Responding to my blog on a podcast by prominent liberal Evangelical Tony Campolo linking U.S. missionaries and the CIA in light of the current North Korean imprisonment of Korean-American missionary Kenneth Bae, Campolo’s office offered the following statement:
Statement of Regret
In a conversation conducted on a radio show, an off the cuff statement was made that I regret because it can cause problems. In the conversation I was referencing Sen. Mark Hatfield, then on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, took action to call into question whereby in certain cases missionaries were being debriefed upon return from the mission field by US government officials. Any symbolism of the practice has long since been discontinued. It was wrong of me to even bring up that this ever existed. This does not contribute to the building up of the Kingdom and I regret making these remarks.
Tony Campolo, Ph. D. Professor of Sociology Eastern University St. Davids, PA
This statement is also reported by Associated Baptist Press. Campolo’s podcast has been removed from his Red Letter Christians website.
Campolo is referencing a situation in the mid-1970s. In 1976 a U.S. Senate committee led by Idaho Democrat Frank Church to investigate CIA controversies reported:
The number of American clergy or missionaries used by the CIA has been small. The CIA has informed the Committee of a total of 14 covert arrangements which involved direct operational use of 21 individuals. Only four of these relationships were current in August 1975, and according to the CIA, they were used only for intelligence collection, or, in one case, for a minor role in preserving the cover of another asset. The other ten relationships with U.S. religious personnel had been terminated before August 1975; four of them ended within the last five years. In six or seven cases, the CIA paid salaries, bonuses, or expenses to the religious personnel, or helped to fund projects run by them. Most of the individuals were used for covert action purposes. Several were involved in large covert action projects of the mid-sixties, which were directed at “competing” with communism in the Third World.
Oregon Republican Senator Mark Hatfield threatened legislation banning CIA collaboration with missionaries. In 1976 then CIA director George H. W. Bush issued a directive against “all paid or contractural relationships” with U.S. missionaries or clergy.
Comment by James D. Berkley on March 20, 2014 at 2:00 am
Does Campolo ever watch his words? He writes “Any symbolism of the practice has long since been discontinued.” Symbolism? Doesn’t he mean semblance?
Comment by Kenneth Cohen on March 20, 2014 at 10:11 am
There is no question in my mind that Tony Campolo is a very decent man and his willingness to apologize only underscores that impression. From time to time he comes out with things that make me cringe and want to “brain” him, but he has stopped me in dead in my tracks more than once with apologies, showing a deep and genuine humility which contrasts with his almost brash public style.
He speaks his mind and it is easy to disagree with him. That is almost beside the point. We can all learn from him.
Comment by cleareyedtruthmeister on March 20, 2014 at 11:29 am
Compolo lost credibility among thinking people when he became a Clinton apologist during the Lewinsky scandal. If the media were not so liberal we would rarely hear about him.
Comment by Tim on March 21, 2014 at 11:18 pm
Whatever his intentions, his careless statement could put current missionaries in danger in foreign countries not friendly to the United States. He needs to be much more careful.