Legislators invite Campolo

to share his thoughts

at Salem prayer breakfast

  
   SALEM — The 76th Oregon Legislative Assembly convenes Monday, Jan. 10, and the following morning — at the invitation of legislators on both sides of the aisle — will be a prayer breakfast featuring Christian author Tony Campolo. The public is invited to attend.
    The bipartisan group is hosting the breakfast at 8 to 9:45 a.m. Jan. 11 at the Salem Conference Center, 200 Commercial St. S.E., They have invited Campolo to bring a message of inspiration and prayer.
    Jackie Roth, a legislative staffer for Rep. Betty Komp (D-Woodburn), said the legislators are working with the Salem Leadership Foundation on the event. She said Campolo has not announced his specific topic.
   “As the 76th Oregon Legislature convenes in January, there is a strong desire for cooperation as elected officials address our state’s pressing issues, not the least of which is the budget crisis,” wrote Sam Skillern, the foundation’s executive director, in his monthly newsletter.
     Others in the sponsoring group include Rep. Kevin Cameron (R-Salem), Rep. Dave Hunt (D-Clackamas County), Sen. Jackie Winters (R-Salem), Sen. Mark Hass (D-Portland), Rep. Sara Gelser (D-Corvallis), Rep. Andy Olson (R-Albany) and Sen. Rod Monroe (D-Portland).
    Campolo is professor emeritus of sociology at Eastern University in St. Davids, Pa.
    He previously served for 10 years on the faculty of the University of Pennsylvania. He is a graduate of Eastern and earned doctorate from Temple University.
    Founder and president of the Evangelical Association for the Promotion of Education, Campolo has worked to create, nurture and support programs for “at-risk” children in cities across North America, and has helped establish schools and universities in several developing countries.
     Campolo is a media commentator on religious, social and political matters, having guested on a wide range of national television programs. He speaks hundreds of times each year around the world for a wide variety of groups including churches, colleges, youth groups and the business community.
Despite his criticisms of the evangelical community, Campolo has also criticized the more liberal mainline Christian denominations because “they fail to emphasize a personal, transforming relationship with Jesus Christ.”
    He is the author of 38 books, is an ordained minister, has served American Baptist Churches in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, and is presently recognized as an associate pastor of the Mount Carmel Baptist Church in West Philadelphia, Pa.
     Breakfast tickets are $20 and are available at www.salemlf.org/prayerbreakfast. For more information, phone Roth at 503-986-1422 or Jim Eney at 503-449-9615 or send e-mail to prayerbreakfast@salemlf.org.