“25 MORE SHOCKING ARRESTS”: Pastors Charged With Sex Crimes

Source: Awkwardmomentsbible via  The Splendor of the Church blog

This is a serious problem that very few people are willing to discuss out of fear, guilt, or… denial.

While it is easy to point an accusing finger at the Catholic Church for decades of covered up child abuse, it appears to be far too easy to ignore the fact that the problem of coercive sex crimes are just as, if not more prevalent among Protestant churches in America today. Of course, we don’t hear about them in the national news because they aren’t inter-connected to a massive worldwide organization like the Vatican. However, isn’t the scariest part that these crimes go on right in front of our nose while nobody really talks about it simply because Protestant pastors don’t wear “funny robes”? Much like their Catholic counterparts, Protestant pastors and ministers are trusted with children who have been taught to obey the authority of their church leaders.

After the Vatican’s recent “discipline” of pedophile priests, I decided to do a quick Google search for some local cases involving Protestant pastors – those that might have actually been reported and made local news. This is not an opportunistic attempt to slander Christian pastors by stringing together random cases compiled over the decades – these are all stories that hit the local news in May 2014 alone. Likewise, these are not random cases of “everyday Christians” getting arrested for “everyday crimes” such as theft or drunk driving. These are a few of the reportedcases of Christian leaders taking advantage of their positions of perceived power – from the month of May alone! (I couldn’t bring myself to continue browsing…)

• rape, sodomy, and incest of a nine year old

• forcing “morning after” pill after raping teens

• sexual abuse of mentally handicapped in custody

• producing and distributing child pornography

• installing hidden cameras in church bathrooms

• father/son pastors tag-teaming member of youth group

• drugs, sex, and yes – a dead body

This is just a small list of some of the crimes (that were actually reported to authorities AND the media) in the MONTH OF MAY ALONE. Out of the shockingly long list at the link below, only ONE of the perpetrators was Catholic. The rest? Your average Protestant pastor that nobody would have ever suspected. That is 24-to-1, folks! And, before you play the, “But that’s because the Catholics cover it up” card – think about just how much turmoil a Protestant pastor, church, family, and community would have to knowingly go through in order in the event of public charges being filed. Just like the crimes themselves, coverups are not just a Catholic problem.

QUESTION: Why isn’t there any massive national media outrage at these crimes in ONE MONTH? Oh, that’s right – because it’s never good for ratings (aka ad revenues) to go be seen as attacking Christianity as a whole. Many might see these crimes as being random and unrelated. I do not.

 – BEWARE –

Billy Howard Guy: Pastor charged with six counts of sexual crimes includingmolesting mentally-disabled woman in his care
http://www.wsoctv.com/news/news/local/ashe-co-pastor-accused-sex-offense-person-his-care/nfsJ4/

Tyrone Banks: Minister charged with rape and sodomy of 13 year-old (more victims coming forward)
http://www.myfoxal.com/story/25431240/pleasant-grove-man-58-charged-with-raping-13-year-old-girl

Joseph Hall: Pastor charged with 14 counts of sex crimes against kids as young as 12 years old
http://www.wsoctv.com/news/news/local/dallas-minister-accused-sex-crimes-including-rape-/nf9N3/

Trevon Boone: 39-year old minister arrested for rape of a minor
http://wtkr.com/2014/05/28/local-minister-charged-with-rape-turns-himself-in/

Larry Michael Berkley: Pastor charged 16 counts of sexual assault, drugs, and, yes – a dead body…
http://wreg.com/2014/05/06/shocking-allegations-against-former-pastor-of-churches-in-harrison-ar-and-henning-tn/

Jerome Anthony Clay: Pastor charged with raping a minor, under the age of 16 (prior record for domestic abuse)
http://abc7.com/archive/9466369/

Paul Endrei: Senior pastor charged with two counts of sexual battery and gross sexual imposition
http://www.cleveland.com/westlake/index.ssf/2014/05/westlake_pastor_accused_of_sex.html

Jordan Endrei: Pastor joins father in charges of sexual battery
http://fox8.com/2014/06/05/second-pastor-at-westlake-church-charged/

Damien Bonner: Pastor arrested for rape of a minor (who he forced to take “morning-after” pill after unprotected sex)
http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/crimewatch/affidavit-tulsa-pastor-charged-with-lewd-molestation-gave-victim-pill/article_bb06eaeb-0950-5fd6-b204-7f256a373d11.html
Second victim comes forward: http://www.kjrh.com/news/local-news/7th-molestation-complaint-filed-against-tulsa-pastor-damien-bonner-after-2nd-victim-alleges-abuse

Allen Lehman: Minister and teacher charged with seven counts of rape and sodomy with victims younger than 12
http://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/porter/valparaiso/valpo-substitute-teacher-former-m-ville-pastor-charged-with-sex/article_5de1c16e-aa2a-5dfd-9f73-bcd04009a2b6.html

Hector Caria: Pastor arrested for rape of teenage girl
http://sacramento.cbslocal.com/2014/05/10/davis-priest-arrested-on-sexual-abuse-charges/

Jeremy Grinnell: Pastor, seminary professor arrested for climbing ladder to watch neighbors have sex. Twice.
http://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2014/05/peeping_pastor_and_professor_p_1.html

Chris Allen Phillips: Youth pastor embezzles $90,000 from church to cover-up prostitution problems
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/crime/extortionist-threatened-expose-youth-pastor-sexual-tryst-sentenced-jail-article-1.1783152

Donald Lafferty: Pastor hires couple to kill his wife, burn house with her inside (not sex with minors, but – certainly interesting)
http://www.semissourian.com/story/2087038.html

Forest Gibson: Youth pastor charged with sexual abuse of a minor
http://www.idahopress.com/news/local/local-church-youth-leader-arrested-for-sex-abuse/article_a6d34c7c-d7ff-11e3-8eaf-0019bb2963f4.html

Robert Lyzenga: Pastor arrested for planting cameras in girls restrooms at church
http://www.indystar.com/story/news/crime/2014/05/16/ex-pastor-admits-planting-restroom-video-cameras/9165929/

Roy Hariger: Pastor charged with multiple counts of rape and incest
http://wivb.com/2014/06/02/pastor-accused-of-sexually-abusing-children-facing-new-charges/

Travis Ray Smith: New trial set for pastor charged with multiple accounts of rape and sexual assault
http://www.lakenewsonline.com/article/20140521/News/140529664

Dennis Myers: Youth minister sentenced to 30 years in child porn, rape, sodomy or children
http://www.kansascity.com/news/local/crime/article360359/Former-Independence-youth-minister-sentenced-to-30-years-in-child-porn-sex-case.html

William R. Best Jr. : Pastor charged with sodomy, rape, and incest
http://www.selmatimesjournal.com/2014/05/21/241943/

Robert Stoner: Youth minister admits to multiple rapes 15 year-old girl from youth group
http://www.delawareonline.com/story/news/crime/2014/05/31/prison-time-ex-youth-minister/9816561/

Joel David Bolay: Pastor charged with sexual abuse, lewd acts with minors in child pornography case
http://newsok.com/church-youth-leader-charged-with-distributing-child-porn-lewd-acts/article/4746804

Scott Sechrist: Pastor charged with multiple rapes of 9 year-old girl over three years
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2628239/Pastor-kills-one-week-trial-sexual-abuse-nine-year-old-girl-start.html

Scott Barber: Church leader admits to rape of 13 year-old girl
http://newsok.com/nichols-hills-church-administrator-jailed-on-child-rape-complaint/article/4864597

Richard Mick: Pastor charged with raping two 8 year-old girls (and fondling boy)
http://www.sanduskyregister.com/article/sexual-assault/5642011

While it is easy to be outraged by Catholic coverups, I will admit – I am more worried about the Protestant with just as much ability to skip town and even less accountability from any governing body. Is it really that difficult to imagine how many of these crimes are never reported to begin with out of not wanting to harm reputations, the church, or the community?

It’s one thing to accuse the mysterious lonely man in the funny black robes that disappears behind the curtain at the end of mass. It’s quite another to accuse the man wearing khakis and button-ups. The man who is much more directly involved in the daily lives of all families within the church and is coming over for dinner tomorrow. The man whose wife leads the women’s group and works at the local bank. The man whose kids go to school with the victims. The man who is seen as a respected community leader with perceived authority over their flocks. To a nine, twelve, or sixteen year old – these men ARE God.

My parting (terrifying) thought: These are just the cases where the victim had the courage and family support to come forward publicly to accuse their attackers – even in their positions of power and authority within the church and community. Police and prosecutors know that most of these crimes go unreported – especially within the church. How many more victims suffer in silence every day? If I were still a praying man, I would be praying that the poor victims of these monsters are able to get the best counseling available OUTSIDE the typical “Christian Counseling” found within the church.

“God works in mysterious ways”? “Forgive and forget”? Tell that to a nine year-old victim of rape, sodomy, and incest…

– PLEASE SHARE THIS IMAGE –
It might help a victim or family in you area have the courage to come forward to put an end to unspeakable abuse that may be hidden right before your very eyes.

Obligatory disclaimer #1: Yes, of course – they are all innocent until proven guilty. I’m sure it was all just a misunderstanding.

Obligatory disclaimer #2: “They are obviously not real Christians!” Says who? Were they not trusted “real Christian leaders” the day before they got arrested? Wake up!

Don’t even get me started on fraud, corruption, and other crimes of Christian leaders…

The Guardian: Protestants can no longer dismiss abuse as a ‘Catholic problem’

By Symon Hill

Friday 29 May 2015 (Source: The Guardian)

‘In terms of abuse in British churches, the 1,885 cases announced by the Methodists are undoubtedly the tip of the iceberg.’ Photograph: Alamy

Last month, I moved out of a residential Christian community attached to a Methodist church in London. I moved for several reasons. One was the way that the church had handled an allegation of sexual abuse. The victim in that case was interviewed as part of the Methodist church’s Past Cases Review into abuse allegations. She had no advance notice of Thursday’s announcement by the Methodist church, which has formally apologised for 1,885 cases of abuse over the past 60 years. Despite media references to “historical abuse”, some of the cases are very recent.

This should be a wake-up call for all Christians in Britain. It is time for Protestants who have complacently dismissed church abuse as a “Catholic problem” to face the reality that abuse is endemic across denominations. As a Christian, and as someone who writes and teaches about religion and sexuality, I have heard far more stories of sexual abuse than I can count – along with stories of cover-ups, sexist responses, victim-blaming and repeated failures to take allegations seriously.

In terms of abuse in British churches, the 1,885 cases announced by the Methodists are undoubtedly the tip of the iceberg.

Only a few years after the Catholic child abuse scandals, we are on the brink of a new scandal. This time it will be about abuse across churches, probably mostly of adults. It can no longer be blamed simply on Catholic doctrine or clerical celibacy.

Catholic365: Why We Refer to Our Priests as Fathers?

Bishop Robert Barron (Photo Credit: Word On Fire)

By Sergio Garibay-Olivares
Catholic365/ 9/2/2015 11:00:10 AM

How many times are we told "Don't call your priest a Father, it is a sin"? The people that question Catholics mostly for this reason of why we refer to our Priests as Fathers, [they] tend to quote from St. Matthew 23:6-11, which says:

“Like wanting to take the place of honour at banquets and the front seats in the synagogues, being greeted respectfully in the market squares and having people call them Rabbi. ‘You, however, must not allow yourselves to be called Rabbi, since you have only one Master, and you are all brothers. You must call no one on earth your father, since you have only one Father, and he is in heaven. Nor must you allow yourselves to be called teachers, for you have only one Teacher, the Christ. The greatest among you must be your servant.”

First it is important to analyze this topic for we are all called to preach the truth to this world. When people tell Catholics to not refer to our priests as fathers, they tend to only quote from St. Matthew 23:9 that says, “Call no one on earth your father; you have but one Father in heaven.” Jesus is not warning us to refrain from using the words Father, Rabbi nor teacher. Jesus is actually forbidding us from the spirit of superiority:

“Whoever exalts…will be exalted” (St. Luke 14:11).

“Anyone who raises himself up will be humbled, and anyone who humbles himself will be raised up.” (St. Matthew 23:12).

So why then we refer to our Priests as Fathers?

This is because St. Paul wrote, in 1 Corinthians 4:15 “Indeed, in Christ Jesus I became your father through the Gospel.” He isn’t saying that we should make our priest feel superior (nor that he was superior to the people of the Church of Corinth). He is saying that Priest give us the spiritual food (The Eucharistic: Matthew 26:26-18). They become our fathers or parents in showing us the Word of God. They nurse us in our times of illness (darkness), and they prepare us, so we can go to the world and fly.

In Addition

St. James talks to us about how not many of us should become teachers because those who become teachers will be judged more strictly. Those who abuse the power are related (by St. James) in the good and bad use of the tongue. A Father is a person that must use good language as a fig tree it is called to produce olives, just as a river is called to give men fresh water. A Father is a guide of men. They are called to become fishermen and farmers. They must plant a seed in each of us, and cultivate it, so one day we can become a forest full of life.

*(In reference to St. James 3:1-12)

**Note: While reading St. James 3:1-12, we can see he says "not many should become teachers" if Jesus had meant to take St. Matthew 23:6-11 as many Protestants tend to understand it, then St. James would be wrong by calling himself a teacher. (In the KJV Bible the one used mostly among all Protestant, the word teacher is substitute by the word Master). However I doubt St. James misunderstood Christ’s message.

The Origin of Sign of the Cross?

Pope Benedict XVI makes the sign of the cross during a mass in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican on the occasion of the conclusion of the XII bishops' synod, Sunday, Oct. 26, 2008. (AP Photo/Pier Paolo Cito)

Source: CatholicSay

The sign of the cross is a beautiful gesture which reminds the faithful of both the cross of salvation while invoking the Holy Trinity. Technically, the sign of the cross is a sacramental, a sacred sign instituted by the Church which prepares a person to receive grace and which sanctifies a moment or circumstance. Along this thought, this gesture has been used since the earliest times of the Church to begin and to conclude prayer and the Mass.

The early Church Fathers attested to the use of the sign of the cross. Tertullian (d. c. 250) described the commonness of the sign of the cross: “In all our travels and movements, in all our coming in and going out, in putting on our shoes, at the bath, at the table, in lighting our candles, in lying down, in sitting down, whatever employment occupies us, we mark our foreheads with the sign of the cross” (De corona, 30).

St. Cyril of Jerusalem (d. 386) in his Catechetical Lectures stated, “Let us then not be ashamed to confess the Crucified. Be the cross our seal, made with boldness by our fingers on our brow and in everything; over the bread we eat and the cups we drink, in our comings and in our goings out; before our sleep, when we lie down and when we awake; when we are traveling, and when we are at rest” (Catecheses, 13). Gradually, about the ninth century, the sign of the cross was incorporated in different acts of the Mass, such as the three-fold signing of the forehead, lips, and heart at the reading of the gospel or the blessing and signing of the bread and wine to be offered.

The earliest formalized way of making the sign of the cross appeared about the 400s, during the Monophysite heresy which denied the two natures in the divine person of Christ and thereby the unity of the Holy Trinity. The sign of the cross was made from forehead to chest, and then from right shoulder to left shoulder with the right hand. The thumb, forefinger, and middle fingers were held together to symbolize the Holy Trinity– Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Moreover, these fingers were held in such a way that they represented the Greek abbreviation I X C (Iesus Christus Soter, Jesus Christ Savior): the straight forefinger representing the I; the middle finger crossed with the thumb, the X; and the bent middle finger, the C. The ring finger and “pinky” finger were bent downward against the palm, and symbolize the unity of the human nature and divine nature, and the human will and divine will in the person of Christ. This practice was universal for the whole Church until about the twelfth century, but continues to be the practice for the Eastern Rites of the Catholic Church and the Orthodox Churches.

An instruction of Pope Innocent III (1198-1216) evidences the traditional practice but also indicates a shift in the Latin Rite practice of the Catholic Church: “The sign of the cross is made with three fingers, because the signing is done together with the invocation of the Trinity. …This is how it is done: from above to below, and from the right to the left, because Christ descended from the heavens to the earth, and from the Jews (right) He passed to the Gentiles (left).” While noting the custom of making the cross from the right to the left shoulder was for both the western and eastern Churches, Pope Innocent continued, “Others, however, make the sign of the cross from the left to the right, because from misery (left) we must cross over to glory (right), just as Christ crossed over from death to life, and from Hades to Paradise. [Some priests] do it this way so that they and the people will be signing themselves in the same way. You can easily verify this– picture the priest facing the people for the blessing– when we make the sign of the cross over the people, it is from left to right….” Therefore, about this time, the faithful began to imitate the priest imparting the blessing, going from the left shoulder to the right shoulder with an open hand. Eventually, this practice became the custom for the Western Church.

In the classic work, The Ceremonies of the Roman Rite by Adrian Fortescue and J. B. O’Connell, the sign of the cross is made as follows: “Place the left hand extended under the breast. Hold the right hand extended also. At the word Patris [Father] raise it and touch the forehead; at Filii [Son] touch the breast at a sufficient distrance down, but above the left hand; at Spiritus Sancti [Holy Spirit] touch the left and right shoulders; atAmen join the hands if they are to be joined.” Although this practice may have evolved from the original and still current practice of Eastern Rite, it nevertheless has been the standing custom for the Latin Rite Church for centuries.

No matter how one technically makes the sign of the cross, the gesture should be made consciously and devoutly. The individual must be mindful of the Holy Trinity, that central dogma that makes Christians “Christians.” Also, the individual must remember that the cross is the sign of our salvation: Jesus Christ, true God who became true man, offered the perfect sacrifice for our redemption from sin on the altar of the cross. This simple yet profound act makes each person mindful of the great love of God for us, a love that is stronger than death and promises everlasting life. The sign of the cross should be made with purpose and precision, not hastily or carelessly.

Europe is Burning (WARNING: Graphic and Disturbing)

EUROPE'S REFUGEE CRISIS is an ISLAMIC INVASION.. and we have been warned by them...

And then they came under the guise of a refugee...

When in fact the  ISIS had planned this long time tying up with the Radical Muslims living in Europe and the US... In fact ISIS openly warned us...  "ISIS threatens to send 500,000 migrants to Europe as a 'psychological weapon' in chilling echo of Gaddafi's prophecy that the Mediterranean 'will become a sea of chaos'" but we refused to believe them at face value.

Yet.. we welcome them with open arms... 

And then this is what you've got... 

Remember, ISIS hated us! Muslims do not want to assimilate with us! They HATE the CROSS of Christ! They wanted to wage war with us! They will conquer us not through violent Jihad but through IMMIGRATION-- a STEALTH JIHAD.  WE ARE ISLAM'S ENEMIES...



What is left for us? It's either we have to RECLAIM our COUNTRY or LET THEM RUIN and SUBDUE us until the WORLD BELONGS TO ISLAM!

Iglesia Ni Cristo®'s General Auditor has hactares of land in Bulacan according to an INC™ member

MUST WATCH: Green Lane Islamic Mosque in Burminghan, UK was filmed preaching HATRED against non-Muslims (kuffar)

The Markazi Jamiat Ahl-e-Hadith UK, commonly referred to as Green Lane Mosque, a mosque in Birmingham.

Established in the 1970s, the Masjid occupies a prominent corner site in Green Lane, Small Heath, Birmingham. One of the buildings had been constructed as a public library and baths, designed by local architects Martin & Chamberlain and built in the redbrick and terracotta Gothic-Jacobean style between 1893 and 1902. It is a Grade II listed building. The complex includes prayer halls for men and women, a community hall, madrasah, library, shop, some accommodation, and it also provides funeral services to the local Muslim community.

It was also one of the main mosques that featured in Channel 4's Dispatches programme Undercover Mosque, which investigated religious extremism in British mosques including preachers advocating violence, anti-Semitism, sexism and homophobia. West Midlands Police subsequently investigated the programme, feeling there may have been a misrepresentation of the mosque that could have incited religious hatred.

The mosque works closely with Birmingham City Council, West Midlands Police and local emergency services and, in 2007, came second in a national competition run by the British Islam Channel to find the country's 'Model Mosque'. -Wikipedia

Muslims Get Terrible News… Could Mean The Devestating End Of Their Religion

Photo Source: FoxNews (Questions swirl around ancient Koran, which may predate Muhammad)

Source: Conservative Tribune

Fragments of scripts, written on animal hides and hidden inside of a Quran, were tested to determine their age, and the results indicated a strong likelihood that they predated the Prophet Muhammad — which could mean all of Muhammad’s words were little more than political propaganda.

The manuscripts were part of the Suras — chapters 18-20 of the Quran — found in a manuscript at the University of Birmingham in July and carbon dated by experts at the University of Oxford.

Those tests determined that the Suras were written sometime between 568 and 645. Dates given for the Prophet Muhammad are usually between 570 and 632.

Tom Holland, a historian, said the find “destabilizes, to put it mildly, the idea that we can know anything with certainty about how the Quran emerged — and that in turn has implications for the history of Muhammad and the Companions.”

Keith Small of the University of Oxford’s Bodleian Library said that the manuscripts could devastate the religion.

“Muhammad and his early followers used a text that was already in existence and shaped it to fit their own political and theological agenda, rather than Muhammad receiving a revelation from heaven,” he suggested.

As expected, even though scientists used highly specialized equipment to carbon date the document, Muslim scholars around the world have disputed the claim and have designed their own convenient stories which attempt to counter the scientist’s test results.

Apparently, instead of accepting the fact that they might possibly be inaccurate about the origins of their most sacred words, they’d rather choose to live blissfully ignorant and continue on as if nothing happened

"Separtion of Church and State" daw sabi ng Iglesia Ni Cristo®, eh ano ito?!

Source: TheSplendorOfTheChurch blog

Kasuklam-suklam na kaimbabawan ng ugali! Mapagkunwari at mapanlinlang!

MGA IPOKRITO!

FELIX MANALO the movie (Bakit walang "Huling Sugo" sa kanyang pangalan?)

Refugee Crisis, Muslims invasion of Europe while rich and wealthy Arab countries do nothing!

RAPPLER: Reform movement within INC

Or rather, they need to break-down and RETURN to the ORIGINAL CHURCH OF CHRIST!

PASUGO Abril 1966, p. 46: “Ang Iglesia Katolika na sa pasimula ay siyang Iglesia ni Cristo."

PASUGO July August 1988 pp. 6. “Even secular history shows a direct time link between the Catholic Church and the Apostles, leading to the conclusion that the true Church of Christ is the Catholic Church.”

PASUGO March-April 1992, p. 22 "The Church of Christ during the time of the Apostles became the Catholic Church of the bishops in the second century..."

Source: Rappler.com

The INC is no longer the same. It is a sect that has enormous baggage to bear.

The Iglesia ni Cristo (INC) is a young sect with old ideas. It operates in a time warp. Although it is only a century old, the INC is basically a medieval sect with outmoded norms. It is a sect hardly attuned to the modern times.

It thrives in the secrecy of its leaders and the blind obedience of its members. Because of the secrecy of their leaders, they are hardly accountable to their followers. Secrecy and lack of accountability are two sides of the same coin; they characterize INC operations.

In this age of ecumenism and greater tolerance among world’s biggest organized religions, the INC is a complete stranger, a religious outcast. Its leaders openly brag that theirs is “the only true religion” and that “only its flock would be saved from spiritual perdition and decay.”

The INC is an epitome of religious bigotry and ethnocentrism; its xenophobia extends to its assertion that any other religion, except INC, is doomed.

It is monolithic. It hardly welcomes contrary views, or criticism, either from the inside or from the outside. What its leaders say is the law. Anybody who disagrees or disobeys faces expulsion, or excommunication from a religious standpoint.

Will the INC survive the modern world? Will it continue to wield influence in Philippine society? These are just some of the questions confronting the indigenous sect.

‘Religion of the sheep’

Writing for the pre-martial law newspaper Manila Chronicle, columnist Indalucio “Yeyeng” Soliongco criticized the INC in the late 1960s and early 1970s for its practice of bloc voting, where its flock voted as one for the candidates its leaders endorsed in every political exercise.

Soliongco described the INC as “the religion of the sheep,” as its members renounced their right to think during elections and accept as gospel truth whatever their leaders urged them to write on their ballots. The members hardly participate until today in the selection process of the candidates the INC leaders would endorse.

Its leaders have been justifying this practice of bloc voting as its way to project political strength to avoid religious persecution. It is an argument that runs to counter to political realities. The country does not have modern day traditions of religious violence or persecution. Religious harmony is the frequent theme when it comes to inter-relationship among local organized religions.

Over the years, the INC has evolved from a ragtag group of religious zealots to an influential and powerful political broker. Politicians seeking the support of its flock openly make a beeline to ingratiate themselves with its leaders for political support.

Its leaders have claimed an INC membership of nine to ten million members nationwide, although critics said its political clout is widely exaggerated by mass media, which keeps on referring to the INC as “influential” and “powerful.”

Empirical studies said the INC could provide between a low 1.2 million votes to a high of 2 million in modern-day elections. While the INC could provide the swing vote for hotly contested national and local posts, it could hardly determine the outcome.

Recent trends show that other minor ministries like the Ang Dating Daan, Jesus is Lord, Philippine Independent Church, and other Christian ministries elect the rivals of the INC-supported candidates, virtually cancelling each other out.

Corruption charges

Fast forward to 2016 and the nation sees an INC teetering on a major scandal.

The seal on the cloak of secrecy has been broken as certain leaders (or ex-leaders, as they have been excommunicated) have come forward to denounce alleged corruption within the sect and other crimes, like abduction, among others.

The allegations of corruption were so serious, causing political, financial, legal, and moral issues within the secretive sect. Tithe collections from its flock were reported to have declined by half. Centrifugal tendencies within the sect have been noticed as certain followers were reported to have either resigned or distanced from the sect.

The scandal has cascaded to become a crisis.

Failed mass action

The recent 5-day mass protest action was meant to pressure the Aquino administration to drop the probe by the Department of Justice into a complaint filed by former INC leader Isaias Samson Jr against the eight members of the INC Sangguniang Lupon. It did not result in any gain for the monolithic sect.

The INC on Monday, August 31 officially ended their 5-day protest
citing a "peaceful agreement" with the government. Photo by Alecs Ongcal/Rappler

What it has galvanized is public opinion that expresses contempt for the massive inconvenience its mass action had caused to tens of thousands of commuters, who were stranded along EDSA and other side streets. It also showed what could be regarded as cracks within the organization, as it could hardly mobilize the desired number of participants in the protest rally.

Hence, its crisis extends to the outside world, or the non-INC members.

Hence, the INC is no longer the same. It is a sect that has enormous baggage to bear. It is an organization that has been torn asunder by corruptions and other acts of impropriety. Whether it could transcend its current crisis – and later survive – bears watching.

Reforming the INC

Now, the INC faces serious calls and agitations to undergo reforms. Internally, the calls range from greater transparency, particularly in the handling of its finances that could reach billions of pesos, to accountability of its leaders on operational issues.

The Manalos, including Ka Eduardo V. Manalo's (EVM) Deafening Silence: Are they being held hostage by the Sanggunian?

The whistleblowers  aren't been heard anymore including Ka Angel and Ka Tenny, are they being held hostage within the Iglesia Ni Cristo® compound? 

How about the present Executive Minister Eduardo V. Manalo, why he's so silent amidst left and right controversies and allegations of massive corruption by the very people he chose as his advisers -the Sanggunian, is he also held hostage?

People are just wondering why.

PATHEOS: Carbon dating suggest Koran is older than Mohammed, because Islam is nonsense

Source: Patheos

In what seems like a regular occurrence in the modern world, more scientific evidence suggests that yet another religion is based on absolute nonsense.

Islamic scholars overwhelmingly claim that the Islamic Prophet Muhammad lived between 570 and 632 A.D. Yet carbon dating of a fragment from a Koran kept at a library in Birmingham suggests that the book was produced between 568 and 645 A.D.

That places the Koran as being written during Mohammed’s childhood or even before his birth. Throwing a huge wrench in the story that the Koran was dictated by Mohammed himself.

“According to Muslim tradition, the Prophet Muhammad received the revelations that form the Qur’an, the scripture of Islam, between the years AD 610 and 632, the year of his death,” said Professor David Thomas, Professor of Christianity and Islam and Nadir Dinshaw Professor of Interreligious Relations at the University of Birmingham.

“At this time, the divine message was not compiled into the book form in which it appears today. Instead, the revelations were preserved in ‘the memories of men.’ Parts of it had also been written down on parchment, stone, palm leaves and the shoulder blades of camels,” Thomas said. “Caliph Abu Bakr, the first leader of the Muslim community after Muhammad, ordered the collection of all Qur’anic material in the form of a book. The final, authoritative written form was completed and fixed under the direction of the third leader, Caliph Uthman, in about AD 650.”

Of course, Islamic scholars and apologists are disputing the findings and claiming that carbon dating is not accurate enough. But not all scholars agree.

“It destabilizes, to put it mildly, the idea that we can know anything with certainty about how the Koran emerged — and that in turn has implications for the historicity of Mohammed and the Companions [his followers],” said Tom Holland, the author of In The Shadow of the Sword.

Keith Small, of Oxford’s Bodleian Library says this finding lends evidence to what many believed to be true, that Mohammed and his followers pieced together the Koran from writings found around that time in order to push their political agenda.

“This would radically alter the edifice of Islamic tradition and the history of the rise of Islam in late Near Eastern antiquity would have to be completely revised, somehow accounting for another book of scripture coming into existence 50 to 100 years before, and then also explaining how this was co-opted into what became the entity of Islam by around AD700,” Small said.

While the findings are sure to upset Muslims around the world, in reality it places the Koran next to the other fictional holy books of the world’s religions, by giving solid evidence that the story of Mohammed and the creation of the Koran is officially bullshit.