Together For Mahaney at Southern Baptist Convention!

Well it seems the Brotherhood of Mega Pastor’s feel its okey dokey to dig their hole just a little bit deeper!  I honestly don’t understand WHERE their logic is!  If you remember Together for the Gospel, and the Gospel Coalition wrote letters of support to a partner in their old boys club, CJ Mahaney.

Sadly, their bad behavior is continuing.  What they seem to be doing is trying to scare others into NOT coming forward for help.  They seem to have forgotten their ‘biblical role’, because it should be the opposite.  They know this as well. 

Keep in mind the lawsuit is still going on, and everything is still ‘alleged’ at this point.

Changes to letters of Support of CJ Mahaney

Together for the Gospel wrote their letter of support on Facebook, and it was taken down after over 100 negative responses were received.  They moved the letter to their website where it can safety stay with NO comments from anyone.

In line with how they tend to control their environments it didn’t surprise me to find that they also decided to change their letter around a bit.  Wartsburg Watch and Spiritual Sounding Board is who I noticed sounding the charge! 

When first posted on May 23, 2013, the statement included this paragraph:
“A Christian leader, charged with any credible, serious, and direct wrongdoing, would usually be well advised to step down from public ministry. No such accusation of direct wrongdoing was ever made against C.J. Mahaney. Instead, he was charged with founding a ministry and for teaching doctrines and principles that are held to be true by vast millions of American evangelicals …”
Checked on the morning of June 6, it was discovered that two sentences — “No such accusation of direct wrongdoing was ever made against C.J. Mahaney. Instead, he was charged with founding a ministry and for teaching doctrines and principles that are held to be true by vast millions of American evangelicals” — had been removed from the statement. This is how the new version reads: “A Christian leader, charged with any credible, serious, and direct wrongdoing, would usually be well advised to step down from public ministry. We believe this lawsuit failed that test.”
However, the date on the statement remained May 23. No reference to an update was included on the changed statement.

Shh!  I don’t think we were suppose to notice!  You have to admit the second is a better cleaned up version.  I mean their martyrhood was showing a bit to much on the original.  I guess they figured ‘charged with founding a ministry’, and teaching its doctrines and principals was a bit over the top – even for those that respected them.

What they never did mention was the fact that CJ Mahaney was the lead pastor at the churches (or one of them) while the covering up of the abuse was happening.  How he was allegedly part of the encouragement of the church members NOT to involve the authorities when this was happening.  THAT was why he was mentioned in the lawsuit, and that’s a far cry from ‘founding a ministry’.  Habitual cover up of abuse is what he is accused of after all!

Boz Tchividjian serves as Executive Director of GRACE (Godly Response to Abuse in the Christian Environment), which he helped found.  The purpose of GRACE is "to educate and equip the faith community to correctly respond to sexual abuse disclosures, while also providing practical guidance to churches on how to protect children."  In addition to this position, he serves as a law professor at Liberty University School of Law.  Boz Tchividjian is the third eldest grandchild of Billy Graham.

He was interviewed by Janet Mefferd:

In case you missed the interview, you can listen to it here (starting at the 20:30 mark).  Janet Mefferd explained that there have been cries from a lot of ordinary Christians who are calling on evangelical leaders to address what she describes as "American evangelicalism's biggest sex scandal to date".

Documents and Audio Surface

Sadly, since all of this started Wartsburg Watch also got to listen to an audio for Sovereign Grace Ministries discussing how they as the church need to handle these cases of abuse as they come up.  The church’s policy is also on a 17 page document.  Sigh!

It was sadly much the same type of garbage that has got so many other organizations in trouble.

The church leaders feel they need to decide if its abuse FIRST OFF.  They will approach the other party – the perp I guess to get their side of the story.  They call their lawyer to see how to protect the church.  They get all their ducks in a row, and then if they feel the case has merit?  They tell the family to go to the police, because after all the authorities don’t like getting information ‘second hand’.  They will not notify anyone else in the church, because I guess they feel its none of their business.  Encourage the family to hush as well.  Then the perp and the victim get handed two different pastors to ‘counsel’ with. 

There is more to it of course, and that is my nutshell version!

Problem is they are mandatory reporters, and the reputation of the church SHOULD be the last thing on their mind!  The lawsuit happened, because they decided ‘it wasn’t abuse’ and buried it allegedly.  Sadly, of course cries for help were ignored.

SBC getting Ready for Convention, and they REALLY would rather deal with the Boy Scouts!

Another interesting part to this story is that the Southern Baptist Convention is coming up again.  The mega pastors didn’t get the ‘support’ they were looking for, and no doubt they want to put this to bed.  It’s not going to happen, because people are crying out! 

They want to discuss the Boy Scouts agreement to allow homosexual scouts into their troops, and NOT sexual abuse within the church!  Notice how they don’t want to take that darn SPECK from their eye, but rather deal with the LOG in the Boy Scouts?  How biblical right?!

 David Clohessy, national director of SNAP -- the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests – said May 28 that religious leaders voicing support for embattled Pastor C.J. Mahaney, named in a lawsuit recently thrown out of a Maryland court for legal reasons, ought to be ashamed. (Keep in mind it was the Status of Limitations that had run out, but amended lawsuit has been filed)

Peter Lumpkins  has a Resolution on Sexual Abuse of Children - Proposed to the 2013 Southern Baptist Convention meeting in Houston, Texas.  I don’t honestly know if they will even acknowledge him under the circumstances.

Meanwhile, Amy and her husband are Houston leaders for (Snap) Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests (and other clergy).   They belong to the Houston First Baptist Church.   She was planning on attending the Southern Baptist Convention, and holding up a picture of a sexual abuse survivor to being awareness of victims within the Baptist’s churches.    They already has sent a letter to the convention asking for time on this issue (letter is attached on her site).  They get a phone call from their pastor, and have a meeting with the pastor of their large church that they never spoke to prior.  Part of her transcript is below, and she also get a call from the police department concerned about her 'protest':

I saw your blog.
I'm confused. You don't see it as a problem? [speaking out about child sexual abuse by Baptist clergy, about Baptist churches that cover up such abuse, about silence from SBC leaders about this abuse, about the vocal support of another evangelical pastor C.J. Mahaney accused in a lawsuit by 11 plaintiffs of covering up child sex abuse, and planning an awareness event next week at the Southern Baptist Convention annual meeting in Houston]
What good is it going to do, you standing outside the SBC?
What good will it do if the SBC president did issue a statement on abuse?
We're not like the Methodists. [each Baptist church is locally autonomous]
How can you say that? [that child sexual abuse within Baptist churches is a systemic problem]
You may be seen as fringe.

A comment from the article:

At the meeting with my husband the next day, Doug brought up the subject of me stepping down (from her role within the youth ministry), and he told my husband that I had told him I was stepping down but that he had said to think about it. Doug told my husband that after thinking about it overnight, he thought me stepping down "is for the best."

My husband asked him, "Why?" Doug replied, "You don't see it as a problem?"
My husband said "No."

Sadly, it seems her pastor feels towing the line with "Together for Maheney".   Another quote:

“They agree with us that child sexual abuse is bad, and they don't want me to stop what I'm doing, but the church doesn't support me raising awareness by pointing out the problem within SBC churches and pastors that cover abuse up by failing to report,” she wrote. “It's not a problem for me to point out these issues with Catholic churches or Penn State, just don't point the finger at my own Southern Baptist Convention.”

Here we go again with this ‘autonomous’ church stuff.  If you remember the Tina Anderson and Chuck Phelps story?  Their Independent Fundamental Baptist churches also use the ‘autonomous’ aspect to NOT deal directly with this sin as well. 

Did they NOT figure out that just isn’t going to HAPPEN? Why is it these preacher boys want everyone to face their sin, and decide where the sin sniffing needs to begin – yet can’t face it themselves?

No, Its not easy to have a friend of yours facing these awful charges.  Common sense needs to be used in these types of circumstances, and yet Chicago type Gangster stuff does instead!  Where is the benevolent leadership?

They are so WORRIED that the darn feminists were going to take them down, and RUIN life as we know it … and look who is doing it all by themselves?  Is this the ‘MANHOOD’ we have been hearing about?

Seriously.  SHAME ON YOU!



_____

*Post as been edited to add more detail.

Erick Erickson wants to HAVE IT ALL!

None of us can have it all. Women as primary breadwinners does make raising children harder, increasing the likelihood of harm in the development of children. While it is a reality in this world and sometimes even necessary, that does not mean we should not ignore the consequences of the increase in moms, instead of dads, as primary breadwinners (often because the man walked out). – Erick Erickson

Erick Erickson and Lou Dobbs got themselves into some hot water with their complementarian views on working mothers this week.  These men I guess you could categorize as ‘conservative’, but honestly their moronic views on this issue can be very universal as well.  I have the videos in question linked at the bottom.

I read a number of news feeds, because I don’t think any network or organization gives you all the angles to really figure out what is going on.  For myself?  I read most of them so I can get a handle on what the TRUE story is! 

ANYWAY…..

Women are Culpable for the downfall of society

Erick’s article linked to CMBW at the end of it (see above next to picture), and YES he does chant their way of thinking quite well.  Sadly, when you get too deep into this way of thinking Pastors – being the dominate of the dominate of the genders – get to dictate to others that you need to support them EVEN if there are serious questions about them habitually abusing children….and covering it UP!  Remember they seem to feel they are NOT culpable in those cases, and as it seems today they are not culpable for the ‘downfall of society’ either.  This time its not the children that need to own the blame, but the wife’s and mothers!  How ‘Adam” of them!

“Four in Ten Households now have the mother as the primary bread winner”

You notice this still reads, 6 out of 10 households still have the MALE has the primary bread winner.  Yet, the majority of the bread winners being male has no effect on society.  Nope, the minority are responsible for this.

Most people realize there are too many dynamics at play today, but lets go into this simplistic viewpoint JUST for a moment!  Yes, we will use the stereotypes, and simplistic reasoning.  It has a purpose today.

I don’t think most people would disagree that having two healthy adults raising their children together is best for families.  It’s easier for adults to have a partner to share the load, and having the influence of both parents with their children has benefits as well.  Yes, these are generic reasons, but we all know there are others as well.  We don’t need to go into all of them.

Men walk out because they can’t HAVE IT ALL!   …or is it women?

I look at the above paragraph from Erick Erickson, and I concentrated on that last sentence. 

‘often because the man walked out’

He states that if you have mother that works full time its hard to come home, and be a full time mother.  He never mentions that this factor is hard for men as well!  Is it easy for father’s to come home from working a full time job, and be a full time father?  I would assume not. 

Brotherhood of Mega Pastors says there is no Culpability on their part!

Claims presented in a civil lawsuit seeking financial compensation are beyond the ability of the public to render judgment. Often, such claims are even beyond the ability of a court to deliberate. To comment on such claims is irresponsible, since no one apart from the court and the parties directly involved has any ability to evaluate the claims presented. If the filing of civil litigation against a Christian ministry or leader is in itself reason for separation and a rush to judgment, no ministry or minister is safe from destruction at any time. Furthermore, the effort to try such a case in the court of public opinion prior to any decision rendered by an authorized court is likewise irresponsible  (Full Transcript with comments Here, and Here   - Thank you Bill Kinnon)

Sovereign Grace Ministries (Or SGM) has been a hot topic all around the blog world, and some news outlets as well.  Sadly, it hasn’t been in a good way.  Claims of alleged (word for lawyers) sexual abuse, physical abuse, emotional abuse, spiritual abuse were brought forth towards C. J. Mahaney’s Church, or network of churches – naming himself and some of his staff.    The two main responses from ‘friends’ of SGM are at best Disingenuous. 

The lawsuit itself had over 146 claims of abuse, and 16 churches have left the network of churches claiming C. J. Mahaney is not above reproach. 

The above quoted paragraph is from a statement issued from powerful friends: Mark Dever, Ligion Duncan, and Albert Mohler.  They originally posted in on the “Together for the Gospel” facebook page, and because of all the negative feedback…it was removed.  Yes, they did attempt to scrub it clean, but the link above shows the screen shot with comments.  They did re-issue their statement on their website that does not allow comments.  Think what you may about that!

I read the above with dismay, because it isn’t hard to find articles on their own sites commenting, questioning, and making decisions on lawsuits PRIOR to an authorized court doing so.    Being that C. J. Mahaney is their friend?  WELL it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to tell which they prefer in this case.  Their approach is pretty manipulative if you think about it. 

Within the last week a civil lawsuit that was filed was dismissed due to the crimes being committed outside the statue of limitations (in other words – too long ago).  Most of claims were dismissed, but thankfully not all.  If you read the statement from the brotherhood of the Mega Pastors – you would think that means there is nothing to the suit at all.    Thankfully, in more and more areas the statue of limitations in these types of cases are being removed.  They are realizing when you are harmed as a child in these types of circumstances you aren’t in the position to go out and FILE the civil suit are you?  Let’s read what Boz Tchividjian founder and Executive Director of GRACE: Godly Response to Abuse in the Christian Environment and is a former child abuse prosecutor has to say about their comments and the Statue of Limitation:

The statement by T4G fails to mention that this lawsuit was dismissed for one reason and one reason only…expiration of the statute of limitation. Isn’t it tragic that the reason why this suit was dismissed – taking too long to file – was the very objective of these church leaders allegedly had when they discouraged these individuals and families from stepping forward. - Boz Tchividjian  From G.R.A.C.E.

The dropping of most of the cases was a big blow to the survivors, because what they were trying to show was a pattern of systematic cover up of abuse.  Please note that YES the civil suit was dropped in some cases, but the criminal one is still on-going.  It makes no sense that they can comment NOW when it clearly isn’t completely over yet.  They may have just shot themselves in the foot with that one.  Julie Anne goes into more details about the legal end of this on her blog Spiritual Sounding Board.  What C. J. Mahaney’s friends seem to be hinting at is – there was no case.    Once again I say – Disingenuous!

Happy Mother's Day Virtuous Woman!

Tomorrow is Mother’s Day, and I want to wish everyone a HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY!

I heard on the News that Mother’s Day was made official in my country 100 years this year. I had NO idea!

That’s so awesome!

Happy Mother’s Day MOM!

This year is a bit different for me, because of my circumstance. My mother is in the final states of Dementia, and we placed her in Hospice care within the last week.

 

Within the last 6 months my brother and I had to place her in an Alzheimer’s unit, because her care was getting to overwhelming for us. We found that is cost MORE to keep her at home with help then it did to have her in a secure environment that she is in now.

She had long term care insurance that our parents took out for themselves after they themselves cared for their parents. There is limits on those types of care – moneywise – and we decided it was best to make sure she had the best of care with what time she has left. My brother and I went through all kinds of options, and this one seemed the best. We didn’t want to move her, because seniors tend to go downhill faster when you do.

Mother doesn’t know who I am anymore, and just this week when I went to visit she lit up facially. She knew me, but didn’t really ‘know me’ anymore. She told the doctor there I was good friend of hers, and grabbed my hand and wouldn’t let go. Within the last month she has had one struggle after another, and it was nice to have that small window where she was somewhat lucid. She speaks in full sentences, and yet the sentences make no sense in the order she says them. I just give her the response I think she wants. What else can do you right?

Anyway, mother is the prime reason I have been neglecting the blog. It involves a lot of heartache, but she is well worth it!

Happy Mother’s Day TO YOU!

I wish I had a present to give to all of you mothers, caregivers, etc. It was important to me to acknowledge you…and your mothers! Although to me on a personal level its more of a parent’s day – caregiver’s day if you will. Why?

I know I wish my brother a HAPPY MOTHER’S day, because his children do not have a mother (deceased). He is responsible for both roles, although when the children were younger our mother was their substitute for all those children’s gifts they make at school or church. So, for me I celebrate both of them on this day. Its more along the spirit of the day, and way of saying THANK YOU for all you have done.

The only present I could come with was a refreshing outlook that I found this year regarding the Proverbs 31 woman.

Yes, Christians tend to take scripture a bit to literal at times. It seems like they use this for a eulogy to the perfect wife. It was neat to learn about how Orthodox Jews view it, and use as a present of encouragement and thanks!

You might have heard the term ‘Aishet Chayil ‘ being thrown around this year. I think that part of that is due to a new book released this year called, “A Year of Biblical Womanhood”. Aishet Chayil is basically: virtuous woman, Proverbs 31 woman.

Eshet Chayil is a blessing sung every week at the Shabbat table, and from what I understand this on Friday’s nights. The father gives his blessing to his children, and then in some households he sings the Proverbs 31 verses to his wife. It’s not meant to be a show of how she lined up with that scripture, but one of saying THANK YOU for all you have done for the family this week!

To me this was very encouraging, and it’s a way of saying you are blessing with all you do for our family. Its not because you did everything mentioned in those verses, but because you do did all these things for us this week. It is more of an acknowledgment of what she did more than HOW she did them.

Let look at a quote:

If not for her, where would we be? There would be no home, no family... no Jewish people. On Friday night, she sits as the queen of her table, while all those around her sing her praises. And rightly so.

She is the Eishet Chayil, the Woman of Valor, who sets the tone of love, spirituality, and personal growth for all those around her. To know her is to appreciate her strength and talents. And, just in case you might happen to forget, "Eishet Chayil" is there as a weekly reminder.

These words are found in the Book of Proverbs (31:10-31), and accredited to King Solomon.

Sing it with feeling for your own Eishet Chayil, or to the Eishet Chayils that were the foundation of the Jewish people for thousands of years and continue to be so today.

This humble ritual act expresses our deepest felt gratitude for everything that she has done for the family.

Since I can’t sing to you personally…might I offer one of many videos that are presented to their Aishet Chayil !

Happy Mother’s Day!

Happy Mother’s Day Aishet Chayil!