The Family

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The Family, or Prayer Breakfast Movement, is an evangelical, religious and political network founded in 1935 in the United States by Abraham Vereide .

The network is an international movement and, according to its own statements, is based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ . The network operating in the background only appears publicly as the organizer of the National Prayer Breakfast in the USA ; an event at which every American president has appeared since Dwight D. Eisenhower , and which has been held annually on the first Thursday in February since 1953. In addition to the founder Vereide, the most important leaders were the US Senate Chaplain Richard C. Halverson and Douglas Coe, who previously also worked for the Navigators Missionary Community .

The Family also appears or appeared externally through the sub-organizations The Fellowship Foundation , National Fellowship Council , Fellowship House , The International Foundation , National Committee for Christian Leadership , International Christian Leadership (ICL) and as the National Leadership Council . A German offshoot called itself Christians in Responsibility .

history

founding

The network was founded in 1935 by Abraham Vereide, a Norwegian immigrant and Methodist traveling preacher, in Seattle, USA. In addition to Vereide, the initiators were a group of influential business people who strictly rejected the policy of Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal and assumed that Roosevelt's policy was socialist or even communist. A concrete trigger were the previous strikes in San Francisco and Seattle, which in the eyes of Abraham Vereide and his group were initiated by “godless left forces”. Vereide, influenced by Frank Buchman's idea of ​​" Moral re-armament" (English: Moral re-armament), which he advocated in a pointed form, saw in a government-supported revival of the Christian religion instead of the "New Deal" a solution for the economic and social problems of the USA. His goal was an elite fundamentalism in which society is controlled by "God-led" men organized in prayer cells, who would not democratically consult the masses, but are guided by Jesus as he reveals himself to them. This elite fundamentalism included a biblically based belief in the free market and capitalism that was geared towards targeting particularly business leaders, anti-communist and anti-union.

After the Second World War

The organization’s domestic policy is to establish the USA as a Christian country that is governed on the basis of Christian principles. This goal found expression after the Second World War, for example, when the phrase "Under God" was added to the Pledge of Allegiance in 1954 on the initiative of the Republican Senator Homer Ferguson and Clement Stone, both members of The Family . On the initiative of Clement Stone, a member of the inner circle of The Family, and Congressman Charles E. Bennet, the inscription " In God We Trust " was introduced on the US currency. A constitutional amendment introduced in 1954 by the Republican Senator RE Flanders, who was also a member of the network, "This nation devoutly recognizes the authority and law of Jesus Christ." (German roughly: "This nation reverently recognizes the authority and the law of Jesus Christ") with the aim of officially establishing the USA as a Christian country, but could not prevail in the US Congress.

A major success for further development is that Abram Vereide, in collaboration with Billy Graham , succeeded in establishing the Presidential Prayer Breakfast (later National Prayer Breakfast ) after Eisenhower's inauguration . Eisenhower had originally declined to appear there because he did not want to set a precedent because of the separation of church and state, but finally agreed to appear there as long as no TV and radio would appear. The reason for this admission was that Eisenhower was the first Republican president to rely on the help of the Evangelical Movement led by Billy Graham and the elite fundamentalism embodied by Adam Vereide in his election; All the more so since Eisenhower himself did not belong to any church at the time of his candidacy and was therefore vulnerable on this point. In addition to the establishment of a religious ritual in the political arena, the establishment of the National Prayer Breakfast was particularly advantageous for The Family , as it gained access to high-ranking national and international personalities through the organization of the Prayer Breakfast, which was particularly important with the internationalization of the network and the role The Family played in the Cold War should be of immense importance.

Beginning after the Second World War, The Family had internationalized and played an important role during the Cold War because of its anti-communist orientation. This internationalization began in 1946 with a trip to Europe by A. Vereides, where he found a key person for the branch of the network in Germany in the churchman Otto Fricke . Entanglement with National Socialism of many members of the German branch called "Christians in Responsibility" did not prevent them from being accepted; A. Vereide, on the contrary, was critical of the victims and outspoken opponents of National Socialism and complained that in his eyes they were promoted to important positions by the American military government as "atheistic devotees" (German for "atheism admirers") . Instead, he visited Allied prisons in search of reliable people willing to transfer their allegiance from Hitler to Christ and America. Otto Fricke himself, as a National Socialist enthusiast, had given the fire speech at the Frankfurt book burning , but after the Sports Palace scandal he switched from the pro-regime German Christians to the Confessing Church , where he continued to oppose the Nazi regime. Another central figure in the German network, Manfred Zapp , was posted as an overseas Gestapo man in the USA from 1938 to 1941 and was ultimately arrested there for espionage and the charge of planning and carrying out acts of sabotage. Together with other spies, such as Ulrich von Gienanth , an SS man disguised as a German diplomat in the USA, who practically acted as head of the Gestapo in America and later also became a member of Christians , Zapp became a member of the Gestapo in Germany in 1941 against two arrested US reporters exchanged. The Vice President of Christians in Responsibility , Hermann Josef Abs , was the most important banker under the National Socialist regime, and later assumed a central position in the financial sector in the Federal Republic as spokesman for the board of Deutsche Bank . Other polluted members of the network were, for example, the clergyman and honorary president of the German YMCA Gustav-Adolf Gedat , the chemical weapons manufacturer Gustav Schmelz , the nationalist Paul Rohrbach . Other members were Baron von der Ropp , Hans von Eichen , Rudolf Decker and Hans Speidel ; The latter one of the co-conspirators of the assassination attempt of July 20, 1944 , which held Hitler's racist policy a diversion from his otherwise good ideas and was later commander of the NATO basic forces from 1957 to 1963. Ernst von Weizsäcker also had contacts to the German network . Abram Vereide used his ties to the military government and to Washington to help these persons and other Christian persons accused of war criminals on a list that was given to him from these circles. The numerous people for whom A. Vereide campaigned include, for example, the last SS commandant of the concentration camps, Oswald Pohl, and Konstantin von Neurath , the first foreign minister during Hitler's rule. Beginning in 1949, the German network held meetings in the Teutonic Order Castle on the island of Mainau . The participants included representatives from the major German banks, Bosch, Krupp and Standard Oil, as well as cabinet members from the German government.

During this trip through Europe, A.Vereide also founded a prayer cell for Swiss bankers. The Swiss Alfred Hirs , Director General of the 3rd Department of the Swiss National Bank and jointly responsible for the Swiss National Bank's gold purchases from the German Reichsbank during the Second World War , was one of the most important European key figures in the network. Other key figures in Europe were the former Belgian Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pierre Harmel and the French Edmond Michelet , a member of the French government in several ministerial posts under De Gaulle . In Franco Spain, the US embassy there and the branch of Standard Oil formed the centers of the elitist fundamentalist network.

This idea of ​​a prayer breakfast for politicians has meanwhile been taken up in more than 180 countries worldwide.

present

Although some critical articles about the network have rarely appeared in the past, without generating much resonance, it first received critical public attention in 2009 when some of its members, including US Senator John Ensign and the Governor of South Carolina Mark Sanford , were involved in extramarital affairs. As part of the coverage of these affairs, the evangelical network's involvement in the affair was also reported, which also shed light on the network's role in both American and international politics. A report by the journalist Jeff Sharlet, according to which authoritarian historical persons such as B. Hitler , Lenin , Ho Chi Minh and Osama bin Laden are used as models to illustrate the understanding of leadership in the elitist network.

Anti-gay legislation in Uganda

The network was particularly criticized in 2009 in connection with a planned anti-homosexual law in Uganda in the American public. The reason was that David Bahati , the initiator of the law and organizer of the Uganda National Prayer Breakfast, the Ugandan counterpart to the National Prayer Breakfast in the USA, is considered a member of the inner circle of The Family. The current Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni was also named by the network as a key figure for Africa in 1986.

Stupak-Pitt Amendment to US Health Care Reform

The politician Bart Stupak , who lives in one of the network's fiscally declared church accommodations and is assigned to the network by the journalist Jeff Sharlet , although Stupak himself denied this, and the family member Joe Pitt as initiators, also aroused criticism the so-called Stupak-Pitt Amendment , an addition to the highly controversial health reform bill , which was intended to severely restrict the ability to use federal funds for abortions. Since, according to the law, insurance policies for low-wage earners are subsidized by funds from the US state, the addition, according to critics, would mean that insurance would only finance abortion to a limited extent and thus severely limit the possibility of abortion in practice, especially for financially disadvantaged women would.

Known former or current members

  • John Baldacci , Democrat and Former Governor of the State of Maine.
  • Ralph Owen Brewster (February 22, 1888 - December 25, 1961), Republican. Was Governor of Maine from 1925 to 1929. He also represented this state in both chambers of Congress.
  • Sam Brownback , Republican and Governor of Kansas since January 10, 2011.
  • Ed Bryant , Republican. Lawyer and politician. Between 1995 and 2003 he represented the state of Tennessee in the US House of Representatives.
  • Conrad Burns , Republican. From 1989 to 2007 he represented the state of Montana in the US Senate.
  • Frank Carlson , American Republican Party politician and the 30th Governor of the State of Kansas from 1947 to 1950.
  • Tom Coburn , American doctor and Republican Party politician. Coburn has represented the state of Oklahoma in the United States Senate since January 2005.
  • Carl Curtis (March 15, 1905, † January 24, 2000), was an American politician (Republican Party) who represented the state of Nebraska.
  • Jim DeMint , Republican Party member. Was a member of the United States House of Representatives from 1999 to 2005. He has been the US Senator for South Carolina since 2005.
  • Pete Domenici (Republican Party). He was a member of the US Senate from 1973 to 2009 as a representative of the state of New Mexico.
  • Michael F. Doyle, Democrat. Rep of Pennsylvania.
  • John Ensign , Republican Party. He was a member of the US Senate for the state of Nevada from January 3, 2001 to May 3, 2011.
  • Mike Enzi , US Senator for the State of Wyoming. Republican.
  • Chuck Grassley , Republican US Senator from the state of Iowa. He was chairman of the Senate Finance Committee from 2003 to 2007.
  • Tony P. Hall , Democrat. Hall was a member of the Ohio House of Representatives from 1969 to 1972, and then served on the state Senate from 1973 to 1978. He was then elected to the US House of Representatives.
  • Merwin K. Hart (* 1881; † 1962), politician from New York.
  • Mark Hatfield (July 12, 1922 - August 7, 2011) was an American politician. He was the 29th Governor of Oregon from 1959 to 1967
  • Harold Hughes (born February 10, 1922, † October 23, 1996) was an American politician (Democratic Party) and from 1963 to 1969 the 36th governor of the state of Iowa. Between 1969 and 1973 he represented his state in the US Senate.
  • Jim Inhofe , (Republican Party) and Senator for the State of Oklahoma.
  • Melvin Laird , writer and former Republican Party politician.
  • Arthur B. Langlie (born July 25, 1900, † July 24, 1966), Governor of Washington State, the first important politician to be a member of "The Family"
  • Steve Largent , ex-football player and politician.
  • Mike McIntyre , Democrat. Since 1997 he has represented the state of North Carolina in the US House of Representatives.
  • Bill Nelson , former astronaut. Since 2001 he has been a member of the United States Senate as a representative of Florida.
  • Don Nickles (born December 6, 1948 in Ponca City, Oklahoma) is an American politician and entrepreneur, Catholic.
  • Chip Pickering , Republican Party. Between 1997 and 2009 he represented the third constituency of the state of Mississippi in the US House of Representatives.
  • Joe Pitts , Republican. Has represented Pennsylvania in the House of Representatives since 1997.
  • Mark Pryor , Democratic Party. Pryor has represented the state of Arkansas in the US Senate since 2003.
  • Absalom Willis Robertson (born May 27, 1887 - November 1, 1971) was an American attorney and represented the state of Virginia as a member of the US House of Representatives and the US Senate. Proponents of racial segregation. Father of Pat Robertson .
  • Mark Sanford (born May 28, 1960 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida) is an American politician (Republican Party). He was governor of the state of South Carolina from 2003 to 2011.
  • Heath Shuler , Joseph Heath Shuler (born December 31, 1971 in Bryson City, Swain County, North Carolina) is an American politician. Since 2007 he has represented the state of North Carolina in the US House of Representatives. He previously had a career as a football player in the NFL.
  • Bart Stupak , Democratic Party. He was a member of the US House of Representatives from 1993 to 2011, representing Michigan’s Congressional District 1.
  • Herman Talmadge (August 9, 1913 - March 21, 2002), Democratic Party, Governor of Georgia and US Senator.
  • John Thune (Republican Party). He has been a Senator for the US state of South Dakota since 2005.
  • Strom Thurmond (born December 5, 1902, † June 26, 2003) was Governor of South Carolina from 1947 to 1951. He also represented this state from 1954 to 2003 - with the exception of a few months in 1956 - consistently in the US Senate. Proponents of racial segregation.
  • Zach Wamp (born October 28, 1957 in Fort Benning, Georgia) is an American politician. Between 1995 and 2011 he represented the state of Tennessee in the US House of Representatives.
  • Frank Wolf (born January 30, 1939 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) is an American politician. Since 1981 he has represented the state of Virginia in the US House of Representatives.

literature

  • Norman Grubb : Abraham Vereide - a Viking of our time . Christian publishing house, Constance 1964.
  • Jeff Sharlet : The Family: The Secret Fundamentalism at the Heart of American Power . HarperCollins, New York 2008, ISBN 978-0-06-055979-3 .

Individual evidence

  1. Manuel Roig-Franzia: The Political Enclave That Dare Not Speak Its Name: The Sanford and Ensign Scandals Open a Door On Previously Secretive 'C Street' Spiritual Haven. In: The Washington Post. June 25, 2009. Retrieved July 18, 2009 .
  2. Tobias Utter (MdL) as a member of the German delegation at the National Prayer Breakfast (NPB) in Washington  ( page no longer available , search in web archivesInfo: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , cdu-bad-vilbel.de, message from February 11, 2010.@1@ 2Template: Toter Link / www.cdu-bad-vilbel.de  
  3. D. Michael Lindsay: Is the National Prayer Breakfast Surrounded by a “Christian Mafia”? Religious Publicity and Secrecy Within the Corridors of Power. In: Journal of the American Academy of Religion. June 2006, Vol. 74, No. 2, pp. 390-419.
  4. ^ A b 'Family': Fundamentalism, Friends In High Places. In: National Public Radio . July 1, 2009, accessed July 2, 2009 : "Founded in 1935 in opposition to FDR's New Deal, the evangelical group's views on religion and politics are so singular that some other Christian-right organizations consider them heretical ..."
  5. Jeff Sharlet: The Family: Power, Politics and Fundamentalism's Shadow Elite . University of Queensland Press , 2008, ISBN 978-0-7022-3694-5 ( google.com ).
  6. Emily Belz, Edward Lee Pitts: All in the family. In: World magazine.
  7. Gustav-Adolf Gedat in the foreword to Norman Grubb, Abraham Vereide - a Wiking of our time, Konstanz 1964, p. 6.
  8. An overview of the development of the network from 1934 to 1995 is given by "Records of the Fellowship Foundation - Collection 459" in the Billy Graham Center archive ( Memento from January 3, 2017 in the Internet Archive )
  9. The group was begun by Abraham Vereide , a Methodist evangelist who feared that Socialists were corrupting municipal government in Seattle in the mid-1930s. He thought he could bring about change by organizing regular prayer groups with local business and government leaders ... Showing Faith in Discretion ( Memento of December 2, 2013 in the Internet Archive ), Los Angeles Times of September 27, 2002.
  10. ^ Jeff Sharlet: The Family: The Secret Fundamentalism at the Heart of American Power. HarperCollins, New York 2008, ISBN 978-0-06-055979-3 , pp. 128/129.
  11. ^ Jeff Sharlet: The Family: The Secret Fundamentalism at the Heart of American Power. 2008, pp. 190/191.
  12. ^ Jeff Sharlet: The Family: The Secret Fundamentalism at the Heart of American Power. 2008, pp. 57, 198-201.
  13. ^ Jeff Sharlet: The Family: The Secret Fundamentalism at the Heart of American Power. 2008, pp. 195-198.
  14. ^ Jeff Sharlet: The Family: The Secret Fundamentalism at the Heart of American Power. 2008, pp. 147, 157-159, 163, 166-174.
  15. ^ Jeff Sharlet: The Family: The Secret Fundamentalism at the Heart of American Power. 2008, p. 20 (reference 6), pp. 169-171, p. 224.
  16. on A. Hirs see also Andrea Weibel: Alfred Hirs. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland . July 29, 2010 , accessed June 13, 2019 .
  17. Balkans: 300 politicians meet for prayer breakfast , idea.de, message from June 2, 2016.
  18. z. B. Andrew Kopkind: The power of prayer. New Republik, Match 6, 1965 or Lisa Getter: Showing faith in discretion. Sept. 27, 2002
  19. ^ Jeff Sharlet, C Street: The Fundamentalist Threat to American Democracy. Little, Brown, 2010, ISBN 978-0-316-09107-7 , pp. 1-20.
  20. Interview by the American National Public Radio with the religion expert and journalist Jeff Sharlet
  21. Ed Brayton: Stupak denies knowledge of connections to mysterious 'C Street' house he lives in. ) ( Memento from March 1, 2012 in the Internet Archive ), The Michigan Messenger (July 23, 2009.
  22. Interview by the American National Public Radio with the religion expert and journalist Jeff Sharlet
  23. Huffington Post (November 10, 2009): "Boxer: Senate Has Votes To Block Stupak Amendment"