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Stance about-face at issue. BY JULIA DUIN Evangelical leaders say they are bewildered and stunned by the Rev. Rick Warren's apparent turnaround on gay marriage after the famous California pastor said earlier this week that he was not a proponent of California's Proposition 8. Mr. Warren told CNN's Larry King on Monday that he "never once even gave an endorsement" of the proposition, which said marriage in the state could only involve one man and one woman. The measure won at the polls last November by a close margin, in effect negating an earlier California Supreme Court ruling allowing gay...

Short video ad on Fox home page: "Easter w/Rick Warren Sat 9pm & Sun 6am/1p ET A special service from Saddleback Church! as millions celebrate on holiest of days A Fox Special Presentation Easter w/Rick Warren A message of hope, peace, unity Easter w/Rick Warren Sat 9pm & Sun 6am/1p ET"

Warren waver on Prop 8 stuns leaders Stance about-face at issue By Julia Duin April 11, 2009 Evangelical leaders say they are bewildered and stunned by the Rev. Rick Warren's apparent turnaround on gay marriage after the famous California pastor said earlier this week that he was not a proponent of California's Proposition 8. Mr. Warren told CNN's Larry King on Monday that he "never once even gave an endorsement" of the proposition, which said marriage in the state could only involve one man and one woman. The measure won at the polls last November by a close margin, in...

A Washington, DC, pastor and outspoken opponent of same-sex "marriage" says California mega-church pastor Rick Warren has done "tremendous damage" by apologizing for his support last fall of California's marriage protection amendment. Rick Warren said Monday on CNN's Larry King Live that he has "never been and never will be" an "anti-gay marriage activist," and made a point to inform the program's host that he apologized to his homosexual friends for comments he made in October to his church in support of Proposition 8 in California. Bishop Harry Jackson, Jr., with the High Impact Leadership Coalition says he was very...

America achieved its independence and freedom in the 18th century in large part because colonial pastors stood up for biblical principles, preached them, lived them and refused to back down from them – even in the face of death. The American War of Independence has been accurately called a "pulpit revolution" for this reason. It was inspired by great men of God who recognized evil and called it by its right name. What a difference two centuries, combined with affluence and the corporatization of the 501(c)3 church culture has made.

California mega-church pastor and author of The Purpose Driven Life Rick Warren says he apologized to his homosexual friends for making comments in support of California's Proposition 8, and now claims he "never once even gave an endorsement" of the marriage amendment. Pastor Rick WarrenMonday night on CNN's Larry King Live, Pastor Rick Warren apologized for his support of Prop. 8, California's voter-approved marriage protection amendment, saying he has "never been and never will be" an "anti-gay or anti-gay marriage activist." "During the whole Proposition 8 thing, I never once went to a meeting, never once issued a statement, never...

In his first interview since Inauguration Day, Saddleback Church Pastor Rick Warren tells Larry King that is a misconception that he is an "Anti-Gay Marriage Activist". He adds that he never took a stance on California's Prop 8 Same-Sex Marriage debate and he doesn't concern himself with things like Iowa's recent Supreme Court ruling legalizing gay marriage.

Saddleback Church's Warren calls on believers to make history Church expects to bring 3,000 new believers into its flock Saturday. LAKE FOREST – In what Saddleback Church Pastor Rick Warren calls historical, the church hopes to bring 3,000 new members into its flock on Saturday. "I'm not sleeping much. I'm too excited," the megachurch's pastor wrote in an e-mail to his congregation this week. "THIS SATURDAY, March 28, will be THE GREATEST DAY in Saddleback's history. OVER 2,000 people have already signed up to become members of our church family on a single day." Citing the Bible, Warren challenges prospective...

When Capistrano Valley Church saw its donations dwindling over the last year, the church's pastor Heather Clark took some drastic steps. First, she asked the landlord for a 20 percent rent reduction and got it. Secondly, the church's staff took a 10 percent pay cut. They switched from newsletters and paper bulletins to e-mail communication. The church, which recently changed its name to Center for Spiritual Living, is not alone in its battle for survival. Clark said the 425-strong church experienced a 20 percent decline in donations over the last year. That is more or less consistent with most Orange...

I don't often post vanities but since this is an eyewitness account I thought I'd go ahead. On my way to In-N-Out in Foothill Ranch a little while ago I noticed a HUGE police presence at Saddleback Church today. One or two squad cars at each entrance, more cars patrolling Portola Parkway and El Toro Road, a mobile command post, equestrian units, and a dozen or more motorcycle units. I'd say at least 20 to 30 police in all. Maybe more as I was not on the campus itself and there may have been others closer to the services. There...

OC FReepers, please join me and other conservatives on Wednesday evening for our regular grassroots town hall meeting of the Saddleback Valley Conservatives. Guest speaker is Capistrano Unified School Board member Anna Bryson. Come ready with your questions and feel free to bring all your conservative friends. WHEN: Wednesday, Jan 7th, 6:00-7:30PM WHERE: Rancho Santa Margarita Ford dealership, 30031 Santa Margarita Parkway, zip code 92688. Take Alicia Parkway east all the way to RSM, turn right on Santa Margarita Parkway and head down about a mile. RSM ford is on your left. Also I will be discussing various technology related...

Last August I wrote a column critical of Rick Warren's decision to host a presidential candidate forum at his Saddleback Church. My reasoning then was that America's crisis is moral ambiguity. I argued that Pastor Warren would only contribute to this ambiguity by hosting candidates with opposing views on issues such as abortion and homosexuality and presenting himself as a neutral moderator. Only Barack Obama would gain, I felt, being showcased as an acceptable candidate by one of the nation's best known evangelical pastors. If John McCain had wanted to clarify his social conservative credentials, he didn't need to go...

It will be up to President-elect Barack Obama’s transition team whether Pastor Rick Warren’s prayer at the inauguration is vetted in advance, a spokeswoman for Warren’s Saddleback Church tells CNSNews.com. The spokeswoman would not say whether Warren would object to having his prayer reviewed or edited in advance by Obama.

When Pastor Rick Warren’s “Global Peace Coalition” presented President Bush with the International Medal of Peace recently, one of the groups invited to attend the ceremony was the Islamic Society of North America—one of the unindicted co-conspirators in the Holy Land Foundation Hamas funding trial: ISNA ATTENDS SADDLEBACK CHURCH CIVIL FORUM ON GLOBAL HEALTH. This event took place after the convictions of the Holy Land Foundation defendants.

Gay civil rights groups -- the Human Rights Campaign and the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force -- are calling on President-elect Barack Obama to yank his invitation to Saddleback Church pastor Rick Warren to give the inaugural prayer on Jan. 20. They demand tolerance from others, but won't spare any for those with whom they disagree. Unless of course, that person is Obama, who, like Warren, opposes same-sex marriage. Then they get real ecumenical. Not to mention, very forgetful.

Now it has officially gone too far: Democrats, in their zeal to appear friendly to evangelical voters, have chosen celebrity preacher and best-selling author Rick Warren to deliver the invocation at Barack Obama's inauguration. There was no doubt that Obama, like every president before him, would pick a Christian minister to perform this sacred duty. But Obama had thousands of clergy to choose from, and the choice of Warren is not only a slap in the face to progressive ministers toiling on the front lines of advocacy and service but a bow to the continuing influence of the religious right...

The backlash continues to roar in California as gay activists continue to silence opposition while waiting for the Calif. Supreme Court to weigh in on Prop 8. The Mormon Church and Chuck Norris are feeling the heat while Linda Harvey receives threats. A Houston lawyer "who brazenly identified himself," wrote, "You are very much being watched! All you jeebus-lovin-christers rights will slowly be taken away one by one the more you try to press your beliefs down our throats." An elderly woman is swarmed, her cross ripped out of her hand and stomped on while the news anchor, Kris Long,...

President Barack Obama has selected Rev. Rick Warren, the senior pastor of Saddleback Church in Southern California to give the invocation at the Inauguration. The reaction to this choice filled every media source, both pro and con, on Thursday. It has been in the news cycle ever since. There is no question that Pastor Warren is a well known figure in the evangelical world. He is also well respected among Catholics, and even more so since his excellent handling of the Saddleback Civil Forum which hosted both major party candidates during the Primary Campaign for the U.S. Presidency...

LAKE FOREST, Calif. — Pastor Rick Warren is set to deliver the invocation for President-elect Barack Obama's inaugural swearing-in ceremony on Jan. 20, Saddleback Church officials confirmed Wednesday. Kristin Cole, a spokeswoman for Warren, said church officials were waiting on Obama's team to make the announcement. Just this past August, Obama and John McCain were guests at the two-hour Saddleback Church Civil Forum on Leadership and Compassion where Warren questioned them about issues that ranged from abortion and same-sex marriage to the nature of good and evil.

Pro-life pastor Rick Warren will give the invocation at President-Elect Barack Obama’s inauguration. It makes a whole lot of sense. Even though Warren and Obama disagree on the life issue, they do see eye to eye on many social justice issues. This move is also classic Obama because it is a signal to religious conservatives that he’s willing to bring in both sides to the faith discussion in this country. Obama has never shied away from that. The benediction will be led by Reverend Dr. Joseph E. Lowery. The Civil Rights leader seems to be the perfect pick on such...

A largely known Prop 8 proponent has been selected to do President-Elect Barack Obama's inauguration invocation on January 20. Rick Warren of Lake Forest's Saddleback Church was chosen by the Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies, which is causing the LGBT community to go a little nutsy on the blogosphere. "As we've pointed out several times before, in 2004 Warren declared that marriage, reproductive choice, and stem cell research were "non-negotiable" issues for Christian voters," wrote a blogger at Right Wing Watch. "[He] has admitted that the main difference between himself and James Dobson is a matter of tone. He criticized...

On November 4, 2008, the people of California—in a 52 to 48 percent vote—placed in the state’s constitution an amendment that reaffirmed that marriage consists of one man and one woman. The amendment, Proposition 8, overturned the California Supreme Court’s May 2008 ruling that invalidated a statute that was passed in 2000 in a statewide referendum by a 61 to 39 percent vote. That 2008 opinion held that limiting marriage to one man and one woman, as required in the 2000 statute, violated the equal protection rights of homosexuals under the California constitution. Following the Proposition 8 victory, thousands of...

As much as I appreciated what Rick Warren did in his faith presidential forum several months ago, his appearance last evening on one of my favorite programs, Hannity and Colmes, was disappointing. What Pastor Warren responded with to some of host's Allan Colmes simple yet important questions was not the biblical gospel of salvation or even a reasonable defense of the gospel. One of his responses? "Try Jesus...?" As Colmes sarcastically quipped in response: "Like the book of the month club..." Beloved, why can't evangelical leaders just speak the truth in love and give the gospel of the Lord Jesus...

Today is the 20th anniversary of World Aids Day. The President and Mrs. Bush went to the Newseum to participate in the Saddleback Civil Forum on Global Health chaired by Dr. Rick Warren. Dr. Warren presented President Bush with International Medal of Peace Award. President and Mrs. Bush Participate in Saddleback Civil Forum on Global Health The President discussed World Aids day in front of the WH which was adorned with a giant red ribbon. President Bush Discusses World AIDS Day The President’s mother, Mrs. Barbara Bush, is in good condition and recovering from ulcer surgery as expected. Barbara...

ON WORLD AIDS DAY: President to Receive First ‘International Medal of PEACE’ for Humanitarian Initiatives WASHINGTON, D.C., Nov. 24, 2008 – Dr. Rick Warren will present President George W. Bush with the first “International Medal of PEACE” from the Global PEACE Coalition in recognition of his unprecedented contribution to the fight against HIV/AIDS and other diseases during the Saddleback Civil Forum on Global Health, to be held at the Newseum in Washington, D.C. on World AIDS Day, Dec. 1. At the Forum, Warren will engage both President Bush and Mrs. Laura Bush in candid conversation regarding past accomplishments and priorities...

WARREN: Well, that's the — the answer to getting us out of this economic crisis, no doubt about it, is wealth creation, Sean. We — we tend to go to one of the two extremes. The pendulum goes back and forth. You know, America tends to have an economic crisis about every 20 years. In the 1930s, we decided that markets didn't work and we needed big government. And then in the '70s we decided that government didn't work. We needed free markets. And now we see this trend going back the other way. But the truth is there are...

Though Proposition 8 passed statewide and countywide, some residents are disappointed with the outcome and are expressing their discontent in protests against the Marriage Equality Act this weekend. In Laguna Beach, where residents voted 68 percent against Prop. 8 and 31 percent for the gay marriage ban, opponents are marching in protest of the proposition passing Saturday at 5:30 p.m. ... The march will include a candlelight vigil and starts at City Hall, 505 Forest Ave., and continues up to Main Beach. Ed Todeschini, Orange County Federal Club co-chair for the Human Rights Campaign, says that no particular organization is...

In his e-mail to his church members he writes: "For 5,000 years, every culture and every religion - not just Christianity - has defined marriage as a contract between men and women,” Warren wrote. “There is no reason to change the universal, historical definition of marriage to appease 2% of our population.” On the Saddleback site there is video of him discussing the issue, here.

Pastor Rick Warren is endorsing the effort to protect traditional marriage in California. The well-known Christian author says people in California need to vote "yes" on Proposition 8 because for "5,000 years, every culture and every religion...not just Christianity...has defined marriage as a contract between men and women." And Warren says "there is no need to change the universal, historical defintion of marriage to appease two percent of our population." As Warren puts it: "This is not a political issue -- it is a moral issue that God has spoken clearly about." He urges people to vote "yes" on Proposition...

He says question about when a baby is entitled to human rights is ‘tough’

September 11, 2008, 1:02 PM Report: Palin Asked Rick Warren For Advice Posted by Vaughn Ververs| Comments5 GOP VP nominee Sarah Palin called influential pastor Rick Warren earlier this week to ask for advice on how to handle the criticism that has come her way, The Hill reports. In a California radio interview, Warren said that Palin had called him to seek help in dealing with the “unfair, unjust” attacks she said she believes had been launched at her since being tapped as John McCain’s running mate. Warren recounted the conversation, saying he responded by saying, “the question I asked...

WASHINGTON - Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama acknowledged Sunday that he was probably too flip when he said it was "above my pay grade" to answer a question about when is a baby entitled to human rights. Obama gave his answer last month at a nationally televised religious forum sponsored by minister Rick Warren at his megachurch in Orange County, Calif. Asked on Sunday whether the "above my pay grade" answer was too flip, Obama said: "Probably. ...What I intended to say is that, as a Christian, I have a lot of humility about understanding when does the soul enter...

Obama considered joining military, regrets abortion answer By: Mike Allen September 7, 2008 09:11 AM EST Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) says his answer about abortion at the Saddleback Church forum was “probably” too flip. During separate televised interviews last month, Pastor Rick Warren asked the two presidential candidates when a baby gets human rights. Obama replied that the question is “above my pay grade,” while Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) won love from the right by saying quickly, “At the moment of conception.” Now, Obama tells ABC’s George Stephanopoulos in an interview taped for “This Week”: “What I intended to say...

All year, Sen. Obama has worked hard to win evangelical voters. They’ve run campaign ads, distributed literature about being a “committed Christian,� and offered numerous outreach events at the Democratic convention. At stake are about six million voters - moderate evangelicals who voted for George W. Bush last time but were intrigued by Sen. Obama.Several things have battered Sen. Obama’s standing with moderate evangelicals:1) His poor performance at the Saddleback candidates forum, especially (or perhaps entirely) his comment about it being “above my pay grade� to know when life begins. 2) The selection of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, an appealing...

John McCain has just experienced a political Trifecta garnering the coveted conservative base that is absolutely necessary for any Republican to win an election. It is the very oxygen of the party i n much the same way liberals are the core of the Democratic Party. The first win for Senator McCain that shook his slumbering base was the Saddleback Forum where his direct answers that revealed conviction and resolve stood in sharp contrast to Barack’s fumbled, arrogant, non-answer responses. So distraught was the left that=2 0they had to create an immediate spin that McCain had the answers before hand....

For your friends who missed the first showing---Fox is showing it again. Saddleback Civil Forum Encore presentation: Sat., August 30 at 8 p.m. ET FOX NEWS Pastor Rick Warren sets up the Civil Forum with Senators Barack Obama and John McCain

GAY media czar Paul Colichman's vow in yesterday's Page Six not to support Barack Obama over the candidate's opposition to same-sex marriage has other gay media bigs aflame. "By tearing up his check for Obama, he basically wrote one to McCain," Genre editor Neal Boulton told us. "I openly - no, flamingly - endorse Obama, whether he says he's for gay marriage or not. . . . I know under Obama, it will only be a matter of time until the country sees the legalization of gay marriage." James Hipps, project manager for gay-marketing firm Vibe Media, wants gays to...

PAUL Colichman, the William Randolph Hearst of the gay media, is not supporting Barack Obama for president. But that doesn't mean he's backing John McCain. "I'm a die-hard Democrat," he tells Page Six. But Colichman was also a die-hard Hillary Clinton supporter. He and Harry Thomason produced a documentary, "The Hunting of the President: The 10-Year Campaign to Destroy Bill and Hillary Clinton." Colichman, 46, who owns The Advocate and Out magazines, GayWired.com, and Here, the premium cable network for gays, said he finally dealt with his disappointment over Clinton's defeat last week and came around to Obama. "I thought,...

Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- Barack Obama confessed over a week ago that he wasn't sure when life begins and worried the question may be a little "above my pay grade." However, a majority of Americans know when human life begins and they agree with John McCain, who said the starting point is conception.Zogby International conducted the poll for WorldNetDaily and it questioned 1,099 likely voters from August 22 to 24.The survey found 59 percent believe human life begins at conception, another 16.8 percent say it happens when an unborn child can survive outside her mother's womb with medical assistance,...

LifeNews.com Note: Carl Anderson is the Supreme Knight of the 1.75 million-member Knights of Columbus, the largest lay Catholic organization in the world. On a national and local level the Knights of Columbus is one of the most active groups supporting the pro-life cause. In November, as we look back on the results of the 2008 presidential contest, I suspect that we'll conclude that Aug. 16 was the day that Barack Obama lost the race. At the Saddleback Civic Forum on the Presidency, evangelicals had their chance to meet Mr. Obama and to compare his brand of Christianity to...

At the recent Saddleback Civil Forum – their only joint appearance other than the presidential debates – Barack Obama and John McCain were asked a variety of questions by moderator Pastor Rick Warren. Some were serious and some stupid. Among the sillier questions was what their respective definitions of “rich” were. Neither answered it properly, by saying that it was irrelevant to the presidency how “rich” anyone is, that the premise itself was inherently preposterous as it treated the word as a pejorative when it isn't, and that government has no earthly business assuming the unfounded authority to dictate how...

Seeing yourself talk about the break-up of your marriage on the big screen is probably not what John McCain expected when he went to church this morning. But that’s exactly what happened at the North Phoenix Baptist Church today, when Pastor Dan Yeary played a clip from Rick Warren’s interview with McCain last weekend where he asked him what his “greatest moral failing” was. "The failure of my first marriage," McCain told Warren. “It's my greatest moral failure." McCain and his wife Cindy both looked visibly uncomfortable during the presentation, which was played on big screens in the sanctuary where...

When Pastor Rick Warren asked Barack Obama about what he considered America’s greatest moral failure at the recent Saddleback “Civil Forum on the Presidency,” Senator Obama answered by saying, “its insufficient help to the disadvantaged.” Senator Obama then referenced the Bible and quoted Jesus’ admonition that, “Whatever you do for the least of my brothers, you do for me,” commenting that this should apply to victims of poverty, sexism and racism. I couldn’t believe my ears. I immediately thought of my sister Terri Schiavo who was the perfect example of a “disadvantaged” person in desperate need of our help. If...

John McCain largely has avoided hot button social issues to the consternation of some in the conservative base. He has ignored the brewing controversy over Barack Obama’s Born Alive Infants legislative voting record and he hasn’t made much comment on the highly successful (for him) Rick Warren forum. That all seemed to end with Saturday’s radio address. First, he went straight at Obama’s “above my pay grade” response to Warren’s question about when life begins/”babies get rights.” He zeroed in on this particular answer, but he also broadened it to make a larger point about Obama’s candor and character. McCain...

The words came dripping out of Bill Maher's mouth on CNN's Larry King Live. He was mocking the question that Saddleback Pastor Rick Warren asked Barack Obama and John McCain about the presence of evil in a terrorist-filled world. In fact, after Maher said the word evil, he sort of snickered, as if this pseudo-intellectual jerk who was canned from ABC for praising the 9/11 terrorists and condemning our military couldn't even believe he was wasting his time on such a nonsensical concept as the struggle between good and evil. And so it goes during another night of prime time...

In his Aug. 16, 2008, appearance with megachurch pastor Rick Warren, Sen. Barack Obama asserted that "abortions have not gone down'' in the United States during the presidency of George W. Bush, a strong abortion opponent... ...But Obama's statement is directly contradicted by statistics that show legal abortions have fallen since the start of the 21st century.

Suffice it to say that I was not very hopeful about the Saddleback Civil Forum on the Presidency held at the California megachurch last Saturday night. In the first place, I am not really comfortable with the idea of hosting such a politically charged event in a church. No matter how the event is planned and projected, once the event starts it can turn into something far more politically volatile than planned. That is a truth I have learned by hard experience. Secondly, the advance publicity about the event touted it as a platform for a kind of "third way"...

Saddleback Church’s Presidential Civil Forum: A Harsh Spotlight August 21st, 2008 by David J. Hartline The Civil Forum sponsored by the Saddleback Church and its founder and pastor Rick Warren was the first chance for voters to see presidential candidates Senator John McCain and Senator Barack Obama answer questions about faith. What the voters actually saw was a polished Senator Obama using illustrative words and nice platitudes but saying very little. Senator McCain, though less polished, showed his serious engagement with the demands of the Gospel. Pastor Rich Warren, an admirable man, showed us both the failings of this format...

Enjoy and share it ! What about an Operation Chaos II for the Dems Convention ?