An opportunity to elevate our conversations as a Christian community...

 

My own frustration as a pastor at the sub-biblical and non-theologically engaged arguments taking place on social media, often by individuals claiming the name of Christ but not acting/thinking/speaking in a way that reflects a connection to a Christian Worldview, was the inspiration for this series.

We can do better, we need to do better.  This is one small step against the avalanche of social media, but every journey has to start somewhere.

Venango County businesses were harassed based on social media rumors; again - We need to be better than this.

 

It is happening again.  For the second time in the last six months {see links at the bottom for my posts on the first incident}, local businesses have been harassed by hundreds of aggressive phone calls because of what people read on social media.  Don't misunderstand me, Venango County (and Franklin in particular) is a wonderful place to live, work, and raise a family.  I'm blessed that we were called here in 2012 so that I could become the pastor of First Baptist, and blessed that this is where my daughter is growing up.  This is the community that helped us create and support Mustard Seed Missions and Emmaus Haven.  I'm proud of what we've accomplished here on behalf of those in need.  That being said, we have still have issues here because this town and county has plenty of flawed people, I know this because all human beings are flawed, myself included.  The thing is, all human beings are also made in the image of God (imago dei in Latin), which means they all have value, inherent value, that doesn't depend at all upon the circumstances of their lives.  Everyone who has ever lived was a person for whom Christ was willing to die so that he might redeem them if they'd repent and believe; every single person.

Which brings us to the harassment of the owners and employees of the Quality Inn in Franklin and the Holiday Inn in Cranberry, both co-owned by George and Sunny Singh.  Why were the phones ringing off the hook at these two hotels?  Because someone(s) started the rumor that the hotels were housing illegal immigrants, and then other people shared these posts and fed the flames.

The world is beset with issues about the flow of both migrants and refugees.  It is a global problem, and one that isn't going to ebb anytime soon.  Governments around the world have struggled, to put it mildly, to come up with solutions that value the lives of those involved, ours included.  Let's be honest, we're not going to solve the questions of immigration, legal or illegal, by what we say and do here in Venango County, but we need to be better than this.  We need to treat each other better here and now if we are to have any hope of honoring God with our behavior should the day come when our community has to actually participate in a small slice of this fraught issue.  If the response of many of us to a mere rumor is to harass fellow members of our community based on the possibility of the presence of immigrants amongst us, what hope have we that we would respond in a morally acceptable fashion should an actual need exist?

One of the reasons why this insanity keeps happening is that too many people don't take what happens on social media seriously.  They don't feel sufficient moral culpability for what they consume and what they like, comment, and share in cyberspace.  And yet, these actions have consequences, as we have just seen in our own community, that can ripple far beyond Facebook, X, Snapchat, and the rest.

We all know this to be true, and the thing is, God condemned this behavior thousands of years ago...

Proverbs 6:16-19

16 There are six things the Lord hates,

    seven that are detestable to him:

17         haughty eyes,

        a lying tongue,

        hands that shed innocent blood,

18         a heart that devises wicked schemes,

        feet that are quick to rush into evil,

19         a false witness who pours out lies

        and a person who stirs up conflict in the community.

By my count, today's article in the paper recounts examples of 4 or 5 of the 7.

We need to be better than this.  

To George, Sunny, and all of your family and employees: Our community failed you.

For that I am sorry, I hope and pray that moving forward you will be treated with the dignity that you deserve as a person made in the image of God.  I hope and pray that everyone who comes to this county will be viewed as a child of God, whoever they may be, and wherever they came from.

A final thought, why are you an American citizen, a person blessed with rights and one of the highest standards of living in human history?  It isn't because you were special, it is all the grace of God that has you living here in this time and place.

As John Bradford said while watching criminals being led to the gallows in England a few hundred years ago, "There but for the grace of God go I."

Below are the posts I wrote after the last social media inspired deluge of harassing calls to a local business in October of 2023:

What the furor over the Witch Walk in Franklin can teach us about Christian cultural engagement

An observation about social media comment sections in light of the Witch Walk furor

Light vs Darkness and the reason why Christians should be perpetual optimists

How Franklin moves forward, together: the Law of Love, Romans 13:10

Why plans to build a "Christian" Nationalist Retreat Center in Franklin, PA is not a good idea for the local churches or our town.

The view from the Allegheny River Retreat Center

My wife and I moved to Franklin in January of 2012 when I was called to be the new pastor at the First Baptist Church of Franklin (the one next to the Sheetz station, the red brick one, not the other one).  In the years since we've come to know Franklin and Venango County as a place that has a lot of positive things going for it, and as a good place to raise our daughter.  I've worked closely during my twelve years here with my neighboring churches, with charities (including of course Mustard Seed Missions, which I helped to found and serve as the President of), and local government officials.  I think I have a solid understanding of what this community needs moving forward, and what it doesn't.

For example: Franklin (and Venango County) would benefit if the new owners of Joy Plant #1 are able to find good tenants who will hire a significant number of workers at a living wage; that seems like a fairly obvious one.  As a second example, we are blessed in this community to have Emmaus Haven, the Christian charity that runs the men's shelter in Siverly, but our community's people will benefit when Emmaus Haven is also able to open a shelter in our county to house women with children.  Thirdly, we would benefit from an influx of doctors, nurses, dentists, police officers, and all the other professions that we, like most rural communities in this generation, need more of.  The list could go on an on, but let me end it with this, our town and our county need to continue to have churches that preach the Word of God, maintain the faith handed down to us from our ancestors, and work together to help those in need in our community.  At present, this is something we have, a tremendous resource, and something worth every effort that I and thousands like me put into maintaining what we collectively refer to as The Church.

On the flip side, there are numerous things that could change about Franklin and Venango County that would not benefit the people of our community, things that would be a detriment to the efforts of Christians and non-Christians alike.  For example: While some might celebrate the jobs that a casino would bring, or the tax revenue, the dark side of gambling's affects on individuals and families would not benefit our community (that one is unlikely to come here is a blessing).  A second example of the kind of developments that would be unhelpful to the health and vitality of our community would be the opening of a strip club, the closing of one of our libraries, or the loss of another significant employer.

None of the preceding thoughts are all that controversial.  We all want our community to have good jobs and a safety net for those in need.

Which after a long-winded introduction brings us to the topic at hand, which is the proposed "Seven Mountain training center."  Would it benefit Franklin or Venango County if this dream were to become a reality?  It would not.  That may feel like a very definitive statement, even a judgmental one coming as it does from a local pastor, but my belief on this matter comes from a lifetime of experience within the Church, a career of serving local churches, and an understanding of history, both secular and religious.  Given that the future is unknowable, and what is better or worse for a community can be a subjective question (as our recent bruhaha over the Witch Walk demonstrated in spades), I will certainly understand those who don't see this in the same way that I do, but everything that I know about the Church, the Gospel, America, and democracy tells me that "Christian" Nationalism is a bad idea, and that Seven Mountain Dominionism is a particularly dangerous form of "Christian" Nationalism.

Why am I talking about "Christian" Nationalism attempting to come here to Franklin, PA anyway?  When did this happen?  In June of 2023, The Atlantic published an article written by Stephanie McCrummen about the efforts of Tami Barthen and her husband Kevin (the article is almost exclusively about Tami) who moved to Franklin, PA in 2017 looking to buy a retirement cabin, but instead bought the former Vision Quest property where they are in the process of turning it into a retreat center for "Christian" Nationalists under the name Allegheny River Retreat Center.  The website for the planned retreat center doesn't mention anything (that I could find) about the theological and political nature of its purpose, but given the daily social media postings from "prophets" associated with the New Apostolic Reformation that populate both Tami's page and that of the ARRC, and her stated intention to make the property a "Seven Mountains training center," it seems only fitting that the churches and community of Franklin and Venango County take notice of this effort.

{The Watchman Decree: 'Christian' Nationalism's 'name it and claim it' dangerous prayer.  I wrote this on 8/23/22 to explain why Seven Mountain Dominionism is so dangerous to the Church and to America.  For those unfamiliar with the term, Seven Mountain Dominionism is a subset of "Christian" Nationalism, a specific type of effort at turning the country into a "Christian Nation."  Throughout this essay I have continued my habit of putting the "Christian" in "Christian" Nationalism in quotation marks, not because it is a generally accepted grammatical practice, but in deference to my own dislike of the association of this movement, historically and today, with the love and peace of the faith and practice that I hold dear.  There is nothing authentically Christ honoring about Christian Nationalism.}

Some of you may have met Tami and/or Kevin, I have not, and they may indeed be pleasant people to share a meal with, and in their own way be faithful Christians who are seeking to honor God with their lives.  My purpose in writing is not to cast dispersions upon them, as people, I don't have any basis for judgment either way, nor any reason to share it if I did.  Rather, it is the ideas behind Seven Mountain Dominionism (and "Christian" Nationalism) that are dangerous.

I was unaware of this effort to open a retreat center or this article about it until last week.  I contacted Tami via FB instant messaging, after seeing that she has the article pinned to the top of the Retreat Center's FB page and also uses an image of it on her business card, to let her know that I would be writing an article about this proposed retreat center from the perspective of someone who believes strongly in the Separation of Church and State as well as Religious Freedom (two ideals that are anathema to the "Christian" Nationalist movement, as they are to Fundamentalists in every religion). I asked her if she wanted to clarify anything from the article.  In the ensuing conversation with instant messaging, Tami indicated that she had never heard of the New Apostolic Reformation (she shares multiple posts daily from that movement's prominent and nationally known leaders), that in addition, "I don't know what Christian Nationalism is," and stated that you cannot judge someone by a magazine article (which, again, she displays prominently inviting others to read it).  In the end, Tami told me that my "tone" was accusatory, but declined to state anything from the article that she believed was a mischaracterization.  That's the long way of saying, I tried to offer the people behind the Allegheny River Retreat Center the opportunity to disclaim their apparent connection to Dutch Sheets, Lance Wallnau, the New Apostolic Reformation, and/or "Christian" Nationalism, but was rebuffed. 

To read the article from the Atlantic, click here: THE WOMAN WHO BOUGHT A MOUNTAIN FOR GOD, by Stephanie McCrummen, The Atlantic, 6/20/23

To read the article from the  Atlantic, together with my response to it, click here: A response to: "The Woman Who Bought a Mountain for God", a nationally published article (on 6/20/23) about "Christian" Nationalism in Franklin, PA

I have written much over the years about the dangers of "Christian" Nationalism both to the Church and to the government, and especially to the rights of those who don't conform to the particular definition of the Church that would then be backed up by governmental coercion.  In fact, I'm still working on my series: Listen to the Word of God: 62 Scripture passages that refute 'Christian' Nationalism.  I've made it to number 30, Listen to the Word of God: 62 Scripture passages that refute 'Christian' Nationalism - #30 - John 17:16 & 18:36, but it'll be a while until I can work all the way to #62.

Let me make a few brief distinctions between the type of patriotism that can honor God and the "Christian" Nationalism that endangers the Gospel, the Church, and any nation it attempts to control.

1. There is a key difference between prayer for the government that hopes to make our democracy better for all who live in this land...and "Christian" Nationalism's willingness to overthrow the government and end democracy in order to win.

2. There is a key difference between working with, or conversely protesting against, the government as an exercise in freedom...and "Christian" Nationalism's claim of a God-given right to rule in his name over everyone else.

3. There is a key difference between influencing culture and the government for the better, seeking to make them more moral and righteous...and claiming that only you, and those like you, have the answers as to what that culture and government should be, and that those who disagree are in league with the Devil.

I am fully in favor of the first half of those three statements, and in fact I've done my share of all three.  But that's not what the committed "Christian" Nationalists have in mind when they envision what America would look like under their rule, they have the second half of those statements in mind.  

We have a good community here in Franklin and Venango County, it isn't perfect, we all know that, but it is one of the better places to live in our world today.  Working to maintain it is important to us all.  That being said, this is America, if they can raise the millions the project will need, the Allegheny River Retreat Center may indeed become a beacon of "Christian" Nationalist training that attracts speakers and guests from all over the country.  I'm not proposing that anyone take action to try to stop them from fulfilling their dream, and certainly don't want anyone to harass Tami or Kevin online or in-person, in part because I do believe in everyone's freedom of religion, including those who don't reciprocate.  Maybe this "prophecy" of what this retreat center could become will result in a functioning enterprise here in our town, maybe it won't.

No matter what happens next, the answer to falsehood is truth, the answer to darkness is light, and the answer to hate is love.  I truly believe every bit of that sentence.  So, if the planned "Seven Mountain retreat center" becomes a reality, my response to this militancy will be truth, light, and love, I won't respond with anything else even though I know in my heart, my mind, and in my soul, that this is not a good idea for our local churches or our town.

There certainly isn't time here to make the case that "Christian" Nationalism is the destructive force that I know it to be, I have however written and taught on this subject for years, so anyone seeking to learn more about this movement and how dangerous it is to the Church and America can simply continue reading some of the links below.

Here is a six hour seminar outlining what the Biblical relationship is between the Church and human government: What Every Christian Should Know About: The Church and Politics

Scripture Abuse: 2 Chronicles 7:14, idolatry, nationalism, and antisemitism

The irrefutable rejection of Christian Nationalism by the New Testament

The blasphemous "One Nation Under God" painting by Jon McNaughton

Local Torah Club leaders offer to privately train church pastors using material from FFOZ whose authors admit amounts to a "different gospel."

 A local pastor who received the letter below shared it with me out of concern about this effort, I am sharing it here with the names, phone numbers, and email addresses of the local Torah Club leaders blacked-out in order to avoid both the potential of inadvertently advertising this club, and the possibility that anyone would (against my wishes) harass the individuals that are involved in spreading this theology.  I don't know how many local pastors received this invitation, I'm not surprised that I did not.  My response to this letter will be below.

1. There has been no effort (to my knowledge) by the local Torah Club leaders to respond to the Franklin Christian Ministerium's January letter.

As the letter states, the group's leaders decided to not respond to our very detailed warning filled with direct quotes of First Fruits of Zion published materials.  We, the collective pastors of the ministerium, representing diverse theological backgrounds, unanimously warned that this teaching is unorthodox.  Rather than drop the sponsorship of First Fruits of Zion upon learning more about the plans and purposes of the organization they are championing (more on that later), the local leadership has decided to instead offer the exact same materials in private lessons to local church pastors.

Since the publication of our letter, further extensive research has uncovered much more damning statements published by FFOZ, including video proof from the 2022 Malchut Conference {that will be shared in my upcoming seminar: Warnings against FFOZ seminar} that the leaders of this organization are aware that what they're teaching is untethered from 2,000 years of Church History (this is actually a selling point, they want to jettison the traditional/received/orthodox Gospel in favor of the understaning they alone posses), amounting to a "different gospel" to use Paul's terminology {Galatians 1:8  But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let them be under God’s curse!}, AND that the primary target of their efforts are those already participating in local churches.  In other words, FFOZ is purposefully aiming to entice people from local churches with a different gospel, that's not my accusation, that's their business strategy.  

This is a significant charge, akin to the heretical teachings of the Jehovah's Witnesses or the Mormons, but local Torah Club leaders are, as this letter demonstrates, sticking with the organization.

2. Having demonstrated a lack of understanding with respect to Christian orthodoxy, the local leadership has now offered to teach local pastors.

As James wrote, "Not many of you should become teachers, my fellow believers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly." (James 3:1, NIV)  I make no claim that the pastors of this county, myself included, need no further wisdom or understanding, we are fallible men and women who are prone to the same failings as the people in our congregations, but, and this really does matter, we have been called to serve our churches (through our various different process of training and ordination) and are responsible to the checks and balances on our beliefs and teachings that come from being part of a church.

To say that individuals who have left the oversight and discipline of a local church {as the local leaders offering to teach this class have done}, and are not therefore subject to any discipline for the apostasy of leaving orthodoxy behind, should set themselves up as teachers of church pastors is both shocking and highly dangerous.  This is NOT how church pastoral leaders gain further wisdom and knowledge as they shepherd Christ's sheep.

To call this letter's purpose bold is selling it short.

3. I have read the HaYesod workbook, it fully embraces the FFOZ ethos, it is in no way an example of orthodox Christian teaching.

In my upcoming seminar I will quote this workbook a number of times (45 times in the full primary source document I created that I will be condensing for the seminar!!), demonstrating over and over that is contains false teaching after false teaching.

4. The promise of not publicly revealing the name of pastors who decide to participate is an important concession.

Again, when you're leading an organization that was unanimously called-out by the local pastors of an entire ministerium, and disseminating materials from an organization that believes the Church has been preaching an incomplete Gospel throughout its entire history {And, in fact, that the Church should never have existed in the first place}, it certainly wouldn't be unwise for local church pastors to knowingly sit under this teaching, it is the kind of thing that would upon up a pastor to ecclesiastical discipline, and rightly so.  That being said, if any of the laity in our area are concerned that their pastor may be interested in learning from or joining this movement, please refer him/her to the many posts illustrating the dangers of FFOZ that I have written this year {clicking on the First Fruit of Zion tab in the topic list on the righthand side of the blog will bring them all up}.

5. While I appreciate that they "have no desire to continue in perpetuating harm within the body of Christ," and am willing to take this at face value, the further spread of this unorthodox theology WILL harm our local churches.

Sadly, I once considered the local Torah Club leaders to be, if not friends, certainly fellow laborers for the Kingdom of God {back when we worked together in the early days of Mustard Seed Missions, they left years ago}.  That changed when the Franklin Christian Ministerium pointed out the numerous heretical teachings of FFOZ, but these individuals chose to maintain (and further promote) this allegiance.  They chose FFOZ over the local church.  We have gone past the point of calling this a misunderstanding, it is a choice they have made, and continue to make.  At this point, my top priority has to be protecting my fellow Christians, both laity and clergy, from following this path into apostasy.  I didn't want it to come to this, neither did the pastors I have worked with to defend the Gospel, but we haven't been given that choice, we must act, we must warn you of the dangers this organization poses to the Bride of Christ.

Every house needs a firm foundation. The church has built its entire mission on an incomplete foundation on a partial gospel. This process began early, early, early when church theologians intentionally, intentionally stripped away the Jewish context of the New Testament. - Michael Boaz, founder and president of FFOZ, 2022 Malchut Conference.

This is what we're up against.

This is why your pastor needs your support and prayers.

 

Is my role in the fight against the Torah Clubs (FFOZ) personal? Absolutely, and it should be, this is why.

 

The Mustard Seed Mission committee accepting an award for Outstanding Service from Venango County Human Services in 2012.  This was our team, and I'm proud of that team and what each member contributed, but this picture also includes, after they left us, those who went on to bring the Torah Clubs to this community.

On of the criticisms that has been aimed at the Franklin Ministerium following our decision to publicly warn the Christian community about the theology behind the Torah Clubs (First Fruits of Zion) {The Franklin Christian Miniserium's warning against the Torah Clubs and the First Fruits of Zion} has been that our action didn't arise out of sense of pastoral responsibility or Gospel fealty, but rather is personal in nature.  That criticism implies that a personal motive in such a case is a base motive, an unworthy motive, that somehow diminishes any claim to Truth we might be making.  While it is true that personal motivations can be the basis for abusing authority or power, it is also true that any confrontation that involves the people, places, and institutions into which we've poured our hearts and souls cannot help but be personal.  For us, as pastors serving in this community, to be dispassionate about this issue, and disconnected from it emotionally, would itself be a dangerous sign.  Do we really want pastors who aren't personally invested in what they do?  

The following reasons are why this issue is personal to me, it isn't an exhaustive list, and my fellow pastors who have taken this stand with me would have their own list (although no doubt with much overlap).  Consider it and decide if, "this is personal," really should disqualify us from speaking with authority; for all the reasons below I don't buy that at all.

These are fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.

I'll lead with the most universal of motives, one that we all are required to share as followers of Jesus: Love for each other.  Given that Jesus commands us to love one another, in fact making the law of love the centerpiece of his New Covenant, it isn't optional, we have to love.  Therefore, anyone who has shown themself to be a devoted follower of Jesus Christ, someone redeemed by the Blood of the Lamb, is my spiritual brother or sister.  We are family.  When an issue concerns our family, doesn't it need to be personal?

I can testify that those who have taken up leadership positions in the Torah Clubs (2/3 of them here locally I know well enough for this) have demonstrated over the 11+ years that I have been in Franklin, a love for Jesus Christ, a willingness to serve his Church, and a zeal for righteousness.  I have no doubt of this.  

Which is why it troubles me all the more when I see evidence that these brothers and sisters in Christ are embracing Modalism (A denial of the Trinity and the Nicene Creed), or elevating Torah above the rest of Scripture, or following an organization that claims only those who keep Torah (think kosher, Sabbath, festivals) are the ones who truly love Jesus.  These are real people, that I know, who have gone astray, watching them do so had better be personal to me, and it is.  As a shepherd of the sheep, while they may not be in my flock, watching them wander off into the wilderness while spurning our efforts to call them back to safety, is painful.

In addition to the leaders who are known to me, the Torah Clubs have pulled in a number of committed Christians whom I know, whom I respect, and for whom my concern for their spiritual well being is very real.

I've worked alongside them previously on behalf of the Kingdom of God.

As the captioned picture at the top of this post shows, I once proudly stood alongside two of the local Torah Clubs leaders back in 2012 when we were all honored by the county for our role in leading Mustard Seed Missions.  In that first year, and for some time after, we worked together weekly, sometimes daily, to help those in need as these two individuals held key roles in our organization.  As the President of MSM, I relied upon their work and dedication as we turned that idea into something that has now helped over 1,700 families in its ten+ years of existence.  To have once pulled on the rope together in the same direction, and to have had success in doing so, only to a few years later see these same people that I once strove with striving now against my work, my ministry, and my passion, is hard.  To be forced to call them out (not by name, that's a conscious choice here) because they're harming those same things, and to now oppose what they're passionate about and have dedicated their lives to, can't help but be emotional.  We once were on the same team, I didn't change what and who I represent, but we find ourselves in opposition now just the same.

This is my town, my community, my home.

Baptist polity makes this one different for me than most of my fellow ministers.  I'm a free agent when it comes to where I serve the Church.  I'm originally from Michigan, and Michigan will always be where I'm from, but at some point after my wife Nicole and I moved here to Franklin in 2012, this became our home.  It started for me with my opposite corner of the 11th and Liberty intersection neighbor, Pastor Jeff Little, who was the first to welcome us and has since become a "friend closer than a brother."  It continued on with joining the ministerium where I was welcomed by Pastor David Janz, Pastor Scott Woodlee, and Mother Holly, among others.  We formed a bond, worked together, dreamed of what might be possible in this community.

In all honesty, and I've written and spoken about this before, Franklin was the first community that ever treated me with respect, that every cared about my ideas, and that accepted me in a leadership role.  That I was able to help create Mustard Seed Missions in this community, less than a year after moving here, is a powerful testimony to how gracious the people of God have been to me in this place.

For much of my time here I have also served as a member of the Venango County Christian Ministerium, an organization I helped start.  We bring together the Christian community throughout Venango County for a joint worship service on Thanksgiving and Palm Sunday, and have also over the years organized the observance of the National Day of Prayer and the 40 Days of Prayer during Lent.  It is known in this community that I have put significant time and effort into building ecumenical bonds among our churches.  The Church in Venango County matters to me.

This is also where my daughter, my precious Clara Marie, was born, this is her home, if I needed any more motivation to be invested in what happens here, that's one more reason.  Is it any wonder that when I see a threat to this area's Christian community it feels deeply and painfully personal to me?

This is my Church.

As a minister ordained to serve the Church of Jesus Christ, in my case as an American Baptist minister, the universal Church is my Church.  Whenever I hear of false teaching, of dangerous charlatans milking it for money, or demagogues using it for their own ends, it touches a nerve.  I have written and spoken against such many times over the years, but these dangerous always originated elsewhere, were a greater danger to other local churches than our own.  That doesn't make doing our small part any less important, each one of us who serves this Church faithfully is diminished by each person who uses it as a means to an end.  Each time it is harmed, our small piece of it is harmed too.

Whether we, as a ministerium, can convince the Christian community of this or not, everything in our education, training, and experience is telling every one of us that what the Torah Clubs (FFOZ) are teaching, and what they're aiming to do, will harm the Church.  That this movement is outside of the historic, orthodox, and apostolic tradition and teaching of the Church.  We also know that it is rejected by the history, theology, and leadership of Catholic, Orthodox, and Protestant Churches.  Should not harm caused to the Bride of Christ be personal to every one of us who belong to it?  

This is my church.

Within that universal framework exists an untold number of individual churches.  First Baptist Church of Franklin is my church.  This is true on two levels: (1) This is where I worship, fellowship, pray, and serve, and (2) this is the congregation with whose care and protection I have been entrusted.  Thus both my own personal Christian discipleship which takes place within this congregation that I belong to, and the people for whom I will one day give an account before Almighty God as to how well I served as their shepherd, are at risk when a dangerous idea aimed at the Church takes root in our community.  For my own sake, and for the sake of my people, this fight is deeply personal.

The Torah Clubs are being presented as just another Bible study.  In reality, it is an effort to proselytize within the local church.  By the admission of the founder of First Fruits of Zion, the Church is the mission field.  It is not the Lost who are sought after to join this movement, but those already in fellowship within local churches who are being told that the Church (and their pastor by extension) has been lying to them about Jesus all along.  We are purposefully the targets, and taking us from the historic, apostolic, and biblical faith and practice in which we were raised is the goal.  I wouldn't make this claim lightly, but having read such things in their own published works, I'd be a fool to not take the threat seriously.  This is an organization that believes it will bring about the End Times by converting the Church to the practices of Judaism.

{The evidence of this motivation and goal:An Examination of the unorthodox beliefs of the First Fruits of Zion, their Torah Clubs, and the Hebrew Roots Movement in general} 

Let me add this, each of us who has accepted the role of pastoral leader has taken up a sacred trust.  We must not only preach, teach, and demonstrate the Gospel to our people, but we must also go forth, thankfully in this case not alone, to protect the sheep from the wolves.  Whether or not this is dangerous to us is not really a question we can entertain, it must be done.

This is my Gospel

The reason why protecting the Gospel is personal to me is clear: It saved me too.  At this point in my life I'm an ordained pastor, a leader within the Church, but I too was once just a kid who learned that Jesus died upon the Cross and rose again from the dead to save me from my sins.  I put my hope and trust in that salvation, was baptized, and began a life of fellowship in the community of believers.  Like that old commercial where the guy says he liked the product so much he bought the company, I'm a defender of the Gospel because I know what it has done for me.  When I sing Amazing Grace, the words are my words too.

So let me count the cost

We could, as a ministerium, have done nothing, we could have remained silent, we could have hoped that this movement would prove itself to be the latest fad, here today, gone tomorrow.  Lord willing, when we look back on this moment in ten years it will be with relief, it will be with God-honoring stories of how some of our fellow Christians lost their way for a time, but how the grace of God once more brought them home.  We pray that this will happen, but after many hours of discussion and research, as a ministerium, it was clear to us that we had a role to play, "for such a time as this," that we would have to take a stand.

If the local Torah Club leaders continue to embrace the notion that the proper form of Christian discipleship is to 'live like Jews' {Which is the bedrock belief of the organization whose teaching they chose to bring to our community}, doing so in the face of everything we as this community's pastoral leaders are able to do to show how false and dangerous this path is to them, if they will not repent, and personal and painful as that will be for me and the rest of the local pastoral leaders, our other task remains and cannot be set aside: We must protect the sheep from wolves that would devour them, and I make no excuse for that being entirely personal to me.

The Franklin Christian Miniserium's warning against the Torah Clubs and the First Fruits of Zion

To the Christian community in Venango County, February 2023

Beloved brothers and sisters in Christ, as men and women called by God and entrusted with the responsibility to shepherd the sheep and protect the flock, it is our responsibility to shout out a warning when dangerous individuals, groups, or ideas affect our communities and churches.

This is sadly the case with regards to the spread here locally of Torah Clubs sponsored by the First Fruits of Zion.

While we enthusiastically support deep study of the Bible, including its Jewish cultural and linguistic roots, all such study should occur within the framework of a Church history-based orthodoxy, and an apostolic understanding of the Gospel.

Why do groups associated with the Hebrew Roots Movement, in general, like the First Fruits of Zion, in particular, fail this test?  Our accompanying documentation will demonstrate from primary sources, in their own words, that the First Fruits of Zion organization, and the Torah Clubs materials they publish, are replete with the following theological errors and/or heresies:

1. A non-Trinitarian view of God in the forms of two ancient heresies rejected by the Early Church: Modalism and Subordinationism.

2. A substandard hermeneutic {including the use of paraphrases and word substitutions resulting in more palatable texts} for interpreting scripture that contends that all relevant passages have been wrongly understood throughout Church History, and in fact mean nearly the opposite of what the Church has always taught.

3. A hostility toward the Church which is seen as the ‘mission field’ in need of correction to bring it back to its supposed roots as a Torah observant movement within Judaism.

4. That the books of Moses, the Torah, are more fully the words of God than other portions of holy scripture, making them the lens through which all scripture must be interpreted.  Even Jesus Christ, the eternal Word of God, has no authority to establish anything beyond the Mosaic Law. 

5. That Jesus did not fulfill the Mosaic Law, rather it is still operative and normative for all of God’s people, Jews and Gentiles alike.

6. That there is no covenant with the Gentiles, thus all followers of Jesus Christ accepting the Gospel must be grafted into Israel by ‘becoming a Jew’ in spirit, and in Torah observance.

7. That on this basis true Christian discipleship requires the keeping of the Mosaic Law, including the dietary (kosher), Sabbath, and festival provisions, which is how Christians demonstrate their love of God.

If the tree is diseased, so will its fruit be.  We would warn against the use of bible study materials produced by the Watchtower Tract Society (JW) or LDS (Mormon) organizations, even if locally 100% of the parent organization’s theology was not being adopted.  The risk that heretical teachings would gain a foothold is simply too great.  If the desire is to learn from Judaism or Messianic Judaism, a host of materials from an orthodox point-of-view are available for Christians to use in our churches, to use that which comes from the FFOZ is an unnecessary risk, plus a union with an organization whose stated goals would harm the Church and warp the Gospel.

In the end, while protesting that they do not offer a works-based salvation, and claiming that faith in Jesus is sufficient, this movement is built upon and structured around the claim that all faithful Christians will begin observing the Law of Moses once they become followers of Jesus, that faithful Christians will, in essence, live like Jews.  They may not outright claim the Law of Moses as the gatekeeper to salvation and Christian discipleship, but when you make it the gauge of genuine faithfulness you are adding it to the Gospel message, casting dispersion upon the faith of 99% of the world’s Christians, both past and present, and spreading doubt and division within the Church.  This movement is no benign appreciation of the scriptures, but rather an aggressively proselytizing misappropriation of them contrary to the established teachings of Orthodox, Catholic, and Protestant Churches alike.

Given this, our duty requires that we warn our congregations against participation in these groups, and call upon those who do so now, and especially those who are promoting them, to repent and return to the faith our ancestors rejoiced in as, “you are not under the law, but under grace.” (Romans 6:12)

By unanimous affirmation of the Franklin Christian Ministerium,

Rev. Shawn Clerkin, Vicar/Pastor, St. John’s Episcopal Church/Grace Lutheran Church, Franklin

Deacon David Betz, St. John’s Episcopal Church, Franklin

Rev. Dr. Darrell L. Greenawalt, Christ United Methodist Church, Franklin

Rev. Larry A. Myers, Polk Presbyterian Church

Rev. Eric Phillips, Redeemer Anglican Church, Franklin

Pastor Randy Powell, First Baptist Church of Franklin

Pastor Chad Troup, Fox Street Church of God

For Further Information:

An Examination of the unorthodox beliefs of the First Fruits of Zion, their Torah Clubs, and the Hebrew Roots Movement in general - by the Franklin Christian Ministerium - our 10,000+ word primary source documentation of what the Torah Clubs and FFOZ believe and teach.

Circumcision, Baptism, and the Jerusalem Council - by Pastor Randy Powell - Yet another implication of this false teaching: If we're still under the Law, what about Baptism??

Common Questions From the website of Beth Immanuel (bethimmanuel.org), the synagogue led by the creator of the Torah Clubs teaching materials, Thomas Lancaster - How do followers of this movement worship?

Encounters with an Ephraimite Identity through a Lost Heritage - by Boaz Michael President / Founder First Fruits of Zion - Explicit statements about the purposes and goals of FFOZ from its President and Founder, including his animosity toward Messianic Judaism for not supporting Gentile observance of Torah.

Torah Club study material: John 14:7-31 - shared for educational purposes only, this is copyrighted material

ARE WE UNDER THE SINAI LAW? WHAT IS OUR STANCE REGARDING THE TORAH? - by ONE FOR ISRAEL (A response from Messianic Judaism to the HRM)

The wisdom of our ancestors in the faith: Rejection of the Law of Moses as normative for Christians in Protestant creedal statements - written by Pastor Powell

The Early Church Fathers: Condemnation of those claiming the necessity of the Mosaic Law for followers of Jesus Christ - written by Pastor Powell

What is the Hebrew Roots Movement - by Got Questions?

Dangers of the Hebrew Roots Movement by Tim Chaffey, Answers in Genesis

An effort by the Venango County Christian Ministerium to show support during the pandemic to healthcare workers: signs available 11/17

 

In light of the new surge of COVID-19 cases both locally and nationally, many of the area ministers have been looking for a way to show support for both those who serve our community at UPMC Northwest in Seneca, and healthcare workers throughout our county. These brave men and women care for us when we need them, they need our support in return.

Our first step? We will be selling 18x24 yard signs (with stand) printed locally in Franklin by PMP Printing. The sign was created by my talented wife, Nicole Brzezinski Powell. {If you don't live in Venango County, please feel free to utilize the attached file to have signs/banners/etc. printed where you live; or at least, share the image on social media}

We have ordered 200 signs, they should be here at the church (1041 Liberty St. in Franklin) available for pick-up starting on the 17th. The office is open from 8-3, M-F; call 432-8061 for pick-up outside of that time window We are hoping to have them placed in front of every church in the county, and many homes as well. The signs will cost us appx. $7 per, and we will sell them for $10 each, with the $3 profit becoming a donation to our local food pantries to coincide with the offering we will take at our county-wide Thanksgiving service on the 22nd. The easiest method would be to convince your church to buy a batch and then distribute them, but we will also sell them directly at the church to individuals (the building has a mask wearing policy, thank you for your cooperation).

What if we don't need a new church plant?

In 2016, Pastor Charlie Cotherman led the planting of Oil City Vineyard Church just upriver from us in Oil City.  I know Charlie, and God has blessed his vision for Oil City with a church that is thriving.  That same year, Pastor Joseph Gibson led the planting of Cranberry Community Church (Assemblies of God) a few miles 'uphill' from us in Cranberry.  I know Joseph as well, and God has also blessed his vision for Cranberry with a church that is thriving.  Planting a new church is often seen as a way of waking up a community, of bringing something new and potentially exciting to the mix, and ultimately (hopefully) of tapping into the work of the Spirit and reaping a harvest for the Kingdom.
But what if a village, town, or other relatively small community already has more churches than average?  What if that town has quite a bit more than one would expect to find for a town its size? {More than it needs?  Is that a real thing?}  The town of Franklin has just over 6,000 people (it was 6,500 in 2010, this year's census will provide new numbers), and with that population, contains 1 Catholic, 3 Church of God, 1 American Baptist (that's us), 1 Nazarene, 2 United Methodist, 1 Free Methodist, 1 Wesleyan Methodist, 1 Christian Missionary Alliance, 1 Presbyterian, 1 United Brethren, 1 Episcopal, 1 Lutheran, 1 Pentecostal, and 1 Foursquare.  In addition, across the river in Rocky Grove we have another United Methodist church, another Church of God, another Presbyterian church, and a Pilgrim Holiness church; I can think of another 7 churches within three miles of town (4 UMC, 2 Independent Baptists, 1 Community).  If we add in Rocky Grove, that's 20 (27 in a 4 mile radius) churches for a population of about 7,000.  If everyone in town went to church each Sunday, we'd each have about 350 people.  There are 3 churches with that number or more, but most have between 50-125.  In theory we could fit all 7,000 people in our church pews, maybe needing a few 2nd services.  {That's with 100% attendance, those who are home-bound take several hundred off of that potential group, but at a very healthy 50% attendance rate, we'd still have more than enough church pew space}.  With a population that has been in steady decline since the 1970's, and a number of churches that still reflects the glory days of the Oil Boom (when my church regularly had over 1,000 people on Sundays, and others were packed too), it would seem illogical to consider adding another church to Franklin's already massive and diverse repertoire.
Oil City didn't suffer from a lack of churches when Charlie and his family arrived, although it seems that he filled a niche that may have been underutilized.  The same seems true with Joseph and Cranberry, given its smaller population than either Franklin or Oil City, but also the lack of any church in our area associated with the Assemblies of God (the one in Franklin closed several years ago).  How do we know if God's purpose would be better served by focusing our energy and vitality on reviving that which is already here, or trying to build something from scratch?  The Book of Acts in the New Testament doesn't offer us any direction as to how many churches should exist in any particular community, so we're not going to find easy answers.
There are a lot of under-served communities in America, and tens of thousands of them worldwide.  These are places with one church per 10,000 people, and even far worse ratios.  Compared to them, Franklin is overly, abundantly, blessed, as is our county as a whole {with about 50k people and well over 100 churches}.  If God has plans to send us someone like Charlie or Joseph (and their wives and kids), I'll welcome them with open arms, but if God's plan is instead to work with what we already have here, I've no doubt that we can get the job done with the churches (both the communities and the buildings) we already have serving this community.

Interaction with: "Keeping a church going is a tough cross to bear" by Peter Greene

In this morning's News-Herald/The Derrick is a column from Peter Greene, retired Franklin High School English teacher regarding the challenge of keeping the county's numerous churches going, in particular its number of massive (relative to our current population) church buildings.  The article ends with a call to attend tonight's forum that is being hosted here at First Baptist with the Oil Region Alliance, the Bridge Builders Community Foundation, and a national group called Sacred Places.  The meeting will discuss how to preserve sacred spaces through utilizing them as community resources, a function that the building here at First Baptist already performs, but one which we are eager to learn more about.  So please, join us tonight if you can.

In addition, Greene's article touches upon a number of topics related to church attendance and church growth, I'll quote the relevant portions below in bold and interact with them.

We've had a real estate problem in Venango County for a while.  We have too much excess capacity, too many buildings with too much space, built in a time when the county had many thousands more people than it does now.

This is true across the board in real estate: residential, commercial, educational, and sacred.  The population drop since the height of the oil boom has been remarkable, resulting in a population downward trend that must bottom out at some point, but hasn't yet.  It is thus inevitable that the county contain "too many" churches, unless the % of people within the county who attend church were to have risen as the population declines, it hasn't.  Some churches have closed, as evidenced by the consolidation in Oil City of the Catholic parishes from five to one, but most remain open.  Within two miles of my office in downtown Franklin there are 18 churches, and while that includes several in small buildings, it also includes the sizable buildings of First Baptist, St. Patrick's, First UMC, Christ UMC, St. John's Episcopal, First Presbyterian, and Atlantic Ave. United Brethren.

Gallup Poll shows that church membership hung around 70 percent from 1938 until 1996, then dropped off a cliff, landing at 50 percent in 2018...young folks are the most likely to be unchurched these days.

That this is a trend isn't news to anyone involved in church ministry.  However, here in our county the affects of it are harder to gauge because so many of this community's young people leave the area for college and don't return.  Thus churches in Venango County (and much of rural America) must face the prospect of lesser proportions of the younger generations simply because their community's population is trending that way anyway.  Once again, in order to have as many people in their 20's or 30's in our church as we have people in their 60's or 70's, we would have to be reaching a significantly higher percentage of that target population.

There are a gazillion explanations out there.  Some argue that the mainstream churches lost ground because they got too wrapped up in social causes.

This is the go-to explanation from conservative churches regarding the trends within liberal churches (using those terms despite the inevitable comparison to politics, here they rather reflect theological perspectives, although the two tend to bleed together).  To the extent that any church or denomination has walked away from the historic creeds and teachings of the Church, and/or replaced the primary focus of the Church (the proclamation of the Gospel and the making of disciples) with unrelated causes, that explanation seems to have traction.  If what once brought people to Church, the worship of God and the proclamation of the forgiveness of sins, is no longer relevant to what a church is doing, why exactly would people go there?  I have not, however, experienced this with the 'liberal' churches here in Venango County, instead I've found authentic and passionate commitment to the Gospel at, for example, St. John's Episcopal Church (with whom we partner for the Shepherd's Green Food Pantry).

Others argue that more conservative religious voices have turned off young folks with their political involvement.

I have certainly argued about the danger of mixing religion and politics, describing it as an unequal marriage that will corrupt the Church with the pragmatism (and win-at-all-cost) of politics rather than impacting politics with the morality of Christianity.  In 1999, Pastor Ed Dobson and Cal Thomas warned about the failures of the Moral Majority in their book, Blinded by Might but unfortunately that warning has not been heeded and things have grown much worse.  Examples of my writings on this include: A rejection of a One-Party Church, and pastors as political operatives and The Culture War rages on; the Church's role in it is toxic.

Oddly enough, those arguments represent two sides of the old saying, "When you mix religion and politics, you get politics."

And this is where it gets dicey.  'Liberal' churches and their leaders decry the politics of 'Conservative' churches and their leaders, and vice versa, without both sides realizing that they are doing the same things, just from a different perspective.  For example: the mixing of the Gospel with socialism is just as dangerous as the mixing of the Gospel with free-market capitalism.  That sentence might upset some of you because you hate one of those economic systems but love the other, but from a Christian Worldview that honors the teachings of the Apostles and Church History, there can be no other conclusion.  The Gospel cannot be mixed with our economic, social, or political viewpoints and remain the Gospel.  This is a dilemma as old as the first generation of the Church, one that our ancestors in the faith struggled mightily to not be overcome by (See for example their failure: The Thirty Years War), and one that endures to this day.  In the end, a Republican Gospel is just as much of an anathema as a Democrat Gospel, both must be rejected.  In this I am somewhat fortunate, as the American Baptist Churches have a history of supporting the separation of Church and State.  However, with the 'liberal' and 'conservative' Church in America leaning heavily in the direction of greater involvement in politics, I've often felt like a 'voice calling out in the wilderness' on this issue.

Locally, churches have had nowhere to go over the last century but down.  Churches like First Baptist in Franklin were built by wealthy patrons who help(ed) both raise the building and fill it.  General Miller expected his employees to be in church Sunday morning, and he sweetened the pot with features like a nationally respected orchestra.  The church was filled to overflowing, though how many were there because of deep religious commitment is open to debate.

First off, thanks for the shout out in the newspaper to First Baptist.  It is certainly true that First Baptist was overflowing 100+ years ago.  We have Sunday School attendance books that show weeks with 1,000+ in attendance between the various classes for men, women, and children.  General Miller taught his afternoon class for decades, it would be fascinating to me to learn what those classes consisted of.  About half of the cost of the 1,800 seat addition that was completed in 1904 (it was all part of a 3/4 circle sanctuary then, now that  mega-sanctuary addition is a recreation area and auditorium) was borne by Charles Miller personally.  Whatever else he was, Charles Miller was a titan in this church's history, and the primary reason why we have this big, and beautiful, building.  I've also been told that Charles paid his workers, either a nickel or a dime, to come to church each week.  That story is ubiquitous here in Venango County, leading me to believe that it has some basis in truth, although no records from the time attest to it.  How genuine was that church attendance?  How much of it was simply giving in to social pressure?  We have no way of knowing, although the social pressure thing has certainly decreased in recent generations.

If we still had 1,000+ people here on Sundays it would now represent 15% of Franklin's total population, an amazing amount.  That ship, however, sailed a long time ago, as the impressive numbers here at the turn of the 20th century faded as the century wore on.  In theory, there is a large number of people who could walk here to church on Sunday (only a few do, most who attend here live miles away), although parking is an issue at downtown churches (all across the country), a limitation that evidently didn't stop our ancestors from getting here (in part utilizing Franklin's trolley system, yes, we had trolley lines back then) .

Growing a church in this area is a special challenge.  There are few "new" people moving in to the area and looking for a new church home, and the ranks of the unchurched who can be won to the faith - well, that's a pretty shallow pool too.  So there are only a couple of ways to grow a church.

It is indeed easier to grow a church when new people are moving to the area and one need not increase the % of various demographics being reached to still grow.  It is much harder to grown when the population is shrinking.  What about the unchurched? (FYI, I keep getting that red line below 'unchurched' that tells me it isn't a real word as far as the computer is concerned, as a former English teacher myself, I wonder if it bothered Peter while he was typing his column).  They are certainly the key to this whole issue.  If the churches in Venango County don't find a way to get more people to become a part of the church who are not currently, we will have to contend in this next decade or so with a number of additional church closures.  As the Baby Boomers leave us, what will be left behind?  To reach the unchurched is a serious challenge.  There are reasons why certain individuals and certain families have no connection to a church, those reasons are not easy to overcome.  From an outside perspective the challenge seems insurmountable.  From the inside it looks really tough too.  In the past decade our church has helped hundreds of people through the Central Help Fund and various other forms of assistance, the vast majority of whom are unchurched.  In response, one of them came to church, once, and although many have promised while asking for help that they would come to church, they haven't.  Results like that are disheartening (and topics of discussions at our Franklin ministerium meetings), but there is a bigger picture.  We, a Christians, are planters of seeds, not the one who makes them grow.  I disagree with Peter Greene that the ranks of the unchurched who can be won to the faith are a shallow pool, but at the same time I do not believe that the answer to that is in my hands.  The Holy Spirit can bring revival to our community, turning stony soil into fertile ground, bringing forth new life from seeds that were planted long ago.  I don't know if that blessing is coming, God's people have certainly prayed for it, but it is not for us to determine the outpouring of God's grace.  Until then, our efforts to show the love of Christ to the unchurched will continue, whatever the results may be.

One is to gather up the young folks.  Use video games, parties, fun trips - anything that gets them in the door.  They'll bring their friends, and maybe their families, but so many young people grow up to leave the area that this approach gives limited returns.

Going after the young is the #1 Church Growth approach.  Churches with full bands and a pastor wearing hipster jeans have cornered this market, but as Peter sees clearly, in a rural community this process is never-ending, as the teens of today are tomorrow's ex-Venango County residents.  In addition, in a town like Franklin, there can be only one or two "cool" churches where the teens hang out.  Today they are Atlantic Ave UB and Christ UMC, a generation ago they were different churches.  Reaching the young people certainly has value, but it can only be one piece of the puzzle, especially for the rest of us.

The other approach is to grab disaffected churchgoers who just left their old church because something there upset them.  Some local churches used to specialize in this type of recruitment, just as some churchgoers have a long line of abandoned churches stretched out behind them.

Yeah, this is definitely true.  I'm not sure which local church specialized in sheep stealing back in the day (I've been in this community 9 years now {I know, right} but Peter Greene has been here longer), but as a pastor I can tell you that none of us is happy with a pastor who builds his church by recruiting people from other churches.  The Kingdom of God doesn't grow a bit when people simply swap churches.  Of the growth that we've had since my arrival, a majority have been through people who used to go somewhere else (most were are the time, however, not attending), although we have had the joy of adding a few people 'from the outside'.  I have not, however, nor would I, encouraged people to leave their church to come to mine.  The opposite is actually how I operate.  When I speak with people in need (of counsel or assistance) I recommend to them that they become connected with a church in their neighborhood, personally recommending churches and pastors by name that I know will be a good home for that person.  

And yes, there are a number of people in our community who are on a church-hopping merry-go-round.  The pastors know who they are, aren't surprised when they leave, and won't be surprised years later when they come back around.  It is a recent phenomenon, one that was not possible in the old village parish church days, but one that has a negative affect upon the Church as a whole.  If people don't take ownership of their local church, if they don't invest themselves in it, for better or for worse, in sickness and in health, they'll never become the pillars upon which the next generation of the church needs to be built.  Sometimes it is necessary to leave a church, to walk away from a toxic situation, but that's a rarity, not the real reason why church loyalty has plummeted in recent decades.  Instead, churches are now viewed, by many, as a service provider, much like any other business, and if the service you receive from that church isn't up to your expectations, drop them just like you did AT&T or Chevrolet.  This is, of course, the opposite viewpoint from what it ought to be.  A church is a place where you give to the work of the Kingdom; you will certainly receive great blessings through that connection, but that isn't the reason why you should be there.  We live in a consumer culture, where advertisements try to lure you away from the businesses you utilize now each day; that attitude, when applied to the Church, is toxic.

Is there some secret to recruiting and retaining church members?  If somebody knew it, I'm sure they'd be making a mint running a church consulting service.

Welcome to Christian ministry.  The number of books, seminars, and consulting businesses that have grown up around the question of Church Growth are astounding.  It seems like the only thing preventing us from being a multi-site mega-church is our failure to follow the 7 easy steps outlined in the latest craze.  There are some good resources, and some useful habits and ideas that churches ought to adopt, but no magic bullet.  There is, by the way, a lot of money flowing in the Church Growth consulting field, distinguishing between the genuine ministries with a passion for the Gospel, and the ones just making money is no small task.

In the meantime, churches might try mastering some of the basics.

Amen and amen.  Focus on what church is supposed to be, on doing things the right way for the right reasons, and let God be responsible (as he already is) for the results.  Worship, Pray, Love, Serve, Share.

Don't announce that certain people aren't welcome there.

Absolutely, I'm not sure what type of 'announcement' he has in mind, but it is foolhardy in the extreme to put forth the impression that the Gospel isn't for a particular subset of 'tax collectors and sinners' to which your church objects.  All have sinned, all are lost, all need a Savior.  Our doors are open to anyone, from any background, who wants to hear the Gospel.  In the long-run, churches do need to integrate into their community people who are willing to accept the teachings of God's Word and live accordingly, but the call of the Gospel needs to go out to everyone

Act as if you believe what you claim to believe.

Few things get under my skin as quickly as Christian hypocrisy.  We, that is all of us in the American 21st century Church, have done a poor job of convincing the world that we take our own beliefs seriously.  The number of scandals related to immoral church leaders is sickening, we must do better.  Oddly enough, I was preaching about this very topic last Sunday: Sermon Video: The Dark Side of Church Leadership 

Be welcoming without being creepy.
There's a sweet spot there that isn't that hard to find.  As far as I can tell, our churches are doing a pretty good job on this front.  But yeah, avoid creepy.

And maybe ask yourself why, exactly, you want to recruit new members.
A good question.  "So that we survive as a church" isn't a good enough answer, even if it is an honest one.  The correct answer is, "Because this is what Jesus told us to do."  We are in the business of replicating in the lives of others what God has done in our lives (through the power of the Holy Spirit).  Why?  #1  For God's glory.  #2  Because it is what people need #3  Because we can't help but share the love, joy, and peace that we've found with others.

But in the meantime, Venango County is loaded with big, beautiful, underused churches that are a financial burden to their congregation.  We're in a place where having your giant aging church burn down can be one of the best things for its long-term health.
Sadly I've heard this sentiment before from a fellow ABC pastor who bemoaned that our church building hadn't burned down a long time ago.  There is no doubt that a bigger building than your congregation needs is a resource drain, but it is also an opportunity.  Our church isn't 'underused' despite our congregation being a tiny fraction of its peak 100 years ago, thankfully our board and congregation have made it a priority to invite local non-profits and community service providers to use our space Monday through Saturday {For example: AA, MSM, Jamie's Kids, Girl Scouts, Celebrate Recovery, AARP tax prep, etc.}
Each day as I walk from the parsonage, circa 1881, into the church building, retaining almost all of its architectural and artistic beauty from 1904, it uplifts my spirit and encourages me, reminding me of the legacy that we are a part of.  If this building were to burn down, not only would it be a travesty to Franklin's historic district, our heritage and culture, it would be a brutal loss of beauty in its own right.  We can keep this church going, in this building, for generations to come.  We can continue the legacy of Charles Miller (and countless others) who brought us to this point from the church's founding in 1867, through its 31 pastors, to this present day.

I'll see you at tonight's meeting.

Sermon Video: "In this place I will grant peace" Haggai 2:1-9,20-23

As the people have already returned to working on the temple following the urging of the prophet Haggai, what message does God have for them one month later?  Surprisingly, God chooses to point out to the people the vastly diminished scope of their effort in comparison to the glory achieved by their ancestors.  The Jewish remnant, now a province of Persia, have no hope of matching the results of their ancestors who built Solomon's magnificent temple during the height of the power and wealth of the Kingdom of Israel.  So why would God remind them of the fact that things are not what they once were?  Because they already knew it.  God chose to confront the issue head-on because he wanted to reassure the people that he was still with them, that his Spirit would still be among them, and that he would indeed be glorified in the temple they were rebuilding, even if it was but an imitation of the temple destroyed in 586 BC.
Here at 1st Baptist of Franklin we can understand the emotions of the Jewish remnant when they contemplated the glory of a few generations previously.  One hundred years ago our church building had 2,100 seats in the sanctuary (since renovated into an auditorium and recreation area, capacity now about 300), and the Sunday School attendance books show weeks with over 1,000 people.  Those huge numbers were doing the height of the oil boom, an era long past in Venango County.  What then do we do with less than 1/10th of their numbers?  Mourn the loss of that "golden age"?  No, we hold fast to the promises of God that he is with us in our generation as well, that God has a place for us in his will, that his Spirit remains among us, and that he most certainly will be glorified in our generation as he was in their generation.

To watch the video, click on the link below:

Local newspapers are dying: to the detriment of education, democracy, and the Church

My first job was delivering the Grand Rapids Press {Grand Rapids, MI}.  Five days a week I delivered about 16 papers after school, on Saturday I got up early to deliver the same number, and on Sunday my father drove my brother and I to deliver our whole route together before church {our little sister delivered 6 papers on the other days, but not Sunday morning, that was for the older kids}.  My whole life I have been an avid newspaper reader, maintaining a habit I learned from my grandmother, I read all my old newspapers in order when I return from vacation {Yes, it is emotionally satisfying to do so}.  When I moved here to Franklin, PA in 2012, I discovered pleasantly that our community has an excellent local newspaper: the combined The Derrick / The News-Herald {Oil City - Franklin}.  We are fortunate.  According to this AP news story: Decline in readers, ads leads hundreds of newspapers to fold , over the past fifteen years, 1,400 cities and towns in America have had their local newspaper close up shop, circulation of newspapers in America has declined every year for three decades, and ad revenue has fallen dramatically since 2006 {Meanwhile, Facebook's ad revenue for 2018 was $55 billion}.  It should be obvious that losing our local newspaper would be detrimental to our schools and government, denying us a source of both encouraging and uplifting news and awareness of potential or growing problems.  What may not be readily apparent to everyone is the harm that would befall the Church in Venango County without The Derrick / The News-Herald.
The first significant initiative with which I became involved as the new pastor in town was the Children's Roundtable.  In the fall of 2012, those meetings led to the formation of the exploratory committee which became Mustard Seed Missions.  How did we let people know that we were holding a public meeting about helping those in need in our midst, which several of our current board members {still helping out 7 years later} attended?  We told the local religion reporter and the paper printed an article.  Since its inception, Mustard Seed Missions has received incredible coverage in the newspaper, boosting both our quantity of volunteers and our donations.
The effort to open, and now expand, a homeless shelter in Venango County, now headed up by Emmaus Haven, was also greatly helped by articles in the newspaper highlighting our efforts as a Church community.  In both of these ecumenical ministry efforts, the coverage has been both positive and accurate, a testament to the reporters and editors of our local newspaper.  Would we have been able to successfully launch either of these non-denominational para-church charities without the boost of articles from the newspaper?
In addition, we have a weekly religion page in the Saturday edition of the newspaper, featuring rotating commentary by local ministers, articles about what is happening here in the Church {such as Nicole's Fairy Enchanted Evening fundraiser}, and announcements about upcoming church events and efforts {free of charge, a gift to the community}.
It would be a massive blow to Venango County if The Derrick / The News-Herald were to close at some point in the future.  I know that some of the profit/loss issues facing print media in general are far beyond the control of a small market like this one.  But I also know that there are enough people here in Venango County, enough businesses, enough civic organizations, and yes, enough churches, to keep our excellent newspaper going through our subscriptions, purchases of ads, and cooperation with, and encouragement of, the reports, editors, and staff who publish our local newspaper.  As the AP story says, "Local journalism is dying in plain sight", but it won't here if we offer our ongoing support to one of the freedom's enshrined in our Bill of Rights, our local newspaper.

{As you probably know, my blog has no ads, it earns me no money, nor have I used it before to advocate for any business venture.  Supporting the newspaper of my community, which in the ways I described above, in turn supports the church which I serve, is an exception to my own rule; thank you.}

Homelessness is a real issue in Venango County

At last month's zoning board meeting in Oil City, which ended in the decision being tabled until this month, a claim was made by one official who was called to testify that there isn't a homelessness problem in Oil City.  This assertion was met with gasps by many of the clergy present because of our ample experience with those who are either homeless or in danger of soon being homeless.  Whatever is decided at this month's meeting about this particular location in Oil City, the need for a shelter (whether one sizable one, or several smaller locations) will remain.  How do I know this?  In the past two years, the Bridge House Transitional Housing Program (that is, Emmaus Haven) here in Franklin has had 47 people stay at their facility, out of a total of 88 people who were referred to the program (which means 41 people were unable to stay, and need accommodations elsewhere).  During the past two years, a three apartment house in Franklin that was renovated by Mustard Seed Missions, in cooperation with Venango County's Human Services Department, has had 50 families in residence as a transitional home until more permanent housing could be found.  In addition, the Human Services Department is currently averaging 97 calls per month from families or individuals who are either currently homeless or in need of financial assistance to prevent being made homeless.
Urban communities and counties are not the only places where homelessness occurs in America.  Venango County is a rural community, with two small towns and no major urban area within an hour's drive, let alone within its boundaries.  And yet, homelessness is here, just as is poverty, drug abuse, and violence.  The problems of fallen humanity are not limited to certain areas, or certain kinds of people (because "kinds of people" don't actually exist; just human beings), they exist everywhere.  To pretend that some of the ills of our society are not present here, that we don't need to respond to them, is to do a disservice to those in need, our fellow human beings, and fellow Americans.
Homelessness is a real issue in Venango County, not wanting to believe it doesn't make it go away.  Whatever happens with this particular site in Oil City, the churches of Venango County will continue to work toward solutions to the problems of the people of this community, for it is our calling, our mission, our response to the grace of God given to us.

** Update ** As of 2/19, the Oil City zoning board has approved the use of the building in Siverly as the group home for Emmaus Haven.  The next step is to purchase the building from the Diocese of Erie, finalize plans for the renovations, gather the necessary funds, and begin work.  No timeline is yet available for when the facility will be up and running.