Church gets Approval for Helicopter Landing Pad

From the Associated Press :  

FEDERAL WAY — A city hearing examiner has approved a helicopter landing pad for a Federal Way church.

It would allow Pastors Casey and Wendy Treat to fly between the Christian Faith Center and its Everett campus. Unless neighbors appeal to the city council, Monday's decision will become final.

Some neighbors complained at a hearing of the possible noise. The hearing examiner said there would be no measurable increase. There are restrictions against frequent or nighttime flights.

A church spokesman told The Tacoma News Tribune a helicopter would be used only on major religious holidays or for special guest speakers.

The church moved about a year ago from SeaTac to Federal Way.

The comments under the link are pretty good as well. It's not exactly a great Christian testimony to be buying helicopters for your pastor during a recession.

And seriously, if you can afford a helicopter, do you really qualify a as non-profit? At some point shouldn't your earnings be taxed.  

Twas The Sunday Before Guiltmas (CBC version)

Here, with the help of a few friends (thank you Anna, Cat, Scrupe) is City Business Church's version of Twas The Night Before Christmas

TWAS THE SUNDAY BEFORE GUILTMAS 

Twas the Sunday before guiltmas, and all through the domes
Not an intern was stirring, nor people calling the phones…
The tithe envelopes were hung in the pews with great care,
In hopes that St. Malachi soon would be there;

And tithers were nestled; all smug in their pride,
While visions of Beemers danced in their minds;
And Doug in her ‘kerchief, and Frank in his cap,
Had just put together a faith harvest trap,

When out on the butte there arose such a clatter,
Frank sprang from the desk to see what was the matter
Away to the coffers Frank flew in a flash
Tore open the vault and counted his cash

The moon on the boob and the new-fallen snow
gave fear of no tithers for Pastor Damazio
when, what to his wandering eyes should appear,
with a passion that rivaled his hatred for queers

A little check-writer, so wealthy & wise,
He knew in a moment it must be Malachi.
More rapid than eagles, his curses they came,
and he whistled and shouted and called them by name:

“Now Frankie! Now Dougi!
Now, Marcie and Tim!
On, Wendall! On, Judah!
On, Donna and Asim!
To the top of the dome!
To the top of the butte wall!
Give cash away! Cash away!
Give cash away all!”

But not to the homeless, the poor, those in need,
instead to the pastors all caught up in greed
so up to the butte-top the curses they flew,
with a dome full of guilt trips, and St. Malachi too.
 

And then, in a twinkling, Frank heard on the roof
the sound of St. Jesus with a tiny young Poof.
As Christ, full off love, drew the boy to His side,
he hugged the young Gay ,made the poor child cry
 

He was dressed all in rags, from his head to his foot,
and his clothes were all tarnished with ashes and soot.
Jesus said to the boy “I love you like a father”
which angered ole Frankie, he became very bothered

How dare Jesus come and interrupt all this giving
The snow He has sent has ruined Frank's living.
And how can he love this young sinner boy,
And treat him as equal and bring him such joy 

When Frank is the one with a Simulcast Service
Christ’s example of Grace is making him nervous
Frank needs to have Starbucks, he needs a quick fix
he's afraid next he’ll hear Jesus loves Dixie Chicks. 

How can St. Malachi’s Curse be all over,
When Frank needs the Tithe to pay for a Land Rover
Young boys and young girls there’s truth in this story
Poor Frank was a mess when faced with Christ’s Glory 

He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old Savior,
and I laughed when I saw him, in spite of my behavior.
A wink of his eye and a twist of his head
soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread. 
 

He took the ole’ Law and all Ten Percent,
and covered them with Grace, so magnificent.
And laying His life on the side of the cross,
he freed us from curses and took all our loss 
  

Then He sprang to the heavens, to His angels gave a whistle,
And away they all flew like the down of a thistle.
But I heard him exclaim, 'ere he rose out of sight,
 

"Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night!"

Snow Thread

JP just mentioned below that he thinks there's over two feet of snow in his backyard. 

If he's not exagerattng, that has to be the most snow in the City of Portland in years.  Is this true? 

Consider this an open thread to talk snow removal. 

Update: Also, if my memory of Portland weather is any guide, these snowfalls are usually followed by floods. The weather warms up, it doesn't stop raining and yadda yadda yadda, the national gaurd is putting up sandbags on the waterfront. I hope I'm wrong. But that's how I usually remember these things playing out.  

The Bible says WHAT?

Josh recently asked:

I hope you find joy in bashing other churches and other men and women of God all in the name of Jesus. Show me where in the Bible that it says it's okay to do such a thing.

Well Josh, let me try to list a couple scriptures that may help you understand where we are coming from.

Romans 16:17-18:

Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them. For they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly; and by good words and fair speeches deceive the hearts of the simple.

"Mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which he have learned…" That's what this blog has done…we have "MARKED THEM…". Now, I'm no fool, so I realize that you think that we are the ones that have "caused division" and so you should "mark us". Feel free to do so…but before you do, lets look at what the Bible says about False Prophets/Teachers/CBC

My personal favorite is:

For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; 2 Timothy 4:3-4

And what does it say to do to people who "will not endure sound doctrine"? Lets step back to 2 Timothy 4:2

Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage-with great patience and careful instruction.

This blog has endured many years of "great patience and careful instruction"…ok maybe we failed at that one at times. It's a work in progress for us.

Now we should step to 1 Timothy 4:1-2

 The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons. Such teachings come through hypocritical liars, whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron.

Josh, the Spirit clearly says that some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons…I believe an example of this is the prosperity gospel.

And when we unpack 2 Peter 2:1-3 we find:

But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them-bringing swift destruction on themselves. Many will follow their shameful ways and will bring the way of truth into disrepute. In their greed these teachers will exploit you with stories they have made up. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping.

You see Josh, there are a lot of warnings against false teachers / doctrines in the Bible. These warnings are to people IN the church. Just because someone talks about Loving Jesus and Loving the Bible doesn't mean that they truly do. You must always hold EVERYONE accountable to teachings set forth in the Bible and by Christ.

My church is susceptible to "false teachings" and I must always be on guard against them…just as I am with my former church.

I hope this helps you out, and I am glad that you are searching out the truth. Thanks for your comments.

Rick Warren to Pray at Obama Invocation

Obama's taking a lot of heat from the liberal wing of the Democratic party and many gay groups for selecting Rick Warren to pray at his invocation. (Warren isn't exactly bff's with the gays.)

In the long-term, I think it's a smart move on Obama's part.

Spiritually, this prayer is just a show, doesn't mean anything, and frankly I'm not sure God is evening listening.

However, from a political standpoint, selecting Rick Warren continues to margenalize James Dobson and the Focus on the Family section of the Evangelical movement. So, in that sense I like the choice. It helps continue to move Evangelicals to a more progressive platform, and I think long-term that's helpful for Obama.

But what do you all think? Does it even matter?

Pro-Life & In favor of Keeping Abortion Legal

Reader, Michelle, sends in this email:

I heard this interview on NPR the other day and thought y'all would find it interesting.  Apparently, Franky, the son of Francis Schaeffer regrets bolstering the radical right.  His blunt honesty was refreshing.

Michelle:

I was in tears upon reading your email and feel so blessed by it. Thankyou Thankyou Thankyou.

This is an amazing interview from a guy who grew up at the center of the Evangelical Movement and hates what it has become. Frank Schaeffer has converted to Greek Orthodox, and in November voted for a Democrat for President for the first time in his life.

In my opinion, Mr. Schaeffer is the future of Christianity. I'm not exactly sure what shape the Christian Movement will take in 20 years. But I gaurantee, it will look vastly different than it does now, and the Dobson's and Damazio's of the world won't be major players. They'll be fringe radicals, that Christians look back on with regret.

It’s raining, It’s Snowing, The old pastor is worried he won’t get paid this week.

So its snowing here in Portland (yes, Portland Snow…which isn't much, but will eventually turn to ice and then we will all be stuck in). And it's Sunday morning so I went to my churches website to see if they have canceled today's service or not…of course since my church is rather small they haven't bothered to update the website yet. No big deal…my next thought was to go to City Bible's website (so what if i'm mildly obsessed with the boobs on Rocky Butte) to see if they have canceled their service…and then to see if they are still asking for money.

OF COURSE THEY ARE.

A week can not go by where Frank Damazio doesn't ask someone for a handout.  He's like a successful version of the guy standing on the street corner holding the sign.

"Will preach for food".

"Bet you can't hit me with your tithe"

"Faith Harvest Vet…Anything Helps"

"Why lie…I need a bigger church than that bastard Wendall up in Seattle"

 You've all seen the signs. Anyhow, here is CBC's Snow Day announcement:

Dear Congregation:

Due to the snow and poor road conditions there will be no 11 a.m. service on any of the campuses today, Dec. 14. Spanish and other International Ministry services are also canceled . We will be posting a video of the 9:00 a.m. service on our website this evening.  Remember that you can give online as well.

For those with Blessing Tree gift tags, please return those gifts with the tag to the church by Wed. of this week.

Thanks so much for being a great congregation and may God bless you richly!

In Christ,
Pastor Frank Damazio

Remember that you can give online as well…How could they ever forget?

Marriage = 1Man+1Woman+1Woman+1….

Anna asked me why I brought up the Newsweek article posted below and said: 

I’m done with this thread unless RP says something about why he brought it up. 

Anna,
I brought it up because I thought it would make for good discussion (which it has). I , personally, enjoy digging into controversial subjects…and…just because something may seem black and white to you or I doesn't mean that there aren't other opinions out there OR that our opinion is correct. May I never be so proud as to think I have all the right answers.

Now, this particular subject is rather difficult. I think so because in reading through many of the comments it seems people are arguing different things. Such as:

a) Is Homosexuality a sin?
b) If homosexuality is a sin should those practicing it be allowed to marry?
c) What role should the church play in legislating their morality on the world?
d) What role should individual christians play in legislation?
e) How do you feel about the "church's" current repsonse to homosexuals?

Here are my basic thoughts:

The first question is an easy one for me.

a) Homosexuality IS a sin. Based on what the Bible says or even if you look at it from an evolutionary stand point it just doesn't seem right.

It starts to get a lot more complicated from that point on. 

b) Personally, at this time, I don't care if gays get married or not. I do not see how it effects me one way or the other. I don't see marraige as something so special that I must fight to protect it to stay "traditional".  I don't see Biblical examples of Jesus or other Christians fighting to push their agenda through the political field. That being said, because of I believe homosexuality is a sin, should the issue come to a vote I would likely vote against gay marraige.,,if I voted at all (I did not vote on Measure 36 years back). 

c) It is my rather strong opinion that the church needs to back the EFF up. Until they can show the world the LOVE of CHRIST they need to quit worring about showing the world the LAWS of CHRIST. The church should take a page out of the Bible (a novel idea i know) and treat the world the way that Jesus treated them. Try sacrificing their lives for homosexuals…and allow GOD to convict them if He so desires. The WORLD will never listen to Christians when they are treated so poorly by the church.

d) We should feel free to vote our morals and feel free to legislate our agendas…but we should do so as Americans and not as Prophets for God. I'm tired of hearing Churches preach on "whatever ballet measure they think is important" and act as though they know what God wants. For instance, how many Churches were convinced that God wanted John McCain to be President? Vote. Legislate. But understand that God will always be in control and you will always be able to serve/worship Him no matter what laws are created.

e) The church has failed. If God treated us like we treat Homosexuals we would all be burning for eternity. If God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit told us "Conform to our standards and we will love and accept you…otherwise we will have nothing to do with you because you disgust us" how would that work? Our message to the world should be that of Love…this is not to say that sin will go unpunished but people please…lets try the Golden Rule for awhile. And if you must tell someone about God's justice over sin…tell it to the church. Our churches are just as sinful as the world…and we should know better.

 For the record, this is just how I feel right now. I haven't done an in depth Bible study to come up with my beliefs so there is a strong chance that you all could change my mind through your comments.  For those of you in the Portland area it looks like we could get snowed/iced in for quite awhile…plenty of time for us to unpack this a little more.

One Bible and One Marriage

There is a fascinating article on Newsweek.com about Gay Marriage and what the Bible says about it. Here is the opening paragraph:

Let's try for a minute to take the religious conservatives at their word and define marriage as the Bible does. Shall we look to Abraham, the great patriarch, who slept with his servant when he discovered his beloved wife Sarah was infertile? Or to Jacob, who fathered children with four different women (two sisters and their servants)? Abraham, Jacob, David, Solomon and the kings of Judah and Israel-all these fathers and heroes were polygamists. The New Testament model of marriage is hardly better. Jesus himself was single and preached an indifference to earthly attachments-especially family. The apostle Paul (also single) regarded marriage as an act of last resort for those unable to contain their animal lust. "It is better to marry than to burn with passion," says the apostle, in one of the most lukewarm endorsements of a treasured institution ever uttered. Would any contemporary heterosexual married couple-who likely woke up on their wedding day harboring some optimistic and newfangled ideas about gender equality and romantic love-turn to the Bible as a how-to script?

I think they make a good point that Christians should address…when did marriage become 1 MAN & 1 WOMAN? Certainly not in Bible times.