Jewel Bug Nebula-Hubble/NASA
“Stupidity is infinitely more fascinating than intelligence. Intelligence has its limits while stupidity has none.” Claude Chabrol
Remember that politician who had restrictive mask mandates and was caught without his on in some fancy restaurant with some cutesy name like Francois’ Dry Cleaner? How many well-known people do you know who have been caught doing something naughty in public, seeming unable to comprehend that there would be someone like me who would be laughing my guts out and taking multiple pictures while the subject was unaware?
I have often laughed at pastors who say they will not go out to dinner, presumably in a restaurant, with a woman who isn’t their wife. I wonder what they think they will do in the middle of a restaurant with everyone watching? Who would be stupid enough to play kissy-kissy at the local Cracker Barrell?
Folks, we’ve found him! He is Pastor Tavner Smith leads Venue Church in Chattanooga, Tennessee. He gives new meaning to my motto: Play in public; pay in public.
Three days ago, I saw this posted on the Christian Post: Staffers quit Venue Church after confronting pastor with allegations of affair, misconduct
And there was someone like me, probably laughing their guts out and recording a video of the pastor and his paramour. I was so utterly miffed off by the pastor’s stupidity that I posted it on Twitter on Christmas Eve, breaking my vow to enjoy Christmas without checking social media.
Here is the proof of my broken vow.
The infamous video will be posted momentarily, which is bound to live on in TWW lore. But let’s start at what led to this ignominious video of “Pastor” Tavner Smith.
According to the Christian Post, the pastor and the Mrs. have been on the outs since May, when divorce proceedings began. Why does that make me wonder if his wife caught him in other naughty behavior? I’m not saying there was (this for the lawyers involved), but I wonder as I wander out under the Christmas sky…
The Christian Post also says that eight Christian staffers have quit due to the kissy-kissy video.
…Eight employees have reportedly quit.
Two former employees and four volunteers or members previously connected to the church told the newspaper that the eight employees quit after confronting the pastor about a rumored affair with a church employee.
Venue Church did not immediately respond when contacted by The Christian Post on Thursday morning. But a spokesperson for the church told the Times Free Press that no comment will be made until after the severance process for staff was finalized.
Well, it sure looks like they have their hands full finalizing that severance pay. I wonder if there are NDAs involved? Isn’t that how things are done in churches that are afraid of what their former employees will say?
On December 18, 2021, Colton Chandler Helton, a former employee, wrote an explosive entry onto Facebook. For example, he claims he was told not to report witnessed physical abuse. Here are a few more quotes, but read the whole thing.
I gave a man who had very very bad intentions the ability to make a mega church.
..The lead pastor always had a new car every few weeks. And the shopping trips would blow your mind. From exotic dogs to shoe and jersey collections.
…I witnessed the worship pastor slam his wife against a wall in the green room prior to going on stage. And on many of times verbal talk to her like a dog and scream “submit to me women”
…, I witnessed on many times if someone saw or said anything about the money, accountability or abuse they where ran off an everyone at the church was made to triangulate against the said person and attack them by calling their jobs friends ect making false statements in person and or on social media.
And then there is my favorite reason for Helton quitting…The need for alone time with women!
I witnessed on many times the lead pastor have “alone time” with females on the worship team and congregation.
Yahoo News reported on a post by the Chatanooga Free Post with some additional information in Staff members of Venue Church in Chattanooga quit over the conduct of megachurch pastor.
In 2015, a report from Outreach Magazine and LifeWay Research listed Venue as one of the fastest-growing churches in America. (ed. Outreach Magazine sure appears to love these fast-growing churches with creepy pastors, don’t they?)
Smith would regularly post to social media pictures of himself in designer sneakers and clothes. Sunday services included light shows and congregants would provide a standing ovation when he came on stage. Along with the campus security team, a special team of armed bodyguards would follow Smith around.
…Helton said preaching at the church also shifted from more traditional Calvinism to prosperity gospel, the belief among some protestant Christians that material wealth is God’s will and can be increased by giving to the church. The church’s theological direction was another topic that could not be discussed or questioned, he said.
…Venue Church, which operates a social media presence with nearly 40,000 combined followers, is very concerned about its image and the narrative surrounding it, said Destiny Santos, who attended the church between 2015 and 2020 and served on the security team there for a year.
For example, during a weekend canvassing for the church, leadership in the operation asked Santos to let her curly hair down for a picture so the organization would appear more racially diverse. A photographer who worked for the church at the time confirmed the story but asked to remain anonymous.
In the “Shades of Mark Driscoll department:
“Anyone that spoke bad about him or the church went onto this watch list with code names and explanations as to why they’re not allowed,” Santos told the Times Free Press. “Some of them were simple things like, this person was persistent about wanting to talk directly to pastor or wanting to talk to somebody about XYZ what they think about the church. Or, this person said this bad thing about the church. So now none of these people are allowed here.
In the shades of Tullian Tchividjian department.
At the end of his sermon this past Sunday, Smith brought an hourglass to the stage. He told the audience God told him that too many people were focusing on the past — on the sand that had already fallen — instead of looking to the future.
“Most of us can’t get all the places God wants us to be because we’re wrapped up in the shame of where we already have been,” Smith said. “We don’t walk in freedom because we’re trapped in the past.”
Serious moment: I would not show this video if there was a clear picture of the woman involved. She is not named, and rightfully so. If she has attended the church, she is a victim of clergy abuse. Frankly, I think she should sue him.
And now, what you’ve all been frantically looking for, Tavner Smith’s “Play in public, pay in public” moment.
Sheesh, mega pastors are becoming synonymous with poor decision making skills. How can these guys grow a church to a large size and not have much common sense?
Size isn’t the issue. If they can fake outthe givers, they have a winner.
It takes a village. Of enablers, that is.
French Laundry is a well known upscale restaurant (3 Michelin stars) in the SF Bay area. The certain politician got raked over the coals though for socializing inside with non-household people and the restaurant also got criticized. However we weren’t going to recall him and get whoever was first past the post (California recall election rules are insane).
However hubris is a temptation to those with power whether politician or pastor; one that they need to be aware of and resist. I note that one memory of Desmond Tutu quotes him as saying
https://www.gylesbrandreth.net/blog/2021/12/26/meeting-desmond-tutu He at least seemed aware.
Wow…looks like reporter Wyatt Massey at the Chattanooga Times Free Press is carving out a niche as the regional reporter with his finger on the pulse of Tennessee pastoral shenanigans. In addition to his article on Tavner Smith, he also reported on Perry Stone of Perry Stone Ministries, Cleveland, TN, on Saturday. To wit:
https://www.timesfreepress.com/news/local/story/2021/dec/25/women-perry-stones-ministry-allege-sexual-mis/560366/
Stone got in trouble in July 2020 and left his ministry for two weeks. Apparently things are heating up again.
“Sweet dreams are made of this
Who am I to disagree
I travel the world and the seven seas
Everybody’s looking for something
Some of them want to use you
Some of them want to get used by you…”
— Eurythmics (1983) —
This came to mind:
Jeremiah 5:30-31
“An astonishing and horrible thing has been committed in the land: the prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests rule by their own power; and My people love to have it so. But what will you do in the end?”
When people settle into ear-tickling, plug-and-play theology presented them on a silver platter, that can be fine for those who look as church primarily as social club, daycare, and entertainment venue. Even if people previously experienced or had sought something more authentic and related to genuine faith, the allure of conformity and the pressure against it – – let alone legitimate accountability, transparency, and oversight – – can end up going towards enabling issues. Some people may go along to get along, while others might look at the effort required to bring about change (and may try and get frustrated). Often, the latter eventually head out the doors and follow those who might have concluded a challenge was not worth the effort.
As noted elsewhere, when there’s a whole lot of enabling going on, grievous wolves and hirelings figure to feather nests and have free rein for all sorts of issues, including working out personal barbarisms.
So long as them Yankee greenbacks keep rollin’ in, he don’t give a rat’s a$$ who investigates him.
Especially since the “first past the post” front runner in all the polls was a fanatic Trumpist who came across as crazier than QAnon.
“Workin’ for the Yankee Dollar…”
— Andrews Sisters, “Rum and Coca Cola”, 1945
Security guards to keep the predator in power and muscle the truthtellers. Uffda. Oyvey.
BTW, notably the predator’s strongmen guards who shut down the whistleblower are paid for by the sucker enabling donors.
Nothing like keeping a predator pulpiteer in power so everyone can go to Eternal Damnation together and reunite, find each other.
Oh boy. This is a very creepy tool for churches:
https://www.wsj.com/amp/articles/churches-new-members-personal-online-data-analytics-gloo-11640310982
The decor and the man’s style of dress / facial expression told me everything about the value of that outfit first. He has “sort of” confessed that some “shame” exists (quote near end of article). Job skills would benefit him. Troublesome religious leaders turn out to be wilfully under-informed themselves. “Lifeway” are involved again.
I think the word you want is “clergy” abuse, not “clerical” abuse. Clerical has to do with work in an office, which I’m sure you know. Just a suggestion
“clerical” also applies to clergy; clerk originally meant someone in holy orders. The clergy were also the office workers at one time (i.e., they were most of the few people around [in Europe] who could read, write, and deal with numbers so handled correspondence, record keeping, and accounting for the people in power).
Just this short video clip creeps me out
https://www.instagram.com/p/CS-fbAOljl4/?utm_medium=copy_link
“I witnessed on many times the lead pastor have “alone time” with females on the worship team and congregation.”
“Son of man, do you see what the elders of the house of Israel do in the dark … For they say, ‘The Lord does not see us’ … He also said to me, ‘Yet again you will see even greater repulsive acts which they are committing.'” (Ezekiel 8)
I have a feeling that we haven’t seen the last of repulsive acts committed by “lead pastors” across America.
All that money being spent on
security guards (isn’t God good enough to protect this pastor?), worship teams, state of the art technology, fancy schmancy cars and clothing – just to keep a 501c3 business afloat. What a waste of money and time!
Indeed. Actors would have no stage if it weren’t for an audience willing to buy tickets to their show.
“The prophets prophesy falsely, And the priests rule on their own authority; And My people love to have it so! But what will you do when the end comes?” (Jeremiah 5:31)
A counterfeit pulpit depends on a counterfeit pew; it’s an ungodly synergism playing out across America. Bad-boy pulpits make bad-boy pews feel better about themselves. Big screens, fog machines, skinny jeans, and the Great God Entertainment have taken over much of the American church. “And My people love to have it so!”
Jesus wept.
Don Jones,
I’m happy to make the chamge.
JDV,
Posted my last comment before I read yours. Looks like we are on the same page in Scripture in this regard. Illegitimate pastors know what unregenerate churchgoers want and serve it to them. The pulpit prospers, the pew satisfied … from the playbook of hell.
Erp,
What an incredible quote. Thank you.
I hope you know I was kidding about the French Laundry…
Muslin, fka Dee Holmes,
You are way ahead of me. Thank you for the info.
Not ‘this’ pastor … he is on his own!
No use for Pastor Smith to pray for divine protection:
“Behold, the Lord’s hand is not so short
That it cannot save,
Nor His ear so impaired
That it cannot hear.
But your wickedness has separated you from your God,
And your sins have hidden His face from you so that He does not hear.”
(Isaiah 59:1-2)
I have used that verse in the past. Thank you for bringing it up.
He is comparing his congregation to ants, specifically to fire ants, and threatening to sic the fire ants on anyone who opposes him. The “don’t mess with God’s house now,” followed by a wink, delivers the threat and also gives him the cover of saying it was just a joke.
How do members of this church behave in public? Does this guy attract people who go around intimidating others? Does he radicalize people?
Donors are complicit. They drive the getaway car, which under the law, makes them equally guilty.
Pastor + pew = see what they have wrought. Codependent in their partnership, partners in crime.
“If someone raises a concern about breaking unity & peace by talking about church abuse, just smile and kindly remind them that unity and peace was broken by the abuser. Not the survivor and not the one exposing truth. The abuser is 100% responsible for breaking unity and peace.”
Quote by @lorilharding
The pastor is intimidating, as Friend writes above, and abusing anyone who dares to expose his con.
Church, do dare, be brave.
Or be complicit by supporting this monster of a pulpiteer.
More than ever, church people need to choose whom they shall serve.
That is SOP for a sociopath abuser.
Always have a comepletely-innocent, plausibly-deniable fallback position set up in advance to reverse blame and make the victim The Evil One. “CAN’T YOU TAKE A JOKE??????”
The thought occurs that “Venue” rhymes with deja vu.
Old news, but not good news.
—
Muslin, fka Dee Holmes,
one guesses that PS was not ordaining or healing.
Perhaps it’s time to start wearing body cams to church.
Pastor Smith cut his ministry teeth on New Calvinism … a movement characterized by manipulation, intimidation and domination … = spiritual gifts of ‘another’ spirit.
He most likely “shifted from more traditional Calvinism to prosperity gospel” because NeoCal wasn’t prosperous enough for him. And it was working for him … for a season. Instead of “choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a time” (Hebrews 11:25), he obviously chose the pleasures of sin.
JMO, but I don’t think that what many of these “pastors” chose to do has anything to do with skills or common sense. They do just exactly what they want to do. They just believe they have their pew sitters so kowtowed that they think they can get away with it and just keep rolling in the cash and basking in the celebrity status.
“Pastor Tavner worked as Student Pastor of a church[Redemption] in Greenville, SC…became the understudy to Ron Carpenter Jr. who remains Pastor Tavner’s mentor today.”
http://tavnersmith.tv/about/
And they really do have their pew serfs kowtowed.
Fear is the operative mechanism.
Fear that if you don’t fall into line and keep the bucks flowing into their coffers, you (generic you) are going against god (small ‘g’ intentional) and that you are not a ‘real’ Christian.
“Venue Church” sounds totally fake. Look what you can do with it:
“Rented Auditorium Church”
“Municipal Park Picnic Shelter Church”
“Big Ol’ Former Furniture Store Church”
Or
“Venue Restaurant”
“Venue Theater”
“Venue Laundromat, Bar & Grille”
Who comes up with these things, anyway?
And when you really think about it, how is this very much different from the old feudal system in which the upper levels of the clergy lived lives of luxury at the expense and misery of the peasantry?
Muff Potter,
Not different at all.
Or, as Dee documents a stone cold con-evangelist in a tweet today, “Hey, Media, dontcha know I’m just Italian?” – the pervert pastor explains … and insults Italians … and insults Media … and insults everyone who listens/read his evil nonsense.
As Bonhoeffer said “Cheap grace … sold on the market like cheapjacks’ wares”
Churches bringing back the Dark Ages.
Gross income disparity shared among leaders of “faith”, business, and governance is a red flag for what is to come for the general population. Normal folk, making a living, seeking their Savior in Jesus, and living like Jesus who was no elite.
Maybe some are kowtowed and others are the emboldened Fire Ants, a destructive invasive species that the pastor might find useful, even as he holds the power to destroy them.
Julie Roys has a photo of Tavner Smith preaching in July 2021. His bicep tattoo is partially visible. It shows the words THIS IS LOVE above a pair of crossed pistols.
Maybe somebody else can explain how the imagery is related to the Prince of Peace.
https://julieroys.com/pastors-alleged-infidelity-staff-exodus-venue-church/
Muff Potter,
Funny, that song comes to mind to me sometimes reading TWW…
“I gave a man who had very very bad intentions the ability to make a mega church.” This may be the sentence that you’re not supposed to say out loud. One MAN gave another MAN–who happened to be the wrong kind of MAN–the ability (the skill? the aptitude?) to make a mega-church? I’ve always suspected that mega-churches were largely man-made and that they could function quite well without Christ or His Spirit, but this guy says it plainly. Unless he misspoke when he wrote that FB post, then his theology is as warped as the people he exposes in it. How is it, I wonder, that so many evangelicals are so … dopey? If they don’t believe Jesus and His Apostles about life under the cross, maybe they would believe Luther’s Heidelberg Disputations on the Theology of the Cross.
The more we look at this, the more we see how essential the enabling appears to be through the whole equation, which sadly also appears to people’s willingness to be passengers in these processes they may significantly finance.
Add that disturbing Wall Street Journal article into the mix, and the grievous wolves and hirelings may be able to even more narrowly target their prey. The framing seems to be cast by some that acres of personal info on people combed through by churches is just a tool to more efficiently evangelize — because the 30,000 churches mentioned are likely evangelizing up a storm and running out of unreached people in their corner of the world, right? Meanwhile, anybody may note what they’re clearly selling (and what some are clearly looking for) is demographic information that shows $$$ farming potential — I mean winsome Kingdom-dedication of life resources cuz missions, evangelism, etc.
Second Amendment Sunday at the Church of Zardoz?
This review of the movie Downfall (Der Untergang) made the same point, additionally pointing out how enablers can become completely dependent on their abuser, unable to function or even think on their own without orders from on high.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uI5ZsEy8ASg
Afterburne,
Worldly “Christians” talk to machines, and press each others’ buttons
Headless Unicorn Guy,
Wow, I had forgotten all about Zardoz, and let’s hope the congregation doesn’t have to wear the Sean Connery costume.
Antz is a more uplifting movie, although I’ve only ever seen it in bits and pieces, with children romping around.
Did a lot of these guys want to be rock stars or hiphop artists, and chose the church gig because they could not play guitar or make up rhymes?
Well stated, Max.
Everyone engaged in the con is accountable.
Church as Entertainment, Easy Believism, Christianity Lite (whatever you want to call it) is what a good chunk of American wants and desires as a religious experience. Of course, God is not anywhere near the mess … so they fill that void with big screens, fog machines, skinny jeans, cool pastors, loud bands, laser lights, hoochie-koochie “worship” teams, coffee shop in the foyer, etc. etc. As I’ve said before, toss a “lead pastor” into the mix with a touch of charisma, a gift of gab, and a bag of gimmicks and you can do church without God until the cows come home. Sooner or later, they all fizzle out … pastor jumps out with a golden parachute … the masses disperse to find another cool place to assemble and do it all over again. It doesn’t bother them to finance their next pastor as long as he serves up what they want … so the beat goes on.
Headless Unicorn Guy,
Thx, HUG. Excellent film review. Many thoughts, such as Germany’s beginning of the end was when they put their faith in one man. How many churches follow this model… to their institutional and personal demise?
Another: Hitler’s legacy is 50 million dead.
What’s the legacy of the pulpiteers?
We make our own. Sometimes tea. Chai is nice, too. And when we do, we invite others. PreCovid on the Invite Others.
Iced in the summer. Friends over, even during Covid.
Friend,
Ralph Reed.
Not forgetting the sermon writing subscription service, studies on the celebrated books du jour, and restrictive covenants and binding agreements with legal implications on everyone except for the ones empowered in a top – down fashion to do whatever they say is according to their purported “vision“. But don’t worry; they smile a lot.
This is a perfect example of what is described in 2 Peter 2- a false teacher who has a hunger to exploit/fleece his flock of money and sex. Nothing is new under the sun.
I was pretty sure, but, I’m known to take things a bit too literally at times. The restaurant website btw now has an extended section on the precautions it is taking.
Another apropos quote for this blog attributed to Desmond Tutu is
This reminds me of a dream I had a couple of nights ago. I saw a middle-aged mega church head pastor on a stage. He was dressed in the best clothes large sums of mammon could buy. Then the camera panned out. The stage was held up by steel bars all around. As it panned out I saw his wife and adult children trapped inside a prison created by the stage and steel prison bars. They did not look happy to be there, which is a great understatement. Then the camera panned back to the stage on top where the “pastor” was hopping around dancing the most stupidest dance you have ever seen. The sound of what he was doing must have been deafening for the victim family under the stage. They were trapped serving the man’s ego which was the biggest thing that this man had. It dwarfed everything else he was or had ever acquired.
There’s more going on here than meets the eye. I did a deep dive into an ad I received on December 14. I wrote this for a comment on another blog. There are some pictures left out but I provided links to the organizations Form 990. Here we go:
beginning of post —
All right, there’s a LOT of money in the Jesus business.
So I was reading a Washington Post article on my phone and I got this ad:
So, since I was trying to figure out who/what is serving me up an ad, I clicked on it. “Which church is running an ad campaign?”
Well, the ad redirects to hegetsus.com, which has absolutely zero information on it. But they sure will direct you to a local church.
Well, that REALLY got my curiosity up, so I went down the rabbit hole and learned that the “He Gets Us” ad campaign is being “sponsored” by an outfit called gloo.us, which appears to be an organization to get people into churches, and also appears to be linked to Barna Group, an Evangelical organization that does polling.
OK, so I did more Googling, and found out more about the ad campaign:
https://adchatdfw.com/2021/12/07/lerma-leads-rebranding-ad-campaign-jesus-gets-us-for-servant-foundation/
$10 million for 10 cities?!?!?
All right so I looked up Servant Foundation in ProPublica to see their 990 and WOWSER. Something is going on here. This foundation had taken in over a BILLION DOLLARS in donations in 2018. In previous years, they’d taken in less than $10 million a year. I am not lying.
(Pictures of Servant Foundation tax returns from 2019 omitted, showing that they took in $1,020,021,735.00 in 2018. The 2020 return is out now, and they took in $394,797,196.00 in that tax period. In 2017, this group took in $4,353,091.00) Link to Form 990s for Servant Foundation: https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/431890105
(omitted some snarky comments about “I Found It” in the 1970s and how the money could be better used to relieve poverty)
–end of post
This organization has granted money to dozens upon dozens of organizations, maybe even hundreds. The doc is long and most of it is a listing of who received grants.
But I’m telling you folks that I suspect something seriously hinky is going on here. How does an organization which never took in more than seven figures a year suddenly get a 10 figure donation? And nine figures the year after that? What’s going on?
Church planters pay big money for their branding! Or maybe if/when the church was planted by the Association of Related Churches (this is unclear, but I suspect there’s something to it), ARC pulled one of its generic names out of a bag.
It appears at one point in 2016 (when Venue Church was raising money for a new location) that Venue was associated with a notorious church-planting group:
This is kind of buried in the Venue Church site but I’ve taken screen captures. I would note that if you attempt to find Venue Church on ARC’s “Find a Church” listing, it’s not there now. However, the busy bees over at Reddit’s r/AllAboutCOTH have found information that appears to show that Tavner Smith was rather close to Chris Hodges, the head of Church of the Highlands, the mother church of ARC. I wonder if Chris Hodges’ proposed lodge for pastors will take in Tavner Smith for rest and restoration???
It sure does.
It’s as American as Mark Twain, cotton candy, kewpie dolls, and hotdogs.
Just going to add that ARC appears to plant cookie cutter churches, if the websites for the following *ARC church plants* in the Phoenix area are any indication.
* Propel Church, Maricopa, AZ
* New Heights Church, Chandler, AZ
* Restoration Church, Peoria, AZ
* Hope Valley Church, Surprise, AZ
They don’t look super-similar to Venue Church’s website, but what caught my attention was the similarity between New Heights Church logo and Venue Church’s logo–both orange squares. I really shouldn’t spend any more time on this, but it would sure be interesting to go through the churches listed as church plants and see how many of them have these really similar websites…
There’s this:
https://web.archive.org/web/20160322185642/http://venuechurch.com/the-venue-way/
Under ‘GOD’S WILL FOR PROVISION’, it says:
“It is the Father’s will for believers to become whole, healthy and successful in all areas of life. But because of the fall, many may not receive the full benefits of God’s will while on Earth. That fact, though, should never prevent all believers from seeking the full benefits of Christ’s provision in order to better serve others.”
Pop that phrase into the interwebs, and you get a lot of identical wording for a lot of churches:
https://duckduckgo.com/?q=It+is+the+Father%E2%80%99s+will+for+believers+to+become+whole%2C+healthy+and+successful+in+all+areas+of+life.+But+because+of+the+fall%2C+many+may+not+receive+the+full+benefits+of+God%E2%80%99s+will+while+on+Earth.+That+fact%2C+though%2C+should+never+prevent+all+believers+from+seeking+the+full+benefits+of+Christ%E2%80%99s+provision+in+order+to+better+serve+others.&t=fpas&ia=web
Add ‘arc’ to the end, and you get this as the first result:
https://www.compassnorthchurch.com/full-beliefs/
At the bottom of the page, you get a massive ARC logo, and the following comment:
“Compass North Church was planted by the Association of Related Churches (ARC). ARC is a church-planting organization with a goal to plant life-giving churches all around the globe. To learn more about ARC, click on their logo.“
Very interesting research! “Propel Church”? Isn’t that a sports drink?
JDV,
How many of the newly-mutually-self-re-appointed apostles, or pivotal “individuals”, are going to be Holy Spirit providential perseverance for me or my peers in a bad day?
Or will they, instead, prove “benefits” (TM) of “christian provision” (TM) “in order to” (driven) “serve others” (TM) “better” (TM): subtext, my insights and my sense of my being just aren’t good enough.
There are various reasons that “Pastor” might smile a lot … he’s genuinely happy in the Lord (the minority), a counterfeit who knows how to work the crowd, he just got his big check, gas, and assorted other reasons. As a rule, you should never trust a pastor who smiles a lot (endeavor to learn what is behind the smile). In the old days (I go way back), the rule was never trust a preacher who had preacher hair (dyed black, slick with grease) … and never-never-forever trust one who kept his top two shirt buttons open to display his gold choker chain. There has always been a Pastor Smith in a church near you … they just change their look and message to fit the culture.
Casinos make more honest claims. So do oncologists.
It sounds like a present-day instance, within church-dom, of that famous ironic OT remark that in situations of bad governance, money can be relied on to paper over the problems that have arisen.
It didn’t actually work that well then and I think we can be confident that it won’t work well now. But it will keep the Ev ‘non-profit’ sector strong for a while longer.
—
Granting the premise that Jesus “gets us”, it seems a bit disconcerting that the leaders of groups hoping to make a difference using marketing methods like this don’t seem to notice how it was that Jesus “gets us” — through what he suffered. I think we can be confident that the people behind the marketing don’t “get us.”
‘ Jesus “gets you” but I don’t ‘ — that could be an anthem for modern mega-church pastor-dom. Maybe someone will develop the lyrics further and set it to a catchy tune.
Ava Aaronson,
I’m a devout coffee drinker, consuming 4-6 cups per day. I attribute that to my long radical life as a church ghost-buster. It’s caffeine talking on some of my more obnoxious TWW comments … I’m particularly wired when I go after New Calvinism and Church as Entertainment.
Without filthy lucre, there would be no Church as Entertainment, no Christianity Light, no New Calvinism, no new movement of the day. The pursuit of mammon by the pulpit has reached Biblical proportion in America.
Max,
Max on Wed Dec 29, 2021 at 09:45 AM said:
“I’m a devout coffee drinker, …It’s caffeine talking on some of my more obnoxious TWW comments”
+++++++++++++
you’re always the perfect gentleman, Max, speaking your mind.
Hey, i can reply to comments now!
(well, it’s the little things that make life great.)
(like the pleasure i’m getting out of looking at the little red holly berries and tiny green leaves on the cute tablecloth i bought at a garage sale long ago)
Max–you might be a Lutheran and not know it. Some Lutheran churches say they believe in 3 sacraments: baptism, communion, and coffee hour. A few hard core insist on a fourth for the women: quilting.
linda,
You’ve described Lutheranism to a tee.
I grew up Lutheran in the Southeastern corner of Wisconsin (town of Racine).
No doubt about it! A church full of coffee-drinking, quilt-stitching, baptized Lutheran wimmenfolk is a force to contend with! Just ask Dee!! 🙂
Erp,
You were correct, I was wrong.
This came to mind to say when reading about the big money donations. Will Graham, son of Franklin, did a crusade tour a few months back in the area in which I live and about a month ago I heard him being interviewed on the local Christian radio station. He said that when lock-down began and the sports teams weren’t playing and the companies were pulling advertising, someone came to his father twice with large sums of money to buy airtime for gospel commercials (my phrase for conciseness) and he bought the time for a bargain, quickly organized volunteers on the phones, and that many many people called and it was fruitful for the kingdom (my phrasing). So anyway, I say praise God about that. I guess it’s like the wheat and the tares existing together.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=62aiwyEYrVQ
“F4F | Tavner Smith DISQUALIFIED”
Max,
Designer Outlet and Mini Designer Outlet religion experience outlets have a sacrament of amplification, the badder the gooder.