Heretic Quotes From Tony Campolo
Some christian leaders look up to Tony Campolo. What’s even more scary is that some christian youth pastors look up to him and consider Campolo to be a mentor of theirs. I get nervous when I realize this.
How is a parent to know how much of Campolo’s teachings are trickling down through their youth pastors to the teenagers as these teens attempt to learn true biblical doctrine through a trusted youth pastor?
If you’re a parent or a teenager whose youth pastor mentions his admiration for Tony Campolo please take a look at some of these quotes of his and you let me know if you’re comfortable with anyone looking up to Tony Campolo as a mentor or as a christian leader:
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“Beyond these models of reconciliation, a theology of mysticism provides some hope for common ground between Christianity and Islam. Both religions have within their histories examples of ecstatic union with God, which seem at odds with their own spiritual traditions but have much in common with each other.”
-Tony Campolo
(Page 149, Speaking My Mind)
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“I am saying that there is no salvation apart from Jesus; that’s my evangelical mindset. However, I am not convinced that Jesus only lives in Christians”
-Tony Campolo
(National Liberty Journal, 8/99)
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“…what can I say to an Islamic brother who has fed the hungry, and clothed the naked? You say, “But he hasn’t a personal relationship with Christ.” I would argue with that. And I would say from a Christian perspective, in as much as you did it to the least of these you did it unto Christ. You did have a personal relationship with Christ, you just didn’t know it.”
-Tony Campolo
EVANGELICALS AND INTERFAITH COOPERATION, An Interview by Shane Claiborne
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“We cannot allow our theologies to separate us” (speaking on the relations between Muslims and Christians)
-Tony Campolo
EVANGELICALS AND INTERFAITH COOPERATION, An Interview by Shane Claiborne
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“What can we learn about that kind of spirituality that can help us find common ground? No theological statements were made, no compromising beliefs, no attempts to come to a common denominator. And yet, a kind of spiritual oneness.
That’s the place where we come together, in common need and common suffering, as we reach out to one another in love, leaving judgment in the hands of God, sharing out of our own faith. I mean the last thing we are asking in those times is—is your theology the same as mine?—and vice-versa. All of the sudden in the hour of suffering there is a commonality. And that’s where we meet. It’s in mystical spirituality and in communal mutuality that’s where we come together.”
-Tony Campolo
EVANGELICALS AND INTERFAITH COOPERATION, An Interview by Shane Claiborne
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“It seems to me that when we listen to the Muslim mystics as they talk about Jesus and their love for Jesus, I must say, it’s a lot closer to New Testament Christianity than a lot of the Christians that I hear. In other words if we are looking for common ground, can we find it in mystical spirituality, even if we cannot theologically agree, Can we pray together in such a way that we connect with a God that transcends our theological differences?”
-Tony Campolo
EVANGELICALS AND INTERFAITH COOPERATION, An Interview by Shane Claiborne
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“”Beyond these models of reconciliation, a theology of mysticism provides some hope for common ground between Christianity and Islam. Both religions have within their histories examples of ecstatic union with God … I do not know what to make of the Muslim mystics, especially those who have come to be known as the Sufis. What do they experience in their mystical experiences? Could they have encountered the same God we do in our Christian mysticism?”
-Tony Campolo
“Speaking My Mind”, pages 149-150
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“Jesus is the only Savior, but not everybody who is being saved by Him is aware that He is the one who is doing the saving”
-Tony Campolo
EP News Service, Oct. 4, 1985
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“…during times of reflection I sensed that believing in Jesus and living out His teachings just wasn’t enough. There was a yearning for something more, and I found that I was increasingly spiritually gratified as I adopted older ways of praying–ways that have largely been ignored by those of us in the Protestant tradition. Counter-Reformation saints like Ignatius of Loyola have become important sources of help as I have begun to learn from them modes of contemplative prayer. I practice what is known as “centering prayer,” in which a sacred word is repeated as a way to be in God’s presence.”
-Tony Campolo
“Mystical Encounters for Christians”
http://www.beliefnet.com
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“I’ve got to push everything out of mind save the name of Jesus. I say His name over and over again, for as long as fifteen minutes, until I find my soul suspended in what the ancient Celtic Christians called a “thin place”–a state where the boundary between heaven and earth, divine and human, dissolves. You could say that I use the name of Jesus as my koan.”
-Tony Campolo
“Mystical Encounters for Christians”
http://www.beliefnet.com
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“Today, some of the most spiritual people I know claim to be without religion.”
-Tony Campolo
“Mystical Encounters for Christians”
http://www.beliefnet.com
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“He saved us in order that He might begin to transform His world into the kind of world that He willed for it to be when He created it. … When Jesus saved us, He saved us to be agents of a great revolution, the end of which will come when the kingdoms of this world will become the Kingdom of our God”
-Tony Campolo
“It’s Friday but Sundays Coming”, page 106
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“Our call is to be God’s agents, to rescue not only the human race but the whole of creation.”
-Tony Campolo
TEAR TIMES, “Why care for creation?” 1992
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“…Isn’t God’s message to sinful humanity that He sees in each of us a divine nature of such worth that He sacrificed His own Son so that our divine potentialities might be realized? … The hymn writer who taught us to sing “Amazing Grace” was all too ready to call himself a “wretch” … Forgetting our divinity and over-identifying with our [Freudian] anal humanity… Erich Fromm, one of the most popular psychoanalysts of our time, recognized the diabolical social consequences that can come about when a person loses sight of his/her own divinity …”
-Tony Campolo
“Partly Right” 1995
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“What I am trying to say is that Jesus who incarnated God 2,000 years ago is mystically present and waiting to be discovered in EVERY person you and I encounter”
-Tony Campolo
“A Reasonable Faith” 1983 page 171
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“I do not mean that others represent Jesus for us. I mean that Jesus actually is present in each other person.”
-Tony Campolo
“A Reasonable Faith” 1983 page 192
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“That a new humanity will be brought forth from this Christ consciousness in each person.”
-Tony Campolo
“A Reasonable Faith” 1983 page 65
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“One of the most startling discoveries of my life was the realization that the Jesus that I love, the Jesus who died for me on Calvary, that Jesus, is waiting, mystically and wonderfully, in every person I meet. I find Jesus everywhere.”
-Tony Campolo
an address at Prestatyn in the UK, 1988
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“There is a feminine side of God. I always knew this … It is this feminine side of God I find in Jesus that makes me want to sing duets with Him … Not only do I love the feminine is Jesus, but the more I know Jesus, the more I realize that Jesus loves the feminine in me. Until I accept the feminine in my humanness, there will be a part of me that cannot receive the Lord’s love. … There is that feminine side of me that must be recovered and strengthened if I am to be like Christ … And until I feel the feminine in Jesus, there is a part of Him which I cannot identify.”
-Tony Campolo
“Carpe Diem: Seize the Day”, 1994, pages 85-88
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“going to heaven is like going to Philadelphia….There are many ways….It doesn’t make any difference how we go there. We all end up in the same place.”
-Tony Campolo
“Carpe Diem: Seize the Day”, 1994, pages 85-88
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“Anyone who resists the notion of women preachers is functioning as a tool of the devil.”
-Tony Campolo
opening session of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship’s general assembly June 26, 2003
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“When in fact we live in a society that makes life hell for gays and lesbians, this community has got to stand up and say, ‘We’re on your side as you struggle for dignity,’ and, ‘Yes, we will defy anybody who says otherwise, even if we have to go to Disneyland to prove it.'”
-Tony Campolo
“Campolo: Opposition to women preachers evidence of demonic influence”
Jun 27, 2003, By Gregory Tomlin,Baptist Press
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“I have already made the point that we need to have to win people to Jesus Christ, but we must also preach the whole Gospel which not only calls people to love Jesus but to bring His justice into the political and economic arena in which we live.”
-Tony Campolo
“Campolo: Opposition to women preachers evidence of demonic influence”
Jun 27, 2003, By Gregory Tomlin,Baptist Press
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“On the other hand, we are hard-pressed to find any biblical basis for condemning deep love commitments between homosexual Christians, as long as those commitments are not expressed in sexual intercourse.”
-Tony Campolo
“20 Hot Potatoes Christians Are Afraid To Touch”, page 117
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“One of the meanest arguments against public schools comes from alarmists who contend that public school students can be forced to study under homosexuals and might even be subjected to homosexual seduction. This contention makes me furious – not because I believe there are no homosexuals in the public school system, but because of the implication that homosexuals are some kind of special threat to children.”
-Tony Campolo
“20 Hot Potatoes Christians Are Afraid To Touch”, page 84
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“I’m not convinced that Jesus only lives in Christians.”
-Tony Campolo
Charlie Rose show on January 24, 1997
—-WOW! If you need more, I’m sure I can find more but I believe this ought to be plenty to convince any true christian to avoid Tony Campolo at all costs. How can a christian hold up Tony Campolo as a mentor with comments like these, especially someone who is involved in teaching the youth?
Battle 4 Truth 
May 21, 2008 at 6:53 pm
Okay, I was a little confused initially-he seemed to be going for a bit of ecuminicalism with the whole Islam/Christianity thing, both of which are considered Abrahamic faiths, and therefore are bound to have many similar beliefs. I could get beind the outrage on saying that Jesus is in all of us, cause that’s just putting us too close to the idea that we are gods ourselves, but I’m not feeling the whole condemnation of the idea of respecting homosexuals. There really is nothing in the Bible that says that you cannot intimately love someone of the same sex, it says that man shall not lie with man-you can love someone, you just can’t have sex with them…and considering how dirty the outskirts of town and even in town were, I can totally get behind that… for that time (and do not try to tell me that the difference in cleanliness now and then means nothing unless you are not eating things that were considered to be unclean back then-just because there are better living conditions for pigs and crabs now doesn’t make them clean). How is it heretical to say that Christians should be working for their dignity? Did God not create these people as well? If he knew them in the womb before they were born, don’t you think that He loves them as well as you? So what makes you think that you are more deserving of dignity than someone else? Not agreeing with something doesn’t mean that you can’t respect them. You wear a cotton poly blend and cut your hair-they have sex with people of their same sex. If you condemn them for their sin, and yet do yours without thinking… that’s a pretty big beam to get out of your eye
July 10, 2008 at 4:17 pm
Hey thanks for sharing. I’ve been looking for one source for a many of Tony’s quotes. I think he’s great.
July 15, 2008 at 7:22 pm
Wow,
I’m a little astounded at how many of these quotes are either pulled out of their context or aren’t paired with the theological understanding with which they need to be digested. And I’m pretty sure CS Lewis thought along many of the same lines as Tony when it comes to people’s experience of Jesus and God outside of the Christian faith. I would just encourage you to look up some of the theological background to these quotes because you may find that they aren’t quite as controversial as they may seem!
July 16, 2008 at 2:39 am
Ditto to what Andrew said. BTW – we are using the same WordPress theme. Good taste.
July 18, 2008 at 7:41 pm
Isn’t the whole idea of us (followers of Jesus – i.e. “Christians”) – in Mat. 25: 31-46 – that we should see Jesus in others. There seems to be no clarification by Jesus that he is only refering to us seeing Christ in only our fellow Christians. We should see Jesus in everyone who has a need – whether physical or spiritual. Doesn’t that apply to non-Christians as well?
Jesus ministered, suffered, died, and was resurrected for all – even those who never accept him. How can I, as a Christian serve others without seeing Jesus in them?
December 26, 2008 at 6:23 pm
Wow, the spiritual deception is astounding here in the interwebernets.
Thank you for revealing a man who idolizes false unity, mysticism, universalism and mans ideas of social justice (in stark opposition to God’s ideas of justice).
This reveals the mans idolotry of humanism, not some deep theology from scripture. This man is ashamed of the Gospel, that Jesus is the only way, that Christianity is the only religion to truly express his singular path to salvation.
These ecumenical emergent heretics have a few things in common. They don’t believe Jesus is returning to literally rule (even if they say they do) or else they wouldn’t be working on leftist world unification fronts. They idolize mysticism and mystery (hmmm, like Babylon?) over knowledge, and most fundamentally (pun inteneded) they disdain the authority scripture has over theology.
All I needed was the quote about God’s femininity, a thought violently interjected in this last century, but nowhere found in scripture. Ditto with gay love and “respect,” a code word for special and elevated rights. Disgusting!
January 6, 2009 at 8:22 pm
Thanks for your efforts to warn about this wolf in sheep’s clothing. Tony CAmpolo is a very capable speaker etc, but he has seriously departed (if ever he truly was) from the faith. Our Lord Jesus warned, beware of false prophets, for they come to you in sheeps clothing, but inwardly, they are ravenous wolves (Matthew 7v.15).
Keep up the good work, Jude 3.
“For the time will come when they shall not endure sound doctrine, but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears ; 4. and they shall turn away their ears from the truth and shall be turned unto fables. 5. But watch thou in all things, endure affliction, do the work of an evangelist . . . ” 2 Timothy 4v3-5.
January 7, 2009 at 9:29 am
I have just looked at this very useful article:
http://www.wayoflife.org/fbns/bewareof-tony-campolo.html
It confirms and compliments what you say.
I believe it is very important to warn about these things. People are being seduced into all kinds of soul damining error, and making shipwreck of their faith.
May the Lord bless you in your endeavors, and may you be mighty in the use of the Sword of Truth against the strongholds of deception and darkness.
May 1, 2009 at 3:03 am
As i have read all the quotations… I don’t see anything wrong about his perspectives, principles, and theology… Tony still has a huge heart for a revolutionary transformation.. believing that time will come that every heart will love the person of Jesus… there still place that God is not worship… We are not being saved just for the sake to be saved… sometimes we are to heavenly minded without earthly use…
I believe we are agent for the advancement of his Kingdom… Hope we would not have a critical spirit (specifically to our brother in the Lord) but let us support and pray for them…
tony is such an extra ordinary man…very rare that a man strives for the good of every one and primarily for the Glory of God… and I believe he was all doing these for the Lord Jesus Christ…i cannot consider him heretic… Maybe we just misinterpret it… Whatever he has said I beleive he meant it for good… and God meant it also for good…
He said it all and done it all for the Glory of the Most High God..
May 15, 2009 at 12:03 am
Wow! The replies here only remind me that as Christians we are being seduced into the world’s way of thinking. Of course the Bible condemns homosexuality. It’s called an abomination. AND, mysticism is of the devil. Have we forgotten that Satan used the truth to deceive Eve? It only makes sense that this “mysticism” might seem as if it has some of the same characteristics as Christianity. Did we think Satan to be unclever? I mean, seriously, when I read these replies from seemingly smart people I don’t doubt Satan’s cleverness.
Just a few thoughts. This is America still. I am allowed to express my views even though they disagree with the other thoughts.
May 15, 2009 at 10:33 am
There is no scriptural way Mr. Campolo can be reckoned to be a Christian preacher.
If he ever was a saved Christian to begin, with his mysticism, ecumenism, and compromise on fundamental moral issues established as such in scripture, he is plainly apostate and must be regarded as a false brother.
June 18, 2009 at 1:15 pm
The question to be addressed is why do all these “Christians “feel threatened by Tony Campolo? Is their God, and their faith so weak that they have to judge.(Being judgemental was something Jesus condemed) Seems to me Mr Campolo worships the God of ALL things and not the God of SOME things.
July 14, 2009 at 10:35 pm
I understand the author’s perspective, but I must say that I disagree with the proposition that Muslims worship another god entirely. After all, as monotheists, Christians believe that there is a sole deity. Are Muslims then atheists for not understanding God in the same manner as we do? What of the various denominations of Christianity? Each interprets God a little differently than any other (hence the separation of denominations). Is everybody that is not of a certain “correct” denomination atheistic and damned to hell for not understanding God? If so, who is to state which denomination is correct? I find that not everything regarding God is left to the knowledge of man. Is any man prepared to answer all questions regarding God? We are blessed/cursed with knowledge of that which is good and evil, but we still do not know everything. Is any man prepared to say that he knows everything about God? If not, then some aspects of God are perhaps left to interpretation by man; whether man interprets correctly or erroneously is not to be known in his time on earth. To say that we know everything about God while disdaining the Muslims for disagreeing with us may not always be the correct path to take.
August 23, 2009 at 6:29 pm
I am thankful for those who express above rightly the errors and danger of Tony Campolo. For those who defend him or admire him, I think of the author of Hebrews who admonished the Jewish believers ‘for when for the time you ought to be teachers, you have need that one teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God……..but solid food belongs to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.’ The reasonably careful and continual study of Scripture will give, with the Spirit of God’s help, the child of God the ability to discern between good and evil. Mr. Campolo preaches another gospel so is accursed according to the Word of God. Recall that Paul publicly rebuked Peter when Peter was, as Paul puts it, ‘I withstood him to the face, because he was to be blamed’. Peter didn’t get a pass even though a great apostle, neither does Campolo, neither do I. Where is the scriptural thinking these days? Where are they who are zealous for truth? If clear Scripture is the standard by which to measure a man or a ministry, and of course it is, then Mr. Campolo has been tried in the balance and found wanting. Those who side with error need to continue to study the Scriptures, and ask themselves whether they be in the faith once delivered.
October 20, 2009 at 4:15 pm
The God of Islam, the God of Judaism, and the God of Christianity are NOT one and the same. This is a great error for people who fail to see the differences.
Jesus Christ says “I am the way, the truth, and the life, and no man comes to the Father but by me.” Jesus claimed He was God; Islam denies this. Jesus denied following the law is necessary for salvation; Judaism clings to this.
All of you need to have the ability to think critically, examine the evidence and think rationally. These are not all the same Gods, and they demand quite different things.
October 27, 2009 at 5:17 pm
So the God of Christianity and Judaism aren’t the same? Someone better tell Jesus that.
And the promise to Abraham was for all his descendants, not just the ones who you find it politically convenient to align yourselves with.
Tony Campolo preaches the words of Jesus. He finds their historical context, their context of the times they were written in, and translates that into modern standards. Then, he looks at the rest of the Bible through these words.
How does this differ from what your pastors do? All they do is read the Bible and ignore the cultural, political, economic, and social differences that have arisen in the last 2,000 years. They preach misconstrued words that take no account for what Jesus says.
Read the Gospels sometime guys. It’ll blow your mind, I swear.
December 16, 2009 at 7:44 pm
Leroy, those who adhere to Judaism do not believe Jesus is the Christ; they cling to following a rulebook to justify themselves before God; and so do Muslims.
Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah, the Son of God, and the only way to heaven. He is the God of grace and mercy, giving us a gift that we cannot comprehend or ever repay. The gospel is very clear on this point. You greatly err in believing that being a descendant of Abraham is sufficient to being a child of God.
Matthew 3:9 “And think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham.”
November 28, 2009 at 8:58 pm
I’ve heard Campolo twice. Once at possibly the most right-winged conservative Christian college in the country and once a church in Philadelphia. The two speeches differed in tone almost as much as they differed in topic. He is an extremely intelligent man — and also an incredible speaker. However, I really do feel he’s traded the true gospel for a misleading social gospel. Campolo’s decree is to serve the poor (which is no doubt in the Bible) but he makes this the basis for whether someone is a “Christian” or is “saved by Christ” it radically negates everything that Jesus accomplished on the cross. Jesus was very clear. Man’s righteousness is not enough. Campolo acts like if we give to the poor then we will “know Jesus” and then we will shall be saved.
It is by faith you have been saved and this is not of yourselves it is a gift of God. Faith can be “seen” through deeds such as giving to the poor. But it’s God’s gift of grace first and foremost — it’s not what we accomplish by simply giving to the poor. It is a gift of God. The gospel is much much bigger than simply taking care of the widows and giving to the poor. And even these things done without Christ (or even the name of Christ) — are worthless rags.
November 28, 2009 at 9:15 pm
Also… “anyone who does unto the least of these has done unto me”
You’re missing the phrase “in MY [Jesus of Nazareth] Name”
December 18, 2010 at 12:00 pm
What translation say “in my name”?
Because I’m assuming you meant in the verse, Matthew 25:40.
I’ve looked at 17 translations of this verse and have found none that say “in my name” in the midst of that verse.
I was just hoping to figure it out…
November 29, 2009 at 6:28 am
Tony says some things that a lot of people believe. Just not usually southern conservative Christians. I think Tony is open minded, but yet very much a Christian. I think that man cares more about feeding the hungry and helping the homeless than most modern day evangelists ever will.
And that my friends, is Jesus!
PS A lot of your quotes were taken out of context my friend!
December 16, 2009 at 4:06 pm
How about finding a way of expressing your own Christian faith that doesn’t tear down the important work and teachings of another Christian brother? Tony Campolo has done more to further the cause of Jesus than most of the right wing Christians put together. Why are evangelical Christians so afraid of homosexuals, but other sins mentioned in the same context like divorce and remarriage, gluttony, envy, etc, are generally acceptable within the church?
January 8, 2010 at 1:07 am
[…] vill vin the Truth Wars because we alone hold to the Absolute Truth Doctrines of John MacArthur’s Truth Wars™ and the Absolute Truth is ours […]
January 14, 2010 at 2:09 pm
Thank you for these quotes. I forgot how much I love this guy!
January 19, 2010 at 5:32 pm
Why spend so much time trying to bring down a fellow Christian (T Campolo) when you could be serving the kingdom? It seems strange that a brother would want to write such an out of context biased account.
March 10, 2010 at 7:20 pm
Just as the Lord Jesus Christ warned his people of the wolves in sheep’s clothing, so do we as Christians warn fellow believers of the wolves that destroy the truth of the Bible. It is important to look at leaders through a critical lens so we do not stumble or stand by as others stumble.
January 20, 2010 at 4:57 am
I agree with Ian McManus… Just a thought. Why do they try to bring down this man?(I am talking to those people who is against him) Do you really want to contend for the truth? or just to prove that your much better to this guy? or for some reasons?
I believe Tony is a true follower of Jesus.. many times I heard him preaching in Jesus’ Name… I think he was just so bold and open minded that he tries very hard to reach every race of people.. yup! even homosexuals…to build a Kingdom- The Kingdom of God- which make him very controversial. Many evangelist in the past centuries have fallen short (I don’t have to mention them) and where are they right now? Are they right theologically and biblically? I believe so.. but still they fall short and disqualified themselves. But this man who hardly and robustly doing good and sharing the gospel of Jesus, helping the poor and trying to keep his testimony for GOd – you try to put him down. why?
And have you met tony personally to judge him this way? My brother don’t waste your time, try to do something fruitful and worthwhile – serve God. Just a piece of advise.
February 7, 2010 at 12:13 am
Thanks to you, your web site and your cult followers for putting chrisianity back in the dark ages. i will pray to my Lord and Savior for the redemption of your misguided souls, assuming you let let go of Satans hand.
February 25, 2010 at 8:43 am
Seems to me that Tony struggles with the fact that the majority of people on this planet are going to hell. So much so that he has abandoned some of the dogma of the scriptures in order to reconcile different faiths to each other. Yes, we need to love others, and to contend for the faith. For God’s glory, not because it’s just the right thing to do, which is noble, but, come judgement day, worhtless.
March 10, 2010 at 7:18 pm
How can “I am not sure Jesus can only be found in Christians” be pulled out of context? If it’s heretical, it’s heretical. I thank you for this website as Tony Campolo is in our city today and everyone in my church is buzzing about it. I’ll be forwarding this site to many of my friends in the congregation. Let us pray that Tony Campolo becomes soundly saved and can use some of his speaking gifts to encourage the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
May 11, 2010 at 4:03 pm
The ignorance of so many posters on here is astounding. By throwing around ideas with little knowledge of what they are saying, these people slander good men and women of God.
Mysticism is NOT the same as occultism, rather, it has to do with those who have intimate contact with God or who have been caught up in rapturous ecstasy. Such experiences are usually not sought through odd mental techniques, but are gifts from God, often given to men of deep prayer.
The prayer of the heart, the Jesus prayer, and what today we call contemplative prayer goes back to the early Greek monks on Mt. Athos, and the early desert fathers of the church. These are the same fathers who developed the clear doctrines of our faith in their theologies (such as the notion of the holy trinity, which is never explicitly taught in scripture). For those of you who don’t know…Luther, the first Protestant, was an Augustinian friar, i.e., a monk.
As far as mysticism, I guess some of these folks never heard of the transfiguration, or never read about Paul being “caught up in the third heaven,” not did they read about Moses and the burning bush. These are all what we call mystical experiences…they transcend what any of us expect to experience in our daily, mundane lives.
I am a Roman Catholic, but I happened to have attended Eastern College, and I know Tony personally. That man is full of the spirit of God.
He is one of the most upbeat people you will ever meet, and he never tires of talking of the love of Jesus. How can anyone say he is ashamed of the gospel? What he is doing is making the gospel more accessible to those who don’t understand it…by speaking their language.
Now I can just hear the cries of idolatry and mariolotry about to come my way, but some people on here think Christianity started in the 1900s. You have to ignore so much Christian history to suggest that there is no mysticism. If there is no viable Christian mysticism, there is no St. John of the Cross, there is no St. Theresa of Avila, there is no St. Francis of Assisi, there is no Thomas Merton.
These people think Christianity started and ended with Francis Schaeffer.
John 1:9…”this light lighteth every many that is come into the world.” That does not mean every man has saving faith, but it means the image of God is still there…every man is a man for whom Christ suffered and died and is precious in his sight. Jesus Christ, in the father, through the holy spirit, shines in every man…”he maketh his rain to fall on the just and the unjust.” So, it is certainly not heretical to hold that Christ is in everyone.
I think some of you who call people demonic should be very careful. The same was said of Jesus, and he reminded people that only blasphemy of the holy spirit is unpardonable. Do a little homework before you start summarily judging others.
June 16, 2010 at 5:04 am
Thankyou! The best of post I have read here.
June 28, 2010 at 3:23 am
[…] Tony Campolo has said: “I have already made the point that we need to have to win people to Jesus Christ, but we must also preach the whole Gospel which not only calls people to love Jesus but to bring His justice into the political and economic arena in which we live.” Clearly that makes him a Communist/Socialist. […]
August 25, 2010 at 8:47 am
It is amazing to me how people can condemn this true man of God. We have come far too close to Republican Jesus, who in commenting on the feeding of the 5,000 says – low overhead, negligible start up costs (5 loves of bread, 2 fish) and huge profit! Sweet.
But Tony is a true prophet of God – and is treated just like any true prophet.
By the same holier-than-thou religious leaders we now have. hummmmm.
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October 5, 2010 at 10:52 pm
Many of these quotes are taken out of context. That’s very unfortunate.
That being said, there are certainly many controversial statements that Tony Campolo has said over the years. If we’d take a few minutes and try to understand what he’s saying (vs. just reacting), we’d likely find ourselves in more agreement with him than we first thought. I argue that many of his statements are misunderstood by today’s modern-day evangelical Christians. We prefer to judge first and condemn second. Maybe it’d be better to seek to understand first – then compare with God’s Word second.
October 15, 2010 at 5:18 am
I’d take Tony Campolo as a mentor to my kids in a heartbeat over a legalistic heresy hunter.
October 20, 2010 at 4:18 pm
You, Bart Breen, make me happy. I was going to say something relatively close. So, thanks for not making me say it. 🙂
January 26, 2011 at 1:27 am
I just heard Tony Campolo speak at Woodlands Church in Bristol … he just radiated the love of Jesus, encouraging all the young people there to dedicate their lives to Him and to serve the poor … I had a great time listening to what he had to say … Bart Breen’s comment makes ME happy too … isn’t it better to concentrate on that word LOVE and stop judging other people? Let’s leave the judging to God, and try to live our lives like Jesus did when He was on earth …
July 30, 2011 at 11:43 pm
In the quotation about “going to Philadelphia” the words you quoted were not the words of Campolo! He was relating a conversation with a fellow passenger on a airplane, and those were the other man’s statements. By attributing the qoute to Campolo, you make him appear to be a universalist, which he is not. This mistake is inexcusable. If you are really interested in truth as you claim, then you will correct this.
September 11, 2012 at 8:11 pm
I recently heard Tony preach at Greenbelt festival in the UK, he does not claim to have all the answers but he is clear about the message of Jesus, he is full of grace, humble and passionate about the injustice in the world. Having spent years in a fundamental church and know how it feels to ‘have a the answers’ it is much braver to step out and admit we do not. And my right wing brothers and sisters it is much more likely that we do not understand everything in Gods heart. I would be delighted to have people like Shane and Tony teach my children to care for the poor than to be taught to judge homosexuals by a right wing fundamental church leader.
September 22, 2012 at 8:07 pm
This is a lie…
“going to heaven is like going to Philadelphia….There are many ways….It doesn’t make any difference how we go there. We all end up in the same place.”
-Tony Campolo
“Carpe Diem: Seize the Day”, 1994, pages 85-88
I own that book. I’ve just re-read these pages you reference. Tony did not claim to be a universalist in that book or anywhere else that I can find.
October 18, 2012 at 12:33 pm
It amazes me when a” personality preacher” openly contradicts scripture, how many jump to defend his heretical utterances.