Lead Church faces fight with local government

This is not my normal posting, but should be of concern to everyone.

Small Lead (SD) church again targeted on taxes

Once more, only seven years after an earlier attempt, a small Black Hills congregation in South Dakota again has to fight an attempt by local government to shut it down.

The Twin Cities Church of Christ began meeting in Lead in 1974 when a local man, Albert Harty, returned home after graduating from the Bear Valley School of Preaching in Denver, Colorado. Although at times nearly 100 saints have assembled to worship in Lead, membership dropped to only four at the beginning of this decade, but now numbers eleven. Many converts have resulted from this work, but most have moved from the area as the economy changed, most recently when the famous Homestake Mine closed after 125 years.

The Twin Cities Church meets for Sunday morning Bible class and worship in a former store building just across from the Post Office on Main Street in Lead, meeting Sunday evenings at a nursing home in nearby Whitewood (thus providing worship for residents of the home as well), and meets one Wednesday a month in a historic old church building (also in Lead) for prayer meeting and work sorting and packing donated Bible materials and clothing to be sent to missionary work in Nigeria and on Indian reservations in the US. Other Wednesdays they meet for Bible class in the Main Street Building. Portions of their buildings are also used to store items for the church’s lending closet and for support of the Black Hills Bible Camp, which leases other camp facilities one or more weeks a year but is not allowed by the camp site owners to store much on site for the rest of the year. (Members of the congregation also allow some camp equipment to be stored on their personal property during the year, but that, too, is limited.) The congregation has been active in the Black Hills Bible Camp for more than thirty years, first at Placerville, then at the Weston Camp near Four Corners, and now at the Kinship Ministries camp south of Lead: more than 100 people from at least a dozen churches in at least five states attend the camp each year, including many former members of the Twin Cities church.

In 1999, at the instigation of a local businessman (now a state senator), the county commission attempted to remove the church’s tax-exempt status and make it pay several thousand dollars a year in property taxes for their facilities (or sell the property – likely the ultimate objective). Among the claims made were that the congregation was “not really a church” because it had no denominational affiliation, had no “licensed” or “ordained” preacher, was not a “registered religious organization” and was not “contributing to the community.” That attempt was ultimately defeated after three appeals, finally to a State of South Dakota Department of Revenue administrative law judge, who ruled decisively against the county. Although represented for the final appeals by another state legislator and helped by donations from other churches, the successful effort drained their building maintenance fund and much of the church’s other resources. Since then, due to falling exchange rates and severe conditions in Nigeria, the church has had to devote more money to supporting the preacher in that country, and aiding the congregation there – so they have not been able to replenish their coffers for this new attempt, and needed work on their own facilities has gone undone.

In recent months, there have been several attempts to purchase the church’s property. These have been politely rejected, but may be behind this fresh attempt by the county to revoke their tax status. The church is incorporated under state law as a religious organization, and has IRS 501.c.3. status.

The next hearing, by the County Board of Commissioners acting as the County Board of Equalization, is scheduled for 1 PM, Tuesday, April 25^th

The following message is going out to churches throughout the US, distributed by friends of the congregation, asking for aid:

“Although funds may be needed to support this new struggle, more is needed immediately. First, prayers need to be raised to God to ask His intervention in this matter, that He might cause the county commissioners to cease this attack on a small church. Second, letters of support for the Twin Cities Church, addressed to the county commissioners (fax to 605-722-6221, Lawrence County Commissioners/Board of Equalization, County Courthouse, Deadwood, SD 57732) are needed (with copies to the church c/o 519 McQuillan St., Lead, SD 57754), are needed urgently.. The letters should be tactful, stating that you believe their actions are wrong and illegal, and an attack on all churches, especially churches which have no denominational organization, no “ordination” and no “licenses,” and small congregations with few members. Support from other churches will be key in this effort, and your help is asked.

For more information call Albert Harty, the church’s preacher, at 605-580-1030.

Politicians in the New Testament

(Draft) There are, surprisingly, quite a few politicians found in the New Testament - not surprisingly, many of these are NOT portrayed in a good light.

The first we encounter is Herod the King, starting in Matthew chapter 2. Both the Bible and history record him as cruel, brutal, murderous, and boot-licking. I believe it was the Emperor Tiberius who said that he'd rather be Herod's pig than Herod's son. Herod was, as are so many politicians, adept at playing both ends against the middle.

In Matthew 3:7, we first encounter the members of the Great Sanheidren: both the party of the Pharisees and that of the Saducees. They frequently appear in the Gospel accounts and in Acts, and clearly, their bad traits outnumber their good. Unlike Herod, who was not loath to show his brutality and his bloody efforts to stay in power, these men try to present themselves as faithful and obedient servants of God, loudly proclaiming their alligience to the God of Abraham and Jacob, Moses and Joshua. But at the same time, they play the "game" of power politics both internally and externally, sending the innocent to die and freeing the guilty when it suits their needs. In the rest of the Gospels, the Pharisees seem to get more attention than the other politico-religious sects of Judaism, perhaps because their hypocritical behavior (Matthew 6:24, 9:11, 12:2f) is so evident. But unlike Herod, it seems that Pharisees COULD repent (Matthew 9:9), and even the great apostle Paul was able to overcome his Pharisical background.

In Matthew 4:3, we again encounter that person who could be called the world's FIRST politician, and even the "god of politicians" - the Tempter (Satan) himself. Here, he is engaged in the most common activity of politicians then and sense: making promises. These appear either to be promises that can't be fulfilled (like the original one in Genesis - "thou shalt surely NOT die") or that he has no intent of fulfilling ("all the kingdoms of the earth").

(to be continued)

Ad placed by Hugh Owens, a corrections officer, in Saskatoon, Canada, newspaper

HOW MUCH CAN YOU AFFORD?

How much can you afford to pay in order to preach the Word of God? For a man in Saskatchewan, try about CDN$200 for the ad, then about CDN $3000 for legal bills, and CDN $4500 for “damages” paid to three homosexuals who filed charges with him – charges upheld by a Canadian Provincial Court declaring certain passages of the Bible to be hate literature, and publishing them to be a hate crime.[1]

The recent passage of a new Canadian hate crimes law, C-250, adds to the price Canadian christians may have to pay for preaching the word[2]. : the new law adds sexual orientation as a protected category in Canada's genocide and hate-crimes legislation. With the new law,[3] Mr. Owens would now face up to five years. In prison. For preaching the Bible.

---

[1] World Net Daily, 18 FEB 2003, “Bible Verses Regarded As Hate Literature”

[2] World Net Daily, 30 APR 2004, “Bible As Hate Speech Signed Into Law”

[3] http://laws.justice.gc.ca/en/c-46/41491.html

Verities

- I don't make jokes. I just watch the government and report the facts. --
Will Rogers

- If you are not outraged you are not paying attention -- Unknown

In-progress

I've not posted much in this blog for about six months, but will be publishing a string of articles and studies over the next few weeks. Many are still in draft form, and all readers' comments are appreciated!