How big is his back yard ?
Looks like a church already, to me.
Nice Driveway.
Maybe he just needs more room.
Posted on 07/10/2012 12:12:26 PM PDT by Sleeping Freeper
A Phoenix man who violated city zoning laws by hosting a Bible study in the privacy of his home has started serving a 60-day jail sentence for his crimes.
Michael Salman was found guilty in the City of Phoenix Court of 67 code violations. He was sentenced to 60 days in jail along with three years of probation and a $12,180 fine. A spokesperson for the city attorney confirmed that Salman reported to a county jail Monday afternoon.
Members of Salman’s Bible study group posted video of their teacher as he self-reported to the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office. It was an emotional scene.
“We believe that people should not be prohibiting other people from having Bible studies in their homes,” Salman said outside the jail. “We believe what they are doing is wrong. It’s private property. It’s our home.”
Salman embraced some of his Bible study members before offering final remarks.
“At the very end, after all is said and done, God will ultimately have glory in this,” he said. “We do this for the glory of the Lord.”
Someone off camera could be heard remarking, “I love you, pastor.”
Salman’s incarceration is the result of a long-running feud between the ordained pastor and the city of Phoenix over weekly Bible studies that Salman and his wife hosted in their home. City officials determined that the weekly gatherings constituted a church – and therefore violated a number of code regulations.
(Excerpt) Read more at radio.foxnews.com ...
OK, so why is Sheriff Joe doing this?
File this under “Things You Just Don’t Want To Believe”.
To bad he isn’t an illegal, a black militant, gay, transgendered and or a public union member.
Would they DARE prosecute a muslim for running a mosque out of his home?
This isn't Sheriff Joe's jurisdiction. It's a Phoenix city ordinance, not a Maricopa County ordinance.
There’s quite a bit more to this story. A thread was posted yesterday, I believe. I’m hopeless when it comes to the search function here. It seems the guy really ticked off all his neighbors. Claiming things like he was going to build a church in his back yard, etc.. Perhaps a more adept reader can find that thread?
The sheriff doesn’t get to pick and choose who goes to jail in any jurisdiction.
It wouldn’t matter if it was his jurisdiction. The sheriff puts people in the county jail who have been convicted in municipal, county or state courts.
I knew there had to be more to the story.
It ain’t Sheriff Joe - it’s the damned police and city hall.
How big is his back yard ?
Looks like a church already, to me.
Nice Driveway.
Maybe he just needs more room.
I'm guessing his neighbors were not happy.
He's already built a small building in his back yard - not a church. He built it because he was told he could not have bible studies in his house.
He has over four acres of land. His house and land are well separated from neighbors.
He uses the little building in the back to host a weekly bible study. The building is sound proof, and nothing that goes on in the building can be heard by neighbors. All cars coming to his house are parked on his property. The neighbors are the jerks here, not this man or his family.
At least 8.
This is a glaring example:
This country was settled by people who wanted the freedom to practice their faith as they saw fit. But there's a reason the Pilgrims had to get out of Europe, and it's the same reason Michael Salman is encountering so much resistance from his neighborhood.
At the time the pilgrims left England, there was a state run church. Those who didn't want to follow the exact edicts of the church were imprisoned and executed. That isn't even close to what is going on here, so the mere comparison is evidence of the writer being a whacked out prejudiced nit-wit.
Being imprisoned for being a unreasoned lout, IS NOT the same thing as being imprisoned or executed because you disagree with a dictate of the state church.
What drives this man, or his specific behaviors that differ from that of the writer, are also unrelated to this matter, in that this is not why the man is being taken to task by the law. We shouldn't be reviewing his fervor here. We should be reviewing what he has done that warrants intervention. Unfortunately this is a point lost on the writer of the Rest of the Story. Fervor is only a problem when it is forced on others.
The fact that this guy is on fire, isn't the problem. His religion isn't the problem. The fact he wants to witness to others isn't either. It's when the pursuit of his rights begins to push back the rights of others, that a problem arises. And that is what should be addressed, without the personal barbs.
Congregating should be arranged so that the size of the group does not impact other people. A church side room would be appropriate if the group is large. Even then, some consideration should be given to how loud and frequent the meetings will be, and whether neighbors will be impacted too frequently to be considered reasoned.
If a group of four to six wants to meet for prayer meetings or religious study, it should be fine. It would be even better if the host home were switched up among the participants, so that neighbors of one home aren't always subject to noise or a street with no parking spaces on a frequent basis.
As Christians we should expect to have rights, and to be free to exercise them. At the same time, we need to be good neighbors.
The Christian religion is focused in part on witnessing. What type of message is conveyed if a Christian is so careless that he turns his neighbors off not only to him and his group, but in all likelihood to Christ Himself.
Moderation in all things... Salman needs to rethink his approach.
If he wanted to build a church or meeting house why did he apply for a "game room"? Not very honest of him.
I wonder how much he collects each week from the hundreds who cycle through.
From the article you cited:
“The real problem is that Salman is intent on building a church in his own backyard — and not just any church, but a 4,200-square-foot building that will sit only a few feet from his neighbor’s property line.”
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