c. 1999 Religion News Service

WASHINGTON _ Nearly a year after the deepening sexual scandal surrounding Monica Lewinksy prompted President Clinton to announce his intention to seek pastoral help, his three spiritual advisers say they are impressed with Clinton’s continuing commitment to meet regularly with them.”One of the three of us tries to meet with the president each week,”said the Rev. Tony Campolo, an evangelical leader based in St. Davids, Pa., in response to questions from Religion News Service.”He has been incredibly faithful in his commitments, considering all the things that he has to deal with these days.” Last September, Clinton told a White House prayer breakfast and the nation that he would be”seeking pastoral support”as part of his”path of repentance”after the scandal erupted concerning his relationship with former White House intern Lewinsky.

While all three advisers declined to divulge details that would break the confidence of the president, they all agreed Clinton has been diligent about meeting with them. In some cases, key administration officials have altered their schedules so Clinton could talk with one of the clerics.

The Rev. J. Philip Wogaman, senior minister at Foundry United Methodist Church in Washington, remarked on Clinton’s”extraordinary”faithfulness to the pastoral sessions.”He is honoring the commitments he made last September to himself, to his family and to the nation to seek personal healing,”said Wogaman.”He has proceeded with integrity.” Clinton is a Southern Baptist, but he and Hillary Rodham Clinton, a United Methodist, have generally attended Foundry over the past six years.

The Rev. Gordon MacDonald, a writer and speaker based in Canterbury, N.H., confirmed the words of his fellow advisers.”None of the three of us have ever been turned down when we made dates to visit with him,”said MacDonald, who in early June became pastor emeritus of Grace Chapel, an evangelical, interdenominational church in Lexington, Mass. He also is a senior fellow of the Trinity Forum, a Burke, Va.-based think tank working with international business and government leaders.”In the midst of national and international crises, he’s always willing to carve out the time to meet with us,”Campolo said of Clinton.”The meetings are extended and in-depth.” Campolo, president of the Evangelical Association for the Promotion of Education, compared Clinton’s commitment to the focus of Promise Keepers _”that living a consistent life requires accountability to brothers in the faith.” MacDonald agreed with the comparison to the evangelical men’s movement, and Wogaman, a mainline Protestant less familiar with Promise Keepers, said,”There’s mutual accountability here _ us to him and him to us.” Occasionally the three advisers meet together with the president, but for the most part the meetings are one-on-one encounters.”All meetings have been in person (one on one), either in the residence or in the Oval Office,”said MacDonald.

The length of the meetings has been”substantial”and the president also has received phone calls on a private number and faxes from the advisers, he said.”I have been with the president as long as 2 hours at a time, never less than an hour,”said MacDonald.”Some meetings have been in the early morning hours; others in the late afternoon; still others late into the night.” MacDonald said Clinton has responded to”numerous faxes”from him.”I have noted more than once that when we got together, he had my latest fax with him and it was all marked up with his responses,”he said.

All of the advisers were hesitant to divulge much about the progress Clinton might be making through the sessions, saying it was inappropriate to do so.”We feel that the president has been able to clearly articulate to us what this relationship has meant to him,”MacDonald said.”And we all feel that there has been a genuine bond that has grown between us and him, and that there is a substantial difference as a result.” The three counselors were more comfortable discussing the spiritual and political consequences they’ve experienced due to their time with him.

Campolo, who also is a sociology professor at Eastern College in St. Davids, said he remains committed to helping the president despite the fact that his role has proved”difficult”for his ministries.”There are those who have condemned us for trying to be friends with the president and for nurturing him spiritually,”said Campolo.”Some have ended financial contributions to our ministries. In some cases it has led to cancellations of speaking engagements, and I know that there are many who will no longer invite me as a speaker because they view me as controversial.” Through it all, Campolo said, he seeks divine guidance.”Many a night is spent walking the floor praying to God for direction,”he said.

MacDonald said he has received far more support than criticism, receiving”hundreds of letters and e-mails from people all over the world offering their prayers and their support.” But he, like Campolo, has felt opposition.”There were a few people who left my congregation (Grace Chapel, Lexington, Mass.) and some who wrote to say that they would stop giving to the church (since the church was paying my expenses to travel to Washington),”said MacDonald.”But this was a very small matter.” Wogaman said his church and clergy colleagues have been”very understanding”and negative reactions, which were not overwhelming, have come from outside his church.

All three say that in providing pastoral aid to the president, their spiritual lives have been affected.

Wogaman, who was a seminary professor for 26 years before turning to pastoral ministry in 1992, included his experience with Clinton along with others he has counseled.”Pastoral ministry pushes you and deepens you,”he said.”It contributes greatly to our spiritual growth as we confront others in the deep places of the spirit.”

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