Correction from Pastor Rick Warren

In my LRC piece that appeared this morning, I mistakenly said that Rick Warren, the pastor of Saddleback Church, has bought into Jim Wallis’ statism, something that I had read on Wallis’ Sojourners site. It was my mistake to take Wallis at his word.

Anyway, I have heard from Pastor Warren, the author of The Purpose-Driven Life, and am glad to make the corrections!

He wrote the following:

“Actually, I completely disagree with Jim Wallis’s big government approach to poverty. The answer is not aid, but trade, not subsidies but freer markets, not wealth redistribution but wealth creation. not the government but local congregations. Saddleback’s P.E.A.C.E. plan is the exact opposite of outdated and ineffective liberal social government programs that have failed.

“We believe the answer is the Church, not bigger government.

“People who have studied our program know it is the exact opposite of Jim Wallis’ program. I’d appreciate you making this distinction and correction.”

He added this in a follow-up email:

“The great thing out of all of this is that I discovered the Von Mises website! Peter Drucker was my personal mentor for 20 years, right up to his death. Drucker introduced me to Hayek who obviously led me to Von Mises. Of course you know Von Mises said ‘Human action is purposeful behavior.’ I’d call that a purpose driven life!”

Believe me, I am glad to let the LRC readers know of my mistake.

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8:38 pm on February 2, 2008