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God Approves of Slavery by Neil Robinson

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bible defense of slavery josiah priest
Text From Bible Defense of Slavery by Josiah Priest, 1851

Guest Post by Neil Robinson. Neil blogs at Rejecting Jesus: Refuting the Lies of Christianity.

Over on his blog site, Biblical Musing, Don Camp is trying to justify why God appears to condone slavery. It’s not the first time Don has tried to defend the indefensible; he’s recently been arguing much the same thing on Debunking Christianity.

The fact the Old Testament appears to endorse the keeping of other human beings as slaves is a problem for Christians. It’s a problem compounded by the fact that Jesus in Luke 12.47-48 and the imposter-Paul, in Ephesians 6.5, both support the practice. How can it be that God approves, or at least raises no objection to it? Wouldn’t an omniscient, all-loving God have outlawed slavery, as he outlaws so much else, in one of his innumerable laws and commandments?

Instead, he provides instructions about how to keep and look after slaves; what to do, for example, when you flog one to within an inch of his life so that he later dies (Exodus 21.20-21) or when you deliberately blind your slave – she’s your property after all – or rape her (Exodus 21.26; Numbers 31.17-18).

Don’s answer is that, despite God involving himself in the minutiae of slave treatment, he knew it would be a waste of time telling his people slavery was wrong. Why? Because he took the trouble to tell them lying and stealing were wrong and yet they ignored him. So, hey, why should he bother telling them about slavery? They’d just ignore that too.

But the point is – disregarding the fact that not everyone steals and lies – ‘God’ did issue laws prohibiting stealing and lying (and eating shellfish, and wearing garments of mixed fabric). It seems it was important to him to tell his pet-tribe that these were wrong, even though he must have known many of their number, and many more subsequently, would ignore him.

What can we conclude from this? Only this: that God didn’t feel the same way about slavery as he did about lying and stealing, which is why he didn’t bother making even the same token effort for slavery.

Or, and much more likely: the tribes who wrote the laws didn’t think slavery was wrong. In fact, they thought it quite useful to have slaves. Given this utility, they were unlikely to have devised laws prohibiting their ownership. The enslaved themselves no doubt thought differently, but then they didn’t get to write the rules.

We don’t find a commandment prohibiting slavery in the bible because those who wrote it liked having slaves. For this reason too, we find all those inhumane instructions about keeping slaves and what should happen if you maim or kill them.

Of course God didn’t write these laws. People did. And they wrote them according to their understanding of what was moral, fair and legitimate within their own primitive milieu. Thus it was that slavery got a free pass.

 

Christians Say the Darnedest Things: What God Thinks of Sodomites by Ivan Foster

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ivan foster

It is very common for sodomites and their supporters to make the most offensive and fallacious claims regarding God’s view of sodomy. It is in keeping with the character of this dreadful wickedness that the community associated with it does not fear to claim God’s endorsement of their vile lifestyle. Nothing can be more provocative in the eyes of God than this blatant misrepresentation of Him and His Holy Word. Mrs Elaine Somers claims that, in her view, she can say of her older sodomite son, “God made him, he is God’s son”. She went further and said: “I, too, could take verses from the Old Testament regarding homosexuality, but the Jesus I know, and my mother knew, teaches me that they are precious in his sight and you cannot take that from me.” She went on to say of Mr Wells: “You do not know the true meaning of Christian love. I hope someday you will.” She is quite wrong in a number of important matters.

….

Men and women whose lives are dominated and controlled by sin, as the sodomites most definitely are, cannot claim that they are children of God! The Christian is someone in whom God is working out His purpose as it stated by Paul the apostle. “Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is well-pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen,” Hebrews 13:20-21. The sodomite lives in complete defiance of God’s stated will. In utter contravention of His holy law. There is a total absence of that “working in you that which is well-pleasing in his sight” in the unrepentant sodomite. This poor woman is utterly deceived regarded her sons’ eternal state. Tragically, her error is endorsed and supported by the leaders of the mainline churches worldwide! What a dreadful day of retribution awaits both the deceivers and their victims, the deceived.

— Ivan Foster, The Burning Bush, A Poor Deceived Mother Defends Her Depraved Sodomite Sons, August 10, 2017

You can read the letter that sparked Foster’s ire here. Foster is a retired British Fundamentalist Presbyterian minister.

Black Collar Crime: Pastor Christopher Stansell Accused of Embezzlement

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christopher stansell

The Black Collar Crime Series relies on public news stories and publicly available information for its content. If any incorrect information is found, please contact Bruce Gerencser. Nothing in this post should be construed as an accusation of guilt. Those accused of crimes are innocent until proven guilty.

Christopher Stansell, pastor of First Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in Princeton, West Virginia, stands accused of embezzling more than $10,000 from the church.

The Bluefield Daily Telegraph reports:

A former pastor of First Christian Church in Princeton has been arrested on embezzlement charges.

Christopher L. Stansell, 48, was arrested July 27 for embezzling more than $10,000 in church funds, Sgt. M.S. Haynes, with the West Virginia State Police Princeton detachment, said.

Haynes said the incidents occurred over period of a year and a half while Stansell was employed as pastor of the church.

“During the investigation it was found that multiple checks written to and by the First Christian Church were embezzled and deposited into accounts held by Christopher Stansell,” Haynes said.

Stansell was arraigned and released on bond pending future hearings.

Update

WVVA reports that Stansell pleaded guilty and is awaiting sentencing.

Black Collar Crime: Evangelical Pastor Mitch Olson Accused of Sexually Assaulting Church Member

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pastor mitch olson

The victim has made a live video statement here. PLEASE take the time to watch it. Also, PLEASE read Why Women “Let” Pastors Take Sexual Advantage of Them.

Mitchell “Mitch” Olson, pastor of Grace Ministry Center in Kimball, Michigan, stands accused of sexually assaulting a woman he was counseling during an anointing ritual. When asked about the accusation, Olson said his hand may have — are you ready for it? — slipped in the anointing oil.

WXYZ-7 reports:

A young woman went to investigators at the St. Clair County Sheriff’s Office and said she went to her pastor asking for help getting forgiveness for her sins.

He offered an anointing ritual but what happened during that ritual has her believing she is a victim of sexual assault.

Justine Morden says she worshipped at Grace Ministries in Kimball for years.

Last year she decided she wanted to repent for her sins, strengthen her relationship with god, and get more involved – so she met with Pastor Mitch Olson for counsel.

“I trusted him. He has been my pastor since I’ve been in 6th grade,” Morden says.

He told her he could cleanse her of her sins with an anointing ritual – but he didn’t have anointing oil at the church.

That evening she says he wanted to come to the then 19-year-old’s apartment. He said he could anoint her.

However she says he told her because she had committed sexual sins – he would have to anoint sexual parts of her body.

When her mother told her that is not how the anointing ritual should be – she says she was shocked.

We went to the church to ask to speak with the pastor.

When confronted, according to an investigative report, a church board member said the pastor told him his hand may have slipped in the oil.

During a board meeting the pastor said it was an unusual ritual – because it was an exorcism, not an anointing.

“I was completely shocked that he would have the audacity to say this,” Morden says.” No, I am not possessed.”

When asked if he touched Justine inappropriately by police, his answer according to the police report was “No. No. No.”

The prosecutor received the report Tuesday and says a decision on charges is to be made in as soon as two weeks.

Video Link

The Times Herald adds:

The Marysville woman [Justine Morden], who then lived alone in a Port Huron apartment, said she was not happy with the way she was living her life and wanted to do something to get closer to God. She began seeking counseling from Olson, she said. She had known him since she was in middle school because her parents were dedicated members at Grace Ministry Center, 4731 Lapeer Road, Smiths Creek.

Olson suggested she be anointed to cleanse her of her sins. He said he didn’t have anointing oil at the church during a meeting in July 2016, but told her they would make time for the procedure. The practice of anointing is a religious ceremony that typically involves crowning subjects with oil.

“Later on that night, around like 8 or 9, he texted me and asked what my address was,” the alleged victim told the Times Herald. “I gave him the address and didn’t think anything of it since I trusted him … He got there and said, ‘I have the anointing oil if you want to be anointed,’ so I said ‘OK.’”

According to the police report, “Olson then said a prayer and placed oil on her head, Olson then did the same on (her) shoulders. Olson then asked if he could put the oil on her breasts (she) said yes and Olson put his hand down the front of (her) shirt making skin to skin contact with (her) breasts. Olson then put oil on (her) stomach/mid-section. Olson then asked he could put oil on (her) buttock, (she) responded yes. Olson then put his hand down the back of (her) pants and made skin to skin contact with (her) buttock cheeks. Olson then asked if he could put oil on (her) pubic area (front of pants), (she) responded yes. Olson then put his hand down the front of (her) pants and made skin to skin contact with (her) pubic region. Olson then touched (her) knees and ended with her feet.”

The Washington Times reports:

Grace Ministry Center board member Gordon Farnsworth does not dispute that Mr. Olson anointed the victim and touched her on her breasts and pubic region, but said that “the intent and extent of the touching” is in dispute, according to the police report.

Grace Ministry’s board conducted a disciplinary hearing in March attended by Mr. Olson, the alleged victim and the victim’s stepfather, and the resulting action was a mere “slap on the wrist,” according to the stepfather, who recorded the proceedings.

WXYZ reported that Mr. Olson in the same board meeting described the anointing ceremony as an exorcism as he considered Miss Morden possessed.

“Do you want your daughters coming to this church where this could possibly happen … I feel like it (has) been covered up,” he said, the Times Herald reported.

According to the police report, Mr. Olson’s misconduct may not be an isolated incident of impropriety involving a member of his flock: Another young woman has come forward to relay an incident from four years ago when the pastor attempted to record her changing her clothes on a cellphone left in a church changing room.

Prosecutors are currently reviewing the evidence and will decide on whether to move forward on the case in the next few weeks, WXYZ reported last Wednesday.

Meanwhile, the Times Herald is requesting that other individuals who have either a “story of sexual assault or of an inappropriate occurrence” to contact the paper’s investigative reporters.

Update

Black Collar Crime: Pastor Mitch Olson Slips Out of Criminal Charges

An October 23, 2017 news report published by The Times Herald states:

A civil lawsuit was filed in St. Clair County Circuit Court on Friday against Grace Ministry Center in Kimball Township and its former pastor Mitch Olson.

The suit was filed on behalf of the woman who accused Olson of groping her during a religious ceremony. The suit seeks in excess of $25,000. Allegations against Olson include battery, assault, intentional infliction of emotional distress, fraud, breach of fiduciary duty and negligent infliction of emotional distress. Allegations against Grace Ministry Center include negligent supervision, negligent retention, negligent infliction of emotional distress, and violation of the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act.

The lawsuit comes after the St. Clair County Prosecutor’s Office declined to bring criminal charges against Olson after he was accused of sexually assaulting the woman, 20, of Port Huron. A police report was filed in August that stated Olson placed his hands on the woman’s breasts, buttocks and pubic area during an anointing ceremony inside her apartment.

Olson resigned from his position at the church on Oct. 8, according to a recorded farewell letter he read to church members. Olson was served with the lawsuit on Sunday at Grace Ministry Center during his farewell gathering.

Olson told the Times Herald on Monday that he looks forward to defending his church and himself in court.

“I was served with a lawsuit filed by the plaintiff in this case (Sunday) evening at Grace Ministry Center, a church I founded and served for nearly 11 years and am no longer a part of due to the false allegations of the claimant,” he said. “My heart aches that this person, who was never a member of the church and whom never had counseling from me, would deliberately lie and use the judicial system to advance a personal agenda at the cost to a church who has faithfully served this community for decades. I am left with only one choice: to vigorously defend the church and myself in this matter. We look forward to defending this case in court and restore our reputations that have been so grievously ruined by this person.”

The lawsuit states that “Defendant Mitchell Olson coerced (the woman) on multiple occasions to submit to unwelcome touching, including to touching of her breasts, buttocks, and vagina under her clothing … Plaintiff was fraudulently coerced into believing that the offensive touching was necessary to the anointment and an essential extension of her counseling because of the counselor/counselee relationship Plaintiff and Defendant maintained at the time of the incident and Plaintiff’s consent was therefore not voluntary .. Defendant Mitchell Olson’s actions caused Plaintiff (the woman) irreparable physical injury and emotional harm.”

The lawsuit stated that Olson falsely represented his action. The lawsuit also states that the incident has caused the woman much emotional and mental strain.

…..

The church is also being sued for alleged negligence in how it handled the report of the assault. The lawsuit claims that the church failed to protect the woman when the church board declined to take action against Olson.

The last claim argues that the church was in violation of the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act because Olson targeted the woman because of her gender.

“It’s clear that Pastor Olson targeted the victim because she was a young woman,” said Kathleen Garbacz, one of the non-profit attorneys representing the woman. “Not only has this been devastating for her personally, but we want to send a clear message that women should be safe from these kinds of horrors in all places, but especially in places of faith and counseling.”

….

Black Collar Crime: Evangelical Pastor Amado Miranda on Trial for Sexually Abusing Young Parishioner

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pastor amado miranda

Amado Miranda, former pastor of Agape International Baptist Church, is on trial, charged with “sexually abusing a 9-year-old parishioner at his church.”

Gabriel Monte, a reporter for Lubbock Online, writes:

Testimony began Tuesday for the trial of a 17-year-old indecency with a child case in which a pastor is accused of sexually abusing a 9-year-old parishioner at his church.

Amado Miranda, 68, pleaded not guilty to two counts of indecency with a child by sexual contact, which carry a punishment of two to 20 years in prison.

Miranda is accused of sexually molesting the girl in 2000, however, prosecutors said the abuse began in 1999. Police investigated an outcry the girl made in 2004 and Miranda was arrested and indicted in 2005. Prosecutors presented jurors with a timeline to explain the 12-year delay in trying the case.

Court records showed Amado was released on bond set at $25,000 after his arrest. In April 2006, Miranda’s bond was surrendered after he failed to show up for court to enter a guilty plea on the case. Miranda’s scheduled guilty plea was not revealed to jurors during the trial.

A warrant for his arrest was issued and he was was arrested in 2008 in El Paso and was again released on bond, which was raised to $30,000.

He forfeited his second bond in December 2008 after failing to keep in contact with his bonding company and a warrant for his arrest was issued in May 2009. However, he wasn’t arrested until May 13, 2016, in El Paso by U.S Customs and Border Protection agents. He was taken to the Lubbock County Detention Center in July 2016 where he remains and his bond is set at $100,000.

In his opening statement, Miranda’s attorney, David Martinez, told jurors to expect his client to testify he did not molest the girl and that the accusations came from a girl who belonged to a family that was burdened with problems. He said Sugar Land detectives coerced a confession out of his client, who was not advised of his Miranda Rights during the interview.

The girl, who is 26 now, told jurors Tuesday that her family met Miranda through her aunt in 1999 and they began attending the Agape International Baptist Church on East 82nd Street where he was the pastor.

The woman said she and her three cousins would be taken to the church by Miranda on the weekdays. She said Miranda made them call him “Abuelo” and he once gave her a Barbie doll as a Christmas present. She said she was the only child among the cousins to get a gift from him.

She said she and her cousins would play in a playroom or take turns using the office computer at the church. She would often be the last one to use the computer and would be alone with Miranda while her cousins were in the other room.

She said Miranda had her sit in his lap while she was on the computer and slid his hand under her skirt and touch her genitals. The abuse happened multiple times, she said, and she tried to get out of going to the church but was forced to go by her grandmother. She said every time she spent time at the church she expected to be molested.

….

An episode that stood out to her was when Miranda told her he had a present for her in his pocket and made her reach inside it. She said she touched Miranda’s genitals through a hole he had cut in his pocket.

She said she didn’t tell anyone about the abuse at the time because she was afraid no one would believe her as Miranda had a strong relationship with her family.

In 2000, Miranda left Lubbock for another church in Sugar Land. Four years later, the girl made an outcry to her parents and to a school counselor. She said her grandmother told her Miranda had called and asked to stay with them for a few days while he was in Lubbock. Upon hearing the news, the woman said she began getting flashbacks of the abuse, became depressed and often cried unexpectedly.

….

Former Sugar Land police Det. Marshall Slot, who now works as a security consultant for an energy company, said he interviewed Miranda in April 2005 with the help of another police department employee who served as a translator. A three-hour recording of the interview was played to jurors.

Miranda’s attorney objected to the admissibility of the interview, saying Slot never read his client his Miranda Rights. Slot said he was not required to read the warning since Miranda was not under arrest at the time of the interview. Slot could be heard telling Miranda multiple times during the interview that he could leave at any point.

During the first hour of the interview, Miranda said the girl and her cousins would spend time at his church after hours, but he denied abusing the girl. He said he believed the girl and her family misinterpreted his displays of affection.

….

About two hours into the interview, Miranda could be heard admitting to touching the girl inappropriately and making the girl touch his genitals.

“I would run my hands where I shouldn’t have,” he said. “It was just a moment of madness.”

….

Black Collar Crime: Evangelical Pastor’s Wife Susan Pratt Stands Accused of Stealing $1.4 Million

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susan pratt

Susan Pratt, whose husband pastors Living Waters Full Gospel Church in Hazard, Kentucky was indicted last week on theft charges.

LEX18 reports:

A pastor’s wife is accused of stealing money from a clinic.

Last week, a grand jury indicted Susan Pratt on theft charges.

The indictment says Pratt stole more than $10,000 from Mercy Clinic in Jackson. The Breathitt County Commonwealth’s Attorney said that the Mercy Clinic of Jackson is alleging Pratt stole $1.4 million.

Her husband is the pastor at Living Waters Full Gospel Church in Hazard.

Pratt is scheduled to be arraigned Aug. 11.

….

Songs of Sacrilege: The Great Debate by Randy Newman

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randy newman

This is the one hundred and forty-eighth installment in the Songs of Sacrilege series. This is a series that I would like readers to help me with. If you know of a song that is irreverent towards religion, makes fun of religion, pokes fun at sincerely held religious beliefs, or challenges the firmly held religious beliefs of others, please send me an email.

Today’s Song of Sacrilege is The Great Debate by Randy Newman.

Video Link

Lyrics

[Mediator:]
Welcome, welcome, welcome to this great arena! Durham, North Carolina, the heart of the Research Triangle! We’ve come to this particular place tonight, ’cause we gotta look at things from every angle. We need some answers to some complicated questions if we’re going to get it right.

To that end, we have here gathered some of the most expensive scientists in the world—eminent scientists, that is. We got biologists, biometricians, got a quantum mechanic and astrophysicians. Got a cosmologist and a cosmetician, got an astronaut, we got Astro Boy! We got he-doctors, she-doctors, knee doctors, tree doctors! We a got a lumberjack and a life coach!

On the other side, we have the true believers. We got the Baptists, the Methodists, Presbyterians. The Episcopalians are here, pass the hat! We got the Shakers, the Quakers, the anti-innoculators, the Big Boss Line from Madison Town! The Six Blind Boys, Five Tons of Joy, give ’em room, get out of the way! We got a Bible Belter from the Mississippi Delta. Have them all arranged.

Scientists, are you ready? First question: dark matter. Oh, dark matter. Give me someone knows somethin’ about space.

[The Scientists send a representative.]

Nice space music, Georgie. All right, what is it? Where is it? Can we get some? Stand up, sir, would you? You are standing, forgive me. Dark matter, go ahead.

[Georgie:]
Dark matter is out in space.
It’s seventy-five percent of everything…

[Mediator:]
Just a moment, sir. Do yourself a favor, use our music. People like it, and your music’s making people sick! All right. It’s a free country, go ahead. Dark matter, what is it?

[Georgie:]
We don’t know what it is, but we think it’s everywhere.

[Mediator:]
I’d like to take a look at it. Can we get some down here?

[Georgie:]
Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!
Of course not!

[Mediator:]
Let me get this straight: you don’t know what it is, you don’t know where it is, and we can’t get any? Put that to the one side. Let’s put the Lord, faith, eternity and whatever on the other side! Show of hands?

[True Believers:]
I’ll take Jesus, I’ll take Jesus, I’ll take Jesus every time!
I’ll take Jesus, I’ll take Jesus, I’ll take Jesus every time!
Yes I will, yes I will, yes I will, yes I will!
I’ll take Jesus, I’ll take Jesus, I’ll take Jesus every time!

[Mediator:]
All right, one-nothing! Next one’s gonna be a hard one. It’s about the theory of evolution, and it’s about animals, also. So, give me someone knows somethin’ about evolution, and animals. Who you got?

[Both sides send a representative.]

[True Believer:]
Wow, you’re a beautiful woman, aren’t you? Doesn’t matter, of course, but if this science thing doesn’t work out for you— oh, don’t boo me, don’t boo me! I’m just kiddin’ you, you know that. Here’s my question: explain me the giraffe. Go ahead.

[Scientist:]
Elaborate?

[True Believer:]
With pleasure, miss. The giraffe, to survive, must eat leaves high up on the Yabba Yabba tree. That’s true, isn’t it?

[Scientist:]
Of course it is. Everyone knows that!

[True Believer:]
But Mr. Darwin’s giraffe, the halfway-giraffe, with a halfway-giraffe neck, could never have reached the highest branches of the Yabba Yabba. Therefore, he could not have survived. It’s only common sense. Unfortunately for you, Mr. Charles Darwin didn’t have any common sense! Evolution is a theory, and we have just now, tonight, disproved it. Show of hands?

[True Believers:]
I’ll take Jesus, I’ll take Jesus, I’ll take Jesus every time!
I’ll take Jesus, I’ll take Jesus, I’ll take Jesus every time!
Yes I will, yes I will, yes I will, yes I will!
I’ll take Jesus every time!

[Applause from the gathered crowd.]

[Mediator:]
All right, two-nothing! Next question: global warming. Is it, and if so, so what— One of the true believers seeks to be recognized. Hand him a mic, Charles. Thank you.

[The True Believer taps the microphone.]

[True Believer:]
Sir, do you know what you are? You’re an idiot. You’re a strawman, a fabrication! You see, the author of this little vignette, Mr. Newman, self-described atheist and communist, creates characters, like you, as objects of ridicule! He doesn’t believe anything he has you say, nor does he want us to believe anything you say. Makes it easy for him to knock you down, hence, a strawman. I, myself, believe in Jesus. I believe in evolution, also. I believe in global warming, and in life everlasting. No one can knock me down.

[Mediator:]
Oh, we can knock you down, Mister! We can knock your communist friend down, too! Communist… You call me an idiot! We’ve been knocking people like Mr. Newman down for years and years! Like this: page 35, Georgie! Mrs. Dorothy, page 35…

[All:]
I know someone is watching me
Everywhere I go
Someone sees everything I see
Knows everything I know
When I’m in trouble, don’t have a friend
There’s still somebody on whom I can depend
Someone who’ll be there ’till the very end
Someone is watching me!

Someone is watching me!
Someone is watching me!
For so long, I was too blind to see
Someone is watching
Someone is watching
Someone is watching me!

[Mediator:]
Take a little break, ladies and gentlemen. Fifteen, maybe twenty-five minutes, depending on how the merchandise is moving. We’ll be right back!

[Applause.]

Pastor James Bachman Uses Dying, Comatose Patients as Evangelistic Tool

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james bachmanIndependent Fundamentalists Baptists (IFB) are well-known for the Jehovah’s Witness-like evangelistic fervor. James Bachman, pastor emeritus of Roanoke Baptist Church in nearby Roanoke, Indiana and author of the Parson to Person column in the West Bend News, takes his evangelistic efforts to such a degree that his thinks dying people should continue to languish and suffer just so he can have the opportunity to evangelize those who come to visit them in hospitals or hospice. How dare they want to die before their “appointed” time! God and Bachman have use for their pain, agony, and unrelenting suffering — preying on people who visit the dying during their last days on earth.

In the August 6, 2017 edition of the Parson to Person column, Bachman tackles the question, “We are working on a living will and wondering if it is right to withhold hydration and nutrition to help expedite death?”

Bachman responds:

God says in Deuteronomy 32:39, “I kill, and I make alive.” Psalm 68:20 says, “…unto GOD the Lord belong the issues from death.” James 4:15 says, For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live.” Hezekiah’s near death experience in II Kings 20 shows us God is to be in charge of life and death.

Modern artificial life support mechanisms sometimes make it hard to tell if it is God or we who are taking life, but withholding hydration and nutrition is definitely pushing God’s will away for our own. The healthiest person will die a horrible death without food and water.

In James 2:15-16 God makes it plain we are not to withhold daily food from someone who needs it. “If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food, And one of you say unto them, Depart in peace, be ye warmed and filled; notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body; what doth it profit.” Matthew 25:41-46 indicates it is wicked to withhold food from the hungry and water from the thirsty, and to do so is as though you were doing it to Christ Himself.

Quality of life is not always the issue. Through the years while calling on people who were in a dying and sometimes comatose condition, I have lead many other patients or family members to Christ. God was still using those who were dying in their bad “quality of life.”

Bachman believes it is a mortal sin to withhold hydration and nutrition from someone the dying. Bachman’s view is quite common among Evangelicals. Pain and suffering are viewed as sacrosanct, some sort of offering given up to Jesus, the God-man who suffered more than anyone has ever suffered — or so Evangelicals say anyway. Did Jesus really suffer more than anyone ever has? Of course not. Jesus suffered for one or two days, died, and then according to Christian mythology resurrected from the dead. I have known scores of people who suffered greatly during the last days of their lives. They would have traded places with Jesus in a heartbeat. (Please see Quit Complaining, Your Suffering is Nothing Compared to What Jesus Faced.)

Bachman views those near death, those who are writhing in pain and suffering untold agony, as little more than props to be used to get people saved. What’s a little (or a lot of) suffering if someone comes to know Jesus as their Lord and Savior, right? I dealt with this line of thinking in my post about my wife’s sister’s tragic death in a motorcycle accident. (If One Soul Gets Saved It’s Worth It) IFB preachers such as Bachman care little for the dying. If they are saved, they will soon be entering God’s Disneyland in the Sky®. What’s a little more agony if the Bachmans of the world can use their suffering as a way to harangue and manipulate people into believing what these preachers are selling.

Why do IFB preachers preach and evangelize at funerals? They know that funeral attendees are psychologically vulnerable. Get the gospel to them while they are “sensitive” to the good news, while death is on their mind. Preachers who do this are not much different from sexual predators who wait until people are susceptible to take advantage of them. I have attended more than a few funerals where very little was said about the deceased. Their death was just a means to an end — trolling for souls. What better time to evangelize people than when their loved one’s body is right in front of the them? Death in the air, and IFB preachers know it, using the emotional sensitivity of mourners to manipulate them into getting saved (and hopefully becoming tithing, working member members of an IFB church).

it is unconscionable that people still support suffering in a day when we have the means to alleviate pain and allow people to die with dignity. The dying often hang on, enduring untold agony, all because some religious zealot has quoted a few Bible verses to them and then told them that God wants them to suffer unto the end. Family members, who are often left with the responsibility of making end of life decision for their loved ones, are guilted into prolonging the suffering of their parents or spouses — all because Jesus will somehow be happy and satisfied if the last ounce of life is wrung out of the dying.

What should matter is what is best for the dying. Pain and suffering should be eased, and if withholding nutrients will allow them to suffer less as they lay their bodies down, caretakers should not hesitate in asking doctors to stop giving their loved ones anything that is prolonging their suffering. Bachman is wrong when he says that withholding hydration and nutrition causes people to die horrible deaths. These things can be withheld, and with the use of strong narcotics and other drugs, the dying can quietly and painlessly slip off into the dark night. There is no glory or honor in suffering into the end. The dying will not be awarded (or rewarded for) Best Death 2017 or Longest Suffering 2017.

What do you think of Bachman’s suggestion that people should continue to suffer so he can use them as a prop in his soulwinning efforts? Please leave your thoughts in the comment section.

Note

Bachman’s doctorate is an honorary degree from unaccredited Shawnee Baptist College. (Please read IFB Doctorates: Doctor, Doctor, Doctor, Everyone’s a Doctor)

Bachman is also in charge of Answer Publications.

Black Collar Crime: Catholic Priest Marcin Nurek Cops a Feel and Tells Teen Girl, ‘You’re Sexy’

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marcin nurek

Marcin Nurek, a newly-minted priest that was to scheduled to become the parochial vicar at St. Catherine of Siena Church in Mountain Lakes, New Jersey, was charged with “endangering the welfare of a child – whose age was listed as being at least 13 but younger than 16 – and criminal sexual contact.”

The Daily Record reports:

A newly-ordained priest has been charged with putting his hand under a teenager’s skirt in Boonton, touching her buttocks and telling her “You’re sexy,” according to court records.

The Rev. Marcin A. Nurek, 37, was ordained a priest on July 1 and was supposed to start a post as parochial vicar this month at St. Catherine of Siena Church in Mountain Lakes. That assignment will not take place and Nurek has been placed on administrative leave and cannot function as a priest, said Richard Sokerka, director of communications for the Diocese of Paterson.

The alleged incident occurred in the town of Boonton last Thursday, when Nurek put his hand under the girl’s skirt and touched her buttocks over her underwear.  Court records did not state where the incident allegedly occurred but said the teen was upset but not injured.

Nurek was charged with endangering the welfare of a child – whose age was listed as being at least 13 but younger than 16 – and criminal sexual contact. Via a closed-circuit television link between the Morris County jail and Superior Court, Nurek appeared on Friday for an initial review before Judge Ira Cohen.

Morris County Assistant Prosecutor Meg Rodriguez said the state has filed a motion to detain Nurek in the county jail until the charges are resolved. A detention hearing has been scheduled for Wednesday.

Nurek, an immigrant of Poland, was assisted during the hearing by a Polish interpreter. Nurek’s status as a priest was not mentioned at the hearing but other court records and documents confirmed his ordination.

According to The Beacon, the weekly newspaper of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Paterson, Nurek was ordained in 2016 as a transitional deacon, the final step before the call to the Sacrament of Holy Orders – the priesthood – in 2017. On July 1, Diocese of Paterson Bishop Arthur Serratelli ordained Nurek to the priesthood along with others.

The Diocese issued a statement, saying it is saddened by the incident and is cooperating fully with the Prosecutor’s Office. It also said that Nurek had completed all training related to proper conduct with children.

“The Diocese of Paterson was informed of the arrest of Rev. Marcin Nurek at approximately 8:45 p.m. on Thursday, August 3, 2017, at which time the Morris County Prosecutor’s Office was immediately notified. Since then, the Diocese has cooperated fully with the Prosecutor’s Office in its investigation,” the statement said.

“In addition, Rev. Nurek was immediately placed on administrative leave, his faculties were revoked and his assignment as parochial vicar at St. Catherine of Siena Church, Mountain Lakes, was concluded,” the statement said. (Revocation of faculties means that Nurek cannot function as a priest).

“Rev. Nurek arrived in the United States from Poland in March of 2015. He was just recently ordained to the priesthood on July 1, 2017. He was scheduled to begin his assignment at St. Catherine of Siena in August 2017. His international criminal history background check was completed on Oct. 17, 2014 and was clear. He completed the Diocese’s Protecting God’s Children educational program on April 9, 2015 and he signed the Diocesan Code of Pastoral Conduct on March 9, 2015,” the statement said.

….

Songs of Sacrilege: Spooky Mormon Hell Dream from The Book of Mormon

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book of mormon

This is the one hundred and forty-seventh installment in the Songs of Sacrilege series. This is a series that I would like readers to help me with. If you know of a song that is irreverent towards religion, makes fun of religion, pokes fun at sincerely held religious beliefs, or challenges the firmly held religious beliefs of others, please send me an email.

Today’s Song of Sacrilege is Mormon Spooky Hell Dream from The Book of Mormon.

Video Link

Lyrics

[ELDER PRICE]
Long ago, when I was five
I snuck in the kitchen late at night
And ate a donut with a maple glaze

My father asked who ate the snack
I said that it was my brother Jack
And Jack got grounded for fourteen days

I’ve lived with that guilt
All of my life
And the terrible vision
That I had that night

(spoken)
No! Please, I don’t wanna go back!

[MINIONS OF HELL]
Down, down thy soul is cast
From the Earth whenceforth ye fell
The path of fire leads thee to
Spooky Mormon Hell Dream

Welcome back to
Spooky Mormon Hell Dream
You are having
A Spooky Mormon Hell Dream now

[ELDER PRICE]
And now I’ve gone and done it again!

[MINIONS OF HELL]
Rectus!

[ELDER PRICE]
I’ve committed another awful sin!

[MINIONS OF HELL]
Dominus!

[ELDER PRICE]
I left my mission companion
All alone

[MINIONS OF HELL]
Spookytus!

[ELDER PRICE]
Oh God, how could I have done this to you?

[MINIONS OF HELL]
Deus!

[ELDER PRICE]
How could I break rule seventy-two?

[MINIONS OF HELL]
Creepyus!

[ELDER PRICE]
And now my soul hath just been thrown
Back into Spooky Mormon Hell Dream

[MINIONS OF HELL]
Down, down to Satan’s realm!
See where you belong!
There is nothing you can do!
No escape from
Spooky Mormon Hell Dream!

[JESUS, spoken]
You blamed your brother for eating the donut, and now you walk out on your mission companion? You’re a DICK!

[ELDER PRICE, spoken]
Jesus, I’m sorry!

[MINIONS OF HELL]
Jesus hates you, this we know!
For Jesus just told you so!

[SKELETON 1]
You remember Lucifer!

SKELETON 2]
He is even spookier!

[SATAN]
Minions of Hades
Have you heard the news?
Kevin was caught playing hooky!
Now he’s back
With all you Cath’lics and Jews
It’s super spooky-wooky!

[ELDER PRICE]
I’m sorry, Lord, it was selfish of me
To break the rules, please I
Don’t wanna be in this
Spooky Mormon Hell Dream!

[MINIONS OF HELL]
Spooky Mormon Hell Dream!
Genghis Khan
Jeffrey Dahmer
Hitler
Johnnie Cochran!
The spirits all surround you
Spooky spooky spooky!

[ADOLPH HITLER]
I started a war, and killed millions of Jews!

[GENGHIS KHAN]
I slaughtered the Chinese!

[JEFFREY DAHMER]
I stabbed a guy and fucked his corpse!

[JOHNNIE COCHRAN]
I got O.J. freed!

[ELDER PRICE]
You think that’s bad?
I broke rule seventy-two!

[HITLER, KHAN, DAHMER, COCHRAN:]
Oh?

[ELDER PRICE]
I left my companion!
I’m way worse than you!
I hate this Spooky Mormon Hell Dream

[MINIONS OF HELL]
Spooky Mormon Hell Dream

[GENGHIS KHAN]
Ah…..

[ELDER PRICE, spoken]
Please, Heavenly Father! Give me one more chance! I won’t break the rules again!

(sung)
I can’t believe Jesus called me a dick!

[MINIONS OF HELL]
Welcome, welcome
To Spooky Mormon Hell Dream
You are never waking up
From Spooky Mormon Hell Dream

[ELDER PRICE, spoken]
Oh, please help me Father! Please let me wake up!
Give me one more chance! I won’t let you down again!

[MINIONS OF HELL]
Down, down thy soul is cast
From the Earth henceforth ye fell
This must be it, you must be there
You must be in
Spooky Mormon Hell Dream now