At the Willow Creek Association's Global Leadership Summit this afternoon, senior pastor Bill Hybels confirmed that Howard Schultz withdrew over an online petition calling the Illinois megachurch anti-gay and threatening a boycott. Hybels said the association let the Starbucks CEO out of his contract and he encouraged the summit's attendees (an estimated 165,000, between the main South Barrington campus and 450 other locations) to write encouraging notes to the company and to buy Starbucks coffee and Schultz's new book on leadership. Hybels said he is also trying to meet with the creators of the petition. The full text of his remarks after the video below.

In the last seven days an online petition was started to boycott Starbucks if Howard Schultz did not cancel his signed contract to this event. The issue driving this petition, which so far has been signed by 717 people, is homosexuality. The petition claims that Willow Creek Community Church is anti-gay. Therefore, if the president of Starbucks speaks here, then Starbucks should be boycotted, or so the thinking goes. Now, Howard and his leadership team had a tough decision to make. [Willow Creek Association president] Jim Mellado and I spent 45 minutes in a very constructive conversation with the leadership at Starbucks, explaining to them in no uncertain terms that Willow is not anti-gay. But at the end of the day, they decided that the downside business risk was just too high for them, so Howard and his team decided to cancel and we decided to let him out of his contract without any penalty.

Now, this whole thing is sad to me on a number of different levels. First, if the organizers of this petition had simply taken the time to call us, we would have explained to them (as we have to many others ) that not only is Willow not anti-gay, Willow not anti-anybody.

Our church was founded on the idea that people matter to God. All people. All people of all backgrounds, all colors, ethnicities, and sexual orientation. The mat at every door on this campus has always read “Welcome.” And for over 35 years we have flung the doors of this campus open to the widest array of humanity I have ever witnessed in the global church. And thousands--tens of thousands--have come to learn the teachings of Jesus. So to suggest that we check sexual orientation or any other kind of issue at our doors is simply not true. Just ask the hundreds of people with same-sex attraction who attend our church every week.

Now what is true is that we challenge homosexuals and heterosexuals to live out the sexual ethics taught in the Scriptures--which encourages full sexual expression between a man and a woman in the context of marriage and prescribes sexual abstinence and purity for everybody else.

But even as we challenge all of our people to these biblical standards, we do so with grace-filled spirits, knowing the confusion and brokenness that is rampant in our fallen world. And at Willow we honor the journey of everyone who is sincerely attempting to follow Christ. So it’s unfortunate that we could not have explained this to those called us anti-gay and started this petition.

Second, what’s further saddening to me is the growing trend, specifically in the United States culture, to throw stones first and ask questions later. We see this in our political system and it’s rapidly making our country ungovernable. Jesus taught and modeled a better way: to treat everybody with respect, to believe the best about others, to seek to understand other we might disagree and if we must disagree then attempt to do so respectfully.

Anyway, our team spent some time in prayer and discussion about the situation and here’s how we plan to respond. First, as I said, we decided to let Howard out of his contract with no penalties. He had a tough business decision to make and he made it.

Second, Howard had to read through some threatening e-mails. I read through many of them myself, and I must admit that the vitriol was quite hard to handle. So we would like to ask you to give Howard some other kinds of reading material. We would like you to write an email to starbucks.com (and then it says how do you contact us, you click on that). And with genuine Christian love, I don’t need to say it twice, just communicate, Howard, our churches are open to anybody and we would love to have you back at the summit someday. And I think just reading that will have an impact on him.

Third, buy a copy of Howard’s book, Onward. It’s one of the best leadership books I’ve read in a long time. I had to read it four times in my preparation to interview him, so I’m really up on this book, Onward. Jim actually apologized to me when Howard had to cancel. He said, "Bill, I feel bad, with all you have on your plate you had to put all that work into an interview that you’re not giving." I shot an email back to him and I said, "Don’t ever apologize to me about this again because I read a great book four times and I’m a better leader because of it." And I strongly encourage you to buy a copy of Howard’s book, Onward. You’ll be a better leader if you read it.

Fourth, pray for Jimmy and me because we’re going to follow the teachings of Jesus in Matthew 18 and we’re going to see if we can meet with the people who started this boycott petition. We’re going to just sit down and see if we can talk. Then, with a reconciling spirit, we’re going to see if we can come to a better understanding and maybe a point of mutual respect moving ahead.

Fifth and finally (and finally means something this time), buy a Starbucks coffee in the next couple days and just show some Christian goodwill. Can you do that? All right, so that’s all I want to say about this.

The good news is that one of the highest rated faculty members in Summit history has agreed to step in and fill Howard’s slot. Patrick Lencioni is a best selling author and fantastic communicator and he’s not intimidated by anybody. He’s coming and he’s going to show up courageously and so you can look forward to that.

Posted by Ted Olsen at August 11, 2011 3:44PM | Comments (64)

Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz will no longer be one of the key speakers at this week's Willow Creek Global Leadership Summit. He will be replaced by Pat Lencioni, author of The Five Disfunctions of a Team. Lencioni has spoken at the summit three previous times, and according to his published bio, was rated among the conference's "top 10 general sessions of all time. "

Schultz, who has not previously spoken at Willow Creek's leadership summit, recently published his second book on leadership, Onward: How Starbucks Fought for Its Life without Losing Its Soul.

His appearance was the subject of an online campaign at Change.org, launched by political consultant Asher Huey.

"Schultz is speaking at a conference hosted at and sponsored by an anti-gay church. This is unacceptable," the petition said. "The church has long practiced dangerous conversion therapy to 'cure' people of their sexual orientation. … Not denouncing these practices is tacit approval."

It is not known at this time whether Schultz's withdrawal has anything to do with the campaign on homosexuality, and a staffer at Willow Creek Community Church said Schultz did not provide a statement regarding his withdrawal. Willow Creek senior pastor Bill Hybels will reportedly comment on the withdrawal at tomorrow's session.

Five days ago, Gina Woods, Starbucks director of executive communications for Starbucks, apparently left a message on the Change.org petition page: "I work for Starbucks in Communications. I wanted to let you all know that Howard is not speaking at Willow Creek. The conference web site has just not been updated."

(Update: In response to CT questions about why Schultz withdrew, Woods told CT in an e-mail, "I can only confirm that Howard Schultz will not be speaking at the Willow Creek Leadership Conference. Unfortunately, the event website was not updated to reflect this change.")

728 people signed the petition. This year's Willow Creek Leadership Summit is expected to draw 165,000 attendees at 450 locations (185 of those are live satellite locations in the U.S. The others are international locations that will watch a videocast in the fall.)

The petition references Willow Creek Community Church's longstanding relationship with Exodus International, as well as the ending of that relationship in 2009, which Christianity Today reported last month.

"Willow Creek has a whole host of ministries for people dealing with these issues, and we would never intend for them to feel sidelined," Susan DeLay, director of media relations at Willow Creek, told CT's reporter for that story. "All we've changed is how we've gone about inviting them into the church, which is the primary issue here."

Change.org petitions were recently credited with getting TOMS Shoes founder Blake Mycoskie (who spoke at last year's Willow Creek Leadership Summit) to cut ties with Focus on the Family, and with getting Apple to remove an iPhone app for the Manhattan Declaration and a business relationship with the Christian Values Network.

Update 8/11/11 9:45 a.m.: Andrew Marin, author of Love is an Orientation, said on Twitter that he was attending the summit "as [a] special guest of Willow Creek re: Starbucks CEO cancellation." Marin's eponymous foundation attempts to build bridges between evangelicals and the LBGT community.

Update 8/11/11 4:15 p.m.: We've posted Bill Hybels's remarks about Schultz's withdrawal.

Posted by Ted Olsen at August 10, 2011 6:45PM | Comments (103)

Shopping for a flat screen TV typically isn't that controversial. Arguments may ensue over the best size, brand or price, but those quarrels are usually short-lived.

The Charity Give Back Group, or CGBG, is changing that.

CGBG, formerly known as the Christian Values Network, or CVN, is an online hub that allows consumers to shop for anything from golf shoes to airline tickets. Hundreds of stores--Best Buy, Sears, Target, Home Depot--are represented on the site. But what makes CGBG different from, say, Amazon.com, is that shopping through the network enables customers to make charitable contributions.

If, for example, a shopper buys a $3,000 flat screen TV from Best Buy, the profit is split between CGBG and a charity of the customer's choosing, though the percentage depends on the company behind the product and the specific purchase. Kevin McCullough, an adviser to the CGBG's site, says customers have nearly 200,000 charities to choose from.

But gay activists have begun petitioning companies to cut ties to CGBG because it allows customers to support organizations such as Family Research Council and Focus on the Family--Christian groups that oppose gay marriage.

Change.org, a website that provides tools for activists looking to start petitions, is at the center of the debate. The site is host to several petitions calling on major companies such as Target to sever ties with the network.

Ben Crowther, a student at Western Washington University, collected more than 20,000 signatures on a petition to Apple, propelling the company to remove iTunes from the CGBG's network, according to Change.org.

"From the beginning, I knew that once this issue was brought to Apple's attention, they would not want to be a part of CVN because it funds anti-gay hate groups," said Crowther. "Apple is a fair-minded business."

According to Change.org, a Seattle resident's petition convinced Microsoft last month to stop doing business with the website. Macy's and Wells Fargo have followed suit.

Not all companies, however, detached themselves from the network to back away from controversy or because they wish to take a stand.

According to Change.org, Delta Air Lines is one of many companies that recently decided to drop out of the network. When asked for the reason behind its decision, however, Chris E. Kelly, a spokesman for Delta, explained that earlier this year, the company overhauled its affiliate program that allows external organizations to sell tickets through their websites.

Delta eliminated low performers, keeping only "active, high-performing partners." In other words, according to Delta, the move to stop working with CGBG was a business decision. Kelly noted Delta had not sold a ticket through the network in more than 18 months.

Others, however, like Tom Minnery, senior vice president for Focus on the Family, say that though the amount of money they raise through the website is minimal, it's the show of support for their cause that counts.

"It's so obvious that the nuclear family should be headed by a man and a woman," said Minnery. "We believe that's not hateful but an opinion shared by the vast number of people in the country."

Minnery also says he believes most of the companies involved in the controversy aren't really aware of the facts but are "being used as pawns in a political tussle."

McCullough said it's important that companies and customers are well-informed about the way the site works. CGBG, he says, does not promote religious content on the site, though 35 percent of all donations go to faith-based organizations.

McCullough also says one of the reasons behind the site's name change was that they wanted to make it clear they were interested in funding organizations focused on education, not just religious groups.

"We have a desire to facilitate charitable work across the board," said McCullough. "We believe in doing good in society."

McCullough says those working through Change.org "materially put at risk the work of those charities, not to mention the livelihood of our company."

But McCullough, who has begun reaching out to some of the companies that have severed ties, says CGBG is prepared to get them back.

"We feel that the retailers made their decision primarily based on a one-sided story," said McCullough. "We're pushing back with the facts now."

Posted by Ted Olsen at August 10, 2011 6:39PM | Comments (3)

A third of the world -- about 2.2 billion people -- live in nations where restrictions on religion have substantially increased, according to a new report.

The Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life study, released Tuesday, also shows intolerant countries growing more hostile to religious freedom, and tolerant ones growing more accommodating.

"There seems to be somewhat of a polarization," particularly in countries with constitutional prohibitions against blasphemy, said Brian Grim, the primary researcher of the report. "When you have one set of restrictions in place then it's easier to add on."

Among those nations with the greatest increases in government religious restrictions, ranked from most to least populous, were: Egypt, France, Algeria, Uganda and Malaysia.

Among those nations where government restrictions declined, ranked from most to least populous, were: Greece, Togo, Nicaragua, Republic of Macedonia and Guinea-Bissau.

The report, culling data from 198 countries and territories from 2006 through 2009, also measured social hostility toward religious groups. North Korea, one of the most repressive regimes, could not be included for lack of reliable data.

Researchers collected statistics before the Arab Spring, but said the report may shed light on this year's uprisings across the Middle East.

"It's indisputable that increasing levels of restriction were part of the overall context within which the uprisings took place," Grim said. "Whether they were the trigger or they were just part of this trend in societies is difficult to tease apart at this point."

As other reports on religious freedom have found, it is scarcest in the Middle East and North Africa. But Europe, the study noted, has the largest proportion of countries where social hostilities related to religion rose. In France, for example, women are barred by law from wearing face-covering veils.

More than other groups, Muslims and Christians suffered harassment based on their religion. But Pew researchers noted that together, these groups comprise more than half the world's population. Smaller religious groups that suffered disproportionately, the study found, included Jews. Representing less than one percent of the world's people, Jews were harassed in 75 countries.

Overall, about 70 percent of the world lives in nations with significant religious repression -- a figure that matched that of a similar study Pew undertook two years ago. But the nations in which religious repression is increasing tend to be populous, the study's authors noted.

Posted by Sarah Pulliam Bailey at August 9, 2011 4:18PM | Comments (4)

In celebrating John Stott’s life, British-born Canadian theologian J.I. Packer focused on Stott’s lifelong passion for sharing the true gospel of Christ with the world at a recent memorial service.

“John Stott was the most modest of men,” theologian Packer said in his sermon on August 5. “If he could have briefed me in advance for this message that I am to give now, he would most certainly have said to me, ‘Focus on Christ. Don’t focus on me.’”

Stott, who passed away July 27 at the age of 90, was one of the most respected evangelical leaders of the 20th century. For more on his life and work, see Christianity Today's obituary and the special section devoted to him.

Stott “was a man concerned with every breath he took, that everyone to whom he ministered should enjoy the fullness of the the full gospel in its truth and in its power, and should not change any part of it because that would mean exchanging the true gospel for a false one,” Packer said.

Below is Packer’s sermon, broken up into three sections. Notable excerpts from each section are also given:

Part One

[11:42] “Positively, we could say, his ministry was concerned to lead us into the fullness of faith, and so into enjoyment of the fullness of Christ. Negatively, he was as concerned as anyone ever has been to counter hostility to this Gospel and, yes, he faced hostility just as all of us still face hostility. Today it calls itself liberalism, but the essence of liberalism is that something different is believed about Jesus from what you have in the New Testament. Something different is affirmed, therefore, about Christian discipleship from what you have in the New Testament. And one of the things that marks our liberal friends over and over again is... obstinacy in holding on to these false notions and declining to come back to the true ones.”

Part Two

[0:36] “John summoned us to learn our faith, to not be sloppy in terms of our doctrine, and equally, not to be sloppy and casual in terms of our service of the Lord whom we love and honor as our Savior.”

[12:40] Stott was “a 15-talent man of God, who loved the Bible and believed in its trustworthiness and expounded it accordingly; who loved the Lord Jesus and believed in the gospel that proclaimed salvation in Jesus and leads us into the life of communion with Jesus and experience of the power of Jesus. Thank God for John... and don’t stop thanking God for John. He was one of the supreme gifts of God for the renewal of the church in the 20th century.”

[14:08] “For John, the Bible was supreme; Christ was supreme. I say to you, in the Lord’s name, imitate both those emphases. They are truth; they are wisdom. There’s power in them. They are there for us to follow.”

Part Three

[1:15] “I believe that the kingdom zeal, if I may use that phrase, of evangelicals all around the world, and most certainly Anglican evangelicals, has been greatly increased through John’s ministry. I think that his vision for a renewed church... has been picked up and is being maintained and is still exciting people, just as it began to excite people when John expounded it.”

[2:21] “Now it’s for us to pick up the torch, and in our own situations, our own churches, our own districts, our own homes, and wherever we go, it’s for us to carry on what John began.”

[3:10] “Do people find us friendly? In our churches Sunday by Sunday, do people wander in and find themselves ignored at coffee time, or do they find us friendly? Do we make friends easily... or do we allow ourselves, for whatever reason, to stand apart? ‘We are the evangelicals, we are special, we are different. So we don’t come too close to you, and we don’t expect you to come too close to us.’ I see something satanic about that attitude. I beg you, brothers and sisters, take your cue from John Stott, one of the friendliest men I have ever met, and show friendship in Christ as part of your witness and your work for the Savior.”

Posted by Sarah Pulliam Bailey at August 8, 2011 4:24PM | Comments (1)

Prison Fellowship, a prominent evangelical ministry to inmates, has laid off dozens of employees, citing the faltering economy.

A total of 72 staffers were let go as part of a restructuring that included new leaders as of July 18. Jim Liske, a former pastor in Michigan, began as CEO and Garland Hunt, a former Atlanta pastor, is now president.

"Like many nonprofits in the wake of this economy, Prison Fellowship has had to deal with shrinking resources and rising costs," said Frank Lofaro, executive vice president of the ministry.

The ministry was founded in 1976 by ex-convict and Nixon aide Chuck Colson.

Lofaro declined to disclose the current total number of Prison Fellowship staffers.
"Prison Fellowship is not focusing on its recent staff reductions but rather on the new season it is embarking on for the ministry," Lofaro said in a statement.

The ministry, which turns 35 this month (August), works with about 8,500 churches and 14,000 volunteers to support prisoners, ex-prisoners and their families.

Posted by Sarah Pulliam Bailey at August 8, 2011 4:21PM