Robert Leonard Schenck (born 1958) is an American Evangelical clergyman who has ministered to elected and appointed officials in Washington, D.C., and serves as president of a nonprofit organization named for Dietrich Bonhoeffer. Schenck founded the organization Faith and Action in 1995 and led it until 2018. He is the subject of the Emmy Award-winning 2016 Abigail Disney documentary, The Armor of Light. Schenck stated that he was part of a group that paid Norma McCorvey (also known as Jane Roe from the landmark Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision) to lie that she had changed her mind and turned against abortion. Once a prominent anti-abortion activist, Schenck has since repudiated this work and expressed support for the legality of abortion. In 2022, Schenck testified before the House Judiciary Committee concerning his allegation that a member of the Supreme Court leaked information about a pending case before the Court.
Early years
Robert Lenard Schenck and his identical twin brother, Paul, were born in 1958 in Montclair, New Jersey, to Chaim "Henry Paul" Schenck and Marjorie (née Apgar) Schenck. Schenck was named after his father's older brother, who was a decorated B-17 bomber pilot in World War II and who lost his life in an air crash while serving in the Korean War. Schenck's father was born Jewish, raised in Manhattan, and attended a Reform Temple on Long Island, and Schenck's mother was born Catholic in Brooklyn, raised non-religious (she converted to Judaism when marrying his father), and grew up in Northern New Jersey. Schenck grew up in Grand Island, New York."Rob Schenck Facebook Profile" by Rev. Rob Schenck,
As a self-described "rebellious teen", Schenck became involved in risky behavior. Then in 1974, at the age of 16, the boys became acquainted with the son of a United Methodist minister serving the Trinity United Methodist Church in Grand Island. After Paul was introduced to a circle of young, religious Christians, he decided to become a Christian. Schenck accompanied his brother to prayer meetings and soon converted as well. Both brothers were baptized in the waters of the Niagara River, which forms the borders of Grand Island.
Family While attending a youth prayer group in Grand Island, Schenck met Cheryl Smith, whom he married in 1977 after graduating from Grand Island High School. They have two children.
Religious affiliations
From 2012 to 2016, Schenck served as chairman of the board of directors of the Evangelical Church Alliance (ECA). He was also chairman of ECA's Committee for Church and Society, the social witness arm of the alliance of ministers. In 2018, he became an advisor to the Office of the Secretary General of the World Evangelical Alliance (WEA).
Ministry and activism Faithwalk In 1988, Schenck, an Assembly of God minister, took a long-distance walk to help people in Mexico who live and work in garbage dumps. While he visited Mexico City in 1982, he became aware of the plight of the "dump people". Schenck took a 2,000-mile (3,200 km) walk from Buffalo, NY, through eight states and crossed the border at Laredo, Texas. He hoped to raise $1 million to build a clinic and recruit volunteers willing to help provide medical, dental, and construction services.
Anti-abortion activism In 1992, during Buffalo's large-scale abortion clinic demonstrations, Schenck grabbed national and worldwide attention when photos and videos were shot of him cradling a preserved human fetus, given the name "Tia" by a Black anti-abortion group, because the fetus was believed to be African-American. Much was written and aired about the event. In an opinion editorial in the June 15 Buffalo News, Schenck responded to the criticism. According to the op-ed, Schenck believed that pro-choice supporters ignored the truth in favor of ideology, and conversely, he believed that the fetus demonstrated the truth of his views. "Most have never seen an abortion, let alone the result of it. Baby Tia takes the argument out of the abstract and into reality."REV. ROBERT L. SCHENCK -. "A LOOK BACK AT BABY TIA CONTROVERSY." Buffalo News. 1992.
In 1995, Schenck organized the first National Memorial for the Preborn and their Mothers and Fathers. This memorial is a religious service against abortion.Dana Milbank. "The Marchers State Their Case: Alito v. 'Roe'." The Washington Post. Washington Post Newsweek Interactive Co. 2006. This quickly became a prominent anti-abortion event held inside the US Capitol complex in Washington, DC. Originally a program of the National Clergy Council, the event has now been renamed the National Pro-Life Clergy Conference and is sponsored by the National Pro-Life Religious Council.National Memorial for the Preborn and their Mothers and Fathers Removed From Capitol Buildings. Standard Newswire, January 17, 2008.
As of 2003, Schenck was a member of the National Pro-Life Religious Council."National Religious Leaders Call for Continuous Prayer to Overturn Roe vs. Wade." U.S. Newswire. US Newswire. 2003. He participated in the events surrounding Terri Schiavo's death. Schenck traveled to Florida to try to prevent Schiavo from being allowed to die and publicly called for police to prevent the same."Coalition Calls Upon Bush to Save Schiavo's Life by Using PolicePowers; Press Conferences in Washington, Tallahassee March 23.". US Newswire. 2005. He was also a signatory of a letter to President George Bush and Florida Gov. Jeb Bush by national anti-abortion leaders."Open Letter from 11th Hour Coalition to save Terri Schiavo's life to President Bush and Gov. Bush" US Newswire. 2005. In 2005, Faith and Action served as a clearinghouse for donations to the family of Susan Torres, a brain-dead pregnant woman being kept on life support so that she could give birth.
Some time after 2010, Schenck changed his mind about abortion, stating that banning abortion would cause more harm than good, and opposed the effort to overturn Roe v. Wade. He concludes his May 31, 2019, Op-Ed for the New York Times. "No doubt, many of my former allies will call me a turncoat. I don't see it that way. I still believe that every abortion is a tragedy and that when a woman is pregnant, bringing the child into the world is always ideal. Reality, though, is different from fantasy. I wish every child could be fully nurtured and cared for and could experience all the wonderful possibilities that life can offer."
Schenck later stated that he was once part of a group that paid Norma McCorvey (1947–2017)—also known as Jane Roe in the landmark Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision—to lie and say that she had changed her mind and joined anti-abortion movements. Having denounced the anti-abortion movement in 2019, Schenck stated in the 2020 documentary AKA Jane Roe that McCorvey was paid to pose as an anti-abortion rights activist and that "what we did with Norma was highly unethical"."Anti-abortion rights movement paid 'Jane Roe' thousands to switch sides, documentary reveals" Alicia Victoria Lozano, NBC News, May 20, 2020. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
Pastoring and preaching In August 1994, in order to minister to national decision makers, Schenck and family moved to Washington, D.C. His first ministry there was to organize a new church. He attracted a core group of worshippers and created what became the National Community Church. He served as pastor for over a year until deciding to focus on government officials. In the beginning of 1996, when Mark Batterson took over as pastor, the church had around 30 people in attendance.
On Sunday, November 29, 2015, Schenck was a guest preacher at a Sunday worship service at the Washington National Cathedral. Schenck was invited to speak because of his opposition to gun violence and the documentary, The Armor of Light, focusing on him, which was screened at the church following the service.
Rev. Schenk used a ritual of blessing and prayer to seek divine guidance for the committee and the jurist during the confirmation hearings of Supreme Court Justices Samuel AlitoMinisters Say They Blessed Seats Ahead of Alito Hearing" Wall Street Journal, Jan 5, 2006 and Sonia Sotomayor."A Supreme blessing.(CULTURE)(HOT BUTTON)(Column)."The Washington Times (Washington, DC). News World Communications, Inc. 2009. 28 September 2010. A similar anointing and prayer ritual was used to seek God's guidance for President Barack Obama when Schenck anointed the doorway to the inauguration through which the president-elect would walk to the inaugural stage. This was part of a 19-day effort of prayer and fasting for Obama and his presidency. This was a continuation of the official prayer for the new president, which began with President George W. Bush's second term."Christians to Begin Inauguration Day Thanking God for Bush Re- Election." US Newswire. 2005.
Ten Commandments Project Created in 1995, his Ten Commandments Project has given over 400 plaques of the Ten Commandments to members of Congress and other highly placed officials, including former presidents Clinton and Bush. Special delegations made up of clergy and laypeople made the presentations during ceremonies held in the recipients' offices. The agenda included a short speech that describes religion as the foundational basis of morality and law, a reading of the Commandments in their entirety, and prayers. The official was given an inscribed wooden plaque on which are mounted two stone polymer tablets containing a summary of the Ten Commandments. Recipients were urged to "display and obey" the Ten Commandments.Michelle Boorstein - Washington Post Staff Writer. "Group Aims to Unveil Ten Commandments; Tablets Under Wraps Near Supreme Court." The Washington Post. Washington Post Newsweek Interactive Co. 2006.
Monument relocation from Ohio In May 2009, Schenck joined Republican Rep. Jean Schmidt and other Ohio leaders to help relocate a Ten Commandments sculpture. The 3-foot by 3-foot granite sculpture, which weighs 850 pounds, is one of four monuments removed by federal court order from the fronts of public schools in rural Adams County, Ohio. The monument was placed in a prominent position on private property. The monument is identical to the one in front of the Faith and Action ministry center on Capitol Hill."On a mission. (Citizen Journalism: Faith) (Bulletin Board) (Column)." The Washington Times (Washington, DC). News World Communications, Inc. 2009.
Judge Moore's Monument In 2003, Schenck helped organize a supportive demonstration outside of the Alabama Judicial Building, seat of the state's Supreme Court, when Roy Moore was chief justice. By that time, Schenck had a long cooperative association with Moore"Alabama Chief Justice Applauded On Display Of Ten Commandments; Similar Monument To Be Erected Across Street From Supreme Court." U.S. Newswire. US Newswire. 2001. who refused to relocate a granite monument to the historic basis of the law that included the Ten Commandments. The monument was eventually ordered moved by US District Judge Myron Thompson. When US marshals were dispatched to supervise the removal, Schenck and several others surrounded the monument, knelt, and started to pray. He was arrested and held for 5½ hours while the monument was moved."National Clergy Council President Arrested for Protecting Ten Commandments." U.S. Newswire. US Newswire. 2003. Schenck was interviewed on numerous television shows regarding the events.Brit Hume, Jim Angle, Major Garrett. "Ten Commandment Monument In Alabama Removed From Public Viewing; Developments In The California Recall Election Including Cruz Bustamant'es Association With A Racist Group." Special Report with Brit Hume (Fox News Network). 2003.
Opposition to Burn-a-Koran Day