Contact: Peggy Nienaber, 202-236-0953
WASHINGTON, Oct. 21, 2013 /Christian Newswire/ -- The Reverend Dr. Suzan D. Johnson Cook, who recently left public service as United States Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom, is being praised by two evangelical leaders that worked extensively with her while she occupied the office.
The Reverend Dr. Rob Schenck (pronounced "Shank"), president of Faith and Action, a ministry to top elected and appointed officials in Washington, DC, and the chairman of the Evangelical Church Alliance International, which endorsed Ambassador Johnson Cook during her Senate confirmation process, released this statement:
"I have interacted with the office of the Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom since it's inception in 1998. I have worked with all of Ambassador Johnson-Cook's predecessors, each of which served admirably, but Ambassador Johnson-Cook brought a greater passion, a greater responsiveness, and a greater professional commitment to religious freedom than I had ever seen before. That level of dedication was displayed magnificently in the effort to rescue Iranian born US pastor Saeed Abedini. Ambassador Johnson Cook played a key role in getting Secretary of State John Kerry, and later President Obama, to make public statements and make demands on Iran to release Pastor Abedini. The Ambassador had played a similar role in the earlier release of Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani.
"Perhaps the greatest achievement of Ambassador Johnson Cook was her courageous confrontation of the legendary internal politics at the State Department. From the beginning she knew that some of her toughest challenges would come from inside this gigantic, sclerotic bureaucracy, and she sacrificially met those challenges to keep religious freedom on our national agenda. That was no small fete, and she deserves high praise for doing it.
"There is a reason that high-profile evangelicals in the Congress like Sen. Jim DeMint and Rep. Frank Wolf enthusiastically supported Ambassador Johnson Cook and contributed toward her unanimous confirmation vote. They came to know what I knew the first time I met her, that she is a woman of God, devoted to prayer, that she shares our deepest core convictions, and that she is a very capable leader. During her tenure, Ambassador Johnson Cook brought together an unprecedented coalition of diverse and even opposing religious and political camps to promote America's unique concept of religious liberty around the world. She also worked tirelessly behind the scenes as an advocate for persecuted believers everywhere, and she did all of this while swimming against the political tide. I'm sorry to the see the Ambassador go, but believe God has even greater things for her to do from here."
Another Christian leader who worked personally on the case of Pastor Saeed Abedini, the Reverend Patrick J. Mahoney of the Christian Defense Coalition, said of the Ambassador's departure,
"Having known Ambassador Johnson Cook for a number of years now, I commend her unequivocally for her devotion to religious freedom. Her dedication and commitment was extraordinary and powerful. She was always there for us and always highly responsive to our requests for assistance. I appreciate her deeply on a personal level and recognize her remarkable contribution to a great cause. I will miss her presence at the State Department and I pray that her successor will meet and exceed the high bar she has set for commitment to this great cause."
The Reverends Schenck and Mahoney are available for further comment by calling Peggy Nienaber at 202-236-0953.
