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Recently I was reading a news article and
the writer referred to the new wave of "angry Christianity"
that is sweeping the country (United States). It seems Christians
are angry at just about everything that is going on. The word
"anger" is only one letter away from "danger" so I
decided to give this some attention (pardon the pun). Anyway ...
lest we forget, this is a "sowing and reaping" Universe so we
can understand that if we are sowing seeds of anger and righteous
indignation ... something is surely to develop .... and it did.
The Los Angeles Times reported last
Sunday about a scandal with TBN (Trinity Broadcast Network) co-founder
and president, Paul Crouch ... and the anger quadrupled ... accusations
were flying as high as kites ... and the story even made the newspaper
here in sleepy Palm Springs. The story is about more than just sex
and money although both played prominently in the drama ... it is about
Truth ... "there is nothing unseen that will not be seen" ...
so often this statement is forgotten when people get caught in the midst
of problems.
I truly do not want to go into the
details regarding Paul Crouch and his accuser ... those who want to know
more can find it out on their own. But the aspect of the story
that I want to address here is the behavior of the ministers mentioned
in the story. You see, ministers are called to heal, to prosper
and to bless ... we are not called to get involved in judgment, gossip
or looking the other way when someone needs our help. This is why
I was interested in Benny Hinn's part in the news story because Benny's
work is healing ... he even makes a big show of this being his work.
Here's Benny's part in the news story from the Los Angeles Times: "A
former bodyguard for TBN personality Benny Hinn testified in a
deposition that during a European bus tour that year, Hinn had told a
group of associates about "a sexual relationship that Paul Crouch
had with his chauffeur." ... The witness, Mario C. Licciardello,
quoted Hinn as saying: "Paul's defense was that he was
drunk." ... Hinn and six others mentioned by Licciardello, who died
in 2000, told The Times that Hinn never made such remarks.
However, Rick Jones, a retired police officer and ordained minister who
worked for Hinn, sad he heard Hinn talk about Crouch's alleged
homosexual relationship on that bus. ... Jones said he was disgusted by
the talk and "got up and walked away. I didn't want to hear
gossip."
So here we are with varying accounts of the
news story by ministers. There are those who will stand up
resolutely for Paul Crouch ... no matter what is said or what evidence
is presented. There are those also who will defend the actions of
Benny Hinn ... no matter what is said or what evidence is presented.
There are also those who will stand up for Rick Jones and accept his
words as the truth. But, how many of us are willing to look at the
situation without judgment and just see the Law of "sowing and
reaping" at work?
TBN is a Christian Broadcast Network ...
teaching the Christian theology as followers of Jesus ... but so much of
what is broadcast is contradictory to the Teachings of Jesus ... most of
what is broadcast is judgmental and harsh in its divisiveness. The
programs aired on September 11th depicted a God that favored the United
States over other nations ... in fact, if I heard the words "Our
Nations God" once I heard it a dozen times. To teach that
there is a God of the United States that is separate and apart from the
God of other countries is ridiculous. The old "our God is
bigger than your God" ... is hateful and harmful to progress
towards peace in the world. It seems that the Christian religious
leaders and the Catholic religious leaders, just cannot be happy until
we all conform to their way of thinking and their morality. But
what is their morality? This year we have had scandal after
scandal in the Catholic Church that has cost millions of dollars in
lawsuits ... and here we are presented with this information, whether
true or not, of one of the most prominent of Christian leaders.
Benny Hinn repeatedly tells his audience that homosexuality is an
abomination ... but I guess it's not so bad when an alleged homosexual
runs the network that your show is broadcast on ... after the remarks
allegedly attributed to him, Benny is still on TBN.
Why are these Christians so
angry? I really don't know since I don't understand hypocrisy ...
but the evidence tells us that something is not right ... for the Law of
sowing and reaping only brings us what we sow!
And
So It Is!
Maximum Love,
Rev.
Hank Bates
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