Free Republic

On fire with the Holy Ghost that is. Pastor Steve Anderson, the pastor who was tased and beaten by Border Police on April 14th 2009, lead the Gilbert Arizona TEA Party rally yesterday to ovation and action. His words and demeanor were beyond phenomenal! There is a new body in the Black Robe Regiment today. If you would like to watch his 7 minute message

NEWARK -- Hundreds of people -- some sobbing and crying out, "Why are they doing this?" -- bid an emotional and largely ceremonial goodbye today to a Newark priest who served the same Italian-American parish for 54 years. It was Msgr. Joseph Granato's last day at St. Lucy's Church.Officially. For now. But this story won't end as easily as all that. Even the much reviled Jim Goodness -- reviled by St. Lucy's parishioners -- the spokesman for Newark Archbishop John J. Myers, held out the possibility the 80-year-old but energetic priest might return "some time down the road" as pastor...

KALAMAZOO -- For the Rev. Margaret "Meg" Jenista, of Third Christian Reformed Church, a self-confessed "theology nerd," this weekend promises to be a happy, fulfilling time. "I'm nerdy enough to be excited about John Calvin's 500th birthday," said Jenista about an event being celebrated worldwide -- the birth on July 10, 1509, of a pillar of Protestant faith and one of the founders of the Reformed church movement. Calvin's influence on Christianity and on society in general endures for a variety of reasons, said Kalamazoo-area pastors who serve denominations that trace their roots back to his teachings. For Jenista, the...

Pastor Steve Anderson was returning to the United States when a border checkpoint demanded to search his vehicle. He refused, citing the 4th Amendment, and was beaten for his trouble. While I don’t agree with every single point of his message, Pastor Anderson tells an amazing story and presents us with a stark reminder of just how far we have come in the name of security. As he says, if the 4th Amendment is not sacred, why should we expect the government to protect the 1st, the 2nd, or any other part of the Constitution? VIDEO at original article.

A Pennsylvania pastor rejected by the state's House of Representatives will pray in the Senate instead. The pastor is Gerry Stoltzfoos of Freedom Valley Worship Center in Gettysburg. He was asked to pray before the House by his own representative and sent officials a written prayer on their request. "I wrote the prayer and sent it to them and they sent back a very short rejection notice," he recalls. "So I wrote back, 'I'm curious as to why.' And they said it had an offensive word. Can you tell me what the word was?' And they came back and said...

WEBSTER, Texas — Police used a Taser on a pastor and pepper spray to disperse his congregants Wednesday after the pastor allegedly interfered with a traffic stop in the church parking lot. Congregants say they were in the Iglesia Profetica Peniel church for an early morning prayer when pastor Jose Elias Moran went to assist the stopped driver, a church member, by asking the police what had happened. An incident report on the Webster police department's Web site said Officer Raymond Berryman tried to calm Moran and arrest him. But police say he pushed the officer, went inside the church...

Is President Obama's new pastor a Southern Baptist? Apparently, it depends whom you ask. Time magazine posted a story June 29 stating Obama has "decided to make his primary place of worship" Evergreen Chapel, the nondenominational church at Camp David which is led by Navy Lieut. Carey Cash, a Southern Baptist chaplain. The White House, though, denied the Time report, releasing a statement saying "the President and First Family continue to look for a church home." "They have enjoyed worshipping at Camp David and several other congregations over the months, and will choose a church at the time that is...

 Bishop Harry R. Jackson Jr.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — For one day, at least, it was OK to pack heat in church. More than 200 people answered gun-toting Pastor Ken Pagano's call to celebrate the Second Amendment at New Bethel Church in Louisville on Saturday. There was just one rule for the several dozen who brought their guns along: No bullets. ---------------------------cut---------------------------- "I just believe in the right to protect ourselves," said Liz Boyer, who had a bright pink Glock in a black holster at her side. The 41-year-old isn't a member of the church but teaches a class on gun safety for women at a...

A pastor in the US state of Kentucky has told his flock to bring handguns to church in what he says is an effort to promote safe gun ownership. Pastor Ken Pagano told parishioners to bring their unloaded guns to New Bethel Church in Louisville for a service celebrating the right to bear arms. He said he acted after church members voiced fears the Obama administration could tighten gun control laws. When the service began, some 200 people were present, AP news agency said. "We are wanting to send a message that there are legal, civil, intelligent and law-abiding citizens...

When it comes to guns, the shepherd of this Kentucky flock is not sheepish—not in the least. In a story about the armed and verbose pastor, Ken Pagano, (“Pastor Invites His Flock To Bring Guns to Church”), New York Times reporter Katharine Q. Seelye quotes the 49 year old machine gun packing pastor, “ God and guns were a part of the foundation of this country”, he says. So was slavery and the oppression, slaughter and relocation of Native Americans. Some foundations have faults. Guns are not great. Guns are not evil. Guns are guns. I don’t like them because...

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) - A gun-toting Kentucky pastor says it's OK to pack heat at church _ at least for one day. Ken Pagano asked his flock to bring their unloaded handguns _ in holsters _ to New Bethel Church in Louisville for a celebration of the Second Amendment. When the event got under way a little after 5 p.m. Saturday, about 200 people _ many carrying small firearms _ sat in the Pentecostal church sanctuary. "We are wanting to send a message that there are legal, civil, intelligent and law-abiding citizens who also own guns," Pagano said in greeting...

Just days after he delivered a fiery and well-received sermon in San Francisco, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright has one prominent defender here following his latest controversy -- an interview in which he claims "the Jewish vote" is controlling President Barack Obama. Wright's longtime friend, the Rev. Amos Brown -- a former San Francisco supervisor and pastor of the landmark Third Baptist Church here -- is coming to the defense of the controversial Chicago-based pastor on the heels of the firestorm, saying that Wright has been misunderstood and unfairly been targeted by conservative media. Wright made headlines following a recent sit-down...

President Obama's former pastor gave the sermon at one of San Francisco's oldest Baptist churches Sunday and gave local parishioners a taste of the controversial oratory style that created such a stir during the presidential campaign - ultimately prompting Obama to resign his membership at the Rev. Jeremiah Wright's Chicago church. From the archives: 'Rocket man' photo emerges 06.08.09 S.F.: Street to get more parking meters 06.08.09 Foundation honors East Bay social innovators 06.08.09 Wright was invited by the Rev. Amos Brown, a former San Francisco supervisor, civil rights activist and longtime pastor at the Third Baptist Church, near Alamo...

FORT WORTH, Texas—Authorities say they are investigating a natural gas explosion at the Fort Worth, Texas, home of megachurch pastor T.D. Jakes. Fort Worth fire spokesman Lt. Kent Worley says the blast Sunday in the sunroom of the home appears to have been an accident. Authorities say no one was injured and there was no fire. The sunroom was heavily damaged. Worley says the room had a gas-fed pool heater and a large gas-fed barbecue grill.

Pastor asks members to bring guns to church Says it's a good way for his Ky. flock to celebrate Independence Day Ken Pagano, pastor of New Bethel Church in Louisville, Ky., says America wouldn't exist without God and firearms. Thurs., June 4, 2009 LOUISVILLE, Ky. - A Kentucky pastor is inviting his flock to bring guns to church to celebrate the Fourth of July and the Second Amendment. New Bethel Church is welcoming "responsible handgun owners" to wear their firearms inside the church June 27, a Saturday. An ad says there will be a handgun raffle, patriotic music and information...

David Jones, a pastor in National City, holds Bible study groups in his Bonita home. (Peggy Peattie / Union-Tribune) - Sweeping issues of religious freedom and governmental regulation are swirling around Pastor David Jones' house in rural Bonita, attracting attention from as far away as China and New Zealand. He says it all started with $220 in car damage. Jones and his wife, Mary, hold a weekly Bible study at their home that sometimes attracts more than 20 people, with occasional parking issues. Once, a car belonging to a neighbor's visitor got dinged. David Jones paid for the damage,...

Pastor David Jones and his wife Mary have been told that they cannot invite friends to their San Diego, Calif. home for a bible study — unless they are willing to pay tens of thousands of dollars to San Diego County. "On Good Friday we had an employee from San Diego County come to our house, and inform us that the bible study that we were having was a religious assembly, and in violation of the code in the county." David Jones told FOX News. "We told them this is not really a religious assembly — this is just a...

After having served 18 days in prison, the Rev. Walter Hoye is a free man and will remain so — as long as he doesn’t come within eight feet of anyone who is about to enter an Oakland abortion clinic. That hasn’t stopped the 52-year-old minister from returning to the public sidewalk outside the Family Planning Specialists Medical Group building near Jack London Square, the site of his arrest last May that resulted in his incarceration at Santa Rita Jail in Dublin earlier this year. Hoye, executive elder of the Progressive Missionary Baptist Church in south Berkeley, is on a...

I think we Freepers should be supporting this man any way we can . I'm sure he could use some financial support , and I am thinking about giving him a modest donation . Has anyone here met the man , or been to his church ? He is the real deal wouldn't you say ? I'm in Japan or I would have checked him out personally by now .

A San Diego pastor and his wife claim they were interrogated by a county official and warned they will face escalating fines if they continue to hold Bible studies in their home. The couple, whose names are being withheld until a demand letter can be filed on their behalf, told their attorney a county government employee knocked on their door on Good Friday, asking a litany of questions about their Tuesday night Bible studies, which are attended by approximately 15 people. "Do you have a regular weekly meeting in your home? Do you sing? Do you say 'amen'?" the official...

Barack Obama is not black. This is not an historical event.

... “[Hitler] guessed correctly that the French had no stomach for a fight. If only they had, then the tragedy of a Second World War might have been avoided,” Mr Watson said in the sermon he delivered at Kirkmuirhill Church in Lanark. “To claim that the homosexual lifestyle is worthy of a child of God; to demand that a same-sex partnership be recognised as on a footing with marriage; to commend such a lifestyle to others is to deny that Jesus Christ is our only Sovereign and Lord. It is to turn the grace of God into a licence for...

Elder Olander Cassimere Sr. would have preached the Mother's Day service at noon at the Lower 9th Ward church where he was pastor. His wife, Alphathada, the church's first lady, would have been in the sanctuary, too, singing to the congregation before her husband's sermon. And the Cassimeres would have celebrated their 55th wedding anniversary on Friday. But on Mother's Day, New Orleans police said, relatives discovered the couple fatally shot in the Pontchartrain Park home where the Cassimeres raised nine children.One daughter -- who family members say is autistic and lived with her parents -- was unharmed, police said....

Two issues continue to cloud the American political scene. Gay rights and the protection of life. These two issues are seen as so important that many Americans are willing to ignore all other issues such as poverty, housing, foreign policy and health care to vote according to a candidate’s position on homosexuality and abortion. The right to life, abortion, freedom of choice issue is much the tougher issue and a healthy debate should continue until some sort of understanding is reached and codified into laws that are firmly upheld by our courts. I suspect the most workable solution is not...

Mark Driscoll, the pastor of Seattle-based Mars Hill Church, will preach at the famed Crystal Cathedral in Southern California Sunday, June 14, and will appear on the “Hour of Power.” Crystal Cathedral is home to the Rev. Robert Schuller and his successful television ministry but has seen some decline in size and influence in recent years. Financial difficulties have caused the church to lay off staff and sell office space. Mars Hill, on the other hand, is among America’s booming churches. Driscoll preaches a “masculine” form of Calvinist theology that emphasizes the toughness of Jesus and Christianity. He also regularly...

INDIANAPOLIS, April 28 /Christian Newswire/ -- Chris Rosebrough, captain of internet based Pirate Christian Radio and host of the Fighting for the Faith Radio program announced on Monday that Joel Osteen is the winner of the "Worst Easter Sermon Award" for 2009. "Every Christmas Christians whine and complain about secular and atheistic efforts designed to take Christ out of Christmas yet more and more Christian pastors have committed an even worse offense and have removed Jesus Christ and His victorious resurrection from the grave from their Easter sermons," said Chris Rosebrough. "Far too many pastors have played the role of...

Two Internet radio stations are making Orthodox programming readily available The Rev. Tom Soroka, pastor of St. Nicholas Orthodox Church in McKees Rocks, reaches the Orthodox throughout the country and the world through an Internet radio station called Ancient Faith Radio. While most Americans slept, Orthodox Christians gathered outside their churches last night carrying icons and candles for a midnight procession in which they would restore light to the darkened interiors, celebrating Jesus' Resurrection from death. Easter -- Pascha in Orthodox parlance -- is the joyous highlight of their liturgical year. But most of their neighbors are oblivious to it...

What say you?

Of all the spokesmen for godlessness to emerge during 2007, the "year of the atheist," Christopher Hitchens is perhaps the most prominent. He is a prolific journalist and television pundit, selected by voters in Prospect magazine's 2008 poll as the #5 most important public intellectual. His 2007 treatise, God Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything, continues to sell briskly, and he has built a sideline career debating any willing opponent from any church or creed, from Al Sharpton to Dinesh D'Souza. There is one man, however, who has sparred with Hitchens more than anyone: a relatively unknown Idaho pastor...

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (WSAZ) -- A former preacher from Kanawha County convicted of sexually abusing a teenager will spend 10-20 years in prison. Timothy Edmonds was arrested back in 2006 for assaulting a 16-year-old girl. He was found guilty of those charges back in January. Edmonds was sentenced on three counts, including sexual abuse by a person of trust. For each of the three counts, he will serve 10-20 years, but the sentences all run at the same time. Edmonds was a youth pastor at the Chesapeake Apostolic Church. Thursday morning Judge Irene Berger told Edmonds his lack of remorse, failure...

Sometimes I get confused watching these mega-church preachers. Are they reading the same Bible I'm reading? Do they really have an intimate relationship with the same Jesus I know? Is the Holy Spirit actually working within them – providing the kind of discernment He promises believers? These questions came to mind while watching Joel Osteen and his lovely wife, Victoria, on CNN's "Larry King Live" last week. Is this the new face of American Christianity? Is this why Jesus died on the cross and was resurrected? Is this the Good News? Or is this some other religion altogether? Admittedly, Osteen...

I came home from my part-time job and set down to watch Pastor Warren's Easter message on Fox News Channel. Half way through they cut to a news alert announcing the release of Captain Philips and never returned to the message. I tried to watch it again at midnight but Geraldo was on. Anybody know where I might watch the remainder of the message?

When it comes to church, President Obama can't avoid trouble. As the First Family attended an Easter Sunday service at St. John's Church across from the White House Sunday, the Rev. Luis Leon unleashed a vicious and unholy attack on New York. He insulted the Yankees. With the Obamas sitting in the sixth row, Leon told congregants that "baseball season has started" and that the church's drummer is a huge Yankees fan. Leon then said he wanted to remind everybody that the Orioles have beaten the Yankees twice so far, and therefore, "The world lives in hope." "I'm a fairly...

Stance about-face at issue. BY JULIA DUIN Evangelical leaders say they are bewildered and stunned by the Rev. Rick Warren's apparent turnaround on gay marriage after the famous California pastor said earlier this week that he was not a proponent of California's Proposition 8. Mr. Warren told CNN's Larry King on Monday that he "never once even gave an endorsement" of the proposition, which said marriage in the state could only involve one man and one woman. The measure won at the polls last November by a close margin, in effect negating an earlier California Supreme Court ruling allowing gay...

Short video ad on Fox home page: "Easter w/Rick Warren Sat 9pm & Sun 6am/1p ET A special service from Saddleback Church! as millions celebrate on holiest of days A Fox Special Presentation Easter w/Rick Warren A message of hope, peace, unity Easter w/Rick Warren Sat 9pm & Sun 6am/1p ET"

A Sunday school teacher was booked early today on suspicion of murder and kidnapping in the slaying of 8-year-old Sandra Cantu, whose body was found in a suitcase in an irrigation pond. Melissa Huckaby, 28, was arrested at 11:55 p.m. Friday after she drove to the Tracy Police Department to be interviewed. She was booked at 3:25 a.m. today at San Joaquin County Jail in French Camp, where she is being held without bail. "She revealed enough information that we had probable cause to arrest her for both kidnapping and murder," Tracy police Sgt. Tony Sheneman told reporters. During her...

(04-11) 07:59 PDT TRACY -- A Sunday school teacher was booked early today on suspicion of murder and kidnapping in the slaying of 8-year-old Sandra Cantu, whose body was found in a suitcase in an irrigation pond. Melissa Huckaby, 28, was arrested at 11:55 p.m. Friday after she drove to the Tracy Police Department to be interviewed. She was booked at 3:25 a.m. today at San Joaquin County Jail in French Camp, where she is being held without bail. "She revealed enough information that we had probable cause to arrest her for both kidnapping and murder," Tracy police Sgt. Tony...

A Washington, DC, pastor and outspoken opponent of same-sex "marriage" says California mega-church pastor Rick Warren has done "tremendous damage" by apologizing for his support last fall of California's marriage protection amendment. Rick Warren said Monday on CNN's Larry King Live that he has "never been and never will be" an "anti-gay marriage activist," and made a point to inform the program's host that he apologized to his homosexual friends for comments he made in October to his church in support of Proposition 8 in California. Bishop Harry Jackson, Jr., with the High Impact Leadership Coalition says he was very...

(CNN) -- Joel Osteen is the senior pastor for the Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas. It's America's largest congregation. His wife, Victoria Osteen, is the co-pastor there. The Osteens, known for their optimistic outlook on life, visited "Larry King Live" Tuesday night for a wide-ranging interview that covered President Obama, same-sex marriage, the recent outbreak of mass shootings, the state of religion in America and more. The following interview has been edited for brevity and clarity: Larry King: Since you were last on, we have sworn in our first African-American president. What are your impressions [of Barack Obama]? Joel Osteen:...

America achieved its independence and freedom in the 18th century in large part because colonial pastors stood up for biblical principles, preached them, lived them and refused to back down from them – even in the face of death. The American War of Independence has been accurately called a "pulpit revolution" for this reason. It was inspired by great men of God who recognized evil and called it by its right name. What a difference two centuries, combined with affluence and the corporatization of the 501(c)3 church culture has made.

California mega-church pastor and author of The Purpose Driven Life Rick Warren says he apologized to his homosexual friends for making comments in support of California's Proposition 8, and now claims he "never once even gave an endorsement" of the marriage amendment. Pastor Rick WarrenMonday night on CNN's Larry King Live, Pastor Rick Warren apologized for his support of Prop. 8, California's voter-approved marriage protection amendment, saying he has "never been and never will be" an "anti-gay or anti-gay marriage activist." "During the whole Proposition 8 thing, I never once went to a meeting, never once issued a statement, never...

Oakland, CA (LifeNews.com) -- A pro-life pastor in Oakland, California who was convicted of helping women outside abortion centers find life-affirming alternatives has been released after spending 18 days in jail. Reverend Walter Hoye was charged with violating an anti-free speech ordinance Oakland officials put in place to target him.Oakland officials had enacted the law that prohibited contact within eight feet of women entering abortion businesses without their consent.Last month, Hoye began serving a 30 day sentence and he received three years probation as well as a requirement to pay a $1,000 fine and a $130 restitution fee. He...

As the gay marriage movement begins to gain momentum, Pastor Rick Warren, best known for his best-selling book The Purpose Driven Life, is apologizing to the gay community for making comments supporting California’s Proposition 8. During a Monday on Larry King Live, the mega-church pastor claims he “never once even gave an endorsement” of the marriage amendment only to later state that he regretted supporting it. Proposition 8 protects the definition of marriage as between a man and a woman, thereby eliminating same-sex couple’s right to marry. Although Warren publicly spoke out in support of Proposition 8 just weeks before...

In his first interview since Inauguration Day, Saddleback Church Pastor Rick Warren tells Larry King that is a misconception that he is an "Anti-Gay Marriage Activist". He adds that he never took a stance on California's Prop 8 Same-Sex Marriage debate and he doesn't concern himself with things like Iowa's recent Supreme Court ruling legalizing gay marriage.

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Threats of protest halt Pink Swastika author's scheduled talk by Temecula Valley News staff The Murrieta/Temecula Republican Assembly’s (MTRA) next meeting was scheduled to be April 3; however, that meeting and location are now in doubt as a result of threats of protest. According to MTRA president Bob Kowell, their speaker was scheduled to be Pastor Scott Lively from Abiding Truth Ministries in Massachusetts. Pastor Lively’s book, “The Pink Swastika,” has gained the attention and protest of gays and gay activists across the world. “The meeting was to be held at Temeku Hills Country Club,” said Kowell. “Temeku Country Club...

ATLANTA — An evangelical pastor whose leadership of an Atlanta-area megachurch ended in a sex scandal has died. Atlanta Medical Center said Archbishop Earl Paulk, who was in his 80s, died early Sunday. The hospital could not release a cause of death. Paulk had been in bad health for the past couple of years after a battle with cancer. A phone listing for Paulk's family could not immediately be found. Paulk co-founded the Cathedral at Chapel Hill in Decatur and helped grow it to a peak membership of about 10,000 in the early 1990s. A lawsuit by a female employee...

Saddleback Church's Warren calls on believers to make history Church expects to bring 3,000 new believers into its flock Saturday. LAKE FOREST – In what Saddleback Church Pastor Rick Warren calls historical, the church hopes to bring 3,000 new members into its flock on Saturday. "I'm not sleeping much. I'm too excited," the megachurch's pastor wrote in an e-mail to his congregation this week. "THIS SATURDAY, March 28, will be THE GREATEST DAY in Saddleback's history. OVER 2,000 people have already signed up to become members of our church family on a single day." Citing the Bible, Warren challenges prospective...

Before a backdrop of soaring stained glass and the 6,000 gleaming pipes of a Ruffatti pipe organ, Tullian Tchividjian on March 15 preached one of the pivotal sermons of his life. Tchividjian, 36, pastor of New City Presbyterian Church in Margate, Fla., was preaching 12 miles down the road in Fort Lauderdale. The occasion: Tchividjian's nomination to succeed D. James Kennedy as senior pastor of Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church. There had been some dissent in the congregation over who would fill Kennedy's sizable shoes. Kennedy founded the church in 1959 and pastored it for 47 years. In 1974, he launched...