"The day after the magazine hit newsstands, I got a card from Covenant Life Church, signed by some of the elders, saying the pastors prayed for me that morning."
Tiffany Stanley in TIME interview
First of all, let me convey our deepest gratitude to those hurt in SGM churches (and their loved ones) who had the courage to share their testimonies publicly. Of all the information Dee and I read on the internet prior to launching this blog, it was those painful accounts of sexual abuse that had the most profound effect on us. We resolved to do what we could to call attention to the problems that appeared to stem from authoritarian churches like those belonging to Sovereign Grace Ministries.
Little did we know that we would have the opportunity to get to know some of these brave souls personally. The first one we met was Pam Palmer, who notified us that she would be traveling through North Carolina. Dee and I agreed to drive to Charlotte to have lunch with her at the Billy Graham Library. We were still relatively new to blogging, and Pam was just beginning to discover that others besides her daughter had been hurt in churches belonging to SGM. This fearless woman has been a tremendous inspiration to us!
In our early years of blogging, we couldn't understand why the secular press wasn't covering stories of abuse that were being discussed over at SGM Survivors (and SGM Refuge, which has since been taken down). They certainly seemed newsworthy to us. As more individuals came forward to share their testimonies, Pam Palmer and the other victims (several of whom we have met) began to compare notes. It appeared to them that there was some sort of collusion among the leadership in SGM. Attorney Susan Burke represented a growing number of SGM victims who alleged abuse. The lawsuit was dismissed on a technicality. However, it appears two of the plaintiffs are still eligible to file a complaint.
It has been a long road to recovery for those who have been hurt in the SGM 'family of churches'. Perhaps one of the ways to move beyond the pain is to bring it out in the open. That's why Tiffany Stanley's article has been so beneficial to these individuals. We are grateful that The Washingtonian published her exposé – The Sex-Abuse Scandal That Devastated a Suburban Megachurch – in its February issue. For those who have not read it, you can now access it online here.
When the article was first published, we wrote a post on it entitled Washingtonian Magaine Spotlights C.J .Mahaney, CLC, SGM.
Now TIME Magazine has picked up on it, interviewing freelance journalist Tiffany Stanley in its latest issue. The TIME article, How one reporter investigated child sex abuse at a major evangelical church, reveals that Stanley
"spent 10 months uncovering reports of child rape and molestation in Sovereign Grace churches over the last three decades, particularly at the then-flagship Covenant Life Church in Gaithersburg, Maryland".
According to the TIME Magazine article, Stanley "chronicles the inside story of crimes against children in D.C.-area Sovereign Grace churches, explores how church leaders including founder C.J. Mahaney did and did not respond, and recounts how victims’ mothers joined forces to seek justice". It goes on to state that Stanley's reporting was subsidized in part by a Fund for Investigative Journalism grant.
In the Q&A article, Tiffany Stanley explains that she approached Susan Burke, not the other way around. Gradually, Stanley was able to get to know more and more victims who slowly came to trust her. Perhaps one of the most important questions asked of Tiffany Stanley was this:
How does the legal system currently help or hurt victims of child sex abuse? You wrote that Susan Burke, a leading abuse litigator who is defending the Sovereign Grace victims, has called this case “the toughest” she’s ever worked on.
Stanley responded as follows:
I was surprised how much the laws vary from state to state. Statutes of limitations—which put time limits on when you can file charges or sue—can be an issue for victims. In Maryland, unlike some states, there is no statute of limitations for bringing criminal charges in felony sexual abuse cases, which is why Nate Morales went to jail decades after he abused boys at Covenant Life Church. But Maryland limits when you can sue over child sexual abuse; you can be no older than 25. In reality, victims often don’t realize the long-term damage they have suffered from sexual abuse until they are much older. And as I found out in my reporting, civil lawsuits aren’t just about the money. They are a tool to see if there was a cover-up. It’s difficult and rare to criminally prosecute religious leaders who covered up abuse, so lawsuits are an avenue to get transparency and justice from the institution, not just the abuser.
About half of U.S. states specifically require clergy to report child abuse, but still others exempt them, through what’s known as clergy-penitent privilege. I think there are real problems with these exemptions. This is an oversimplification, but basically, if a church member confesses abuse to a pastor, or the knowledge is received from a victim in a pastoral capacity, the minister may not be legally obligated to report the abuse. The information may be privileged, as it would be with an attorney. I can understand that pastoral confidentiality is important, and so are religious freedom considerations. But it seems to me that a workable compromise would be to do what states like Texas and West Virginia and North Carolina do: Clergy-penitent privilege exists, but not in cases of child abuse.
As these accounts of abuse garner more and more attention, we pray that the laws regarding the reporting of child sex abuse will change. Can you believe that the current law in Maryland does not allow someone over the age of 25 to sue over child sex abuse? We are grateful that moms like Pam Palmer are testifying about the need for change.
And we give props to TIME for making the following point in the concluding paragraph of the article:
It’s galling to them that Sovereign Grace leaders like C.J. Mahaney are still revered, still headlining conferences, and still running churches, with powerful evangelical allies on their side.e
Galling indeed! We will have more to say about this in an upcoming post. And finally, the pastors at Covenant Life Church gave us a glimpse into their hearts through their recent actions. We are so glad that Tiffany Stanley revealed during the interview that she received a card from CLC pastors the day after the article hit newsstands saying they prayed for her. What will it take to touch these hearts of stone?
Thanks to the editors of the Washingtonian Magazine and TIME Magazine for calling attention to the abuse that occurred in these churches. Please continue to pray for those who have been hurt. May they, with God's help, be fully restored.
I’m glad so much attention is finally being paid to this tragic story. After having gone through a situation of child molestation in a church culture this last year, I now believe that ALL adults should be mandated reporters. It shouldn’t take the government legislating to force Christians to do the right thing, but unfortunately without these mandated reporter laws, the church will continue covering up these crimes. In my family’s situation, a universal reporter law might have saved me the heartache of my (now former) Christian friends pressuring me not to report.
Has North Carolina law changed?
Second?
Prayed for or cursed? I will let you discern. But those are prayers I would not want, personally. 😉
“It’s galling to them that Sovereign Grace leaders like C.J. Mahaney are still revered, still headlining conferences, and still running churches, with powerful evangelical allies on their side.” – from the post, a quote from the Time article.
It truly is galling that this stuff flies under the radar of the church at large as if no one – particularly in leadership – cares.
I don’t get it. However, I listened to a link from the previous post by a couple of guys named Flynn and Dewaay discussing trends (like membership contracts, etc.) in the church at large. They point out that with churches now focusing on their mission statements, if an issue is not in the mission statement, the leadership are simply not interested in dealing with it. Furthermore, they note the trending of the current church to function more like a business.
@ me:
We need to investigate…
@ Divorce Minister:
Excellent question!
@ Divorce Minister: Third…
Anonymous wrote:
Sadly, you know first hand how much pressure can be applied to remain silent.' Sorry for what you and your family experienced.
In the face of so much evil, masquerading as God’s chosen ones, I thank the Lord that there are heroes out there like Tiffany, Pam, Deb, Dee and so many other incredible, brave souls who will fight for justice and truth and mercy. I’m praying for all of you tonight with a humbled heart. To all the survivors of abuse, you are not alone. God is for you and WITH you.
@ Mercy's Mama:
Thanks for your kind words. Those who went up against the SGM machine are the real heroes!
Divorce Minister wrote:
They are probably praying that she will “repent of her gossipy and slanderous ways”.
As for the SGM “victims” (I put “victims” in quotation marks because I believe that, in the end, they will be the victors), it makes be sick to know that the majority of them will never see justice in a court of law. However, I do believe they will have a kind of social justice. Their stories are becoming public on a grand scale. People are learning how these people were abused, used, and ignored.
I truly believe that, by having the courage to stand tall and share their stories, these “victims” are helping to inform and protect potential future victims.
Nancy2 wrote:
Agreed!
Today is a milestone in the Wondering Eagle. It’s the first birthday! Over the past year there have been 206 posts and 65,000 people who have read. Yeah!!
https://wonderingeagle.wordpress.com/2016/02/18/happy-birthday-the-wondering-eagle-turns-1/
Love CLC’s behavior. First Satan is attacking CLC through the Washingtonian then they send Tiffany a card. I wonder if Mark Mitchell regularly buys a card for Satan!
Or in other words… (take it Church Lady!)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=62Qfbrc1jdo
@ Eagle: Congrats!
The definition of half measures is “an action or policy that is not forceful or decisive enough.” Reviewing the definition I see that it is insufficiently descriptive. I need a term or a word for false measures. Those adopted only for show, measures adopted only deceive and silence critics.
My personal experience with an authoritarian church was sobering but was nothing compared to the stories publicized by the Washintonian and now Time. I did however get a glimpse of how debased “leaders” in a church react when confronted by the inescapable, they put on a deceptive display of contrition and false measures. Like the movie set for an old western, it was a facade, behind the building fronts was nothing but a few 2×4 braces to prop it all up.
If this increases the attention there will be calls for repentance, as if after all this an “I’m sorry” is satisfactory. I should think resignation would be adequate for those who have taken part in abuse and cover-up. Whether there will then be real contrition and repentance, it will be a matter between them and their maker, just keep them away from power.
“I’ll Pray For You(TM)” — Christianese for doing nothing and feeling so Godly and Spiritual and Speshul for doing so.
“You have a saying: ‘I’ll Pray For You.’
We also have a saying: ‘PUT YOUR MONEY WHERE YOUR MOUTH IS!'”
Bill M wrote:
“Potemkin Measures”?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Potemkin_village
“Theresienstadt”?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theresienstadt_concentration_camp#Use_as_propaganda_tool
Anonymous wrote:
So very sorry. It is always a shock to find out how few true friends one has when these situations happen. I often think of the perps who have many “church” friends, including the pastor, in court vouching for him/her. While the victim and family sit alone ostracized. It is hard to understand until you see it.
It is not unlike the support for Mahaney from the Neo Cal celebs and hangers on. It is at the expense of innocents. It is barbaric.
Bill M wrote:
You can’t resign when you have “been appointed by God”.
I am serious. That is how they think.
In Texas and in the south when someone says “Bless your heart” it really means a very derogatory comment, much like SGM saying they will be praying for Tiffany Stanley. You have to be able to read between the lines in cases like this. I guess I can say – Bless their hearts” can’t I.
Lydia wrote:
It’s called “By Divine Right”.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Divine_right_of_kings
The Christianization of “The King Is A GOD Come in the Flesh”.
@ Anonymous:
I am so sorry that poorly educated wussy Christians told you not to report. Too many Christians want their sinful churches to pretend they are sinless churches so they can pretend that all is well in the kingdom which makes them feel better about themselves.
Many people cannot handle a terrible crime like child sex abuse because it makes them think that maybe things are not so perfect in *my glorious church.*
However, many of these groups stress the gospel.™ If they really understood the real gospel which states that Jesus had to save us since we could not do it ourselves. That means things will never be perfect in *my glorious church* and it is time to wake up and get the real gospel. Sin is present and needs to be addressed.
Instead, groups like 9 Marks and The Village Church seek to punish the innocent and ignore the truly awful sins.
Harley wrote:
Please don’t let’s go through this again. I have refuted this several times here on TWW. I have explained until my explainer had to be taken to the shop for repairs. I have delved into the nuances and the misconceptions and the variations all apparently to no avail.
So let me just say this: obviously you all don’t understand what I have said and/or don’t believe it and/or don’t care so why should I bother further. If we in the south speak in ways that the yankees and such do not get it perhaps that is all to the good. I am soooo through explaining this.
Bill M wrote:
FWIW, what came to mind immediately upon reading this was “prevarication.” Maybe seems a bit highfalutin, but … look at details and synonyms that emerge from its early history: diverge from a right course, transgress, break God’s laws, disobey, duplicity, collusion, deviate, make a sham accusation, walk crookedly, straddle, evade, quibble.
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/prevarication?s=t
Also think duplicity works; I use that as the polar opposite quality to integrity.
Anonymous wrote:
I totally agree. Why do church leaders use the “legal card” as an excuse, when confronted about not reporting — “Oh, we’re not mandatory reporters!”? Why don’t they choose to walk the higher moral road and put children’s safety first?
Thank you, Deb and Dee for posting about this Tiffany Stanley’s interview on Time.com . She made some wonderful points!
@ Eagle:
Happy blog-a-versary, Eagle! Excellent work that you’ve given out as a present to others, much more useful than the “mathom gifts” that Hobbits give out on their birthday.
P.S. This year, I’ll finally reach screenagerhood, with my blog turning 13!
okrapod wrote:
Okrapod is right. “Bless your heart” can be a sincere phrase of sympathy. Under certain circumstances and with certain tones of voice, it can also be a slam. It’s all context.
Now back to our regularly scheduled topic.
brad/futuristguy wrote:
How about, they are guilty of duplicitous prevarication?
What grieves me the most…is that the name of Christ is slandered, mocked and degraded by those who say they know Him. That is the end result of hiding sin. How much better…to expose it, deal with it, turn it over to the secular world AS the church tries to help in healing. If all of this had been dealt with…these WOMEN (you go, girls!!!) would not have had to drag everything out into the light.
Lydia wrote:
I guess this would be the reason history contains so much carnage, despotic kings are under the same delusion, as are many of their subjects.
“We are so glad that Tiffany Stanley revealed during the interview that she received a card from CLC pastors the day after the article hit newsstands saying they prayed for her. What will it take to touch these hearts of stone?”
What’s it gonna’ take?
Probably getting sued out the wazoo to where the bench hands down a decision that they have to pay out the wazoo. Same scenario that bankrupted many a Catholic Diocese.
Bill M wrote:
I think of them as “Farce Measures”.
Patriciamc wrote:
A Southern Kentuckian here agrees with you. When a person says BYH, you need to hear the tone of voice, or see the expression on a person’s face to understand how the expression is meant. Type written, the expression needs to be made clear, either with words in the context it is used or accompanied by an emoticon.
Muff Potter wrote:
Yeah. Then they will pray for the judge and jury!
Amen
abigail wrote:
@ Patriciamc:
@ Nancy2:
Well bless your hearts, ladies; I did so need to hear somebody else take up the cause.
Interpretation: Thank you and blessings on you, ladies…..
Context!
Divorce Minister wrote:
With these MenaGAWD, is there a difference?
Lydia wrote:
Boz T (I’m not even gonna try to spell his last name) had said that in all his years as a prosecutor specializing in child sexual abuse, he had NEVER seen a church support the victim. ALWAYS “RALLY ROUND THE PERP, BOYS!”
“They call Lord Shardik — the God of the Slave Traders!”
— Richard Adams, Shardik
Bill M wrote:
Bingo. Which is one reason I take “tradition” with a grain of salt.
I was thinking about ‘cursing the darkness’ and instead ‘lighting a candle’ and how some VERY guilty individuals might use this thinking to their advantage,
but they ARE of the darkness when they shield and hide those who abuse innocents, and the only way to block their power to protect evil is to shine a light ON THEM . . .
I see this blog as doing that rather well, and I am grateful for all who participate in ‘lighting a candle’ against the darkness that injures innocent people but is still sheltered from exposure by the ‘powerful annointed ones’ . . .
there will come a day of reckoning, we know this; but in the meantime, all who work to protect the innocent ARE on the side of the angels and they deserve our prayers and our support for the good they do
Christiane wrote:
I’ve been thinking about Scripture’s description of light pushing back darkness, and the movie Spotlight. And then I ran across this quote, which I’d not seen til last week, though I’ve been doing research writing for a long time:
Truthful journalism will shed light on difficult subjects and shine into the darkness …
… thanks again, Dee and Deb and GBTC for the light of scriptural soundness and investigative truth you continue to bring through your blog.
Lydia wrote:
If one eliminates ‘tradition’ then one eliminates most of Judaism, all of the past two thousand years of christianity and basically is just left with the morning news. I am really not ready for that, but if it works for some people what can I say. And I do think that there are a lot of people who do think like that.
@ okrapod:
Which Judaic traditions? Reading around the founding of Israel on this topic is interesting.
@ Lydia:
I have been watching some stuff on you tube where rabbis debate various people and I have watched some stuff from Any-Jill Levine also on you tube. A repeated theme of what they say is how the jews have spent centuries debating the law, how to live out the law, what this and that important rabbi had to say way back when, in other words rabbinic traditions. Apparently this constitutes a huge body of thinking if I understand correctly.
I find it ironic that a dog named C.J. won Best in Show this week at the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show in NYC. An online article in The New York Times was entitled:
“C. J., a German Shorthaired Pointer, Wins Best in Show at Westminster”
@ Deb:
You might find this helpful re: reporting of child abuse in NC.
http://www.ncchurches.org/1998/12/clergy-laity-and-child-abuse/
@ okrapod:
Thank you. As a proud southerner, it pains me when people think bless your heart is condescending or sarcastic. Not where I come from! Bless your heart means bless your heart.
So, bless your hearts, Okrapod, Dee, Deb, Pam Palmer, and those who have suffered at the hands of spiritual abusers.
Bravo to this journalist! Bravo to the Washingtonian! Bravo to Time! Bravo to TWW! Bravo to victims who courageously speak out for themselves and for those who can’t. I spent many years in SGM. I was not a victim of sexual abuse. I was definitely under spiritual abuse. Not just in SGM, but in another church too. I don’t understand these abusive dynamics in many churches. But I’m grateful it’s being talked about.
@ On the Healing Journey:
Yes. 🙂 We were watching both nights. Our Maltese especially enjoyed the competition.
@ Lowlandseer:
Thanks for sharing that link, which has some extremely important information!
@ okrapod:
Got it. More of an overarching approach to learning and thinking as tradition (Except in most traditions women were excluded until recent history.)
Nickname wrote:
Doesn’t the meaning change to sarcastic, when the length of each word is elongated? (Sorry I’m just a Yankee…) 😉
“It’s galling to them that Sovereign Grace leaders like C.J. Mahaney are still revered, still headlining conferences, and still running churches, with powerful evangelical allies on their side.”
For all you Southern Baptists listening in, ‘your’ powerful evangelical sheltering Mahaney = Al Mohler … yes, ‘your’ man because you put him in a leadership position and have given him unchecked rein. You allow him to hang out with men of questionable ministry background because you’ve assigned him untouchable status (for some strange reason). He is running unchallenged as the champion of New Calvinism which is changing the very belief and practice of your once great evangelistic denomination … and you say little to nothing about it. He has aligned himself with various non-SBC entities, such as SGM, to promote New Calvinism – a theology contrary to that held by the majority millions within SBC. He has garnered tremendous power and is apparently not accountable to anyone in the Southern Baptist Convention. To borrow Time magazine’s indirect reference to him, it should be galling to you. You own him … what are you going to do about it?
Pam Palmer wrote:
Most times, we put an enlongated “Welllll,” in front of it, tilt our heads to one side, bat our eyes, and do the plastic face Mattel Barbie smile!
Max wrote:
Southern Baptist men, now Max ……. Southern Baptist men. They don’t never give us gurlz no say so in things at the Convention. (For you English grammar people, that’s a triple negative!)
Nancy2 wrote:
Three hundred years ago, double and triple negatives in English were a way of showing emphasis.
okrapod wrote:
And SCRIPTURE(TM) — “IT IS WRITTEN!”
Problem is, divorced from its milieu and taken in isolation, the Bible or Koran becomes just another book of fairy-tale mythology. What gives the Abrahamic Monotheisms weight is their relatively-solid historical trace. (In Islam, the Wahabi iconoclasm — demolishing any surviving artifacts connected to Mohammed “to prevent idolatry” — is literally removing the history and credibility of their own faith.)
Nancy2 wrote:
I don’t remember exactly, a survey from the 60s or 70s on Art Buchwald, a widely published satirist for the Washington Post, found half his readers read his columns as fact and not as satire.
One of my first lessons with email was how my typical expressions of humor didn’t work. Even if I say something sarcastic that should be obvious to all, someone takes me as serious.
Even when present there are a lot of factors. My wife who doesn’t speak Polish was traveling with a Polish friend through Poland. Everyone would be talking and start laughing, they would all stop as the joke was translated to her, all eyes on her. Huh? Yup, most humor is cultural or a play on words. The worst thing for a humorist is having to explain it.
brad/futuristguy wrote:
I had my own thoughts along these lines after watching Spotlight – the most apt scriptural comparison that I could draw was the various prohibitions against ‘sending your sons and daughters to the fire’ in the OT.
In a real way the lives of children were sacrificed (and continue to be sacrified) on the altar of a particular institution being sacrosanct.
“The day after the magazine hit newsstands, I got a card from Covenant Life Church, signed by some of the elders, saying the pastors prayed for me that morning.”
Imprecatory prayers, more than likely.
I find it ironic that a dog named C.J. won Best in Show this week at the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show in NYC. An online article in The New York Times was entitled:
“C. J., a German Shorthaired Pointer, Wins Best in Show at Westminster”
The church in Louisville would be much better off if they were to make this C.J. their senior pastor instead, not that that’ll ever happen.
@ Chris S:
Wow. That is a sobering way to view the larger issue. “the lives of children were [are] sacrificed on the altar [of institutions]”!!
The wider public, informed blog readers, and former-victims-turned-to-Survivors understand this…the big question is how to reach the church leaders?? <> I refer back to a comment that I think I made here at TWW, in Acts 6:7 At some point (after thousands of other people had accepted Jesus as Savior) many “priests were obedient to the faith”. They finally SAW the truth and repented!! I continue to hold out hope that this will happen (at least for some). However, as a chaplain in WWII was reported to say, “Pray and pass the ammunition!”. We need to hope and pray and continue to put pressure on leaders.
NJ wrote:
“O GREAT CHEMOSH! O GREAT BAAL! BRING DEATH AND DESTRUCTION DOWN UPON THESE MY ENEMIES!”
— imprecatory prayer from old Cecil B DeMille Bible epic
Headless Unicorn Guy wrote:
And irony of course that it was Chemosh who demanded child sacrifices as the price of deliverance.
Chris S wrote:
That citation was not accidental.
(I like to see who picks up on hidden levels of meaning…)
Lydia wrote:
Hope it’s not too far on a tangent line from the curve of our topic here, but I just heard a piece on NPR (national public radio) about women at the Western Wall. No longer will they be prohibited from certain sections of the wall simply because they’re women. The Jerusalem cops were expecting violent protest from the Haridim sect (ultra-orthodox-jewish-fundamentalists), but so far so good, they seem to be behaving themselves.
@ Nancy2:
Oh Nancy2, I was trying to be “complementary” and include “our girls.” Matt Chandler refers to TVC female members as “our girls”, you know.
@ Muff Potter:
Wow. Had not heard that.
It is interesting to note that Jesus turned the “learning tradition” on its head in the story of Mary and Martha.
Covenant Life Church’s response today: http://www.covlife.org/blog/healing_and_hope I think they’re missing the point, to say the least.
@ Marge Sweigart:
Just read their response. I suspect their attorneys approved it.
Congratulations, Eagle!!!
Headless Unicorn Guy wrote:
Here’s one case in a church-affiliated school that I believe handled allegations with appropriate horror, protecting the children and promoting transparency. As I recall, the perp was exceedingly cunning and determined to evade detection:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/12/01/AR2008120102690.html
The school’s response was later recommended as a good example for others to follow:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/02/28/AR2010022803430.html
okrapod wrote:
Amy-Jill Levine is a professor of OT theology at Vanderbilt here in Nashville. Back when the Da Vinci code was big, she gave a talk at my church on why it was so absurd and why it was absurd that Mary Magdalene could be Jesus’s wife. I wish I could remember her points because it was a great talk.
__
The Religious Con Is [still] On:”Are SGM/SGC Christian churches encountering a whole new narrative?”
hmmm…
“Parents were reporting that their children had been sexually abused by other church members” what’s more, “they were mistreated by (ed. their) churches when they spoke up…”
huh?
AND many of the sexual abuse victim’s families had no idea there were other families out there just like theirs…
Ya think?
The SGM/SGC church cover-up & sexual abuse saga continues?
What?!?
Stay seated?
Might wanna run, don’t walk to the nearest exit; the life you save may be your own…or your kids.
(sadface)
Hope deferred makes the heart grow really, really sick…
Sopy
—
__
Notice: Anyone who visits Covenant Life Church in Gaithersburg, Maryland (the former SGM/SGC church group flagship, the very heart of the some 40 year sexual abuse cover-up) , will [still] find a highly questionable environment (due amoung other things to their lack of factual transparency and truthful disclosure) when one wishes to explore saving faith in Jesus Christ; as with any afilliation with current or former SGM/SGC church, visitors are strongly cautioned to due diligence, read up on the matter, and please beware !!! Warning: Decision to attend services must be considered very carefully.
—