Rich Lowry of National Review has written a moving portrait of Prison Fellowship founder Chuck Colson. Lowry reflects on Colson’s transformation from White House “hatchet man” to an advocate for prisoners and their families, and the path that led him to his current calling:
Colson, 80, is a giant of our time. He is a reminder of the true meaning of redemption, a concept that has been debased in our Tilt-a-Whirl media culture that can’t distinguish between notoriety and fame. In contemporary America, redemption begins sometime between the first check-in into rehab and the first cable-TV interview, and reaches completion when everyone gets distracted by someone else’s attention-grabbing disgrace.
The article speaks of Colson’s conversion to Christianity in the early 1970s, and his subsequent imprisonment for Watergate-related offenses. Lowry concludes:
What seemed to be Chuck Colson’s fall from grace in the mid-1970s was really the opposite. It was the first step on an ascension to true courage and service. His life is a testament to how redemption, so often debased and abused in a 24/7 news cycle obsessed with celebrity and scandal, can be astonishingly powerful and real.
The full article is available here.