Posted on 11/20/2006 5:44:21 AM PST by Esther Ruth
Megapastor Rick Warren's Damascus Road experience (Megapastor Rick Warren admits he's in CFR)
Posted: November 20, 200 1:00 a.m. Eastern
WASHINGTON Rick Warren, the superstar mega-church pastor and bestselling author of ''The Purpose Driven Life,'' had a Damascus Road experience last week and like Saul of Tarsus, one of the after-effects appears to be blindness. Warren went to Syria and could find no persecution of Christians. He could find no persecution of Jews. He could find no evidence of extremism. He could find no evidence of the sponsorship of terrorism.
Despite the temporary loss of vision that prevented him from seeing any evil in the totalitarian police state, Warren's hearing was apparently not affected for his ears were tickled by what he heard and apparently accepted lock, stock and barrel from the second-generation dictator, Bashar Assad, and his state-approved mufti.
(Column continues below)
But that's not the story Warren is telling at least not in the official press releases he is sending out from Rwanda in response to my confrontations with him last week in which I accused him of betraying his own country in a hostile foreign land and of being a propaganda tool of the Islamo-fascist regime in Damascus.
In fact, after I called him out last week in my column, Warren e-mailed me claiming to have been misquoted by the official Syrian news agency.
''Joseph, why didn't you contact me first and discover the fact that I said nothing of the sort?'' he pleaded. ''The trip was a favor to my next door neighbor, had nothing to do with policy, and was done with the State Department's knowledge who told us to expect exactly what Syria did a PR blast. I don't pretend to be a diplomat. I'm a pastor who just gets invited places.''
I pointed out to Warren that WND had indeed attempted to contact him about his trip. No one from his Saddleback Church ever returned our calls the day the story broke.
''I'm sure since you were warned in advance by the State Department that you took the precaution of recording your own words,'' I suggested in my response. ''We look forward to seeing the transcripts or hearing the recordings.''
I also asked if he could respond specifically to the words put in his mouth by the Syrian news agency. And lastly I suggested that he should have ''counseled with me, or other people knowledgeable about the Middle East before doing so much damage with your reckless trip.''
I really didn't expect to hear back from Warren but, a few minutes later, I did, with an absolutely stunning retort.
He let me know he is a close friend of President Bush ''and many, if not most, of the generals at the Pentagon.''
He also told me he did not tape anything while in Syria, ''because it was a courtesy call, like I do in every country.''
Warren explained that he had also counseled with the National Security Council and the White House, as well as the State Department, before his little courtesy call for a neighbor.
''In fact,'' Warren added, ''as a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and Oxford Analytica, I might know as much about the Middle East as you.''
He continued: ''I hope you'll not choose to believe Syrian propaganda even though, as you pointed out at the start of your article, you've been wanting to criticize me for some time. In spite of your rush to judgment, I think you write great, insightful columns. You are almost batting 1,000.''
No sooner had I received this surprising response from Warren, I also got an e-mail providing a link to a YouTube video of Rick Warren in Syria explaining how great the Assad regime treats Christians and Jews and how Damascus ''does not permit extremism of any kind.''
Not one to let lies go unchallenged, I wrote back to Warren with a link to the YouTube video: ''If you didn't tape anything, what's this? Do you really believe Syria does not allow extremism of any kind? There are more terrorist organizations based in Syria than anywhere else in the world!''
It might be that Rick Warren, deep in the bush of Rwanda, never received those last questions, because he never responded at least not in the last three days.
He did, however, within minutes make sure the YouTube video he recorded independent of his meetings with the Syrian brown shirts was removed from the network. Vanished. Kaput. Sterilized. Cleansed.
Stay tuned for more on Rick Warren's ''Agenda-Driven Life'' in the coming days sponsored, of course, by the Council on Foreign Relations.
He is too full of himself to realize that he is being used.
When he was invited to North Korea he was warned about being used. Remember what he said,
"I know they're going to use me, so I'm going to use them,"
Probably no different this time either.
Thanks for posting all the informative info on Syria.
I so appreciate all your efforts to provide historical facts concerning Israel and its neighbors.
Warren's trip to Syria is rather timely considering all the recent hype coming from the leaks on the Iraq Study Group and it's recommendations of talks with Syria and Iran, in order to stabilize Iraq. Is Warren carrying water for the ISG? It appears to be a definite possibility, imho.
" The best conspiracies are the ones that can operate in open and full view and never get questioned by more than a few as to their real intent, usually leading to much ridicule as a result. "
Good words, Norm! I totally agree. ;)
What I'm trying to tell you is that the anti-Zionist right, which has always blamed "Zionism" for the UN and the CFR, is either going to have to ignore the CFR's current anti-Zionist propaganda (in order to continue to pretend the CFR is "Zionist") or else decide that the CFR isn't that bad after all.
The anti-Zionist right has a long tradition of ignoring leftwing anti-Zionism (by Communists and the UN, for example) because it conflicts with their "the Zionists run Communism and the UN" dogma.
When I talk of the TV preachers I do not included Mr. Graham, he seems to be a great man.
A purpose driven Bildeberger?
This thread has it all
That might explain a lot.
LOL.
Thanks for your kind reply.
BTW, Doc, I realize it's not overly common for Calvinists . . . but . . . have you sensed anything unusual in the spiritual realm the last 30-90 days?
Hard to put it to words, for me.
" The best conspiracies are the ones that can operate in open and full view and never get questioned by more than a few as to their real intent, usually leading to much ridicule as a result. "
= = =
INDEED.
I think the Purpose Driven Life is a great piece of work.
I agree.
Yes, discernment of foxes from sheep is important in these times, for sure.
I do NOT think, however, that logic/reason alone are very reliable clues about such distinctions.
Holy Spirit is alone reliable.
I've read Purpose Driven Life and I feel it helped me in my Christian walk. Or not I suppose. Since I read it and liked it, I guess I'm the debbil. I don't care that Warren belongs to CFR either.
I believe every day is unfolding as God ordains.
Some days I'm happy.
And some days I'm happier.
Lately, I have not been happiest. 8~)
Ahhhh.
Thx.
There is that scripted thing . . . LOL.
What's wrong with a script, if it's written by God?
I am increasingly skeptical of these TV preachers with the mega churches and mega bank accounts.....
________
Me too. I said on the other thead that it seems he wants to be a celbrity more than anything. Like I thought Clinton wanted to be a celbrity more than President, you can bang a lot of hot chicks when you're a movie star or President.
I predict a 3 hooker cocaine hotel orgy in Warren's future.
I have sinned.
" I always remember the Jim Jones thing. Perversion. So easy for people to be swayed falsely. "
Jim Jones removed ALL Bibles from his church and demanded his followers call him God. That should have been a tip off to his followers, as to which spirit they were following. He also took all their property, money and etc, therefore making them totally dependent upon a madman.
Jones died as a godless marxist. Not a big surprise that he'd also murdered those who followed him. Jones became a little Stalin wannabee. Very sad for the those he killed at the airport, his flock and their families.
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