She has covered news for ChristianHeadlines.com since 2014. Jaclyn Cosgrove is an assistant editor at the Los Angeles Times. For years, they had hoped their submission, their faithfulness in marriage, and their desperate prayers would eventually lead to change in their husbands. At this point, its not something that is allowed., Under Pressure, California Church Postpones Conference for Thousands, https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/12/us/John-MacArthur-covid-grace-community-church.html. 65 views, 2 likes, 4 loves, 36 comments, 1 shares, Facebook Watch Videos from Kainos Community Church: Live from Mevo On Monday, members of the House Judiciary Committee met in New York for a hearing on violent crime in the city. . Image: Video screengrab via Vimeo / Grace Community Church / Religion News Service via AP. And that was and is flatly wrong, and needs to be made right, Cho said to CT. Numerous elders have admitted in various private conversations that mistakes were made and that they would make a different decision today knowing what they know now. I cannot un-know it, and I am in fact accountable before God for this knowledge, and if you have labored mightily to read this far, you are now accountable before God for it as well.. Anyone can read what you share. ]. But as I learned in law school, my professor said, What really matters is what the majority rules.. The majority were not wearing masks or practicing social distancing. The woman told CT she recognized the parallels too. The church's longtime lead pastor Rev. The preliminary injunction was issued last Sept. 10 by Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Mitchell L. Beckloff as a way of stemming the spread of the coronavirus, based in part on evidence presented by the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health that Grace Community Church was holding indoor Sunday services, prompting the county to sue the church on Aug. 14. The more he learned, the more people he talked with, the more the injustice weighed on his conscience and the more concerned he grew about the churchs biblical counseling around abuse. The victims were regularly quoted Scriptures on forgiveness, trust, love, and submissionand were told to reconcile and return home even in cases where they feared for their safety and their childrens safety. Its not just another thing to do. Membership Matters 103 - How to Be an Effective Member at GCC. M-F 8:00 am-5:00 pm 818-909-5500 . She said when she read about Eileen Gray last year, she thought, This sounds a lot like what Ive been told. Please login or create an account to use this feature, Learn More | Livestream | Bulletin "The church is not only a building but is the bride of Christ and exists to proclaim the truth.". According to Cho, who served as the board secretary and was responsible for taking notes, MacArthur replied during the March meeting that the comparison didnt apply to Eileen Gray. Sunday, April 23, 2023 9:00 am12:30 pm In one, a Catholic diocese and a group of Jewish synagogues successfully challenged New Yorks restrictions on churches. Would my sharing sooner have brought about change at Grace Community Church or other churches who follow their leadership model? the state of California would also pay $400,000. Religious leaders from Mississippi to San Diego County are suing, asserting they are being treated differently from businesses that can remain open. In the video, MacArthur spoke during an evening service at Grace Community Church in California. Although Grace Community Church followed public health restrictions during the early months of the pandemic, it reversed course by the summer of 2020. While evangelicals are growing more sensitive to the dynamics of abuse, some conservative communities retain an underlying skepticism around victims-advocacy movements and trauma-informed psychologists, defending the place of the local church in addressing marital conflict. Although churches may avoid legal involvement in marital disputes for liability reasons, its not unheard-of to have pastors siding with the accused. Grace Community Church will be paid $800,000 by Los Angeles County and the state of California after reaching a legal settlement to a lawsuit over COVID-19 restrictions in churches. She couldnt wait for that. (Update: Following publication, Grace Community Church released a statement saying that the elders do not comment on counseling and discipline disputes, but that the church deals with accusations personally and privately. They defended their counsel as biblical, saying, Our churchs history and congregation are the testimony.). He repeated pleas to take seriously the concerns about Shannon and the churchs counseling. Grace Community Church has not apologized to Eileen Gray, rescinded its discipline, or made a public statement on the case, nor did it offer a response for this article. Its been 10 months since Cho left Grace Community Church, and he has not been able to forget the woman, Eileen Gray, whose experience was described in detail last March in Julie Royss news outlet, The Roys Report. It probably went through our church in maybe December or January, MacArthur said. Portugus, The Opportunity Sheet is a weekly publication of Grace Community Church, offered as a courtesy to our church family. From the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Los Angeles County has been committed to protecting the health and safety of its residents. Now, they say theyre spending their retirement paying for it, US Coast Guard, Mexican officials search for 3 American sailors last heard from 11 days ago, Rui Hachimuras aggressive shooting pays dividends for Lakers, UCLA footballs first-team offense begins to take shape, Beneath DTLA, ghost trains take final testing of LA Metro Regional Connector. Its a reflection of how the pastor has been groomed, Singer said. The elders had publicly disciplined a woman for refusing to take back her husband. Grace Community Church had planned to host the Shepherds Conference from March 3 to 5 in Sun Valley, a neighborhood that officials say is among the areas hardest hit by the coronavirus in Los Angeles County. People arrive for the Sunday 8:30 a.m. service at Grace Community Church in Sun Valley on December 20, 2020 . Sun Valley and the surrounding areas continue to have among the highest case rates of Covid-19 within the county, and have for some time, Dr. Davis said, and a gathering of this magnitude will create additional opportunities for Covid-19 transmission, both to the people that attend this gathering and the other people in the community.. In the end, she said, the betrayal of her churchnow her former churchhurt the most. 10:00 am & 7:00 pm, Wednesday, April 19, 2023 John 19:16-42 | The Crucifixion of Jesus. Former members who reported abuse said they feared church discipline for lack of submission or abandoning their marriage. In Sun Valley, congregants filling Grace Community Church's 3,500-seat . On Sunday, MacArthur admitted to congregants that "many people" contracted COVID-19 while it "went through" the church in December and January. Of the $8,000 in fines the county has levied for violating the public health orders, Grace Community Church has paid $6,500. David Gray remains in prison. After the US Supreme Court ruled that some public health safety measures could not apply to houses of worship, resolving this litigation is the responsible and appropriate thing to do, read a statement from county officials. Welcome to Every Woman's Grace! Livestream is available online and on the Grace Media app for the 11:00 am service. This agreement, county officials said, was reached in the context of the US Supreme Courts decision in February that told California it couldnt enforce a ban on indoor worship because of the coronavirus pandemic. The Associated Press. After that, Cho said, he was told by elder board chair Chris Hamilton that he would need to walk back his findings about the churchs mistakes if he wanted to remain an elder. On Sunday, MacArthur told congregants the natural immunity that God has designed is the greatest protection. MacArthur cited a study suggesting those who recover from COVID-19 have more immunity than people who didnt get COVID-19 and got the vaccine. Local pastors say yes. Get the most recent headlines and stories from Christianity Today delivered to your inbox daily. Cho first read about Eileen Grays case last March, after the Roys Report coverage, when he said he had been asked to look over the churchs handling of her case for the elder board. 1 priority; it was submission in my marriage, said one woman, who asked not to be named in this story because she is attempting to move on from her time at Grace Community Church. In a sermon last August, he drew applause when he said, There is no pandemic, and argued that the number of Covid-related deaths had been inflated. According to her own filing, the photos include pictures of her toddler touching her husbands pants zipper and her face being sprayed with water as well as selfies with the child while she was naked. Indoor worship, without face masks or social distancing, soon resumed. At the conference last March, Cho taught on Conscience and Conviction. He spent the rest of the year living out the lesson. At Grace you will experience powerful worship, inspiring messages and genuine belonging. In the settlement, the wife did not retract the abuse claims made against her husband. Sign up for our newsletter: In marital counseling, pastors asked wives whether their attitudes contributed to the patterns of violence, anger, and manipulation in their relationships. Thats when I began to realize how many people were ill.. He taught that women and children should get to a place of safety and that perpetrators of domestic violence are no longer behaving as believers and have therefore forfeited their right to marriage. Childrens Hunger Fund (CHF) is a Christian organization that works to feed hungry children in impoverished regions across America and around the world. Judge gives Grace Community Church, LA County a chance to settle COVID case. How strong a politician is Gavin Newsom, really? In 2022, they will manage a yearlong initiative that will explore a variety of issues around mental health medical, structural, personal, societal and definitional. The high court later struck down the indoor worship ban while allowing caps on attendance and a ban on singing, according to the churchs attorneys. Nothing will come to us except the affirmation that the Lord preserved and protected us through this, MacArthur said. (Irfan Khan . Heres why we do it. ), Whenever I made moves in the direction of the restraining order, it was, Be careful of the heart of retaliation, the woman said. Cho never imagined himself being in this position and advocating from outside Grace Community Church. Worship, Bible Studies, Sports, and Music. Servicios en espaol, Grace Community Church The county is very concerned about the public health impacts that could come from an event like this if its held, especially as we continue to see high case numbers and large numbers of people in hospitals who are sick with Covid-19, Dr. Muntu Davis, Los Angeles Countys health officer, told reporters earlier on Friday. See for more info . One former member of Grace, once excited to move to California to be able to sit under MacArthurs teachings, said the faith that had meant everything to her was destroyed by the way the church treated her when she sought help during and after an abusive, unloving marriage. Certain parallels to Eileen Gray were immediately clear to him. This mutualization of sin can take place in church settings where both parties are asked to confess and seek forgiveness from each other. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, Mayor Bass seeks $250-million expansion of homelessness program in first State of the City speech, Column: Trump and the NRA might be right about guns and we mostly have ourselves to blame, The LAPD has lost nearly 1,000 officers. This undated file photo shows a face mask sitting atop pages of a Bible. The county and the state will each pay $400,000 to Sun Valley's Grace Community Church to settle a prolonged legal battle that began when the church refused to follow Newsom's COVID-19 restrictions last year. We are grateful to the countys faith organizations for their continued partnership to keep their congregants and the entire community safe and protected from COVID-19.. . The cases at Grace Community Church land in a larger debate around what qualifies as abuse and whether Christians should prioritize reconciliation in abuse cases, with the church and its seminary holding a prominent place among conservative biblical counselors and the Association of Certified Biblical Counselors (ACBC). Cho held out hope, thinking of a line John MacArthur was known for saying: Time and truth go hand in hand. The truth eventually comes out. Remember Me. Childrens Ministry has been actively planning for Vacation Bible School, and we invite you to join us! News & Events; Give; Close. How strong a politician is Gavin Newsom, really? As we explore this vital account of the incarnation, ministry, and atoning work of Jesus Christ, our faith will be Wednesday, April 19, 2023 7:00 pm9:00 pm Sun Valley, CA 91352 Maps and Directions. Grace Today . City News Service is a regional wire service covering Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside and San Diego counties. Franais, The church held indoor services despite the countys ban on such gatherings. MacArthur read from Matthew 16, the passage where Jesus predicts His suffering and . Originally from Arpelar, Okla., theyre a proud graduate of Oklahoma State University. Grace Community Church, which defied Los Angeles County orders to stop indoor services in the pandemic, may get $400,000 if a settlement is approved. This was the fifth time the Supreme Court had rejected the lower courts analysis in a case involving Californias COVID-19 restrictions on freedom of religion, the majority opinion noted. After they had separated or secured legal protection, they said pastors urged them to reconcile. He argued that the health orders were untenable opinion and policy, which unfairly chipped away at the ability to exercise the most fundamental right at a time when the risk of harm was leveling off. 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