Welcome to yet another edition of "XPC-Examiner" (formerly called
"Delivered!" newsletter). It will continue the same focus, with the
additional responsibility of being the official source of news and changes
regarding ex-pentecostals.com, and its affiliated services. As we begin this
New Year, there are more exciting things to report – and as always –
exciting things happening with the affiliated services of ex-pentecostals.com!
XPC-Examiner, Vol 1, Issue 8, January 15, 2003. Copyright
2003. Jay Ketcherside. All Rights Reserved.
Pentecostals in the News *
UPC on TBN
On December 10 last year, an odd thing happened. On television sets
nationwide, the leader of a religious group that teaches the evil of owning
and viewing televisions appeared. His presence was not part of a news story
about Pentecostals, but as a guest of a talk show. David Letterman was
not conducting the interview, but he may as well have been doing so – if one
believes the teachings of this minister’s church: the United Pentecostal
Church, International.
The preacher in question was also no ordinary bible man of this faith – no
renegade from the Affirmation that each UPCI-ordained minister must sign
routinely to maintain his license, an Affirmation to uphold the holiness
standards of their Church (including the teachings that discourage
television ownership). This pastor is one of the most well-known ministers
in this organization, and leads one of the most influential state Districts
in the United States, and even ran for the highest position of the group
last election: the office of General Superintendent. Who is this man? The
Reverend T. F. Tenney, District Superintendent of the Louisiana District of
the UPCI.
According to an article by Jim Yohe on an Apostolic website,
ninetyandnine.com, Tenney and his wife were on the TBN program, "Praise the
Lord," and were interviewed by Matthew Crouch. Tenney was there to sell his
new book – apparently an effort to capitalize on the Charismatic fortunes of
the family name his son Tommy has made famous. Yohe, an admitted Apostolic,
heaped praise on the leader for such a courageous move, mentioning the new
rumors that "change is in the air" at the UPCI despite a recent move to
maintain the required ministerial Affirmation.
Preacher vs. The Potter
Last November, children around the world scrambled to theaters near them to
watch the latest cinematic interpretation of J.K. Rowling’s second novel,
"Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets." As in towns and cities
everywhere, the children of Lewiston, Maine were no different. As they stood
in line by the hundreds (tickets in one hand and a parent's hand in the
next), at least one hundred people were in a hotel lobby across town for a
meeting on the same topic, according to a recent article in the Boston
Globe.
Oneness Pentecostal preacher Douglas Taylor – and some other community
ministers – held a meeting that month to protest the evil message this movie
was imprinting on the minds of their town’s youth. Unlike the dozens of
Hollywood productions that illustrate violence and drug use, this movie
seemed far more dangerous to the minds – and even the souls – of their
children. According to Rev. Taylor, this second novel is "an instruction
manual for the dark arts."
To protest the book and the movie, the pastors tore a copy of it up at the
meeting – though the pastor had unsuccessfully petitioned the city to let
him have an old fashioned book-burning instead.
Exorcist Cast Out!
The Rev. Gennaro Joseph Piscopo is used to casting things out – but he may
be the one on the "leaving" end if things go against him in court, according
to a report in the Detroit News.
Rev. Piscopo is pastor of Evangel Christian Church in Roseville, Michigan,
where he allegedly performs "exorcisms" or "deliverances" of demonic
influences quite regularly. Two former parishioners have complained that his
powers did not deliver them from sexual advances on his part, and he
recently had to defend himself in court on charges of sexual misconduct. If
found guilty, those seeking refuge from dark forces will have to wait until
his own deliverance – which could take up to fifteen years.
A Heretic in Tulsa
In a story we have been following for months; it is now official – the Rev.
Carlton Pearson is a heretic! His message of universal inclusion has cost
him friendships, a recent political bid, and many members of his
congregation at Higher Dimensions Church – a mega-church in that Oklahoma
town. Now, it has added this unpopular title to his resume, according to a
recent report by Charisma News Service.
In an attempt to salvage any reputation he might have had left within the
evangelical and Pentecostal/Charismatic communities, he submitted himself to
the discernment of the World Council of Bishops, a large ecumenical body
made up of Christian Bishops of differing faiths.
Although being a Charismatic preacher alone might have been enough to turn
the stomachs of most traditional Christians, it was this belief that brought
down their verdict – that this teaching that "all are saved whether they
know it or not" was heretical. Bishop Pearson – himself not a member of this
organization – accepts this verdict for his message, and not as a judgement
of his person and character. He still believes in his message, stating that
this was the original teaching of the early church.
Rhema Expells Pro-life Preacher
Rhema Ministerial Association, International – a large Charismatic
organization – has found itself caught between its pro-life beliefs and the
sensitivities of the nation at large. Recently, Rev. Mark Holick thought he
was doing the Lord’s work protesting outside of a family planning clinic –
and found himself losing his ordination with this group. Another minister in
the group has protested their action, but Rhema defends itself saying
allowing ministers to do such only creates a possibility that the group as a
whole would be sued, according to a recent Charisma News Service report.
Woman Seeks Healing; Assaulted
A Cleveland, Ohio woman is suing an area TV faith healer for being assaulted
during a healing service. According to the Akron Beacon Journal, which
reported the story, Gloria DeFrancesco brought her mother to be healed by
Rev. Ernest Angley, and when she approached the platform, they were denied
access. Gloria was allegedly assaulted by ministry workers at this point,
suffering a detached retina in the process. She is seeking $25,000 in
damages.
Apostolics Spared God’s Wrath
The storms that swept the nation last year killed dozens as an early and
ugly winter roared into the States. Tennessee, like many other states in the
South and across the East Coast, shared its own losses, but one small church
in Mossy Grove was saved from death when a tornado ripped their church apart
during service.
According to the Nashville Tennessean, the seventy or so worshippers of New
Life Apostolic Church hid under the pews when they heard the tornado
approaching.
Pastor Anthony Pemberton decided to try a novel approach, and reported to
the Tennessean that he told the congregation that "You better start
worshiping the Lord now." So, the church did as instructed, and started
praying, begging for forgiveness, and pleading for their lives. Though the
building was destroyed, none of the worshippers lost their lives. The storm
passed over, and killed five other people next door.
Hinn Hits Manchester; 7 injured, 1 death
Chaos broke out when at least 2,000 tried to force their way into a Benny
Hinn "crusade" in Manchester, England, recently. The show had been oversold
by at least that many tickets, an error that became abundantly clear after
19,000 people showed up at an arena with a 17,000 seating capacity. In the
chaos, 7 were injured. Another man – in a separate incident – suffered a
fatal heart attack during the event; apparently too sick for the healing
powers of the Reverend Benny Hinn.
Passages
Death - Reverend J. Phillip Hogan, 86. Director of Foreign
Missions of the Assemblies of God for 30 years; credited with starting the
World Assembly of God Fellowship. Source: AOG Online.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
As spring approaches, many members of our loose network are hoping that we
can become more than just a group of people reminiscing over past
experiences. Though most agree that what we do is helpful to many leaving
Pentecostalism, a few are hoping we can do more. Some have suggested we
start actual support groups, creating literal fellowship groups to help
those coming out of these churchs, while others hope we can form a strong
organization to also fight the imprisoning doctrines of these faiths and
churches.
This is all part of a brainstorming session going on right now. If you’d
like to participate, or if you have ideas to share, email me at
aexapo@houston.rr.com for more
information.
VOLUNTEERS WANTED!
While we brainstorm and think about new directions, there is plenty of work
to be done right now with our projects already in progress. Currently, I
spend nearly 10 hours a week (sometimes more) moderating two groups, putting
together this newsletter, and periodically updating the website. In order to
work on new projects and fully realize existing ones, I really do need more
free time to do so. I have mined all the free time I personally have on
these projects, and simply cannot add anything more on my platter at the
moment.
After some thought, I realized that many of my duties could be divided up
and delegated into small, easily digestable tasks – things that anyone with
a one or two hours extra a week could handle. These are tasks that could be
done at any time, and divided up anyway you could do it. If you only could
dedicate 10 minutes a day, or could do it all at 2:00am in the morning on
Wednesdays – that would be fine.
These are the volunteer positions I am currently posting. All positions
would only require 1-2 hours a week (less, I’m sure, once you get the hang
of it).
XPC-Examiner
Newsreader – 2 positions (duties including scouring over online news digests
and news lists for items on our former faith. News lists are free internet
subscriptions. No cost required)
News Writer – 2 positions (duties including writing – in your own words –
stories based on collected news data on our former faiths)
Azusa Street Survivors Group
Moderators/Forum Leaders – 2 additional positions (duties include monitoring
daily posts for appropriateness and "invaders," and leading conversations
during the "dry spells.")
Pentecostal Debate Group
Moderators – 2 positions. Due to limited data storage on this group, we will
soon have to enforce posting limits, limit excessive quoting, and deleting
archived posts. I simply do not have time to monitor this group, so help is
desperately needed for this group.
Ex-pentecostals.com
Any help welcome! This website is the "mother ship" of all of our services,
and desperately needs updating, better planning, and a more professional
format, and will be the launch pad for future operations. Anyone with web
programming, web design, etc. knowledge would be greatly appreciated for
their donated advice and labor.
Non-profit organization
One of the plans we have currently on the table is to create a non-profit
organization to realize our goals. Anyone with organizational planning
skills, legal advice for all the unimaginable hurdles we will face creating
this entity would be greatly appreciated.
REQUIREMENTS: For the newsletter, not much is required
specifically for the news reader jobs except determination to complete the
small assignments each week. For news writer, it is recommended that you
have some experience (or great desire) in writing professionally or
creatively.
For the Group Moderator/Forum Leader positions, it is recommended that
you have experience moderating online groups, email lists, etc, but this is
not required.
For the website and organizational help, it is highly recommended that
you forward a resume listing your experiences.
All positions (except for organizational help and advice require internet
access). All positions require no cost, and only the time it takes you to
learn the processes and apply them to our services.
For more information, or to volunteer, please email me at
aexapo@houston.rr.com or
jay@ex-pentecostals.com with the word
VOLUNTEER in the subject line. Upon receiving your email, a small
questionnaire will be returned to gauge your interest in our network. All
such questionnaires are completely confidential.
ATTENTION: You are receiving this newsletter because you
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About XPC-Examiner
XPC-Examiner is a FREE monthly newsletter for former Pentecostals/Charismatics
everywhere, distributed by e-mail only. It is affiliated with ex-pentecostals.com.
The next publication date of the general newsletter is February 1, 2003. For
more information concerning services and forums offered, check out ex-pentecostals.org. To subscribe,
simply send a blank e-mail to:
xpc-examiner-subscribe@yahoogroups.com.
Comments? Submissions? Letters to the Editor?
Check out ex-pentecostals.org/newsletter.html for more information, or
e-mail: jay@ex-pentecostals.org
*information compiled from several independent media sources are considered
"public knowledge," and sources are not identified. When articles are
compiled from only one source, the source was identified, and a story
written extracting the news using "fair use" rules without intentionally
infringing on their copyrights.
Copyright © 2001-2003 by Jay Ketcherside. All rights reserved. All stories,
opinions, and other text in this newsletter, XPC-Examiner, are the personal
copyrighted property of Jay Ketcherside, unless otherwise noted. No portion
of this newsletter may be reproduced by any means without permission from
this editor. To request permission for reproducing original materials
contained within this newsletter, please e-mail Jay Ketcherside at
jay@ex-pentecostals.com for more information.
