Beverly LaHaye, Founder of the Concerned Women for America, Dies at 94
Beverly LaHaye, wife of the late evangelist Tim LaHaye (coauthor of the famous Left Behind book series) and founder of the Concerned Women for America (CWA), has passed away at age 94.
LaHaye was a Detroit native with humble beginnings, but her devotion to the Lord honored the biblical precept that faith will show itself through works. As LaHaye would discover, little is much when The Holy Spirit is involved.
Around 45 years ago, LaHaye was concerned with the cultural feminist movement that didn’t seem to support the needs and wants of the average American woman—and it certainly didn’t honor God’s divine purpose for women. This “pro-woman” concept would only shatter souls, destroy lives, and topple the nuclear family unit—one man and one woman for life, creating and nurturing children to honor Jesus.
After watching a 1978 interview featuring Betty Friedan, founder of the National Pro-abortion Organization for Women, LaHaye knew she must act. Her response was to create the CWA, an organization designed to fearlessly push back against DC legislation that stifles women’s chances to become all God made them to be. She and her fellow members were powerhouse lobbyists and spoke to Congress many times concerning policy.
In fact, she is noted to have played a dynamic role throughout policy and legislation drafting for several Republican presidencies, including the Reagan and Bush administrations. LaHaye also spoke out in support of several conservative Supreme Court justices, including the present Clarence Thomas
The CWA remains an active, strong organization and now has chapters all across the nation. LaHaye remained President of the CWA until 2010, and Penny Young Nance now fills this position.
LaHaye’s voice has withstood the ever-changing social constructs of American society, and her Christian activism and tenacious bravery to uphold the Gospel continue to impact women today.
Reverend Johnnie Moore, the president of the Congress of Christian Leaders, told The Christian Post: “She was the matriarch of modern Evangelical political engagement but always first, and foremost, a faithful Christian who never sought the power she had.”
For more on LaHaye’s unending legacy, check out her books, The Spirit-controlled Woman, Who But a Woman?, and The Desires of a Woman’s Heart. You can also read more about her impact on the National Women’s History Museum’s website.
“Yes, religion and politics do mix. America is a nation based on biblical principles. Christian values dominate our government. The test of those values is the Bible. Politicians who do not use the bible to guide their public and private lives do not belong in office.” -Beverly LaHaye
Photo credit: ©Getty Images/Carolyn Ann Ryan
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