Costly grace

The author recalls his life as a controversial Washington, D.C. evangelical minister and spiritual advisor to America's political class. He begins with his conversion from Judaism to born-again Christianity, and then finding his calling in public ministry. He chronicles his years as an activist leader of the most extreme wing of the anti-abortion movement, brazenly mixing ministry with Republican political activism. Finally he reflects on his unconscious abandonment of Christian principles in the face of fame and influence, and ultimately his return to the lessons Jesus imparted. Today Schenck works to liberate the evangelical community from a politicized gospel, urging partisan conservatives to move beyond social battles and forsake the politics of hate, fear, and violence.