Cindy Jacobs Promotes Prosperity Gospel, Makes Tone-Deaf Statements About Jews

New Apostolic Reformation preacher Cindy Jacobs of Generals International recently spoke at the King of Kings Worship Center in Basking Ridge, New Jersey. Right Wing Watch brought attention to her controversial comments about Jews during the event, but I'd also like to bring attention to the rest of the event's content. Jacobs spent her sermon promoting prosperity theology and making tone-deaf comments about racial and ethnic groups, as she has done in the past.

"I'm a seer, really," Jacobs told the audience as she delivered prophesies to the congregants. Jacobs told one young man that he wanted to help people and prevent suffering, and delivered a prophesy to another congregant about their church getting a bigger facility. At the 25:05 mark, however, she expressed her desire to give a prophesy to some Asian congregants. "I want to prophesy over an Asian couple," she said. "I love these Asians. I may be part Asian. Of course, my hashtag is #whitechocolate, so I think I'm part black. I don't know."

Awkward, I thought.

At the 29:44 mark, she bragged about how she converted a Mongolian man to Christianity by name-dropping a famous Mongolian actor.

"I was just eating at the Monocle Restaurant. You know what that is in Washington D.C.? Anybody been to the Monocle? It's where a lot of the Congress people go, and a guy came up to me ... I looked at his name tag, and I said, 'Oh, are you a Mongolian?'. He goes 'yes!' 'cause nobody ever pegs him for Mongolian, and I said, 'I've been in Mongolia ... By the way, I know like the top movie star in Mongolia named Anwar.' And he said, 'You know Anwar?' I mean, he's like famous, like the president will pay a million dollars to have a picture with this guy, you know. I go 'Yeah!'. And he said, 'Did you know he was in Marco Polo?'. I said, 'Not only do I know that, but I prophesied over him in Mongolia that he would go to Hollywood and that Hollywood was going to look for him and that he was going to open the door for other Mongolians, and I'm the one that made the contact in Hollywood so he would make that film.' He is freaking out right in the Monocle.

And I said, 'And not only that, why am I here talking to you when I talk to presidents all over the world, and I was in Mongolia? Now I'm talking to you, Mongolian. God loves you." And I just started witnessing salvation to him, and he goes, 'My wife watches Joel Olsteen!' I go, 'And I'm telling you what, then you need to receive Jesus!'"

I found her story puzzling. I could find no Mongolian actor by the name of "Anwar" during a Google search. Neither the 2007 Marco Polo film nor the 2014 Marco Polo series featured a man named "Anwar" among its cast members. Did I misspell the actor's name?

Jacobs proceeded to promote the prosperity gospel, telling the audience that Christians can reach a "state of blessing" if they believe God's word and donate to charity. Christians can enjoy "abundance" in every aspect of their lives, including their financial lives, she argued, urging listeners to abandon "poverty mentality".

"Poverty in the church should be an exception, not the rule, because we are the ones that are the change agents of society," Jacobs said at the 40:37 mark. She stressed the importance of money for her ministry at the 44:26 mark.

"I have learned to both abase and abound, but I much prefer abounding. I don't have to have those things to follow Jesus, but in order to do my job description in the Earth, I need money so I can do the works I'm supposed to do. You understand this?"

As reported by Right Wing Watch, Jacobs had unsettling things to say about money and Jews. After quoting Bible passages suggesting that born-again Christians are the spiritual heirs of Judaism, Jacobs argued that the Holy Spirits empowers Christians more than Jews. At the 41:57 mark, she claimed that Christians could convert Jews by gathering wealth, thereby making the Jews jealous and demonstrating that God has rewarded them for obedience.

"What the Jews have, we have. However, we have more when we’re in Christ because the Holy Spirit is inside us, empowering us to do the good works we’re called to do ... I want to say to you that one of the things I believe that’s going to bring a great harvest of Jews is the Christians becoming so profoundly wealthy ... that it’s going to make them jealous. The wealth and the riches that we’re able to obtain is going to make them jealous. Do you think our poverty is going to make a Jew jealous? Come off it! No, we are meant to prosper. Why? Because they understand, in their culture, that obedience to God brings blessing. We're called to live a blessed life, not a cursed life."

I was stunned. Jacobs was not only promoting stereotypes about Jews as money-lovers, but making rash assumptions about Jewish culture. Somehow, I don't think promoting Jewish stereotypes and adopting condescending attitudes toward Jewish culture will earn her any new Jewish converts. I would like to remind Cindy Jacobs that people of diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds are not feathers in one's cap, not storytelling elements, and especially not walking stereotypes.

Jacobs shared a childhood story of how her family lived in a tar paper house and the soles of her father's shoes had holes, despite his fervent piety. This story seemed to contradict everything she'd preached about obedience to God resulting in material abundance. Soon thereafter, Jacobs told listeners a crass story about how God wanted her to have $600 leather shoes at the 45:53 mark.

"One day I was in Hong Kong ... and somebody said, 'I want to buy you a pair of shoes for your birthday. I said 'Okay. I know what I need. I want some black patent leather flats, okay? If my feet get tired, I want to have these black patent leather flats.' So we went shopping, and we got home, and I didn't know what the exchange rate was, you know. She said, 'I want to buy you these,' and she chose them. So I go back to the hotel, and I looked, and those were $600 shoes. I was like [gasps]. I mean, I'd never had $600 shoes before.

Actually, this poverty thing came in and said, 'I'd better sell those shoes and give that money to the poor.' And the Lord said, 'That's scarcity thinking! Don't you think I can give you what I want to give you and help you feed the poor too? You think I have a limited budget? Come on! We're not of this world!'

And then the Lord said to me, "Your daddy died when he was 49. Don't you think I saw your daddy's shoes and don't you know I knew he couldn't buy you shoes? Wow. Don't you think I want to give good gifts to my children? If I want to buy you a pair of $600 shoes, you'd better wear those shoes!'"

Why the Almighty couldn't provide Jacobs and her loved ones with shoes when she was a child was unclear. For that matter, why her God, who supposedly wants to give "good gifts" to his earthly children, allows poverty to afflict anyone was unclear.

At the 50:09 mark, Jacobs speculated that poverty exists because Christians have a "poor church". God expects Christians to address poverty in their communities, she explained.

"Maybe there's a reason there's so many people poor, because we have a poor church and we're not doing our job! ... There's a problem with food poverty, systemic poverty. Children in America go to bed hungry, no food in their bellies, and there's a church in America? What is wrong with that picture? That makes me upset. It should make you upset! I hope to upset you! Prophets kind of do that."

Why Jacob's desire to lift people out of poverty was admirable, a sound blueprint for ending poverty has no room for prosperity theology nonsense. Furthermore, her statements do not paint a picture of a compassionate, reassuring God. If the Creator can provide Jacobs with overpriced shoes, why can't he feed "children in America [who] go to bed hungry"? Many people cultivate faith in their God, but they remain poor.

Jacobs may hope to draw people to her version of Christianity by promising prosperity in exchange for piety, but these promises are empty. Prosperity theology might sound seductive to people who have suffered hardship, but they will soon discover that religiosity does not bring wealth.

Lou Engle Still Cranky Over Women's March

A few weeks after Lou Engle tweeted about those who complain about their leaders and protest "with a bitter spirit", he condemned the Women's March. In a March 3rd commentary piece posted at Elijah List, Engle cast the Women's March as "the first shot across the bow" in a "spiritual battle" meant to undermine President Trump. (Hat tip to Right Wing Watch.)

First, Engle sought to convince readers that his fellow Christians were actually the first ones to dream of a large-scale women's march. He claimed that he and other New Apostolic Reformation leaders envisioned a Christian women's march in the nation's capitol years ago.

"Three years ago in a leaders summit in Fredericksburg Virginia, our meeting was sovereignly hijacked as the Lord shifted our focus toward the hidden taproot of strength in the godly women of America. We began to envision something of a million women gathering on the mall in Washington DC, similar to the Promise Keepers gathering, that would be a last-stand breakthrough to hold back darkness in America. Those hours of corporate intercession were as strong and clear as any prophetic moment I have ever encountered in thirty plus years of prayer, but at the time we could not see how it could be brought to pass."

To Engle's disappointment, the 2017 Women's March on D.C. and its sister marches brought together millions of women. The Women's March, which Engle denigrated as "a false heiress", caused Engle to realize that the allegedly "true empowered woman" must make her voice heard.

"That moment arrived January 21, 2017, the day after the inauguration of President Donald J. Trump, as we watched hundreds of thousands of women take to the streets with the purported aim of "empowering women." A vacuum had been created by this election, by historic women's injustices, and it seemed that a false heiress rushed in and was seeking now to become the hinge of history by framing the narrative of a future America that does not acknowledge God's exalted view of women and His Biblical design for her glorious purpose in the earth. Instinctively we had a corporate knowing: it was the time for the true empowered woman to stand up, for the meek (strength-filled humility) shall inherit the earth.

Hundreds of thousands of women watched the March, heard the vitriol, and could not identify with the radical ideologies being expressed that would not acknowledge God's Word and ways in the public controversy. This new woman declared deep inside her heart this is not my revolution." Now, like Esther, she is arising for such a time as this. It's time for this corporate Esther to frame the future by recognizing and taking up her God-given role of persistent public persuasion in the open square as well as that of her humble appeal to God in prayer."

Much like his Religious Right brethren, Engle characterized the Women's March as "radical" and dripping with "vitriol", insisting that godly women would not identify with it. The fact that the Women's March and its sister events resonated with millions of women and men around the globe did not strike him as important. 

Engle then warned readers that the Women's March heralded a "revolutionary rise" against the president and the "Biblical truths" upon which America was supposedly founded. This "brazen challenge of the [supernatural] powers" warranted a response from Christians, he argued.

"The Women's March was the first shot across the bow, heralding a revolutionary rise against the President of the United States, "We the People", and in reality, the foundational Biblical truths upon which our nation was founded. Soon after, the second shot was manifested publicly: an unprecedented global summons of witchcraft to curse President Trump, his cabinet and all of those aligned with a Biblical worldview. Suddenly, the whole controversy was elevated to a global spiritual dimension, inaugurating a spiritual battle that cannot be won on the playing field of protests and political arguments.

Only the Church has the answer to this unprecedented manifestation of witchcraft. Spiritual strategy must be used to overcome this open-faced, brazen challenge of the powers."

Likening the situation in the U.S. to that of Esther and Haman in the Book of Esther, Engle urged readers to participate in a fast so as to "break a major spiritual power of death". He encouraged his fellow believers to take part in a three-day "Esther fast" from March 8-11 to "counter this witchcraft" and pray for President Trump.

Going without food and ecstatic praying haven't brought about the changes you want so far. What makes you think they'll work this time? I wondered.

Engle just can't accept that millions of people dislike his adored president and have no interest in his dominionist vision. Nor can he accept that millions of women and men are rejecting sexism (including the sexism of fundamentalist Christianity) and demanding a more just society. As with issues such as LGBTQ rights and abortion, Engle casts his opponents as angry radicals and puppets of infernal "powers" because demonizing them is easier than actually listening to them.

Lou Engle: Shut Up and Stop Complaining

To protest is an American privilege. Yet to protest with a bitter spirit defiles many.

— Lou Engle (@LouEngle) February 9, 2017

If people would pray for their leaders instead of complaining about them the kingdom would more speedily advance

— Lou Engle (@LouEngle) February 9, 2017

New Apostolic Reformation preacher Lou Engle took to Twitter to comment on the recent surge in protesting and political dissent. In a February 9th tweet, Engle wrote that "To protest is an American privilege. Yet to protest with a bitter spirit defiles many." In another Tweet that day, Engle claimed that "If people would pray for their leaders instead of complaining about them the kingdom would more speedily advance." Engle's tweets are problematic for several reasons.

First, protest is an American right, not a privilege. The rights of citizens to exercise freedom of speech, to assemble in a peaceful manner, and to petition the government for redress of grievances are protected by the Bill of Rights. Furthermore, democracy thrives when citizens hold leaders accountable and communicate their will to all levels of government. It is not only the right but the duty of Americans to offer dissent when leaders propose unsound policies. Contrary to what Engle writes, protest is an important American tradition, not a privilege.

For citizens to hold their government accountable, they must speak. They must identify what is wrong with a leader's decisions and make their thoughts known. Engle frowns on this as "complaining", but in reality, it is an expression of free speech that is essential to healthy democracy. Speech and action, not prayer, bring about results in the real world.

Engle's comment about protesting with a "bitter spirit" is revealing. First, it suggests that Engle sees rancor in the protests of the past few weeks, instead of righteous anger, courage, humor, and solidarity with the marginalized. Second, "bitter" is a epithet that some Christian fundamentalists hurl at those who criticize persons in power or demand justice for wrongdoers. Is it easier for Engle to dismiss the anti-Trump protests as outpourings of "bitterness" than to listen to the grievances of the protesters?

With Donald Trump in the White House, unsuitable figures rising to cabinet positions, alarming executive orders flying off the president's desk, and so much at stake, Americans can't afford to be passive. We can't afford to stay silent for fear of appearing "bitter", and we can't wait for a cosmic white knight to fix our problems. Now is the time for constructive action, not passivity.

Demons Were Behind the Women's March?

When millions of women demonstrate in marches around the world, what really drives them? A thirst for equality and justice? Disgust over misogyny? A pressing need to have their voices heard by political leaders? According to several commentators from the Religious Right, it's demons!

In a January 23rd video shared at Facebook, Wallnau shared a clip of a flaming vehicle that he claimed was set on fire on Inauguration Day. "This is your brain on liberal, progressive campus and community organizing," he told listeners. At the -21.11 mark, he claimed that inauguration unrest was a "spiritual manifestation" of "the spirit of witchcraft", which was allegedly at work through the Women's March on Washington. He then mocked Women's March protesters as divided and hypocritical, ignoring the actual motivations behind the Women's March. (Hat tip to Right Wing Watch.)

"This is a spiritual manifestation on the inauguration, and notice, this never happened during the Obama administration, not because of the problem with Trump, but because it's the unmasking of the nature of the progressive spirit and its anarchy and its desire to control and intimidate and manipulate.

By the way, any manipulation, intimidation, and control -- those three words are the spirit of witchcraft. Witchcraft is the spirit of Jezebel, so it makes sense to me that there'd be half a million women that would show up the next day, and they don't even know what they're there for. I mean, some of them cried one thing, some of them cried another, but the only thing that they were agreed on was Madonna's goofball statement on blowing up the White House. And some women, of course, were incensed over a comment Trump made a decade ago before he got married. But what's weird is they weren't incensed about Hillary covering up her husband or going on the assault with women that her husband had been involved with and how she destroyed them. So, there's an element of hypocrisy that reveals a root of lawlessness that is the essence of what I'm talking about."

Rick Joyner, co-founder of MorningStar Ministries, was also aghast at the Women's March, blaming it on infernal forces. In a January 23rd video shared on Facebook, Rick Joyner called the Women's March "one of the most blatant manifestations of the Jezebel spirit ever". He called the participants' rage "unattractive" and recoiled at their brazen language, insisting that the marches were not a representation of American women. At the -7:00 mark, he attributed the march to the Jezebel demon, who feels threatened by President Trump. (Hat tip to Right Wing Watch.)

"Why was there such a rage? I think it's because that Jezebel spirit is about to be thrown down in America, and I think much of the world, and it knows its time is short ... I think Trump is a real serious threat to the general Jezebel spirit, I mean, just the way he's attacked the political correct spirit."

The Jezebel demon has been a recurring theme among New Apostolic Reformation commentators with regard to the march. In a commentary piece at Charisma News, Landon Schott was so horrified that the Women's March featured profanity, pro-choice messages, and "anti-purity" content that he concluded the demon Jezebel was at work.

"Then I witnessed celebrities cursing our government and nation, promoting abortion institutions. They carried signs that read, "If Mary (Magdalene) had had an abortion, we wouldn't be in this mess!" I continued to see an anti-God, anti-purity, anti-Christ spirit emerge from the heart of this march. I watched a celebrity curse profanity over our nation and demand the right to have abortions. This wasn't about equal pay; this was about the advancement of an anti-Christ spirit. As I watched, I was grieved, and up in my spirit came, "This is the Jezebel spirit!""

Televangelist and dehydrated bucket food enthusiast Jim Bakker also claimed that infernal forces were present during the march. During the January 30th edition of The Jim Bakker Show, Bakker described his time at the Trump inauguration in glowing terms, calling it "supernatural". By contrast, during the January 31st edition, Bakker's guest Billye Brim described the women at Women's March as "driven by demons". At the 3:52 mark, Bakker described an evil spirit in the lobby of his hotel, allegedly brought to town by the marchers. (Hat tip to Right Wing Watch.)

BAKKER: We went downstairs, and there in that lobby that a few hours before was presence of God was suddenly the most evil spirit I have ever felt. On the big screen -- and I'm not saying Fox News is anointed -- but Fox News was no longer on. They might come for me if I tell you who was on. Somebody else.

BRIM: Liberal media.

BAKKER: One of the other sides was on, and all the places where all the generals of God had been sitting was women, women, women in pink, women with ... cat ears. I studied a little bit of that, and I couldn't tell you what all that means 'cause it's dirty. It's filthy dirty.

Oh, the irony. Bakker and his friends were less offended by Trump's "grab them by the p***y" comment than by pussy hats used to express outrage over said comments.

Even E. W. Jackson brought up demons in the same breath as the Women's March. During the January 23rd edition of Urban Family Talk, Jackson denied that the Women's March on Washington and its sister marches represented American women. He then went on to attribute the D.C. march to demons using the "powers and principalities" language of Ephesians 6:12. At the 6:59 mark, he told listeners that America was the site of a spiritual battle with demons. (Hat tip Right Wing Watch.)

"Our country is really now divided, not as the leftists would have you think, divided [by] gender identity versus those who don't recognize it, and you know, the LGBT movement versus those who don't want same-sex marriage, and the women who want freedom versus those who are engaged in a war on women. That's not what's going on. Folks, America is in the middle of a pitched spiritual battle ... We are in the middle of the equivalent of a spiritual civil war. That’s what’s happening in America right now, and the people represented by those who went to Washington, D.C. to protest are on the godless side in this war. We wrestle not against flesh and blood but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places, so what we’ve got to do now is put on the whole armor of God to be able to stand against the wiles, the stratagems, the strategies, the tricks of the devil."

Do these commentators honestly believe that demons were at work at the Women's Marches, or are they merely trying to convince their followers? Either way, attributing the marches to demons shuts down any possibility of rational thought or conversation. If Religious Right followers believe that the marches were the handiwork of infernal forces, they'll be too fearful to think about the issues discussed at those marches. If fundamentalists believe marchers to be angry, lewd harpies who serve the Jezebel spirit, they won't listen to what the marchers have to say. Once again, fear and superstition prevent members of the Religious Right from cultivating reason or empathy.

To read additional commentary, visit the following links.

Feministe: Quick hit: The Women’s March on Washington was driven by demons.

Dispatches from the Culture Wars: Wingnut: Women’s March was ‘ Driven by Demons’

New Apostolic Reformation Preachers Pray for Trump, Pence, and Their Families

Even before the inauguration, Religious Right figures prayed for Trump. On January 12th, several preachers gathered at the National Press Club in Washington D.C. to beseech God to protect and guide the Trump and Pence families. The POTUS Shield Prayer event featured New Apostolic Reformation figures such as Lou Engle, Cindy Jacobs, and Lance Wallnau.

In a video from the event, individual preachers led prayers for members of the Trump and Pence families. Prayers for Melania, Ivanka, and Tiffany asked that the women would know God and declared that no weapon formed against them would prevail. Other prayers were more revealing. For example, at the 1:27 mark, Lance Wallnau prayed that Donald Trump Jr. would have the wisdom to navigate embarrassing media reports.

"We thank you, God, that there is a grace on the entire Trump house and on Donald Jr. right now to be able to step into protecting, discerning where the enemy's entrapments are, where the legal processes and the media would try to trip up or embarrass or accuse the household of impropriety."

At the 9:43 mark, Lou Engle initiated a second prayer for Barron and the rest of the Trump family. At first, Engle seemed to be demonstrating empathy for Barron, who must be drained by all the controversies swarming around his father. As Engle went on, however, he prayed that the Trump family not nurse "offended hearts".

"When they were praying for Barron, I just felt God's heart for him. We need to pray for a shield around them, 'cause they're going to live under the constant criticism of their dad, or their family. We need to pray that their hearts will not be offended ... Lord, I pray, fill them with such encouragement from people all over the nation, from your people the church. We ask, cover them and deliver them from an offended heart. Give them the grace of forgiveness, in Jesus' name."

At the 11:39 mark, Clarence McClendon prayed for Vice President Mike Pence. McClendon likened Pence to the biblical Joseph, who served alongside Pharaoh. Was this comparison a veiled commentary about Trump? McClendon also praised Trump for being "malleable and pliable" in God's hands.

"You said that in a time of crisis and danger, that you sustained Egypt not only because of its Pharaoh, but because it had a covenant man second in command. And I thank you, Lord, that great counsel and great wisdom will come from Vice President-elect Pence into the ears of President-elect Trump. God, President-elect Trump is a man who is seeking you and finding you. He is malleable and pliable in your hand, and you spoke in my heart and in my spirit that his pliability and his malleability in your hand was one of the reasons that you selected him."

Finally, a speaker I did not recognize prayed for Donald Trump at the 14:33 mark, hoping that God would speak to Trump like he did to King Solomon. Revealingly, he also hoped that Trump would not end up like Solomon.

"Father, we pray for President Trump, Lord, that you will give him a knowledge of you, Lord, that exceeds our expectations and hopes. Lord, we thank you that he has surrounded himself with evangelical people. Lord, he's magnified Christianity. We've talked about being a Christian nation. Lord, we pray that you will somehow give him supernatural "download" ... Lord, we pray that you will also speak to him directly, like you spoke to Solomon, but lord, we pray that he will not end up like Solomon."

I'd say that Trump is already like Solomon. Immense wealth? Check. Ambitious architectural projects? Check. Multiple wives? Check. Just as Solomon practiced idolatry, so too does Trump worship his own ego as a false idol.

I found the prayers at the POTUS Shield event revealing. The participants seemed concerned about legal and media snarls, and the references to Pharaoh and Solomon suggested some unspoken anxieties about Trump. Are these New Apostolic Reformation preachers worried about what the future may bring for the Trump administration? Will Trump prove "malleable" and "pliable" not only to the Religious Right, but to other political forces as well?

Hillary Clinton in League with Infernal Forces, Say Some Religious Right Figures

Many Religious Right figures have supported Donald Trump's candidacy and attacked Hillary Clinton's candidacy. Some have done so by arguing that a woman is unfit to be president. Others are doing so by claiming Clinton is knowingly or unknowingly in league with infernal forces. Who can forget Ben Carson's speech at the Republican National Convention, during which he linked Hillary Clinton, Saul Alinsky, and Lucifer? Now, several Religious Right commentators have linked Clinton with Satan and the Antichrist, pandering to the fear and superstition of their audience.

This tactic is nothing new. Fundamentalists have repeatedly claimed that President Obama is the Antichrist, or that he is at least playing a sinister role in Biblical prophesy. The claims began during his run for the 2008 presidential election and have continued ever since. Desperate to unite their followers against Clinton, fundamentalists have started making the same claims about her.

First, Trump supporter and New Apostolic Reformation preacher Lance Wallnau lionized Trump as a "wrecking ball to the spirit of political correctness" during a recent podcast. During the August 17th edition of the Strang Report on Charisma Podcast Network, Wallnau gave a political talk dripping with Seven Mountains Dominionism. He argued that Trump could help the Religious Right gain control of social institutions that are supposedly controlled by Satan.

After reminding listeners about the next president's power to appoint Supreme Court justices, Wallnau spoke of Hillary Clinton and the devil in the same breath. At the 11:14 mark, he claimed that a Clinton victory would play into Satan's "end game" and help him consolidate his control of society. (Hat tip to Right Wing Watch.)

"If Hillary Clinton has the power in this culture to promote radicals to the Supreme Court, that process of redefining the meaning of words I can almost guarantee is going to continue to extend itself right on down to the free speech of Christians to be able to speak biblical truth. That’s the end game the devil’s at. And so, I’m talking to Christians now, we must understand -- Satan wants to wrap up his institutional control of high places in government, media, arts, academia, and business is about to come under assault with Hillary Clinton. And the end game will be a redefinition. The ultimate redefining will be what America is, and it’s going to happen in her administration and it’s going to affect our children. For forty years they’re going to have to live with it."

Radio host Bryan Fischer, who opposes a Clinton presidency on account of her gender, has linked Clinton with the Antichrist. During the August 15th edition of Focal Point, Fischer claimed that Hillary Clinton was animated by an "Antichrist impulse". At the 34:47 mark of the second hour, he said the following. (Hat tip to Right Wing Watch.)

"Hillary Clinton is not a friend of religious liberty. In fact, she is hostile to religious liberty. She's an enemy of religious liberty. There's a profound anti-Christian impulse in Hillary Clinton. I would go so far as to call it an Antichrist impulse. The same spirit that will one day animate the Antichrist is the same spirit that is at work in Hillary Clinton. She opposes Christ. She opposes biblical Christianity. She's hostile to it. She seeks to repress it. She seeks to punish it, and she seeks to stifle it. That is the spirit of the Antichrist and it is at work in Hillary Clinton."

After blasting Hillary Clinton for allegedly siding with the "homosexual agenda" over religious liberty, Fischer repeated his accusation at the 43:10 mark.

"Hillary Clinton is motivated by the spirit of the Antichrist because she is against Christ. She's against Christianity. She is against the free exercise of the Christian faith. She doesn't want the Christian faith to be a part of the public square, to influence public policy in any way. She's against everything that Christianity stands for. She is for same-sex marriage. She is for the promotion of homosexuality. She is against the sanctity of human life. She is against religious liberty."

Anti-abortion activist Alveda King also linked Clinton with the Antichrist. During the August 12th edition of The Jim Bakker Show, King accused Hillary Clinton of asking Americans to abandon their religious beliefs, thereby ushering in the Antichrist. At the 3:02 mark, in the midst of a disjointed diatribe against ISIS, Margaret Sanger, and Planned Parenthood, King had this to say. (Hat tip to Right Wing Watch.)

"Mrs. Hillary Clinton .. said basically Christians and religious people in America need to set aside their religious beliefs and serve secular humanism, and in that point she was saying abortion or the thing with ISIS ... and she really has said we're going to have to learn in America to set aside our religious beliefs ... What's she's really saying is usher in the Antichrist."

Jim Bakker also hosted Don Colbert of the Divine Health Wellness Center on his show, who accused Hillary Clinton of acting under the aegis of the Antichrist. During the June 9th edition of The Jim Bakker Show, Colbert claimed that the "spirit of Antichrist" rested on Hillary Clinton at the 35:00 mark. Colbert's comments followed a pro-Trump segment in which a retired firefighter prophesied that God had chosen Trump to restore America, as well as something about horse races. (Hat tip to Right Wing Watch.)

"That spirit of Antichrist is majorly on one of these candidates, and that’s Hillary Clinton, and Jesus even said there will be many Antichrists in the world. Well, that spirit of Antichrist is on our president right now. And so, as Christians, we have got to turn out and vote. If we don’t turn out and vote, we are electing Hillary Clinton."

After Colbert's comment, Bakker warned listeners against hatred and venom in politics, oblivious to his hypocrisy.

"As I have been speaking to a lot of leaders that know history, really know what's going on, they're saying there is such hatred, there is such venom that they said that--be careful. Pray the power and the blood of Christ over all your leaders, because there will be people falling dead if we're not careful. The hatred right now, and the lust for power--you don't understand how deep this power thing goes."

Literally demonizing a political candidate is a cheap, dirty tactic. Are these Religious Right figures knowingly manipulating their listeners with dire warnings about Satan and the Antichrist? Or do they actually believe their own propaganda as they grow more paranoid about the End Times?

Either way, these tactics may inflame the fears of a small segment of the population, but they will not work with the larger populace. If these fundamentalists are resorting to devils and boogeymen in their fight against Clinton, they're scraping the bottom of the barrel.

Lou Engle Wants You to Join the Spiritual Air Force Academy

Lou Engle, the New Apostolic Reformation preacher who heads TheCall, is inviting believers to join his Spiritual Air Force Academy. Running from September 6th to April 30th, the Spiritual Air Force Academy offers to teach Christians how to be "pilots sent for the purpose of winning the war in the heavens at a moments notice". For $2,500 tuition (not including room and board in Pasadena, CA), you too can learn how to work yourself into an ecstatic state through prayer, which releases endorphins but doesn't actually impact the world.

In a YouTube video released this spring, Lou Engle describes the Spiritual Air Force Academy with the same bombastic language that he uses for every other prayer event. Participants learn how to fast and pray so as to "remove demons in the heavenlies from the hard, dark places of the earth".

"In 2004, in the shadow of the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, we gathered seventy young people to fast and pray for fifty days, day and night. An amazing breakthrough took place, and God began to give us what we believe is historic intercessory strategy. God is going to raise up what we're calling SAFA, the Spiritual Air Force Academy!

A movement of young men and women giving themselves to fasting and prayer to remove demons in the heavenlies from the hard, darkest places of the earth, releasing divine encounters, revival, and awakening on the ground. 

You see, in World War II and beyond, if you didn't win air supremacy with the planes winning the battle in the heavens, you could not win the ground war. It took both air and ground to win victories. I know it was like General Eisenhower calling forth the air force to invade Normandy from the heavens so that the ground troops could break through in the Battle of Normandy. This is the kind of ideology, prayer stragegy that God is wanting to release into the earth.

You're about to hear a breakthrough of angelic swords shattering the powers in the heavens, so that a vast movement of evangelism could sweep in and bring forth another massive revival. Can you imagine an army of men and women who would dedicate their lives to fast and pray? This is the time for a new strategy to come forth.

Air supremacy contending in the heavens for breakthroughs on the earth. SAFA! Sweep the skies!"

Can I inject some reality here, please? Taking part in ecstatic prayer is not the same thing as being a fighter pilot. Ecstatic worship does not make one a soldier in some cosmic war. Actual fighter pilots go through rigorous training and risk their lives in aerial combat. Working oneself into a religious ecstasy while forking over thousands of dollars to TheCall is not at all like being a fighter pilot.

If one wants to fight evil, I can think of far better alternatives to joining SAFA. Why not donate that tuition money to charity, or volunteer with any number of charitable organizations? Why not help any number of social movements calling for justice in our communities? Ecstatic prayer won't improve the conditions of the world, but charitable giving and hard work just might.

In the meantime, act out those fighter pilot fantasies by playing Ace Combat Infinity.

Cindy Jacobs Encourages Christian Women to Vote

With the 2016 presidential election on the horizon, one Religious Right figure is urging women to vote. Cindy Jacobs, co-founder of Generals International, launched a campaign called Red Shoe Votes to mobilize Christian women voters, according to Charisma News. Red Shoe Votes encourages to register to vote and wear red shoes to the polls, although it carefully refrains from endorsing any candidate or political party.

Upon inspection, the campaign is infused with dominionist values. Red Shoe Votes seeks to "shift the nation" with women's votes and ensure that different spheres of society will be "standing on the firm foundation of biblical truth." The Red Shoe Votes website claims that, "For too long, we as Christian women have allowed so many other voices to speak for us, including influential women who do not share or respect biblical values."

In the Red Shoe Votes Women's Manifesto, organizers lay out their opposition to abortion and transgender identity, as well as their support for "biblically-based systems of education, healthcare, justice, economics, and government".

"We believe in the sanctity of life—that all individuals have the right to life from the point of conception to death; therefore, no one has the right to take the life of another person through crime, abortion, euthanasia, or assisted suicide.

Additionally, we believe that the quality of life for every individual matters; therefore, we believe in addressing systemic issues like poverty, racism, and human trafficking, as well as advocating for biblically-based systems of education, healthcare, justice, economics, and government.

We believe that God entrusted humanity with the stewardship of the earth; therefore, we believe we have a responsibility to properly care for the environment and wisely use our natural resources.

We believe that God intentionally created human beings as male and female; therefore, the gender identity we are born with is not a mistake and is unchangeable. Additionally, we believe that God created men and women as equals; therefore, we believe in addressing systems, doctrines, and practices that treat women as inferior or less valuable."

The authors describe their attitudes toward seven areas of society -- education, family, government, religion, business, media, and arts and entertainment -- which coincide with the seven "mountains" over which Christians must establish dominion in Seven Mountains theology. For example, with regard to family issues, the manifesto recognizes only heterosexual marriage.

"We believe that marriage between one man and one woman is the biblical foundation of the family. We acknowledge that many families have been fractured; therefore, we seek to extend support and promote wholeness for every parent desiring God’s best for their children."

Regarding government, the manifesto encourages Christians to secure positions of political power.

"We believe that Christians should not shrink back from serving in elected and appointed government offices, as this brings peace and justice to the land."

The manifesto sees Christian proselytization and conversion as a "right", adding that Christians are entitled to share their faith in every social institution. Separation of church and state is not mentioned.

"We believe that Jesus Christ is the one true God, the Creator and owner of the world. Every individual has the right to hear that Jesus is God and needs to personally accept Him as Savior.

We believe it is the role of the church to steward His world and represent His kingdom; therefore, it is the right of all people to have the freedom to share their faith in every institution of society." 

Red Shoe Votes' promotional video condemns racism and features multiple women of color. Given Cindy Jacob's history of racially insensitive comments, I find this highly ironic.

Red Shoe Votes seems to be a means of getting Religious Right-friendly candidates into office. While Red Shoe Votes does not endorse any candidate or party, we can reasonably assume that its supporters will vote for right-wing candidates in gubernatorial, House, and Senate races. Regarding the presidential election, I doubt that its supporters would vote for Hillary Clinton or Bernie Sanders, given their manifesto's stance on issues such as the place of religion in society, abortion, and LGBTQ issues. Clinton and Sanders have both expressed support for church-state separation, LGBTQ equality and reproductive rights, whereas Trump has taken either ambiguous or negative stances on the issues. However, evangelicals remain divided over Trump, so there is no guarantee that Red Shoe Voters will cast votes for him in significant numbers.

As November draws near, we can expect initiatives such as Red Shoe Votes to encourage Religious Right supporters to vote. While we can safely assume that many such voters will cast ballots for right-wing candidates in state and local elections, their behavior in the presidential election remains to be seen. Will they unite behind Trump, or refrain from supporting either presidential candidate?

Commentary Tidbits

The Many Banes of My Existence by Alexis: Did God Ever Send YOU a Thank-You Note?

Unseen Perfidy: I Grew Up in a Southern Baptist Elementary School

Mother Jones: Ted Cruz's Dad: My Son Ran for President After God Sent His Wife a Sign

Forward: Why Ted Cruz's Preacher Sidekick Is No Friend of the Jews — or Israel

Godless in Dixie: What the Story of Lot Tells Me About the Bible

News Tidbits

Pink News: The Pope and head of the Russian Orthodox Church release statement against gay marriage

New York Times: Catholic Leaders Say Zika Doesn’t Change Ban on Contraception 

Huffington Post: GOP Congressmen Oppose Abortion Rights For Women With Zika In Developing Countries

The Times of Israel: Cruz rejects evangelical backer’s controversial Hitler comments

Associated Press: West Virginia House approves religious exemptions bill

Associated Press: Virginia state Senate passes protections for same-sex marriage opponents

SBS: Pastors, politics and anti-gay rhetoric: Uganda's election cometh

Mike Bickle's Endorsement of Ted Cruz Offends Jewish Groups

Last month, presidential candidate Ted Cruz announced an endorsement from Mike Bickle, founder of the International House of Prayer in Kansas City, Missouri. Bickle's homophobic and sexist comments have been well-documented at this blog and others, as have his paranoid End Times speeches. However, it is Bickle's shocking statements about Jews that have landed him and Cruz in hot water.

Bickle has a long history of disturbing statements about Jews. Bruce Wilson, co-founder of Talk to Action, created a montage of such statements, including Bickle's claims that Jews will be thrown into concentration camps in the End Times, that Jews will convert to Christianity en masse, and that God used Adolph Hitler to pressure Jews to convert to Christianity. (Hat tip to Right Wing Watch and Think Progress.)

• "Israel's condition before Jesus returns -- not every Jew, but many -- is prison camps. There are so many Bible verses on this, it is staggering." (2009)


• "A lot of Israel's going to get converted, but a lot of Israel's going to worship the Antichrist. A lot of Israel is going to have revival; a lot of Israel's going to fall away. Portions of Israel will be supernaturally protected, and portions of Israel will die and go to prison camps." (2006)


• "One third of Israel's going to get radically saved and become lovesick worshipers of Jesus. One third of Israel? There's about fifteen million Jews on the earth at this point in time. That's four, five million people ... They end up dying, or if they survive, they get radically converted at the Second Coming. And many are going to get converted between now and then. We're not giving up on Israel until the Second Coming. Matter of fact, it's the efforts of leading people to the Lord right now that is significantly related to the events that are going to happen that are going to lead up to the Second Coming. So there are more Jews getting saved right now in Israel than in any time in history." (2006)


• "Two-thirds [of Jews] will die in the rage of Satan and in the judgments of God, and the one-third, every one of the one-third will be in the land before it's over and they'll be worshipers of Jesus. Now the Lord's bringing back multitudes now to give them a chance, to give them every opportunity to say yes to salvation and the land ... The Lord says, 'I'm going to offer two strategies to Israel, to these twenty million.' He says, 'First, I am going to offer them grace. I am going to send the fisherman.' ... Do you know how a fisherman does their thing? They have the bait in front, luring the fish. It's a picture of grace. The hunters are opposite. Instead of luring them in front, hunters drive with fear from behind  ... He says, 'And if they don't respond to grace, I'm going to raise up the hunters.' And the most famous hunter in recent history is a man named Adolph Hitler. He drove them from the hiding places. He drove them out of the land." (2004)

Bickle's church has also taken an awkward stance on Jews. The International House of Prayer runs a project called the Israel Mandate, whose mission is to "mobilize intercessors in the Church to pray for Israel, and to stand with and encourage Messianic believers in Israel." The Israel Mandate's resource list is brimming with books that link Israel to a fundamentalist Christian vision of the End Times. The project's "Prayer for Israel" section predicts war and bloodshed in the Holy Land during the End Times, Jesus' military victory, and Jesus ruling over the world from his throne in Jerusalem. In other words, the Israel Mandate seeks to convert Jews to Christianity and promote End Times beliefs about the supremacy of Jesus over Israel.

Several Jewish leaders were disgusted. According to the Times of Israel, the Anti-Defamation League called Bickle's statements "abhorrent, intolerant and unacceptable", urging Cruz to "clearly and forcefully reject Bickle's hateful ideas." In a February 9th press release, the National Jewish Democratic Council demanded that Cruz account for his ties to Bickle.

"It is profoundly troubling that Sen. Ted Cruz proudly trumpeted the endorsement of such a controversial figure who holds such offensive views. In announcing Bickle’s support, Sen. Cruz said, ‘we will fight the good fight, finish the course.’ We call on Sen. Cruz to clarify his position and explain why he chose to highlight someone who is ‘notorious for having said that God sent Hitler to hunt Jews for not accepting Jesus as the messiah.’"

As of February 11th, the National Jewish Democratic Council was unsatisfied with the Cruz campaign's response.

"Presidential candidate Sen. Ted Cruz must clarify if he stands with Pastor Mike Bickle and his belief that G-d sent Hitler to hunt Jews for not accepting Jesus as the messiah. The Cruz campaign’s response from criticism from NJDC and the ADL of one of its featured endorsers falls woefully short. We remain troubled that rather than distance himself and refute Bickle’s offensive rhetoric, the Cruz campaign has doubled down, merely restating the senator's position on Israel and attempting to minimize Pastor Bickle's role as an endorser. We call on Sen. Cruz’s campaign to speak clearly when it comes to such an offensive statement. As the ADL said, ‘We hope that when these comments are called to the Senator’s attention, he will clearly and forcefully reject Bickle’s hateful ideas.’ Unfortunately, we’re still waiting for Sen. Cruz to do so."

Bickle has since gone on the defensive. In a February 12 statement posted at the IHOP website and the Times of Israel website, Bickle insisted that the media distorted his words. "Taking Scripture out of context is routine to the secular media," he wrote. Bickle emphasized that he was appalled by Hitler's actions and that he meant to encourage solidarity with Jews during the End Times.

"I have been alarmed in recent days to hear that comments I made in a sermon several years ago were taken to be anti-Semitic. Today I write to clarify my beliefs.

The false statements circulating in the media distort what I said. I have been and remain committed to the spiritual and material defense of Israel and the Jewish people, as is my ministry. When I paraphrased from the difficult passages of Zechariah 12:1-3, Zechariah 14:1-3, Zechariah 13:8-9, and Jeremiah 16 in the sermon excerpt that has been circulated of late, I did so with one main intent: to stir the American church to stand with Israel in time of a future persecution as foretold by most of the Jewish prophets in the Bible. Various Old Testament prophets prophesy dark days for Israel before the Messiah returns, and I read these prophecies with dread. My message is that the Church must respond like Corrie ten Boom’s family—by standing with Israel instead of drawing back in fear and silence.

The prophecies of Zechariah and Jeremiah are difficult and easily misinterpreted to the biblically illiterate. Taking Scripture out of context is routine to the secular media. But let me be clear: I have made support for Israel and the Jewish people a central part of my ministry. For the last 15 years, our ministry has hosted several two-hour prayer meetings for Israel each week.

Some have misrepresented my remarks on Hitler being among the ‘hunters’ mentioned by the prophet Jeremiah (Jeremiah 16:16), but let me make clear: what Hitler did was evil, an utter atrocity to the Jewish people and to all of mankind. The creation of the modern state of Israel after the Holocaust is a testament to God’s enduring love for His beloved people.

Mike Bickle can backpedal all he wants, but his disturbing statements are still disturbing. End Times preachers such as Bickle see the Jews as potential converts and/or supporting characters in bizarre End Times stories, but rarely as people. Furthermore, anyone who see Adolph Hitler as the tool of a righteous God is morally and spiritually bankrupt. The Cruz campaign should be ashamed of Bickle's endorsement, but as we've seen before, Cruz has a soft spot for offensive preachers.

IHOP's Mike Bickle Endorses Ted Cruz

Right Wing Watch just revealed that Mike Bickle, founder of the International House of Prayer (IHOP) and a prominent New Apostolic Reformation preacher, had endorsed Ted Cruz's presidential campaign. The Cruz campaign announced the endorsement in a January 21st statement.

"HOUSTON, Texas – Presidential candidate Ted Cruz today announced the endorsement of Mike Bickle, Founder and Director of the International House of Prayer of Kansas City, an evangelical missions organization based on prayer.

“Our nation is in a great crisis in this hour,” Bickle said. “We need a president who will first be faithful to honor God’s Word. We need a president who will work to defend religious liberty, uphold our Constitution, keep our country safe and our economy sound, and speak truth to the nation. We have been praying for righteous leaders, and Ted Cruz is such a leader. I am enthusiastically endorsing Ted Cruz.”

The International House of Prayer is engaged in many outreaches, justice initiatives, and mission projects. For the last 16 years, their prayer room has continued nonstop in 24/7 prayer led by worship teams. 800 staff members work at the IHOPKC Mission Base in Kansas City, and 800 full-time students and interns attend the International House of Prayer University, which consists of three full-time ministry schools— a Bible school, music school, and media school. About 20,000 people attend One Thing annually, IHOPKC’s year-end young adult conference

“Through prayer, the Lord has changed my life and altered my family’s story,” said Cruz. “I am grateful for Mike’s dedication to call a generation of young people to prayer and spiritual commitment. Heidi and I are grateful to have his prayers and support. With the support of Mike and many other people of faith, we will fight the good fight, finish the course, and keep the faith.”

Bickle is the author of 10 books including Passion for Jesus, Growing in Prayer, The Pleasures of Loving God, and The Rewards of Fasting. His teaching emphasizes making disciples who seek to walk out the two Great Commandments while serving together to see the Great Commission fulfilled and the fame of Jesus’ name fill the earth. Mike pastored for 23 years before starting the IHOPKC Missions Base in 1999, and has been married to Diane for 38 years, with two sons and five grandchildren."

Mr. Cruz, are you sure you want Mike Bickle associated with your campaign? Are you sure you want to trumpet the endorsement of an apocalyptic preacher who cultivates End Times paranoia among his followers? Who sees women as subordinate to men? Whose church came up repeatedly in media coverage of a tragic 2012 death?

This is not the first time Cruz has courted controversial allies from the Religious Right. For example, Cruz appeared at the Freedom 2015 conference alongside Generations with Vision host Kevin Swanson, whose homophobic meltdown on stage at the event left observers stunned. Right Wing Watch has also documented Cruz's other unsavory endorsements, including Duck Dynasty patriarch Phil Robertson, anti-abortion activist Troy Newman, and activists from the anti-feminist Eagle Forum.

Cruz's affinity for unhinged and/or hateful figures will earn him a few evangelical votes, but will cost him exponentially more mainstream votes. Moderate and progressive voters will listen to Cruz's rhetoric, observe those with whom he breaks bread, and recoil.

OneThing 2015: Stuart Greaves and Empathy

To read about Mike Bickle's talk at OneThing 2015, click here.

The International House of Prayer (IHOP) hosted its annual OneThing conference on December 28-31 at the Kansas City Convention Center in Kansas City, Missouri. Stuart Greaves, a member of IHOP's senior leadership team, delivered a talk on December 31st entitled "Walking with Joy in the Midst of the Growing Crisis on the Earth". When I listened to Greaves, I heard a fundamentalist man who seemed to be struggling against his own empathy.

Greaves began by telling listeners about how he and IHOP prayed against same-sex marriage in 2015. When the Supreme Court ruled in favor of same-sex marriage, Greaves was filled with joy that he couldn't understand.

"Several months ago, in April, when the Supreme Court began the deliberations concerning the issue of same-sex marriage, at the House of Prayer we had set aside the whole day to cry out to the Lord, for the Lord to touch the judges with wisdom and the fear of the Lord, that the deliberations toward same-sex marriage would not take place. Of course, they started the deliberations and it would take several months before the conclusion would be made know.

As Mike [Bickle] mentioned earlier, I'm on the Night Watch, so I went to bed as normal and I woke up in the early afternoon, and my wife Esther, she happened to walk into the room. It's June 26th, and she tells me that the Supreme Court had come to a verdict and that they decided to legalize gay marriage.

And when she told me that, a very strange thing happened in my heart ... My heart was filled with joy, and it troubled me. I went, 'Wait a minute. I shouldn't be feeling joy right now. This is not good news. Why am I feeling joy in my heart?' And for a couple of days, I just didn't want to talk about it, because I did not know what to do with this joy in light of this horrific news about this very dark and evil decree that came from the Supreme Court.

As the days unfolded, I felt directed to go to John 16:33 ... Jesus said, "These things I have spoken to you, that in me you may have peace." He says, "In the world, you will have tribulation, but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world."

In other words, Greaves decided that his strange joy was a reminder that God will be victorious someday, even if "dark and evil" events are happening now. At the 7:26 mark, he elaborated on this belief.

"Our joy and our peace is rooted in our understanding of where this thing is going, that it's rooted in understanding of what it is that is in God's heart. Nations will rise and nations will fall, but under God's leadership, he is preparing a bride for his son and he's preparing his people to rule and reign with his son in the age to come."

I don't know Greaves personally. I don't know what triggered his unexpected joy, but have a theory. What if, deep inside, some part of him was happy for LGBTQ Americans? What if this joy was suppressed empathy for the LGBTQ people who had just won the right to marry? Was that empathy fighting to break through, in spite of his anti-gay beliefs?

Fundamentalism encourages people to suppress their empathy in favor of obedience to an infallible authority (in this case, the Bible). Obedience to that authority supersedes all other moral concerns, including respect for the rights of others (in this case, gays). Fundamentalism also erodes empathy by demonizing the "other". That other can be the apostate, the LGBTQ person, the abortion provider, the feminist, the Muslim, or any number of other targets. Demonizing a scapegoat allows fundamentalists to unite against a perceived enemy and envision themselves as righteous and superior.

However, this process is imperfect. Empathy cannot always be silenced. Sometimes, it asserts itself no matter how much dehumanizing rhetoric one has absorbed.

We see this process happening with the exodus of American "nones" from organized religion. More Americans empathize with their LGBTQ brethren and find the homophobia of some Christian churches offensive. Slowly, empathy is undermining bigotry. I hope that Greaves' strange joy was actually his empathy struggling against his homophobia.

Greaves said something else later in his talk that made me wonder if his empathy was warring with his fundamentalism. He talked at length about the book of Habakkuk, describing how God raised up the Babylonians to wage war on the nations. The prophet Habakkuk was horrified, crying out to God that "your eyes are too pure to look on evil!". Greaves used the story to remind listeners that they must defer to God, even if God's actions shocked them.

At the 29:35 mark, Greaves admitted that a passage in scripture angered him so much that he threw his Bible down in disgust. He quickly stifled the feeling and deferred to his God.

"Beloved, in this hour, as we struggle with God's leadership, we must assume though that his ways are right. Reminds me of a story several years ago ... I remember reading the scriptures and I came across a scripture that so bothered me that I literally grabbed my Bible and I threw it to the ground. I threw it to the ground! I said, 'NO! This is wrong!' ... As soon as I said that, I went, 'Ohhhh.' I said, 'I'm so sorry.' I just realized what I was saying, who I was talking to, and I said, 'I'm so sorry. Let me rephrase. Please let me rephrase.' I said, 'I don't agree. You are right. I don't understand. Help me understand.' And then I felt good again on the inside.

Beloved, that is the attitude that we must have. I say, 'Lord, I'm not even sure I agree with all of this stuff. I know you're the sovereign of all the nations, but I know you're good. I know you're righteous. I wouldn't do it that way if I was you, and I'm not you. You're you, but you know what? I'm wrong. Help me understand. Help me know your ways.'"

What passage disgusted him? Was it one of the many inhumane passages in the Bible? Did a passage about genocide or slavery or honor killing awaken his empathy? I don't know. Whatever passage it was, it triggered such strong emotion in him that he raged against his own holy book, if only for a moment.

I wish I could have told him, Stuart, that anger that shook you? That was your empathy speaking. Listen to it. It's part of what makes you human. You were outraged for a reason.

For those of us who oppose fundamentalism and value social justice, empathy is vital. We must cultivate it in ourselves and others, for it is a strong tool for dismantling oppressive systems. We must help fundamentalists listen to the voice of their own empathy instead of stuffing it down.

OneThing 2015: Mike Bickle and Fear

To read about Stuart Greaves at OneThing 2015, click here.

The International House of Prayer (IHOP) hosted its annual OneThing conference on December 28-31 at the Kansas City Convention Center in Kansas City, Missouri. (More here and here.) IHOP director Mike Bickle delivered a December 30th talk entitled "Being Strengthened to Stand in Victory in the End Times", in which he warned worshipers that they were living in a "dangerous generation". Bickle instructed listeners not to be afraid during the chaos to come, only to devote much of his talk to paranoia.

Mike Bickle began his talk by citing Luke 21, claiming that the passage described this time in history. The people of this era are part of "a very glorious but very dangerous generation", he argued. Nations will be in distress and people will be afraid during this generation, but salvation will be very close. Spiritual dangers will be more intense than physical dangers if people drift away from Jesus during this time, he claimed. At the 2:48 mark, Bickle described what was allegedly to come.

"The enemy will rage, man will sin, but the Lord will overrule it all to bring his church to the greatest place of victory and power of any time of history, even far beyond what happened in the book of Acts."

At the 9:42 mark, he admitted that it was only his opinion that the current generation was the End Times generation described in Luke 21. In spite of this, he impressed upon the audience the importance of warning the next generation about impending End Times crises.

"It's my opinion [that] we're in the early days of that generation right now. I believe that Luke 21 is talking about events that some of you in this room will see in your lifetime, in the fullness of them ... It may be your children. Maybe it's their children, I don't know. Nobody knows the day or the hour. It could go longer, it could stretch out a little bit, or it could speed up, but either way it goes, it's not too early to start paying attention to these kind of passages from the lips of Jesus. ...

I don't know that I will see the fullness of it in my day. I'm sixty years old. I might, I might not. But I know one thing. I'm pouring out all of my life, strength and energy to prepare a generation in understanding to prepare the generation after them in understanding so they're not surprised by the escalation of negative crisis and they're participating with the Lord in the great harvest and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit in the End Times."

Bickle reminded listeners not to be afraid at the 6:02 mark, insisting that God would be with them during the chaos.

"Millions and millions of people will be overcome in fear as the distress of the nations increases. The problem is, many believers will be among those overcome with fear. And the Lords heart is, 'I don't want my people surprised. I don't want you losing perspective. I'm leading this whole plan! I'm the king! I'm the bridegroom king! You are my beloved bride. I am with you. Don't be afraid. I am leading the nations.'"

After urging his followers not to be afraid, Bickle proceeded to instill fear in the audience for the rest of his talk. As the "crisis in nations" intensifies, people will self-medicate with "immorality" and "drunkenness", he claimed. After reading a Bible passage about the distress of nations, he insisted that the world was about to plunge into a downward spiral at the 20:27 mark.

"This is not a distress like all the other nations. This isn't like--you know, there's five years of difficulty, then we go back to normal. We are never going back to how it was in the 1980s and 1990s. The world is going to get darker and darker and more hostile to the gospel."

Again, Bickle warned that fear and "internal defilement and confusion" would be dangerous in the coming dark times. At the 21:14 mark, he had this to say.

"Fear is dangerous because it will make people respond to Jesus' leadership in a really inappropriate way. When even sincere believers are overcome with fear ... they won't respond. They will be unresponsive to the Lord. And Jesus is saying that's not good. 'I am your only hope. I am the king of the nations.'"

2015 was a year of "seismic shifts" into darkness, he said, recycling some of the same fear-mongering claims he used at OneThing 2014. Predictably, Bickle blasted the "gay agenda", claiming that legalization of same-sex marriage in the U.S. was one of the events helping darkness escalate in the world. At the 31:22 mark, he claimed that June 26th, 2015 was a "day of infamy". (If that sounds familiar, it should.)

"Crisis event number one that I want to highlight [is] the Supreme Court decision to legalize gay marriage. That will go down as a day of infamy, one of the most disastrous, dangerous, destructive decisions in America's history ... Why do we care about what somebody does in the privacy of their bedroom? That's not what I'm concerned with, what someone does in the privacy of their bedroom. That's not at all what I'm focused on.

This decision, June 26th ... it will be one of the most significant dates in America's history for negative. Immorality was institutionalized in America. What do I mean by that? Because of that one decision, our entire culture and out legal system will demand by law, from that day forward, that the gay agenda is systematically presented in all the elementary schools across the nation, year by year. That's unbelievable! The negative consequences of that in ten to twenty years! Millions of seven and eight year-old boys and girls being presented with ideas that are normalized to them, that will cause emotional and sexual chaos to explode in our nation in the next ten to twenty years."

Bickle also disapproved LGBTQ progress in Scandinavia, depicting LGBTQ messages as toxic for children. "That will be in America before long, minus a miracle intervention of God," he warned.

Of course, Bickle denied that he was a hateful man, insisting that he loved gays at the 32:46 mark.

"I have a heart for people that are struggling in the issue of identity and gay agenda and all this. I have tremendous compassion and love for people that are gay. Tremendous love. I'm not talking about them. I'm [inaudible] embrace them and love them. I want them a part of what I'm doing. I want to know them and understand and talk with them. I want to show them the love of God and the way out of the confusion."

Yeah, you love them as long as they wallow in self-hatred, I thought. If LGBTQ people demand equality, then they're part of some evil agenda.

At the 35:50 mark, Bickle recycled another warning from OneThing 2014: outlandish claims of impending Christian persecution. Christians will be harshly penalized for their faith and will even have their children taken away, he ranted.

"The laws are being added, multiplied quickly that if you stand for God's word, what is says about marriage and sexuality and truth, it will be a hate crime with severe penalties, and those laws, they are just whispering right now. They're just slipping out of the gate. Ten years from now, without a major intervention ... they will criminalize believing and telling your five year-old that Jesus is the only way to heaven and there is a real hell, and there really are biblical values. Parents will actually lose their children, taken by state agencies for abusing their children by by teaching those doctrines. That's where this is going."

At the 36:54 mark, he tried to instill more fear in the audience by claiming that an impending economic crisis would trigger "chaos in the cities".

"The economic crisis. That is such a big subject. Beloved, we are in a place in the nation in 2015 [that is] very different from the crisis of 2008. There is no more bailout plan. Nations are going bankrupt, like Greece, or on the verge of it. Half of the states in America are on the verge of bankruptcy, but they're not legally letting them do it ... When the economic rubber band breaks, the entitlements are going to be withheld. [When] those entitlements are withheld, there will be chaos in the cities of America."

Bickle also denounced the Iran nuclear deal, maintaining that it would launch a "nuclear arms race" in the Middle East, place nuclear weapons in the hands of extremists, and endanger Israel. At the 38:42 mark, he had this to say.

"Terrorist groups, not just ISIS, they will end up with nuclear weapons. With a terrorist agenda, they will force Israel into a preemptive strike mode to save the nation of Israel, and then Israel will be presented in the nations as the aggressor of a world war.

The enemy is fueling anti-semitisim in the nations. And beloved, the people of God that understand the Bible, they're standing with God's purposes for the nation of Israel."

Bickle advised listeners to reject bitterness and the impulse to feel offended about not receiving the honor one deserves, which I found odd. Is there grumbling within IHOP? I wondered.

Now is the "worst hour in history to be bored in your prayer life", he insisted, encouraging attendees to continue praying to God. Christians should not isolate themselves during the impending "local disasters", but should instead bond with others in their communities and listen for God's solutions together. At the 54:50 mark, Bickle ended his talk by reminding listeners to connect with each other and "know the biblical narrative" in the days ahead.

"I don't want to be part of the confusion of that hour of history. I want to be with people that are part of the solution. I don't want to be a people overwhelmed with fear and confusion and offense. -- 'I thought you were a God of love! How dare you let this get to this place, God in the nations!' -- Many believers will be contributing to the confusion in the decades ahead. -- 'I don't know! I'm freaked out! Ahhh! Somebody help me!' -- I appreciate all that, but I want to be with people who can be part of the solution. I want to come and help people. I want to raise up young people that know how to stay connected to the Lord, connected to each other. They know the biblical narrative. They know what's happening. They're not retreating in fear."

Like so many of his Religious Right brethren, Bickle uses fear to steer his followers. Be afraid of the impending End Times! Be afraid of gays! Be afraid of economic collapse! Be afraid of terrorists with nukes! But pray and live as we say, and you'll be okay! Despite his admonishments to followers not to give in to fear, his talk was heavily laden with fearful warnings. As much as he projected fear onto future panicky bystanders and inadequate Christians, his own speech brimmed with fear.

I suspect that this fear is meant to keep followers close to IHOP. If young worshipers are fearful of external dangers and their own "internal defilement", they will cling to IHOP so as to avoid catastrophe.

The problem is, those catastrophes aren't coming. Gays aren't spoiling America. Economic collapse is not imminent. Jackbooted thugs aren't arresting Christians. Israel isn't going anywhere. The End Times aren't approaching. IHOP's followers must realize this. I hope they can rise above the fear that preachers are trying so desperately to instill in them.

News Tidbits

Kansas City Star: Thousands seeking renewal arrive in Kansas City for International House of Prayer conference

Kansas City Star: Photo gallery: International House of Prayer conference

Washington Post: Ted Cruz huddles with faith leaders at ranch of super PAC donor

Religion News Service: Ed Dobson, retired pastor and onetime Moral Majority leader, dies at 65

Talking Points Memo: Longtime Duggar Ally Mike Huckabee Says He Never Supported Son Josh

In Touch Weekly: Civil Lawsuit Against Josh Duggar May Lead to Prison Stint 

Charisma Warns Readers About the "Witchcraft Season"

Charisma, the New Apostolic Reformation magazine that warned us about smelly demons, transgender ghosts, succubi, and Jezebel, is at it again. As Halloween approaches, one of its contributors is warning Christians about witchcraft.

Jennifer LeClaire penned an October 11th commentary piece for Charisma News on the "witchcraft season" entitled "5 Clear Signs Witchcraft Is Attacking You Right Now". Witchcraft, she argues, clouds the minds of its targets, distracts them from Jesus, and leaves them vulnerable to Satan's "vain imaginations".

According to LeClair, autumn is an ominous time of year when supernatural influences compel people to "start attacking and accusing you for no reason, rebelling against authority, and otherwise walking in the flesh." The column describes witchcraft as an infernal power drawn from evil spirits, calling it "one of the powers in the hierarchy of demons Paul listed in Ephesians 6:12".

LeClair lists five symptoms of witchcraft attacks, including lack of focus, the urge to be alone, a sense of self-pity or worthlessness, depression, and "confusion" (questioning oneself, questioning leaders, questioning one's faith, and forgetfulness). First, most of the symptoms she describes are textbook symptoms of depression. Readers suffering from these symptoms would find a visit to their doctor more beneficial than LeClair's superstitious nonsense. Second, these symptoms can also be normal reactions to stress. Readers experiencing these symptoms would gain more from rest and relaxation than from reading the rant of a demon-obsessed fundamentalist. LeClair's column appears to be yet another fundamentalist attempt to cast mental health issues as spiritual maladies, rather than physical or psychological illnesses.

It's revealing that LeClair sees existential doubt, as well as a willingness to ask uncomfortable questions about one's leaders and faith, as the result of infernal influences. In her belief system, Christians must fearfully suppress any doubts about their path in life, rather than follow those doubts wherever they lead. A superstitious belief system won't last very long if its adherents honestly listen to their minds and hearts.

Oddly LeClair never explains who is supposedly deploying witchcraft against hapless believers. Where are all these alleged witches? Where are their demonic patrons? Why would witches waste their time and magical power tormenting Christians? Why would demons teach witches how to inflict depression on enemies rather than something more spectacular, like leprosy, locusts swarms, or lightning bolts?

As usual, Charisma is reinforcing the faith of its readers with superstition and fear. Rather than encourage readers to cultivate introspection and self-awareness, it presses them to attribute problems to imaginary monsters. Charisma's childish messages would be hilarious if not for the fact that some people take this nonsense seriously.

Anti-Abortion Activists Protest at Planned Parenthood Clinics Nationwide

Anti-abortion activists came together on Saturday, August 22nd to protest Planned Parenthood. After the Center for Medical Progress released several edited smear videos of Planned Parenthood staff (detailed here), several anti-abortion organizations organized a nationwide protest of the abortion provider. According to the Washington Post, protesters demonstrated at approximately 320 clinics across the U.S., calling for Planned Parenthood to be defunded.

According to the Protest PP website, the demonstrations are meant to show outrage over Planned Parenthood's alleged "harvesting and selling of aborted baby parts". The end goal of such protests is the defunding and closure of Planned Parenthood offices.

"ProtestPP is a coalition of pro-life groups calling for a National Day of Protest on August 22, 2015 at Planned Parenthood facilities all across America. Our goal is to raise awareness of the heartless and even illegal activities of Planned Parenthood by going to where the killing and harvesting of body parts from aborted children takes place. The four main sponsors are: Created Equal, the Pro-Life Action League, 40 Days for Life, and Citizens for a Pro-Life Society.

Creating a presence at neighborhood Planned Parenthood facilities is essential to inform the public about what is going on behind closed doors. Local sidewalk counselors and activists are a key component to shutting down Planned Parenthood in the long term.

The National Day of Protest will strengthen local efforts by raising their profile with the local press, the community and other pro-life activists. Together, the protests held on August 22 will put pressure on the media, both local and national, to report the truth about Planned Parenthood, and on government officials to stop funding this discredited organization."

Family Research Council, one of the co-sponsors of #ProtestPP, blasted Planned Parenthood in a recent press release. Arina Grossu, Family Research Council’s Director of the Center for Human Dignity, insisted that the protests were meant to support women and denounce "human rights abuses".

"We must to stand against the scandal-plagued Planned Parenthood on behalf of women and children who have been hurt by them and hold them accountable for all of the horrific practices they do behind closed doors. Each of us can stand up against the horrific human rights abuses going on in our midst. When Congress returns in September, they must redirect taxpayer money from Planned Parenthood to the thousands of health care centers that don’t perform abortions and are not under federal and state investigation..."

Several Religious Right figures took part in the August 22nd protests. For instance, Bethlehem College & Seminary chancellor John Piper took part in a protest in St. Paul, Minnesota "to say to Planned Parenthood that killing children is not an acceptable response to crisis pregnancies". In a commentary piece at Desiring God, Piper praised his fellow Christians for attending the protest.

"The gathering this morning was explicitly Christian. The name of Jesus and his Lordship were on the lips of the leaders. We sang praises to God and to the Victor, Jesus Christ. This is a beautiful thing — that the public stand for justice for the weakest in our society would be carried by the followers of Christ. We have a great salvation, and that this would be one of the fruits is wonderful.

It is no secret that the Roman Catholic Church has been the religious backbone of the prolife movement for forty years. I thank God for this persevering clarity on the reality and dignity of unborn human life. I am not a Roman Catholic, but happily stood with them in this common cause of justice for the unborn. When the time comes, we will have our knock-down, drag-out arguments over the sacrificial Mass, baptismal regeneration, and the precious doctrine of justification by faith alone. But each thing in its own season. This morning the issue was this: God’s is weaving human life in the womb in his image; don’t kill what he is creating."

New Apostolic Reformation leader Jim Garlow (pastor of Skyline Wesleyan Church in La Mesa, California) spoke at at anti-abortion protest in San Diego, California. Tastelessly, he compared Planned Parenthood to the Holocaust and ISIS at the beginning of the video.

"[Inaudible] Jewish Holocaust survivors--when you hear the stories of what they went through, it wouldn't occur to you that it could possibly--seventy years later, we find ourselves with two manifestations of this horrible dismemberment of humanity. Now refer to that what is happening across the Middle East. We have two modern day representations of that kind of hatred. ISIS and other related jihadist groups. We read the reports and we're in shock that people could do this to other people, and Planned Parenthood is the other one, right here globally doing the same kinds of things to humanity that ISIS does as well."

Garlow sneered at claims that Planned Parenthood performs valuable services, likening the organization to Adolph Hitler at the 2:50 mark.

"Some say, 'oh, Planned Parenthood does some good'. So did Hitler! He built the Autobahn and created the Volkswagen, but that's not enough for six million Jews who died. They never got a chance to use those roads. They never could drive those cars. Don't give me the line 'you do some good' when you're murdering babies right in our communities."

At the 3:42 mark, Garlow complained that Planned Parenthood has supposedly forced abortions on the population, just as LGBTQ rights advocates supposedly forced same-sex marriage on the U.S.

"Some use the "optional" argument. They say, 'well, the fact is we have abortion, but we don't force it on you'. That's the line they used on same-sex marriage. Now they've forced it on all of us. The fact is, they have forced abortion on all of us."

This weekend's protests showed us that the anti-abortion movement is energizing its followers and stoking their rage. Now that the movement is organized and angry, we can expect an uptick in anti-choice activism. Is the pro-choice movement ready to push back?