My heart sank and I felt my stomach roll. I was about to check a new website when my eye caught an article on the aol home page. Wisconsin church members charged with abusing infants
I hesitated and thought about not reading the article. So many people are giving Christianity a bad name because they don't know the truth. By their ignorance or because they have psychological issues, they are actually working "against" the truth of the gospel and are more on the side of Satan than on God's side. It just breaks my heart to read these accounts.
But...because I'm also dealing with the need to teach you about "false prophets" and how you can know for sure who they are....I felt I had to read the article.
I cried.
I cried for the abuse and the future of those children. I cried for the way they will always view God and I cried for how long it will take for them to obtain a normal self esteem.
Here's a bit of the article......
Pastor Philip Caminiti, 53, and his brother, John Caminiti, 45, were charged with a dozen counts of child abuse last week and also pleaded innocent. The victims included 12 children ranging in age from infancy to 6 years old, according to the sheriff's office.
"During interviews with detectives, Phil expressed his belief that the Bible dictates the use of a rod over a hand to punish children. He stated that children only a few months old are 'worthy' of the rod and that by 'one and a half months,' a child is old enough to be spanked," according to the sheriff's office release.
"Throughout the investigation, the church members were open with detectives about their 'Spare the rod, spoil the child' philosophy. They described using wooden dowels and wooden spoons on the bare skin of children, starting as young as 2 months old," the sheriff's office said.
......Agh!!!!
Can you believe this garbage? Can you see Jesus taking a wooden spoon to a baby that barely knows the scent of his mother or father muchless the difference between right and wrong?
I cried for the harsh way innocent babies are being abuse. Until children can use language to express some sort of knowledge of wrong doing - they live in a very simple world. They don't mean to cry when you are busy - they simply don't know any other way to tell you they are hungry or wet or tired or bored. To spank a one month old is not only barbaric it says that the adult is one of the most cruel selfish beings on the planet. What kind of deranged mind would insist that an innocent baby obey? It seems this lunatic who calls himself a preacher doesn't really care for his members but instead is only interested in control and absolute quiet while he's speaking. He is not caring for them or loving them as Christ would. My only thought for him as a person is to wonder how he is going to feel when God gives him the same mercy he has shown the children in his flock.
While I have taught that we need to help a baby know what to do in certain situations (by the tone of our voice only) even that form of communication shouldn't be considered until the child is sitting up and totally tuned in to your facial expressions and your voice. Those first few months of sweetness and innocence should be used to build a bond between you and your infant. That's when you cuddle and share your love through physical touch. That's not a time to introduce pain and suffering. (Actually pain and suffering should never be used anytime during any relationship.)
According to this article the children often were punished when they cried or failed to sit still during church services, a former church member told authorities. "Phil was very strict about children being quiet during church," the complaint states.
Sounds to me like a bully who doesn't want to be interrupted. This type of behavior from a so-called preacher and the behavior of a congregation that allows him to get away with this nonsense is exactly why Liberals view Christianity in a negative way.
Want to know why we are losing the spiritual battle in this country? It's because Christians who are living a truly Christ centered life are not speaking up and people who are as controlling as the Taliban and other wacko groups are moving to the front and taking over.
It boggles my mind that 1/10 of our society is now taking the stage and demanding that 90% of society do what they want. Between Muslims, gays, liberals, atheists and politicians - we are being attacked on all sides. But even if you add all those people together, they only represent a small percentage of our country. So tell me.....Why are they taking over and making Christians bend to their every desire?
According to one survey there are only 1.2 million gays in America. The LGBT bloats that to around 12.7 million. But check out this number....there are 311,883,291 people in America. Of that amount there are 60.3 milllion married couples or 120.6 million individuals that believe in marriage. Yet...we have the GLBT dogma shoved down our throats every day. Why? How can a small percentage of America demand that I hear their message on a regular basis but I am gagged, tied up and thrown in a corner if I dare mention Christianity?
According to The Barna group there may be a bloated 12% of non believers in America. But the 2008 Gallup poll declares only 6% are actual atheist and the Aris Poll states that less than 2% are atheist. But....get this folks.....82% of Americans believe in God and call themselves Christians? Why in the world are we allowing atheists to demand that we keep our holidays and our testimonies in hiding?
Churches....something is terribly wrong with your new approach to society. All I hear is that churches are redefining themselves to reach the youth of this nation. Yet, the statistics show that the 83% of people that called themselves Christians five years ago...that number has now dropped to 76%. Why? All those young people the church is redesigning for....those are the ones that feel church doesn't adequately reflect God. (Read Where have all the churches gone? ) Maybe they aren't fooled by all the "redefining" and miss the steady, faithful God of the Bible.
Let me see if I can bring all my thoughts together for you.
1. Crazy people who obviously don't know scriptures and haven't had an encounter with God often use our faith as a way to abuse others - those people are being allowed to have a pulpit.
2. Non-Christians are demanding - LOUDLY- that Christian talk and Christian living be discounted and put down. We are nuts and should be discredited and even jailed for our beliefs.
3. Even with all our pandering and all inclusive preaching - even with our redefining of the Bible and the theology that has stood for over 2,000 years - we are still losing followers at an alarming rate. People who are truly searching for the living God can't find him in organized churches.
What's wrong?
Answer: Pay attention this is will be hard to understand. It's difficult to explain but I'll try to say it slowly and use very simple language.....
"God doesn't need our help! He can reach people without our feable attempts to market Him. Jesus and his theology is simple. Add to it and you lose everything. Take away from it and you lose everything. Stick to the simplicity of Jesus and the truth of God's word and you will shine brighter than a diamond!"
That's it folks. When churches make "numbers" more important than Truth of theology - God will leave the building and you will fail.
When churches redefine the Truth of God's word in order to keep the peace or make it palatable for non-believers - God will leave the building and you will fail.
When churches hurt any age group or show preference to any demographics - God will leave the building and you will fail.
When churches deny the cross or the seriousness of our faith - God will leave the building and you will fail.
When God leaves the building and no longer inhabits your church of choice, you are no different than any other social club in your community. Memberships in social clubs bounce with the whims of a person's life. No one commits an entire life to a social club. No one is willing to die for a social club.
If Christianity is to survive in this country then each one of us must dedicate our lives to seeking the truth of God. We must be willing to approach our pastor or board and "demand" that truth is preached. Once we find a church that is willing to stick to the principles in the Bible and understand them based on the character of God....then we must devote our lives to sharing the good news of our Bible and our church with others.
Why aren't people interested in going to church? The church and it's members have not been able to prove that Christianity makes your life better. Church members have done a lousy job of showing the world that Christianity works. Contemporary believers have become just like our liberal friends. We get divorced at alarming rates, our children find drugs, we have affairs, we cheat, we lie...."you are neither hot nor cold...I will spew you out of my mouth."
My life has been wonderful because I've lived it according to the Bible and God's principle. I've taught that wonderful news to my children and others within our family.
Can you say that? If not....why not?
God loves you,
Debbie
