Glimpses of Christian History Pat Robertson's Presidential Bid ©2007

or a few weeks in 1987, it looked as if a conservative Christian could give secular politicians a real battle for the American presidency. Televangelist Pat Robertson, the host of the 700 Club and creator of the Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN), won three early caucuses including victories in Michigan and South Carolina and had gathered more campaign funds than most rivals.

Like many evangelicals, Robertson wanted to see Christian values brought into the American political arena. Recent court decisions had left conservatives feeling America was no longer their country. Prayer had been banned from schools; the ten commandments removed from educational establishments; abortion legalized; pornography permitted; and many other social, economic and international trends contrary to the faith were granted governmental support at taxpayers' expense. Those taxpayers included many persons of Robertson's persuasion.

CBN's 700 Club had 12 million viewers. Those who tuned in saw a man who spoke articulately of national and international issues, finances and Christian values. His newscasts presented an alternative to the mainstream media. Inspirational stories were reenacted before cameras for watching millions. Belief in God's power to answer prayer with miracles was strong. Robertson also "prophesied," but the predictions were unimpressive. Faith healing was part of his show. He would pray rather generically for "someone out there" with a neck, back, heart or other problem and claim that the person would be healed. Listeners wrote in saying they were healed at the moment he prayed.

His was a devoted audience. The question was, could Pat Robertson put together a coalition sufficient to challenge for the presidency? His three early wins suggested he might. Effective on September 29, 1987, he resigned from his ministries to pursue the presidency with all of his vigor. He also resigned his credentials as an ordained minister.

Robertson had politics in his blood and background. His father had been a senator and he himself had worked in various political capacities. Yet he had a "God-shaped vacuum" in his life. His prayerful mother and a Baptist missionary led him to Christ. "I believed Jesus Christ died for the sins of the world and my sins, too, and it was like a light went on!" He had been contemplating suicide but now found new direction and joy.

As we know, Robertson did not win the nomination. George Bush (the father) did. Robertson stumbled badly when allegations surfaced that he had used his senator father's influence as a young man to evade dangerous military service. After that his presidency faded. He was soon back at CBN. Nonetheless, his bid for presidency was valuable. It gave conservative Christians a chance to air their values in the public arena. Many who otherwise felt disenfranchised in the United States obtained a sense that someone out there spoke for them after all.

After Robertson returned to CBN he built it into The Family Channel and secularized it. He later sold The Family Channel and it's parent, International Family Entertainment, for over one and a half billion dollars. The buyer was media magnate, Rupert Murdock. Years after his bid for the presidency, Robertson hurt his image by making a number of radical public statements, including one which seemed to call for the assassination of Venezuela's president.

Resources:

1. Christian Century Oct 21, 1987.
2. Current Biography. Bronx, New York, H. W. Wilson Co., 1987.
3. Gross, Ernie. This Day in Religion. New York, New York: Neal-Schuman Publishers, 1990.

Last updated May, 2007.