Earthrise 2.0: Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter NASA/Goddard/ASU
“The most confused you will ever get is when you try to convince your heart and spirit of something your mind knows is a lie.” ― Shannon L. Alder
I have written several posts about checking out a church’s website before visiting. One can usually learn a lot by simply reading what’s online before the visit. When checking out the website prospectively, one has not yet been sucked into the church’s dynamics. For example, perhaps the lead pastor has a charismatic, persuasive personality, and the visitor is in awe of his preaching style. Folks, we are all susceptible to believing we are discerning from the get-go. I hope my journey walking through the evangelical wilderness and landing in one abusive or authoritarian church after another has been instructive.
Rock Church International- Uh Oh.
Today I decided to check out Rock Church International because the pastor has been in the news recently. Here is the statement on the homepage.
Rock Church encourages godly lifestyles by all of its members and leaders, in keeping with the tenets of the Bible. The Church condemns sexual immorality of any kind and in any form by its members and leaders and especially holds its leaders to a high standard of accountability on any lifestyle choices that could reflect negatively on the reputation of the Church or disparage the character of the Savior whom it purports to represent.
Rock Church is committed to honesty and integrity in dealing with charges or accusations of sexual misconduct or immorality among its leaders and will support any investigation arising from accusations of violation of this standard among its staff and leaders in an effort to find the truth and to protect its members, church families and their children, at all times.
Under the guidance of our legal counsel, We cannot make a statement or comment concerning the accusations against Rev. John Blanchard at this time. We are all committed to walking in integrity and truth at Rock Church International and will continue to take steps to do so. Pastor Blanchard has voluntarily stepped back as lead pastor and from all his ministerial duties until this present situation is totally resolved. During this season, Bishop Anne Gimenez will be stepping in as Lead Pastor and sharing the pulpit with Pastor Robin Blanchard.
As followers of Christ, we must remember that redemption, salvation, grace, mercy and healing are all gifts given to the children of God. Although everyone must address their own convictions and consequences, our assignment as believers is not to condemn, but to be agents of God’s love, healing, justice, and reconciliation. (Romans 3:23-“for all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God”) If we are to walk in eternity with Christ, our position must be one of truth, love, faith, mercy, justice, and forgiveness.
Thank you for your prayers and support. The outpouring of love has been overwhelming and we appreciate all of those who have reached out to be an encouragement to us! We would ask that the privacy of the Blanchard family be respected as they walk through this difficult journey together.
“But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved)” -Ephesians 2:4-5
“Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.” 1 John 3:18
The first advice I would offer anyone who saw this on a church website is RUN.
So who is Rev John Blanchard?
According to the Info/About section of the website for Rock Church:
OUR PASTORS
John & Robin Blanchard are the Senior Pastors of the Rock Church of Virginia Beach.Set in as the lead pastors in October 2013, John & Robin received their ministerial training while serving under Bishops John & Anne Gimenez for over twenty years in full time ministry.
Coming from a background in atheism and a dysfunctional childhood, John’s heart is to reach a generation with a message of hope through the healing and delivering power of Jesus Christ.
This message has taken his ministry to dozens of countries all over the world and the USA and to procure a Masters of Divinity Degree from Oral Roberts University.
It looks like the previous pastors of the church trained him, and then he received an MDiv from Oral Roberts while on the job. Oral Roberts claims of Blanchard:
Graduate Theology, Alumnus
Graduate Student of Theology and Master of Biblical Theology
(HE’S OUT!) What is John Blanchard alleged to have done? Maybe a prostitution arrest?
So, if the statement on the front of the church website is not enough for the inquiring visitor, perhaps we need to add more context. According to the Christian Post in Megachurch asks congregants to forgive pastor for prostitution arrest because ‘all have sinned’ Well, bless his heart. His congregation needs to forgive him. All he wanted to do was talk.
Blanchard, 52, was among 17 men accused of solicitation of prostitution after an online sting operation by police on Oct. 29, 2021. The married father of two was charged with solicitation of prostitution of a minor and use of a vehicle to promote prostitution, both felonies. He was arrested at a hotel where he was supposed to meet a detective posing as a 17-year-old girl. He insisted that he wasn’t sure what would have happened had his plan materialized and he had intended to just talk.
Then his attorney said he was exonerated, and all was well for the moment.
Continuing with the Christian Post, we learn:
After almost a year of legal maneuvering, the charges against Blanchard were withdrawn, or nolle prosequi, ahead of a criminal trial in October. Nolle prosequi means prosecutors could potentially bring those charges again.
In an Oct. 11 statement on Facebook, Rock Church officials announced that Blanchard was cleared of all charges by prosecutors from the Chesterfield County Courthouse.
“The prosecutor in a statement to the Court indicated that due to new information coming to light and lack of evidence, they will no longer be pursuing charges against Blanchard. This exoneration comes after nearly 11 months of delays and continuances. The defense attorney stated Tuesday that he was pleased with the outcome,” the church said.
Nolle prosequel seems to indicate that maybe more could happen in the future. Given this unresolved situation, it would seem prudent for the pastor to step back.
(HE’s IN!)~Blanchard decided to keep preaching and was up to doing “crazy things.”
The Christian Post reported Blanchard continued preaching in Megachurch pastor still preaching despite claims he stepped back from ministry over prostitution arrest.
Despite a recent claim by Rock Church International in Virginia Beach that their lead pastor, John Blanchard, “voluntarily stepped back as lead pastor and from all his ministerial duties” due to a prostitution arrest, he was still boldly preaching at a prophetic conference in Texas last weekend.
On Saturday, Blanchard, 52, preached at the Power and Authority Conference hosted by Global Fellowship Church in Richardson, Texas, where he was revered as a “man of God” who is a “prophetic voice to the body of Christ.”
He first appeared at the pulpit armed with a shofar he said he found in the host pastor’s office.
“When you have crazy faith sometimes it makes you do crazy things,” Blanchard said. “We’re going to release to God some crazy faith and I believe we’re going to see the supernatural happen in this place tonight.”
But according to Rock Church, Blanchard was to step back from his preaching.
Rock Church, which has a weekly attendance of more than 2,000, wrote in a statement published on its website that Blanchard would voluntarily step away from ministerial duties.
In this statement, Rock Church seemed to overlook the possibility that these charges could be brought again. They believed that John was innocent, humble, and submissive to those “over him.”
In an Oct. 11 statement on Facebook, Rock Church officials announced that Blanchard was cleared of all charges by prosecutors from the Chesterfield County Courthouse.
“We have always believed in John’s innocence. His humility and submission to those over him during this time has been a testimony to his character,” Bishop Anne Gimenez, who is currently leading the church along with Blanchard’s wife, Robin, said. “He has spent the time in fasting and prayer and has invested much of his time in his family and education. We anticipate his resumption of church duties in the near future.”
(HE’S OUT!) Whoops, Blanchard had to step away from the pulpit again as an assistant accuses him of sexual misconduct, and the church tells people not to condemn him.
I think the church leaders should have refrained from telling people not to condemn the pastor. Frankly, anyone approaching a minor for a sexual encounter should be condemned. Oh, I forgot. Blanchard claimed that he might have wanted just to talk…Ministry Watch posted: Virginia Church Urges Believers’ Not To Condemn’ As Pastor Arrested in Sex Sting Op Steps Away From Duties Again:
John Blanchard, the Virginia pastor who was arrested in a sex sting operation only to have his charges later dropped, is once more stepping away from his duties as lead pastor of Rock Church International in Virginia Beach. In a statement posted Wednesday, the church asked believers “not to condemn.”
He won’t come back until this is “totally resolved.” Yeah, right…
We are all committed to walking in integrity and truth at Rock Church International and will continue to take steps to do so. Pastor Blanchard has voluntarily stepped back as lead pastor and from all his ministerial duties until this present situation is totally resolved.
The state attorney has been drawing attention to this case since they went after 15 people, and Blanchard wasn’t one of them. He wants to look into this more carefully and determine why the charges were dropped. Don’t forget about that “nolle prosequel.”
State delegate and attorney Tim Anderson, however, has been drawing attention to Blanchard’s case after obtaining and reviewing the incident report. Anderson said, “In my legal opinion, from what I have seen, there’s no excuse not to prosecute this case. If [Blanchard is] found not guilty or if he’s acquitted, that’s one thing. But to use prosecutorial discretion and say nothing happened here, that’s, in my opinion, an abuse of discretion, especially when they went after 15 other people [following the sting operation].”
Anderson has been posting about the case on social media, calling on Stacey Davenport, Commonwealth’s Attorney of Chesterfield County, to explain why the charges against Blanchard were dropped.
…It came to light in November 2021 that a former assistant had previously accused Blanchard of sexual assault, an incident that allegedly occurred in 2018. Even though the pastor was acquitted after the assistant pressed charges, she says, “It did happen to me. It was inappropriate. Church leadership knew and decided not to remove him from his position.”
(HE’S IN!) He’s baaaaack, for now, and is planning legal action.
The Roys Report posted Scandal-Plagued Virginia Pastor Returns to Pulpit, Threatening Legal Action.
A Virginia megachurch pastor has returned to the pulpit—again—and says he’s “moving forward with legal action,” following an ongoing saga that began last year when he was caught in a prostitution sting.
Appearing before his congregation on Sunday, John D. Blanchard, pastor of Rock Church International in Virginia Beach, said the accusations against him were “demonstrably false” and part of “smear campaigns against me and this church.”
“But today I’m here to announce enough is enough,” Blanchard said, adding, “You can dress up a lie. You can twist it. You can misrepresent it. But I’m sorry, a lie is still a lie.”
He claims that some organizations are out to destroy his family, himself, and the church.
Stop the music. Why in the world would anyone seek to “destroy” Rock Church? Why in the world would organizations seek to destroy Blanchard and his family? In my opinion, they are not that important in the big scheme of things. This statement makes it seem like Blanchard is trying to deflect attention away from his actions. Has he ever explained why he wanted to meet with a 17-year-old girl in a hotel? Is he now claiming it didn’t happen? If so, why was he in the hotel? Are his “overseers” asking him these challenging questions? Or are folks afraid of his threats of legal action?
The only thing that is curious is that the statement hasn’t changed on the Rock Church website.
l, We cannot make a statement or comment concerning the accusations against Rev. John Blanchard at this time. We are all committed to walking in integrity and truth at Rock Church International and will continue to take steps to do so. Pastor Blanchard has voluntarily stepped back as lead pastor and from all his ministerial duties until this present situation is totally resolved
I imagine there is a great deal of confusion at this point.
One hero in this situation is Brent Hobbs, a Baptist pastor.
According to TRR:
The pastor at a nearby Southern Baptist church criticized Rock Church’s “poor handling” of the situation.
“The Biblical qualifications for pastors are clear,” Brent Hobbs of New Song Fellowship wrote on Facebook. “Above reproach is the standard. I continue to call on Rock Church to commission an independent, third party investigation of his actions, with full cooperation and access to all related evidence, producing a public report at its conclusion.”
Hobbs added he believes the woman alleging sexual assault.
Hobbs said he’s aware of Blanchard’s previous suits alleging defamation and said he has “no idea” if he’ll be sued for speaking out.
Is he out, or is he in?? A prediction based on the fact that I trust law enforcement in this matter.
I trust the police in situations like this. They work their butts off to take men who like underage kids off the market. I imagine they would be frustrated when Blanchard seemed to get off the charges. Thankfully, there was a “nolle prosequel,” which means the charges could be brought against Blanchard again. Tim Anderson, the state attorney, seems to believe that attention should be brought to bear on Blanchard’s case. I am grateful for his service.
I am also grateful for Brent Hobbs, who I believe is a writer from SBC Voices as well as a full-time pastor. He believes that Rock Church has handled this situation poorly. I agree. Along with Brent, I also believe the woman who alleged sexual assault by Blanchard.
How can a congregation deal with a pastor who is out, then in, then out, then in? Does this church support and believe in local law enforcement officers, or do they believe their pastor is to be believed above all? I think that church leaders need to be brave and act accordingly.
This situation will supposedly be prosecuted, which means that Blanchard will have to submit to discovery as well as those he sues. Perhaps then the truth will come out. Lots of difficult questions can be asked during discovery.
Here is the most important thing to consider. If it is found that Blanchard attempted to procure an underage girl for a sex act, then what else might he have done when no one was looking?
Two closing points.
- Blanchard claims he did nothing wrong. All that is being said are “allegations” at this point.
- I trust and support the hardworking local law enforcement officers and thank them for all they do.
1
“We have always believed in John’s innocence. His humility and submission to those over him during this time has been a testimony to his character,” Bishop Anne Gimenez, who is currently leading the church along with Blanchard’s wife, Robin, said. “He has spent the time in fasting and prayer and has invested much of his time in his family and education. We anticipate his resumption of church duties in the near future.”
“Matt has completed everything asked of him with submissiveness, steadfastness, and humility, and we have received positive feedback from all involved,” the elders wrote. “We have been encouraged by his posture throughout, and we remain so. Therefore, we are pleased to share with you that his return to preaching is scheduled for this Sunday, December 4.”
“Whenever I’m tempted to think Christianity is a fraud because of fraudulent pastors, I’m reminded it was the religious establishment that had Jesus arrested and crucified. Wherever there is money & power gained through religious position, there will be self-interest & hypocrisy.” -Julie Roys
“Blanchard and his wife, Robin Blanchard, are the senior pastors of Rock Church. Anne Gimenez, Robin Blanchard’s mother, co-founded the church and was its senior pastor from 1999 until the Blanchards took that role in 2013. Gimenez remains the church’s bishop.”
https://julieroys.com/scandal-plagued-virginia-pastor-returns-threatens-legal-action/
Keep the money in the family. Not unlike the Gambino family.
I sincerely pray that law enforcement will probe into Blanchard’s activities. He needs to be out of the Rock Church ASAP until this is resolved. Unfortunately, having seen cases mishandled or swept under the rug, I will believe it when I read about the resolution of the Blanchard mess here. By the way, could someone please update me regarding the status of the DOJ investigation of the SBC mentioned back in August 2022? I can’t seem to able to locate updated information.
I think the ‘church’ (in all its derivatives, both catholic and protestant) needs to re-think its positions on human sexuality. Its current ethos is not working and as we’ve seen here at TWW and other blogs, it’s one dumpster fire after another.
“Frankly, anyone approaching a minor for a sexual encounter should be condemned. Oh, I forgot. Blanchard claimed that he might have wanted just to talk…”
Just wanted to talk …
And a bank robber just wants to look at the money taken …
True.
The DOJ keeps a tight lid on their investigations and the wheels of government turn slowly. I would guess hearing something one year after the investigation began may be optimistic.
Is it odd to anyone else that his wife is still actively leading the church? Even assuming she is totally unaware and innocent, wouldn’t this be a huge shock? Enough of a shock that it’s worth a church giving her the time and space to regroup before having her attempt to lead a group of 2,000 people who know her deepest marital traumas?
Wild Honey,
Complicit.
I dunno, on top of everything else, I think the financials of that place ought to be gone over, but then again, I work for a Temple of Capitalism and of course that’s where my mind goes.
(Seriously, if he was in a prostitution sting, did the funds come from the church?)
Not a church. A family business.
As to law enforcement and Rock Church,
please be aware that for many years, Rock Church on Kempsville Rd. has been the site of police funerals for officers slain while on duty.
I do not ‘accuse’ any police organization of wrong-doing, no;
but I think it is important to know that, probably because of its size as a sanctuary,
the setting of Rock Church has been used for these many services and it is known locally for this.
Just FYI – I would not and cannot ‘accuse’ any wrong-doing on the part of any police organization with regard to the pastor’s situation, no.
As for the pastor . . . oh my goodness, what a mess
Many religions have abandoned the principle of attraction by an actually sound message for stealing of affections. I put it to you with a straight face that Rev Blanchard wanted to bring a girl into the Rock religion.
Bishop Anne, Pastor Mrs Robin – the Rock are nice to ladies as a headline issue.
“Although everyone must address their own convictions and consequences, our assignment as believers is not to condemn” (Rock Church statement)
Hmmm … let’s check out the Scripture on that:
“For what business is it of mine to judge outsiders (non-believers)? Do you not judge those who are within the church [to protect the church as the situation requires]?” (1 Corinthians 5:12 AMP)
“There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, WHO WALK NOT AFTER THE FLESH, BUT AFTER THE SPIRIT” (Romans 8:1 KJV)
“revered as a “man of God” who is a “prophetic voice to the body of Christ””
TWW continues to report on a string of “men of God” who have joined the bad-boy conga line. Be careful little ears what you hear for “many false prophets have gone out into the world. So do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see if they are from God” (1 John 4:1). Ministry credentials, a touch of charisma and a gift of gab do not always equal a “prophetic voice to the body of Christ.”
“How can a congregation deal with a pastor who is out, then in, then out, then in?”
Some folks like “pastors” who are alleged bad boys … it makes them feel better about themselves.
“I think that church leaders need to be brave and act accordingly.”
God will hold them personally accountable if they don’t.
How about taking your wife along to do that, pastor.
That’s what I was looking for. I knew there had to be a connection – a possible reason for dropping the charges. I would guess the social network goes much deeper.
Also, EVERY pedophile who gets arrested for child solicitation says they “just wanted to talk.” They care so much about these kids that they just want to give them a stern fatherly warning about talking to older creepy men.
Especially when you have so much family in church leadership, a leader is many times not going to be disciplined like they should be.
Family business sounds more like what it is. That this pastor solicited what he thought was an underage girl makes it even worse.
Maybe there’ enough evidence to convict this guy in a court of law, maybe there isn’t.
It doesn’t matter concerning his position in church.
Legalities aside, he has proven himself, beyond any reasonable doubt, that he is unfit to hold any office in a church…… pastor, deacon, elder, bishop, or anything else!
Even if he were only given the temporary task of being my grandson’s vacation Bible school teacher’s aid, my personal convictions would force me to request that Blanchard be replaced; otherwise, my grandson would not attend VBS.
And, believe me when I tell you that my daughter would be in complete agreement with me.
LOL – Take the wife to the meeting with the Lady of the Night.
And yet, that’s exactly what Becky and Junior do – the threesome with the Pool Boy.
The Everlasting Enterprising Evangelical “church”.
to talk to her, of course
As any sensible person would conclude. Forgive him if he genuinely repents? Certainly. Restore him to ministry? Absolutely not!
Thanks Todd and Christiane for your comments. I figured more time would be needed, but wondering if I had missed something. Back in the day I remember hearing that if you were arrested by the Feds, it was a “righteous bust” with no loopholes or bias, compared to those by the local police.
I’m sure the police want to “do the right thing,” yet if Rock Church is known for holding funerals for officers killed in the line of duty, it will be understandably difficult for local LEOs to remain detached.
Why members continue to attend and support this pastor?
My guess is that it is a lot easier to accept the apparent lie that this pastor was trying to help this underage girl vs. wanting to see an underage prostitute. It would destroy their perfect world including:
– Admitting their pastor is a hypocrite and isn’t perfect or near perfect individual they admired for so long
– That they had been duped for a period of time by this person
– Have to find another church (if leadership continues to refuse to take action) and leave place where they are comfortable at.
It can be a lot easier to accept a plausible excuse vs. have to face reality.
A steady string of TWW reports on these situations have shown that congregational denial is a common response. It’s hard for the average churchgoer to initially accept that a pastor who they have trusted would be capable of such things. It’s a dirty shame that a wayward pulpit takes advantage of a trusting pew … once trust is broken, it’s difficult to repair (if ever).
Ah the old sunk investment fallacy. The same thing that can make a woman stay with an abuser or a drunk. “I’ve given him the best 10 years of my life, so I can’t leave now.” Yes you can.
And yes you can leave an apostate church. And yes, no church is better than an apostate one.
Denial
Sunk cost fallacy
Loss aversion
Group think
Stockholm syndrome
Wishful thinking
Considering the allegations, shouldn’t that be “In and Out and In and Out and In and Out”?
(And I ain’t talking about the California burger chain.)
So they go into an Alternate Reality of Alternative Facts, primed by an Over-Spiritual attitude to the Bible (to the point of Alternative Reality).
Forgetting the words of Rich Buhler: “GOD LIVES IN THE REAL WORLD.”
While denouncing those of us in various fandoms who KNOW we’re dealing with imaginary worlds and critters and magic.
Move over M Scott Peck.
Today it’s CHRISTIANS who have become the People of the Lie.
But these are CHRISTIANS.
“Walking in the Spirit instead of the Flesh” and all that.
Their God does NOT live in the Real World.
Which makes Rock’s Pastor COP.
Code of Blue – Cop will always side with Cop against Not-Cop.
Just like that one abusive pastor who made sure he was a police chaplain (i.e. on the Cop side of the line) and taunted his wife with that fact as he was beating her. (Her accusation would make her Not-Cop.)
“Baptizing her with the Holy Fluid from his Rod” like that excerpt in the 1984 Meese Commission report?
“Rock religion” as in Priapus?
In three words: CONFLICT OF INTEREST.
Except Blanchard would have been watching Hawt Lezbo Action – a common theme in Straight Male Porn.
Wby is it that these MenaGAWD include shticks and acts I have only heard about elsewhere in the context of PORNOGRAPHY? Like Douggie ESQUIRE of Vision Forum doing his Commander’s Handmaid?
Including Acts That Have No Name even among the FURRIES?
Rachel Olstad
@olstad_rachel
“My dad was a pastor. fired an associate pastor for having affairs. church down the street hired him. My dad sent letters telling them about this man. their response was, ‘He’s too good of a guy to hold back.’ Ofc ended up in the newspaper w/ a child abuse scandal sev yrs later.”
follow up comment:
my original FYI included the words ‘probably because of the size of its sanctuary’ but I should also add that the location on Kempsville Rd. in central to three cities:
Norfolk, Virginia Beach, and Chesapeake,
so that might also be WHY slain police funerals were held at that location
I mean no accusations towards any ‘collusion’ no. I think the size of the sanctuary was big enough to accommodate large numbers of attendees, and the location certainly is also a factor in choosing.
It is good to know of this funeral service connection, but I cannot nor did I intend to point out any wrong-doing on the part of the area’s law enforcement as to ‘special favors’ for this ‘pastor’, no.
Look at the bright side, at least there was no pool boy.