Chuck O’Neal, Beaverton Grace Bible Church, Jeff Rose, Dr. Edward Delcour, Mike Gendron, Mike Stockwell, and Robert Gray, Evangelism Reformation Conference, Reformation Fire Conference
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I don’t have a problem with those tweets. On the surface, they are fine. But even false teachers get things right. The Bible tells us:
For certain individuals whose condemnation was written about long ago have secretly slipped in among you. They are ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into a license for immorality and deny Jesus Christ our only Sovereign and Lord. Jude 1:4
I haven’t done a post on my ex-pastor for quite a while, but I’ve been disturbed lately to see that he has found a niche with people who agree with him on evangelism, yet probably do not have a clue about his background.
I discovered after the fact that Chuck O’Neal had joined with Voddie Baucham, Scott Brown, Mark Spence, Dr. Jason Lisle, Â Jeff Rose, Ben Seewald, Jeff Pollard at the Evangelism Reformation Conference in Texas in June 2017.
This was the only tweet that I found from O’Neal on his Twitter timeline about the conference. He’s known to post many tweets to upcoming events, so it’s odd that he only did one tweet before the event.
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However, looking through his Twitter timeline, it appears that Chuck O’Neal and his church, Beaverton Grace Bible Church, is also sponsoring/hosting and speaking at a conference with speakers in August 2017.
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Why do I even care about what Chuck O’Neal does? Why don’t I just move on? Why does it matter to me?
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The $500,000 lawsuit he filed against me was dismissed about 5 years ago. It matters to me as much today as it did when I posted my first negative Google review about him many years ago. He portrays himself as a godly man, likable, committed Christian, etc, but beneath that facade, he is a fraud. More than that, he is a wolf who devours. Those were the words I used when he took me to court years ago. But nothing has changed.
I care because while he is finding his fairly new niche in the broader evangelism community by making friends on social media and then connecting, these people with whom he meets and speaks do not sit in his pews. They do not see his behavior on a weekly basis. They do not see how he treats people in his church and people who have left his church.
It’s easy to say, “Oh, yea, I know him, he’s a great guy” when you only know him based on evangelism or pro-life connections, but that is not who this man really is.
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I’m sure that most do not have any idea that while he is currently “evangelizing” and speaking on evangelizing, he has anti-evangelized for over a decade and people have been left bruised, battered, and some have even abandoned their faith due to his abusive leadership.
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To those who have worked with O’Neal in evangelism or pro-life efforts, please be advised that when you endorse this man, fellowship with him, speak with him, you are endorsing a false teacher and a wolf. If you recommend Chuck O’Neal to someone who is looking for a church in the Portland area, you are sending people into the arms of one who spiritually harms people.
I get it. You think I’m nuts because Chuck O’Neal is so nice, wouldn’t hurt a fly, has nothing but the love of God in him. I know how he presents himself. That’s what I thought when my family started attending his church. Some who read this will doubt me. I understand that. However, after reading this post, and looking at the links, you cannot deny that the behavior described is troubling. It’s not enough for you to ask Chuck O’Neal about my claims. Obviously a wolf is going to speak strongly against anyone who exposes him. He has a whole website against me to convince you that I’m the one who is wrong and he uses all sorts of “proof” that I am evil and not to be trusted. That is foolish.
If you care about the Gospel, care about families, care about the spiritual health of people, please do due diligence and do your homework on this man.
What’s disturbing to me is this man has been able to pull the wool over so many men’s eyes. Have they done due diligence in investigating O’Neal or his history? All it takes is a simple Google search to see that there are many issues with Chuck O’Neal that show up on the internet. Has any of the people he is teaming with chosen to reach out to his victims? No one has contacted me. My contact information is pretty easy to find on Twitter, Facebook, blog, etc. If you would like to speak/connect with people who have been harmed by Chuck O’Neal, I can give you references.
Do they realize that:
- he sued me and 4 others for defamation in a $500,000 lawsuit which was completely dismissed by the judge?
- that numerous people, including pastors at John Mac Arthur’s Grace Community Church, Â advised him to withdraw the lawsuit, but he refused.
- the lawsuit was not about me, it was the bully method of a pastor trying to intimidate and control the narrative by legal measures. This is a form of the no-talk rule which is commonly used by abusive pastors. When is it acceptable for a pastor to control conversations?
- his ministerial license was revoked by the same group who administered it (I can provide names and contact information of longtime godly pastors who licensed him years ago, and then revoked the license).
- he organized and condoned his church placing business cards on the windshields at a church where his former congregants now attended. These cards were expressing his angst against me and Meaghan (whom he sued). Â He also condoned and endorsed people from his church passing out the cards as they “evangelized,” or placed on windshields of cars at malls.
- he recorded private conversations without permission and played the conversations to others who were not present.
- he also kept personal files on congregants.
- he has broken up numerous families by shunning, leaving grandparents, aunts/uncles unable to see their brothers, sisters, nieces, nephews, grandchildren for over a decade?
- he taught from the pulpit that parents can and should spank their adult children if need be.
- he preached against youth groups, yet the youth met regularly without much oversight of adults, and got into trouble
- he baptized youth who clearly were unrepentant and wayward just for show
- he purchased domain names similar to the name of an ex-congregant in order to “phish” traffic to your site he can spread gossip about ex-members he sued? Â Chuck O’Neal
- he told his congregants it’s improper to wear shorts that don’t go down to the knee, or that women shouldn’t wear manly-colored clothes like black, brown, gray, and men shouldn’t wear pink?
- he challenges and disrespects governmental authorities when they politely ask him to move to the side of the road.
- he usurps parent’s responsibility in raising and disciplining their children by having his own meetings with children caught in sin – meetings sometimes as long as 5 hours.
- he has encouraged shunning for years. If you leave the church, he conveys to the congregation that you were in some sort of church discipline (completely ignoring the church bylaws on church discipline). Many people who left the church on their own were later found out that Chuck O’Neal had “excommunicated” them. He hadn’t informed them of this, but this is what congregants later told them. Congregants were told to never have any contact with those who had left, or they too would be put on the shun list (Mark and Avoid list). I have personal accounts of this “church discipline” shunning practice used as a spiritual weapon by Chuck O’Neal going back at least 15 years. Here is only one story. I know of many others. In Chuck O’Neal’s church, you cannot leave well unless you are moving out of the area for work, etc.
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Special note to Jeff Rose, Dr. Edward Delcour, Mike Gendron, Mike Stockwell, and Robert Gray, who are schedule to speak with Chuck O’Neal at his church, Beaverton Grace Bible Church, on August 18-22, 2017:
Gentlemen, I would like to reiterate that I am happy to provide contact information to back up anything I mention in this post. My sole purpose is to alert you that Chuck O’Neal should not be standing behind any pulpit preaching, teaching, or speaking. Why do I do this? Because I have seen the harm done in my personal family and many other families. It is devastating. Please, please, do your due diligence! And ironically, I urge you to please do what Chuck O’Neal suggests in the tweets at the beginning of this blog post.
Spiritual Sounding Board 
Keep knocking on the door to find justice as the widow did. If his behavior was wrong one day later, it still is five years later. It has been two years since my former minister sued four of us and he still continues unrepentant in the pulpit. Most have moved on, others in the ministry are beginning to publicly support him, and those of us who still speak out are considered unforgiving, angry “crazy” people who won’t move on while he continues in church leadership deceiving the flock. Keep knocking on the door at midnight even if it wakes up the neighborhood…. remain faithful.
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Bummer. Julie Anne, I think the fellowship, camaraderie, accountability, life-sharing, etc., that is expected or at least presumed to exist between participants in events like this is simply a presumptive fantasy. So, I don’t think there is very much vetting out of whom one shares the platform with…
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L Ron Hubbard also presented himself well.
As did many serial rapists and serial killers who were “so nice, wouldn’t hurt a fly, etc.”
I find it funny that “Chuck O Neal”s initials can spell “CON”.
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The same fellowship and camaraderie you found among Politboro members atop Lenin’s Tomb on May Day. And before that, the Liberte, Egalite, Fraternite among the Dantonists, Hebertists, and Jacobins. And before that, between Pompey, Caesar, and Crassus.
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You’re exactly right, isitenough15. All of us who have left are known as The Revilers. What’s “interesting” is that those who leave after us always question the use of that word once they meet us and compare notes. đŸ™‚
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Julie Anne: You said, broader evangelism community.
I would suggest that it is likely O ‘Neal is connecting with those of like-mindedness as himself. In other words, they will not be impressed with the details about C.O. that you have presented here. It’s all justifiable in Fundamentalist quarters of Christianity. That’s just my take on it. Color me skeptical and cynical when it comes to Christian leaders, especially in current Neo-Calvinist ranks.
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Ken Garrett: I would posit that the fellowship and camaraderie between the speakers at this conference is First and Foremost based on compatible theology, namely Calvinism. And having correct doctrine, or as HUG likes to say, “perfectly parsed doctrine” – is far more important than how one behaves as a Christian. After all, all sins Past/Present/Future are already forgiven – AND if you deem yourself one of the Elect of God, then the forces come together in a Perfect Storm of plausible deniability, sin leveling, and no accountability for one’s behavior, especially if Pastor precedes your name.
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Oh Darlene, I can’t help it. I have to keep some hope that one of these folks is willing to be responsible. I’ve done my part. I can sleep tonight. If they can sleep well after having been notified of this information and not doing anything about it, then it’s between God and them.
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I’ve never heard of that guy but he sounds nuts!! You’re very brave to speak out against him and others like him, especially since he fired back with both barrels. Good for you not backing down!!
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If it weren’t for Chuck O’Neal, this blog would not be here!
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Chuck O’Neal and Lori Alexander are alike in taking their fellow Christians to court despite what the Bible says. (Lori didn’t actually do it, but she certainly contemplated it.)
But it’s amazing how ignorant they are about legal issues! There’s no law against posting 1 star reviews online. They have those ratings and reviews for a reason. Chuck’s lawyer was pretty ignorant to even take the case.
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Actually, they all were ignorant. The first one I believe was fired. The next attorneys certainly cost a pretty penny. He hired an attorney familiar with cyber laws from California who was not licensed to practice in OR, so he had to hire another Oregon attorney to work with him.
Meanwhile, my attorney looked at the original complaint and without batting an eye told me that she would take the case and that we would win.
One thing to note: he sued 3 mothers and 2 adult children. One of the last things I heard from Chuck was telling a husband to get control of his wife. It made me so happy that a very short/petite female attorney won the case like a boss!
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Also remember that CON wouldn’t meet with a female news reporter from Willamette Week because he can’t meet with women other than his wife. Either it’s the Billy Graham rule or he can’t control himself around another woman. Personally, I think it’s unprofessional and I think he was afraid to meet with that reporter because WW can do some fine reporting and who knows what he would have spilled?
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Kathi, I’m not buying that excuse of CON’s not meeting with the female reporter. Rather, I think his misogynist views about women prevented him from meeting with her. In that Fundamentalist camp to which CON belongs, that female reporter had no business working in that profession. All women are supposed to be at home raising children. Remember how he dismissed the female cop who told him he couldn’t be preaching at a certain venue because he was blocking traffic and interfering with other people’s rights? To me, he appears to be an arrogant man especially when it comes to women.
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I’m so glad you did this post. I was just thinking of this recently! That I’ve noticed CON is participating in the “evangelism conference circuit” but– do the other evangelists know his backstory? Good to see you address them (the ‘gentlemen’) also in your article. This is honesty and truth; qualities evangelists claim to value.
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I think this is part of the “professional clergy” culture. Just as policemen protect their own. It would take more than spiritual abuse to kick someone out of the club. Even Tullian is not entirely out. First they tried to give him a professional non-ministry role, and now it seems he’s packed his bag to find a church that will gloss over his past.
Think about this, there’s really no cultural downside to protecting your own. They can kick him out of the club anytime they want, but it’s risky to take that stand. Maybe it creates a rift in the club and now half of the club thinks that pastor is unforgiving and ungracious, while the other half pats him on the back. His approval rating took a big hit, and now he doesn’t get invited to the same conferences or get the same book deals. The members of the congregation divide along the same lines. Some are there for the pastor, but some are there because there’s some association with the pastor they really admire, so they join the church across town that’s more gracious and forgiving.
Remember Nicodemus visited Jesus under cover of night. He was afraid of getting kicked out of the club. The religious leaders that believed Jesus did so in secret and held their tongues. Staying in the club was more compelling than standing up for the truth.
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“Chuck’s lawyer was pretty ignorant to even take the case.”
Lawyers will take your money and represent you whether they think you will win or not, even some on strict contingency. It’s a lottery and they never know how the jury will rule. With jury selection rules, lawyers kick all the people off the jury that they think are going to logical and rational and try to replace them with jurors that are swayed by emotion.
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I also understand both sides of the leaving issue. People leave the church all the time and usually, members don’t even ask. When members ask, they get one side of the story – the side of the leaders, because the family is usually gone. In this case, the leaders are never going to admit any fault – if they had admitted fault and repented, the families wouldn’t have left. Instead, there is some blame – they had poor theology, they couldn’t hack the homey feel and went for a megachurch, they were never really part of us, etc.
When I left, my wife still attended for awhile and people would ask her. She and I agreed that she would just tell them to ask me. No one asked me. I met with a couple of leaders who had refined their story (they got sick of listening to me complain all the time), so I assume that’s what everyone thinks.
In fact, when I was young, the message was so consistent that we just assumed that silence meant that there was something bad that happened and the leaders were graciously silent so as not to drag their name through the mud. If they left for “honorable” reasons, it was communicated clearly why they left.
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I remember reading comments from attorneys at the time that they would have reported him to the ethics board (or equivalent) within the attorney community for taking this case.
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That says a lot!
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I agree with Darlene. Would hazard a guess that a strikingly high percentage of Christian celebrities on the conference circuit are very much like Mr. O’Neal and would sneer at any do-gooder’s attempts to inform them of anything. There is an enormous percentage of pastors who are NPDs with no discernible conscience (see recent academic studies on the subject, the propensity for NPD among the pastorate is something like 500% to 1,000% higher than the population at large, depending on the age grou of the pastor, and a high percentage of this group are in turn sadists. So I’m sure a number of people with whom he would speak behind the scenes would love to hear the many ways in which he destroyed a few hundred pew peons and would get a good cuckle out of it.
I’m sure there are some whose consciences haven’t been completely seared who might have a heart change upon hearing the truth, and surely not all people who seek the limelight of modern Christian celebrity are either conscienceless or sadistic, but I fear most who reach that level are probably too sold out to their own celebrity and income stream to take a stand. Francis Chan (a person with whom I still have issues but must admit he seems to be getting some things right and seeing what’s transpiring) is the exception, not the rule.
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Just curious do those other preachers you mentioned do they even care? Or do they operate in a similar fashion ?
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Julie Anne,
Is this the same Chuck?
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Thad, Chuck O’Neal is the same guy who sued me.
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Thanks, Julie Anne…I think I’ve come across him on websites and YT. Bad news!!
Controlling and subjugating, and hangs about with an equally obnoxious character – who poses as a Christian – Tony Miano (whom I’ve met in the UK)
I’ll be praying for you, Julie Anne.
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He is a case to be sure. And yes, it is all about control for him.
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I contacted his site, after watching you on the Young Turks video, and just quoted from 1 Corinthians 6:1-11, about Christians suing Christians and that it was wrong. There is NO connection between my comments or this site. He has my e-mail and I’m happy to explain my Scripture, with no reference to anyone else. I’m happy to send to a copy, which doesn’t implicate you at ANY level.
I watched his videos which, interestingly, doesn’t allow comments. My background is both Psychiatry and Psychology, and I thought his bullying was terrible, especially outside abortion clinics. I though the young guy, with the black jacket, had a much kinder approach – who appears to have not been a Christian. I guess O’Neal’s “6 years in the Marines” carries some weight for HIM, but didn’t seem to impress anyone else. His approach, like Tony Miano’s (which I’ve mentioned to him, when he was in the UK) is about bullying and emotionally blackmailing people into Heaven.Emotional guilt isn’t, and never was, part of the witnessing/evangelism approach…unless I’ve missed something. In the video, you did a really great job of standing your ground. You should be proud of yourself!!
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Thad, there was a continual stream of new people going in the front door to check out this charismatic pastor, meanwhile others were leaving out the back door because they saw who he really was. When I was sued, I had no idea he had a pile of spiritually abused former congregants from 10 years before our family arrived. Many of them reached out to me when my story went viral. He will have to answer to God for that.
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I forgot to add. Many people brought up the I Corinthians passage. He was fully convinced it didn’t apply in this case and he wrote up a 19-page diatribe justifying why he could biblically sue me.
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I love the Young Turks video. It’s interesting how secular news could see him plainly as a bully.
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I guess his 19 page diatribe trumps God’s Word,..that says it all!!
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I’ve been involved in witnesses to cult members for almost 40 years. When people think of shunning and control, they tend to think of Scientology and Jehovah’s Witnesses. It happens so often in churches, with narcissistic, manipulative leaders.
A great book on the subject is:
Terror, Love and Brainwashing: Attachment in Cults and Totalitarian Systems
By Alexandra Stein
I know there are so many books available, but this is a book that looks not just at the clinical and social but the idea of ‘group think’ and organisational control…shunning, isolation, shaming, guilt, ostracising, rejection…
You’re very nice to talk to. I hope all this nonsense hasn’t created too many problems for you, in the long term.
I wonder how it’s affected your faith, Julie Anne.
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