Would you let him in your church?
 

Banned From Churches, Sex Offenders Go to Court

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,...est=latestnews

Re: Would you let him in your church?
 

If I were the pastor of a church (sorry if reading that from me short-circuited your brain! :heeheehee), I would ask God if the guy was safe around kids (transformed by the renewing of his mind, a new creature, etc.). God would tell me either yes or no. Right? God talks to pastors, doesn't He?

:winkgrin

Re: Would you let him in your church?
 

We don't put people that are on work release, probation on church buses. When a child molestor does his deed, these are the consequences. So he should not have done the deeds. Many churches do a background check before they put people in camp counselor, teaching etc positions. If I bring one to church with a serious record, I keep an eye on them and either have them sit with me or where we can watch them.

Re: Would you let him in your church?
 

There are consequences to some sins in society that have absolutely nothing to do with God's ability to forgive their sin.

IF a child molester comes to church, and IF he/she truly has a conversion experience, then that person will not mind being held to a higher level of accountability for the safety of any children in the vicinity, AND for the sake of the reputation of the church.

Re: Would you let him in your church?
 

Let's face it...we don't do background checks on everyone that comes into the church. I don't believe we should ban anyone, regardless of their crime or sin, from church.

Re: Would you let him in your church?
 

Let's be mindful of the offender's spiritual well being. If they've struggled with an attraction to children it's best not to place them where they can be tempted.

It's best for all involved to limit their participation in the church.

Re: Would you let him in your church?
 

The man was arrested for merely attending services because there was a daycare on site. I think that is wrong. In fact, I think a lot of the rules in regard to sex offenders is wrong. Keep a close eye on them, yes. Not allow them to attend church or live within a certain radius of a school or daycare, unrealistic.

Re: Would you let him in your church?
 

And besides. We could pray for protection of the little ones. God would certainly answer that prayer! Right?

Re: Would you let him in your church?
 

You bring up some interesting points. I can see where in some cases the requirement not to be a certain number of feet of a school, sunday school, or daycare might be unrealistic. But as it stands... it's currently the law. He definately opened himself up for this to happen by attending church where he'd be near children. I'd think that the church would stand up for his right to attend and perhaps support him in challenging this law. Perhaps in the mean time he should seek to find a place to worship such as a house church. Sadly, he might be forced to practice his faith in private away from any public gatherings.

Re: Would you let him in your church?
 

I agree that there are probably a lot of unrealistic demands that are made in this area. I didn't read the whole article - but what if by "sex offender" this guy was guilty of attacking grown women? Or preyed only upon the elderly? Then a "day care premises ban" makes no sense at all. But, I think that's probably where his problems lie, so who knows?

These types of restrictions came up rather recently in response to many news accounts of repeat offenders continuing to prey upon innocent victims - the worst cases being attacks against children. "We" - U.S. society - felt that "we" had to do something; I felt that something had to be done.

I confess that I probably don't always have perfect wisdom, nor do "we." But it's hard to argue against "erring on the side of caution," especially when the safety of children is at stake.

Re: Would you let him in your church?
 

Exactly. That would be like placing a former alcoholic in charge of the communion wine. Is that a good idea? I don't see how deliverance from bondage equates a deliverance from potential temptation.

Nice pic of you in your avatar, btw. :thumbsup

Re: Would you let him in your church?
 

Amen.

Thaks for the compliment. I must say, your avatar's rather beautiful Sis. Brattifield. ;)


:)

Re: Would you let him in your church?
 

It's not against the law for sex offenders to be around children AT ALL. They have a right to attend church. They have a right to attend family reunions. They have a right to visit relatives. They have a right to attend school functions their own children are involved in.

I don't know the state where this took place, but I think there's more to the story than him merely attending church where there also happened to be a day care.

Re: Would you let him in your church?
 

I was thinking the same thing. Perhaps it's more of a technicality. I know they are not supposed to be anywhere near daycares, schools, etc. Maybe the issue is the church's daycare. Maybe if it were a church without daycare there wouldn't have been a violation of the statute, however, being that close to daycare, church or not is an issue.

Re: Would you let him in your church?
 

I thought the restrictions were mainly related to where the live and where they work. I could be wrong.

If they couldn't be around children at all, then how could they even function in society? They couldn't even go to a grocery store or to the post office--they might encounter a minor.

Re: Would you let him in your church?
 

He could easily find a small group of all adults and no children and call this his church. There's not reason he has to go worship service on Sundays.

Re: Would you let him in your church?
 

That's correct.

Re: Would you let him in your church?
 

Easily? I've never seen a church with no children in it.

Re: Would you let him in your church?
 

We have homosexuals that come to our church. We have a few that were Bisexuals. We have alcoholics. We have porn addicts. We have former convicts. Why not bring on the sex offenders?

It's clear the system cannot help fix them. Why would you prevent them from coming to the one person who can fix anyone...Jesus?

If you have kids...don't let them hang around the guy. Simple solution.

Re: Would you let him in your church?
 

There is a man who is a sex offender that attends the church my children attend. He started attending church several years ago, about six months before he was sentenced to prison and served ten years.

After prison, he started attending again. Everyone is aware of his crime, but even he is careful about where he is and who he speaks to.

My son is a good friend of his, even though he's about half his age. My son is also aware of what took place. This guy was on EA (might still be) but puts on his page that nobody under 18 can add him or even talk to him, although he doesn't elaborate as to why (understandably).

He's not a predator, and while I wouldn't trust him completely, I don't believe the children in the church are in any danger from him. He's in the public eye at all times, and I've never seen or heard anyone keep their children from him.

I'm glad he's allowed to attend church. He loves God and he has the Holy Ghost. He's also a member of the choir.

Most of us have past sins we wouldn't want others to even know about. I know I have a few myself that nobody I even know personally knows about. To God, I'm no different than the guy I speak about in this post. At the cross, the ground is even.

Re: Would you let him in your church?
 

Agreed. If a sex offender has truely repented of his past wrong, he will NOT put himself in danger of a relapse or even a false accusation. In short, if he has really repnted, he will NOT seek any position to be around potential victims.
If he tries to be around potential victims (for example. wants to be a youth counselor) , that, in and of itself, is a major red flag.

Re: Would you let him in your church?
 

Legally when you commit certain crimes you give up certain rights. The onus is on him to find a church. IMO.