Pastor Greg Locke and His Infamous Dunkin Donut Tirade. He Appears to Be a Very Angry Man.

How much more grievous are the consequences of anger than the causes of it. Marcus Aurelius


It is my opinion that things began to change for pastors with the advent of Mark Driscoll and all of the dudebros who worshipped at his feet. Good night! Even John Piper said he loved Driscoll’s theology. Needless to say, Driscoll crashed and burned and Piper continues to say he loved Driscoll’s theology, not his *flaws.* Due to the incredible lack of discernment by the Gospel dudebros, Driscoll spawned a fighter theology, threatening to punch his elders, called Queen Esther a slut, wanting men to act like men which led to fighting clubs, etc. This ugliness invaded popular evangelical faith groups as well as the supposedly theologically adept Calvinists.

Over time, some pastors began to strut like Driscoll. It got worse because this ugliness invaded the broader church at the same time the faithful were mixing up politics with being *Christian.* Christians began to believe that megachurches exemplified *successful Christianity.* They attracted people who didn’t understand the difference between politics and faith. What an exciting time for those folks. Suddenly there was little difference between politics and Christianity. Going to a rally against ___(fill in the blank) was almost the same as going to church.

Strutting loudmouth pastors utilized a combination of political affiliation and controversial stands to garner the attention of people who thought to have their strutting, loudmouth leader featured on the news meant that their church was powerful. Many did not understand that their chosen leader was being viewed as a boorish braggart by the majority of viewers. The words *kindness* and *cooperation* were words stricken from the vocabulary of pastors. Being *in your face* was the new religion and gift of the spirit…

One the other hand, the Calvinistas were instituting hardcore Christianity replete with authoritarian pastors who loved nothing better than to foist church discipline on unsuspecting church members. They did what the political braggarts do. They redefined words like *love* and *kindness* which now meant things like “It is loving that I make you go back to your child porn loving husband because that’s what God wants” or “It is kind to tell you not to take communion since you upset your pastor by saying you weren’t sure that the church needed another assistant pastor.”

I write a lot about the Calvinistas but today I want to feature Greg Locke, a pastor who seems to equate politics and political grandstanding with being a successful pastor.

Who is Greg Locke? Did he abuse his former wife?

Youtube and Facebook presence

Locke is the pastor of the Global Vision Bible Church. There is virtually nothing about him on the website. Did he have any religious training? He has a YouTube channel which has approximately 30,000 subscribers. According to Christian Post in Pastor Greg Locke Reportedly Separates From Wife, Reveals He Struggles With Depression and Pulpit and Pen, he has over 1 million likes on Facebook which is where he gets the most traffic.

According to Christian Post, he shot to fame in 2016 when he produced this video about Target’s gender-neutral bathrooms. To whom is he accountable?

Locke had an ugly divorce from his wife. Did he ever hit her?

According to Pulpit and Pen and the Christian Post, Locke decided to *put away* his wife because she was mentally ill. Now, *put away* in fundy speak usually means he was going to separate and divorce her which proved to be true. However, according to these sources, Locke had a new girlfriend by the name of Tai who was allegedly his wife’s best friend.

Shortly thereafter, the Christian Post and Pulpit and Pen reported on the marriage between Locke and His administrative assistant, Tai. I predict that Tai will find that she has a tough road ahead of her. You should read the report on the interview conducted by Pulpit and Pen. They obtained texts from Locke to his wife.

Melissa was living in a women’s shelter in Georgia, far away from her church and children.  In an interview given to Pulpit & Pen, Melissa alleged physical abuse at the hands of Greg and revealed pages of vicious text messages her husband had sent to her during their separation.  Despite this, Melissa Locke attempted to salvage her marriage.  She ended divorce proceedings that she had initiated against her troubled husband.  Despite this, Greg Locke published a video claiming that he was a “divorced pastor.”  After this untruth was revealed, Locke filed divorce proceedings himself.

Here is one of the alleged tweets from Locke to his wife. Pulpit and Pen traveled to Georgia to interview Locke’s former wife, Melissa.

“You know Melissa, I just don’t want you anymore.  I don’t care if you die and we have a funeral.  I’ll just shed a few tears over you.  I don’t care if you take all the pills in the house, I just want you not in my life.”

Also, did he physically abuse her? Here is a comment Melissa made to Pulpit and Pen. You decide. She is currently staying in a woman’s shelter.

Just because somebody hits you, like two times, does not mean…”

He claims to be depressed and anxious. He seems to have forgotten *angry.*

It appears we are to feel bad for him. Or maybe this is an excuse for his rotten behavior. Who knows?

There have been times in my life where I couldn’t get out of bed for days on end. Didn’t want to answer the phones, didn’t want to mess with the kids, didn’t want to just do the next thing because life was just a crap-fest,” he said.

“When people that love you most ask you ‘what’s wrong’ it ticks you off all the more because explaining the unexplainable feelings that you have, the chaos within you, it’s impossible and it frustrates you. It makes you feel worse than you already are. I know what it’s like to have a full-blown panic attack five minutes before I walk unto the pulpit to preach to thousands of people around the world in a livestream audience especially. And sometimes we think, oh we can’t tell anybody. You better tell somebody,” he explained.

(Quick digression: I am no supporter of Pulpit and Pen. Our theology and our views on being kind vastly differ. However, I believe they did a darn good job here. They cared enough to travel to meet with Locke’s former wife I am impressed in this instance.)

The Dunkin Donuts incident

Would you like to know everything that you need to know about Locke? Watch this before I say anything. Here is the full video. The Dunkin Donuts stuff starts at minute marker 12:00.

Picture this. A self-absorbed, self-righteous man of *God*  took umbrage at an employee of Dunkin Donuts. This pastor who claims to know Jesus believed his right to obtain coffee without wearing a mask took precedence over the feelings and the responsibility of the manager of the Dunkin Donuts shop. This pastor who claims to serve Jesus..you know, the Jesus who came as a servant to all, believed his rights were paramount to anyone in the Dunkin Donuts store. He wouldn’t put on a mask out of deference to another who was following the rules of the company. Why couldn’t this man have shown the love of Jesus to that manager?

Look at the ugly expression on his face. This is a pastor? The pastor who called his wife crazy and took up with his wife’s best friend? This is the pastor who acted so angry and crazy that the manager thought he kicked the door? Guess what? I believe the manager. There is nothing about this pastor which is attractive to me. Maybe he should cut down on the coffee and sugar and get a counselor for his rage.

Locke has a long history of anger which started in childhood according to this article by the Tennessean: Target-blasting pastor Greg Locke channels anger in a new way.

“The consistent thing that kept me angry was people who said, ‘You’re gonna be just like your daddy,’ ” he said.

Many classmates were scared of Locke and usually avoided him altogether.”He was looking for things to get mad about,” said classmate Brandy Wyatt.”Everybody knew, keep your distance from him because he’s a loose cannon.

Locke continued to have run-ins with the law, fighting at school, fighting on the bus, fighting everywhere. “He was so defiant,” Locke’s mother said. “I lived in court.”

After five arrests, Locke, then 15, ended up at Good Shepherd Children’s Home in Murfreesboro.

Locke claims he will go to jail before he closes his church. His church has been filmed filled with parishioners sitting adjacently and not wearing masks.

The Friendly Atheist asked a good question about Greg Locke in After Pastor’s Anti-Mask Tirade, Dunkin’ Announces Mask Mandate At All Locations

Anyway, without making any reference to Locke, Dunkin’ has now announced that all guests will need masksstarting later this week.

Did they make the change because of Locke or was it merely a coincidence? We don’t know. (Dunkin’ didn’t respond to an inquiry I made days ago.) But if it took Locke for them to make the change, better late than never.

Locke hasn’t said anything on social media about the mask mandate. I’m guessing that has less to do with the face coverings and everything to do with the possibility that he might get banned from his favorite coffee chain. Who else will sell him multiple giant cups of sugar a day?

A prediction

Sadly, I believe that we will be hearing more about Greg Locke. One of these days his barely contained anger will get the best of him and it will be reported. Hopefully, he will not hurt others. I am shocked that anyone would want to follow him as a pastor.  No wonder people are leaving the evangelical church in droves. I only wish they could meet some of the loving pastors out there.

Comments

Pastor Greg Locke and His Infamous Dunkin Donut Tirade. He Appears to Be a Very Angry Man. — 101 Comments

  1. Noted paragraphs 1-3 church red flags:

    – leaders as cult of personality celebrity pastors
    – masculinity as fighter theology (thought: what is the feminine counterpart?)
    – success as megachurch
    – power as political affiliation

    Cogent & prescient description. This is helpful since there are neither denominational nor political labels mentioned in the post. Behavior, not labels, matter. Anyone can go by any label they choose, but behavior is evidence.

    Dee, thanks for another excellent post.

  2. Perhaps I missed it, but I didn’t see a link to the video? Maybe it is simply past time to go to sleep.

    Oh, was this numerous 3?

  3. “I tell our people all the time, fixed folks can’t help broke folks.”

    Should pastor folks be above reproach folks, per 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1?

  4. Nashville, Mt. Juliet, and Lebanon (areas along I-40, all the way to Cookville) were hit hard by a tornado earlier this year – many homes, business, and, yes, even churches were leveled or badly damaged. ( Mt. Juliet is just across the county line from the portion of Metro Nashville-Davidson County that suffered the most devastation.) Recovery efforts had barely begun when the Covid-19 virus broke out in the area. To top things off, Tennessee is currently experiencing a frightening uptick in COVID-19 cases statewide.

    If this man-child was really a repentant Christian, he could easily find much better, more Christ-like things to do than threaten a donut shop. And then there’s the marriage thing. Yeah. Whadda man o’ god he is.

    Maybe those panic attacks are just God trying to tell him a few things!

  5. The Word says it is the narrow way that leads to Heaven.

    It seems that’s the case even among the churches.

  6. If he’s had such enormous problems with anger since he was a teen he needs to get some decent therapy to help him uncover what is beneath his rage, otherwise it will just keep bursting out in any situation which he finds challenging. I teach anger management to teenagers, & one of the main emphases is that anger is a defence mechanism, often against having to feel a more primary & uncomfortable emotion such as fear, vulnerability, shame & so on…if those emotions are recognised & tackled then often anger doesn’t need to happen.
    I feel incredibly sorry for his wife & others who are in the firing line. Rage, particularly unprovoked rage, is very scary to face.

    *Slightly unconnected – today is the day for me to unveil my new name, my divorce having come through. I also just got made redundant, after many months off with serious burnout due to stupid changes being made by uncaring employers. I’d really welcome prayers for healing & a clear path forward. I’m 52, single, unemployed & not in great health, & this is a great chance to just start over.

  7. I predict his church will shortly give him a “sabbatical”. He will have a year off with pay and the church will hire an interim. They’ll call this evidence of “compassion”.

  8. I apologize. The video was posted when I published it. Something happened and it disappeared. I have posted the one for Facebook for now and will put up the You Tube version when I get home from an appointment.

  9. I found it on You Tube. It has gotten much longer. The Donut incident starts at around minute marker 12:00. I think he may have taken the original down and added to it.

  10. He’s disqualified from “being” or even referring to himself as “pastor.” Tragic!

  11. Phoenix,

    I read a tweet yesterday that just made me stop in my tracks – it said : the narrow way is love & the broad way is hate.

    That had more meaning & illumination for me than hundreds of sermons.

  12. BeakerN: my divorce having come through. I also just got made redundant, after many months off with serious burnout due to stupid changes being made by uncaring employers. I’d really welcome prayers for healing & a clear path forward. I’m 52, single, unemployed & not in great health, & this is a great chance to just start over.

    I have just paused to pray for you, BeakerN. Blessings to you for better health and continued good spirits in a time of renewal.

  13. BeakerN: this is a great chance to just start over.

    I wish you happiness and success with this chance. May your healing happen on all fronts.

  14. I’ll be honest–this guy has been on my radar, mostly as a clown. However, given the current situation, I’m thinking that maybe I need to take him more seriously.

  15. This guy certainly needs less coffee. Amazing that he can attract a crowd of 450. He tried to start a satellite church in our small town, but it didn’t fly.

  16. UHGGGGHHH!

    Sorry, had to do that after only 5 minutes of that video. There is so much that could be said . . . right now I’ll only address his first statement.

    Masks are not the problem. Masks do not separate the body of Christ. Believers’ ‘attitudes’ about masks are what can seperate the body of Christ.

  17. I had read this about Locke and the mask elsewhere on the web since he isn’t all that far from me geographically.

    It sickens me. It also sickens me that could have been my town. We simply are in full on quarantine mode since despite the pleas of our health dept people are violently anti masking here.

    I am sad for our country. Our “rights” are killing us. And worse yet, the ones claiming their rights are killing more others than themselves.

    I am sad that I follow Jesus, Who made it clear His followers should be humble, quiet, simple, loving, and peaceful.

    And sad that His church is anything but.

  18. People like that are mounting a “sort of” pretence about the claimed issue.

    When there are genuine issues of any kind, they can be advocated for appropriately. This is unlikely to be a “church” boss’s job.

    I now know a lot of “church leaders” who maintain melodrama and it doesn’t matter whether they are “taken seriously” or not, in fact the ambiguity about the ambiguity is a good thing as far as they are concerned.

    He doesn’t think he is standing up for Christ and he doesn’t think he is standing up for Christ’s people. This is part of why I so often call myself an agnostic.

    He doesn’t think he is advocating in genuine mask and epidemic matters either.

    He can of course claim to be the rough diamond with the “heart warming”: story. He is your proper “perfectly imperfect” “Wounded Healer” (TM), like several “reformed” gangsters I knew.

    His parishioners won’t protest because they haven’t been equipped with criteria. They certainly can’t do any of the things listed on their “about” page, I can assure you from here. They won’t notice that they are wasting their time and credence.

    Real Women go kayaking!

  19. Watched about 3 minutes. I. Can’t. Even. He in no way represents the Jesus I love and serve. Not everyone who says Lord, Lord will enter the kingdom of heaven.

  20. I get to hear of large numbers of manic clergy nowadays, after having met several over the years.

    Did somebody decide to employ him or did he employ himself?

    Did he go to seminary? If so, which?

    Does “Global Vision” affiliate? To what? (It sounds like the sort of jet they fly around in. It’s also a cultish name.)

    One of the many fake political parameters he has set is that if he gets sectioned, it is a “political persecution of christians” (I knew people in a very major denomination that played the church internal persecution card).

    This is why it is preferable that his own parishioners section him and this is now ultra urgent.

    It’s obvious it’s not about masks or illness or church (his fake agenda), but the disease in his ego and narcissism and machiavellianism is the most extreme I’ve ever seen, combined with the most severe case of mania I’ve ever seen.

    He is cunning and devious beyond compare AND HAS ACCOMPLICES with whom he is in ultra diseased holds / binds.

  21. Man-O-Manischewitz, the dude (Locke) sounds like a speed-freak at a Dead concert!
    (that was before the world had moved on, way back when, in the land of Ago)

  22. BeakerN: *Slightly unconnected – today is the day for me to unveil my new name, my divorce having come through. I also just got made redundant, after many months off with serious burnout due to stupid changes being made by uncaring employers.

    I’m sorry to hear that, wishing you well during this transition.

  23. Perhaps the Dunning-Kreuger effect is relevant here: the fact that some less intelligent but more outspoken people overestimate their gifts and then get reinforced every week in some of these church hierarchies, forums and platforms.

    Bully pulpit comes to mind, literally.

  24. My wife is a doctor, and she has seen plenty of people that have had “the flue”. And, she is not “marking it down” as COVID.
    This clown for a preacher, sounds like a number of my classmates from my fundamentalist high school that are posting on Facebook. The only think this clown did NOT mention was his guns! And how this whole COVID thing is a conspiracy to take away your guns!

    Sigh… but remember, the real “issue” is not him, it is all the people that attend this “church” and do think something is “off”??
    PS… I think Dee is correct, he sounds like a Driscoll clone..

  25. BeakerN,

    This may sound like a cliche, but it’s not. I’m 52, finally declared disabled a couple years ago, and single. I had to put my total trust in God. I went from working in highly operational and systematic environments to having to have help in keeping my apartment clean. I couldn’t have made a massive transition without His help.

  26. Pingback: Linkathon!... - Phoenix Preacher

  27. Brian: Narcissism + defamation of victim = abuser

    I would imagine that churches with angry, screaming pastors will attract only a certain segment: angry people (at least the head of household), people who are able to sit quietly while being screamed at, and people who have some other reason to think this is how church is or should be. A church like that might be quite the rage factory, with lots of suffering in silence.

  28. I checked the address of his church.
    It is NOT a Mega by any stretch of the imagination.
    Though his Facebook page counts 1.5 million likes.

    The guy gets around online — any search for “pastor greg locke” brings up a lot of hits.

  29. Believer: I predict his church will shortly give him a “sabbatical”.

    i.e. Go to ground until the heat blows over, then Come Back in Triumph.

  30. Bridget,
    For Bridget and those of you who had to click off early, here’s a partial transcript:

    I said, ‘If you call me a liar one more time, I’m going to take these work boots and I’m going to kick your teeth down your throat.’ Yes, I said it. And in the moment, I meant it.

    I said, ‘Sir, listen to me very closely, I will be back at 5 o’clock tonight to get my two medium coffees, seven creams, and five sugars and I will be back tonight and I will not be wearing a mask.’”

    I’ll go to jail over this. It is the golden calf. I’m sick of Christians saying things like this: ‘Well, it’s just a mask.’ You know what they used to say? ‘Oh, it’s just a baby, it’s just a zygote, it’s just a growth in the mother’s womb so let’s kill it.

    “No, it’s not just a mask, it’s a compliance device. This is not about safety, this is about surrendering of our rights.

    Can I remind you? This is still the United States of America. This is not Communism. This is not China, this ain’t North Korea, I don’t live in Haiti.

  31. Brian: I couldn’t have made a massive transition without His help.

    Thanks for sharing. Needed to hear this. Very encouraging.
    Many friends are now in “massive transition” & definitely need “His help”.
    God bless.

  32. Wow…well, at least he was honest enough to admit that he wasn’t a ‘sheep’. Because he surely seems to act more like a ‘goat’ to me! I guess he hasn’t reached that part in Romans yet where Paul says that we should not cause our brother to stumble. Lost or saved, I don’t believe I’ve ever heard anyone so selfish, egotistical, and hateful. What a very, very sad and terrible example of everything that a Christian is NOT supposed to be. Oh…and just for clarification: Daniel was arrested for PRAYING, not for threatening to kick someone’s teeth in at Dunkin Donuts! Sheesh!

  33. I happen to be reading a memoir (White American Youth) by a former white supremacist (Christian Picciolini) and see echoes of his descriptions of his motivations in the Dunkin Donuts incident (among others).

    In the context of having just picked a fight with a rival neighborhood group, Picciolini describes, “Once again, I had slotted myself perfectly into the role of protagonist… Pitting my tribe against the other. The thrill of combat was extreme. Commanding a legion of soldiers, a group intent on achieving a singular goal, felt natural to me. It didn’t matter if the opposition involved another sports team, our political enemies, or a rival neighborhood. My world was one in which belonging and identity hinged on taking sides, and I needed to lead the one that won.”

    I’ve been marinating on this. Not saying it’s like this for everyone, but IF those of us who call ourselves Christians are experiencing the same motivations as a (former) white supremacist, or following a leader who seems to be exhibiting those motivations, shouldn’t that give us pause for thought? Is that really where we want our sense of belonging and identity to come from?

  34. Considering what happened to “The Tragedian” in The Great Divorce, something we have to ask about this Pastor Greg Locke:
    Is he a man who has frequent fits of rage or has he become Rage animating a body?

    Around 15 years ago in the small-press Furry comics scene, there was this surreal webcomic (with hardcopy collections) titled Jack by a David Hopkins whose setting and theme involved a unique take on “The Four Last Things: Death Judgment, Heaven, and Hell”. The title character was “one of seven brothers” in Hell who had once been mortal but had embodied one of the Seven Deadly Sins to the point that in Hell they BECAME the sin. Jack was Wrath.

  35. Wild Honey,

    “Pitting my tribe against the other. …My world was one in which belonging and identity hinged on taking sides, and I needed to lead the one that won.”–christian picciolini
    ++++++++++++++++++++

    yes, very thought-provoking.

    a lifetime in christianland, and aside from “Jesus loves me this i know”, the other primary take-away is “us versus them”.
    .
    .
    for the sake of my own dignity i’ll say i never bought it. but yet i sort of put up with it. until i no longer could.

  36. Wild Honey,

    In the context of having just picked a fight with a rival neighborhood group, Picciolini describes, “Once again, I had slotted myself perfectly into the role of protagonist… Pitting my tribe against the other.”

    As expressed by this Pete Seeger cover of a 1931 coal-miner labor song:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1XKMwWZVpPE
    Except for Picciolini, the Fight had become the goal in and of itself.
    Like Ares instead of Athena.

  37. BeakerN,

    i’ll pray for you, Beaker. a new start… what a wonderful thing. but i can imagine how daunting it feels. you are brilliant, and door will open.

  38. Calling out wade burleson on this, as apparently his blog is making it more difficult for folks to oppose his anti masking stand in the comment stream.

    Wade, you do realize blocking “anonymous” comments even if people do give their names in the body of the comment means those who have employment issues and have to screen carefully can no longer comment.

  39. “Pastor” Locke = Driscoll legacy, whether he is of the New Calvinist tribe or not. An angry spirit is not of God. The video clip is not a display of righteous anger, but furious flesh in motion from someone who does not truly carry the mantle of Pastor.

    “Love endures with patience and serenity, love is kind and thoughtful, and is not jealous or envious; love does not brag and is not proud or arrogant. It is not rude; it is not self-seeking, it is not provoked nor overly sensitive and easily angered; it does not take into account a wrong endured. It does not rejoice at injustice, but rejoices with the truth when right and truth prevail. Love bears all things regardless of what comes, believes all things looking for the best in each one, hopes all things remaining steadfast during difficult times, endures all things without weakening.” (1 Corinthians 13:4-8 AMP)

  40. Well, that was…unpleasant. Run, people. Run from this man! I am weary of the Mask War because it has become utterly and hopelessly politicized. The science behind the effectiveness (for all values of effectiveness) of masking is not settled. See the government of the Netherlands and our own government medical officials at the beginning of his pandemic vs our government medical officials now. Viruses penetrate through the masks and go around them, but masks trap many outgoing large droplets. *But that isn’t even the point in this case* I don’t think. For the record, I wear a mask in public in case I am infected because of neighbor love, but I am irritated by both kinds of mask religionists.

    Yikes, I get so frustrated when Christians miss the larger point. Mr. NotaSheep can take his protest of what is probably a civil ordinance or state law to the courthouse downtown or the statehouse. That is his first amendment right. He’s just being a jerk to take it out on Dunkin and Dunkin’s people. Even if it isn’t a law and Dunkin has made it a policy, it is their policy, and he is a guest in their store. If he doesn’t like it, his protest is withdrawal of his patronage. Don’t defame the Lord with such behavior.

  41. Max,

    In one of his rant-sermons, Greg Locke says that he did not seek popularity online, and mentions that his congregation shares that popularity too. He gives so much credit to God that he assumes no responsibility for his own actions.

    It all amounts to inciting his flock, and I hope they run away.

  42. Bridget: Yes, jail sounds just the place for him, where he can’t hurt anyone!

    He might deserve jail, but jails are full of vulnerable people. Staff would have to keep a particular eye on him too.

    It’s hard to imagine an answer for this kind of toxicity.

  43. linda: Wade, you do realize blocking “anonymous” comments even if people do give their names in the body of the comment means those who have employment issues and have to screen carefully can no longer comment.

    Feature, Not Bug?

    Is Anti-Mask becoming a new Litmus Test of your Salvation?

  44. Max: “Pastor” Locke = Driscoll legacy, whether he is of the New Calvinist tribe or not. An angry spirit is not of God. The video clip is not a display of righteous anger, but furious flesh in motion from someone who does not truly carry the mantle of Pastor.

    More like a toddler in an adult body who has just heard the word “No”.

  45. Friend: He gives so much credit to God that he assumes no responsibility for his own actions.

    This is pure gold as far as insights go. He’s not the only one we see this in, far from it.

  46. BeakerN: Friend: He gives so much credit to God that he assumes no responsibility for his own actions.

    This is pure gold as far as insights go. He’s not the only one we see this in, far from it.

    God as the power brokers’ personal scapegoat. Not really a surprise their either. Pathetic, yes.

  47. He spends a minimum of $52.92 on 28 medium cups of Dunkin Donuts coffee per week. Plus the cost to drive there twice a day. I wonder why he doesn’t have a coffee pot, along with two gallons of cream and a five pound bag of sugar, at the church office where I assume he is most days, studying and preparing sermons, planning with the church staff, meeting with individuals, corresponding with missionaries, returning phone calls, praying, etc…. Oh, never mind.

  48. jojo: He spends a minimum of $52.92 on 28 medium cups of Dunkin Donuts coffee per week.

    Especially when the typical coffee you can buy off the shelf is of similar quality to DD’s. Maybe a little better; the one at DD may have been sitting on a hot plate for a while after being brewed.

  49. jojo: I wonder why he doesn’t have a coffee pot … at the church office

    He needs to witness at the drive-thru.

    Can I get an amen?

  50. Bridget,

    Hi Bridget. Been out of the blogosphere for awhile. Tuned into TWW today to find this and other recent posts about bad-boy preachers, etc. … doesn’t look like the American “church” changed much while I was away.

  51. Gram3: Dunkin has made it a policy, it is their policy, and he is a guest in their store. If he doesn’t like it, his protest is withdrawal of his patronage. Don’t defame the Lord with such behavior.

    Exactly. “What would Jesus do?” Not this!! “Pastor” Locke’s behavior is a LONG way from Christlikeness.

  52. Gram3: I am weary of the Mask War because it has become utterly and hopelessly politicized. The science behind the effectiveness (for all values of effectiveness) of masking is not settled … I wear a mask in public in case I am infected because of neighbor love …

    I wear a mask in public because the science of masking is not settled, I am old, love my wife of same age who has underlying health conditions, love my family and neighbors, and desire to obey local authorities. I have on three occasions been challenged by no-maskers in store check-out lines, who refused to honor social distancing marks on the floor and made it a point to preach me their tirade against masks while I was trying to pay for my stuff. On two occasions, I acted like Jesus and remained silent … regarding the third incident, I don’t want to relate my response so you will still think I’m a holy man.

  53. Max: doesn’t look like the American “church” changed much while I was away.

    I’m going to add to my running list of qualities to look for in a new church. Check out the ones that have been closed since spring.

  54. Gram3: I am weary of the Mask War because it has become utterly and hopelessly politicized. The science behind the effectiveness (for all values of effectiveness) of masking is not settled.

    I’m tired of it too.
    Why make reason and common sense a political thing?
    For me ‘settled science’ has nothing to do with it.
    I wear a mask and practice social distancing, because I believe in better safe than sorry.
    Covid-19 Is Not a Hoax nor a liberal plot to take away America’s freedom.

  55. Muff Potter: I wear a mask and practice social distancing, because I believe in better safe than sorry.

    Absolutely! Another thing that bothers me about this whole mess is that the small business owners are getting whipsawed. Dunkin franchisees are small peeps, and they are not, as yet, protected from liability from Covid claims. So it’s not unreasonable for the Dunkin guy to ask people to wear masks. I would if I were in his place. Precautionary Principle.

  56. Max: I acted like Jesus and remained silent

    I was not like Jesus. On one of my rare trips out (because I’m like your wife), a young masked couple intruded into my distance zone, and I had to give them the Gram3DefCon1 death stare with a stern “excuse me” bark while pointing to the circle on the floor. I think they were just oblivious to distancing. Everybody’s getting used to the new normal, I guess. It’s both/and indoors. Good to see you again, Max.

  57. Gram3: The science behind the effectiveness (for all values of effectiveness) of masking is not settled.

    I don’t know where you’re getting that. I saw a very good Peer reviewed study referring to the first sars and the effectiveness of mask use was quite convincing. The initial concern was that we didn’t have enough masks for healthcare providers and people were hoarding them and they should have communicated that better.

    I will never understand people who get angry about this because it’s literally the easiest thing you can do to protect yourself but more so, others.

  58. BeakerN: I read a tweet yesterday that just made me stop in my tracks – it said : the narrow way is love & the broad way is hate.

    That is an excellent quote, thanks for sharing it. I think it really sums it up.

  59. I know a man who was once as angry as this man is. If you knew the kind of extreme child abuse he grew up with, you would understand the rage. The man I know, however, after leaving home young, joining the army, acting out in many ways, having a failed marriage and many troubles, eventually came to know Jesus Christ. He was a changed man. He was able to come to terms with his past. He is elderly now and is one of the most kind, helpful and soft spoken guys you could meet, always patient and showing the love of Christ.

    Locke needs to confront the things that he is *actually* angry about. It’s not about masks. It’s about things that happened to him young and people he needs to face up to. That’s a lot more scary than railing at strangers about nothing. It takes a lot of true strength and courage.

  60. elastigirl,

    Hit a bumpy road recently, but back at it again. Good to see that you are still here, elastigirl. Seems like things are just as bad (or worse) on the bad-boy preacher front, as when I last toured the blogosphere. Messrs. Locke and Falwell have sure been misbehaving … unfortunately, there are many “church” folks who like leaders like that!

  61. Gram3: I was not like Jesus.

    Oh, I’ve done my share of reminding no-maskers in my area to follow the rules: respect my space, don’t hit, don’t bite, don’t cuss, etc. … the usual kindergarten rules that some adult no-maskers seemed to have forgotten.

  62. SiteSeer,

    I agree that Locke has deep seated anger that he needs to surrender to Jesus. I think about how Jesus said He didn’t come for the healthy but for the sick and not for the righteous but the sinners. Perhaps we could all pray for Locke to receive that healing.

  63. Marie: Perhaps we could all pray for Locke to receive that healing.

    Yes, and in addition to focusing on this abusive, attention-seeking man, we also need to spare a thought for his victims. His followers also need prayer.

  64. Marie: Perhaps we could all pray for Locke to receive that healing.

    Repentance precedes healing. I can’t see Mr. Locke humbling himself to repent – the level of his arrogance is startling. Forgiveness and healing are available only on the other side of a recognition of sin and genuine repentance for it.

  65. Max: Repentance precedes healing. I can’t see Mr. Locke humbling himself to repent – the level of his arrogance is startling. Forgiveness and healing are available only on the other side of a recognition of sin and genuine repentance for it.

    Agreed. He seems to be very proud of his anger, really. Until he sees himself as he really is, there’s more hope of a camel going through a needle.

  66. Believer,

    The church will never give him time off, a sabbatical of sorts. He runs the church hookline and sinker. He will never censure himself. God will have to deal with him!

  67. Lea: I don’t know where you’re getting that.

    Well, if I have mis-stated the basic science regarding viral particles and the permeability of fabric face coverings and the purpose of surgical masks and, if there is a study regarding Covid and fabric face masks, then I stand corrected. Around here no one is wearing fitted N95 masks that they change every hour in public. Also, Dr. Fauci testified this week, I believe, that they are just now investigating the propagation of the virus through the air via aerosol. That’s another way of saying the science isn’t settled yet, especially wrt HVAC, which would make non-fitted masks logically less effective for incoming viruses. So that’s why I was careful to say what I said in the way that I said it. Outgoing droplets and so-forth. Neighbor love. If we want to about the truth and about the science, then that’s what we should stick to and forget about the other noise. The guy was a jerk regardless and we should still exhibit neighbor love and obey the lawful ordinances, in my opinion.

    Personally, I was upset with the initial guidance against masks from Fauci and the CDC because it did not, as you said, make sense in light of SARS. I have to make frequent medical visits and am immunocompromised and had been following the outbreak in China closely. We could have used fabric masks without compromising the PPE for professionals! Quilters are cranking them out in 15 minutes if they can find elastic. I hope that clears things up. There’s a lot we don’t know, but we do know a small thing we can do to help one another. That should be good enough.

  68. SiteSeer: He seems to be very proud of his anger

    “In view of what he has made us then, dear brothers, let every man be quick to listen but slow to use his tongue, and slow to lose his temper. For man’s temper is never the means of achieving God’s true goodness.” (James 1:20 Phillips)

  69. Max,

    Max, the Bible and all its teachings, Jesus and all he taught, seem to have been completely forgotten and left behind. The evangelical church is a political organization now.

  70. SiteSeer: the Bible and all its teachings, Jesus and all he taught, seem to have been completely forgotten and left behind

    And that’s even in the church!!

    I bet Mr. Locke is thrilled that Mr. Falwell’s transgressions have taken the spotlight off of him for awhile.

  71. SiteSeer: Agreed. He seems to be very proud of his anger, really.

    As PROOF of His Righteousness, if not a Litmus Test of His Salvation.

  72. Max: Repentance precedes healing. I can’t see Mr. Locke humbling himself to repent – the level of his arrogance is startling.

    Never underestimate the arrogance of one of God’s Special Pets.

    “Nothing’s worse than a monster who thinks he’s right with God.”
    — Captain Mal Reynolds, Free Trader Serenity

    Except a monster who KNOWS He’s Right With God.

  73. Max: I have on three occasions been challenged by no-maskers in store check-out lines, who refused to honor social distancing marks on the floor and made it a point to preach me their tirade against masks while I was trying to pay for my stuff. On two occasions, I acted like Jesus and remained silent … regarding the third incident, I don’t want to relate my response so you will still think I’m a holy man.

    i.e. you Exploded like that warehouse in Beirut.

    Textbook Rule of Three — the first incident introduces the pattern, the second establishes the pattern, the third breaks the pattern.

  74. So, excuse all those dupicate comments. There was a glitch when I was trying to post yesterday.

  75. There was nothing Locke said that offended me as a Christian. This was the straw that broke the camel’s back for him. This was righteous anger at the attack on the church by unconstitutional government mandates. Don’t you understand that a “pandemic” is a way that Marxists can take down the churches, the schools and the middle class? If you don’t even try to understand that this could be a possibility, then we are all in trouble. It’s not just a mask …