AN OREGON ORIGINAL

I was looking up somebody else when I stumbled onto this. 

In 1970 Fuller Theological Seminary invited a Freshman Republican senator to speak at graduation. Mark Hatfield from Oregon came into the senate swimming against the stream. He never quite stopped. Hatfield identified as an evangelical Baptist. I haven't been able to find out what "flavor" of Baptist. 

"As we consider the impact of Christ's gospel in these times, we must honestly confront the critical realities that characterize the life of the society and the world...

First and most obvious to us here in the United States is the war in Indochina....

I ask you to balance carefully and in good conscience evaluate the pros and cons to this endeavor and then to have the courage to follow where your convictions lead you. can we rationalize the human suffering, the wasted resources, and the deterioration of moral sensitivities  associated with this war supporting what seems to be an authoritarian puppet regime in Southeast Asia? Is the good to be achieved in this endeavor greater than the evil we are being forced to endure to achieve it?"

In the era of Billy Graham crusades (man never met a war he didn't find a way to support) many evangelicals questioned his faith because he refused to support the war in Viet Nam. He had a long history of opposition to war and advocacy for the homeless and mentally ill. And I'll admit he managed to see that Oregon received our share of the federal pie. 

He finally retired in the mid nineties as politics entered the single issue era and the idea of public service started the downhill slide. We have plenty of career politicians but you find yourself wondering who they're serving. Us or themselves.