Ousted Leader Says Habitat Hides Christianity (Habitat for Humanity)

WTVM.com ^ | 10/23/05 | AP

[wagglebee]

WASHINGTON (AP) - Ousted Habitat for Humanity founder Millard Fuller says he and the group's current leaders have disagreed about how much Habitat should embrace its Christian heritage.

The Alabama native says he's pleased that Habitat is getting news coverage for building homes for Gulf Coast hurricane victims, but is troubled that most reports seem to depict it as a secular organization.

At a ceremony in Washington, where he and his wife were honored for their volunteer efforts, Fuller said, "We get our motivation from the Bible."

He added, "In my opinion, you need to be faithful to who you are and not have a flexible agenda in saying to one group you're one thing and saying to another group you're something else." Habitat for Humanity fired Fuller in January amid a woman's allegations that he inappropriately touched her. Fuller insists the charge was "totally false."

[wagglebee]

The Alabama native says he's pleased that Habitat is getting news coverage for building homes for Gulf Coast hurricane victims, but is troubled that most reports seem to depict it as a secular organization.

The left is in a dilemna here, they know that it is impossible to deny the good that Habitat for Humanity does, but at the same time they cannot bring themselves to admit that anything good has a Biblical foundation.

[BeAllYouCanBe]

I must be out of touch. The only thing christian I knew about "Habitat" was Jimmy Carter was involved.

[Vn_survivor_67-68]

are you implying that yimmy carter is a Christian?

[madprof98]

A few years ago, the alternative paper in Atlanta did a story on Habitat that featured Fuller's own daughter, Faith, a Habitat employee in Americus who has renounced her parents' religious beliefs in favor of a purely secular do-gooder ethic. Naturally, the purely secular paper praised Faith Fuller to the, uh . . . heavens.

My point is that long before Millard Fuller was ousted, Habitat was moving away from its Christian roots. Partly this happened because of the people drawn to its projects, many of whom are offended by religion. Partly (maybe even more) it was a result of the charity's dependence on government support, at least in its financing program, which requires compliance with federal policies that may be at variance with Christian virtues. For instance, local chapters may not favor married couples with children over shack-up couples in which single moms will hold the house title. Here in Atlanta, that means that hardly any Habitat households include two married parents. Typically, the boyfriend/daddy (of at least some of the kids) will hang around the building site killing time while his girlfriend offers minor assistance to the suburban volunteer crew constructing the couple's love-nest.

Habitat could do a lot more good for people if it scaled way back and returned to its glory days on Koinonia Farm. Sadly, though, its new and well-paid executive branch seems to be about to move its headquarters to the big city in the hope of expanding still further.

[Blessed]

Just another ministry founded by Christians that let itself get hijacked by the secular left.Gone the way of the Red Cross,YMCA and Girl Scouts.

[shezza]

From humble beginnings in Alabama, Millard Fuller rose to become a young, self-made millionaire. A graduate of Auburn University in Auburn, Ala., and the University of Alabama Law School at Tuscaloosa, he and a college friend began a marketing firm while still in school. Fuller’s business expertise and entrepreneurial drive made him a millionaire at age 29. But as the business prospered, his health, integrity and marriage suffered.

These crises prompted Fuller to re-evaluate his values and direction. His soul-searching led to reconciliation with his wife and to a renewal of his Christian commitment.

The Fullers then took a drastic step: They decided to sell all of their possessions, give the money to the poor and begin searching for a new focus for their lives. This search led them to Koinonia Farm, a Christian community located near Americus, Ga., where people were looking for practical ways to apply Christ’s teachings.

The Seed Is Planted

With Koinonia founder Clarence Jordan and a few others, the Fullers initiated several partnership enterprises, including a ministry in housing. They built modest houses on a no-profit, no-interest basis, thus making homes affordable to families with low incomes. Homeowner families were expected to invest their own labor into the building of their home and the houses of other families. This reduced the cost of the house, increased the pride of ownership and fostered the development of positive relationships. Money for building was placed into a revolving fund, enabling the building of even more homes.

Testing the Model

In 1973, Fuller moved to Africa with his wife and four children to test their housing model. The housing project, which they began in Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of the Congo), was a success in that developing nation. Fuller became convinced that this model could be expanded and applied all over the world.

Upon his return to the United States in 1976, he met with a group of close associates. They decided to create a new independent organization: Habitat for Humanity International.

http://www.habitat.org/how/millard.aspx

(Jimmy Carter didn't get involved until 1984, when Millard and some prominent businessmen were able to convince him that not only could Habitat benefit from his high-profile involvement, but it would be a much-needed boon for his PR, which was lagging. After much prodding, Jimmuh agreed, as long as the media was invited to cover his work. The rest, as they say, is history.)

[bahblahbah]

I don't generally watch those television preachers, but on the Hour of Power(with IIRC the Schullers) they had the founders of Habitat for Humanity at their service and told the story about how they turned to Christ and started the organization.

[N8VTXNinWV]

I was just going to ping you about this article! Aren't 'cha glad ya didn't go? lol! :o)

[mmercier]

Habitat for Humanity is good if you don't mind building a house alone with 10 helpful nitwits destroying your tools.

Any carpenter that has worked a habitat never does a second unless they aspire to get on the E board. Anyone out there who wants to volunteer just remember to bring band aids, lots of band aids.

[mmercier]

You must do one to appreciate why you should not go.

The NERCC has a training facility in Massachusetts, they put in a foundation, build the houses on their site, and have Habitat haul them off to wherever.

Ii have been away for a while but I bet they have built a dozen or so houses by now.

[MarkL]

Any carpenter that has worked a habitat never does a second unless they aspire to get on the E board. Anyone out there who wants to volunteer just remember to bring band aids, lots of band aids.

As a computer systems and network engineer, I can say that if I were to volunteer, it would have to be as a gopher or some such job. I've come to realize that my typing on computers would slow dramaticly based on how many fingers I lose to power tools. And I recently learned that I'm unable to hammer a nail in straight.

Maybe if they need computers built...

Mark

[Moonmad27]

I was at the Schullers' Crystal Cathedral women's conference a week ago when the lady who co-founded it spoke. I'm no fan of Habitat, knowing only its secular side, so I didn't hear all the speech. I realized my notions about her, at least, were wrong; She was proud to have gotten that point of light award - far more than a liberal would have been.

[Coldwater Creek]

Maybe you should just practice some with the hammer. My totally blind husband can nail perfectly straight. We have resided our house, redid a huge front porch. I drill pilot holes and he comes behind behind me with the hammer and nails. He puts the nail between his finger and thumb and lets the air of the hammer be his guide.

[moog]

There are different types.

[kalee]

I do NOT give any money, time or talent to Habitat for Humanity. There are other organizations, although less well known, that do a better job. We have always given money or volunteered for Charis Community Housing.
http://www.fcsministries.org/cch.htm

[al_again]

You must be joking - Carter is most certainly a Christian. While I think he is totally misguided in the world of politics - I think he is a very sincere Christian.

Don't confuse one's politics with religion, it is a real mistake. I know many Democrats who are Christians and lead exemplary lives, true role models for others. To discredit their faith because of their politics, in my humble opinion, is not very Christian.

[PAR35]

The only time I felt I accomplished anything at a Habitat build was when I participated in a Blitz Build. Working on a weekday, the site wasn't overrun by folks wandering around with not enough work to do (including me), stumbling over each other. A lot fewer folks were working each day, but a lot more was getting done.

[q_an_a]

I happened to sit next to Mr. Fuller on a flight from Chalotte to Dallas; we talked most of the way about how it had been hijacked for a time in Dallas by the secular wing of the organization , until some active church men started working hard to take it back. Fuller said that the same thing happend often all over the country.

When we first started talking he had a Bible open on his meal tray and that was where our talk started. Fuller look enough like Abe Lincoln to make a living doing one man shows talking about the past, as Abe and the future as the founder of HFH- if he wanted.

[mj1234]

I know people who are wonderful demonrat christians-

they are pro abortion
they are pro homosexual marriage
they are against prayer everywhere-except in church-
they mock the commandments of God-
they mock christians who proclaim they are renewed
by their faith through the Holy spirit-

Yep- Carter fits in with these wonderful christians

[N8VTXNinWV]

'tis true...but, that isn't why I said what I said to Shez. Only she (my sis) knows to what I was referring... ;o)