Baptist News Global
Sections
  • News
  • Analysis
  • Opinion
  • Curated
  • Storytelling
    • Faith & Justice >
      • Charleston: Metanoia with Bill Stanfield
      • Charlotte: QC Family Tree with Greg and Helms Jarrell
      • Little Rock: Judge Wendell Griffen
      • North Carolina: Conetoe
    • Welcoming the Stranger >
      • Lost Boys of Sudan: St. John’s Baptist Charlotte
      • Awakening to Immigrant Justice: Myers Park Baptist Church
      • Hospitality on the corner: Gaston Christian Center
    • Signature Ministries >
      • Jake Hall: Gospel Gothic, Music and Radio
    • Singing Our Faith >
      • Hymns for a Lifetime: Ken Wilson and Knollwood Baptist Church
      • Norfolk Street Choir
    • Resilient Rural America >
      • Alabama: Perry County
      • Texas: Hidalgo County
      • Arkansas Delta
      • Southeast Kentucky
  • More
    • Contact
    • About
    • Donate
    • Planned Giving
    • Letters to the Editor
    • Advertising
    • Ministry Jobs and More
    • Transitions
    • Subscribe
    • Submissions and Permissions
Donate Subscribe
Search Search this site

Campolo says U.S. missionaries too close to CIA, later ‘regrets’ comment

NewsBob Allen  |  March 18, 2014

Editor’s note: This article was modified March 19 to include additional information following the third paragraph and the final paragraph.

By Bob Allen

A progressive evangelical leader who counseled President Bill Clinton during the Monica Lewinsky scandal says it isn’t surprising that North Korea would release an Australian accused of illegal missionary activity while sentencing an American caught doing the same thing to 15 years of hard labor, because in parts of the world U.S. missionaries are perceived as too cozy with the CIA.

“Missionaries here in the United States have been too close to the CIA,” Tony Campolo, professor emeritus of sociology at Eastern University and founder and president of the Evangelical Association for the Promotion of Education, said in a recent podcast.

tony campolo“For instance, very often when missionaries come home from the field, if they’ve been serving in places like Pakistan or Afghanistan, the CIA calls them to Washington,” Campolo said in audio posted at RedLetterChristians.org. “And too often the missionaries go to Washington and are debriefed: Who are the leaders in the villages where you were working? What was the attitude of people in the churches toward the United States?”

Campolo issued a statement March 19 saying he regretted making those remarks, adding “any symbolism of the practice has long since been discontinued.” His full statement is below. Links to the podcast have been removed.

Earlier this month North Korea freed John Short, a 75-year-old Australian detained allegedly for illegally distributing Bible tracts around a Buddhist temple after entering the country as a tourist.

Meanwhile another missionary, Korean-American Kenneth Bae, remains in prison since his arrest on Nov. 12, 2012, for planning a missionary project called “Operation Jericho,” which North Korea called a religious plot to depose leader Kim Jong-Un.

Campolo, whose ministry sponsors Christian service programs in Haiti and the Dominican Republic, in various African countries and across Canada and the United States, said he is surprised that it took the United Nations so long to recognize atrocities in North Korea detailed in a scathing report released in February, but not surprised by the apparent double standard.

“These kinds of cooperative relationships the missionaries from the United States have had with the CIA have made missionaries very suspect in these countries such as North Korea,” Campolo said. “So I understand fully why the Australian was let go and the American missionary was held behind.”

Suspicion about CIA involvement with U.S. foreign missionaries has a long history. Fausto Vasconcelos, evangelism director for the Baptist World Alliance and a former pastor in Brazil, said in an interview last December that he remembers hearing speculation about whether a particular Southern Baptist missionary worked for the CIA in the 1960s.

In 1975, President Gerald Ford admitted that the CIA had used missionaries as agents in the past and might do so again.

“In many countries of the world representatives of the clergy, foreign and local, play a significant role and can be of assistance to the U.S. through the CIA with no reflection upon the integrity of their mission,” CIA Director William Colby said in a letter to Sen. Mark Hatfield.

The Southern Baptist Foreign Mission Board responded with a letter in February 1976 asking President Ford “to take whatever steps are necessary, as soon as possible, to make clear, in our country and abroad, that missionaries and clergy throughout the world are not to be used by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) or any other intelligence agency of our government.”

The FMB, today known as the International Mission Board, made a similar request to President Jimmy Carter, after members of his administration indicated they were not opposed to the use of religious workers as intelligence agents.

CIA Director Stansfield Turner told a House panel in March 1980 that a prohibition against intelligence relationships with members of religious, media or academic organizations would be an “unwarranted limitation of flexibility.” Another White House official supported regulation of relationships between the intelligence community and clergy but said an outright ban on using religious organizations would be “unwise.”

The issue arose again in 1982, when FMB President Keith Parks and Executive Vice President William O’Brien met with CIA director William Casey about the board’s position that involving missionaries in espionage violates the constitutionally mandated separation of church and state. Parks told Casey that any CIA use of missionaries “jeopardizes not only the work of missionaries but has the potential of putting them in a dangerous situation and even jeopardizes their lives as well as our being able to stay and work in various countries.”

In 2005, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez kicked New Tribes Mission, a church-planting and Bible-translating mission agency, out of the country alleging the group had ties to the CIA. That came on the heels of controversy after religious broadcaster Pat Robertson said on television that the U.S. government should assassinate Chavez to protect American oil interests.

The United States isn’t always the target of suspicion. In 1976 the U.S. government investigated possible links between the Korean Central Intelligence Agency and Sun Myung Moon’s Unification Church.

jim smith cbfJim Smith, interim global missions coordinator for the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, said he has not heard any CBF field personnel refer to anyone from the government probing them for information pertinent to their country or service location.

“I’ve found that our field personnel are not attracting interest by the CIA or other government agencies for their work around the world,” Smith said. “They work in a low-key fashion attempting to identify local assets and talents to help communities become transformed into a healthier entity. This approach tends to introduce less outside assets into a situation and therefore causes less wake to be formed.”

“Our people tend to stick close to the poor and marginalized,” Smith said. “We do encourage everyone to be advocates for justice and freedom. Usually that comes from a position of weakness, especially overseas, but it’s the stance we encourage.”

Campolo’s full “statement of regret” follows:

“In a conversation conducted on a radio show, an off the cuff statement was made that I regret because it can cause problems. In the conversation I was referencing Sen. Mark Hatfield, then on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, took action to call into question whereby in certain cases missionaries were being debriefed upon return from the mission field by U.S. government officials. Any symbolism of the practice has long since been discontinued.

“It was wrong of me to even bring up that this ever existed. This does not contribute to the building up of the Kingdom and I regret making these remarks.”

Tags:peopleMissionsTony CampoloNorth KoreaKenneth Bae
More by
Bob Allen
  • Get BNG headlines in your inbox

  • Featured

    • The Black community needs allies who listen and act, scholar says

      News

    • When a Mexican cartel kidnapped a Baptist pastor, they got more than they bargained for

      News

    • Women of childbearing age are least likely to see strict abortion laws as best deterrent against abortion

      News

    • Progress on sexual abuse in the SBC? Not so fast

      Opinion


    Curated

    • Pope orders online release of WWII-era Pius XII Jewish files

      Pope orders online release of WWII-era Pius XII Jewish files

      June 24, 2022
    • Demolishing schools after a mass shooting reflects humans’ deep-rooted desire for purification rituals

      Demolishing schools after a mass shooting reflects humans’ deep-rooted desire for purification rituals

      June 24, 2022
    • Has American conservatism abandoned the Christian right?

      Has American conservatism abandoned the Christian right?

      June 24, 2022
    • In Colorado, a GOP rarity: An abortion rights candidate

      In Colorado, a GOP rarity: An abortion rights candidate

      June 24, 2022
    Read Next:

    Maybe seminaries should offer a class in mergers and acquisitions

    AnalysisMark Wingfield

    More Articles

    • All
    • News
    • Opinion
    • Curated
    • Here’s what pastors said this Sunday in churches not celebrating the Supreme Court’s abortion decision

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • The French Dreyfus Affair and Trump’s Big Lie

      OpinionDavid Gushee, Senior Columnist

    • Women of childbearing age are least likely to see strict abortion laws as best deterrent against abortion

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • Independence Day: Not to celebrate but to reflect

      OpinionKathy Manis Findley

    • U.S. State Department calls out Russia, China, Afghanistan, Myanmar for extreme religious freedom abuses

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • Two viruses threaten the life of the Southern Baptist Convention: Male hierarchy and dominion theology

      AnalysisEllis Orozco

    • Progress on sexual abuse in the SBC? Not so fast

      OpinionDavid Clohessy and Christa Brown

    • Pranoto, Shaw, Smith and Younger join BNG board of directors

      NewsBNG staff

    • Uyghur American elected chairman of U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • When a Mexican cartel kidnapped a Baptist pastor, they got more than they bargained for

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • The Black community needs allies who listen and act, scholar says

      NewsPat Cole

    • Maybe seminaries should offer a class in mergers and acquisitions

      AnalysisMark Wingfield

    • Reflections on my mother’s funeral: The heart has reasons

      OpinionDavid Ramsey

    • Georgia Baptists hit snag on sale of 16-year-old headquarters property in suburban Atlanta

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • When ‘orthodoxy’ won’t hold: The SBC and the rest of us

      OpinionBill Leonard, Senior Columnist

    • At Faith and Freedom conference, evangelical Christian voters once again abandon their concern for marital fidelity

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • Annual report on Baptist women in ministry finds some gains but serious losses due to COVID

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • Seven suggestions for preventing conflict before it happens

      OpinionBill Wilson

    • Church-state separationists join Justice Sotomayor in blasting the Supreme Court’s ruling in a Maine school voucher case

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • The gospel according to mammals

      OpinionTyler Tankersley

    • Conservative clergywoman claims United Methodist system unjust

      NewsCynthia Astle

    • How God used Jay Bakker to teach me about race and loving all people

      OpinionMaina Mwaura

    • In Africa, inflation and a food crisis threaten not just the economy but people’s lives

      NewsAnthony Akaeze

    • When a teenager gets kicked to the curb by Christian parents

      OpinionDan McGee and Linda Francis Cross

    • American support for abortion rights at highest level since 1995, Gallup says

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • Here’s what pastors said this Sunday in churches not celebrating the Supreme Court’s abortion decision

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • Women of childbearing age are least likely to see strict abortion laws as best deterrent against abortion

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • U.S. State Department calls out Russia, China, Afghanistan, Myanmar for extreme religious freedom abuses

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • Pranoto, Shaw, Smith and Younger join BNG board of directors

      NewsBNG staff

    • Uyghur American elected chairman of U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • When a Mexican cartel kidnapped a Baptist pastor, they got more than they bargained for

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • The Black community needs allies who listen and act, scholar says

      NewsPat Cole

    • Georgia Baptists hit snag on sale of 16-year-old headquarters property in suburban Atlanta

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • At Faith and Freedom conference, evangelical Christian voters once again abandon their concern for marital fidelity

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • Annual report on Baptist women in ministry finds some gains but serious losses due to COVID

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • Church-state separationists join Justice Sotomayor in blasting the Supreme Court’s ruling in a Maine school voucher case

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • Conservative clergywoman claims United Methodist system unjust

      NewsCynthia Astle

    • In Africa, inflation and a food crisis threaten not just the economy but people’s lives

      NewsAnthony Akaeze

    • American support for abortion rights at highest level since 1995, Gallup says

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • Ministry jobs and more

      NewsBarbara Francis

    • New platform of Texas GOP is laced with Christian privilege

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • Author explores contradiction of evangelical support for prison ministry and tough-on-crime laws at same time

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • One year later, awareness of Juneteenth is growing

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • Churches in Russian-occupied sections of Ukraine face desperate conditions

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • Transitions for the week of 6-17-22

      NewsBarbara Francis

    • Many voices call for prosecution of mob who lynched and burned Christian student in Nigeria

      NewsAnthony Akaeze

    • Religious Liberty Council elects two BJC board members

      NewsJeff Brumley

    • Still no external review of North American Mission Board finances

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • Attempt to dismantle SBC Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission fails

      NewsMark Wingfield

    • Brian Foreman named CBF’s coordinator of congregational ministries

      NewsBNG staff

    • The French Dreyfus Affair and Trump’s Big Lie

      OpinionDavid Gushee, Senior Columnist

    • Independence Day: Not to celebrate but to reflect

      OpinionKathy Manis Findley

    • Progress on sexual abuse in the SBC? Not so fast

      OpinionDavid Clohessy and Christa Brown

    • Reflections on my mother’s funeral: The heart has reasons

      OpinionDavid Ramsey

    • When ‘orthodoxy’ won’t hold: The SBC and the rest of us

      OpinionBill Leonard, Senior Columnist

    • Seven suggestions for preventing conflict before it happens

      OpinionBill Wilson

    • The gospel according to mammals

      OpinionTyler Tankersley

    • How God used Jay Bakker to teach me about race and loving all people

      OpinionMaina Mwaura

    • When a teenager gets kicked to the curb by Christian parents

      OpinionDan McGee and Linda Francis Cross

    • Unzipped: How (not) to commute

      OpinionEric Minton

    • When it comes to leading corporate prayer, are we really all in this together?

      OpinionMark Wingfield

    • Is America racist at heart?

      OpinionEugene G. Akins III

    • Note to self: Get rid of resting jerkface

      OpinionErich Bridges

    • Don’t keep sweet: Why white Christians need to celebrate Juneteenth

      OpinionErica Whitaker

    • Letter to the Editor: The importance of establishing best practices for pastoral searches

      OpinionLetters to the Editor

    • Hymn Stories: ‘Will You Come and Follow Me’

      OpinionBeverly A. Howard

    • A Bubba-Doo’s regular loses a loved one

      OpinionCharles Qualls

    • The oxymoron of being both anti-abortion and pro-gun

      OpinionEarl Chappell

    • My trip to the seamy world of horseracing

      OpinionBrett Younger

    • In the news this weekend: This is what it means to take God’s name in vain

      OpinionErin Albin Hill

    • Sympathy does not defeat white supremacy

      OpinionWendell Griffen

    • What Kenobi has taught me about God

      OpinionRob Lee

    • Is ‘fascism’ the right name for the Trumpist hard right in America?

      OpinionDavid Gushee, Senior Columnist

    • God in three persons, blessed Trinity

      OpinionBarry Howard

    • Bill Self in 1984: ‘Babylonian Captivity of the Convention’

      OpinionBill Self

    • Pope orders online release of WWII-era Pius XII Jewish files

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Demolishing schools after a mass shooting reflects humans’ deep-rooted desire for purification rituals

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Has American conservatism abandoned the Christian right?

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • In Colorado, a GOP rarity: An abortion rights candidate

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • A church was ordered to rescind its gay deacon. Now it weighs its next step.

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Can the Church Still Enact Justice When a Pastor Sues His Accusers?

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Republican Lauren Boebert jokes about AR-15s and Jesus — and yes, she’s a ‘real’ Christian

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • This World Refugee Day, rising white nationalism meets the largest refugee population in history — which is no coincidence

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • How evangelical Christians are sizing up the 2024 GOP race for president

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Abortion bill, confederate holiday removal signed by Edwards

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Buddhist leader in Bhutan fully ordains 144 women, resuming ancient tradition

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Banning Nancy Pelosi from Communion May Have Backfired

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • How Franklin Graham pushed a domestic abuse victim to return to her husband

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Poor People’s Campaign holds major DC rally to combat poverty

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • An Elite Christian College Has Become The Latest Battleground In America’s Culture Wars

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Wiccan celebration of summer solstice is a reminder that change, as expressed in nature, is inevitable

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Camino pilgrims help rural Spain’s emptying villages survive

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • What Antisemitism Looks Like When It Is Carved into Church

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Humanist chaplains guide nonreligious students on quest for meaning

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • On Juneteenth, Jewish communities are reckoning with their own attitudes on race

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • UK sanctions Russian Orthodox head; decries forced adoption

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • California again seeks to pass human composting bill as Catholic bishops oppose it

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Boise police can’t charge pastor who said LGBTQ people are ‘worthy of death’

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Ukrainian archbishop pushes against papal statements, says causes of war ‘lie within Russia itself’

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    • Bishop punishes school over Black Lives Matter, Pride flags

      Curated

      Exclude from home pageBNG staff

    Conversations that Matter.

    © 2022 Baptist News Global. All rights reserved.

    Want to share a story? We hope you will! Read our republishing, terms of use and privacy policies here.

    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Instagram
    • LinkedIn
    • RSS