An anonymous source sent me an excellent series on the Wittenberg Gate on spiritual abuse, and the techniques that abusive leaders will use to control the congregation. I don’t know the woman who wrote the article, but she does do a good job listing the traits of manipulative leaders, including some of my favorites like […]

Dr. Neill H. Payne posted this quote on the Reformed Theology Discussion List. It’s appropriate in many contexts. Most of the major ills of the world have been caused by well-meaning people who ignored the principle of individual freedom, except as applied to themselves, and who were obsessed with fanatical zeal to improve the lot […]

Hear my voice, O God, in my meditation; Preserve my life from fear of the enemy. Hide me from the secret plots of the wicked, From the rebellion of the workers of iniquity, Who sharpen their tongue like a sword, And bend their bows to shoot their arrows—bitter words, That they may shoot in secret […]

Sorry for this being protected for a little while. After I posted it without comment, I thought that perhaps it could get me into trouble. I put the password on until I was able to write up these comments. Yes, I’m caustic, polarizing, and transgressive. As the title of this blog alludes to, I readily […]

Last nights meeting was a bit anticlimactic. After everything leading up to this point, the meeting lasted about a half-hour, with the crux being that Sarah and I pleaded not guilty to all four counts. We also made a number of requests of the prosecutor, based on the information listed in the indictment, including a […]

After the premature decisions by Mississippi Valley and Central Carolina Presbyteries, Louisiana Presbytery has actually adopted a lucid position, and explicitly exonerated Rev. Steve Wilkins and declared him “faithful to the Confessional standards of the PCA”. You can read the entire adopted report over at The Parchment. UPDATE: William has also posted a response from […]

Jim Sauer and Dale Van Ness stopped by tonight to deliver the indictments and list of witnesses as required in BCO 32-3. The packet included the revised citation, rescheduling the July 25th meeting to August 1. Indictment: Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5

It looks as though the Session has sought the wisdom of the moderator of the Heritage Presbytery, and thankfully, he has concurred with the interpretation of BCO that I stated in an earlier post. The email I received today from the Clerk of Session cancelled the July 25th meeting, and tentatively rescheduled the meeting for […]

“Where there is no wood, the fire goes out and where there is no talebearer, strife ceases. As charcoal is to burning coals, and wood to fire, so is a contentious man to kindle strife. The words of a talebearer are like tasty trifles, and they go down into the inmost body. ” (Proverbs 26:20-22)

In my last post, I quoted from Dr. Morton Smith’s commentaries on the Book of Church Order. Sarah was reading through other areas of the commentary, and found this interesting section, commenting on BCO 32-5, which states “In drawing the indictment, the times, places and circumstances should, if possible, be particularly stated, that the accused […]

Heck of a way to start a vacation. Jim Sauer came by yesterday afternoon with a letter summoning me and Sarah to appear before the Session to “hear charges brought against” us. They managed to get this done just under the wire, as they were about a week and a half short of the one-year […]