Charles Colson - Condition Critical

I received the news recently that Charles Colson was in critical condition in hospital after having energency brain surgery "on Saturday morning to remove a pool of clotted blood on the surface of his brain." Now four days later he is responsive, but his condition is unclear.

Charles has been a leader most of his life, having served as special counsel to President Richard Nixon. He gained notoriety for being the first to go to prison for his role in Watergate, the scandal that brought down the presidency of Nixon. While in prison, Charles Colson became a Christian, and his conversion was remarkable. He founded Prison Fellowship, an organization committed to ministering to inmates around the world.

He has had a tremendous impact on the church worldwide, beginning with the publishing of his story - "Born Again," which detailed his journey to Christianity. I have long enjoyed his writings. One of my all-time favorite books was his work "Kingdoms in Conflict." Interestingly, my previous blog post, written before I heard about his hospitalization, contains two quotes from Colson.

Colson's varied background gave him a unique perspective for his writing and teaching. His books sometimes take a "behind the scenes" approach to major world events as he talks about the spiritual underpinnings of many of the changes we've assumed were merely political.

Most of Charles' work has been in the area of worldview, (which is probably why I enjoy his writing so much) as he demonstrates why the Biblical worldview is the only one that can stand up to scrutiny. In brief, here is an example of how Charles Colson compares the Christian worldview with that of the prevailing cultural worldview.

• "The world's view is shaped by relativism; the Christian's view is formed out of the objective, revealed truth of Scripture. It rests on absolutes.
• The world's view is secular; the Christian's view is eternal. What we do now is not passing and unimportant; it counts forever.
• The world's view is antihistorical; the Christian's view acknowledges the historical account of God's work from the beginning. History is treasured and respected.
• The world's view is naturalistic; the Christian's view is based on the supernatural.
• The world's view is pragmatic - do what works; the Christian's view is idealistic - do what is right by objective standards." (The Body, p. 194)

Charles collapsed while teaching at a conference, suffering an intracerebral hemorrhage. As someone who has benefited greatly from his public ministry, and one who is, therefore, thankful that he responded to God's offer of grace, he will be in my prayers.

Related articles:
The Great Debate
Christianity and Science (Thank you Nancy Pearcey)
Easter - Hope Lives!
Worldview - an introduction