Douglas Coe
Encyclopedia
Douglas Evans Coe is associate director of the Christian organization the Fellowship (also known as a family of friends in Christ, the prayer breakfast groups.). He has also been referred to as the "stealth Billy Graham
." In 2005, Coe was named one of the 25 most influential Evangelical
s in the United States by Time
magazine. Although Coe is an ordained Presbyterian elder and serves as a lay minister, D. Michael Lindsay
, a sociologist at Rice University, surveyed more than 300 top evangelical politicians in Washington and one in three said the Fellowship was one of the most influential Christian groups in the nation's capital. According to Lindsay, "there is no other organization like the Fellowship, especially among religious groups, in terms of its access or clout among the country's leadership."
. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Willamette University
. While enrolled as a college student, Coe met Dean of Men and future Fellowship associate and Senator Mark O. Hatfield. Coe became involved with Young Life
, a campus youth ministry, in Salem, Oregon
, and went on to start a chapter of "InterVarsity Christian Fellowship
" with Roy Cook while enrolled at Willamette University. Coe and Cook became involved in laymen’s groups of various kinds and helped establish a “navigator house” in Salem. They met Dr. Abraham Vereide
when he visited Salem, the capital of Oregon for a Governor's Prayer Breakfast and were fascinated by his visionary communication of a "leadership led by God, empowered by His Spirit."
After working with Young Life
and the Navigators
, Coe, in 1958, at the age of 30, was employed by Dr. Vereide at the International Christian Leadership on Dupont Circle in Washington, D.C. and after initially doing clerical jobs in the office he served as aide de camp to Dr. Vereide and by 1963 had become an assistant director of ICL. He worked alongside of Dr. Vereide, Dr. Wallace Haines, Dr. Clifton Robinson and Dr. Richard C. Halverson, the clergy executives of the global ministry. Coe was trained by Lorne Sanny and Jim Rayburn
in the methods of Bible memorization, study and teaching and Vereide also had him mentored by young Billy Graham
, an effective youth minister and former president of Northwestern College
, a frequent house guest of Dr. Vereide's and a former disciple from ICL's Chicago days. As Rev. Christian Halverson put it, in the eighties, Coe "became the godfather . . . but for good, not for bad."
Coe is a member of the Planning Committee for the National Student Leadership Forum on Faith and Values.
, President George H.W. Bush praised Coe for his "quiet diplomacy, I wouldn't say secret diplomacy".
Coe was a behind-the-scenes spiritual mentor at the Camp David Accords
in 1978, working with President Jimmy Carter
to issue a worldwide call to prayer with Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin
and Egyptian President Anwar Sadat
. In 2000, Coe met with top economic officials of Pakistan
as a "special envoy" of U. S. Representative Joe Pitts. Coe met with President George H.W. Bush as he hosted a luncheon with Iraq's ambassador to the United States in the mid-1980s. In 2001, the Coe helped arrange a private meeting at Cedars between two warring leaders, Democratic Republic of Congo President Joseph Kabila
and Rwanda
n President Paul Kagame
, one of the first of a series of discreet meetings between the two African leaders that eventually led to the signing of a peace accord.
Coe was a member of the large United States Congressional and ministerial delegation which accompanied then First Lady Hillary Clinton to the 1997 funeral of the founder of the Sisters of Charity
, Mother Teresa
. He is mentioned by John Ortberg
in his book "If you want to walk on water you have to get out of the boat" as the pastor of a man, named only as 'Bob', who had great influence on bringing medicine and releasing political prisoners in Kenya.
Coe convened a meeting between Bob Mitchell
, the President of Young Life
, Jay Kesler
, the President of Youth for Christ
, and Colonel James Meredith United States Army
at Dr. Vereide's Fellowship House in Washington, D.C. on July 29, 1980, which led to the formation of Military Community Youth Ministries (MCYM), a global program to spiritually and relationally care for military kids on bases around the world in the similitude of Young Life
and InterVarsity
, organizations which Coe had served with early in his ministry career.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton met with Coe on many occasions as First Lady of the United States. According to NBC News, she participated in a prayer luncheon at The Cedars, the Fellowship Foundation's historic conference house and grounds on the banks of the Potomac River in February 1993 and met privately with Coe in her White House office on December 19, 1997, and a “Meet & Greet with Business Leaders” on Feb. 4, 1998. Clinton has written that Doug Coe is "a unique presence in Washington: a genuinely loving spiritual mentor and guide to anyone, regardless of party or faith, who wants to deepen his or her relationship with God." Doug Coe has been referred to as a friend and hero by former small group disciple Vice President Al Gore
.
In March 2009, Coe was a featured speaker at the Idaho State Prayer Breakfast.
(1596–1689). Coe, the son of Milton Evans and Loda Helene (Davis) Coe, was born October 20, 1928, in Medford, Oregon. His father, a public-school teacher, and mother were married December 26, 1923, at Yamhill, Oregon. His paternal grandfather, Rev. Curtis Pearre Coe, was a Baptist minister and missionary.
When he is not traveling, Coe resides in Arlington, Virginia, with his wife, Janice, in a home located on the grounds of the former Doubleday Mansion, renamed the Cedars. Doug and Janice Coe are the parents of six children, including David Mark Evans Coe of Annapolis, Maryland; Timothy Stewart Coe of Arnold, Maryland; Jonathan Coe of Washington, D.C. (died 1985), and Pamela Kay Corder of Leesburg, Virginia. They have 21 grandchildren. David, Tim, and Paula are all employed by the Fellowship Foundation and/or Wilberforce Foundation, Inc., and have worked alongside of their father since their college graduations.
Billy Graham
William Franklin "Billy" Graham, Jr. is an American evangelical Christian evangelist. As of April 25, 2010, when he met with Barack Obama, Graham has spent personal time with twelve United States Presidents dating back to Harry S. Truman, and is number seven on Gallup's list of admired people for...
." In 2005, Coe was named one of the 25 most influential Evangelical
Evangelicalism
Evangelicalism is a Protestant Christian movement which began in Great Britain in the 1730s and gained popularity in the United States during the series of Great Awakenings of the 18th and 19th century.Its key commitments are:...
s in the United States by Time
Time (magazine)
Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
magazine. Although Coe is an ordained Presbyterian elder and serves as a lay minister, D. Michael Lindsay
D. Michael Lindsay
David Michael Lindsay, is a scholar in sociology and the current president of Gordon College, a private, liberal arts college on Boston's North Shore. Prior to arriving at Gordon, Lindsay was on faculty for five years at Rice University and the James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy...
, a sociologist at Rice University, surveyed more than 300 top evangelical politicians in Washington and one in three said the Fellowship was one of the most influential Christian groups in the nation's capital. According to Lindsay, "there is no other organization like the Fellowship, especially among religious groups, in terms of its access or clout among the country's leadership."
Life
Coe's ministry in mentoring and discipling is widely known, his enjoyment of athletics and his devoted family life, having raised three boys and three girls. Somewhat diffident about attention and reluctant to do public speaking he routinely denies requests for interviews and speeches to large audiences. He was born and raised in OregonOregon
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Willamette University
Willamette University
Willamette University is an American private institution of higher learning located in Salem, Oregon. Founded in 1842, it is the oldest university in the Western United States. Willamette is a member of the Annapolis Group of colleges, and is made up of an undergraduate College of Liberal Arts and...
. While enrolled as a college student, Coe met Dean of Men and future Fellowship associate and Senator Mark O. Hatfield. Coe became involved with Young Life
Young Life
YoungLife is a worldwide, non-profit, Evangelical Christian organization. YoungLife consists of many branches of ministry , but most commonly the name "YoungLife" refers to the outreach arm of the organization directed toward high school students...
, a campus youth ministry, in Salem, Oregon
Salem, Oregon
Salem is the capital of the U.S. state of Oregon, and the county seat of Marion County. It is located in the center of the Willamette Valley alongside the Willamette River, which runs north through the city. The river forms the boundary between Marion and Polk counties, and the city neighborhood...
, and went on to start a chapter of "InterVarsity Christian Fellowship
InterVarsity Christian Fellowship
InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA is an inter-denominational, evangelical Christian, student-led ministry which for the past 70 years has been dedicated to establishing witnessing communities on U.S. college and university campuses...
" with Roy Cook while enrolled at Willamette University. Coe and Cook became involved in laymen’s groups of various kinds and helped establish a “navigator house” in Salem. They met Dr. Abraham Vereide
Abraham Vereide
Abraham Vereide was a Norwegian-born Methodist clergyman and founder of Goodwill Industries of Seattle. In 1935, Vereide founded the prayer breakfast movement in the United States. In 1942, Vereide established International Christian Leadership, incorporated as Fellowship Foundation, in Chicago...
when he visited Salem, the capital of Oregon for a Governor's Prayer Breakfast and were fascinated by his visionary communication of a "leadership led by God, empowered by His Spirit."
After working with Young Life
Young Life
YoungLife is a worldwide, non-profit, Evangelical Christian organization. YoungLife consists of many branches of ministry , but most commonly the name "YoungLife" refers to the outreach arm of the organization directed toward high school students...
and the Navigators
The Navigators (organization)
The Navigators is a worldwide Christian para-church organization headquartered in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Its main purpose is the discipling of Christians with a particular emphasis on enabling them to share their faith with others....
, Coe, in 1958, at the age of 30, was employed by Dr. Vereide at the International Christian Leadership on Dupont Circle in Washington, D.C. and after initially doing clerical jobs in the office he served as aide de camp to Dr. Vereide and by 1963 had become an assistant director of ICL. He worked alongside of Dr. Vereide, Dr. Wallace Haines, Dr. Clifton Robinson and Dr. Richard C. Halverson, the clergy executives of the global ministry. Coe was trained by Lorne Sanny and Jim Rayburn
Jim Rayburn
Jim Rayburn, Jr was an ordained Presbyterian minister and the founder of Young Life. He was born in Marshalltown, Iowa, on July 21, 1909, to James Chalmers Rayburn, Sr. , and Elna Beck Rayburn. Rayburn was the oldest of four sons, and grew up in Newton, Kansas...
in the methods of Bible memorization, study and teaching and Vereide also had him mentored by young Billy Graham
Billy Graham
William Franklin "Billy" Graham, Jr. is an American evangelical Christian evangelist. As of April 25, 2010, when he met with Barack Obama, Graham has spent personal time with twelve United States Presidents dating back to Harry S. Truman, and is number seven on Gallup's list of admired people for...
, an effective youth minister and former president of Northwestern College
Northwestern College
Northwestern College can refer to:*Northwestern College in Bridgeview, Chicago, and Naperville.*Northwestern College in Orange City, Iowa.*Northwestern College in Roseville, Minnesota....
, a frequent house guest of Dr. Vereide's and a former disciple from ICL's Chicago days. As Rev. Christian Halverson put it, in the eighties, Coe "became the godfather . . . but for good, not for bad."
Coe is a member of the Planning Committee for the National Student Leadership Forum on Faith and Values.
Political influence and private diplomacy
The extent of Coe's influence in American politics is a subject of debate. Nevertheless important figures have acknowledged his role on the national and international stage. For instance, speaking at the 1990 National Prayer BreakfastNational Prayer Breakfast
The National Prayer Breakfast is a yearly event held in Washington, D.C., on the first Thursday of February each year. The founder of this event was Abraham Vereide...
, President George H.W. Bush praised Coe for his "quiet diplomacy, I wouldn't say secret diplomacy".
Coe was a behind-the-scenes spiritual mentor at the Camp David Accords
Camp David Accords
The Camp David Accords were signed by Egyptian President Anwar El Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin on September 17, 1978, following thirteen days of secret negotiations at Camp David. The two framework agreements were signed at the White House, and were witnessed by United States...
in 1978, working with President Jimmy Carter
Jimmy Carter
James Earl "Jimmy" Carter, Jr. is an American politician who served as the 39th President of the United States and was the recipient of the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize, the only U.S. President to have received the Prize after leaving office...
to issue a worldwide call to prayer with Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin
Menachem Begin
' was a politician, founder of Likud and the sixth Prime Minister of the State of Israel. Before independence, he was the leader of the Zionist militant group Irgun, the Revisionist breakaway from the larger Jewish paramilitary organization Haganah. He proclaimed a revolt, on 1 February 1944,...
and Egyptian President Anwar Sadat
Anwar Sadat
Muhammad Anwar al-Sadat was the third President of Egypt, serving from 15 October 1970 until his assassination by fundamentalist army officers on 6 October 1981...
. In 2000, Coe met with top economic officials of Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
as a "special envoy" of U. S. Representative Joe Pitts. Coe met with President George H.W. Bush as he hosted a luncheon with Iraq's ambassador to the United States in the mid-1980s. In 2001, the Coe helped arrange a private meeting at Cedars between two warring leaders, Democratic Republic of Congo President Joseph Kabila
Joseph Kabila
Joseph Kabila Kabange is a Congolese politician who has been President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo since January 2001. He took office ten days after the assassination of his father, President Laurent-Désiré Kabila...
and Rwanda
Rwanda
Rwanda or , officially the Republic of Rwanda , is a country in central and eastern Africa with a population of approximately 11.4 million . Rwanda is located a few degrees south of the Equator, and is bordered by Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo...
n President Paul Kagame
Paul Kagame
Paul Kagame is the sixth and current President of the Republic of Rwanda. He rose to prominence as the leader of the Rwandan Patriotic Front , whose victory over the incumbent government in July 1994 effectively ended the Rwandan genocide...
, one of the first of a series of discreet meetings between the two African leaders that eventually led to the signing of a peace accord.
Coe was a member of the large United States Congressional and ministerial delegation which accompanied then First Lady Hillary Clinton to the 1997 funeral of the founder of the Sisters of Charity
Sisters of Charity
Many religious communities have the term Sisters of Charity as part of their name. The rule of Saint Vincent for the Daughters of Charity has been adopted and adapted by at least sixty founders of religious orders around the world in the subsequent centuries....
, Mother Teresa
Mother Teresa
Mother Teresa , born Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu , was a Roman Catholic nun of Albanian ethnicity and Indian citizenship, who founded the Missionaries of Charity in Calcutta, India, in 1950...
. He is mentioned by John Ortberg
John Ortberg
John Ortberg, Jr. is an evangelical Christian author, speaker, and senior pastor of Menlo Park Presbyterian Church in Menlo Park, California, an evangelical church with more than 4,000 members...
in his book "If you want to walk on water you have to get out of the boat" as the pastor of a man, named only as 'Bob', who had great influence on bringing medicine and releasing political prisoners in Kenya.
Coe convened a meeting between Bob Mitchell
Bob Mitchell
Richard Charles Mitchell, , known as Bob Mitchell, was a Labour Member of Parliament in the United Kingdom. He represented Southampton Test for Labour from 1966 to 1970, and Southampton Itchen for Labour and then the Social Democratic Party from 1981 to 1983.Mitchell was born in Southampton on...
, the President of Young Life
Young Life
YoungLife is a worldwide, non-profit, Evangelical Christian organization. YoungLife consists of many branches of ministry , but most commonly the name "YoungLife" refers to the outreach arm of the organization directed toward high school students...
, Jay Kesler
Jay Kesler
Jay Kesler is the former president, Chancellor and current President Emeritus of Taylor University in Upland, Indiana. Kesler graduated in 1958 from Taylor University and is notable for his writings and radio work. Most recently, he served as the Preaching Pastor of Upland Community Church, in...
, the President of Youth for Christ
Youth for Christ
Youth for Christ is the name of a number of previously unaffiliated evangelical Protestant religious campaigns which led to the creation of Youth for Christ International in 1946....
, and Colonel James Meredith United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
at Dr. Vereide's Fellowship House in Washington, D.C. on July 29, 1980, which led to the formation of Military Community Youth Ministries (MCYM), a global program to spiritually and relationally care for military kids on bases around the world in the similitude of Young Life
Young Life
YoungLife is a worldwide, non-profit, Evangelical Christian organization. YoungLife consists of many branches of ministry , but most commonly the name "YoungLife" refers to the outreach arm of the organization directed toward high school students...
and InterVarsity
Intervarsity
Intervarsity, Inter Varsity or Inter-Varsity may refer to:*All-Asian Intervarsity Debating Championships, now merged to form the United Asian Debating Championships.*Australasian Intervarsity Debating Championships...
, organizations which Coe had served with early in his ministry career.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton met with Coe on many occasions as First Lady of the United States. According to NBC News, she participated in a prayer luncheon at The Cedars, the Fellowship Foundation's historic conference house and grounds on the banks of the Potomac River in February 1993 and met privately with Coe in her White House office on December 19, 1997, and a “Meet & Greet with Business Leaders” on Feb. 4, 1998. Clinton has written that Doug Coe is "a unique presence in Washington: a genuinely loving spiritual mentor and guide to anyone, regardless of party or faith, who wants to deepen his or her relationship with God." Doug Coe has been referred to as a friend and hero by former small group disciple Vice President Al Gore
Al Gore
Albert Arnold "Al" Gore, Jr. served as the 45th Vice President of the United States , under President Bill Clinton. He was the Democratic Party's nominee for President in the 2000 U.S. presidential election....
.
In March 2009, Coe was a featured speaker at the Idaho State Prayer Breakfast.
The Coe family
Doug Coe is a descendant of early colonist Robert CoeRobert Coe (colonist)
Robert Coe was an early English settler and the progenitor in New England of most of the Coes in America. Robert Coe was born at Thorpe-Morieux, in the county of Suffolk, England, and baptized in the ancient church there on October 26, 1596, as recorded in parish registers...
(1596–1689). Coe, the son of Milton Evans and Loda Helene (Davis) Coe, was born October 20, 1928, in Medford, Oregon. His father, a public-school teacher, and mother were married December 26, 1923, at Yamhill, Oregon. His paternal grandfather, Rev. Curtis Pearre Coe, was a Baptist minister and missionary.
When he is not traveling, Coe resides in Arlington, Virginia, with his wife, Janice, in a home located on the grounds of the former Doubleday Mansion, renamed the Cedars. Doug and Janice Coe are the parents of six children, including David Mark Evans Coe of Annapolis, Maryland; Timothy Stewart Coe of Arnold, Maryland; Jonathan Coe of Washington, D.C. (died 1985), and Pamela Kay Corder of Leesburg, Virginia. They have 21 grandchildren. David, Tim, and Paula are all employed by the Fellowship Foundation and/or Wilberforce Foundation, Inc., and have worked alongside of their father since their college graduations.
External links
- House of Worship by Lisa Miller, Newsweek, Sep 8, 2009