Dr. David Tee, an Evangelical preacher and world-renowned Bible archeologist, hasn’t written much about me in recent weeks. Tee, whose real name is Derrick Thomas Thiessen, hasn’t said much about his other nemesis, Meerkat Musings (Ben Berwick) either. Ben and I are pleased when Thiessen moves on to other people to use as “object lessons” for his teachings; which are, in fact, neither. As you will see in a moment, something flew up Tee’s nether regions, causing him all kinds of irritation and aggravation. After you read his words below, ask yourself, “Why”? Why did Thiessen bother to write this post? What did he hope to accomplish? Certainly not interaction or discussion. Certainly not a good faith attempt to reconcile differences of opinion. No, in less than five hundred words, Thiessen goes out of his way to harm and slander. Why? I, for the life of me, can’t figure out Thiessen’s motivations.
What follows is my response to Thiessen’s diatribe. I rarely respond to Thiessen unless he first mentions me on his blog. All spelling, grammar, punctuation, and irrationality in the original. Thiessen hates it when I point this out, but since he has repeatedly accused me of altering his words (even those written on other blogs), I present his writing unedited. He might want to think about hiring an editor. Or, at the very least, find himself a Carolyn who is willing to turn shit into gold.
Why we do not write much about BG & MM anymore.
BG is Bruce Gerencser (that’s me!) and MM is Meerkat Musings, a blog operated by my British friend, Ben Berwick. Thiessen knows he should properly mention our names and link to our content when he uses it in his writing, but, for some unknown reason, he refuses to do so. I’ve been blogging for seventeen years. I have only had a few other people do the same. Thiessen and these writers have one thing in common: they are all hardcore Fundamentalist Christians; people who generally have reputations for bullying, harassing, and demeaning other people. No matter how often I point out their behavior is inconsistent with the teachings of the Bible, they continue to give Christianity a bad name.
You may have noticed that we rarely go to their sites for examples to use. The simple explanation is that God doesn’t want us to do it and one reason for that direction is that they never say anything new.
I assume Thiessen means that over the past few weeks, he has rarely visited “our sites for examples to use.” Previously, Thiessen has written numerous posts about me and my favorite Meerkat.
Thiessen claims that the Protestant Christian God personally communicates with him and instructed him not to use content from Meerkat Musings and The Life and Times of Bruce Gerencser. However, Thiessen does not provide any evidence for this assertion, expecting readers to simply take his word for it. According to Thiessen, God communicated to him that he should stop using Bruce’s and Ben’s content on his site and move on because they “never say anything new.”
This is a subjective claim based on personal beliefs and experiences. Readers have various reactions to my writing. I cannot control how people respond to me. All I can do is write thoughtful content that might help others. I strive to write in a way that others find valuable. Email, blog comments, and social media messages suggest that some people really appreciate my writing, while others strongly dislike it.
Thiessen knows that the Bible says “There is nothing new under the sun,” so it is unlikely that I am going to break new ground on this site. Of course, what’s good for the goose is good for the gander. I started this blog for one reason: to have a place to tell my story. This is a personal blog, a place where I can flesh out the fifty years I spent in Evangelicalism and the twenty-five years I spent pastoring Bible-believing, Bible-preaching, Jesus-loving churches in Ohio, Texas, and Michigan.
In December, this blog will celebrate ten years of blogging glory. By then, I will have written over 6,000 posts — many of which have been edited by my dear friend Carolyn (she doesn’t edit short posts or the Black Collar Crime series). She has edited thousands of posts, making me a better writer in every way — even if she is unable to exorcise some of my stubborn grammar errors and spelling mistakes. If anyone knows my motivations, it is Carolyn. I am confident if she thought I was straying from my purpose and goal, she would say something. If all I ever wrote were Black Collar Crime stories, I doubt she would be interested in being my editor. However, I hope she sees something of value in my writing, and wants to help me make it better, thus reaching a wider audience.
Roughly 20 percent of the posts on this site are Black Collar Crime stories. The rest are primarily personal retellings of past experiences or critiques of Evangelical beliefs and practices. My chosen path for this blog naturally limits how much new, original content I post to this site. Christianity is a closed system of thought; a text-based religion. Theologians, apologists, and pastors rarely, if ever, have new thoughts about Christianity or this or that Bible teaching. Christians have spent the past two thousand years “defending” the faith, so I highly doubt that groundbreaking research is coming any time soon. Thiessen’s blog is typically a regurgitation of Evangelical dogma or posts pointing out that he is right and the other person is wrong. And according to Thiessen, Ben and I are ALWAYS wrong. No matter what we write, we are w-r-o-n-g. Why are we wrong? Cuz, what we write opposes or is contrary to his personal religious/political/social beliefs. I can’t remember the last time Thiessen engaged me on a particular subject; a good faith discussion where there is an honest, open exchange of thoughts, opinions, and ideas. No, all he does is tell me I am wrong, he is right, and that’s the end of the matter. Of course, it is hard to have a thoughtful discussion with someone who thinks you are a child of Satan and headed for Hell.
It is all the same material. BG whines about being told he is wrong, then he points accusing fingers at those he disagrees with./
Thiessen repeatedly makes this claim, yet does not justify saying that all I do is “whine” and “point fingers” at people I have disagreements with. Perhaps he can write a full-throated defense of his claim. If not, I will assume he is just making shit up. I have done all I know to do to engage Thiessen in a way that leads to profitable interaction and discussion for both of us. I have several times offered him opportunities to write guest posts or rebuttals to something I have written. He’s written one post, ignoring all other offers for discussion and dialog. I also offered to debate him — any time, anywhere, any subject. This offer he has also rejected. I suspect he thinks it beneath him to be “ready at any time to give a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you.” (I Peter 3:15) Maybe I am an apostate and a reprobate — one beyond the grace the God — but thousands of other people who read this blog are not. Surely, they are a golden opportunity to put in a good word for Jesus; to warn people of the dangers of listening to the Evangelical-pastor-turned-atheist Bruce Gerencser.
Thiessen, as Christian Fundamentalists are wont to do, thinks he is right. His words excrete certainty. Of course, when you believe the Bible is inerrant and infallible (two claims I would love to debate with Thiessen) and God, in the person of the Holy Spirit, lives inside of you as your teacher, guide, and conscience, how could it be otherwise? One thing I have learned post-Jesus is that I don’t know as much as I think I do;, not only do I know what I know, but more importantly, I know what I don’t know. I know my limitations and weaknesses. I know where my expertise lies, and when it is best for me to keep my mouth shut. Years ago, I got into a lengthy email discussion with a mainline Baptist preacher on psychology. This man, much older than I, was well-educated in psychology and psychiatry. Several emails in, it became clear to me that I was out of my depth. However, instead of admitting this, I doubled down and went into preacher mode. His next email to me was direct: “Bruce, you are full of shit and don’t know what you are talking about.” He was, of course, right.
If you challenge him he starts doing nasty things to people.
What, exactly, are those “nasty things” I do to people? Outside of a few pranks, I haven’t done anything “nasty” to Thiessen, or anyone else, for that matter. Again, Thiessen makes a claim for which he provides no evidence.
Besides, we have had a belly full of his repeated claim of 4000 sermons, pastor for 25 years, song and dance.
I have repeatedly told Thiessen that I treat every post I write as a stand-alone article. I never assume that a reader knows anything about me. This is a courtesy provided to new readers. I wonder, however, if Thiessen is challenging the veracity and truthfulness of these claims? Did I pastor churches for twenty-five years? Did I really preach 4,000 sermons? Why would I lie about these things? Even at three sermons a week (Sunday morning, Sunday night, Thursday) for twenty-five years, I would have preached over 3,900 sermons. For many years, I preached more than three sermons a week, along with holding revivals and conferences. Throw in teaching Sunday school and preaching on the street 2-3 times a week, 4,000 sermons is a conservative estimate.
If my writing causes Thiessen stomach problems, I suggest he make an appointment with a gastroenterologist and get his digestive tract checked out. Either that or avoid foods that cause his belly to ache.
No matter what you say, he will find a way to ignore the evidence provided and repeat stupid claims like ‘I will consider believing if you…’ The evidence is there, he just does not want to believe anymore or he cannot return to his faith.
It is not that I ignore what little evidence Thiessen provides, as much as I find it lacking. Thiessen forgets that I was a pastor for twenty-five years; that I spent, on average, 20 hours a week, reading and studying the Bible and other theological tomes. That’s roughly 26,000 hours. So when I use the number 20,000 hours, I am being conservative. I know his arguments and evidence inside and out. I have weighed the central claims of Christianity in the balance and found them wanting. I am open to compelling evidence for Christianity, but just saying “The Bible says” or quoting proof texts ain’t going to cut it.
If the “evidence” is there for me to see, I would see it and respond accordingly. I am more than willing to engage Thiessen provided he is an honest, thoughtful interlocutor. Hell, I will even engage him if he is an Asshole for Jesus®. I enjoy a good roll in theological hay, even if I know the “sex” will result in a premature ejaculation.
As for MM, who we will call the great distorter. He still does not know what he is talking about and continues to create strawman arguments based on unreality and his socialist views. One of the latest is his distortion who loves money.
I will leave it to Ben to defend himself. I find Ben’s writing to be thoughtful and compelling. Not everything, of course. I am not an F-1 or soccer fan, so I tend to skip over those posts, but I enjoy the rest of his content. He and I hold similar political views — similar, not identical. It should be noted that Ben is not an atheist. I am trying to get him “saved,” but so far I have not succeeded. That’s not to say Ben’s a Christian. He’s not, but as with most of us who are not Fundamentalist Christians, we are on a journey. Where that journey takes us remains unknown.
While we will still check their websites from time to time, we have no interest in bringing attention to their false claims, accusations, and histrionics. Their woe is me, we are victims drama has gotten old. Plus, they do not know how to discuss properly.
What is it that we don’t know how to discuss properly? Again, Thiessen provides no evidence for his claim.
Besides we have other sources we can turn to that can be used to use for teaching moments, examples, and other important topics.
Thiessen has always had these other sources to use for his so-called “teaching moments,” (he sees himself as THE teacher, and the rest of us as students) yet he has primarily used Ben’s and my content for his blog — hundreds of posts over the past three or so years.
By all means, Derrick, move on to other object lessons. I guarantee you, the moment you stop writing about me, you will never be mentioned again on this site. Of course, you won’t do this. For whatever reason, you are obsessed with me. I have offered to send you a large blow-up of me naked that you can place on the ceiling over your bed, but you declined my offer. Others, however, begged for me to send them a photo. Maybe this would be a new way for me to make money.
Maybe our disinterest n their websites content began when we found out that neither of them have very popular websites.
I can’t speak for Ben, but Thiessen is accusing me of lying about the traffic numbers for this site. How did he come to this conclusion? If Thiessen has evidence for his claim, I want to see it. Here’s what I know: last year, this blog had almost one million page views. This number has dropped a bit in 2024 since Google tweaked its search algorithm. Both big and small sites have complained about traffic drops. Mine dropped almost 40 percent, but in recent weeks, it has rebounded a bit.
Maybe Thiessen is using an Internet site that allegedly tells you how much traffic a particular site has. These websites are rarely accurate. For example, I went to one site that said this blog gets 342 page views a day. Thiessen would see this as proof of his claim. When I search for his site, do you know what it says? Thiessen’s site averages three page views a day.
I use several internal SEO tracking programs to monitor site traffic. This blog is larger than many blogs and much smaller than some. As long as the numbers stay consistent or continue to improve, I am happy. Like every writer, I want my writing to be read by as many people as possible. In that regard, I am someone who cares a lot about statistics. Nevertheless, I would continue to write if only 100 people read my blog daily. I find writing to be a form of therapy and a pain reliever. When I no longer personally benefit from writing or people stop finding my work helpful, I will retire my laptop and spend my remaining days of life watching M.A.S.H. reruns.
Thiessen needs to provide empirical evidence for his claims. What metrics is he using? How does he define “popular”? Otherwise, he’s just talking nonsense, hoping to depreciate the value people find in my writing or to belittle me for allegedly having a smaller dick than I say I have.
They do not reach a large audience.
Thiessen needs to define “large.” No, this site is not Microsoft or Google-sized. However, it is larger than most of the blogs on the Internet, especially in my chosen category. Why the sudden obsession with “size”? Is it surprising that Theissen is also a big Trump supporter — a man noted for his obcession with size?
We reach whomever God wants us to reach and we are content with that. So do not expect frequent references to BG or MM and their false content on this website.
Thiessen’s blog, by all accounts, is a low-traffic site. He feels justified attacking my traffic numbers, while at the same time attributing his poor traffic numbers to God. If God wanted more people to read his blog, God’s social media manager would send people his way. Instead of using proven techniques and practices to improve his site, he leaves its success or failure to God; and in doing so resigns himself to obscurity. His choice, but I want to attract as many readers as possible, atheists and Christians alike.
By the way, Thiessen has a new blog where he touts his writing prowess. You can check it out here. Let me know what you think of his new site.
I hope Thiessen will respond to this post, providing actual evidence for his claims. My offer to him to write rebuttals or engage me in a public debate still stands. Count me a one atheist who is “ready at any time to give a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you.”
Saved by Reason,
Bruce Gerencser, 67, lives in rural Northwest Ohio with his wife of 46 years. He and his wife have six grown children and sixteen grandchildren. Bruce pastored Evangelical churches for twenty-five years in Ohio, Texas, and Michigan. Bruce left the ministry in 2005, and in 2008 he left Christianity. Bruce is now a humanist and an atheist.
Your comments are welcome and appreciated. All first-time comments are moderated. Please read the commenting rules before commenting.
You can email Bruce via the Contact Form.
