The National Association of Evangelicals has finally replaced Richard Cizik, its longtime Washington presence who was forced out last December after endorsing civil unions. The group chose someone from within its ranks, Galen Carey, who, according to a press release, has worked for the NAE's related humanitarian mission, World Relief.
Notably, the NAE did not select a known quantity from religious-right advocacy circles or someone recognized for firebrand activism on wedge issues. In its statement, it highlighted how Carey will help expand the NAE's visibility beyond white evangelicals, and (implicitly) away from the wedge:
He is a committed Christian who is active in his large multicultural church in Maryland. He has formal theological education with a masters degree from an evangelical seminary and doctorate from a mainline seminary. Galen not only speaks about the growing number of Hispanics in our communities and churches but also speaks to them; he is fluent in Spanish. Caring for the vulnerable is not an abstract policy issue but a passionate personal commitment arising from more than twenty years living among the poor in Chicago and ten years working with victims of disaster, persecution and poverty from Africa to Indonesia. His concern for protecting the unborn comes not only from moral theorizing but also from his own journey as the father of a special needs child. Galen Carey speaks from experience.
Sound a bit like a community organizer?
--Sarah Posner
