From ................ National Catholic Reporter

January 17, 1997

page 7

Reed clarifies endorsement

Ralph Reed, executive director of the conservative Christian Coalition, political organization tied to TV evangelist Pat Robertson, has rescinded his written endorsement of the book Earth's Two Minute Warning by John Wheeler Jr.

Reed's endorsement of the book, a fundamentalist tract on the end time that contains anti-Catholic interpretations of apocalyptic literature, has "raised questions" in some quarters, Reed said in a written release Jan. 2.

He said he

"provided the blurb as a personal favor to a former employee without reading the book in its entirety. Needless to say, I disagree with many of the conclusions of the book, including those regarding the Catholic church and its purported role in any end-time scenario," Reed said.

"Anyone who has done a favor for a friend or employee can understand my intention. It was not to endorse the author's views on the Catholic church or on the end times. Indeed, my consistent record has been one of respect, honor and cooperation with Catholics. It is ludicrous to suggest or imply otherwise."

NCR, in an editorial in its Dec. 27/Jan. 3 issue, criticized the endorsement and the book.

"In normal circumstances," said the editorial, "it would be reasonable to dismiss Wheeler's views as fundamentalist evangelical Protestantism at its worst .... What makes this different, however, are the overtures that have been made toward the Catholic constituency by Reed in his political pursuits and the credibility that he and Robertson have garnered through their contacts with Catholic leaders."

Reed's Christian Coalition last year formed an offshoot called the Catholic Alliance. Wheeler was founding editor of Christian American, the flagship publication of the Christian Coalition and was listed most recently as "contributing writer and editor" on the magazine's masthead.

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