Thursday, July 30, 2009

http://www.eveningsun.com/ci_12940359

Pastor prays 'in Jesus' name'

Controversy marked the Rev. Gerry Stoltzfoos' service as the state Senate's guest chaplain.

The Senate floor, bustling seconds before, came to a halt as the Rev. Gerry Stoltzfoos stepped to the podium.

"I am painfully aware that there are many here today who have embraced belief systems other than mine. I am not here to say that everyone ought to believe as I do," Stoltzfoos read slowly from a prepared statement. "But I can only pray to my God. If you believe in some other power, I invite you to address yours as I address mine."

Then, as senators on both sides of the aisle bowed their heads, Stoltzfoos went on to ask God for guidance, grace and forgiveness in a prayer tailored specifically for the work of a Legislature.

But there was another message in the local pastor's prayer, which he delivered Wednesday morning when he served as the state Senate's guest chaplain.

Stoltzfoos - the lead pastor at Freedom Valley Worship Center near Gettysburg - concluded by saying, "For those of us who are Christians, we pray in Jesus' name."

It's a sentence Stoltzfoos could not have uttered on the floor of the state House of Representatives without violating a longstanding policy of the Speaker of the House.

That policy - to ask that guest chaplains deliver "non-denominational, inter-faith" prayers and refrain from referring to specific deities, such as Jesus or Allah - has come under intense scrutiny since Stoltzfoos declined an invitation last month to pray before the House.

Stoltzfoos had been invited by state Rep. Will Tallman, R-Reading


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Township, to open the June 23 session of the House with a prayer. The pastor complied with a request from Speaker of the House Keith McCall's office that he submit the prayer in advance.

But he declined the invitation after being asked to remove the word "Jesus" from the prayer's closing.

Upset by what he saw as a discriminatory policy, Stoltzfoos contacted The Evening Sun suggesting that the issue might be newsworthy. The story set off a firestorm of controversy that spilled onto the pages of major newspapers and the airwaves of conservative talk radio.

On Wednesday, Stoltzfoos said he has been interviewed by reporters 25 times and is about "800 e-mails behind" in answering correspondence from people everywhere interested in the issue.

"This whole thing just gets deeper and more confusing," he said. "I always have the feeling there are issues on the edge of it that I know nothing about."

The pastor also said he has offers from five law firms to represent him in a free-speech lawsuit against the state House of Representatives.

"I don't like the legal fights, and I don't want to do that," he said. "But neither do I want to let an opportunity pass to defend the Constitution - which I really believe in - or to defend my faith."

Stoltzfoos said he is struggling to make a final decision, and he asked state Sen. Rich Alloway, R-Chambersburg, for his advice Wednesday. Alloway - who invited Stoltzfoos to pray before the Senate after reading about the controversy - said he didn't have an opinion one way or the other.

But, he did urge the pastor to contact the Bill O'Reilly Show.

"This is the kind of stuff that he eats up. I love Bill O'Reilly. He's a straight shooter," the senator said.

Alloway also told Stoltzfoos he thought the House policy is a "little ridiculous" and that he believes "government should not be antagonistic toward any religion."

The pastor agreed that it is a free-speech issue and questioned the logic behind the policy.

"Isn't it OK to be in a room with somebody you disagree with?" he asked rhetorically.

Stoltzfoos was also accompanied Wednesday by Tallman and state Rep. Dan Moul, R-Conewago Township. Both representatives have expressed support for the pastor's stance and gave him a tour of the Capitol building following the prayer.

On the House floor, Moul pointed upward to the words "And ye shall know the truth. And the truth shall make you free" printed on the chamber's ceiling.

"It's hard to believe we've got to be non-denominational and we've got Bible verses right on our ceiling," Moul said.

While Stoltzfoos said he has received mostly supportive feedback, McCall has been the target of harsh criticism and even several death threats since the story broke.

In June, a McCall spokesman said the pre-screening policy had been implemented to protect taxpayers from a potential lawsuit - something that has in fact happened in other states.

But on Wednesday, McCall's chief of staff, Paul Parsells, said there was more to the story. Several months ago, another pastor had delivered a prayer with "political" overtones, Parsells said.

"We had somebody give a pretty offensive prayer on the floor. Members were walking off the floor it was that offensive," Parsells said. "It just caught us off guard and offended many members."

That incident prompted the Speaker's office to require prayers in advance from guest chaplains, he said.

But specific deity references have been discouraged by the office for decades, he added.

The pre-screening policy had been in practice for only a few weeks before Stoltzfoos objected and the issue became public. Parsells said McCall's office admits the policy change was a "mistake," given the feedback.

That hasn't stopped the hate mail, however. Parsells said the office has been inundated with correspondence from people calling McCall a "Jesus hater" and suggesting that staff members "burn in hell."

Blogs and radio shows have perpetuated the controversy by not checking the facts, he said.

"It just boggles my mind," Parsells said, adding that the issue has taken a personal toll on many staff members.

Stoltzfoos, who met with McCall on Wednesday, asked that anyone hassling the Speaker's office cease doing so on his behalf. McCall, a Christian, is a "brother in the Lord," he said.

"There's no need to be nasty," Stoltzfoos said. "I don't want to be cruel to anybody."

But, Stoltzfoos added, that he is disappointed McCall has not chosen to rescind the House's longstanding policy against specific deity references.

If he ever is invited again to serve as the House's guest chaplain, that's not something the pastor said he is willing to compromise on.

"If I accept (an) invitation, I will pray in the name of Jesus," Stoltzfoos said. "I'm not trying to make anybody mad. I'm not on a crusade. I'm just trying to quietly stand up for what I believe in."

Wednesday, July 29, 2009

from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/09210/987124-100.stm?cmpid=newspanel4
Pastor prays at state Senate after controversy in House
Wednesday, July 29, 2009

HARRISBURG -- A Gettysburg clergyman said a prayer before a state legislative chamber today and things went a lot smoother than his first try a month ago.

The Rev. Gerry Stoltzfoos opened today's Senate session with a prayer, and, as most Christian pastors do, ended it with "We pray in Jesus' name, amen."

Last month, state House officials asked him to use a "non-denominational" prayer that didn't include the name of Jesus, and under that restriction, Mr. Stoltzfoos chose not to say the prayer at all. When word got out, it created a religious fire storm in cyberspace.

The pastor of the Freedom Valley Worship Center had been invited to do the opening prayer in the House by Rep. Will Tallman, R-Adams, a member of his congregation. After he decided not to give a Jesus-less prayer, Mr. Stoltzfoos was invited to pray before the Senate by Sen. Richard Alloway, R-Adams.

"You've become a celebrity," Mr. Alloway told him today. Mr. Alloway said he thought that it was "a little ridiculous" to tell a Christian pastor not to mention the name of Jesus.

He said he asked Senate officials, "Do we have a policy like that?" and was told the Senate has a more diverse approach to opening prayers. The chamber has recently invited leaders from a variety of religious faiths, including Muslim, Unitarian, Buddhist and Sikh, along with the more traditional Christian and Jewish clergy.

"We want diversity, but we don't want to regulate speech," said Drew Crompton, legal counsel to Senate President Pro Tem Joe Scarnati of Jefferson.

Mr. Stoltzfoos said the same prayer in the Senate that he'd planned to give in the House, but with two tweaks. He added a "preamble," which read:

"I am painfully aware that there are many here today who have embraced belief systems other than mine. I am not here to say that everyone ought to believe as I do. But I can only pray to my God. If you believe in some other power, I invite you to address yours as I address mine."

In the body of the prayer he used the words God and Lord, but not Jesus. In the last sentence, instead of just saying "In Jesus' name we pray," he used the words, "For those of us who are Christians, we pray in Jesus' name."

In an interview before giving the prayer, Mr. Stoltzfoos said, "I'm trying to be as flexible as I can be. I don't need everyone to agree with me."

He said he's been astonished at the national and even worldwide reaction he's gotten by his insistence on using Jesus' name in public prayers.

Since stories appeared in two small newspapers in York County and then in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on July 19, he said, "I have gotten hundreds of e-mails and at least 100 phone calls. It's amazing. I've gotten messages on Facebook and Myspace. People at my church are high-fiving me and slapping me on the back. They are happy that we've had a tiny role in affecting our culture."

Mr. Stoltzfoos said five law firms have contacted him about whether he wants to sue the House to overturn its opposition to pastors naming specific religious figures such as Jesus, Muhammed, Allah or Buddha.

He isn't sure what he'll do. "I don't like legal fights but I don't want to let an opportunity pass to defend the Constitution and my faith," he said.

Harrisburg Bureau Chief Tom Barnes can be reached attbarnes@post-gazette.comor 717-787-4254.

Read more:http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/09210/987124-100.stm?cmpid=newspanel4#ixzz0MgBFTgKI

Tuesday, July 28, 2009

vacation lessons

My vacation this year was... well.. a wild ride.

I did interviews about my choice not to pray in the PA House of representatives after I was asked to remove the offensive word Jesus from the closing of my prayer.

TV interviews, radio interviews, print interviews. I might have done more than 20. They are still going on. And emails- hundreds, all but maybe 10 of them very positive.

I also came under a withering spiritual attack of some kind, where spirits of doubt, fear, lust, and depression hurled crap at me at a rate I had never experienced before. Three or four days of having to carefully control every thought was incredibly exhausting and painful. I asked a lot of people to pray, and feel amazed at how pitiful my own strength actually is when actually tested. If God had not intervened... but His grace is amazing. Amazing.

And then I visited the Wave church, -and spent some time with Ron Johnson. In one 15 minute conversation, Ron helped me more than the last 15 books I read. He talked about how leaders must be trained, and while he talked, lights came in in my little brain.

And Jesus met me. Those services were cool, life giving, smart, and so wonderful. But they were nothing compared to Jesus. He walked in and like touched my shoulder, sort of. I melted, and then starting downloading spiritual strength from him by the bucket load. He makes me see myself different, less stupid, less hopeless, more... useful.

More later...


Sunday, July 26, 2009

The Wave Church

Sam Masteller has been telling me for years I should come.

This weekend I finally had opportunity to do it. I am right now sitting in the lobby of the Wave Church. Somebody told me that this original location may have about 4500 attendees on a weekend.

I can understand why. Tight services, carefully packed with all the good stuff, and non of the "uh-oh" moments that a lot of churches seem to have a lot of.

Lots of media. The from screen is actually like 5 screens, amazingly arrayed, constantly moving, and full of life.

Three 90 minute services. The worship(music) was 22 minutes. I didn't know a song, but neither did I mind so much, because it was well done, it looked cool, and had lots of lights, smoke, and video. The preaching was 30 minutes. Not 31, by the way. Announcements are video, and live, and what is important to all. 9am was one third full, 11am 2/3 full with 2500-ish seats I was told.

But all that stuff is... well... whatever. What mattered is, I felt the presence of Jesus. Strong, powerful, emotionally rich. I felt like one of our guests who often tell me they want to cry a lot during services.

The altar call at the end took a good 7-8 minutes. Raise your hands if you want Jesus, want to repent of your sin, want to get close to God. 20-30 responses per service I would guess.

All in all, I think a lot of my leadership team should find a way to visit The Wave.

Saturday, July 25, 2009

Interviews a-plenty

I must have done 7 radio, newspaper, or TV interviews over the past week. Maybe more. And I have like 3 more scheduled I think. The USA Radio Network, Lancaster Sunday News, A TV show in Pittsburgh, The Associated Press, the Pittsburgh Post Gazette, and many others.

I never got hooked up (yet) with my favorite news outlet- FoxNews, but there is still time. Come on Fox!

Most interviewers are surprised when I say that yes, I do believe that I should be allowed Constitutionally, to pray using the name of Jesus, but I also think other faiths should be allowed to open in prayer. I have no problem with a Muslim, or Buddhist, or Jew, to open the State House in prayer using the name of their god.

I would guess that many Christians disagree with this, and somehow believe that we should disallow all other faith from being expressed. But as I understand it, the Founders believed that the gospel of Jesus Christ as so strong, that Christians have nothing to fear from other faith being expressed. Our faith and out God, are not cowed by what other people believe, or the utterance of the names of their god. But while they pray to Allah, or some other god, we will fervently pray to our Father in the name of Jesus, as we were instructed to do.

Already the policy has been changed in the State House. From now on, Pastors will not be asked to submit the text of their prayers before they pray them, ostensibly opening it up to any and all prayer. So progress has been made!

Monday, July 20, 2009

pray for me?

Friends,

I have a ton of thing s going on this week, even while I am on vacation this week. Would you-all pray for me, please?

Here is a taste of what I am talking about: Today at 12 noon I am receiving a call from KDKA Talk Radio in Pittsburgh.

They want to interview me in connection with the Pittsburgh Post Gazette Article in the paper yesterday. That article (read it here) was another take on the prayer of mine that was rejected to open the State House of Representatives because it had the name of Jesus in it. And I am getting dozens of emails, calls, and demands from it.

Today at noon I will be doing an on-air interview. You can listen live here. I need God's wisdom and His heart to speak to the reporter as Jesus would have done. Your prayers would be much appreciated.

There is so much more going on- maybe for another email later. Gerry Stoltzfoos, Lead Pastor Freedom Valley Worship Center 3185 York Road Gettysburg, PA. 17325 717-624-3411 www.freedomvalley.org 717-398-9033

Sunday, July 05, 2009

a collection of odd people

I had a priceless conversation with one of our up-and-coming church planters today. He was tired after an outreach, and sort of dowloading with me.

"It seems like our small group is made up of odd people, those with crazy fears, and everybody who was kicked out (for good reason!) from everywhere else." He went to to say that none of his small group of people seemed smart, or talented, or even good looking!

In Luke 5, church people complained about that with Jesus. "Why do you hang out with such scummy people, Jesus?" they asked him. He was hanging out wioth the social outcasts and the ones nobody else wanted. He earliest small group seemed to be made up of at least some people who were unwanted everywhere else.

Maybe that is why church planting is so powerful. It tends to connect with the people that have not yet connected anywhere else. It gives us another chance to connect, to be loved, to be coached to another level, and to have close friends.

I love God's church. She believes in people, helps people find forgiveness, healing, grace, and hope. She provides another chance, a fresh start, people who love you, and lots of people around you when you are in crisis.

Nice.

Saturday, July 04, 2009

July 4'th celebration

Reprinted from Dennis Petersen...



Have you ever wondered what happened to the 56 men who signed the Declaration of Independence ?


Five signers were captured by the British as traitors, and tortured before they died. Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned Two lost their sons serving in the Revolutionary Army; another had two sons captured. Nine of the 56 fought and died from wounds or hardships of the Revolutionary War.They signed and they pledged their lives, their fortunes and their sacred honor. What kind of men were they?

Twenty-four were lawyers and jurists.Eleven were merchants, nine were farmers and large plantation owners; men of means, well educated, but they signed the Declaration of Independence

knowing full well that the penalty would be death if they were captured. Carter Braxton of Virginia, a wealthy planter and trader, saw his ships swept from the seas by the British Navy. He sold his home and properties to pay his debts, and died in rags.


Thomas McKeam was so hounded by the British that he was forced to move his family almost constantly. He served in the Congress without pay, and his family was kept in hiding. His possessions were taken from him, and poverty was his reward.

Vandals or soldiers looted the properties of Dillery, Hall, Clymer, Walton, Gwinnett, Heyward, Ruttledge, and Middleton. At the battle of Yorktown , Thomas Nelson, Jr., noted that the British General Cornwallis had taken over the Nelson home for his headquarters. He quietly urged General

George Washington to open fire. The home was destroyed, and Nelson died bankrupt.


Francis Lewis had his home and properties destroyed. The enemy jailed his wife, and she died within a few months. John Hart was driven from his wife's bedside as she was dying. Their 13 children fled for their lives. His fields and his gristmill were laid to waste. For more than a year he lived in forests and caves, returning home to find his wife dead and his children vanished.


I want to be a person made of this kind of stuff, engaged in a battle of that kind of value, creating for my children, that kind of future...