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T H E D E V I L S H O W E D H I M A L L T H E K I N G D O M S O F T H E W O R L D • M a t t h e w 4 : 814around the world who are modelling reproducibleprograms”. Confirmed speakers include Billand Melinda Gates, Bono, Senator Bill Frist(United States senator, Tennessee); SenatorBarack Obama (United States senator, Illinois),Senator Sam Brownback (United Statessenator, Kansas) 4Of concern for many people is the inclusion of proabortion,pro-homosexual, Senator Barack Obama,a fact addressed by an araticle republished onRick Warren's www.pastors.com website outliningSaddleback's response to complaints made aboutSenator Obama’s inclusion at the summit. Thearticle includes,“The name of the seminar at which Sen.Obama will be appearing is entitled, ‘We MustWork Together,’” said a statement signed by 18pro-life groups. “No, Mr Warren, Mr Obama, wewill never work with those who can support themurder of babies in the womb.” 5In response, Saddleback stated,“‘We’re not making an endorsement ofObama or any of the other speakers,” continuedthe statement. “Rather by coming to Saddleback,the Summit speakers are affirming andsupporting the vital role of the Church in fightingthe pandemic of HIV/AIDS.’ Warren respondedto a blogger who claimed he invited Obama topreach in his pulpit to the Saddleback congregation.‘Of course that is untrue,’ said Warren in ane-mail Saturday to the Purpose Driven Network.‘I’d never invite any politician to speakfrom the pulpit to our congregation. Never.’Receptionists at Saddleback had received ‘rudeand vicious’ calls from people complainingabout the claimed invitation. The church, withan average attendance of 22,000 people eachweekend, made clear that Obama is not speakingto the Saddleback congregation, but ratherto a conference comprised of ministry leaders,social workers, and health professionals on thetopic of HIV/AIDS only.” 6Technically, one could say the Saddleback, andRick Warren’s, statement is true. Nevertheless,the conference is being organised, hosted andadvertised by Saddleback. And, the summit’stitle is “2006 Global Summit on AIDS and theChurch”, not the “Global Summit on AIDS”.If this was truly a “ministry leaders, socialworkers, and health professionals” conference,then why publicise it like a church seminar,advertised to congregants and Christians? If itwas an educational seminar for Christians, then(one would hope) you wouldn’t invite personswith the policies 7 like that of Senator Obama.A verse of scripture worth considering, here, is4 PurposeDriven, “2006 Global Summit on AIDS andthe Church: Speakers”. WWW page. (c. Oct/Nov 2006, cited 13 Jan 2006).5 Lillian Kwon, The Christian Post, (reprinted on thepastors.com website—Ministry Toolbox), “Saddlebackresponds to complaints about Obama speaking atHIV/AIDS conference”, (c. Nov 2006, cited 13 Jan 2006).6 Ibid.7 Kevin McCullough, in InvestigateMagazine (), notes Senator Obama’spolicy includes actively working to “preserve availabilityof abortion in all nine months of pregnancy. He opposedparental notification. He opposed any and all bans onpartial-birth abortion … and most damnable of all,what Paul says in 2 Corinthians:Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers.For what fellowship has righteousnesswith lawlessness? And what communion haslight with darkness? And what accord has Christwith Belial? Or what part has a believer with anunbeliever? (2 Corinthians 6:14-15 NKJ) 8The Berean Call 9 , in response to the conference,makes the point, “Saving of lives is certainlyparamount, but saving of souls is greateryet. We have seen enough examples thatdemonstrate whenever evangelicals join handswith the world, the real “good news” will beset aside. That is part of the demands of theworld.” 10The CampOnThis blog 11 , also raises aninteresting point worth considering,Rick Warren seems like a compassionateman; but one who is a late-comer to this issueof AIDS. He said on an interview with FOXNEWSthis past week that the first priority was to“break the silence of the church on AIDS”. Ibeg your pardon Mr Warren, but there havebeen many churches over for the past 20+ yearswithout fanfare, PR and national media attentionhave faithfully served the Lord and those thatare HIV positive in very sacrificial and profoundways. It is good that Rick and Saddlebackhave finally broken the silence and are gettinginvolved on this issue.But in all honesty, one must logically ask whynow? I mean, where has he been all those yearswhen people were dying with AIDS? I can onlythink in part that this is now due because ofhis PDL fame and subsequent wealth derivedthereof, that he has to have somewhere to useand justify the tens of millions of dollars he hasmade from “being in the ministry.” Thus... hisfascination with social causes.Mr Warren is being promoted, positionedand perceived, mostly by his own public relationsmachine, as a global leader in fightingHIV infection. However, rather than using his“Q” to drive him deeper into pastoral ministry(i.e. prayer, biblical exposition, the discipleshipof God’s people, and the proclamation of thegospel of sola fide) he has turned to socialcauses: global warming, getting rid of poverty,bringing his P.E.A.C.E. plan to Syria, and now ofcourse... AIDS. 12when a brave nurse named Jill Stanek brought aboutnational awareness to a practice at a local hospitalin suburban Chicago that allowed the starvation andneglect of newly born children who had survived abortionprocedures—Obama opposed her. He opposedthe right of those children to be given the chance to liveand he advocates against a ban on such procedures—then known as ‘born alive abortions’”. (KevinMcCullough, “Why is Obama’s evil in Rick Warren’spulpit”, Investigate Magazine, January 2007). Considernow, who, Rick Warren is inviting to Saddleback, a manwho in one breath advocates the right to kill the helplessand innocent—allowing them to be butchered or dieby starvation and neglect; whilst in the next breath hesays we must help the victims of AIDS, and no doubt thestarving, in Africa.8 NKJ—New King James Version9 10 Email, The Berean Call, 9 December 2006.11 A Blog (or Weblog) is a journal or diary style website,chronologically listed by the most recent entries first.12 CampOnThis, “Broke ‘Saddleback’ Mountain...when apastor tries to be a politician”. WWW page. (2 Dec 2006, cited 15 Jan2007).Visit to see and hear Rick Warrendescribe the summit to his church. “This nextweek on Thursday, Friday, we’re doing the Globalconference, The Global Summit on AIDS and theChurch. The premier conference on AIDS and thechurch, in the world.” It seems that in light ofthe criticism he has received over the invitationof certain persons in the summit, he included,following the remarks quoted above, a carefullycrafted warning that one may not necessarilyagree with everyone or everything you hear. On thesame video, Rick Warren presents to his church aclip of his recent trip to Syria. A trip supposedlynot recorded. A trip in which Rick Warren makescontroversial remarks and whose story keeps beingrewritten.Rick Warren’sRoad to DamascusOn November 28, 2006, Berit Kjos, reported thefollowing story on NewsWithViews 13 , summarisingthe furore that has arisen from Rick Warren’s tripto Syria.On November 13, Rick Warren met withSyria’s Grand Mufti Sheikh Badr al-Din Hassounin Damascus. Their dialogue was publicised bythe Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) in anarticle titled, “American Priest (Warren) Saysno Peace without Syria:““Rick Warren on Monday said... that 80percent of the American people rejected whatthe US Administration is doing in Iraq andconsidered the US policy in the Mideast aswrong.... Warren expressed admiration of Syriaand the coexistence he saw between Muslimsand Christians, stressing that he will convey thisimage to his church and country. “On November 16, WorldNetDaily founderJoseph Farah wrote, “Rick Warren wrote tome this morning to protest this column. Heclaims he didn’t say anything he was actuallyquoted as saying by the official press in Syria.However, in a video... he says Syria ‘does notallow extremism of any kind.’ In fact, Syria is,in many ways, the No. 1 sponsor of terrorism inthe world.... Here’s what the Syrian Arab NewsAgency reported: ‘...Pastor Warren hailed thereligious coexistence, tolerance and stabilitythat the Syrian society is enjoying due to thewise leadership of President al-Assad....’”Despite contrary evidence, Warren proclaimedwhat the Syrian President al-Assadapparently told him. But the soon-to-followassassination of Pierre Gemayel, a Christiananti-Syrian official in the Lebanese government—therefore a foe to the Syria-backed Hezbollahterrorists—should shatter those public illusionsof tolerant coexistence.Finally, in a startling exposé on November 20,Joseph Farah wrote,“I pointed out to Warren that WND hadindeed attempted to contact him about histrip. No one from his Saddleback Church everreturned our calls the day the story broke. ‘I’msure since you were warned in advance by theState Department that you took the precaution13 . View the articleonline to investigate the details further, by following thefootnoted reference hyperlinks.
A N D T H E G L O R Y O F T H E M • M a t t h e w 4 : 8of recording your own words,’ I suggested inmy response. ‘We look forward to seeing thetranscripts.’...“I really didn’t expect to hear back fromWarren—but, a few minutes later, I did, withan absolutely stunning retort. He let me knowhe is a close friend of President Bush ‘and many,if not most, of the generals at the Pentagon.’He also told me he did not tape anything whilein Syria, ‘because it was a courtesy call, like Ido in every country.’ Warren explained that hehad also counseled with the National SecurityCouncil and the White House, as well as theState Department, before his little courtesycall.... ‘In fact, Warren added, ‘as a memberof the Council on Foreign Relations and OxfordAnalytica, I might know as much about theMiddle East as you.’...“Not one to let lies go unchallenged, I wroteback to Warren with a link to the YouTube video:‘If you didn’t tape anything, what’s this?’... Itmight be that Rick Warren, deep in the bushof Rwanda, never received those last questions,because he never responded—at leastnot in the last three days. He did, however,within minutes make sure the YouTube videohe recorded independent of his meetings withthe Syrian brown shirts was removed from thenetwork.” 14After leaving Syria, and having become aware ofthe furore that his trip had generated, ChristianityToday magazine’s website, reported, in a blogcompiled by Ted Olsen,Rick Warren, criticised for Syria trip,says he was misquotedAfter criticism from the Institute on Religionand Democracy and some other quarters forvisiting Syria and meeting with presidentBashar Al-Assad, foreign minister Walid Al-Mu’allim, higher education minister GhiathBarakat, and grand mufti Sheikh Badr al-DinHassoun, Saddleback Church pastor Rick Warrensays his trip was misrepresented both by thegovernment-controlled Syrian media and U.S.bloggers. In a letter to church members andothers, he wrote:“In hindsight, I wish we’d been betterprepared for our visit to Syria. We would havehandled some meetings differently, watched ourwords more closely, and been more aware of theagenda of their state press. We wanted to justslip in and out, but that’s nearly impossible forme to do anymore. It’s been a learning experience.… As we left, the official state-controlledSyrian news agency issued some press releasesthat sounded like I was a politician negotiatingthe Iraq war by praising the Syrian presidentand everything else in Syria! Of course, that’sridiculous, but it created a stir among bloggerswho tend to editorialise before verifying thetruth. Does it seem ironic to you that peoplewho distrust Syria are now believing Syrianpress releases?”Warren’s office has also issued a pressrelease explaining that the visit to Syria “wasneither official nor political, but rather came outof a promise to his Muslim neighbor in California.”There are, however, some political statementsin the press release: recognition of the14 Berit Kjos, NewsWithViews, “Mother of all PurposeDriven Deceptions”. WWW page. (28 Nov2006, cited 13 Jan 2007).Syrian government’s treatment of its Christiansand its welcoming of Iraqi Christian refugees,for example, as well as some encouragementfor more dialogue between the U.S. and Syriangovernments. 15The press release by Rick Warren’s office can beread at: . And though Warren’s officewell spins the graces endowed upon Jews andChristians by Syria, such as,Many Americans don’t realise that bothChristianity and Judaism are legal in Syria. Inaddition, the government provides free electricityand water to all churches; allows pastors topurchase a car tax-free (a tax break not given toMuslim imams); appoints pastors as Christianjudges to handle Christian cases; and allowsChristians to create their own civil law insteadof having to follow Muslim law. Every Christianwith whom Dr Warren’s team met—includingthose in the city of Malula, where they representtwo-thirds of the population—expressedgratitude for the government’s protection of theirright to worship. 16However, Bob Unruh, of WorldNetDaily, notes,Thousands of Christians are fleeing from theviolence in war-torn Iraq to Syria, but their newhome also holds “ruthless” positions againstChristianity which range from life in prisonfor talking about your beliefs to death for aMuslim who converts, according to ministriesworking there.“It’s better than Iraq, but it’s no bed of rosesthere for sure,” Jim Jacobson, president ofChristian Freedom International, told WND.“The Christians (there) are stuck between a rockand a hard place.”While Dubai, Saudi Arabia, Iran and otherMiddle East nations are well-known for persecutingChristians, Syria’s actions are of a lowerprofile. But it is listed among those nationsaround the world that persecute Christians byeveryone from Jacobson’s organisation to theU.S. government.In Syria, the constitution requires thepresident to be a Muslim and specifies thatIslamic jurisprudence is a principal source oflegislation. And sharing your Christian faithwith someone—anyone—is discouraged as“posing a threat to the relations among religiousgroups” and carries a penalty of up to life inprison, he said.“For Christians, one of the core tenets is theability to share your faith, but in Syria that canlead to arrest (and) persecution,” Jacobson said.“We list Syria as one of the top … countrieswhere Christians are facing real persecution.”“Syria isn’t Saudi Arabia, but it’s one of thebig untold stories out there,” he said. For thosewho want to convert from Islam to Christianity,“you’re disowned by your family, if the localmosque issues a death threat, no one is goingto do anything about it, you’ll just end up dead.Nothing is done, no police action, that’s just15 Compiled by Ted Olsen, Christianity Today magazine,“Weblog: Rick Warren’s Purpose in Syria. WWWpage. (17 Nov 2006, cited13 Jan 2007).16 The News Kitchen,“Dr Rick Warren includes visit to Syriaon three-nation pastoral training and Peace Plan Tour”.WWW page. (16 Nov 2006, cited 13 Jan 2007).understood.“If you convert you’d better leave the country,”he said.For those who already are Christian, the governmentallows them to practice their religion—but within harsh and restrictive guidelines.A Christian is not allowed to proselytise—ever.And churches that want to hold an extra servicemust get a government permit. Sermons areroutinely monitored, as is church fundraising.He said the issue for Iraqi Christians is thechoice of being dead soon in Iraq, or takingyour chance in Syria and so they are floodinginto Syria. 17Selectively presenting the freedom and rights ofChristians in Syria is not honest, and is a disgracefulbetrayal of the Christians living in Syria and otherMuslim lands.Joseph Farah, who founded WorldNetDaily 18 ,is “a Christian journalist of Syrian and Lebaneseheritage who has covered and analysed the MiddleEast for the last 25 years” 19 . Concerning the circuswhich is Rick Warren’s Road to Damascus, Farrahnotes the following pattern,Warren went to Syria and recorded himselfpraising the totalitarian police state and itsdictator.Then he denied saying what he said.Then, after removing a video recording fromYouTube, he denied any recordings were madein Syria.Then he told his congregation he had recordedsome 12 hours of his trip through Syriaand Africa.Then Warren apologised to me for defendinghis actions and presumably misrepresentingthe truth.Then he told his congregation in writingthat the controversy over his trip was just beingstirred up by satanically-inspired internetpundits. (I assumed that was meant to be adescription of me.)Then he told me he was a member of theCouncil on Foreign Relations.Then his assistant denied membership.Is any of this important? 20Yes, is any of this important? Rick Warren saysthat his trip to Syria was just to promote his GlobalP.E.A.C.E. Plan.‘P.E.A.C.E. is an acronym that stands for“Plant churches, Equip servant leaders, Assistthe poor, Care for the sick, and Educate the nextgeneration,” Warren said. The emphasis callsfor church-based small groups to adopt villageswhere spiritual emptiness, selfish leadership,poverty, disease, and ignorance keep peoplefrom experiencing the kind of life God wantsthem to have’ 2117 Bob Unruh, WorldNetDaily, “Christians flee Iraq, findSyria ‘ruthless’: Ministries say believers have no Mideastrefuge”. WWW page. < http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=53549> (29 Dec2006, cited 13 Jan 2007).18 19 Joseph Farah, WorldNetDaily, “Rick Warren: Is he or isn’the?”. WWW page. (9 Jan 2007, cited 13Jan 2007).20 Ibid.21 Mark Kelly, PurposeDriven, “P.E.A.C.E. Plan a worldwiderevolution, Warren tells Angel Stadium crowd”. WWWpage. (c. 2005,cited 13 Jan 2007).15
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