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Buttercup
12-31-2007, 08:45 AM
San Diego Christian Leader Pays Steep Price For Speaking Out
Against Rick Warren's Unethical Use of Saddleback Church Pulpit (http://jameshartlinereport.blogspot.com/2007/12/san-diego-christian-leader-pays-steep.html)

Christian Activist James Hartline Loses Well-Known Media Support
After Signing Published Letter That Calls On Rick Warren To Stop
Allowing Pro-Abortion & Pro-Homosexual Speakers In His Pulpit

(JHReport) A nationally recognized Christian activist has learned firsthand that there is a steep price to pay for speaking out against the moral corruption of one of America's most powerful Protestant ministers. Despite the high cost to himself personally, James Hartline has been willing to expose, what he says, is a disturbing trend of theological and moral compromise coming from the pulpit of Rick Warren, pastor of the 20,000-member Saddleback Church.

Included in Hartline's laundry list of complaints against Pastor Warren is the recent speaking engagement of pro-gay and pro-abortion Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton at Saddleback Church. Hillary Clinton's invitation from Warren to speak at his church followed a speech by Clinton before the radical gay activist group The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) where she told the HRC "she wants a partnership with gays if elected president."

Hartline, who publishes a number of Christian news websites, says that he does not take any pleasure in speaking out against Warren. He simply does not want his fellow Christian believers to be taken advantage of by Saddleback Pastor Rick Warren's unbiblical activism. It has been painful for Hartline to stand up to Rick Warren -- In the process of reporting on Warren's moral compromises in the pulpit, Hartline has had a number of well-known Christian friends turn on him and abandon support for his ministry.

Several months ago, the San Diego-based Christian activist could tell that something was just not right in his relationship with two close friends who work in the Christian media. Warm and welcoming conversations had abruptly turned into brief, cold and uncaring responses to his telephone calls and emails. For Hartline, he had a hard time understanding how close friends could so quickly become "spiritually schizophrenic." Eventually, he began to see a pattern evolve. What James Hartline was about to learn in the midst of this trying time would cause him to understand how treacherous the religious waters in America have become in the 21st century: "Taking on Saddleback Pastor Rick Warren is the religious equivalent of taking on a mob boss in the Italian Mafia," says Hartline.

James Hartline concluded that all of these newly-found troubles with his friends began when he signed a well-publicized ministry coalition letter in December of 2006. The ministry coalition letter that Hartline is referring to is a document he signed along with some of America's top evangelical leaders. The letter was published in newspapers and websites throughout American on December 1, 2006. The document was titled: "Pro-Family Coalition Issues 'World AIDS Day' Appeal to Rick Warren to Address Homosexuality and 'Gay' Promiscuity in Effort to Stop Pandemic."

Among the many things that the coalition saw happening with Pastor Warren's AIDS Summit event that they had outlined in the document was his inviting of pro-abortion and pro-homosexual activists to speak at Saddleback Church. Peter LaBarbera, a leading figure in America's evangelical pro-family movement, called on Warren to address the leading cause of HIV transmission in the United States: gay promiscuity in gay sex clubs. LaBarbera pointed out in the AIDS Truth Coalition press release that Pastor Warren had invited Mark Dybul, a practicing homosexual, to speak at Saddleback Church.

The evangelical document was a major embarrassment for Rick Warren. The document, issued as a press release, confronted Warren for allowing pro-abortion Democratic presidential candidate Barak Obama to speak at Saddleback Church during Warren's AIDS Summit. The document pressed Pastor Warren to speak out against homosexual promiscuity, a leading cause of AIDS -- something members of the AIDS Truth Coalition did not see Rick Warren mention during his AIDS Summit at Saddleback in 2006.

James Hartline was not the only prominent figure to speak out against Rick Warren for allowing Barak Obama to speak in his church. Troy Newman, president of Operation Rescue, called on Warren to rescind his invitation to Obama due to the liberal Democrat's rabid support for the murderous practice of partial birth abortion. Partial birth abortion is a procedure that abortion doctors use to bring unborn babies out of the birth canal except for the infant's head. The baby's skull is then crushed while still lodged in the mother's womb, thus executing the infant. Barak Obama has voted repeatedly to support this procedure. Pro-life activists like James Hartline and Troy Newman were especially outraged that Rick Warren booked Obama to speak at Saddleback Church during the 2006 AIDS Summit.

Because Hartline, a former homosexual, has been fighting AIDS for ten years, his statements in the coalition letter against Rick Warren brought extra attention to Warren's immoral compromises during Saddleback's AIDS Day Summit. Hartline's highly publicized comments in the letter stated:

"While Pastor Rick Warren of Saddleback Church is doing a noble service for the people of Africa by holding a global summit on AIDS, I must ponder in my mind where pastors like Rick Warren were those many years when I was struggling to get out of homosexuality. For thirty years, I struggled with homosexuality and it was not until I was finally infected with AIDS at a homosexual bathhouse in San Diego, California that the physical consequences of that sin finally began to lead me away from that destructive lifestyle.

"Like me, hundreds of thousands of young men have been infected in the death chambers of the gay bathhouses in California and across America. Sadly, most of them are now dead from the HIV that they caught in these establishments. … It is noble that Rick Warren cares so much for the Africans living 10,000 miles away from his church who are infected with AIDS. It is tragic, though, that he and others like him have not spoken out forcefully against the holocaust of homosexuality and the dozens of bathhouses in California where so many men are getting sick and dying. Not to mention the millions of families that are forced to pay for the financial costs of caring for all of those sick and dying from homosexuality and the gay bathhouses where they were infected with AIDS."

According to published reports, Saddleback Church began to evict members from their congregation when these members confronted Rick Warren for his inviting pro-abortion advocate Barak Obama to speak from the pulpit of Saddleback Church. Shortly after these confrontations began to become public and after the AIDS Truth Coalition press release was issued, KBRT radio personality Paul McGuire invited Warren's wife Kay onto his program. For an hour on that program, McGuire allowed Kay Warren to attack and degrade the many Christians who had questioned her husband's ministry tactics and practices. McGuire's program went from being a Christian talk show to a manipulative platform for Rick and Kay Warren's emergent church propaganda. Paul McGuire's website now prominently features a supportive photograph of Rick Warren. Additionally, McGuire has repeatedly featured sound bites by Kay Warren in his program's advertisements.

Shortly after the ministry coalition letter against Rick Warren was published throughout America, Hartline received a disturbing email from the sales manager of KBRT, the Christian radio station in Southern California that is home to the Paul McGuire Show. What was disturbing about the email from Sarah Davis, were her attempts to manipulate Hartline into not sending out information which reflected negatively on Rick Warren. Sarah Davis' email had been preceded by an email from Hartline where he had sought to inform the staff of KBRT about Rick Warren allowing a homosexual activist to speak at his church. Hartline's email to Paul McGuire and the KBRT staff stated:

Dear Paul (McGuire):
"Rick Warren is having a homosexual US AIDS "ambassador" (appointed by Pres. Bush), who has a homosexual lover, speak at his church today. His name is Mark Dybul. The pulpit is supposed to be holy, no matter what the reason. In Christianity, the ends cannot justify the means." James Hartline.

KBRT sales manager Sarah Davis wrote an email back to Hartline in response which read:

"I have to ask you to pray about the below letter before you send it out. It is not my job to defend Rick Warren and that is not my total purpose in writing you. Yet I want you to ask yourself if what you are about to put out to the masses is the whole truth. I have personally heard, with my own ears, Rick Warren speak out against homosexuality on national television just last Sunday on a Fox News special. The church and Rick personally do not take any of those issues lightly nor do they overlook them. The media will choose to publish what it wants and unfortunately that’s the picture that stays in our mind."
KBRT AM 740
sdavis@crawfordbroadcasting.com

Not contemplating the idea that there was something sinister behind the email written by KBRT employee Sarah Davis, James Hartline just assumed that his relationship with KBRT radio personality Paul McGuire was still the way it has always been, cordial and warm. That was an assumption which James Hartline was about to learn was a big mistake.

Just three months prior to the AIDS Truth Coalition document that Hartline signed onto, Paul McGuire had sent an email to James reminding him of their close friendship. McGuire's August 21, 2006 email to Hartline said:

James,

"You are a good friend and often have profound things to say. Please do not be so easily offended. My producer/engineer has to sift through many calls at once to keep the show moving. I need you to be a little more patient and flexible. You know I believe in your ministry and try to support you on the air."
I remain your friend in Christ, Paul McGuire.

In early 2004, Paul McGuire had invited James Hartline to appear on his radio program. That interview lasted for 90 minutes and launched a three-year friendship between McGuire and Hartline. Over the three years, Hartline had repeatedly called McGuire's show and was always immediately put on the air to talk about issues related to the culture war, spiritual battles and San Diego politics.

Fast forward to September, 2007, several months after Hartline had signed the AIDS Truth Coalition letter against Rick Warren

In the battle to stop the San Diego City Council from issuing a legal brief in support of same-sex marriage, Hartline contacted Paul McGuire to ask if he could come on the air to get Christians to turn out for the city council hearing. McGuire's reply to Hartline turned out to be one of the nastiest emails that Hartline had ever received in his many years of ministry.

Hartline's email to Paul McGuire read:

Paul: We really need your help in getting everyone to turn out at the San Diego City Council on Tuesday, Sept. 4, 2007. I have just found out that the gay and lesbian center is planning to turn out a large group of their "couples" to influence the council on the vote to issue the gay marriage supporting legal brief. They want to give the appearance of "happy" married homosexual and lesbian couples before the media and city council.

The following is Paul McGuire's response to Hartline who asked McGuire to announce on the air the need for people to come to the San Diego City Council to fight the same-sex marriage legal brief:

James,

"I don't mind helping your cause on a very selective basis. However, San Diego is a small part of our audience, and management is not thrilled with doing small San Diego issues because the larger audience is not interested.

Also, I am not blaming you, but the last time we had you on there was a tiny turn out at the Mayor thing. This is not good for our station, because it reflects on us negatively.

Essentially, these events are tiny events ( athough they are important ), but I cannot justify to management giving time to small local events where a handful of people show up like the Mayor thing, That was not planned and it discredits our station.

A word of personal advice, you are not going to succeed at your goals until you begin to network with and build alliances with the big churches in your area. That requires diplomacy and networking. In order for you to win you are going to have to get these people on your side. In other words you are going to have to build alliances.

Also, please do not be offended but we have completely changed our caller policy which means we want new callers as much as possible who have something new to say. When you call up and essentially give the same message in slightly different forms people tune out. We want a fresh rotation of callers, and not the same callers who say basically the same thing."
Paul McGuire

Paul McGuire's degrading response of calling the Christians of San Diego and their battle against same-sex marriage a "tiny" thing reveals a deceitful side to McGuire that most of his listeners will be shocked to hear about. The idea that McGuire conveys that his Christian radio station's management is not supportive of the horrific battle San Diegans are facing against the homosexual movement is simply reprehensible. Particularly, since it has been the San Diego listerners which have built up a large portion of KBRT's supporting community base. McGuire's instruction to Hartline to place his focus on "building" large numbers through "networking" smacks of Saddleback Church Rick Warren's propaganda.

Sadly, the betrayal of James Hartline by Paul McGuire was not the end of the matter. It was to get much worse for Hartline. Within a few days of the McGuire email, one of Hartline's closest friends was also about to dump him as well.

For the past several years, James Lambert had become one of James Hartline's closest friends. Lambert joined Hartline to form California Christian News, the media division of Hartline's growing ministry, The Hillcrest Mission. On multiple occasions Hartline had even given up writing articles on highly publicized issues because Lambert had asked to have the rights on the articles so that he could have his name attached to the headline.

One of the things that James Lambert had told Hartline he had wanted to do for many years was to get Paul McGuire on his televison program Night Lights. Lambert succeeded. Paul McGuire is now promptly featured on James Lambert's scheduled line-up of guests on Night Lights. Shortly after James Lambert returned from interviewing Paul McGuire at his KBRT radio station, he sent a disturbing email to James Hartline. Lambert was ending all association with James Hartline's ministry after four years of friendship.

Here is what James Lambert's email to James Hartline read:

"Is there anyway you can take me off the 'staff' section of your website. I am trying to write for some independent sites like TownHall and they like for me to write exclusively for them or their affiliates ( at AFA)."

A second email from Lambert was sent to Hartline on October 16, 2007 which read:
"unsubscribe and pls take me off your website thank you."

Shortly after Lambert had written James Hartline where he stated that he could only write for the websites affiliated with AFA (American Family Association), he authored a new editorial for a local San Diego website that has no ties to AFA. The website, Southern California Christian News, featured an editorial specifically written by Lambert on Nov. 4, 2007. Sadly, Lambert had lied to his old ministry partner. James Lambert had placed more importance on getting that interview with Paul McGuire and submitting to McGuire's "Purpose Driven" betrayal than he did for doing the right thing and honoring his commitment to James Hartline.

Since the unfolding of the degrading email that James Hartline received from Paul McGuire, KBRT sales manager Sarah Davis has issued a formal apologize to Hartline on behalf of the KBRT staff. Davis explained to Hartline that Paul McGuire had betrayed the station's policy and that he did not speak for KBRT when he issued his unethical email to James.

It is hard for James Hartline to believe that Christians who earn incomes off of their Christianity, and claim to be representing God to the Christian community, would then turn out to be so loyal to someone like Rick Warren. There is no doubt that Rick Warren is compromising his alledged loyalty to Biblical Christianity. Warren has hosted events that feature politicians who approve of the heinous act of partial birth abortion. Warren has hosted politicians who support homosexuality and he has allowed them to speak from his pulpit. And the idea that KBRT radio personality Paul McGuire honors Rick Warren while condemning those who criticize Warren places McGuire in the lower echolons of cultural vulgarity.

This has been an Exclusive James Hartline Report Update.
Now Read Daily By Over 15,000 Concerned Citizens Of Conviction.

12-31-2007, 09:35 AM
2Thessalonians:2:1: Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him,
2Th:2:2: That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand.
2Th:2:3: Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;
2Th:2:4: Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.
2Th:2:5: Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things?
2Th:2:6: And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time.
2Th:2:7: For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way.
2Th:2:8: And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:
2Th:2:9: Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,
2Th:2:10: And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.
2Th:2:11: And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:
2Th:2:12: That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.
2Th:2:13: But we are bound to give thanks alway to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth:
2Th:2:14: Whereunto he called you by our gospel, to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.
2Th:2:15: Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle.
2Th:2:16: Now our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God, even our Father, which hath loved us, and hath given us everlasting consolation and good hope through grace,
2Th:2:17: Comfort your hearts, and stablish you in every good word and work.

dlcamp2007
01-02-2008, 12:33 AM
Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils;

Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron; (1 Timothy 4:1,2)

David

fruit loop
01-03-2008, 07:29 AM
Easy solution: just don't go to that church if you disagree with what is taught there.

Don't those ministers have anything going on in their own churches?

Buttercup
01-03-2008, 11:43 AM
For the sake of the truth and the deceived, we are to expose and rebuke false teachers.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tts 1:10 ¶ For there are many unruly and vain talkers and deceivers, specially they of the circumcision:

Tts 1:11 Whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole houses, teaching things which they ought not, for filthy lucre's sake.

Tts 1:12 One of themselves, [even] a prophet of their own, said, The Cretians [are] alway liars, evil beasts, slow bellies.

Tts 1:13 This witness is true. Wherefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith;

Tts 1:14 Not giving heed to Jewish fables, and commandments of men, that turn from the truth.

Tts 1:15 Unto the pure all things [are] pure: but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving [is] nothing pure; but even their mind and conscience is defiled.

Tts 1:16 They profess that they know God; but in works they deny [him], being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate.

fruit loop
01-03-2008, 07:14 PM
I think members of a church are capable of deciding for themselves whether to trust its teachings or not, unless the church is abusive (such as a cult).

I find it deeply disturbing when members of clergy attempt to interfere with the practice of another church. Let them dictate to their own followers; let others worship, rightly or wrongly, as they choose.