ArchiveOrg

On this blog I have a lot of posts with links to the Internet Archive. If you try to use those link now you will find them not working. They have suffered a distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack. Hopefully they and their books will be back online soon.

Credential Creep, Credentialism, and False Credentials

Top Southern Baptist Convention news this past week probably is the resignation of Willie McLaurin from interim president and CEO of the SBC Executive Committee. I first read about it at Baptist News Global, a liberal news and opinion site that gleefully reports any foibles of the convention and skewers them for it.

McLaurin, interim president and considered most likely to be hired for the permanent post, resigned August 17th. He resigned because of the finding that he had falsified information on his resumé. His resumé included earned degrees from North Carolina Central University, Duke University Divinity School, and Hood Theological Seminary – all of which were false (as well as a claim of military service).

Previously, McLaurin had served 15 years on the staff of the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board, as well as a pastor at Greater Missionary Baptist Church in Clarksville, Tennessee, and pastor Greater Hope Baptist Church in Union City, Tennessee. He was elected to serve on the SBC Executive Committee staff in 2020. In 2022, after the departure of EC president Ronnie Floyd, he became the interim president of the Executive Committee.

All this lengthy introduction to make a few related points.

From what I have read about Willie McLaurin, he is a hard-working, personable man – a really nice guy that people like. Many Southern Baptists thought he was doing a great job as EC interim president, and were rooting for him to be elected to the permanent post. Nevertheless, he chose a false way to rise to the top. He lied. He falsified records. “Moreover, it is required in stewards that a man be found faithful.”

I think we all can agree that falsifying a resumé is wrong. (Even most who have done so inherently know it is wrong.) Most folks want their resumés to look their best, but to create information out of thin air cannot be justified. I have not noticed anyone mention or report what credentials/education Willie McLaurin actually has. Regardless, he apparently believed his actual education would either disqualify him or not be good enough qualifications. So, he lied. This raises a question to me, “Why would pastors, preachers, and Christian workers falsify a resumé?” What pressure do they feel that makes it seem necessary or beneficial? 

I believe the answer is “Credentialism” – or as one respondent at SBC Voices called it, “credential creep.” That writer, Nathan Petty, pointed out how that historically Baptists had grown in the United States mostly without the benefit of seminary trained preachers. Then they progressed in formal education. As this progress moved forward in the 20th and 21st centuries, the amount of degrees offered and education expected grew exponentially. According to Petty, the counsel of many would be for a man to get seven years of formal education (DMin) in order to be “really” be qualified to serve a local SBC congregation.[i]

This is not only an SBC issue. Many Baptists feel this pressure for credentials – or perhaps simply lust for the glory of the title. Our Baptist congregation is not affiliated with the SBC, neither any organized association, convention, or fellowship. Because of that, apparently, we received a lot of unsolicited “independent fundamental” correspondence. I have noticed in these circles a tendency for every Tom, Dick, and Harry – no matter how ignorant or uneducated – to be “Dr. So and So.” Whether they have legitimate degrees or bought one from the pawn shop, they tout their status. Every speaker at a conference is a “Dr.” What’s the deal? No doubt some of it is base human pride. I believe the other factor is “Credentialism.” We have unfortunately created communities of Christians who cannot “search the Scriptures” whether things are so, but need to be told it is so by “Dr. So and So.” If Paul’s Apostleship was not good enough for the Bereans, your “Doctorate” is not good enough for me!!

When we turn to the Bible discussions of qualifications (1 Corinthians 4:2; 1 Timothy 3:1-13; Titus 1:5-9), a clear case can be made for honesty and integrity. Level of formal education is nowhere to be found. Yes, apt to teach. No Doctor of Ministry. I have no fondness for ignorance. Nevertheless, the Bible is our rule of faith and practice. Throw away those practical qualifications your church or ministry has created. Go back to the Bible. The qualifications there are inspired by God.

My intent is not to beat up on Willie McLaurin. We all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. However, may this incident be a teaching moment.

• Let us look to the Bible for the qualifying credentials of the ministry.
• Let us see the church founded by Jesus Christ is the primary biblical educational institution.
• Let us commit to telling the truth, regardless of the consequences.[iii] 

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[i] For example, the Duke Divinity School Doctor of Ministry (D.Min.) program is normally completed in three years. They require a prior Master of Divinity (M.Div.) or comparable master’s degree before enrolling in the program. Therefore, in this case, the DMin takes about six or seven years. (Duke also requires at least five years in full-time ministry before entering the program.)
[ii] While working on this, at the top of the Word Doc I had something else on which I was working — the hymn/poem “The Church’s Desolation.” The second verse (and others) seemed to have some correlation. “Her pastors love to live at ease, They covet wealth and honor; And while they seek such things as these, They bring reproach upon her. Such worthless objects they pursue, Warmly and undiverted; The church they lead and ruin, too— Her glory is departed.”
[iii] Mark Terry writes, “If we cannot depend on pastors and church workers to tell the truth, then we’re in bad shape.”

They really wanted out

When I read this news report about Methodist churches in the Tuscarawas Valley area of Ohio leaving the United Methodist Church I thought to myself, “They really wanted out!” It sounds like it was both annoying and costly to get out, and in some places there were additional ordeals. I heard (reliably) of one case in a church business meeting when conference leaders urged non-attending members to attend and vote against leaving the United Methodist denomination.

“The United Methodist Church owns all church buildings in trust for its congregations, so churches that wanted to leave had to transfer title to their building. They had to get a two-thirds vote of approval from their members and then approval at their conference’s annual meeting. And they had to make a payment to the denomination to leave, and sometimes that amount was substantial.”

“Churches leaving were required to pay in full two years of that congregation’s apportionment commitment; pay in full the congregation’s pro-rata share of the conference’s pension liability, based on a formula approved by the annual conference; and pay any health care or pension arrearages a congregation may have accrued over the years.”

I do not endorse the new Global Methodist Church, but there is a sense in which I am impressed by folks whom I see as moderate to liberal getting fed up with a denomination that has veered far away from biblical orthodoxy.

4 articles re...

...a quick brutal evangelical battle.

• Beautiful Union -- “The Keller Center’s statement on their separation from Joshua Butler.”
• Evangelicals critical of that TGC article on Jesus and sex just don’t understand Catholic and Orthodox theology, Dreher contends -- “Reaction to the article published on TGC’s website was so swift and so brutal that TGC took down the article, Butler resigned from the new Keller Center sponsored by TGC and several prominent people who had endorsed Butler’s book withdrew their endorsements immediately.”
• Sex Won’t Save You (But It Points to the One Who Will) -- “Our culture looks to sex for salvation too. We want romance to free us from solitary confinement, to deliver us into a welcome embrace. But idolizing sex results in slavery.”
• The, Um, Joy Of Evangelical Sex -- “I’m really struggling to understand how they can all be so quick to react so harshly to an interpretation of marital love – yes, including sex – that has a very, very long tradition in Christian thought and writing.”

Georgia Guidestones

A couple of years ago, a neighbor suggested that I should research Georgia Guidestones and Agenda 21. It all sounded sort of conspiratorial, and I never got around to it. Maybe Covid-19 intervened a bit, and perhaps I was not all that interested. It came to mind recently when the news reported that on July 6 someone bombed the Georgia Guidestones. The remainder was torn down.

The Georgia Guidestones was completed in 1980, a granite structure in Elbert County, Georgia with ten guidelines inscribed in eight different languages: Arabic, Chinese, English, Hebrew, Hindi, Russian, Spanish, and Swahili. In English the guidelines were:

• Maintain humanity under 500,000,000 in perpetual balance with nature.
• Guide reproduction wisely — improving fitness and diversity.
• Unite humanity with a living new language.
• Rule passion — faith — tradition — and all things with tempered reason.
• Protect people and nations with fair laws and just courts.
• Let all nations rule internally resolving external disputes in a world court.
• Avoid petty laws and useless officials.
• Balance personal rights with social duties.
• Prize truth — beauty — love — seeking harmony with the infinite.
• Be not a cancer on the earth — Leave room for nature — Leave room for nature.

Sort of weird, generally, and especially when combined with the secretive nature of its origin.

Dresses are reasonable attire for Christian women

Dresses and skirts are reasonable attire for Christian women. Some Americans do not think so. Even some churches, Christians, and Christian women no longer think so. However, the EEOC thinks so, and now Wellpath healthcare services does too.

Malinda Babineaux, a nurse and member of the Apostolic Pentecostal Christian Church, wanted to be able to both work and live by her beliefs as well. Living out those beliefs includes wearing a scrub skirt (as opposed to scrub pants) while she is working. When Wellpath, an organization who hired Babineaux, found out her faith and practice, they denied her clothing request and took away the job they offered her.

According to the EEOC’s lawsuit, a nurse who is a practicing Apostolic Pentecostal Christian was hired by Wellpath to work in the GEO Central Texas Correctional Facility in downtown San Antonio. Before reporting to work, the nurse told a Wellpath human resources employee that her religious beliefs require her to dress modestly and to wear a scrub skirt instead of scrub pants while at work. In response, Wellpath denied the request for her religion-based accommodation and rescinded the nurse’s job offer.

Philip Moss, a trial attorney for the EEOC’s San Antonio Field Office, said, “Under federal law, when a workplace rule conflicts with an employee’s sincerely held religious practice, an employer must attempt to find a workable solution.” Apparently the EEOC felt that Wellpath made no such attempt, and took them to court. And won.

Under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, discrimination against a person based on such things as religion, race, and sex are prohibited. Employers are required to offer reasonable accommodations to an individual’s “sincerely held religious beliefs unless it would pose an undue hardship,” the EEOC stressed.

It’s official, legal – and probably even biblical – skirts and dresses are reasonable attire for Christian women!

Read about it here:

• Wellpath to Pay $75,000 to Settle EEOC (U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission) Religious Discrimination Case
• Healthcare provider to pay $75K to nurse in ‘scrub skirt’ religious discrimination lawsuit
• Health care provider pays $75,000 in ‘scrub skirt’ religious bias suit

In the news

• Stunning: Facebook court filing admits ‘fact checks’ are just a matter of opinion -- “Such ‘fact checks’ are now shown to be simply an agenda to suppress free speech and the open discussion of science by disguising liberal media activism as something supposedly factual, noble, neutral, trustworthy, and based on science.”
• Christmas Display Featuring ‘Gender Queer’ Alongside Bible Removed by VA Library After Outcry -- “They’re mocking parents who object to pedophilia and pornographic material inside our school libraries.”
• Bob Dole Planned a Mischievous Surprise for Dems at His Memorial, Cameras Were Rolling When They Caught On -- “I also confess that I’m a bit curious to learn if I am correct in thinking that heaven will look a lot like Kansas and to see, like others who have gone before me, if I will still be able to vote in Chicago.”
• ALL of These Prominent Democrats Had a Hand in Pushing Jussie Smollett’s Hoax -- “As it turned out, the story was too good to be true for the left. Smollett orchestrated the attack himself, and he has been convicted of lying to the police as a result.”

A PE Teacher and a Trans Policy

“I’m a teacher but I serve God first, and I will not affirm that a biological boy can be a girl and vice versa because it’s against my religion. It’s lying to a child, it’s abuse to a child, and it’s sinning against our God.” 

“This case is not about how schools should treat students who struggle with gender dysphoria...It is about whether public schools can punish a teacher for objecting, as a private citizen, to a proposed policy, in a forum designated for the purpose of considering whether to implement such policies, where the policy would force him to express ideas about human nature, unrelated to the school’s curriculum, that he believes are false.”

Settlement Victory: Christian PE Teacher Who Rejected Trans Policy Gets the Best of Loudoun County 

Amen and awoman

U. S. House Representative Emanuel Cleaver II, a Democrat from Missouri’s 5th Congressional District, lit up the internet world with his Opening Prayer for the 117th Congress – punctuated by the affirmation “Amen ... and awoman.”

The transcription below is that Opening Prayer for the 117th Congress.[i] Representative Emanuel Cleaver II is also an ordained United Methodist minister.

Let us pray.
Eternal God, [noiselessly] we bow before your throne of grace as we leave behind the politically and socially clamorous year of 2020. We gather now in this consequential chamber to inaugurate another chapter in our roller coaster representative government. The members of this august body acknowledge your sacred supremacy, and therefore confess that without your favor and forbearance, we enter this new year relying dangerously on our own fallible nature. God, at a moment when many believe that the bright light of democracy is beginning to dim, empower us with an extra dose of commitment to its principles. May we of the 117th Congress refuel the lamp of liberty so brimful that generations unborn will witness its undying flame. And may we model community healing, control our tribal tendencies, and quicken our spirits that we may feel thy priestly presence even in moments of heightened disagreement. May we so feel your presence that our service here may not be soiled by any utterances or acts unworthy of this high office. Insert in our spirit a light so bright that we can see ourselves and our politics as we really are, soiled by selfishness, perverted by prejudice, and [inveigled] by ideology. Now may the god who created the world and everything in it, bless us and keep us. May the lord make his face to shine upon us, and be gracious unto us. May the lord lift up the light of his countenance upon us and give us peace; peace in our families, peace across this land, and dare I ask, O lord – peace even in this chamber; now and evermore. We ask it in the name of the monotheistic god, brahma, and god known by many names by many different faiths. Amen ... and awoman.

On the surface, this prayer may seem to be ecumenical, bipartisan, inclusive, and non-offensive. It is not. Anyone who wants to be offended should be able to find something offensive here!

• This prayer is addressed to “Eternal god.” That should offend the atheists and agnostics.
• This prayer twice speaks of a god addressed in the masculine gender – “his face” and “his countenance.” That should offend the feminists.
• This prayer uses charged political terminology. That should be offensive to those with “tribal tendencies.”
• This prayer mentions our “fallible nature.” This should offend those who reject the doctrine of a depraved sin nature.
• This prayer acknowledges a “god who created the world and everything in it.” That should offend the evolutionists.
• This prayer the god of many faiths. That should offend all Bible-believing Christians (as well as his not praying in Jesus’s name, and, and…).
• This prayer genderizes “amen” (“so be it”) by adding “awoman.”[ii]  This should offend all who support Nancy Pelosi’s gender-inclusive House resolution, and all those who believe there are more than two genders.

Something here for (or not for) everybody. Probably much more.

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[i] In the two places with brackets, I am not sure what is said. I think the rest of it is correct.

[ii] Representative Cleaver’s later explanation that he added “awoman” as some sort of joke (“I concluded with a light-hearted pun”) should offend all who believe in the sincerity and reality of prayer. [Note: “awoman” is used opposite “amen” – rather than awomen – because many of us, including Rep. Cleaver, pronounce “amen” closer to “aman.” That might offend someone as well.]

An interesting turn of events

Pennsylvania postal worker recants ballot tampering allegations: officials -- “The House Oversight Committee announced Tuesday that Richard Hopkins went back on his assertion that a postmaster in Erie, Pa., told workers to backdate ballots mailed after Election Day...”

Pennsylvania postal worker denies recanting ballot-tampering claims -- “Project Veritas chief legal counsel Jered Ede accused the investigators of coercing Mr. Hopkins into signing an affidavit recanting his claims; failing to give him access to his attorney, and refusing to provide him with a copy of the signed document.”

Project Veritas Releases Shocking Recordings of Federal Agents Trying to Intimidate USPS Whistleblower Into Recanting Election Fraud Claim -- “The whistleblower says that he even tried to contact reporters from the Washington Post to let them know their story was false, but that he was ignored.”

BLM matters

I was a civil rights activist in the 1960s. But it’s hard for me to get behind Black Lives Matter. -- “I support BLM’s cause, but not its approach,” said Barbara Reynolds. “Black Lives Matter is a motley-looking group to this septuagenarian grandmother, an activist in the civil rights movement of the 1960s. Many in my crowd admire the cause and courage of these young activists but fundamentally disagree with their approach.  Trained in the tradition of Martin Luther King Jr., we were nonviolent activists who won hearts by conveying respectability and changed laws by delivering a message of love and unity. BLM seems intent on rejecting our proven methods. This movement is ignoring what our history has taught.”

Longtime L.A. civil rights leaders dismayed by in-your-face tactics of new crop of activists -- “For the veteran activists—many of whom grew up in the era when the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. preached nonviolence—the actions of some of the protesters distract from their message.”

Black Lives Matter leader declares war on police -- “...we want the immediate end of government sanctioned murder by the police. And we prepare to stop these government sanctioned murders by any means necessary.”

Terry Crews Doubles Down On Desire To Unite People Despite Leftist Outrage: I ‘Decide To Die On This Hill’ -- “Are all white people bad? No. Are all black people good? No. Knowing this reality – I stand on my decision to unite with good people, no matter the race, creed or ideology. Given the number of threats against this decision – I also decide to die on this hill...Crews was subjected to vile racial remarks over his tweet, including some who accused him of being a ‘white supremacist in black skin’!”

The audacity of white people who say black people “aren’t black” if they do not agree with them (the white people) is one of the most rampant styles of racism that white people seem to get away with – when the white persons are Left of center and the black person stands to the Right of them.

1,023 people have been shot and killed by police in the past year -- “Despite the unpredictable events that lead to fatal shootings, police nationwide have shot and killed almost the same number of people annually — nearly 1,000 — since The Post began its project [in 2015].”

It is true that proportionately more blacks are killed than whites. According to statista.com, 933 people were killed by police officers in 2019. Nearly 23 percent of those killed by police officers were black, while blacks make up only 13 percent of the population. However, looking at another statistic should cue us that this is not the whole story. About 49 percent of the U.S. population in 2019 were male. A whopping 95 percent of the people killed by police officers in 2019 were male! (888 males and only 42 females.) A bare reading of the numbers says police officers are prejudiced against men. There must be more than a bare reading of the numbers if we want to understand the problem and find solutions. I suspect a great number of partisans don’t actually want to find solutions, especially if the solutions do not fit or further their agenda. 

Further, I recently read an article that made some good points about “unarmed suspects.” For example, a bare number may report an unarmed suspect being shot and killed. And while that is true, finding the actual facts of a specific case might show the suspect tried to grab the law enforcement officer’s weapon and ended up being shot with it. I am not saying there are no rogue cop cases. I know some myself. Nevertheless, the truth is not always where it seems to be if we only superficially hear about “unarmed suspects are shot and killed.”

One thing many may not realize is that believing black lives matter is not exactly the same as Black Lives Matter. Black Lives Matter is an organized body with leadership, membership, and financing – and an agenda that goes far beyond and away from its simple slogan.

Cancel culture, the elite of cyber bullying

Cancel culture, the elite bully pulpit of cyber bullying.

Recent attempts to defend “cancel culture” claims that the discussion is not about free speech. Rather, they say, there is a panic because elites and conservatives over “threatened by changing social norms.” Do not buy the lie. No doubt, there are people who are bothered by changes. However, “cancel culture” is clearly the elite form of bullying that kills all discussion – and it is not just elites and conservatives who are in its clutches. True “free speechers” defend the speech of others with whom they disagree, then answer the disagreements with their own opportunity to speak freely. “Cancel culture” demands all bow before its power and be silent.

“I get a sense among certain young people on social media that the way of making change is to be as judgmental as possible about other people...People who do really good stuff have flaws.” Former President Barack Obama

Some recent examples of cancel culture

• Emmanuel Cafferty, fired from San Diego Gas & Electric Company after being goaded into making a hand gesture of which he did not understand the meaning. The recording went viral and he lost his job.
• David Shor, fired from Civis Analytics after sharing the findings of a study by Omar Wasow, a black professor at Princeton, a political-science journal article arguing that nonviolent civil-rights protests had been more politically effective than violent ones.
• Madji Wadi, lost his business after it became public that his daughter has made racist tweets—even though he fired her when he found out.
• Leslie Neal-Boylan, fired from her job as University of Massachusetts-Lowell Dean of Nursing after writing “Everyone’s Life Matters” (in a context clearly against discrimination).
• Nick Cannon, fired by ViacomCBS after comments on Cannon’s Class were deemed to promote anti-Semitic conspiracy theories.
• Stephen Hsu, Michigan State University senior vice president for research and innovation, resigned under pressure from petitions excoriating his scientific research on controversial topics.
• Savannah Chavez, the daughter of police officer Ismael Chavez who was killed in the line of duty in McAllen, Texas, uploaded a tribute to her father on Twitter. She received such vile harassment that she just deleted the tribute.
• Gordon Klein, teacher at UCLA’s Anderson School of Management, suspended for declining to grade black students easier after the George Floyd incident.
• Daniel Maples, fired from Ted Todd Insurance in Fort Myers, Florida, for a context-less 15 second video of his life that went viral.
• W. Ajax Peris, political science lecturer at UCLA, was referred to UCLA’s Discrimination Prevention Office after reading out loud Martin Luther Kings’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail” -- which includes the use of “the n-word.”
• James Bennet, forced to resign as New York Times opinion editor when the intolerant mob could not tolerate certain opinions—though he much of his job purpose was to bring in varied opinions to the paper.
• Stan Wischnowski, forced to resign as top editor of The Philadelphia Inquirer after an uproar over the title of an opinion article that suggested that damaging buildings in Minnesota disproportionately hurt the very people taht protesters were trying to uplift.
• The Church of the Highlands, a multi-racial church of 60,000 people in Birmingham, Alabama, stripped of its lease agreement with the city, and the church’s volunteer work in the community canceled. Why? The church pastor, Chris Hodges, “liked” conservative posts on Twitter.

An employer does not have to let an employee say or do anything they want to on the job. Nevertheless, these examples are of persons not found deficient in their words or actions until hate-filled mobs turned their hostility on them.

Not only firings, the cancel culture extends to treats to life and limb. For example, Catherine Sullivan, a retired professor and University of Georgia alumna, had her location exposed and threats made against her because she disapproved of the university’s decision about names of campus buildings. 

When caught with any backlash, most of the cowardly culprits claim they fired the person for some other reason. Such nonsense should be suspect in light of mewling remarks usually made to the mobs prior to the firings.

The COVID-19 Panic Shows Us Why Science Needs Skeptics -- “The dumpster fire of COVID predictions has shown exactly why it’s important to sustain and nurture skeptics, lest we blunder into scientific monoculture and groupthink.”

Think on these things

How is this pandemic affecting our thinking? How might it permanently change us if we don’t set our minds to return to regular civility after this is all over? The covid scare and its “cures” have caused us to see those who come near us as sort of “enemy combatants” – those who might maim or kill us. We must keep a safe distance. No handshakes and no hugs. Maybe we look away, or maybe we stare.

When we first started back with in-person church, it seemed so foreign and strange to keep a distance, not shake hands, and not share in our normal one anothering. Now I am beginning to get used to it. But I don’t want to get used to it! May we never be used to it.

The masks may keep us from trading droplets, but they also hide our expressions. They cover the sympathizing smiles we might be willing to share with our covid co-complainants. For those with some hearing loss, it stifles communication, dulling the voice. I am seldom able to understand what someone with a mask is saying without asking them over several times. (I probably rely more on unconscious lip reading than I realize.) What about those who understand only by lip reading? The masks remove their ability to “hear,” and pretty much leaves them out in the cold.

This is not a commentary on the utility and effectiveness of masks and social distancing. I am not giving any advice on that. However, we who care need to be aware of how this pandemic affects and changes our thinking. We need to compensate when we can. In addition, when this is over and we are not wearing masks and social distancing, let’s not continue to act as if we are – with the mentality of keeping everyone at arm’s length. Let’s make a concerted effort to return to our fellowship of humanity and good old friendliness & hospitality.

My 2 cents, in days of great inflation.

A matter of black lives that matter

Terrence Floyd, younger brother of George Floyd, said, “I know my brother would not want violence. Let’s do this peacefully, please.”

In protests of the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minnesota police, highlighting the fact that the lives of black persons are important was intended to be front and center. Nevertheless, even more black lives did not seem to matter in the wake of the protests, which disproportionately took the lives of blacks – most at the hands of protesters. Up until today (June 8), I have found records of up to thirteen dead. The following persons are identified as black except Italia Kelly (identified as biracial) and the three that remain unnamed/unidentified. It appears that all, with the possible exception of one, died in incidents related one way or another to the George Floyd protests. It is alleged that much of the violence is perpetrated by “outside agitators” – folks with Left-wing or Right-wing agendas, or both – rather than the initial protesters, who did so peacefully.

• May 27, 2020: Calvin L. Horton Jr., 43, Minneapolis, Minnesota was shot by a pawnshop owner during protests.
• May 29, 2020: 53-year-old Dave Patrick Underwood, 53, on-duty federal security officer, was shot and killed during riots in Oakland, California.
• May 29, 2020: Javar Harrell, 21, during protests in Detroit, Michigan, was shot and killed – apparently specifically targeted, and it is not clear whether his death is directly related to the protests. (But his life still matters.)
• May 30, 2020: Barry Perkins, 29, in St. Louis, Missouri was caught by the truck’s tire, pulled under and ran over. Guns were pointed at the driver, he sounded his horn and drove off, catching Perkins and running over him with his trailer. Attorney for the Perkins family and witnesses say that Barry Perkins was not involved in looting the truck and was an accidental victim.
• May 30, 2020: James Scurlock, 22, in Omaha, Nebraska during protests was shot as a result of a violent encounter with a bar owner. It is at least tentatively determined that the bar owner acted in self-defense.
• May 30, 2020: Chris Beaty, 38, real estate broker and former Indiana University football player, was shot and killed in Indianapolis, Indiana, by rioters on a robbing spree.
• May 31, 2020: Dorian Murrell, 18, Indianapolis, Indiana was fatally shot by 29-year-old Tyler Newby. Newby claims there was an altercation before the shooting and a friend of Murrell claims there was not one.
• May 31, 2020: Italia Marie Kelly, 22, a protest attendee in Davenport, Iowa was shot by a “protester” when she was leaving the protest. Another person was also shot and killed, but was not named last I saw.
• June 1, 2020: David McAtee, 53, shot and killed in Louisville, Kentucky during riots. Law enforcement heard gunshots and returned fire. McAtee was hit by one of the bullets and died.
• June 1, 2020: Two unnamed people killed in Cicero, Illinois (a Chicago suburb).  Their race or the circumstances of their death has not been reported, so far as I have seen – other than that “outside agitators” shot into a crowd.
• June 2, 2020: David Dorn, 77, retired St. Louis City police captain, was shot and killed by looters at a pawnshop in St. Louis, Missouri.

[Note: this information was collected a few weeks ago, and more names could be added to this list, but I will leave it as it is.]

Fur out, bro

While chewing on a pork chop, state assembly member Laura Friedman tweeted, “Today CA made history - # AB44 was signed into law! After decades of efforts from animal welfare advocates, we are now the first state in the nation to ban fur. CA has no place for the inhumane & unsustainable treatment of animals. Now for other states to follow in our legacy.”

OK, I made up part of that. She may be a vegan for all I know. Nevertheless, the passage of the law is not made up, neither is the hypocrisy imagined. It is fact that California became the first state to ban fur products when “Gov. Gavin Newsom signed legislation Friday that will make it illegal to sell, donate or manufacture new fur products in the state.”

This bill would make it unlawful to sell, offer for sale, display for sale, trade, or otherwise distribute for monetary or nonmonetary consideration a fur product, as defined, in the state. The bill would also make it unlawful to manufacture a fur product in the state for sale. The bill would exempt from these prohibitions used fur products, as defined, fur products used for specified purposes, and any activity expressly authorized by federal law.

The bill would make these provisions operative on January 1, 2023.

Now the compassionate legislators of the far left state have a law that protects the mink, chinchilla, rabbits, and so on. “The bill…applies to all new clothing, handbags, shoes and other items made with fur. Those who violate the law would be subject to civil penalties.” However, the poor cow, pig and sheep received no compassion – leather, cowhide and shearling being exempt from the ban. “Fur products used for religious purposes or by Native American tribes” – which likely are equivalent in the religious realm – are also exempt. And I’m sure some of the compassionate voters will still be eating their rib eyes, hams, and lamb chops.

PETA – People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals – and Direct Action Everywhere are working to change the world for animals everywhere. PETA says they “worked with compassionate legislators to push these lifesaving laws forward and looks to other states to follow California’s progressive lead.”

Maybe we need PETA to go to work on abortion. While California’s abortion laws are not as liberal as one might expect, in that state women have the “fundamental right” to choose between giving birth and having an abortion, with certain restrictions. How about compassionate legislators creating more lifesaving laws for the human babies? PETA? Laura? Gavin?

With Jesus we might ask today, “How much then is a baby better than a fur-bearing mammal?” (Cf. Matthew 12:10-12.)

The “Easter Worshippers”

I saw mentions of this online, and it certainly does make an intriguing comparison – how certain prominent politicians responded to the Muslims targeted and killed in Christchurch, New Zealand, and to the Christians targeted and killed in the cities of Batticaloa, Colombo, and Negombo, in Sri Lanka.

The following quotes I gathered are tweet-outs by the 44th President of the United States, a former First Lady of the United States and former Democratic candidate for President, and a current candidate for the Democratic nomination for President of the United States in 2020. The operative comparison of tweets is that in the first case they freely identified the targets of terrorism as Muslims, while in the second case they called the targets of terrorism “Easter worshippers” rather than Christians.

Barack Obama, re New Zealand: “Michelle and I send our condolences to the people of New Zealand. We grieve with you and the Muslim community. All of us must stand against hatred in all its forms.”
Barack Obama, re Sri Lanka: “The attacks on tourists and Easter worshippers in Sri Lanka are an attack on humanity. On a day devoted to love, redemption, and renewal, we pray for the victims and stand with the people of Sri Lanka.”

Hillary Clinton, re New Zealand: “My heart breaks for New Zealand & the global Muslim community. We must continue to fight the perpetuation and normalization of Islamophobia and racism in all its forms.”
Hillary Clinton, re Sri Lanka: “On this holy weekend for many faiths, we must stand united against hatred and violence. I’m praying for everyone affected by today’s horrific attacks on Easter worshippers and travelers in Sri Lanka.”

Julián Castro, re New Zealand: “My heart is with the people of New Zealand and the entire Muslim community this morning. We must always stand against acts of terror and hate.”
Julián Castro, re Sri Lanka: “On a day of redemption and hope, the evil of these attacks on Easter worshippers and tourists in Sri Lanka is deeply saddening. My prayers today are with the dead and injured, and their families. May we find grace.”

“Easter worshippers” smells of agreed-upon talking points to me – in that so many (not just these three) used it. I have never before noticed it being a common usage. Why would it be “agreed-upon” talking points? To avoid calling the slain and injured Christians? Of course, I expect that “people who are worshipping on Easter Sunday” are at least nominally Christians. There is room for Christian leaders to debate that fact. However, political leaders should just assume, in their use of language, that they were adherents to their faith – just as they assumed those worshipping the two mosques were Muslims.

We have a problem

MSN News: “The images in videos that went viral on social media Saturday showed a tense scene near the Lincoln Memorial.”

Except, of course, when the truth came out the scene was not nearly as “intense” as the viral clip showed it to be. The fallout that resulted, though, may truly be called intense. The Washington Post reported that “death threats had shut down Covington Catholic High School,” where the students involved attended. I have heard that the Native American drummer also received death threats.[i]

The aftermath of this situation submits several settings for self-examination.

We who are Christians should be “swift to hear” and “slow to speak” as James advised.[ii] As a society, we are slow to listen and swift to rush to judgment in matters of which we know little or nothing.

The media needs to rethink whether their reporting contributes in some way to the public good. I believe in freedom of the press unrestrained by government. A free press must exercise self-restraint. The media cannot control what people do with what they report. However, reports rushed into quickly without all the facts – that lead to threats on lives – cannot be a good thing! Being right, reporting correctly, and doing good must outweigh being first.

The general population needs to exercise self-restraint. Recognize that we also operate as “news media” through Facebook, blogs, Twitter, and such like. We do not have to “share” everything we hear, especially when what we hear may be incorrect. Blame rests not only on the professionals!

We are slouching towards a chaotic and disorderly society. A civilization easily irritated, perpetually offended, and maliciously reacting is not civil! Will rudeness and savagery rule? Politics, which has descended into blind rancor, often is implicated as the source. Not likely. More likely, bureaucratic bile just feeds a deeper problem. Look around. This is not just in matters of politics. Think sports. The referees made an exceptionally bad call [iii] in the NFC championship football game.[iv] Later on that night, security moved the refs from their hotel to a different hotel because they were being harassed. All over a game – a game we pay grown men to play!

Houston – America – we have a problem.

And the problem is us![v]

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[i] Though I haven’t seen a specific news report on it, I don’t doubt it.

[ii] James 1:19-20 Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath: for the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God.

[iii] Technically, they failed to call a blatant rule violation.

[iv] Between the Los Angeles Rams and New Orleans Saints, January 20, 2019.

[v] Pogo: “We have met the enemy and he is us.” God: This is a rebellious people, lying children, children that will not hear the law of the Lord” (Isaiah 30:9).

Secure Fence Act of 2006

Recently I have heard the Secure Fence Act of 2006 cited as evidence that Chuck Schumer, Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton and others were for the concept of border security – and that Democrats have now changed their tune. While called a “fence” rather than a “wall,” 2006 “fence” and 2019 “wall” both share in common being “physical infrastructure enhancements to prevent unlawful entry by aliens into the United States...”[i]

Right, wrong, or indifferent, altogether it looks like 80 “yeas” in the Senate (Democrat & Republican) voted to fund roughly 700 miles of border security fencing.[ii] On October 26, 2006, then President George W. Bush signed into law this Secure Fence Act of 2006 (Public Law 109–367). Seems this does call for an explanation from those who supported “physical infrastructure enhancements to prevent unlawful entry by aliens” and oppose such a concept now. Is it pure “Trump-hatred,” political posturing, or some more reasoned resistance?

“A bill to establish operational control over the international land and maritime borders of the United States.” – Text of Senate bill[iii]

The Wall – Interactive map exploring U.S.-Mexico border

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[i] The act provided for “at least two layers of reinforced fencing” but was amended a year later from a “one-size-fits-all” act to give discretion of details of erecting the fence to the Secretary of Homeland Security for the appropriate use of resources (for example, whether one-layer, two-layer, pedestrian fencing, vehicle barriers, walls, etc.).

[ii] With almost 2000 miles of US/Mexico shared border, the bill funded “physical infrastructure enhancements” for about one-third of the border.

[iii] The House of Representatives also passed such a bill, in their case 283 for and 138 against. See H.R. 6061 - Secure Fence Act of 2006 and Final House Vote on Secure Fence Act of 2006.

Crazy or Called, Moron or Martyr

The recent death of missionary John Allen Chau has captured the interest of Christianity and the world, often for widely varying reasons. Here is a collection of some of the articles available online.

• All Nations Grieves Reported Death of ‘Humble, Courageous’ Missionary on Remote Indian Ocean Island -- "Leaders, members and friends of All Nations (www.allnations.us), an international Christian missions training and sending organization, are mourning the reported death of one of its missionaries, 27-year-old John Allen Chau of Vancouver, Wash., U.S.A."
• A Man’s Last Letter Before Being Killed on a Forbidden Island -- "You guys might think I’m crazy in all this, but I think it’s worth it to declare Jesus to these people."
• A millennial martyr? The complicated legacy of John Allen Chau -- "Certainly, we must learn all we can from the missteps of Christian mission in the past to avoid them in the future, but let’s not fail to recognize the concrete contributions to human flourishing Christian missionaries made."
• A sober and sensible look at the danger of missionary work -- "The death of Chau raises questions for Christians and non-Christians alike. There are ethical questions...questions about the wisdom of risking one’s life...theological questions..."
• ‘Crazy’ or called?: Missionary’s death debated -- "Chau’s apparent death has drawn reports in major media outlets across the world and has sparked discussion among evangelicals."
• Incomprehensible Evangelicals and the Death of John Allen Chau -- "The core convictions of evangelicals, including the need for salvation through Christ and the mandate to share one’s faith, are becoming increasingly incomprehensible to a post-Christian American culture."
• John Chau and the dangers of missionary work -- "Last week we were reminded of a harsh lesson: The Christian missionary mandate, “Go and make disciples of all nations,” is a dangerous endeavor."
• North Sentinel Island -- "The square-form island is mostly covered in forests which makes the task of counting its population even more difficult."
• The most remote tribe in the world — untouched and uncontacted -- "In 1967, the Indian government began a series of “Contact Expeditions” to the island, under anthropological guidance. They wanted to establish contact with the tribes in the archipelago. Spoiler alert: it didn’t turn out so well."
• The tragedy of murdered missionary John Allen Chau: Some questions -- "...this tragedy raises questions that sadness cannot be allowed to silence."

Does not apply

James MacDonald,[i] leader of Harvest Bible Chapel, in need of bringing a lawsuit, has revisited the text of 1 Corinthians 6 to find that it does not apply to his case. How often the Bible does not apply when we wish it to not mess up or mess with what we want to do!

• James MacDonald Sues Harvest Bible Chapel Critics for Libel – “Pastor James MacDonald and Harvest Bible Chapel filed a lawsuit this month against two ex-members and former Moody Radio host Julie Roys, accusing them of spreading false information about the Chicago-area megachurch’s financial health and leadership.”
• James MacDonald: Why Suing Is Sometimes the Biblical Choice – “1 Corinthians 6:1-9 does not apply to every situation.”

Throughout church history, cultural happenings have forced a more carefully nuanced consideration of biblical application.

Many of us remember the near unanimous evangelical stance on divorce prior to the 1970s, when most churches held strictly to “no divorce, no remarriage.” Then with the rise in divorce rates and a few high visibility Christian leaders getting divorced, all were pushed back into the Scripture for a view that considered all biblical teaching on the subject.

In the meantime, by assuming the right to influence our church while refusing to listen to the authority of our church leaders, they forfeit the protection given to brothers in 1 Corinthians 6. According to Matthew 18:17 their refusing to “hear the church” requires that they be related to as non-believers, as “gentiles and tax collectors.”

We should constantly study the Word of God as God guides us into it and reveals it unto it. We should be doubly cautious when culture or conditions change and we suddenly find the Bible does not apply – whether it be divorce & remarriage, same sex marriage, lawsuits, or a dozen other things that are not convenient in the current circumstances.

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[i] This is the same James MacDonald who a few years ago told us Congregational Government is from Satan, but has since joined the Southern Baptist Convention, whose Baptist Faith and Message tells us “Each congregation operates under the Lordship of Christ through democratic processes.” It appears MacDonald may have quietly removed this diatribe from his blog. Perhaps his desire to join the Convention created a reason it also does not apply.