The New York Times on World Magazine

The New York Times, of all publications, has an appreciative article on World Magazine, where I used to be cultural editor.  It lauds the conservative Christian publication for investigating and exposing wrongdoing among conservative Christians.

From Mark Oppenheimer, A Muckraking Magazine Creates a Stir Among Evangelical Christians – NYTimes.com:

In October, Mark Driscoll, the evangelical pastor and best-selling author, resigned from Mars Hill, his Seattle megachurch. This month, Mars Hill announced that it was dissolving its network of 13 satellite churches.

In the aftermath of his fall, Mr. Driscoll, who was known for his autocratic management style, his quashing of dissent and his unusually frank talk about how Christian wives can please their husbands in bed, had himself to blame. In resigning, Mr. Driscoll admitted his failings, citing his “past pride, anger and a domineering spirit.”

But Mr. Driscoll cannot take all the credit for his own downfall. For one thing, any faithful Christian would give Satan his due, for leading Mr. Driscoll astray. Then there is the role played by World, an evangelical Christian newsmagazine that broke one of the most damaging stories about Mr. Driscoll. In March, World reported that $210,000 in Mars Hill church funds had gone to a marketing firm that promised to get “Real Marriage,” a book written by Mr. Driscoll and his wife, on best-seller lists.

World was not the only outlet to take on Mr. Driscoll. The blogger Warren Throckmorton, in particular, persistently chronicled concerns about Mars Hill for the website Patheos. But the story about best-seller lists was also not the first scoop for World, and Mr. Driscoll was not the first conservative Christian leader that the magazine had taken on.

[Keep reading. . .]