ORLANDO, Fla. -- The Florida pastor recently tapped to lead the Christian Coalition of America has resigned his position in a dispute about conservative philosophy -- more than a month before he was to fully assume his post, he said this week.
The Rev. Joel Hunter, of Northland, A Church Distributed, in Longwood, Fla., said he quit as president-elect of the group founded by evangelist Pat Robertson because he realized he would be unable to broaden the organization's agenda beyond opposing abortion and gay marriage.
He hoped to include issues such as easing poverty and saving the environment.
"These are issues that Jesus would want us to care about," Hunter said.
The resignation took place Tuesday during an organization board meeting. Hunter said he was not asked to leave.
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"They pretty much said, 'These issues are fine, but they're not our issues; that's not our base,'" Hunter said of his conversation with the group's leadership.
A statement issued by the coalition said Hunter resigned because of "differences in philosophy and vision." The board accepted his decision "unanimously," it states.
The organization, led by President Roberta Combs, claims a mailing list of 2.5 million.
Hunter's move signals more tumult for a group that has fallen on hard times. Members have complained the coalition's agenda has become too liberal and diffuse.
State chapters in Georgia, Alabama and elsewhere left the organization this year, and its budget has shrunk from $26 million to less than $5 million.
Its influence waned after the Republican right took control of the White House in the 2000 election, said Michael Cromartie, vice president of the Ethics and Political Policy Center in Washington, which has been critical of Christian Coalition founder Robertson's leadership.
Hunter hoped to revive the group by expanding its agenda to include what he called "compassion issues." He also planned to teach evangelicals how to "vote with their life," or integrate and apply their Christian values to public life.
By Tuesday's board meeting, Hunter already had lined up money and office space to move coalition headquarters to Florida for his planned Jan. 1 takeover, he said.
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The coalition's rejection of Hunter's approach means it is unwilling to part with its partisan, Republican roots, Hunter said.
"To tell you the truth, I feel like there are literally millions of evangelical Christians that don't have a home right now," Hunter said.
Hunter was an unconventional choice to lead the coalition, Cromartie said.
"I was surprised when he joined up, and not at all surprised when he stepped down," Cromartie said.
The Longwood pastor's latest book, "Right Wing, Wrong Bird: Why the Tactics of the Religious Right Won't Fly With Most Conservative Christians," said no political party, including the Republican Party, should have a lock on the evangelical vote.
