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Yesterday, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary (SEBTS) recently had CJ Mahaney speak at a conference they held yesterday. Here is a tweet that SEBT sent out yesterday quoting CJ:
If the mainstream media knows about the story of CJ Mahaney and the lawsuit, you can be sure that SEBTS was very aware of what has been brewing for the last several years: Suit accuses Sovereign Grace Ministries of covering up alleged child sexual abuse
By Michelle Boorstein,January 14, 2013
A Montgomery County Circuit Court lawsuit accuses past and current leaders of a 100-church evangelical denomination of covering up sexual abuse of minors, forcing small children to “forgive” abusers and ostracizing families who wouldn’t hide the alleged crimes. (Read more from Washington Post article here.)
And this tweet has got to sting the victims in the lawsuit:
Ouch! We heard about how the victims were ministered to.
I am very upset that SEBTS elected to give this man a platform to speak. We’re not talking about one incident. We are talking many, many incidences, years of cover-ups, blackmail, crimes unreported, abuse of authority, etc.
Now as to this very bold tweet: “Those to whom you are preaching or teaching are not just studying your words, but they are studying your life”
You bet your sweet bippy we are studying CJ’s words and life. Not only that, we will be watching SEBTS to see who they have speak. Remaining silent about abuse is a choice. People who remain silent are complicit.
Oh, by the way, lest you think these guys don’t read blogs. I went to look up CJ’s speaking schedule. I tried to find it via Google as I had done before and couldn’t find it. Then I remembered I had posted the link in the comments of an earlier article. Here is the screen shot showing that comment:
Well, guess what? CJ’s speaking schedule is gone. G.O.N.E.!! In my best Gomer Pyle voice:
Well, I’llllllllllll be!
Now why would they remove CJ’s speaking schedule? Hmmmm Do you find it interesting that I posted his speaking schedule, forwarded the information to Dee and Deb of The Wartburg Blog who posted it and then it disappeared? Keep sounding the bullhorn, people. We’re making them squirm (and remove speaking schedules off the internet).
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Spiritual Sounding Board 
So, I guess BLOGGERS are an interruption to their “ministry”! 😉
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I guess so, Muckraker. Wouldn’t it have been much easier to just fess up and be done with it? It didn’t need to go to court. There were two blogs publicly discussing all of this stuff for 4 years before the lawsuit came out. They could and should have done something then. Here’s another example of a church being so proud (while proclaiming they are so humble), that they are now going to waste thousands of dollars of church members’ tithes to pay for defending themselves in the lawsuit.
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You know, I read Mahaney tweets like that, and I have to wonder: is he really that tone deaf/devoid of a sense of irony? Or does he get some kind of schadenfreude out of deliberately rubbing sanctimonious BS in people’s faces like that? Either way, keep up the good work on the blog… “nothing is whispered in secret that won’t be shouted from the rooftops.”
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Very interesting…has CJ been removed from the upcoming Gospel Coalition event?
I’ve been catching some flak from some readers(privately) about my reference to Gospel Coalition in my latest blog post. I’ve been asked to clarify why I have taken issue with them over the past year.
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Welcome, Ryan 🙂 I love that word “schadenfreude.” I just want to say it over and over again: schadenfreude, schadenfreude, schadenfreude!!!! lol
Did SEBTS and Daniel Akin have their heads in the sand regarding the Boy Scouts case . . . . or the Penn State case . . . . . or the Catholic priests cases . . . . . really????? Do they not understand that this is the level of crime we are talking about? It is mind boggling. Denial is deep in these circles!
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natalie – I haven’t heard anything about CJ not speaking at upcoming TGC events. I believe SGM just removed the PUBLIC calendar from their website. I think they don’t want us bloggers to know about it because we will let our readers know and then our readers may in fact send e-mails about our disgust with them allowing CJ to speak.
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Julie Anne, good to know. I will be linking back to some of your articles in response to those questioning what exactly I take issue with TGC.
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Great – please do! Let’s get this thing exposed! I’m tired of the buddy-buddy thang when they are ignoring the big ol’ elephant right in front of them.
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You betcha I am going to sound a bullhorn! i have put this off for way to long and not listening to the HS, the burden is too great. This is what the book of James calls us as believers to look at- this book by the way is not ABOUT SALVATION (as some would like to pound over the heads over the sheep) people! James is about living the faith so to show others; to be a witness so that we can have intimacy with the Savior! We are to stand for those in need no matter what or where they are. In this case, we have fellow sisters and brothers who need to know that Freedom is in Christ not the church. The church is there to encourage and exhort those in the faith, not abuse. The hope I see is that people are seeing it and the abusers know it! It may not be an easy thing to go up against these jokers, but the Lord is with those who will stand. You can pray for me as I start a Bible study on the subject of Spiritual Abuse. I am not doing it in the church, but putting it out on a bulletin board in a coffee shop- I am a little scared about it, but I know the HS will give me strength.
Been thinking and praying for you Julie Anne.
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trust4himonly: Wow!!! “I am not doing it in the church, but putting it out on a bulletin board in a coffee shop- I am a little scared about it, but I know the HS will give me strength.”
Please let me know if there’s anything I can do to help. What a wonderful idea. Thanks for letting me know. I am going to pray for you and invite my readers to as well. Keep me posted on how it’s going.
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Another word that’s fun to pronounce is the Yiddish word “chutzpah.” Gall, brazen nerve, audacity. In The Joys Of Yiddish: “‘Chutzpah’ is that quality enshrined in a man who, having killed his mother and father, throws himself on the mercy of the court because he is an orphan.”
That “studying your life” remark at a conference certainly applies. Unless, as I’ve said before, Mahaney truly sees himself as leading an exemplary life; he’s just misunderstood by hundreds, maybe thousands, of people. Inferior people, no doubt.
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Julie Anne, the Gospel Coalition website this morning has an article entitled “8 Notes on Counseling Abused Children” by Victor Vieth of Resurgence. Interesting reading….and on Point 6 about Forgiveness there is a pdf file to read.
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Thanks! I’ll check that out. I better give my eyes a warning: they’ll probably be rolling.
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Hey Julie Anne – I will send you an email. Yes, I could use your advice and help. thanks 🙂
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It really depends upon what type of person is potentially getting in CJM’s way.
See, when he says People in the context of the tweet, he means alpha males. I honestly don’t think he looks at females or children of either gender as fully persons. I think people have had their full of covering up CJM and LT and other alpha male misd…crimes.
The Bible says that we are all one body consisting of many parts. I have another fun Yiddish word for you, Schmuck.
It’s Jewish for asshole, now, most respectable people don’t use that word and keep that part covered up but this schmuck is spewing all the time and that spew needs to be taken care of, against regular human nature, the schmuck and his spew need to be exposed, contained, and then and only then can it scuttle for cover.
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I really need to incorporate Schmuck more into my vocabulary. I use it infrequently, but as of today, I’m going to rev it up it a notch or two 🙂
I’ve been stewing more about this Patriarchy thing and how they treat women. I believe you area correct. They are at some sub level of personhood. This is ridiculous.
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Actually, schmuck’s principal meaning is “penis” (from a German word meaning “ornament” or “jewelry”). But it’s used to describe jerks, assholes, SOBs. As a Jew, I would say be a little cautious about using it around Jews. It’s considered to be very vulgar, especially around women and children. Yeah, I know, hypocrisy.
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Funny, Jeff, I was originally going to say dickheads and assholes but stopped short out of decency (I know, go ahead and laugh at that) ‘but I will exercise due caution similarly to being careful with the term bloody hell around Brits, apparently it packs more punch across the pond.
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