The Nation: Conversion

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Of all the Watergate cast, few had a reputation for being tougher, wilier, nastier or more tenaciously loyal to Richard Nixon than onetime Presidential Adviser Charles W. Colson. The former Marine captain is alleged by Jeb Stuart Magruder to have urged the original Watergate bugging and has been implicated in a host of other dirty tricks, including the forgery of a State Department cable. At the peak of his influence, he proudly boasted that his commitment to the re-election of the President was such that "I would walk over my grandmother if necessary."

At a White House staff prayer breakfast last week, Colson, 42, revealed a new aspect. He said that he has "come to know Christ." Episcopalian Colson admitted that until recently he had been a regular, but hardly committed churchgoer. But he said that since his departure from the White House he has had "some occasion" to think about religion and "pray with other committed people." Suspecting that his newfound faith may go down hard with some, Tough Guy Colson had a forthright response for scoffers. Said he: "If anyone wants to be cynical about it, I'll pray for him."