Charles Colson, White House "Hatchet Man" Turned Christian Leader, Dies at 80

Charles Colson, White House "Hatchet Man" Turned Christian Leader, Dies at 80

The Wired Word for April 29, 2012

In the News

Charles (Chuck) Colson, once notorious for overseeing "dirty tricks" in the administration of President Richard Nixon, and later even better known for his turnaround to follow Jesus, died last Saturday at 80.

Colson, who was a key player in the abuse-of-power scandal known widely as "Watergate" that toppled Nixon from the presidency in 1974, served seven months in prison for related obstruction of justice. Shortly after his release, he said that he had become a Christian. Many observers were skeptical -- prison "conversions" that bear no fruit after release are common -- and even Colson himself, shortly after his release in 1976, said, "There is something pompous and self-righteous even in saying I have been converted." But he added, "I do know that in my heart I have accepted certain truths."

What convinced most skeptics, however, was not what Colson said, but what he subsequently did, including founding Prison Fellowship, a ministry to the incarcerated that is now in place in prisons across America and in more than 115 countries around the world. Later, he also formed the Colson Center, a teaching and training center focused on Christian worldview thought and application. He spent his post-conversion life advocating for prison reform, speaking out on social and political issues of all kinds and seeking to apply the principles of Christian faith in all aspects of life, both private and public.

He often spoke out about foreign policy matters. Writing after Colson's death, William Inboden, Distinguished Scholar at the Strauss Center for International Security and Law, wrote, "Indeed, it would not be an exaggeration to say that the State Department offices of International Religious Freedom, Trafficking in Persons, Global Aids Coordinator, Special Envoy for Sudan, and North Korea Human Rights would not exist today without Colson's work in generating support for their creation. In the process, Colson and his cohort helped raise the awareness of American evangelicals about a broader set of global issues beyond their traditional domestic social concerns."

This was a dramatic change from his intentions and methods before accepting Christ. Colson was an attorney for Nixon's 1968 election campaign and, after Nixon was elected, joined the administration as White House Special Council, soon becoming one of the most hated Nixon loyalists. He assembled an "enemies list" -- people the president didn't like -- making those on it liable for special attention from the Internal Revenue Service. Colson also helped form a special operations unit (dubbed "plumbers") to plug leaks from the White House. This unit operated clandestinely and outside the law, in one case to discredit Vietnam War whistle-blower Daniel Ellsberg and in another to burglarize the Democratic National Committee at the Watergate complex in Washington, D.C.

After the Watergate scandal broke, Colson eventually plead guilty to charges in the Ellsberg case and was sent to prison. During his legal troubles, a friend gave him a copy of C.S. Lewis' book Mere Christianity, which became instrumental in leading him to Christ. His time behind bars also opened his eyes to the spiritual needs of the incarcerated, which became a call to mission for him.

Colson's Christianity was evangelical and his social outlook conservative, but the consistency of his positions and his lack of bombast won him respect not only in evangelical circles, but also in many Catholic, mainline Protestant and other circles.

More on this story can be found at these links:
 
Watergate Figure, Christian Leader Chuck Colson Dies. CNN
Setting Captives Free. World
The Watergate Dirty Trickster Who Found God. TIME
Chuck Colson and American Foreign Policy. Foreign Policy
Chuck Colson Found Freedom in Prison. Washington Post
Prison Fellowship website 

The Big Questions

1. Are you in general skeptical of celebrity conversions? How do you decide if someone's claimed conversion to follow Jesus is real? What signs do you look for?

2. Why does a surrender to Christ not seem to "take" in every case? Why do some people appear to be soundly converted while others who turn to Christ seem to be unchanged?

3. What is the meaning of redemption as it applies to human behavior? As it applies to one's standing before God?

4. Some Christians have no memory of a point of conversion, having accepted the way of Christ as it was taught to them while growing up in the church. Some other Christians also have no memory of their conversion, being infants when receiving Christ in the sacrament of baptism. Others do remember a definite point of conversion. Is a point of conversion necessary to be fully a Christian or is it primarily for those who started out in rebellion against God? Explain your answer.

5. Colson's Christianity is usually identified as "evangelical," a term that in modern parlance, is often used to distinguish it from "mainline." Both are expressions of Protestant Christianity, but division along these lines is rather simplistic: What are some nuanced distinctions? What understandings does each have to contribute to the other? In your opinion, are both evangelical and mainline positions authentic expressions of Christianity? Do you think that one position negates the other? Why?

Confronting the News with Scripture
Here are some Bible verses to guide your discussion:

John 3:3
"I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again." (For context, read 3:1-21.)

Colson titled his first book after his conversion Born Again, a title he took from this biblical passage. We've quoted this verse from the New International Version, which has a footnote on "born again" that says the underlying Greek can also be translated as "born from above." Both translations are helpful in understanding what Jesus is saying, but in Colson's case, the "born again" term especially applies, for his earlier life gave evidence that he was one kind of man, while his  post-conversion life showed him to be a very different man, almost as if he went back into the womb and came out a different person.

The "born from above" phrase adds an additional helpful dimension to Jesus' words, however. It implies that whereas we may once have made life decisions based on what was convenient or expedient, we now try to use the values of God himself as our guide. Born from above means that we try to pattern our lives according to what the Leader at the top urges upon us.

Questions: Which term, "born again" or "born from above," seems a more useful description of your relationship with God? Why?

Acts 9:5-6
"He asked, 'Who are you, Lord?' The reply came, 'I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. But get up and enter the city, and you will be told what you are to do.'" (For context, read 9:1-19).

This is a line from the story of the conversion of Saul, who was an active and committed persecutor of Christians, "breathing out threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord" (v. 1). On the  way to Damascus, a great light suddenly shown on him, and a voice asked, "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?" The line above gives Saul's response and the voice's reply to that. The voice, Saul learns, is from Jesus. Afterward, Saul was unable to see until Jesus sent a disciple named Ananias to lay his hands on Saul.

Colson reports that when reading Mere Christianity,  C.S. Lewis' discussion of the sin of pride struck him as similar to his own haughty know-it-all attitude. He realized that he had been blind to his own intellectual hubris and imperfections. Like Saul, Colson had to become aware of his own blindness before gaining spiritual sight.

Saul was born again -- so much so that he is remembered not primarily as Saul the persecutor, but as Paul the apostle. We expect that Colson will be remembered more for his post-conversion activity than for his pre-conversion dirty tricks.

Questions: Why might conversion be described as "learning to see"? When have you had your eyes opened regarding your own faith? Regarding the faith of others? Was it a gentle "light bulb" moment or were you overwhelmed by your increased perception?

Romans 3:22-25
"For there is no distinction, since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; they are now justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a sacrifice of atonement by his blood, effective through faith." (For context, read 3:21-26.)

In this passage, Paul uses three significant words related to conversion. They can be defined as follows:

Justification: The free acceptance of sinners into God's favor and the forgiveness of their sins on account of the sacrifice of Christ, appropriated by faith. Justification grants the unrighteous person the standing of righteousness before God. Often stated as "justification

by grace through faith."

Redemption: The process of buying back, ransoming, recovering something by paying a price. In conversion, redemption is the deliverance from the enslavement of sin and release to a new freedom in Jesus Christ

Atonement: The restoration of harmonious relations between God and a forgiven person. It comes from a contraction of the words "at one" and refers to being at one with God.

Sometimes defined in shorthand as "at-one-ment."

While the separate definitions make conversion sound like a multi-step process, in effect, all three are intertwined and happen simultaneously when one is born again.

Questions: Which one of these words seems most significant to your own experience? Why? If one has never been a conspicuous sinner, what other terms might seem more significant to describe your awakening to the call of Christ?

Hebrews 13:3
"Remember those who are in prison, as though you were in prison with them; who are being tortured." (For context, read 13:1-6.)

In Hebrews 13, the preacher-author, having given his main message about Christ in the early chapters, turns to some applications of the Christian faith in daily life. He mentions five specific things Christian should do. Two of these are remembering prisoners and those being tortured -- as though those things were happening to us. (The other three are being hospitable to strangers, maintaining the sanctity of our marriages and keeping ourselves free from the love of money by being content with what we have.)

Both remembering prisoners and those being tortured apply to Colson, who founded a prison ministry and devoted much of his post-conversion life to its work, and who spoke out about human-rights abuses.

The difficult requirement of this verse is that we should remember those who are in prison and those who are being tortured "as though you were in prison with them" and "as though you yourselves were being tortured." That's tough to do. Many of us are uncomfortable giving much thought to prisoners, people who have done things we do not condone, or even abhor. What most of us "remember" about these people are the stories we've seen on the evening news, complete with mug shots that convince us that we should fear and shut out these people. But those who work with people in prison discover that the mug shots tell only part of the story. Beyond the news stories, people in prison are, in many ways, like us: daughters, sons, sisters, brothers, cousins. They have feelings and aspirations like everyone else. Many persons incarcerated in the United States today have committed nonviolent offenses. Many people in prison have themselves suffered abuse or treatment from others whom most of us would abhor. When we are urged to "remember those in prison," we are invited to realize that even criminals are made in the image of God. As Chuck Colson helped to remind us through his ministry with prisoners, God's love extends to these persons, too.

It's no wonder that when Jesus talked about how we show our love for him, he included visiting those in prison as one of the ways. "I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me" (Matthew 25:35-36).

Questions: Since both Jesus and the writer of Hebrews urge visiting those in prison, does that mean it's a duty for every Christian? Are there other ways to take this instruction seriously? Explain your answer.

 
Matthew 7:17-20
"In the same way, every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus you will know them by their fruits." (For context, read 7:15-20.)

This brief metaphor from Jesus is deceptively simple. It suggests that a tree is either good or bad. If this were always the case, we would know what to do with them. We would cut down the bad ones and throw them into the fire. This would be easy.

But the example and work of Chuck Colson illustrates that it's not so simple. Was Colson a "good tree" or a "bad tree"? Was he a "bad tree" when he was involved in the activities for which he was imprisoned? Or do we make that judgment based on his later work, which would suggest that he was a "good tree" based on the good fruits of his prison ministry and other work? If a murderer is converted to Christianity while in prison and subsequently leads others to Christ and serves in various ways, can we see that murderer as a "good tree"?  

Jesus used this metaphor in the context of a warning to beware of false prophets (v. 15). The way to distinguish a false prophet from a true one is by their "fruits" -- what they do or don't do. Should we understand Jesus to mean that distinction to apply to all of us who profess Christ?

Questions: What about you? Have you always borne good fruits? Or has there been bad mixed with the good? If we can see evidence that we ourselves have changed as we walk more closely with Christ, can we extend that same reasoning to persons who have committed heinous crimes? Do you believe that people can change?

For Further Discussion

1. Referring to Chuck Colson and others involved in the abuse-of-power scandal in the Nixon White House, we might, with tongue firmly in cheek, quote Nehemiah 8:1 -- "... all

the people gathered together into the square before the Water Gate. They told the scribe Ezra to bring the book of the law of Moses, which the Lord had given to Israel." Admittedly, this "Water Gate hearing" of 445 B.C. was somewhat different from the "Watergate hearings" of the 1970s. But seriously, it's worth noting that when the people of ancient Judah gathered before the gate in the Jerusalem wall near where the spring of Gihon flowed -- thus the "Water Gate" -- what they heard was a reading from the Scriptures. They heard it and were moved to tears because of how far they were from the righteous ways the Scriptures called for. Nehemiah, however, told the people to celebrate because the Scriptures also revealed that "the joy of the Lord is your strength" (Nehemiah 8:9-10). In what sense do the Scriptures contain what is needed to experience the joy of the Lord in our lives?

2. Consider the following comments by one member of our editorial staff, who is the pastor of a prison congregation -- an actual congregation based inside the walls of a women's prison in Iowa. This congregation does the things any congregation does -- weekly worship, missions, evangelism, Christian education, pastoral care and the like. The difference is that the members of this congregation are criminals, with sentences that range from several months to life. This pastor says, "When we are inclined to wonder at the choices these women made that landed them in prison, we need to realize that these choices usually didn't start from stable homes, healthy relationships and economic opportunity. These women typically came from situations that included things like abusive relationships, addictions, mental illness and limited opportunities. When you see their physical and emotional scars, you wonder less about why they would make the mistakes that brought them to prison, and you wonder more how they can still be standing

after everything they have been through.  The biblical commands about caring for those in prison remind us to hold these women in our circle of care, as our sisters and as our neighbors. They are closer to us than we think."

3. What structures are in place in your denomination to provide ministry to prisoners? What structures for prison ministry are in place in your congregation?

4. Respond to this, from another member of the TWW team: "I conduct a weekly Bible study in our county jail and I've learned you can't measure success as you would other ministries. You have no idea if any effect is long term -- yet you suspect that there's no telling when the seeds you plant might be watered and grow. It's no use trying to figure out which conversions are real, whatever that might mean, or which aren’t. All you can do is be faithful. It's not about feeling good about what you do, but doing what Jesus expects you to do. Since I began this Bible study about nine years ago, I often think about Colson and his faithfulness to this ministry. And I think what kept him grounded is all the hard work he put into political positions that I might not share but which were certainly fueled by his faith."

5. Keeping in mind that none of us can truly judge another person, name and talk about claimed conversions of public figures that may not have proven genuine as time went by. If you can say about yourself that you were converted later in life, how did people react to you? Can you speak about conversion stories in your experience (and/or in your own circle of family and friends) about which you were skeptical at first? How have they worked out over time?

6. How is individual salvation related to social holiness? (Social holiness is sometimes defined as individual Christians acting in concert with others to hold social institutions accountable -- whether government or private -- to the common good.)

Responding to the News
 
Colson's life can be viewed as a model of one who paired deep personal commitment to Christ with a strong and ongoing effort to love his neighbor as himself, including those in prison, those suffering from human rights abuses and others. It's a good occasion to consider whether your commitment to Christ is yielding good "fruit," and if not, what might be the call of God you in that realization.
 
Other News This Week

This week, new theater releases finally bumped The Hunger Games out of its number-one box office position, but it remains a talked-about phenomenon on the American scene, particularly among teens and young adults. On this subject, we thought we'd share the comments of Timothy Merrill, who is both the editor of the preaching journal Homiletics and a member of the TWW editorial board. His comments are from his blog, found at http://tmerril.blogs.com/. (Scroll down to "Religious Themes in 'The Hunger Games'?" He also has an entry about Colson.) Merrill writes:

"If you're over 30, you can't get excited about The Hunger Games, and there's a chance you don't even know what I'm talking about. A new dieting reality show? A charity event for starving children in Africa?

"If you're under 30, especially under 20, you know exactly what The Hunger Games is about and you think it's pretty cool, and you're chatting about it on FB and tweeting all over the place about it.

"The book series, a trilogy, by Suzanne Collins, first published in 2008, has become something of a phenomenon and now is a box office hit, setting records for opening weekends or something like it.

"Inevitably, I say, inevitably, when you have a big hit movie, people stop to consider whether there are religious or spiritual themes afoot. This movie is no exception.

"Full disclosure: I started to read the book, and found myself yawning. So I stopped. Have not seen the movie. I'm over 30.

"But I've done some much more interesting reading ABOUT the book and movie and my conclusion is that it's ridiculous to think of the protagonists, either one of them as being Christ figures, even though one sacrifices this or that, and the other goes in the place of someone else. Sacrifice and substitution do not make the movie or the book religious -- these are common literary themes. Moreover violence, starvation, oppression and abusive power, retribution and injustice are not exclusively religious themes. They are humanitarian themes. They are issues that
should concern everyone: Christians, Muslims, secular humanists, Wiccans, vegans, atheists and even [members of the 'other' political party].

"Another reason I can't get hyped about the so-called religious implications of the movie is because the author apparently had no intention of inserting overtly religious themes in her books, and that's important. C.S. Lewis and Tolkein are different cases. Yes, let's talk about the symbolism in The Narnia Chronicles, or Lord of the Rings, etc. But not in The Hunger Games.

"Does this mean that The Hunger Games can't be the focus of a youth group discussion? Of course not! Of course the book has very interesting themes worthy of discussion, but I'm saying they're not specifically or narrowly theological. I.e., you would have no trouble discussing the book in a public school classroom.

"Sounds to me as though the book is a postmodern version of the pre-postmodern Lord of the Flies by Golding some 50 years ago or so.

"Nevertheless, if you want to explore the religious angle, some resources are emerging, one of which is 'The Gospel According to The Hunger Games Trilogy.' It's written by the Rev. Andy Langford and his daughter, the Rev. Ann Duncan, and is a study for pastors and church members alike. For more information, click here.

"For another response, see April Allbritton's article in The Daily Runner, called 'The Hunger Games: A Christian's Response.' You can read it here."

Closing Prayer
 
Thank you for your grace, O Lord, that extends forgiveness, justification, redemption, atonement, salvation, deliverance, reconciliation and more to us, to save us after we've gone astray. Make prompt to accept your grace-filled offer and also quick to apply our redemption to how we live simultaneously as citizens of this world and of your kingdom. In Jesus' name. Amen. 
 

Copyright 2012 Communication Resources