Keith
Roderick
An Episcopal priest, Father Keith Roderick
was a Cold War human rights activist on behalf of Soviet citizens
facing religious persecution under Communist rule. He now
serves as Christian Solidarity International’s Representative
in Washington , D.C. Christian Solidarity International (
CSI ) is a Christian human rights organization for religious
liberty helping victims of religious repression, victimized
children and victims of disaster. It is based in Zurich ,
Switzerland but has office in several countries, including
the U.S. www.csi-usa.org
Father Roderick has served as Secretary
General of the Coalition for the Defense of Human Rights (CDHR)
since 1993. The Coalition is a consortium of over fifty-five
organizations working together to champion the rights of minorities
living in Islamic countries. Members of the Coalition include
Catholics, Protestants, Orthodox Christians, Jews, Hindus,
Muslims, Assyrians, Armenians, Bahai, Copts, Lebanese, Indonesians,
Iranians, Pakistanis, Indians, Sudanese, Nigerians, and others.
His articles on minorities in the Middle
East have been published in National Review and The American
Thinker, and others. He is a columnist for Africa My Dream:
Africa-America International Magazine.
He is an Episcopal priest of the Diocese
of Quincy, serving as the only Canon for Persecuted Christians
in the Episcopal Church. Father Roderick also serves as Executive
Director of the Sudan Campaign and met with President Bush
in the White House regarding the continued violence in Sudan
. He met with Christian leaders in Lebanon and other pro-democratic
activists to discuss the future of the Lebanese Cedar Revolution.
He continues to work leaders of the minority communities in
the Middle East to promote security and equality.
Formerly he was the Director of Spoon River
College in Macomb , Illinois and taught religion and philosophy
for fifteen years. He founded the Society of St. Stephen in
1982 that worked on behalf of religious prisoners of conscience
and their families in the former Soviet Union . He served
as the Co-Director of the International Task Force, formerly
The Task Force on Soviet Jewry.
Education
1996 Doctor of Divinity, Faith Theological
Seminary, Gujranwala , Pakistan
1986 Certificate for Post-Graduate Studies,
Nashotah House, Delafield , WI
1980 Master of Divinity, University of
Dubuque Theological Seminary, Dubuque , IA
1976 Bachelor of Arts, University of Illinois
(formerly Sangamon State U) - Springfield , Springfield ,
IL
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