Rick Warren

==Political and social views==
[[File:President George and Laura Bush with Rick and Kay Warren.jpg|thumb|Kay and Rick Warren ''(left of picture)'', President [[George W. Bush]], with Laura Bush at his side, with the International Medal of Peace at the Saddleback [[Civil Forum on the Presidency|Civil Forum]] on Global Health in Washington, D.C.]]
The combination of Warren's tone on political issues central to U.S. evangelicals and his concern for social issues has resulted in the characterization of Warren as one of a "new breed of evangelical leaders."<ref>{{cite web|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/21/us/21evangelical.html|title=Emphasis Shifts for New Breed of Evangelicals|first1=Michael|last1=Luo|first2=Laurie|last2=Goodstein|date=May 21, 2007|access-date=February 7, 2022}}</ref> Warren strongly denies this has been an indication of a shift in position on traditional evangelical issues, as some in the media have reported.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB121944811327665223|work=The Wall Street Journal|title=What Saddleback's Pastor Really Thinks About Politics|first=Naomi|last=Schaefer Riley|date=August 23, 2008|access-date=February 7, 2022}}</ref>

In a conversation with [[atheist]] author [[Sam Harris (author)|Sam Harris]] in ''[[Newsweek]]'' magazine, Warren spoke out against [[evolution]] and in favor of [[creationism]]. He also said, when questioned on whether religion is beneficial to society, that brutal dictators such as [[Mao Zedong]], [[Joseph Stalin]], and [[Pol Pot]] were all [[atheists]].<ref name="creationist">{{cite news |title=The God Debate |url=http://www.newsweek.com/id/35784 |work=Newsweek |access-date=January 10, 2009}}</ref>

In a 2005 [[Larry King Live]] interview, during the [[Terri Schiavo case|Terri Schiavo controversy]], Warren stated that withholding feeding to Schiavo, a woman in a [[persistent vegetative state]], was "not a right-to-die issue." He elaborated on his concerns over the decision to remove her feeding tube: "I fear the day, that if we start saying, well, you don't have a right to live if you are mentally handicapped or you're physically handicapped or emotionally handicapped...we're just not going to feed you anymore. To me, that is an atrocity worthy of [[Nazism]]."<ref>{{cite news |title=Larry King Live: Interview With Rick Warren (transcript) |date=March 22, 2005 |url=http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0503/22/lkl.01.html |work=CNN |access-date=January 10, 2009}}</ref>

On [[Hardball with Chris Matthews]], after repeated questioning over why Michael Schiavo would want his wife's feeding tube removed, Warren responded, "I have no idea. Well, I don't know. There's a thousand reasons you could speculate. What if she came back out of the—out of this state and had something to say that he didn't want said?"<ref>{{cite news |title=Hardball with Chris Matthews (transcript) |date=March 23, 2005 |url=http://www.nbcnews.com/id/7286474 |work=NBC News |access-date=January 10, 2009}}</ref>

Two weeks before the [[United States elections, 2008|2008 U.S. general election]], Warren issued a statement to his congregation endorsing [[California Proposition 8 (2008)|California Proposition 8]], which would amend the [[California Constitution]] to eliminate the right of same-sex couples to marry,<ref name="Video Message">Warren's [https://web.archive.org/web/20081027085038/http://saddlebackfamily.com/blogs/newsandviews/index.html?contentid=1502 Video Message] to Saddleback Church on October 23, 2008</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://vigarchive.sos.ca.gov/2008/general/title-sum/prop8-title-sum.htm|title=Official Title and Summary, Prop 8|work=Official Voter Information Guide, California General Election, November 4, 2008}}</ref> a position consistent with the official position of his church's denomination, the [[Southern Baptist Convention]].<ref name="Video Message"/><ref>SBC [http://www.sbc.net/aboutus/pssexuality.asp Position Statement on sexuality] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131003031920/http://www.sbc.net/aboutus/pssexuality.asp |date=2013-10-03 }}</ref> After the measure passed, Warren's church and others were targeted by protesters.<ref>{{cite web|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/10/us/10protest.html|title=In California, Protests Over Gay Marriage Vote|date=November 9, 2008|access-date=February 7, 2022}}</ref>

In an interview with [[Beliefnet]] in early December 2008, Warren again sparked controversy by appearing to equate same-sex marriages with marriages between siblings, marriages between multiple partners, and marriages between adults and minors.<ref>Beliefnet, [http://www.beliefnet.com/Video/Beliefnet-Interviews/Rick-Warren/Rick-Warren-Interview-On-Gay-Marriage-And-Divorce.aspx "Rick Warren Interview: On Gay Marriage and Divorce"]</ref><ref>Fox News [http://www.foxnews.com/wires/2008Dec21/0,4670,WarrenSpeech,00.html "Pastor Rick Warren defends invite to inauguration"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090901060727/http://www.foxnews.com/wires/2008Dec21/0,4670,WarrenSpeech,00.html |date=2009-09-01 }}</ref><ref>Beliefnet, [http://www.beliefnet.com/News/2008/12/Rick-Warren-Transcript.aspx?p=7 "Steven Waldman Interviews Rick Warren"]</ref> He later released a video message explaining that he does not equate gay relationships with [[incest]] or [[pedophilia]], but that he opposes the redefinition of marriage.<ref>[http://www.cbsnews.com/news/rick-warren-insists-hes-not-anti-gay/ Rick Warren Insists He's Not Anti-Gay] CBS News; December 24, 2008</ref> When Chelsea Clinton asked him about his views on same-sex marriage in December 2012, he said he recognized that it might become legal throughout the United States but added that, based on his belief in the Bible, he did not "approve" of it nor believe it was "right." He said that using the word "marriage" to describe same-sex partnerships amounted to a "redefinition" of the word, suggested that the word belonged to the dominant culture (to religious people or to straight people) because the word has been used for "a long time".<ref>{{Cite web|last=Clinton|first=Chelsea|date=20 December 2012|title=Rick Warren on the same-sex marriage debate|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/watch/rock-center/rick-warren-on-the-same-sex-marriage-debate-12934723708|access-date=2021-03-14|website=NBC News|language=en}}</ref>

In a December 2012 interview, Warren publicly said that religious freedom will be the civil-rights issue of the next decade.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.deseretnews.com/article/765616925/Rick-Warren-Religious-liberty-the-civil-rights-issue-of-the-next-decade.html?pg=all|title=Rick Warren: Religious liberty the civil rights issue of the next decade|author=David Ward|date=2 December 2012|work=DeseretNews.com}}</ref> He publicly denounced President Obama's record on religious freedom, saying that Obama was "absolutely unfriendly" to religion.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/28/rick-warren-obama-religious-liberty_n_2206064.html|title=Rick Warren, Saddleback Pastor: Obama Has 'Infringed' Upon Religious Liberties|work=The Huffington Post|first=Jaweed|last=Kaleem|date=November 28, 2012|access-date=February 7, 2022}}</ref>

In a May 2014 article in ''The Washington Post'', Warren expressed his support for David and Barbara Green, the owners of [[Hobby Lobby]], in the ''[[Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc.]]'' case before the U.S. Supreme Court. The case centered on the company's request for a religious exemption to certain portions of the [[Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act]] mandate that companies provide employee health insurance. Warren wrote, "The [A]dministration wants everyone to render unto Caesar not only what is Caesar's but also what is God's. If it wins, the first purpose on which the United States was founded would be severely damaged."<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/religious-liberty-is-americas-first-freedom/2014/03/21/498c0048-b128-11e3-a49e-76adc9210f19_story.html|title=Religious liberty is America's First Freedom|author=Rick Warren|date=21 March 2014|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]}}</ref>