'In decline'

For years led by Ralph Reed, the once-influential Christian Coalition has fallen on hard times. In recent months four state chapters -- Georgia, Alabama, Iowa and Ohio -- have left the national organization, saying it is becoming too liberal and its agendas too scattered. The group's budget, once a hefty $26 million, is now only $1 million.

"The Christian Coalition is in decline," Hunter acknowledged, citing his discussions with the organization's board during the past year. "I think they were desperate when they asked me. . . . I've always been drawn to lost causes."

Roberta Combs, chairman of the Christian Coalition of America, put it differently.

"I recruited him to be the president, and I'm looking forward to working with him," Combs said. "It seemed we needed a pastor that could communicate with other pastors."

Combs, who will retain her position, will assist Hunter in his role in setting the course for the organization.

Combs said she chose Hunter because of his pragmatic outlook, and "his leadership skills and his knowledge of politics and why Christians should be involved in the political process."

"This is a brilliant move on the part of the Christian Coalition, because Joel is a brilliant communicator and a thoughtful spokesperson for Christian values," said the Rev. Ted Haggard, president of the National Association of Evangelicals.

Bill Stephens, executive director of the Christian Coalition of Florida, said he thought his chapter would remain with the national organization under Hunter's leadership.

"It's a good thing for our national office," he said. "There's no doubt about it. Joel's desire is to rebuild the coalition, and his leadership will enable us to do that. We certainly are striving to reunify the organization from a state level and continue being the force in our nation that we have been. I would like to stay in the organization. I would like to see it rebuilt and become the Christian Coalition that it used to be."

The organization, best known for distributing Christian voting guides to churches, claims a mailing list of 2.5 million.

Not 'just a talking head'

Sitting in the book-lined study of his Casselberry home, Hunter said he wants to teach Christians how to integrate and apply their spiritual values to public life. He does not intend to be "just a talking head representing an imaginary constituency."

Although he is against abortion and gay marriage, Hunter also opposes the death penalty. "Traditional right-wing issues," he said, "are not sufficient to express the Gospel."

Several months ago, Hunter's suburban church published his latest book, Right Wing, Wrong Bird: Why the Tactics of the Religious Right Won't Fly With  Conservative Christians.

In the book, Hunter outlined his views for a more moderate approach to politics:

"For the most part, the religious right has been limited to the Republican Party. . . . A voice of biblical values cannot be in the pocket of one party. . . . Christians can decide for themselves how God would want them to come down on any issue."

Hunter also wrote, "There ought to be more than just gay marriage and pro-life issues, because the Bible is concerned with all of life. We need to do everything we can to relieve poverty, to heal the sick and to protect the Earth."

Like Combs, he believes evangelicals can find common cause with mainline and progressive organizations on issues such as immigration, raising the minimum wage and providing prescription drugs to the needy and elderly.

Some, such as Michael Cromartie, vice president of the Ethics and Public Policy Center, who have been critical of Robertson's often-controversial leadership of the coalition, question this new strategy.

"One of the problems with broadening the agenda is that most people's lives are so busy and full, there are only one or two issues that they can focus on at once," Cromartie said. "The future of marriage and the pro-life debate are pretty clear-cut issues for most people in the religiously conservative community. Poverty and the environment are not unimportant issues. But there is much more room for disagreement for what the best policy is for solving the problem."

The Rev. Louis Sheldon, chairman of the Traditional Values Coalition, agreed.

"It is not a good idea strategically," said Sheldon, whose organization focuses on issues involving sexuality and young people.

The Rev. Richard Land, president of the Southern Baptist Convention's Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission, thinks Hunter's approach is folly.

"When people try to pretend there is consensus where there is no consensus, they lose their credibility with their constituency and eventually they lose their credibility with Washington," he said.

Mixed reception possible

John Green, senior fellow at the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life, said the prospect for Hunter's approach may be mixed.

While not attractive to traditional Christian Coalition members, the pollster said, "there may be some traction in the broader evangelical community, where you have younger people interested in a somewhat broader agenda and a less-confrontational style."

An author of three books and a radio broadcaster as well as a pastor, Hunter conducts seven services a weekend at his sanctuary, a converted roller-skating rink. The words, "A Church Distributed," refer to the congregation's multiple campuses -- some outside the United States -- linked by the latest technology. One of the congregation's mottoes is: "We are linked to one another and to the world."

The preacher, a compact, athletic man, peppers his sermons with humor and anecdotes from modern life. Before coming to Central Florida in 1985, he was a pastor in the United Methodist Church in Indiana. He attended Christian Theological Seminary in Indianapolis that is affiliated with the Disciples of Christ denomination.

Mark I. Pinsky can be reached at mpinsky@orlandosentinel.com or 407-420-5589.