Posted on 08/16/2008 11:59:35 AM PDT by XR7
LAKE FOREST, Calif. — When John McCain and Barack Obama appear on the same stage today, they will vividly demonstrate the reach that has made the Rev. Rick Warren among the most significant evangelists of his generation.
He's a megastar who leads the nation's fourth-largest church and reaches thousands of ministers through the Internet and crusades against poverty and AIDS. That globe-trotting work and his successful book — "The Purpose-Driven Life: What on Earth Am I Here For?" — puts him at the vanguard of a movement that inspires young, socially conscious Christians.
But his willingness to soft-pedal political issues once central to U.S. evangelicals, such as opposition to abortion, has opened him to criticism that he has strayed from his calling to spread the Gospel.
Today's forum also is a sign of religion's importance in the 2008 presidential campaign, and the emergence of a new style of evangelical leadership on the national stage that is not tied to a single party and has broadened its social agenda beyond that of the religious right.
"This is absolutely a changing of the guard, and it suggests that the new guard of the evangelical movement is able to generate the attention and focus of both parties," said D. Michael Lindsay, a sociologist at Rice University and author of "Faith in the Halls of Power: How Evangelicals Joined the American Elite."
Warren personally invited the two candidates — "friends of mine" — via their cellphones. His event at the Saddleback Church will be broadcast live on CNN and Fox News Channel and streamed on the Web. It has among its aims "helping the church regain credibility and encouraging our society to return to civility," he said.
It's likely that fans and critics will be watching closely...
(Excerpt) Read more at seattletimes.nwsource.com ...
This guys puts himself above Clarence Thomas??? Unbelievable.
What a phoney. roberts ok but not Scalia or Thomas?? What a joke.
Incredible isn’t it? Obama is a total stuttering dunce.
Wouldn’t have nominated Clarence Thomas. Isn’t that rascist?
Thomas could run rings around this incoherent dufus.
Clarence Thomas just became my favorite justice on the Supreme Court.
CLARENCE THOMAS! Surprise, surprise.
He says he wasn't 'intellectual enough'. What an *SS!!!
I just started watching
Warren is asking tough questions
another nice question SCJ’s asking about Roberts now...
How can this lightweight talk smack on any of those justices?
OOOOH! Paraphrased - Obama would NOT have nominated CLARENCE THOMAS because he didn’t have enough EXPERIENCE???
Just dang, man.
Obama has a lot of gall.
What a pos.
Warren is a liberal “evangelical widening the tent.” His purpose-driven crap is man-centered nonsense and not Bible-based.
It is unfortunate this man has such influence in this election as opposed to a real evangelical.
Listen for Clerance Thomas’s former clerk, Laura Ingraham tomorrow on Barry’s comment
It's their preference & it's beautifully written.
His abortion answer was such hogwash, Lord help us if this man gets elected.......... I’m done with this thing — changing over to the Olympics and Michael Phelps RIGHT NOW!!!!!!!!!
The question was (paraphrased) At what point does a fetus have human rights?(or similar to it)
WOW!!!
Thomas!!!
holy hanna-—
wow
— he just pulled a double wammy.....
me thinks he was told what was going to be asked
All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.
Edmund Burke
Yeppers...
Help the women financially so they wont have an abortion but will keep the baby...
DUH how about adoption ??????????
Steady now.. let Obama bury himself.
Hillarious except it puts on display the soft racism that liberals feel toward black conservatives.
Now he's assigning powers to the SCOTUS that the constituion doesn't give it.
Please vote against this guy.
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