24 Facts About Marvin Olasky

Marvin Olasky became an atheist in adolescence and a Marxist in college, ultimately joining the Communist Party USA in 1972.

Marvin Olasky married and divorced during this period and, according to Marvin Olasky, broke each of the Ten Commandments except "Thou shalt not kill".

Marvin Olasky left the Communist Party late in 1973 and, in 1976, became a Christian after reading the New Testament and several Christian authors.

Marvin Olasky was a professor at the University of Texas at Austin from 1983 to 2007, provost of The King's College in New York City from 2007 to 2011, and Patrick Henry College's distinguished chair in journalism and public policy from 2011 to 2019.

Marvin Olasky joined World Magazine in 1990 and became its editor in 1994 and its editor-in-chief in 2001.

Marvin Olasky has chaired the boards of the City School of Austin and the Austin Crisis Pregnancy Center.

Marvin Olasky's writings have been translated into Chinese, Spanish, Italian, French, Portuguese, Russian, and other languages, and he has lectured and given interviews around the world.

Marvin Olasky argues that government programs are ineffective because they are disconnected from the poor, while private charity has the power to change lives because it allows for a personal connection between giver and recipient.

In 1995, Olasky became an occasional advisor to Texas gubernatorial candidate George W Bush.

Marvin Olasky has described himself as a Christian who believes in God's sovereignty and man's liberty.

Marvin Olasky argues in his 1996 book Telling the Truth that God created the world, knows more about it than anyone else, and explains its nature in the Bible, so "biblical objectivity" accurately depicts the world as it is.

Marvin Olasky has emphasized the Christian origins of freedom of the press and investigative journalism, and teaches in a 2019 book how to advance biblical principles through street-level rather than suite-level reporting.

Marvin Olasky instituted a Daniel of the Year award for individuals who stood up to persecution.

Marvin Olasky furthered "compassionate conservatism" by creating Hope Awards for Effective Compassion, given to Christian organizations that helped people rise from poverty.

In 2007, Marvin Olasky gave up his tenured position at The University of Texas to try to keep alive a struggling Christian college in New York City.

In 2019, Marvin Olasky wrote a book laying out his journalistic philosophy and emphasis on God's objective sovereignty and man's liberty.

Marvin Olasky explained biblical objectivity through the use of a whitewater rapids analogy that he says will help Christians avoid overusing the Bible or underusing it.

Marvin Olasky emphasized the importance of careful reporting rather than opinionating and noted that reporters do not have to be Christians to be biblically objective.

In 2021, after World's editorial leader hired Al Mohler to edit the new World Opinions platform, Marvin Olasky resigned, as did WORLD Magazine's seven other senior editors and reporters.

In 2019, The Gospel Coalition reported Marvin Olasky saying, 'The heavens declare the glory of God, and the streets declare the sinfulness of man.

Marvin Olasky expresses intense awareness of his own story of sin and Christ's glory.

Marvin Olasky, writing in 2008 soon after he had double-bypass surgery, said, 'Christ changed my life a third of a century ago.

Marvin Olasky has been married since 1976 to writer Susan Marvin Olasky, and they have four sons and six grandchildren.

Marvin Olasky has served as a PTA president and a Little League Baseball assistant coach, and has partaken in cross-country cycling.