Rick Warren

Warren at Saddleback Church

Richard D. "Rick" Warren (born January 28, 1954) is the founder and senior pastor of the Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, California. He is also the author of many Christian books and an influential Evangelical minister. On August 16, 2008, he was the host to the Saddleback Civil Forum featuring both the presumptive Democratic and the presumptive Republican nominees in the 2008 U.S. presidential election.

Biography

Warren was born in San Jose, California, in 1954, the son of Jimmy and Dot Warren. His father was a Baptist minister, his mother a high school librarian. Warren has a sister (Chaundel, who is married to Saddleback pastor Tom Holladay) and had a brother (Jim C. Warren, who died in 2007). He was raised in Ukiah, California and graduated from Ukiah High School in 1972.pogi

Warren earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from California Baptist University in Riverside, his Master of Divinity degree from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary (1979) in Fort Worth, Texas, and his Doctor of Ministry degree from Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California.

According to Warren, his call to full-time ministry came as a 19-year-old student at California Baptist when, in November 1973, Warren and a friend skipped out on classes and drove 350 miles to hear W. A. Criswell preach at the Jack Tar Hotel in San Francisco. Rick Warren stood in line to shake hands with Criswell afterward.

When my turn finally arrived, something unexpected happened. Criswell looked at me with kind, loving eyes and said, quite emphatically, “Young man, I feel led to lay hands on you and pray for you!” He placed his hands on my head and prayed: “Father, I ask that you give this young preacher a double portion of your Spirit. May the church he pastors grow to twice the size of the Dallas church. Bless him greatly, O Lord.”

Saddleback's first public service was held on Easter Sunday, April 6, 1980, with two hundred people in attendance at the Laguna Hills High School Theater. Warren's church growth methods led to rapid growth. The church has used nearly eighty different facilities in its 28-year history.

Saddleback did not build its first permanent building until it had 10,000 weekly attenders. When the current Lake Forest campus was purchased in the early 1990s, a 2,300 seat plastic tent was used for worship services for several years, with four services each weekend. In 1995, the current Worship Center was completed with a seating capacity of 3,500. The multi-million dollar Children's Ministry Center and staff office building were completed over the next few years. In June 2008, a $20 million student ministry facility called the Refinery, was completed. The Refinery houses the middle school (Wildside) and high school (HSM) ministries, consisting of nearly 1,500 students.

Warren has been invited to speak at national and international forums including the United Nations, the World Economic Forum in Davos, the African Union, the Council on Foreign Relations, Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government, TED, and TIME’s Global Health Summit. He is also a signer of a statement concerning the global warming initiative.

Warren was named one of "America's Top 25 Leaders" in the October 31, 2005 issue of U.S. News and World Report. Warren was elected by TIME magazine as one of 15 World Leaders Who Mattered Most in 2004 and one of the "100 Most Influential People in the World" (2005). Newsweek magazine called him one of "15 People Who Make America Great", an award given to people who, through bravery or generosity, genius or passion, devote themselves to helping others.

In the summer of 2008, Warren drew greater national attention by hosting a leadership and compassion forum that featured Sens. John McCain and Barack Obama. The forum at Saddleback Church on Aug. 16 marked McCain and Obama's first joint appearance as the presumptive Republican and Democratic presidential nominee. During the two-hour event, each candidate took the stage separately for about an hour to respond to Warren’s questions about faith and moral issues such as poverty, HIV/AIDS, climate change and human rights. Warren said the goal of the civil forum was to “restore civility in our civil discourse.”

Warren is an endorser of California Proposition 8 (2008), which would amend the state Constitution to preserve the definition of marriage to a union between a man and a woman..

Warren has been married to Elizabeth K. Warren (Kay) for thirty years. They have three adult children (Amy, Josh and Matthew) and three grandchildren. He considers Billy Graham, Peter Drucker, and his own father (who was himself a Baptist pastor and a Southern Baptist Convention missionary), to be among his mentors.

Ministry

Rick and Kay are directors of the following non-profit organizations:

• Saddleback Church
• Acts of Mercy
• Purpose Driven Ministries
• The Global Fund
• RKW Legacy Partners
• Equipping the Church

Warren no longer takes a salary from Saddleback Church and has repaid all of his salary from the last 25 years back to the church, due to the success of his book sales. He says he now "reverse tithes", meaning giving away 90% of his income and living off of 10%.

Purpose Driven

Main article: Purpose Driven

Over 400,000 pastors and church leaders from around the world have attended a seminar or conference led by Warren and other pastors who share best practices as they seek to be more effective in fulfilling the Great Commission and the Great Commandment. The term "Purpose Driven" refers to these pastors' attempt to balance the five purposes of Worship, Fellowship, Discipleship, Ministry, and Evangelism in their churches. Saddleback Church also has a web-site, PurposeDriven.com, to help instruct in these principles, provide curriculum and to communicate and coordinate the community.

Over the years, Christian leaders in 162 countries have used materials which stem from this movement. Through this organization over 400,000 ministers and priests have been trained worldwide in his theology and practical methods. 189,000 church leaders subscribe to Ministry Toolbox, the weekly newsletter.

Criticisms

Warren's books have come under criticism from some Christians who question the practices promoted in these books, claiming that they distort the gospel and employ questionable tactics. Particularly, some fear his books invite his readers into a 40-day streamlined program, rather than a living, transforming faith in God. Others express concern over what is described as the divisive nature of Warren's techniques. Wall Street Journal writer Suzanne Sataline cites examples of congregations who have split over purpose-driven growth strategies and congregations who have expelled members who fought purpose driven changes. In an effort to defend Warren, Richard Abanes, a Christian author, journalist and apologist has written a book and extensive articles researching many of these criticisms.

Bibliography

• The Purpose Driven Church (ISBN 0-310-20106-3)
• The Purpose Driven Life (ISBN 0-310-20571-9)
• Answers to Life's Difficult Questions (ISBN 0-9660895-2-9)
• The Power to Change Your Life (ISBN 0-9660895-1-0)
• What on Earth Am I Here For? Booklet (ISBN 0-310-26483-9)
• Personal Bible Study Methods (ISBN 0-9660895-0-2)
• Purpose Driven Youth Ministry (ISBN 0-310-21253-7)--Doug Fields

See also

• The Purpose Driven Church
• P.E.A.C.E. Plan
• Celebrate Recovery

External links

• Rick Warren
• Rick Warren's Ministry Podcast
• Purpose Driven Church
• Pastor Rick Warren's 22 min Talk at TED Conference (2006) Monterey, CA
• Event Transcript "Myths of the Modern Mega-Church" with speaker Rick Warren and respondent David Brooks
• New Yorker article on the ministry of Rick Warren by Malcolm Gladwell (retrieved July 20, 2008)
• Rick Warren's Presence at 'Azusa Street' Questioned
• The Global Ambition of Rick Warren at TIME Magazine, August 7, 2008 (retrieved August 11, 2008).