Rick Warren
Rick Warren is founder and pastor of the Saddleback Church. He is also author of the best-selling book The Purpose Driven Life. On August 16, 2008, presidential candidates Barack Obama and John McCain are slated to appear at the Saddleback Church. For Warren, the idea of having both candidates appear at the church is to have "Christian conservatives to turn their focus to social injustice" and create an image of the church that is "not identified with any political party."1
Fast Facts
- Pastor of the 22,000-member Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, California
- Warren founded Saddleback in 1980
- Warren is also considered a global strategist, theologian, and philanthropist2
- Author of The Purpose Driven Life
- The book has sold more than 20 million copies
Global Goliaths
Dr. Rick Warren believes in attacking what he considers the five Global Goliaths. They are spiritual emptiness, egocentric leadership, extreme poverty, pandemic disease and illiteracy. Warren implements reformation by trying to restore responsibility in people and creating credibility in the church.2
About Saddleback
Saddleback Church is an evangelical congregation that has a 120-acre campus. The church averages 22,000 attendees weekly and has more than 300 ministries. The ministries offer help to various groups such as prisoners, drug addicts and those with AIDS.2
Candidates at Saddleback
On August 16, 2008, Barack Obama and John McCain are scheduled to appear on stage for two hours at the Saddleback Church to answer questions posed by Warren. According to Warren, the questions he plans to ask "don't have a lot of wiggle room." Questions will include personal values, presidential leadership and international affairs. This is the first general-election meeting between the two candidates. Obama also visited the Saddleback in December 2006 to attend Warren's annual conference on HIV/AIDS.3
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