Pat Robertson

Marion Gordon "Pat" Robertson (March 22, 1930 – June 8, 2023) was an American media mogul, televangelist, political commentator, presidential candidate, and charismatic minister. Robertson advocated a conservative Christian ideology and was known for his involvement in Republican Party politics. He was associated with the Charismatic movement within Protestant evangelicalism. He served as head of Regent University and of the Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN).

Robertson's career spanned over five decades, and was the founder of several organizations, including CBN, Regent University, Operation Blessing International Relief and Development Corporation, the International Family Entertainment Inc. (ABC Family Channel/Freeform), the American Center for Law & Justice (ACLJ), the Founders Inn and Conference Center, and the Christian Coalition. Robertson was also a best-selling author and the host of The 700 Club, a Christian News and TV program broadcast live weekdays on Freeform (formerly ABC Family) from CBN studios, as well as on channels throughout the United States, and on CBN network affiliates worldwide. Robertson retired from The 700 Club in October 2021.

The son of U.S. Senator A. Willis Robertson, Robertson was a Southern Baptist and was active as an ordained minister with that denomination for many years, but held to a charismatic theology not traditionally common among Southern Baptists. He unsuccessfully campaigned to become the Republican nominee in the 1988 presidential election. As a result of his seeking political office, he never again served in an official role for any church.

Robertson remained a controversial figure, especially known for evangelical religiocentrism. While he became a recognized and influential public voice for conservative Christianity in the U.S. and around the world, his opposition to various progressive causes, including LGBTQ rights, feminism, and the right to abortion, was frequently criticized.

Early life

Marion Gordon Robertson was born on March 22, 1930, in Lexington, Virginia, into a prominent political family, the younger of two sons. His parents were Absalom Willis Robertson (1887–1971), a conservative Democratic Senator, and Gladys Churchill (née Willis; 1897–1968), a housewife and a musician. At a young age, Robertson was nicknamed 'Pat' by his six-year-old brother, Willis Robertson Jr., who enjoyed patting him on the cheeks when he was a baby while saying "pat, pat, pat". Later, Robertson thought about which first name he would like people to use. He considered "Marion" to be effeminate, and "M. Gordon" to be affected, so he opted for his childhood nickname "Pat".

When he was eleven, Robertson was enrolled in the preparatory McDonogh School outside Baltimore, Maryland. From 1940 until 1946, he attended The McCallie School in Chattanooga, Tennessee, where he graduated with honors. He gained admission to Washington and Lee University, where he earned a B.A. in History, graduating magna cum laude. He was also a member of Phi Beta Kappa, the nation's most prestigious academic honor society. He joined Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity. Robertson said, "Although I worked hard at my studies, my real major centered around lovely young ladies who attended the nearby girls schools."

In 1948, the draft was reinstated and Robertson was given the option of joining the U.S. Marine Corps or being drafted into the U.S. Army; he opted for the former. Robertson described his military service as follows: "We did long, grueling marches to toughen the men, plus refresher training in firearms and bayonet combat." In the same year, he transferred to Korea, "I ended up at the headquarters command of the First Marine Division," says Robertson. "The Division was in combat in the hot and dusty, then bitterly cold portion of North Korea just above the 38th Parallel later identified as the 'Punchbowl' and 'Heartbreak Ridge'." For Robertson's service in the Korean War, he was awarded three Battle Stars.

In 1986, former Republican Congressman Paul "Pete" McCloskey Jr., who served with Robertson in Camp Pendleton, wrote a public letter challenging Robertson's record in the military. Robertson filed a libel suit against McCloskey but he dropped the case in 1988 in order to devote "his full time and energies toward the successful attainment of the Republican nomination for the president of the United States."

Robertson was promoted to First Lieutenant in 1952 upon his return to the United States. He then went on to receive a law degree from Yale Law School in 1955, near the top of his class. However, he failed his first and only attempt at the New York bar exam. Shortly thereafter he underwent a religious conversion and decided against pursuing a career in business. Instead, Robertson attended The Biblical Seminary in New York, where he received a Master of Divinity degree in 1959. He became a born again Christian while having dinner at a restaurant in Philadelphia with author and World War II veteran, Cornelius Vanderbreggen. After his conversion, Robertson left the corporate world and went into ministry.

Career

Christian Broadcasting Network

In 1956, Robertson met Dutch missionary Cornelius Vanderbreggen, who impressed Robertson both with his lifestyle and his message. Vanderbreggen quoted Proverbs (3:5, 6), "Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths", which Robertson considered being the "guiding principle" of his life. In 1961, he was ordained as a Southern Baptist minister by Freemason Street Baptist Church in Norfolk, Virginia.

In 1960, Robertson established the Christian Broadcasting Network in Virginia Beach, Virginia, by buying the license of a defunct UHF station in nearby Portsmouth. The station, with the call sign WYAH-TV, first broadcast on October 1, 1961. The network became known for producing the long-running TV series The 700 Club, starting in 1966, which Robertson served as a long time co-host. On April 29, 1977, CBN launched a religious cable network, the CBN Satellite Service, which eventually became The Family Channel. It was the first satellite television channel in America to connect to cable systems across the country. The venture became extremely lucrative, so Robertson spun off The Family Channel as a commercial entity that was sold to News Corporation for $1.9 billion in 1997.

In 1994, he endorsed the document "Evangelicals and Catholics Together". Robertson announced his retirement at the age of 91 from The 700 Club in October 2021, on the sixtieth anniversary of the first telecast on October 1, 1961, of what eventually became CBN.

Regent University

Robertson founded CBN University, a private Christian university, in 1977 on CBN's Virginia Beach campus. Since its founding, the university has established eight academic schools and offers associate, bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees in over 150 areas of study. It was renamed Regent University in 1990. According to the school's catalog, "a regent is one who represents Christ, our Sovereign, in whatever sphere of life he or she may be called to serve Him."

With more than 11,000 current students, Regent University has ranked the #1 Best Online Bachelor's Program in Virginia for ten years in a row by U.S. News & World Report 2022, as well as 2023 Best Graduate Schools-Law, Best Graduate Schools – Social Sciences and Humanities Doctoral Programs – Psychology, 2023 Best Graduate Schools – Public Affairs, and 2023 Best Education Schools by U.S. News & World Report. Robertson served as its chancellor and CEO.

Robertson was also founder and president of the American Center for Law & Justice, a public interest law firm headquartered in Washington, D.C., associated with Regent University School of Law in Virginia Beach, Virginia, which defends constitutional freedoms and conservative Christian ideals. Critics have characterized Robertson as an advocate of dominionism.

Operation Blessing

Robertson's Operation Blessing organization sent medical teams to developing countries to help people who had no access to medical care. In 1994, in the aftermath of the Rwandan genocide, Robertson solicited donations to provide medical supplies to refugees in neighboring Zaire (present-day Congo), where Robertson also had exploratory diamond mining operations. According to a 1999 article in The Virginian-Pilot, two Operation Blessing pilots who were interviewed alleged that the organization's planes were used to haul diamond-mining equipment to Robertson's mines in Zaire. Robertson denied the pilots' accounts.

In its 2021 ranking of "100 Largest Charities", Forbes ranked Operation Blessing/CBN at #44, with a fundraising efficiency of 93% (percentage of donations left after fundraising expenses) and charitable commitment of 87% (percentage of expenses paid toward the stated mission compared to other costs).