BACK ON LINE!

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

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

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

NEW TWISTS IN NEW HAMPSHIRE

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!

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

DEEP IN “ENEMY” TERRITORY

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 . . .