
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SATURDAY, July 16, 1994                   TAG: 9407260038
SECTION: EXTRA                    PAGE: 4   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: By CLARK MORPHEW KNIGHT-RIDDER NEWSPAPERS
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

PROMISE KEEPERS HELPS MEN GET THEIR LIVES BACK ON TRACK

There's a new movement sweeping the country, and the focus group is men - those junkyard dogs who don't keep promises and can't make commitments but do tell lies, drink too much whiskey and chase women as if they were about to become extinct.

Truly, men aren't all that bad. We all know guys who are good family men who have been straight arrows all their lives. But we also know men who have strayed from the paths of decency. Those are the fellows who need to jump on this male bandwagon.

One of the fastest-growing organizations in this new male movement is Promise Keepers, a Colorado-based enterprise that was started in 1990 by Bill McCartney, head football coach at the University of Colorado. The program consists of huge outdoor rallies where participants are regaled through the day and night to become better fathers, husbands and human beings.

Promise Keepers has grown from 4,000 men in 1990 to 250,000 men. The last of six rallies this season will be held in Boulder, Colo., July 29 and 30, and it's expected to draw 50,000 participants.

Promise Keepers is thoroughly evangelical Christian. Participants include men who have abdicated their role as the leader of their families, the organization's brochure says. But among these enthusiastic believers you will also find some men who have strayed from their Christian underpinnings in more serious ways.

Tom Barker, an elementary-school principal from Inver Grove Heights, Minn., said his life was in shambles when a friend invited him to attend the Boulder rally in 1993. Barker - who was separated from his wife, Julie, at the time - was reluctant to make the long trip to spend two days hearing speeches. But he agreed to go.

Then, a few days before the event, Barker changed his mind. He called Promise Keepers' office in Boulder to see if he could get his registration fee returned. The woman who answered the phone put Barker on hold but never came back on the line. Barker thinks it was providence, and the next weekend he was in Boulder examining his life as he never had before.

By the time the weekend was over, Barker had committed himself not only to Jesus Christ but also to making his marriage work and taking back the leadership of his family. Now he meets once a week with three other Promise Keepers for prayer, Bible study and intimate conversations.

``It was exactly what I needed,'' Barker said during a recent interview. ``Whether it be a situation such as I was living or domestic abuse or simply that the head of the household has not committed himself to Christ, if we have a nation of men who are living biblical values, maybe all our problems as a nation won't be there anymore.''

For Dan Oliver, 30, a marketing specialist, Promise Keepers helped him turn his life around after a painful divorce. He attended a gathering in Boulder the first year the organization went national. He returned home a changed man and maintains his integrity through monthly meetings with other Promise Keepers.

``When you look at all the evil and unrest in the world,'' Oliver said, ``and a man has a turnaround in his life, he can be a strong influence.''

Promise Keepers asks men to commit themselves to seven promises. A Promise Keeper is committed to honor Jesus Christ, practice ethical and sexual purity, build strong marriages, support the mission of the church, reach beyond racial barriers, influence the world and pursue vital relationships with other men.

I don't think many people will find fault with Promise Keepers. Sure, it excludes women, but these men need a chance to get their lives in shape. And we all know men and women learn better when they are separated. So, perhaps these massive conversions in men's lives can only be accomplished in the presence of other men. And the end result could be momentous.

It's true that Promise Keepers has been criticized for an agenda that looks a bit too political at times - one preacher this summer called the American Civil Liberties Union ``satanic,'' according to the Los Angeles Times.

Of course, that kind of talk could spike the entire operation. But if the group sticks to fathering, husbanding and integrity, it could make a big dent in our national despair. Why would anyone want to oppose a national resurrection?

by CNB