Willow Creek Chooses Jimmy Carter for Leadership Summit

Yesterday, I received a promotional mailing for the Leadership Summit at Willow Creek. I quickly opened the slick marketing package to learn about this year’s list of speakers and the other pertinent information. Then, like an unexpected punch in the stomach, I saw that former President Jimmy Carter was listed as a speaker, about leadership.

I have long respected Bill Hybels; his seemingly innate ability to reinvent himself, find a new path, and expand his universe is something rarely seen, especially in the Christian community. However, I am disappointed that he chose the former president to speak to a group of Christian leaders whose thirst for encouragement and knowledge leads them on the pilgrimage to Willow Creek every year.

In recent weeks, Carter has caused a rift in the Baptist Church over the liberal gathering at the New Baptist Convenant. This event, aimed at bringing faction of Baptists together, has turned out to be a divisive regret. Carter has also been a vocal critic of the Faith-based initiatives of the current administration, saying, “ As a traditional Baptist, I've always believed in separation of church and state and honored that premise when I was president, and so have all other presidents, I might say, except this one.," Additionally, Carter has also been criticized by Evangelicals for his book, Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid, where he wrote, “It is imperative that the general Arab community and all significant Palestinian groups make it clear that they will end the suicide bombing and other acts of terrorism when international laws and the ultimate goals of the Roadmap for Peace are accepted by Israel.” Critics of this book also took issue with the former president’s choice of the word, “apartheid”, in the title. Carter maintains he did mot mean to “equate Zionism with racism.”

Shortly after the release of the book, 15 members of the board of directors resigned from the Carter Center in protest over the book’s content. After the book release, it was clear that facts were wrong, maps were misconstrued and the book was labeled as a slanted attack against Israel. Shortly after the resignations, it was revealed that Carter had received major funding for his center from anti-Israel oil tycoons in the Middle East. According to published reports, some of the major donors included, the Sultanate of Oman, the United Arab Emirates, OPEC and even the brother of Osama bin Laden.

Of course, the above mentioned activities took place after his presidency. Given the turmoil caused during his presidency: the Iranian hostage standoff, gas rations, inflation, et al, I am left wondering why Willow Creek chose Jimmy Carter to address their forum on leadership.