A letter to Bill Gothard
Mike Huckabee has surrounded himself with a number of highly questionable religious oddballs, from Christian Zionist televangelist John Hagee to the cultlike space age human potential group NXIVM, whose guru “Vanguard” counts the daughters of Mexico’s Vicente Fox and booze baron Edgar Bronfman among his devotees. Bill Gothard is another religious fanatic in the Huckabee circus.
Dear Dr. Gothard:
For the past couple years, my colleague, the Dean of Cincinnati, has been writing articles about you and your various enterprises. Before then I’d never even heard of you, your institute, your “character-building” seminars, your unaccredited medical school, your unaccredited law school, your nursing program, your Children’s Institute, your bible-centered paramilitary boot camp, your music school, your culinary arts program, your Institute of Photographic Studies, your resort-style training center in Guadalajara, your hair design program, etc. As you know, I’m just scratching the surface – the list keeps just on going and according to In These Times, business is booming:
“Gothard, the 74-year-old, unmarried man at the head of the Oak Brook, Illinois-based Institute in Basic Life Principles (IBLP) – which brings in an estimated profit of at least $63 million annually – has been in the evangelism business since 1964.”
But my letter today concerns matters far more serious than earthly possessions and multi-million dollar bank accounts. Today I’m asking you to save the eternal soul of the man http://www.wvwnews.net/story.php?id=2934, the young Colorado church shooter, which includes:
“Murray also claims online that he went through Bill Gothard home schooling, a fundamental Christian organization that has about 2,000 students enrolled nationally. Gothard’s program bases a curriculum on the 54 verses from the Sermon on the Mount, and its strict teachings prohibit rock & roll and television. Gothard, in an interview Wednesday, said he “didn’t recall” ever meeting the Murray family, but he was sure one of the parents was probably trained in his program. Ultimately, Gothard blames rock music for Murray’s murderous rampage. “That is the most contributing factor,” said Gothard, who is based in a small town south of Chicago. “It’d be important to see the connection between his passion to rock music and how it ultimately brought this on.” Gothard said whenever he gets calls from parents having trouble with their kids, he asks about what they listen to. “In every case, (the kid) is listening to rock music,” he said.”
Here’s why I’m writing you. Though it’s been widely reported in the media, it may have escaped your attention that Gov. Huckabee not only loves rock music, he plays bass guitar in a rock band! I have located numerous photographs of him engaging in this activity. I must warn you that these images may disturb you, but you may click here to view them.
I also have a confession to make. Like Gov. Huckabee, I’ve engaged in similar activities. For the past decade, I’ve been a member of 98 Degrees, a group that performs the kind of music warned against as “unclean” and “satanic” in an article you published, Ten Scriptural Reasons Why the “Rock Beat” is Evil in Any Form. Taken from that essay, here’s a list which might be called “Bill Gothard’s Ten Commandments of Rock”:
I. THE “ROCK BEAT” DECEIVES YOUTH INTO VIOLATING THE FIFTH COMMANDMENT
II. THE “ROCK BEAT” VIOLATES GOD’S COMMAND TO “GIVE NO PLACE TO THE DEVIL”
III. THE “ROCK BEAT” MOCKS GOD’S COMMAND TO “LOVE NOT THE WORLD”
IV. THE “ROCK BEAT” DISREGARDS GOD’S COMMAND NOT TO OFFEND OTHER CHRISTIANS
V. THE “ROCK BEAT” DEFIES GOD’S COMMAND TO JUDGE ALL THINGS AS GOOD OR EVIL
VI. THE “ROCK BEAT” DISOBEYS GOD’S COMMAND TO AVOID “ALL APPEARANCE OF EVIL”
VII. THE “ROCK BEAT” CONTRADICTS GOD’S COMMAND NOT TO BE BROUGHT UNDER ITS POWER
VIII. THE “ROCK BEAT” OPPOSES GOD’S COMMAND NOT TO MIX LIGHT WITH DARKNESS
IX. THE “ROCK BEAT” IGNORES GOD’S COMMAND FOR ALL MINISTERS TO BE QUALIFIED
X. THE “ROCK BEAT” VIOLATES GOD’S COMMAND TO PROTECT OUR BODIES AS GOD’S TEMPLE
http://www.talk2action.org/story/2007/12/29/82218/946
Image: Huckster or ROCK STAR? Gov. Huckabee lets his fingers do the rockin’
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aarvQRblTPU