryl, remain among our most faithful prayer and financial supporters.

There’s Pastor Myke Crowder of Layton, Utah’s amazing Christian Life Center. Myke’s been flying back and forth from Utah to Washington ever since we got started here on Capitol Hill. He and his wife Marsha and their wonderful church have backed us financially since our very first endeavors here. I’m often in his pulpit to give a report from the field. What can you say about that kind of generosity and faithfulness? I can’t find the words.

The list goes on and on and on. The night of November 17 there will be people present who have gone to the gates of hell and back with us for the cause of Christ and His Gospel:

. . . Pastor Johnny Hunter, our dear, dear brother and friend—one of the first African-American church leaders to take on the cause of Life, and he has paid dearly for it.

. . . Rev. Pat Mahoney, who is always there for us—and with us, even in the really dangerous moments; when we feel like crying, Pat always makes us laugh! (And he’ll do plenty of it November 17!)

. . . Mike and Steven Peroutka, whose enormous selflessness and generosity pay completely for our National Pro-Life Action Center. What can we say?

. . . Don and Gayle Wright, whose giving of themselves and their resources knows no end.

. . . Wayne and Melissa Newsome, the most selfless, invisible and kind financiers of God’s work you will ever meet.

. . . Christ and Dolly Lapp (yes, that’s how he spells it!), quiet, unassuming, never letting their right hand know what their left hand is giving—and it’s doing a lot of giving!

. . . Bernie and Lee Reese: You name the Christian endeavor in this country, and it’s got their fingerprints all over it!

. . . Fr. Frank Pavone—with us since the very first National Memorial for the Pre-born in 1994 and still with us in every way; as if Fr. Frank doesn’t have too much to do running America’s largest pro-life organization!

. . . Dr. Charles Nestor, a genius and one of the greatest pulpiteers in American church history. Now bound to a wheelchair with MS, Charles remains our stalwart friend and companion in all we do. (What did he see in two baby-faced teenage preachers those 32 years ago?)

The list could go on and on and on, filling more space than I have here. You are on the list, and we are more grateful for you than words can ever tell.

Thank you for all you do for the Lord, for His work and for us. There will never be enough time this side of eternity to say adequate thanks.

ANYTHING BUT BORED!

2007-10-29T06:10:00.000-07:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

What you read in the newspapers, hear on radio or see on television isn’t everything that goes on around here. While my primary responsibility is to lead Faith and Action in its mission to “Challenge Capitol Hill with Biblical Truth and Change the Nation One Policymaker at a Time,” there’s plenty more seats I occupy for the sake of the Gospel.

Here are just a few:

- The National Pro-Life Religious Council (NPRC). As a board member and past president, I advise and do some work for this virtually unique organization. Its aim is really two-fold, to pray and work for a pro-life witness within major Christian denominations and provide an alternative voice to apostate, pro-abortion, liberal “churches.” The NPRC is now the prime sponsor of our National Memorial for the Pre-born and their Mothers and Fathers, the only full-scale pro-life Christian worship service held inside the US Capitol complex here on Capitol Hill. “The Memorial,” as we call it, is a remembrance of all the victims of abortion—babies, mothers and fathers—as well as a celebration of God’s gift of Life. It coincides with the annual March for Life. Both events fall on January 22, the exact anniversary of the infamous Roe V. Wade Supreme Court decision that opened the blood gates of abortion. Watch for more information at our website, http://www.faithandaction.org/.

- The Institute on Religion and Public Policy (IRPP). As a board member and member of the President’s Circle, I advise the IRPP on achieving its objective of promoting Religious Liberty as the foundation to all human rights. The Institute under its founding president, my friend, Joseph Grieboski, does unparalleled work. It was Joe who first invited me to Morocco, the beginning of our ongoing Christian Friendship Mission there. That same delegation of Evangelicals included Faith and Action trustee and founder of the huge Creation Christian music festivals, Harry Thomas. He has put together the only two large-scale Christian music festivals in the Arab speaking world, both in the fabled Moroccan city of Marrakech. The last festival drew some 200,000 attendees!

My latest foray with the IRPP was to Sudan and its deeply troubled Darfur region. Joe and his team do a masterful job engaging even the most hostile governments. We met with high-level officials and toured refugee camps, talking at great length with local tribal leaders.

- The National Clergy Council (NCC). I serve as president of this organization, originally founded by my brother, Dr. Paul Schenck, as a pro-life action group of pastors in Western New York. The NCC quickly grew into a much larger network with a more expansive set of concerns including the Sanctity of Life, the Sanctity of Marriage and the Family and the Public Acknowledgment of God. Today the NCC involves thousands of church leaders from all traditions including Catholic, Evangelical, Orthodox and Protestant. In fact, we now have a denomination represented for every letter of the alphabet! The NCC is a powerful force here on the Hill. Elected officials know how powerfully persuasive the pulpit is—and that the average pastor shakes hands with hundreds of people (read that voters) each week.

- The Evangelical Church Alliance (ECA). The ECA is America’s oldest association of Evangelical Christian clergy, dating back to the late 19th century and the archetypal revival movements of D.L. Moody and Ira Sankey and I am in my third term as a board member and in my second term as chairman of the Committee on Church and Society. We also maintain the largest number of active duty military chaplains from Evangelical ranks. The ECA not only provides for me a place of rich fellowship, but also Biblical accountability. My involvement with the ECA is a great asset as it adds substantial credibility to my opinions here on Capitol Hill and throughout the country, particularly with the media.

- The Capitol Hill Executive Service Club. As an active member and past board member, this 35-year old networking group provides much needed friendship, mutual encouragement and incomparable access to people and places here. The Club hosts a weekly parade of unique leaders that address our Thursday morning breakfast meeting. The seven years I’ve been with them have been some of the most memorable and worthwhile I’ve sent with any particular group. On any given week we may host a Supreme Court justice, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, a world-class author or senior United States senator. Here in Washington, people equal access and vital information. A get a lot of both—not to mention quality friendships and alliances—from this unique collection of America’s finest!

- The Council for National Policy (CNP). Feared by every liberal, the CNP is one of the oldest and most influential culturally and politically conservative groups in the nation. I can’t say much about who sits among its members, but I can say it has had an unparalleled role in shaping public policy and opinion since the days of Ronald Reagan. Thought not an exclusively Christian group, it includes many of America’s top conservative Christians. As a new member of the CNP board of governors, I now have an unmatched opportunity to play a decisive role in preserving what is best about America.

As you can see, with this and so much more—my regular preaching schedule, frequent media interviews, routine consultations with many more groups—I’m anything but bored!

More later---for now, I’ve got to get to work!

FAMILY MATTERS

2007-10-22T05:29:00.000-07:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

This past week was a whirlwind. In order of importance it involved clear direction from the Lord on a number of issues; big family matters and, finally, big presidential race issues!

I’ll start from the top: We’ve prayerfully settled on a five-year plan that includes some very big developments on the ministry front. You’ll hear all about them at our upcoming 25th Anniversary gala, Saturday, November 17. If you haven’t already secured your tickets, please do it now as seats are filling very fast!

On the family front, my Mom and Dad are in a wonderful Catholic nursing facility back home in Buffalo, New York. (Their preference!) Both need round-the-clock care and they feel much more secure in a medical environment. It’s excruciating to be more than 500 miles away, so my brother and I get up there as often as possible. (Our two older sisters live near to the home and look after my folks, which is a huge relief. That’s in addition to the Sister who runs the place who sees each resident as her ministry charges!) Never-the-less, this past week was a crisis.

It was one of the few Sundays in the past several months that I wasn’t out preaching somewhere in the country. I thank God I wasn’t out because when I got the call that Mom had plunged into a sudden and deep dementia, I immediately ran for the airport. Every affordable flight was sold out but my Dad’s tutelage in how to get things done paid off again. I offered a young college student a handsome sum of money to take a later plane, which opened one seat for me on the earliest possible flight!

I found Mom in a disturbing psychotic state when I arrived. She saw fires in her room, talked with imaginary people, uncharacteristically barked in anger at everyone, including my Dad, her husband of 52 years, whom she no longer knew. It was painful to watch, and even more painful to be unable to do anything about it. But it didn’t take long for my sisters and me to determine things just didn’t add up. For one, dementia doesn’t usually come on so suddenly. We looked elsewhere—to her many prescription medications. We narrowed it down to one new drug that had recently been introduced to help control her worsening Parkinson’s disease. I asked for a PDR (Physicians’ Desk Reference, a sort of pharmaceutical encyclopedia) and discovered the drug can have psychotic side effects. We demanded she be weaned off of it immediately. Within hours Mom blossomed back into the joyful, lovely, happy woman she has always been with full cognition and recall! Praise God!

Here’s my thanks and prayers for my fellow middle-aged “sandwich” generation members who, like Cheryl and me, are helping launch adult children while saying hello to elder parent care. It ain’t easy—and boy, don’t I know it! (What do I have to complain about? My brother, Paul, still has four under-age kids at home while sharing this responsibility for our parents!) May the Lord help us all to do right by those He gives us!

OK, now onto the presidential race: Last week I attended the Values Voter Forum here in Washington. All the candidates were invited, but only Republicans showed up. I won’t comment on all of them, but I will tell you the ones who really impressed me.

First, the winner of the Values Voter straw poll, Mitt Romney: You know I met with the former Massachusetts governor back in March. (I had actually talked with him one-on-one a year earlier, but only briefly.) He impressed me before and again this past week. Romney’s speech to the attendees focused on family, for which he is a shining example of convincing personal experience. (Married 37 years to the same woman; five outstanding sons and ten grandkids!) Gov. Romney rightly said the family is the building block of society. (See my book on the Ten Commandments, Ten Words That Will Change A Nation, chapter 5.) He stated unequivocally that he will be a pro-life president; he will re-instate President Reagan’s family impact statement for all government programs, policies and initiatives; he will use the presidential bully pulpit to promote chastity until marriage; and he will back a constitutional amendment defining marriage as limited to one man and one woman. It really rang true—and it rang the bell with attendees. (In the audience were many of the most significant pro-life, pro-family and pro-religious freedom advocates in the country.)

The other outstanding presentation was little known former Governor Mike Huckabee of Arkansas. He’s an unquestioned Evangelical (a former Baptist pastor) with an illustrious record of leadership in his home state. He has an unbroken history of being absolutely right on all our critical social and moral concerns. If you saw his recent appearances on any of the talk shows, you know he’s also a fabulous communicator—a critical skill he shares with Mitt Romney. Still, with all those important elements, there was an air of doubt among the people I spoke to about whether or not Huckabee has the internal drive and organizational ability to pull off a victory in the most difficult, challenging and demanding contest on earth. It’s looking more and more inevitable that Hillary Clinton will be the Democrat nominee. Let’s be gut-level honest: The real question is, Does Mike Huckabee have the dynamism, charisma, star-power and good-looking contrast to go up against her celebrity stature? That remains to be seen.

As far as the other would-be nominees who appeared at the Values Voter Forum, I can’t identify another “player.” Rudy Giuliani’s recalcitrant pro-choice position presents a virtually insurmountable obstacle to winning any appreciable percentage of pro-life votes. Fred Thomas did not seem to excite the room and I wasn’t there for the others, but neither was there much post-event chatter about them.

This is a difficult and challenging political season for all of us. I haven’t endorsed anyone—and I probably won’t. For now I am following Jesus’ instructions to His disciples, “Watch and pray.”

More later . . .

Rev. Rob Schenck
Faith and Action
109 2nd St., NE, Washington, DC 20002
http://www.faithandaction.org/
202-546-8329

P.S. After I wrote the above post, I received this from Chaplain Gordon James Klingenschmitt (or "Chaps," as so many know him), famous for being thrown out of the Navy for praying publicly in Jesus' name. I didn't know anything about this incident regarding Ambassador Alan Keyes, but I include it here for your assessment: http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=58265.

DEEP IN “ENEMY” TERRITORY

2007-10-17T06:46:00.000-07:00

The headline to this post is deliberately overstated, tongue-in-cheek and meant only to grab your attention. That said, I will now tell you what I’m talking about:

Believe it or not I recently spent nearly an hour at Democratic National Committee headquarters here in Washington in a private meeting with DNC chairman Howard Dean. You probably remember the former governor of Vermont and past presidential candidate because of the mocking notoriety he received after his 2004 “I Have a Scream” campaign speech.

Many will ask, what was I doing there with Dean? The short answer is: seizing and opportunity for Biblical Truth.

The Democrats—just like the Republicans—are courting as many religious leaders in this country as they can; particularly Evangelicals. I’m regularly targeted because of our high profile here at Faith and Action, as well as my position as chairman of the committee on church and society for the Evangelical Church Alliance.

Until now I’ve declined many invitations to meet with campaign and party operatives. In fact, I spend a good chunk of my days fending off approaches. But this meeting proposal was different. First, I was assured it would be a “no-holds-barred” conversation; nothing taboo; no limitations. And, it was arranged by a very good friend who’s been a huge help to our Morocco Christian Friendship mission. Just to be sure I wasn’t used though, I insisted on taking along my trusty friend, Rev. Pat Mahoney. Pat’s great. He’s from New Jersey. Nobody gets away with anything when Pat’s in the room!

The intermediary agreed and told me Pat and I would be in charge of the agenda. We were credibly assured there would be no holding us captive to a lecture on how the Democrats were the real party for religious Americans or anything like that. We wouldn’t be pitched to support a candidate, or even support a Democrat at all. And, we’d get to talk; to share our testimonies of faith in Christ; to put anything we wanted on the table.

So, after getting prayerful counsel, Pat and I went over to DNC Headquarters on South Capitol Street. I must admit to some trepidation. After all, to Christians activists like me, the DNC has stood like a Nebuchadnezzar’s image above a fiery furnace. It’s been a symbol of massive, organized and powerful hostility to the three things of paramount importance to us: The Sanctity of Life, the Sanctity of Marriage and the Public Acknowledgement of God. What’s more, the DNC’s been our tormentor: It was a Democratic president that used his first day in office to strike down even the most modest restrictions on abortion. It was a Democratic attorney general that dragged an endless number of completely innocent pastors, pro-life advocates and their financial supporters before a secret grand jury, accusing them of aiding and abetting violent extremists. It was a Democratic White House that opened an official office of gay and lesbian liaison, bolstering homosexual political groups in their quest to re-shape American sexual mores. And, it’s now a Democratic Congress that has all but completely excluded morally conservative groups from using US Capitol facilities.

Yet, like Daniel’s own experience, there comes a time when even the most hostile king will show a crack in his armor; a chink that starts as genuine curiosity, albeit mixed with self-serving motives. (That self-serving part is true of everyone here in Washington. It’s just reality. You learn to work with it, rather than against it. I call it the “Christian jujitsu” technique!)

When I was approached for the meeting with Dean, I sensed a “Daniel-and-Darius-Moment." (See Daniel, chapter 6) I’m not sure this one will end with a decree that all Democrats must “tremble and fear before the God of Daniel,” but stranger things have happened!

I told Governor Dean our main proposal was for a public “conversation” on the core principles that drive morally conservative Christians when it comes to public policy and elections. This would not be a shouting match, angry debate or mutual lecturing. It would be a civil discussion, held in a public venue, with ample time to give real answers to hard questions. (Think of Paul before Festus or with the pagan philosophers at the Areopagus.) Much to our surprise, he immediately accepted our idea and our terms!

If you’ve heard me preach, you know I often begin by saying, “I’m not here to say God is a Republican. But neither do I say He’s a Democrat. His ways are far above our ways, and His thoughts are far above our thoughts, including our vulgar politics.” (In Deuteronomy 17:20, God even instructs us not pick civil leaders who turn to the “right hand or to the left.” I don’t think this means God always likes an Independent, but one thing I do know, God’s Word has the answer for any Democrat or Republican who’s wondering which direction to go!)

If any candidate, any party leader or any public official wants to know why we believe what we do—and they’re prepared to let us give the answer from God’s Word—I’m ready to do it:

“But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear.” (1 Peter 3:15)

We’ll see what really gets accomplished in this never before face-to-face with Chairman Dean and His party, but I know what I’m praying for! (I’ll let you know how it goes, or if it goes at all.) For now, all this means is we have an agreement to meet again with Dean, in a very public way, and engage in a civil exchange on the really, really important questions of what and why Christians believe. And Pat and I have agreed to reciprocate with how and why we may or may not be able to work with Democrats in the future.

Most importantly, we will give an answer for the hope we have.

Back later . . .

YOU CAN’T JUDGE CANDIDATES ON THEIR CHURCH AFFILIATIONS

2007-10-09T07:41:00.000-07:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck** reporting:

The question I’m asked most these days goes something like, “So whad’ya think of that Mitt Romney’s Mormonism?” More times than not, they mean, “I like some things about him, but I’m afraid of his religion.”

The first thing I tell people who ask me this is when it comes to political candidates—especially for president—religious affiliations mean nothing. Just remember the two Southern Baptists we’ve had in office: Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton! (If that doesn’t surprise you, George Bush is a United Methodist that attends a liberal Episcopal Church!)

What matters is not the religious label people wear. Barack Obama is a member of the same denomination as that of the great 19th-century revivalist and abolitionist Charles Finney. (This week on Faith and Action Live! I’ll talk about Obama’s recent comments at Redemption World Outreach Center in South Carolina.) What really matters is the “fruit” of a person’s whole life. In fact, it’s not accurate to look only to the past because people do change while in public office, often drastically. If we looked back on Bill and Hillary Clinton, at one point in their careers they were actually pro-life; Ronald Reagan was pro-abortion; and Barry Goldwater, whose campaign reignited both the Republican Party and political conservatism, arranged for his own daughter, who was pregnant out of wedlock, to have an illegal abortion in 1955.

What matters is what a candidate credibly stands for now, is willing to be held accountable for in the future, and whether he or she has a realistic program for achieving those outcomes during his or her presidency. For me, the litmus test is easy: Does the candidate credibly stand for the three great pillars of morality and culture, especially the sanctity of life (which includes security for all Americans from the womb on) the sanctity of marriage and the family and the public acknowledgment of God?

I’m not suggesting we look for the perfect candidate because you’ll never find one. (Ronald Reagan was married twice and First Lady Nancy consulted the Zodiac.) But on the whole, does this person’s life, values, platform, the company he or she keeps, suggest this candidate can strengthen the moral and cultural foundations of American civilization? And if so, does he or she have a credible plan and an apparent capacity to actually get it done while in office? These are the operative questions.

Whether it’s Rudy Giuliani’s or Sam Brownback’s Roman Catholicism, Hillary Clinton’s or John Edwards’ Methodism, Barack Obama’s United Church of Christ membership (and I’ve actually preached in some good United Churches of Christ!), Fred Thompson’s church of Christ background (the one with the small “c” in “church”), Mike Huckabee’s Baptist ordination, or so on and so forth, it’s the core principles and credibility that count—not the labels.

There are good Christians and bad; good conservatives and bad; good "others" and bad. Mitt Romney’s church label means nothing as far as his fitness for president, just as is true with all the rest. When it comes to a person’s convictions, capacities and credibility, church labels can mean everything and they can mean nothing at all. In fact, in many cases they mean the exact opposite of what we might think. Church labels may even mean two different things at once: Republican Senator Orrin Hatch and Democratic Senator Harry Reid are both members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, but they espouse very different political views.

The Founders made it quite clear in the Constitution: There would be no religious test for public office: “no religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust under the United States.” (Article VI) That was supremely wise.

I’ll make a confession to you: I voted for Jimmy Carter in 1976 because he was the “born again” candidate who taught the Bible in his Baptist Sunday school. That was the last time I let a church label mean anything, one way or the other.

My best advice is to judge Mitt Romney and the rest of the candidates on the factors that matter; but don’t judge him or anyone else on church affiliation. That would be a mistake.

Have you got your tickets yet? My brother Paul and I hope to see you at our 25th ministry anniversary on November 17! This will be more than a Washington gala; it will be a show of strength as we approach the ’08 election season, what will surely prove the most intense moral struggle of modern times. We really need you here! Get your tickets online now! You’ll find helpful travel advice at our website: http://www.faithandaction.org/!

Rev. Rob Schenck
Faith and Action
109 2nd St., NE
Washington, DC 20002
http://www.faithandaction.org/
202-546-8329, ext 104

**For those who don’t know me, I am a minister to elected and appointed officials on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC. I hold dual ministerial affiliation with the Evangelical Church Alliance and the old-line conservative Methodist Episcopal Church. I also serve as chairman of the Committee on Church and Society for the Evangelical Church Alliance, America’s oldest association of Evangelical clergy. I hold degrees in Bible and theology, Christian ministry and divinity, all from Evangelical institutions.

AT CHURCH WITH THE SUPREME COURT JUSTICES

2007-09-30T18:42:00.000-07:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

Imagine six U.S. Supreme Court justices sitting in church pews as the Word of God is read, the Gospel is proclaimed and the sermon includes a pro-life message. Sound fantastical? It’s not—I saw it yesterday. I was there. It was marvelous.

The setting was the annual “Red Mass” at the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle here in Washington, DC. The service, in its 54th year, is organized by The John Carroll Society, made up of lay Catholic Christians and named for the first Catholic Bishop in the U.S. (Carroll’s brother, Daniel, played a prominent role in the Constitutional Convention). It’s held on the Sunday before the First Monday of October, which always marks the beginning of a new Supreme Court term.

This year’s Bible readings at the Mass were Genesis 1:1, 26-31, selections from Psalm 104, I John 4:11-16 and John 14:23-29. (All read aloud, of course.)

The liturgy also included this musical recitation:

“Glory to God in the highest and peace to his people on earth.
Lord God, heavenly King, almighty God and Father,
We worship you, we give you thanks, we praise you for your glory.
Lord Jesus Christ, only Son of the Father, Lord God, Lamb of God,
You take away the sins of the world: have mercy on us;
You are seated at the right hand of the Father: receive our prayer.
For you alone are the Holy One, you alone are the Lord,
You alone are the Most High, Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit,
In the glory of God the Father. Amen.”

And these words in the Profession of Faith:

“We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God . . .
For our sake, he was crucified . . . he suffered, died and was buried.
On the third day he rose again in fulfillment of the Scriptures;
He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead,
And his Kingdom will have no end.”

The six justices present—Chief Justice John Roberts and Associate Justices Alito, Scalia, Thomas, Kennedy and Breyer —definitely heard the Gospel at the Red Mass and were challenged with Biblical Truth. The first four enthusiastically embrace and practice their Christian faith; Justice Kennedy needs some prayerful prodding; and Breyer appears to adhere to a largely non-religious and quite liberal Judaism. (An interesting side note: Justice Breyers’ daughter experienced a religious “conversion” and today is an Episcopal priest.)

I know some Evangelicals and others might doubt a Catholic Mass could truly be Gospel-centered. That’s never been my experience. While a non-religious Jewish teenager, I was partly introduced to the Gospel by Catholics—and through the Catholic Mass. The Red Mass, celebrated as a “Solemn Mass of the Holy Spirit,” gets its name from the red vestments of the celebrants, symbolizing the tongues of fire that settled on the Apostles when the Holy Spirit descended (Acts 2). Sitting in the sanctuary yesterday, I thought of what Jesus said about the Holy Spirit: “And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment.” (John 16:8) The Word of God needs no help—it does its work all by itself. Yesterday the Justices had everything needed to know that reproof.

I commend the John Carroll Society, Washington Archbishop Donald Wuerl and all the others who make the Red Mass possible. It’s one of the few times that some of the Justices are confronted with unvarnished Bible Truth!

Considering what’s at stake in the selection of at least two justices by the next president, Rev. Pat Mahoney and I will put even more into our customary prayers today in front of the High Court as it opens its 2007-2008 term. (See our article at www.faithandaction.org) I’ll let you know how it goes.

Speaking of Biblical Truth, pro-life and Judaism, this past week I met Orthodox Jewish pro-life activist “Richard Nadler, who writes under his Hebrew name Reuben-Lev ben Herschel. Nadler’s book, Feticide and the Birth Cycle (2005, Pakad Press, Overland Kansas) cites religious authority to reveal the Jewish tradition’s reverence for life. Famous Orthodox rabbi and ally of moral conservatives, Daniel Lapin, says this book “belongs in every believer’s library.” I agree.

We don’t need anything more than Biblical Truth to rest our case for Life on, but it can be helpful to come at the argument from several different angles. People get bored and distracted after they’ve heard “the same old thing” one more time. A little new information can reclaim their attention and pique their interest. This book is for serious pro-life apologists willing to do a little extra work beefing up your argument. While the book is pretty friendly to the non-Jewish reader, you’ll probably still need to do some background research to comfortably make your way through it. If you’re one of those serious students, you can get the book from Americas Majority, 8640 Travis Street, Overland Park, KS 66212.

Finally, I wish I could tell you where I was this past week, but I can’t. (Talking about certain things can tip off opponents and do more damage than good.) Suffice it to say I spent time with some of the greatest Christian leaders and moral conservatives in this country; many of them young—like me! (OK, today I cross the 49-year threshold, but I’m still this side of 50!)

I know the recent passing of Jerry Falwell and D. James Kennedy, along with the fragile health of other luminaries, has left some wondering who will pick up the mantel. I’m convinced those new leaders are already in place. If anyone knows how to manage succession challenges, it’s God Almighty. Don’t worry; He’s prepared well for the transition! (I’ll write about these emerging leaders in future posts to this blog.)

Gotta go for now. Be back soon.

Rev. Rob Schenck
Faith and Action
109 2nd St., NE
Washington, DC 20002
www.faithandaction.org

POWER PACKED WEEKEND

2007-09-24T05:07:00.000-07:00

Your missionary to Capitol Hill, Washington, DC, Rob Schenck, reporting:

This week begins already quite full. In fact, it got rolling Saturday as I was privileged to attend the elevation of our dear friend Pastor Wesley Cherry of Manassas, Virginia, to the seat of Bishop in the fellowship of the Full Gospel Baptist Churches, International. Pastor—now Bishop—Cherry is a great leader, a kind soul and avid supporter of our ministry here at Faith and Action. His congregation, Word Alive Church, is one of our anchor churches. They pray up a storm for us and send us their monthly missionary support. It always arrives like manna from heaven! I met the Bishop through my former administrative assistant, Mrs. Ruby Carter. When she retired several years ago, she left an indelible stamp on our critically important administrative operations. I was delighted when Ruby told me her pastor was from my native Buffalo, New York. It turned out he and I have common roots in a church back home. It is an honor for me to be among Bishop Cherry’s missionary partners. God bless him and his rich ministry!

Speaking of great ministers and churches, the weekend was a two-for! I also had the joy of preaching again for Dr. Kenneth Barney of the extraordinary New Antioch Baptist Church in nearby Randallstown, Maryland. (It’s a rare thing for me to be at local churches period—but two leading churches in the metropolitan African-American community was twice as significant.) Dr. Barney is just one of the most capable pastors I know. His burgeoning congregation—built from scratch into one of the largest churches in the Greater Baltimore Area—is a warm, spiritually vital, evangelistic, discipling and service oriented body of committed and mature believers. New Antioch has for years hosted classes of the Capital Bible Seminary, lending an unusual depth to the Biblical education of its members. I was honored to preach their annual ushers’ anniversary service. God gave me a word from 1 Chronicles 9:17-21 on the importance of ushers as the doorkeepers of the House of the Lord. It’s their duty to actually usher souls to the Savior! The message was a bell-ringer and the Lord helped us to send those ushers—young and old—out to do their important jobs. They were impressive in every way, and unforgettable for the intricately choreographed march down the aisles that bedazzled the congregation!

Finally for today, I want to remind you—no, urge you—to come to our November 17 Silver Celebration 25th anniversary here in Washington! My brother Paul and I want to share this milestone with you. God by His grace has allowed us to enjoy a quarter century of uninterrupted fruitful ministry and we want to mark it with you in attendance! If you haven’t already read about the 25th Anniversary Celebration, please visit our website now: http://www.faithandaction.org/. Scroll down to the banner. Your presence with us will be more than just sentimental; it will send a strong signal to the government officials we minister to that we are all quite serious about this mission. Your attendance will be a show of strength for the ministry of Faith and Action and will get their attention in a way nothing else can!

So please, make your plans now to visit your nation’s capital city, pray for this nation, and join Paul and me for an unforgettable evening. You’ll meet movers and shakers from Capitol Hill, see a side of Washington, DC few people ever see, and hear what God is doing behind the scenes in answer to your prayers. Our keynote speaker will be long-time friend and Faith and Action ally Jay Sekulow of the American Center for Law and Justice. Glorious music will be provided by the choir of the New Antioch Baptist Church. The venue is the elegant Marriott Renaissance Hotel, located mid-way between the White House and the US Capitol. Click here now to order your tickets to the Faith and Action 25th Anniversary Silver Celebration, Saturday, November 17!

Back soon with more . . .

Rev. Rob Schenck
Faith and Action in the Nation’s Capital
109 2nd St., NE, Washington, DC 20002
http://www.faithandaction.org/
202-546-8329