Social Justice Goes to Church

Published in the November 2020 edition of the  Carolina Compass section of the Charleston Mercury.

A Review by Charles A. Collins. Jr.

Jon Harris, Social Justice Goes to Church: The New Left in Modern Evangelicalism (Greenville: Ambassador International, 2020)

Several years ago I and others began to notice a perceptible shift in Evangelical circles. While earlier generations when engaging in civic engagement as people of faith generally limited themselves to a few issues such as (preeminently) the sanctity of human life and the defense of traditional marriage – especially when speaking as the Church – a new breed of Evangelicals increasingly spoke out on a whole host of issues heretofore untouched and previously championed by the left. Critical Race Theory is hailed as an analytical tool and in some cases promoted. Despite the Democrat Party's championing of abortion and their 2020 Presidential ticket's support of the same this election season saw the rise of a group known as Pro-Life Evangelicals for Biden.

Jon Harris received the Master of Divinity from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary and I first became aware of him through his YouTube broadcast, Conversations That Matter ( https://www.youtube.com/user/RoarNoMore ) . Soical Justice Goes to Church: The New Left in Modern Evangelicalism is an adaptation of his thesis for the degree of Master of Arts in History at Liberty University. Harris contends that in order to understand why so many Evangelicals support left-leaning political causes one needs to understand that a number of earlier members of what has been termed the Evangelical Left --- some of whom are now viewed as elder statesmen – frequently were raised in Christian homes but flirted with neo-Marxism in college (the 60s and 70s were a heady time, after all) only to become disillusioned with those ideas in a secular context and bring them back into the Church.

Harris traces the lives and development of Jim Wallis, the founder of Sojourners and spiritual advisor to President Barrack Obama, Wesley Granburg-Michaelson, also associated with Sojourners and longtime General Secretary of the Reformed Church in America, Sharon Gallagher, Professor of Christianity and the Media at New College, Berkeley, and leader in the Christian World Liberation Front, John F. Alexander, editor of The Other Side, Richard Mouw, former President of Fuller Theological Seminary, and Ron Sider, Distinguished Professor of Theology, Holistic Ministry, and Public Policy at Palmer Theological Seminary and founder of Evangelicals for Social Action.

Those figures were major players in the production of the 1973 Chicago Declaration of Evangelical Social Concern, which called for a rejection of racism, economic materialism, economic inequality, militarism, and sexism. While no doubt making some valid points – one would be hard pressed to defend racism, for instance – the Chicago Declaration had a radical edge from the beginning. Wheaton College professor Robert Webber recalled being appalled at an incident in the economic responsibility workgroup when a successful businessman asked if it were possible to be rich and a Christian and the consensus was that “if he really wanted to follow after Jesus he would need to give up his job, sell his belongings, and give the proceeds to the poor. Then he would be in a position to follow after Christ.”

Carl F.H. Henry, one of the elder statesmen of Evangelicalism who had in his 1947 book, The Uneasy Conscience of Modern Fundamentalism, rejected modern liberalism but had also abandoned some of the disengagement of Fundamentalism, was a signer of the Declaration, but he also criticized it, noting that while it “called for a bold attack on the 'maldistribution of the nation's wealth and services,'” it “remained silent about Marxism's inability to produce wealth.” Fundamentalist Bob Jones, Jr., didn't sign it but claimed that it “followed the socialist-communist line” and was “a half-way house between Biblical orthodoxy and apostasy.”

Three years later the progressive Evangelicals definitely seemed to be on the ascent. Jimmy Carter, both a progressive and the first President of an identifiably Evangelical background – at least in recent memory and in the sense that the term was used in the late twentieth century – was preparing to enter the White House and Christianity Today declared 1976 the “Year of the Evangelical” and the attention came from the “secular” press as well – the December 1977 issue of Time featured a cover story entitled “The Evangelicals New Empire of Faith.” Appearances, however, can be deceiving.

Jimmy Carter's Presidency was a disappointment to Evangelicals on many fronts and prior to the 1980 election a coalition of various Christian Conservatives began organizing at the grassroots level. On August 22, 1980 former California Governor Ronald Reagan stood before the National Affairs Briefing and said:

You know, a few days ago I addressed a group in Chicago and received their endorsement for my candidacy. Now, I know that this is a non-partisan gathering, and soI know that you can't endorse me, but I only brought that up because I want you to knowthat I endorse you and what you're doing.

While that group did not officially endorse Ronald Reagan, large numbers of Conservative Evangelicals backed him, leading to his victories in 1980 and 1984. The public perception of Evangelical Christianity shifted decidedly to the right.

But there was a stark contrast between the Evangelical Right and the Evangelical Left. The Evangelical Right was strong in the South but also attracted some blue-collar Democrats in the Northeast (a good number of whom, being Roman Catholics among others, weren't technically Evangelicals) drawn by Reagan's pro-life stance. In contrast, as Harris notes, the Evangelical Left lacked broad appeal – well over two-thirds of the Evangelical Left held education, religious, or social- service jobs; 86% of Sojourners readers held a college degree and the median educational level of readers of The Other Side was two years of graduate work. Impressive credentials, no doubt, but not the kind of numbers with which one wins elections.

Over the ensuing decades the tenets of progressive Evangelicalism continued to appeal to many of the elite – the professors, editors, and a good number of clergy. Many of those influenced by it made their way into positions of leadership in various churches that one would assume would veer toward the right, among the the Southern Baptist Convention, the Presbyterian Church in America, and the Anglican Church in North America. The last chapter of Harris' book concludes with an examination of Tim Keller, a PCA minister whose influence is felt far beyond that jurisdiction and who has echoed much of the progressive outlook.

Harris' work is very readable and extensively footnoted. It was a informative and engaging read and I commend it to any who wish to understand the contemporary Church.

The Rev'd Charles A. Collins, Jr., is an Anglican priest and graduate of Erskine Theological Seminary, where he is currently pursuing doctoral studies. He serves as Chaplain for a local hospice and may be contacted at drew.collins [at] gmail.com

Richard Jewell: A Well-Made Cautionary Tale

If you want a reminder both of why you should both lawyer up and shut up if you're being questioned about a crime as well as what happens when law enforcement and particularly Federal law enforcement abuse their roles, go to see Clint Eastwood's Richard Jewell . Actually, even if you don't want a reminder of those facts, go to see it anyway for an excellent example of both.

The basic story is well-known, at least for those of us who remember the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta. . Richard Allensworth Jewell was a heavyset Georgia boy who lived with his single mom and aspired to be a lawman (he had, in fact briefly served as a Deputy Sheriff [and, as depicted in the film, a portrait of him in uniform really did hang in his mother's apartment]) and is fired from his job as a security guard at a small private college when he actually enforces laws against underage drinking in the dorm. Since the Olympics were coming to town there will be, as a friend points out to him, plenty of security work and so it was that Jewell found himself at Centennial Olympic Park on the evening of 27 July 1996.

Jewell, who was very diligent (to the point of being a bit of an eager beaver) in his job as a security guard and wanted to be accepted into the law enforcement fraternity of which he'd once been a member, discovered a backpack and reported the same. While police initially dismissed it it turned out that there were three large pipe bombs therein (a threat had been telephoned in to the Atlanta Police Department at roughly the same time, but it was one of numerous, most of which turned out to be hoaxes -- his was not). The bombs detonate, directly killing one person (another died of a heart attack as a result of the panic) and injuring 111 people.

I found that the coverage of that brought back many memories.Although I was living in South Carolina I was also spending a good bit of time in Augusta, Georgia, and it was impossible to be in the Southeast and not be aware of the Olympics -- while I didn't follow them closely as the political correctness that had accompanied them had turned me off -- the coverage was everywhere. I remember being up late, possibly preparing a sermon (I was in seminary t the time and preached most Sundays [more than I do of late, sadly]) when coverage of the explosion came over the television.

Richard Jewell was intially hailed as a hero but that quickly changed when the Atlanta Journal Constituion reported that he was being investigated by the FBI as a suspect with the suggestion being that he had palnted the bomb in an attempt to engineer an incident where he could be the hero, a so-called lone-wolf. Jewell's life changes forever.

Over the next three months the case is tried in the media and the FBI engages in questionable practices in order to press their case. It is at this point that the film takes a bit of license with the historical record. First of all, there was no agent named Tom Shaw (portrayed by Jon Hamm of Mad Men fame), although he may have been a composite of several individuals. Furthermore, white there really was a reporter for the AJC named Kathy Scruggs who was an attractive blonde -- she'd dated Lewis Grizzard (but then I'd imagine a good number of attractive single women of a certain age in Atlanta dated Lewis Grizzard, particularly if they worked for the AJC) -- and was known as a hard charging reporter, she died of an overdose in 2001 and her family and friends have disputed the portrayal of her as exchanging sexual favors for the infomation that Jewell was a person of interest.

However she got the information, she did and in the race for a scoop he found himself hounded by the press. Ever wanting to cooperate with law enforcement,Jewell repeatedly talks to the FBI against the advice of G. Watson Bryant, his attorney (another point of license, for most of the case Bryant, whose practice focuses on real estate law, and really did marry his assistant Nadya), wisely sought the assistance of Jack Martin, a more experienced criminal defense lawyer who does not appear in the film), Jewell is eventually exonerated (Eric Rudolph, a true lone-wolf who later bombed an abortuary, later confessed to the crime), won several lawsuits, married, and worked in law enforcement prior to sadly dying a the early age of 44 from complications related to heart disease and diabetes

There are several take-aways from the film:

--Paul Walter Hauser, who plays Jewell, does a masterful job. Jewell's mother Bobbi, who is still living and was portrayed by Kathy Bates, commented that despite the fact that she and her son had never met she had her son's mannerisms down to a tee.

--I am not a lawyer but have a number of friends who are and have also taken classes on legal considerations in the event that I, as a Concealed Weapons Permit holder who often carries have to defend myself, and the advice from both has been consistent: If you're being questioned by law enforcement shut up and lawyer up, even if you're innocent. Jewell disregarded that advice even after being bluntly told to do so by Bryant and the consequences are dire indeed.

--Finally, there legal and journalistic ethics come seriously into play. I'm about as pro-law enforcement as they come, but if the portrayal of how the FBI took advantage of Jewell's naivete and desire to cooperate with those whose acceptance he craved -- and apparently it is -- then the conduct of those agents was beyond the pale.

The thrashing he took in the media was at least as shameful. Ridiculed for his appearance and circumstances, they created and tried a caricature of the man and once the toothpaste was out of that tube it's awfully hard to make right. 

Go and see the movie and take note of the lessons to be learned therein. Centennial Olympic Park is still in Atlanta and if one visits one will note thousands of  engraved bricks that mark those who made donations to the construction of the park and a plaque commemorating the 20th anniversary of the games; I think they need a statue commemorating a good man who did his duty to the best of his ability, saved numerous lives, and paid dearly for doing so. 

Postscript: The Atlanta Business Chronicle will honor Jewell with a plaque in Centennial Olympic Park next March. That;s a long overdue start, but I still think a statue would be in order.

Baron Fain: A faithful friend and a friend of faith

Published in the September 2019 edition of the  Carolina Compass section of the Charleston Mercury.

by Charles A. Collins, Jr. 

(N.B., this ordinarily would have been posted here a month or more ago but since it was prepared for publication in the Carolina Compass I waited until that was published as a courtesy. -- DC)

      When Earl Fain IV, better known to most who knew him as “Baron,” died suddenly on July 31 it was a loss to many. His lovely wife Courtenay and fine son Tradd lost a devoted husband and loving father, many – myself included – lost a close and trusted friend, a host of fraternal, historical, and social organizations lost an enthusiastic member and active participant, and the Ben Silver Corporation – and I don't write this lightly – lost a great talent who was able to take his interest in heraldry, vexillology, and history and combine it with a keen eye and creative imagination to design items representing a host of schools, societies, and other organizations (on more than one occasion I complimented Baron on being able to take his interest in those fairly esoteric subjects and actually make a career out of working with them).

     My aim here, however, is not to examine Baron Fain as a husband, father, son, friend, etc., but rather to consider the relationship out of which all of those other relationships sprang, namely, his relationship with God through Jesus Christ.

     One thing that Baron and I had in common was the fact that we were raised Presbyterians and made a mature decisions to become Anglicans in our 20s, similarly attracted by the Reformed Catholicism of the Anglican way as well as the soundness and beauty of the classical Book of Common Prayer. I knew Baron only as a friend and never as a parishioner – he was never a member of a parish that I served –but would've counted it a pleasure to because he took his Christian faith seriously and had bothered to not only figure out what he believed but to know why he believed what he believed.

     I remember discussing the weekly Bible Study that he led with considerable enthusiasm. Baron enjoyed the opportunity to open up God's Word and discuss it with other men. When the ESV Study Bible came out I remember telling Baron about it and showing him my copy as well as the fact that purchase of it included electronic access and him being enthusiastic both at the quality of the tools provided but also with the possibilities to incorporate it into his teaching.

     Baron also took advantage of the opportunity to learn more about his faith and to take a stand for Christian orthodoxy. When changes were introducing themselves into The Episcopal Church in the early 2000s he drove out to Plano in early 2004 to attend the conference that would lay the groundwork for what would later become the Anglican Communion Network and finally the Anglican Church in North America. Baron was a frequent attendee at the conferences first known as SEAD, and later known as Mere Anglicanism and also enjoyed and participated in the conferences sponsored by the Prayer Book Society at St. John's Church, Savannah.

     And speaking of the Prayer Book Society, of which Baron was a longtime supporter and for which – not surprisingly – he designed a very handsome tie, my friend was an enthusiastic supporter of the classical Book of Common Prayer, most prominently represented in this country by the 1928 Edition ofthe Protestant Episcopal Church. Baron was a leader in the establishment of the 1928 Book of Common Prayer Morning Prayer service at St. Philip's Church – sometimes called the “Miserable Offenders” noting a theologically significant clause in the Prayer of General Confession that is sadly either omitted or watered down in later revisions –each Wednesday morning and would also regularly attend the 1928 Prayer Book Holy Communion service at the Cathedral Church of St. Luke and St. Paul at noon on Thursdays while that was still held; he sincerely wanted to support any offerings of 1928 Prayer Book worship that he could. When he and Courtenay were married it was out of the 1928 Book of Common Prayer, when Tradd was baptized it was out of the 1928 Book of Common Prayer and when Baron was laid to rest in August it was out of the 1928 Book of Common Prayer.

     Baron would be the first to tell you, though, that his preference for the 1928 Book of Common Prayer was not primarily aesthetic. Although he would freely admit that the attractiveness of that Liturgy was a tremendous drawing card for him the chief attraction remained its soundness and fidelity to earlier versions of the Book of Common Prayer. Baron counted it a joy to carry on that legacy.

In Deuteronomy we read:

"Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise” – Deuteronomy 6: 4-7 ESV

When Baron and Courtenay were blessed with a child of the covenant they took their responsibilities to raise Tradd up in the fear and admonition of the Lord seriously. He was baptized by his grandfather, the Rev'd Haden McCormick, and regularly brought to church to hear and and learn about God's Word but he was also instructed in what the Rev'd Dr. Jay Adams has called the milleu, taking advantage of everyday opportunities to train their son in the faith. In addition, every morning he was able from a very early age Baron would read Morning Prayer with his son,kneeling at a prie-dieu borrowed from his grandfather, thus imparting a spiritual discipline and love of God and his Word from a very early age in that young man's life.

     Baron Fain is gone – it still seems hard to believe. Nearly every day since then something has happened that I wanted to share with my friend or some point has come up about which I wanted to seek his counsel because he'd usually have the correct answer. While my email in-box continues to fill up there haven't been any of the regular reminders to fly this or that flag in commemoration of an oft little-known historical event (I used to reguarly tell him that he should publish Fain's Calendar of Obscure Observances),but his legacy will live on in a variety of ways: friendships formed, organizations participated in and in many cases founded, neckties designed, but most importantly in the faith implanted in his son which will bear fruit for many years to come. We must not grieve “...as others do, who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, God, through Jesus, will bring with him those who have fallen asleep.” (1 Thessalonians 4:13b-14 ESV). I give thanks for the life, faithful friendship, and lasting testimony of my friend.

     The Rev'd Charles A. Collins, Jr., is an Anglican priest who serves as Chaplain for an area hospice. He may be contacted at drew.collins@gmail.com

     

Thoughts on Russell Moore at the ACNA Assembly

The Rev'd Dr. Russell Moore, President of the Ethics and Religious Life Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention spoke on Tuesday, 18 June, to the 2019 Assembly of the Anglican Church in North America. I wasn't thrilled when I learned that he was scheduled to speak -- although I had at one time been a fan of Dr. Moore's some of his advocacy of social justice has been of serious concern, and not only for me but for many of my Southern Baptist friends -- and following his approbation for Resolution 9   which stated that Critical Race Theory and Intersectionality, concepts that had their roots in radical feminism and have been adopted by cultural Marxists, could, under the authority of Scripture serve as useful analytical tools, at last week's Southern Baptist Convention thought the he should be disinvited and stated so. I didn't really think that would happen, but still find question his participation and the imprimatur that his speaking appeared to give. I determined that I would listen to his remarks (which can be found here at 53:10) and so these are my thoughts.

I will say at the outset that there wasn't a whole lot in this address that I could disagree with. While he has been a vociferous and untiring critic of Donald Trump (an area which, in the interest of full disclosure, I largely agreed with him in 2016) he made no mention of the President. He criticized the notion that Christianity could be a "hood ornament" to Southern or Mid-Western culture and I would agree with him that if it is only that then that is largely problematic. At the same time, I would caution against too greatly depreciating the effects that Christianity formerly had on those cultures (as Flannery O'Connor pointed out the South is "Christ haunted") -- however imperfect. He noted that the notion, largely prevalent in society that one need be at least nominally associated with a church to be a good person, is passing away due to increasing secularism. He is correct. I remember asking an Englishwoman who had relocated to South Carolina from California in 1981 what church she attended and being somewhat surprised when she said that she didn't; in my work as a hospice chaplain I regularly meet new people and in the course of my conversation ask them about their religious affiliation and increasingly note that they answer the same way that she did so many years ago. 

He rightly noted that secularism can present opportunities for the Church to present a unique message to the culture and cautioned against being co-opted by either poltical party, telling a story of seeing a truck with a bumper sticker that read "If Jesus had a gun he'd still be alive today." I am an life member of the NRA, have a Concealed Weapons Permit, enjoy shooting, and am a passionate advocate of the Second Amendment but I find that sticker stupid and fairly blasphemous. He also noted that it would be an error to use the Church to advocate the opposing view as well, although that happens far more frequently. 

Somewhat out of nowhere he mentioned that the Church should be the kind of place where a person with Down Syndrome is treated not a a charity case but a valuable part of the body. I couldn't agree more. For 2 1/2 years while I was in seminary I served as the Student Supply (more or less the de facto minister, although not yet being ordained I had to bring in clergy for baptisms [we had some] and Holy Communion) at Waccamaw Presbyterian Church in Bucksport, South Carolina. One of the people that joined that small rural church (and I seem to recall him being baptized there) was a young man with Down Syndrome named Alvie. Alvie enjoyed ushering and so he did exactly that and did so with enthusiasm. During my time there the decision was made to clear out and repair the educational building and use it for that purpose and as a parish hall. One day the Clerk of Session (kind of the Senior Warden in Anglican parlance) walked in to find Alvie sanding the floorboards and when he asked him what he was doing Alvie responded that he was "working for Jesus." His simple but very real faith was an inspiration to the rest of us and I am thankful for it. Furthermore, inasmuch as I have often said that my philosophy of ministry is that as a cleric I am essentially a coach whose job it is to develop and enable the flock to minister as God has gifted them that certainly includes the handicapped. 

Moore's call to live out an authentic Christianity in the midst of a secularizing culture was a valid one. As I mentioned, there is little in this address with which I can disagree.
I still have serious concerns about Russell Moore, his adoption of the social justice agenda, and his approbation for a seriously flawed resolution and still wonder why my Province feels the need to cozy up to Big Eva. Whether that continues remains to be seen.  

An Unofficial Cycle of Prayer for the Anglican Church in North America

The latest edition of this unoffical Cycle of Prayer for the Anglican Church in North America, offered to facilitate prayer for the Province, may be found here. 

Ecclesia Reformata, Semper Reformanda

When I was in my early 20s, finishing my undergraduate work at Coastal Carolina University  and pondering a call to ministry in the denomination of which I was a member at the time, the Presbyterian Church (USA), I often heard the phrase "A Reformed church always reforming." To be honest, I wasn't that impressed with the phrase and actually was a bit prejudiced against it because it invariably seemed to be used by revisionists to justify their newest theological fad -- thus making the faith of the Church a nose of wax rather than something once for all delivered to the saints (see Jude 3). 

I was reminded of that recently when reading an open letter by Mrs. Penn Hagood, Senior Warden of St. Philip's Church in Charleston regarding a series of "open conversations" held by the Rt' Rev'd  Gladstone B. "Skip" Adams III, Provisional Bishop of the Episcopal Church in South Carolina. As an aside, while not the prime focus of this post, I strongly encourage you to read Mrs. Hagood's letter, especially if you have read the official reports of those meetings -- I believe her account is far more accurate.  In her letter she mentions a remark that I missed by the Very Rev'd Sam Candler, Dean of the Cathedral of St. Philip in Atlanta, Georgia, at the most recent General Convention of The Episcopal Church in regards to "expansive language" liturgies that will address God in new ways (namely avoiding the male imagery that has been traditionally [and Scripturally] used to refer to the Persons of the Godhead). Dean Candler remarked, "The church is always reforming. Our prayer is always reforming. I'm excited to be a part of that."

Well, I didn't like the slogan used by Presbyterian revisionists and I don't much care for it when used by Episcopal revisionists either.

But what a difference 25 or so years, seminary, and some reading makes. You see, the slogan has a long history and curiously it gets severely truncated most of the times it's used today. It first appears in a 1674 devotional by  Jodocus van Lodenstein, a Dutch Reformed pietist. The full quotation is 'The church is reformed and always being reformed according to the Word of God." Far from being a nose of wax, what van Lodenstein was actually championing was a constant Berean spirit (see Acts 17:11-12) whereby the church is taken back to the Scriptures and those things out of accord with God's Word are reformed and brought into conformity therewith.

It's a good slogan and a great concept, one expressed well in the Prayer for The Church found in the Book of Common Prayer:
O GRACIOUS Father, we humbly beseech thee for thy holy Catholic Church; that thou wouldst be pleased to fill it with all truth, in all peace. Where it is corrupt, purify it; where it is in error, direct it; where in anything it is amiss, reform it. Where it is right, establish it; where it is in want, provide for it; where it is divided, reunite it; for the sake of him who died and rose again, and ever liveth to make intercession for us, Jesus Christ, thy Son, our Lord. Amen.

By God's grace may the Church always reform itself under the guidance of the Scriptures and the Holy Spirit who inspired them, but if I never hear von Lodenstein's quote mangled again it won't be too soon. 

Pray and Let Your Voice be Heard for Andrew Brunson

by Charles A. Collins, Jr.

(Published in the July 2018 edition of the Carolina Compass section of the Charleston Mercury .)

     If he has not been released by July 1 the Rev'd Dr. Andrew C. Brunson, a missionary of the Evangelical Presbyterian Church in Turkey, will have been imprisoned in that country for 632 days. Dr. Brunson, who grew up as the son of an Associate Reformed Presbyterian missionary family that served in Mexico, Pakistan, and Russia and whose father also taught at Montreat College in North Carolina, is a graduate of Wheaton College who received the Master of Arts from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, the Master of Divinity from Erskine Theological Seminary, and later competed the Doctor of Philosophy from the University of Aberdeen and has served as a missionary in Turkey since 1993, first under the auspices of World Witness, the Foreign Missions Board of the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church and later with the Evangelical Presbyterian Church. He and his wife Norine, who was originally arrested with him but was released after thirteen days, raised their three children there and at the time of his arrest had applied for permanent resident status; he was serving as the Pastor of the Izmir Resurrection Church, a small congregation in Turkey's third-largest city. He has also been involved with theological education in that country.

     So what gives? Why has the missionary pastor of a small congregation been detained for so long by the Turkish government in a country that, while overwhelmingly Muslim, is officially secularized and is a longstanding member of NATO? His detention is part of a much larger purge following an attempted July 2106 failed coup d'état in which an estimated 160,000 Turkish military personnel, civil servants, and private citizens have been detained. Specifically he has been accused of being related to the Gülen movement, which has been alleged to have played a role in the coup.

    For his part, Dr. Brunson has denied any connection to to movement, stating “I am not a member of an Islamic movement. I have never seen any member of FETO (the Gülen movement) in my life.” In April he had a court appearance that was attended by Ambassador Sam Brownback, the United States' Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom, and Senator Thom Tillis (R-NC) (Dr. Brunson's hometown is Black Mountain, North Carolina) in which he stated in Turkish that “I have been praying for Turkey for 25 years. I wouldn't do anything against Turkey.” If convicted, he faces the possibility of a sentence ranging anywhere from 35 years to life. Both the Ambassador and the Senator expressed their belief (in Ambassador Brownback's case shared by the Trump Administration) in Dr. Brunson's innocence. The charges against him are based on accusations from two unnamed sources and evidence reportedly procured from his telephone.

     The Turkish government has repeatedly offered to free Dr. Brunson in exchange for the extradition of Fethullah Gülen, for whom the movement is named, who current resides in Pennsylvania and has lived in the United States since 1999. That offer raises serious doubts about whether there is any validity in the charges or if the missionary is being used by the Turkish government as a political pawn.

Andrew Brunson's next scheduled court appearance is on July 18. What can readers do to assist him?

–First and foremost, lift him and his family up the the Lord in prayer.

– If one is led, contact your Senators and Congressmen and ask them to support Dr. ```````` Brunson's release.

– The American Center for Law andJustice has been active in working for his release

and has prepared a petiton to that end. It may be accessed and signed at:

https://aclj.org/persecuted-church/free-american-pastor-andrew-brunso

-- Finally, readers can keep apprised of the latest developments in the case by following the online resource developed by his mission board at:

https://epc.org/news/freepastorandrew/

     
     Hopefully, by God's grace, Andrew Brunson will soon be reunited with his family and a free man.

The Rev'd Charles A. Collins, Jr. is an Anglican priest currently serving as a hospice chaplain in the Charleston area. He may be contacted at drew.collins [at] gmail.com