Why you’ve heard of him: Colson was Richard Nixon’s “hatchet man” and spent seven months in prison for Watergate-related charges. Entered Alabama’s Maxwell Prison in 1974 as a new Christian and became a staunch advocate for prisoners. After telling his story in the bestselling book Born Again, Colson used the royalties to found Prison Fellowship, the world’s largest outreach to prisoners, ex-prisoners, crime victims, and their families.

Position: Founder and Chairman of the Board for Prison Fellowship and Prison Fellowship International (1976 to present); Commentator for Breakpoint

Previous career:
Captain, U.S. Marine Corps (1953-55)
Assistant to the Assistant Secretary of the Navy (1955-56)
Admin. Asst. to U.S. Sen. Leverett Saltonstall (R-Mass.) (1956-61)
Partner, Gadsby and Hannah Law Firm (1961-69)
Special Counsel to President Richard M. Nixon (1969-73)
Partner, Colson and Shapiro Law Firm (1973-74)

Education:
B.A., Brown University (1953)
J.D. with honors, George Washington University (1959)

Area of expertise/interest: Restorative justice; worldview analysis and cultural criticism

Honors: Won the $1 million dollar Templeton Prize for Progress in Religion (the prize money was donated to Prison Fellowship); Born Again was made into a movie in 1978

Books: Colson has written over 20 books, including Born Again (1976), Kingdoms in Conflict (later reissued as God and Government) (1987), The Body (1994), Loving God (1997), and How Now Shall We Live (w/ Nancy Pearcey) (2000)

Assessment: Other than St. Paul, there are few ex-prisoners who have done more to fulfill the duties of a Christian like Charles Colson. Along with Prison Fellowship, he has overseen the founding of Justice Fellowship (the nation’s largest faith-based criminal justice reform group) and Angel Tree (a program that provides Christmas presents to more than 500,000 children of inmates annually on behalf of their incarcerated parents). The ministries now reach over 40,000 prisoners in 100 countries around the world.

As an author, Colson has written some of the most influential books in the evangelical community, including The Body and How Now Shall We Live? (both co-written with Nancy Pearcey). His Kingdoms in Conflict (1987), a centrist view of the relationship between church and state, is one of my personal favorites. He is also the co-author, along with Fr. Richard John Neuhaus of “Evangelicals and Catholics Together“, a seminal document that highlights how the two groups can work together while still respecting their profound theological differences.

While others have used the infamy of Watergate to line their own pockets, Colson donated all of his speaking honoraria and book royalties to Prison Fellowship and accepts only the salary of a mid-range ministry executive as compensation. The man who was once considered “Nixon’s evil genius” has become a model of Christian charity and service. Colson is truly a prime example of how God can transform a person’s life and use them for His purposes.

Why you should know him: Oft-quoted for his views on cultural and religious issues. Time.com called Dr. Mohler the “reigning intellectual of the evangelical movement in the U.S.”

Denomination: Southern Baptist

Position: President and Professor of Christian Theology at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary—the flagship school of the Southern Baptist Convention and one of the largest seminaries in the world; Editor-in-Chief of The Southern Baptist Journal of Theology

Previous: Editor of The Christian Index; Associate Editor of Preaching; Host of “The Albert Mohler Program,” a daily radio show distributed nationwide by Salem Communications.

Education:
B.A. Samford University
M. Div. Southern Seminary
PhD Southern Seminary (in systematic and historical theology)
Postgraduate study/research at the St. Meinrad School of Theology and Oxford University (England)

Area of expertise/interest: Evangelical theology; Southern Baptist doctrine; cultural issues

Books: Published five books, including Atheism Remixed; contributed chapters to several books including Here We Stand: A Call From Confessing Evangelicals and The Coming Evangelical Crisis.

Other writings: The Washington Post’s On Faith religion column; maintains a blog at AlbertMohler.com.

Assessment: Dr. Mohler is a prime example of the type of evangelical leader who has a profound impact on our country while remaining relatively unknown outside of Christian circles. He was one of the key figures in the conservative resurgence within the Southern Baptist Convention, a monumental change that affected the largest Protestant denomination in America.

As bold as he is intelligent, Mohler often takes positions that are politically incorrect (e.g., his claim that Jews and Muslims dont worship the “same God” as Christians) or that would raise the eyebrows of his fellow Baptists (i.e., his view that couple who choose “deliberate childlessness” are in violation of God’s moral order). He is also an ridiculously prolific writer, producing a quality article on culture and society for his blog almost every weekday.

Anyone who wants to know the direction that conservative evangelicalism will take in America would do well to keep track of this influential theologian.

Why you’ve heard of him: Dr. Piper is one of the most influential and popular preacher/authors in American evangelicalism.

Position: Senior Pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, MN; Host of the daily radio program Desiring God; Founder of Desiring God ministries.

Previous: Associate Professor of Biblical Studies, Bethel College, St. Paul, MN

Education:
B.A., Wheaton College
B.D., Fuller Theological Seminary
Dr.theol., University of Munich

Denomination: Baptist (Baptist General Conference)

Books: Piper is the author of over twenty books, including Love Your Enemies: Jesus’ Love Command in the Synoptic Gospels and the Early Christian Paraenesis (1991); Desiring God: Meditations of a Christian Hedonist (1986); Donít Waste Your Life (2003); A God Entranced Vision of All Things (2004); and The Passion of Jesus Christ (2004)

Sample Resources: “How Much is Jesus Worth?” (podcast, 1982); What made it OK for God to kill women and children in the Old Testament? (podcast, 2010)

Assessment: Piper’s life goal and ministry have been focused on spreading ìa passion for the supremacy of God in all things for the joy of all peoples.” His writing and preaching have had a significant impact on many young Christian leaders, including pastors, seminarians, and members of the bands Third Day and Switchfoot. Espousing a concept he calls “Christian Hedonism,” Piper carries on the tradition of a complete God-centered worldview that he picked up from the Puritan preacher Jonathan Edwards, one of his most significant influences. As noted by Al Mohler, who called Let the Nations Be Glad “the most important book on missions for this generation,” Piper has also had a major impact on the state of modern world missions.

[Special thanks to Justin Taylor for his input on this entry.]

(This post is part of the Know Your Evangelicals series.)

At the instigation of Justin Taylor, I’ve decided to bring that series to Evangel. I’m hoping that my fellow contributors will adopt the format and produce entries of their own.

If you have a recommendation for a profile, please leave it in the comments section.