Its not unique. In a statement, county public health officials said the settlement was prompted by U.S. Supreme Court rulings that restricted public health measures against houses of worship. As it turned out, the womans fears proved true, and her husband went to prison for child molestation and abuse. Yet, as Cho brought up in his letters to key elders last year, a string of women over the past decade said they received different counsel at his church when they feared for their safety or their childrens safety. In response, the church, meanwhile, sued the state and the county, claiming the COVID rules amounted to constitutional violations of religious freedom. 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 He said pastor John MacArthur told him to forget it. When Cho continued to call the elders to do justice on the womans behalf, he said he was asked to walk back his conclusions or resign. John 19:1642 | The Crucifixion of Jesus. Cho still held out that faint hopeThe Lord has so often done far more than I ever could have thought possibleeven knowing that the board was unlikely to move and that his public stance would upset many he used to serve and worship alongside. He also said that she twisted the words of one of GCCs leaders for a large adult Sunday school class to create a false impression.. Beckloff would ultimately issuea preliminary injunction sought by the county, saying the potential consequences of community spread of COVID-19 and concomitant risk of death to members of the community, associated and unassociated with the church, outweighs the harm that flows from the restriction on indoor worship caused by the (Los Angeles County) health order.. As Cho wrote in a 20-page memo to top leaders at Grace Community Church last March, I genuinely believe it would be wrong to do nothing. If they had learned that theyd disciplined a man wrongly accused of adultery, wouldnt they want to make that right, even if they found out 20 years later? (CTs policy allows victims of abuse to go unnamed for the sake of privacy and safety; her identity and the details of her account have been verified in reporting this story. This year we are studying the Gospel of John, one of the most cherished books in all Scripture. They had also been doubted, dismissed, and implicitly or explicitly threatened with discipline while seeking refuge from their abusive marriages. Church officials refused to enforce mask-wearing and social-distancing requirements for its large congregation members of which were generally supportive of the churchs pushback. From the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Los Angeles County has been committed to protecting the health and safety of its residents. In light of our ongoing litigation and recent threats from the County of Los Angeles and the State of California, we have decided that the most prudent course of action at this time is to postpone the Shepherds Conference, the church said in a statement. As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. Of the $8,000 in fines the county has levied for violating the public health orders, Grace Community Church has paid $6,500. Grace Today . "It has been a hard-fought battle to preserve religious liberty and we hope that this result will encourage Californians, and all Americans, to continue to stand firm that church is essential," they added. Get up to speed with our Essential California newsletter, sent six days a week. MacArthur on Sunday said the settlement money would go to the Thomas More Society, which represented the church in this court case. In the settlement, the wife did not retract the abuse claims made against her husband. Patricia and I enjoyed our own bout with COVID for about a week and a half, said MacArthur, who was absent from the pulpit late December. He said he needed to talk about a "sad situation." . He said, Since we are forbidden by the teaching of Christ not to make extrabiblical religious rules that bind mens consciences (Matthew 23:1-7;15:1-9), we neither mandate nor forbid the wearing of masks in worship.. If public safety always outweighed liberty, then wed never have liberty, she told the court at the time, an argument that paralleled with the argument of church attorney Charles LiMandri. Theres a fundamentally different understanding of what abuse is, said Jonathan Holmes, a graduate of The Masters University and a pastor and counselor in Ohio, noting that the labeland the most serious responsesoften get reserved for physical and sexual violations. Its amazing to see the Lord protecting us, he said. for less than $4.25/month. Servicios en espaol, Grace Community Church The Associated Press. 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. Our organist, Stephen Sturz, has been ministering to our congregation for 45 years. Originally from Arpelar, Okla., theyre a proud graduate of Oklahoma State University. These . Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, violated the Constitutions protection of the free exercise of religion. I believe that the county was correct on the law, she said. MacArthur considers church discipline a distinctive at Grace Community Church, where elders follow guidelines taken from Matthew 18first confronting the accused privately, and then with another witness, before publicly announcing cases of discipline that have made it to the third stage of the process, when unrepentance would preclude a member from participating in the Lords Supper. 10:00 am & 7:00 pm, Wednesday, April 19, 2023 John 19:16-42 | The Crucifixion of Jesus. He tried to convince the churchs leaders to reconsider and at least privately make it right. Andersens declaration recounts the husband saying during counseling that he and his daughter had touched tongues while they kissed to imitate a scene in a cartoon. Witnesses and victims backed his wifes account of the abusive behavior, while church leaders continued to defend him, according to court documents referenced and posted with the March 2022 Roys Report article. Grace Community Church in Sun Valley (Photo by Dean Musgrove, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG) By Ryan Carter | rcarter@scng.com | Daily News PUBLISHED: August 31, 2021 at 11:23 a.m. | UPDATED . 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County square off in court over indoor ban, LA County takes step toward potential indoor vaccine requirement, 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, They spent their lives teaching. Former members who reported abuse said they feared church discipline for lack of submission or abandoning their marriage. 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. This year we are studying the Gospel of John, one of the most cherished books in all Scripture. The Opportunity Sheet is a weekly publication of Grace Community Church, offered as a courtesy to our church family. Ryan Carter is an editor for the Southern California News Group, who also writes stories for the group. Religion doesnt trump public health and safety, especially under these circumstance, said Amnon Siegel, the attorney for the county during a hearing in September, digging back to historical cases, state and federal, in which courts sided with public health orders on the need for vaccinations. Membership Matters 103 - How to Be an Effective Member at GCC. Worship, Bible Studies, Sports, and Music. At the end of the day, I know what I know. MacArthur read from Matthew 16, the passage where Jesus predicts His suffering and . Over the next few weeks, our church family has the opportunity to partner with CHF; heres how yo. They took that closeness that I had with God away. In Sun Valley, congregants filling Grace Community Church's 3,500-seat . MacArthur claimed that the pandemic was a government plot to control Christians, according to the Times. My job was not to rile [my husband] up., While the woman was hospitalized due to her husbands physical abuse, Shannon called her and advised her to go home without calling police, she told CT. At times, the torment at home was bad enough that she worried she was going to die, but she said she was told that her situation may be Gods will for your life.. News & Events. Ryan earned a BA degree in Political Science from UCLA and in 2022 earned his Master's of Legal Studies at UCLA. Grace Community Church congregants make their way to Sunday service in Sun Valley last September. 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. 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. Los Angeles County officials had said that the Shepherds Conference was not a religious service, but a prohibited indoor gathering. 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. (Irfan Khan . County officials then sued the church to require it to comply with COVID-19 protocolsincluding barring large group indoor worship and requiring social distancing at outdoor worship. Grace Community Church is located in Sun Valley, CA. Ones own integrity, and upholding justice and righteousness, and being faithful even in the small things, even for something 20 years ago, all matter immensely.. Judge gives Grace Community Church, LA County a chance to settle COVID case. He wanted to see them correct the mistakes of their past and do better in the future. 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