Mancow: Speaking my truth to Harvest Bible Chapel's Pastor ..."outside noise" (meaning no news or...
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Posted 1/25/2019 5:00 AM Facebook Twitter Email 0 Comments Print By Mancow Muller Special to the Daily Herald Straight from the Source » Mancow: Speaking my truth to Harvest Bible Chapel's Pastor James Harvest Bible Chapel Pastor James MacDonald, left, and Mancow Muller at a men's retreat in Michigan. ( courtesy of Mancow Muller ) Editor’s note: WLS radio personality Mancow Muller of Wilmette has attended Harvest Bible Chapel since 2014 and been friends since 2016 with founding pastor James MacDonald, a nationally known church leader and preacher. Muller has been outspoken in recent weeks about the controversy at the suburban network of megachurches that led to MacDonald suing critics for defamation and then withdrawing the suit when it became clear he would have to reveal internal documents about the church. The episode led to MacDonald taking what he calls a “sabbatical” to reflect in Naples, Florida, where Harvest has a church. The quotations pulled out within Muller’s essay below were selected by Muller himself. "Do you worship Jesus Christ or James MacDonald?" I asked someone yelling at me over the phone this past Sunday after I dared go to Harvest church again. Dumbstruck to silence. Nothing. "Exactly," I said, "you can't answer me." The phone went dead. Last time I checked, the Bible says Jesus is the "author and finisher of our faith" and that should be our focus -- not Pastor James MacDonald. "For it is time for Judgment to begin with God's household ..." 1 Peter 4:17 MacDonald's books line my shelves. His CDs are scattered about my car. I have only one Bible, but so much James MacDonald. Two of my recent vacations have been with him, including one halcyon day where he baptized me in the Jordan River in the Holy Land of Israel. At Harvest Bible Chapel, with its network of seven Chicago-area campuses run by MacDonald, I was but one of the many thousands seeking Christ. I wanted my twin daughters and my formerly Catholic wife to have a real, living and current relationship with Jesus Christ just as I have. Dressed in a weathered black leather jacket covering his hulking frame, snow-white Van Dyke beard and gleaming bald dome, MacDonald makes for a striking figure at the pulpit. His Bible-based sermons are some of the most entertaining you'll hear. You leave one of his services on a Sunday jazzed and revved up for the week ahead. His preaching is good for the soul and good for the community. Big questions are asked and answered at Harvest. Is there a God? Do I matter? What happens after we die? Everyone says the same thing when they witness his command of the altar. "What a gift he has!" But gifts are easy to abuse, easy to take for granted. It's taxing to be a pastor, I'd imagine. Everybody watching your every move, your private life always on view. But that's just the way it is when you accept the yoke of ministry. It's why I've never pursued my lifelong dream of Bible thumping live. Let me be clear: Wanting to do something isn't the same as having "the calling" from God. I believe Pastor James had a calling. It's also why he was fascinated with me. I'm able to talk about anything and everything, and my performances don't come from one source. It must be a challenge and frustrating to him to be giving basically the same message endlessly. And maybe that's why he's just playing videotapes of his sermons more and more rather than preaching live these days. But while I traffic in trivia and kitsch, he is answering the most important question on earth: Why are we here? Harvest Bible Chapel Pastor James MacDonald, right, and Mancow Muller. - courtesy of Mancow Muller As a man with a reputation dating back to the 1990s as the wild man of Chicago radio, I expect people to be weary of the spirit-filled side of me. I get it. I also don't care. Jesus of Nazareth hung with an assortment of fringe characters, so why couldn't Pastor James MacDonald be my friend? We had many wonderful times. I love the guy. He's got a brilliant mind and a sense of humor that is world-caliber. He remembers everything. His advice put me "on the sunny side" and kept me on the right path more than once. But he also created THIS: a culture of authoritarianism, secrecy, intimidation, outlandish fundraising expectations, poor financial controls and debt. He taught me forgiveness, trust, being authentic and taking a stand for what's right. Some of those around him remind me of Wormtongue in the Tolkien novels -- telling him whatever sweet half-truths he wishes to hear. "Iron sharpens iron," as it says in Proverbs 27:17. Real men tell their Christian brethren like it is; we "act like men." So here goes! I have prayed and sought higher counsel in writing this. I believe Pastor James MacDonald would urge me to write this. Sometimes it's impossible to separate the man from his ministry. Like the two faces of Janus, he is a man of great complexities. Unfortunately, he and his caldron of yes men have lost their way. Nobody can put on the brakes now. Nobody but Pastor himself. He has it set up so only Pastor James can fire Pastor James. That's the law of the church! Only he can fire himself. How sick is that? It was cultlike when Pastor James and elders instructed us to not listen to "outside noise" (meaning no news or blogs criticizing Pastor). And I didn't. Harvest Bible Chapel Pastor James MacDonald baptizes Mancow Muller in the Jordan River Israel. - courtesy of Mancow Muller But then I couldn't understand many of his tearful conversations with me. I told him repeatedly I felt like Mr. Magoo wandering around blindly. Who were all these people that were out to get him? What were they lying about? How were they attacking our church? "If they are lying, you must fight back!" I told him: "Get ahead of this thing!" I gave him the number of my lawyer. He then decided to sue some of his critics and one pesky reporter who was asking difficult questions. He told me that simply by suing his detractors he would win because people would be afraid to talk about him for fear of a lawsuit. When I read the lawsuit online, my stomach sank. To me it seemed as if it were written by Pastor James MacDonald himself. Still I continued to believe "God is good and will prevail" and "all things work together for the good." I really believe that is happening even now. I believe we must "speak the truth with love" like Paul instructs us in the Bible. "We are on God's side and we will win!" I argued with someone just weeks ago. "Are you so sure? Have you heard the whole story?" When this ostrich finally pulled his head out, it was a revelation. Truth is a defense. This was not going to work out so well for Pastor James after all, I feared. "Don't you feel small? It happens to us all." The Moody Blues When he seemed shocked about this thing called "discovery" in a court case, the writing was on the wall. He would reveal nothing! The case was dropped immediately. In a long, rambling text I received from Pastor James the next day, I felt I was basically blamed for all the bad that has happened to him -- a pattern I've seen over and over. It's never his fault. He is always without blame. And I'm an easy villain to cast in the Kabuki Theater production that is his life. But I gave advice -- and my lawyer's number -- based on what I consider now to be mostly lies. He was hurt and I was crestfallen. But Pastor James often uses tears to manipulate. I don't buy it anymore. Nobody buys it anymore. Harvest Bible Chapel Pastor James MacDonald, right, and Mancow Muller, center, at a church retreat in Michigan. - courtesy of Mancow Muller I believe Jesus Christ was the son of God in human form. Crucified. Buried. He rose again and will still yet return. I wanted only Jesus, but I got the bonus plan of wicked church politics and drama. Now it's been suggested by an elder at the Rolling Meadows campus and by some parishioners that it would be best if I not return to Harvest. The pain from this I've learned is all too familiar with far too many. "Ask questions or step out of line and you are out!" I'm easy to cast aside, but my kids? My sweet wife? Families are being hurt. This is wrong. My family loves Pastor James. How do I explain this to my kids? I believe hell is a real place of unending torment. I would give everything I own to keep just one person out of that place. When people leave Harvest, oftentimes they never go to any church ever again. So when it comes to souls on the line, I felt I must speak up. As I've said, I believe Pastor James wants this. He wants someone to speak truth to him. Some questions I would ask of Pastor James (or whoever else is really running things) if they would listen: Why is Harvest $42 million in debt, as the church has stated on its website? Pastor James and a fundraising campaign called Closer asked me to donate $3 million recently. This seemed rather tone-deaf to me because I was unemployed at the time. The number kept shrinking until I was asked if I could at least sell all of my memories (in the form of my memorabilia) and give that money to Harvest. My weakness was sickening. I wish I had said something more aggressive about how awful it was. Instead, I just sat there with a stupid smile on my face. "Why don't you sell your Harley?" I joked with Pastor James, trying to lighten the mood. "No," he responded, "I like my motorcycle ... but if you don't give, see who is more blessed -- me or you." Pastor James and others suggested that I buy a house in Naples, Florida, where Harvest has a church and where he sits in exile, and then leave it to the church when I die. "What about my family?" I asked. "Wouldn't I leave my house to my own daughters?" No answer. Who really owns all the land, the churches and the camp in Michigan? Why the years of him lying about his house? I've been in it numerous times and it's not that extravagant. Own up to it! (He even asked me to move next door.) "When I show them around my house, to my bed. I had it made like a mountain range with a snow-white pillow for my big fat head. And my heaven will be a big heaven, and I will walk through the front door. Big time!" Peter Gabriel If anyone came to Pastor James with any problem, would he ever instruct them to lie? No! That's never been my experience. So why call the long- planned, paid vacation to Naples, Florida, a "sabbatical" and "a time of enforced self-reflection?" When it comes to Pastor James, it's better to do as he preaches and not always what he practices. Will Harvest lift all nondisclosure agreements that employees are forced to sign and let them out of these prisons of silence and allow them to finally tell what actually has gone wrong? When Pastor John Secrest asked for his church back in Naples, why wasn't it given back to him immediately? Isn't that the right thing to do? Why bother having church "elders" when, like a marionette quartet, they have no power whatsoever over puppet master James from what I can tell? The service I attended this past Sunday basically began with "The elders and Pastor James agree that ..." Uh oh! "He's still calling the shots from Naples just like Capone from prison," whispered the guy next to me. Why is it every time Harvest fires, kicks out or excommunicates someone they say it's "covered in love?" How is that "covered in love?" It creeps me out. Paul tells us in the Bible to "avoid the very appearance of evil." Harvest has failed. Pastor James should come home and face his church family and stop this game of charades. The so-called "elders" must all be fired. An outside truly independent group, not picked by ADVERTISING inRead invented by Teads Harvest Bible's response The Daily Herald reached out to both Harvest Bible Chapel and Pastor James MacDonald for response to this piece: "While the peacemaking process is underway, Harvest Bible Chapel does not presently intend to respond to further media inquiries. Our focus remains on seeking the Lord and ministering to our church family." -- Sherri Smith Associate Communications Director Harvest Bible Chapel M
Transcript of Mancow: Speaking my truth to Harvest Bible Chapel's Pastor ..."outside noise" (meaning no news or...
Posted 1/25/2019 5:00 AM
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By Mancow MullerSpecial to the Daily Herald
Straight from the Source »
Mancow: Speakingmy truth to HarvestBible Chapel's PastorJames
Harvest Bible Chapel Pastor JamesMacDonald, left, and Mancow Muller at amen's retreat in Michigan.( courtesy of Mancow Muller )
Editor’s note: WLS radio personalityMancow Muller of Wilmette hasattended Harvest Bible Chapel since2014 and been friends since 2016 withfounding pastor James MacDonald, anationally known church leader andpreacher. Muller has been outspoken inrecent weeks about the controversy atthe suburban network of megachurchesthat led to MacDonald suing critics fordefamation and then withdrawing thesuit when it became clear he would haveto reveal internal documents about thechurch. The episode led to MacDonaldtaking what he calls a “sabbatical” toreflect in Naples, Florida, where Harvesthas a church. The quotations pulled outwithin Muller’s essay below wereselected by Muller himself.
"Do you worship Jesus Christ or JamesMacDonald?" I asked someone yellingat me over the phone this past Sundayafter I dared go to Harvest churchagain.
Dumbstruck to silence. Nothing."Exactly," I said, "you can't answer me."The phone went dead.
Last time I checked, the Bible saysJesus is the "author and finisher of ourfaith" and that should be our focus --not Pastor James MacDonald.
"For it is time for Judgment to beginwith God's household ..."
1 Peter 4:17
MacDonald's books line my shelves. HisCDs are scattered about my car. I haveonly one Bible, but so much JamesMacDonald.
Two of my recent vacations have beenwith him, including one halcyon daywhere he baptized me in the JordanRiver in the Holy Land of Israel.
At Harvest Bible Chapel, with itsnetwork of seven Chicago-areacampuses run by MacDonald, I was butone of the many thousands seekingChrist. I wanted my twin daughters andmy formerly Catholic wife to have areal, living and current relationshipwith Jesus Christ just as I have.
Dressed in a weathered black leatherjacket covering his hulking frame,snow-white Van Dyke beard andgleaming bald dome, MacDonaldmakes for a striking figure at the pulpit.His Bible-based sermons are some ofthe most entertaining you'll hear. Youleave one of his services on a Sundayjazzed and revved up for the weekahead.
His preaching is good for the soul andgood for the community.
Big questions are asked and answeredat Harvest. Is there a God? Do I matter?What happens after we die? Everyonesays the same thing when they witnesshis command of the altar. "What a gifthe has!" But gifts are easy to abuse,easy to take for granted.
It's taxing to be a pastor, I'd imagine.Everybody watching your every move,your private life always on view. Butthat's just the way it is when you acceptthe yoke of ministry. It's why I've neverpursued my lifelong dream of Biblethumping live.
Let me be clear: Wanting to dosomething isn't the same as having "thecalling" from God. I believe PastorJames had a calling. It's also why hewas fascinated with me. I'm able to talkabout anything and everything, and myperformances don't come from onesource. It must be a challenge andfrustrating to him to be giving basicallythe same message endlessly. Andmaybe that's why he's just playingvideotapes of his sermons more andmore rather than preaching live thesedays.
But while I traffic in trivia and kitsch,he is answering the most importantquestion on earth: Why are we here?
Harvest Bible Chapel Pastor James MacDonald,right, and Mancow Muller. - courtesy of MancowMuller
As a man with a reputation dating backto the 1990s as the wild man of Chicagoradio, I expect people to be weary of thespirit-filled side of me. I get it. I alsodon't care. Jesus of Nazareth hung withan assortment of fringe characters, sowhy couldn't Pastor James MacDonaldbe my friend? We had many wonderfultimes. I love the guy. He's got a brilliantmind and a sense of humor that isworld-caliber. He rememberseverything.
His advice put me "on the sunny side"and kept me on the right path morethan once.
But he also created THIS: a culture ofauthoritarianism, secrecy, intimidation,outlandish fundraising expectations,poor financial controls and debt.
He taught me forgiveness, trust, beingauthentic and taking a stand for what'sright. Some of those around himremind me of Wormtongue in theTolkien novels -- telling him whateversweet half-truths he wishes to hear.
"Iron sharpens iron," as it says inProverbs 27:17. Real men tell theirChristian brethren like it is; we "act likemen." So here goes!
I have prayed and sought highercounsel in writing this. I believe PastorJames MacDonald would urge me towrite this.
Sometimes it's impossible to separatethe man from his ministry. Like the twofaces of Janus, he is a man of greatcomplexities. Unfortunately, he and hiscaldron of yes men have lost their way.Nobody can put on the brakes now.Nobody but Pastor himself.
He has it set up so only Pastor Jamescan fire Pastor James. That's the law ofthe church! Only he can fire himself.How sick is that?
It was cultlike when Pastor James andelders instructed us to not listen to"outside noise" (meaning no news orblogs criticizing Pastor). And I didn't.
Harvest Bible Chapel Pastor James MacDonaldbaptizes Mancow Muller in the Jordan RiverIsrael. - courtesy of Mancow Muller
But then I couldn't understand many ofhis tearful conversations with me. I toldhim repeatedly I felt like Mr. Magoowandering around blindly. Who wereall these people that were out to gethim? What were they lying about? Howwere they attacking our church? "Ifthey are lying, you must fight back!" Itold him: "Get ahead of this thing!"
I gave him the number of my lawyer.
He then decided to sue some of hiscritics and one pesky reporter who wasasking difficult questions.
He told me that simply by suing hisdetractors he would win because peoplewould be afraid to talk about him forfear of a lawsuit.
When I read the lawsuit online, mystomach sank. To me it seemed as if itwere written by Pastor JamesMacDonald himself. Still I continued tobelieve "God is good and will prevail"and "all things work together for thegood."
I really believe that is happening evennow. I believe we must "speak the truthwith love" like Paul instructs us in theBible.
"We are on God's side and we will win!"I argued with someone just weeks ago."Are you so sure? Have you heard thewhole story?"
When this ostrich finally pulled hishead out, it was a revelation.
Truth is a defense. This was not goingto work out so well for Pastor Jamesafter all, I feared.
"Don't you feel small? It happens to usall."
The Moody Blues
When he seemed shocked about thisthing called "discovery" in a court case,the writing was on the wall. He wouldreveal nothing! The case was droppedimmediately.
In a long, rambling text I received fromPastor James the next day, I felt I wasbasically blamed for all the bad that hashappened to him -- a pattern I've seenover and over. It's never his fault. He isalways without blame. And I'm an easyvillain to cast in the Kabuki Theaterproduction that is his life. But I gaveadvice -- and my lawyer's number --based on what I consider now to bemostly lies.
He was hurt and I was crestfallen.
But Pastor James often uses tears tomanipulate. I don't buy it anymore.
Nobody buys it anymore.
Harvest Bible Chapel Pastor James MacDonald,right, and Mancow Muller, center, at a churchretreat in Michigan. - courtesy of Mancow Muller
I believe Jesus Christ was the son ofGod in human form. Crucified. Buried.He rose again and will still yet return. Iwanted only Jesus, but I got the bonusplan of wicked church politics anddrama.
Now it's been suggested by an elder atthe Rolling Meadows campus and bysome parishioners that it would be bestif I not return to Harvest.
The pain from this I've learned is all toofamiliar with far too many. "Askquestions or step out of line and you areout!" I'm easy to cast aside, but mykids? My sweet wife? Families are beinghurt. This is wrong. My family lovesPastor James. How do I explain this tomy kids?
I believe hell is a real place of unendingtorment. I would give everything I ownto keep just one person out of thatplace. When people leave Harvest,oftentimes they never go to any churchever again. So when it comes to soulson the line, I felt I must speak up. AsI've said, I believe Pastor James wantsthis. He wants someone to speak truthto him.
Some questions I would ask of PastorJames (or whoever else is reallyrunning things) if they would listen:
Why is Harvest $42 million in debt, asthe church has stated on its website?
Pastor James and a fundraisingcampaign called Closer asked me todonate $3 million recently. Thisseemed rather tone-deaf to me becauseI was unemployed at the time. Thenumber kept shrinking until I wasasked if I could at least sell all of mymemories (in the form of mymemorabilia) and give that money toHarvest. My weakness was sickening. Iwish I had said something moreaggressive about how awful it was.Instead, I just sat there with a stupidsmile on my face.
"Why don't you sell your Harley?" Ijoked with Pastor James, trying tolighten the mood. "No," he responded,"I like my motorcycle ... but if you don'tgive, see who is more blessed -- me oryou."
Pastor James and others suggested thatI buy a house in Naples, Florida, whereHarvest has a church and where he sitsin exile, and then leave it to the churchwhen I die.
"What about my family?" I asked."Wouldn't I leave my house to my owndaughters?"
No answer.
Who really owns all the land, thechurches and the camp in Michigan?
Why the years of him lying about hishouse? I've been in it numerous timesand it's not that extravagant. Own up toit!
(He even asked me to move next door.)
"When I show them around my house,to my bed. I had it made like amountain range with a snow-whitepillow for my big fat head. And myheaven will be a big heaven, and I willwalk through the front door. Big time!"
Peter Gabriel
If anyone came to Pastor James withany problem, would he ever instructthem to lie? No! That's never been myexperience. So why call the long-planned, paid vacation to Naples,Florida, a "sabbatical" and "a time ofenforced self-reflection?"
When it comes to Pastor James, it'sbetter to do as he preaches and notalways what he practices.
Will Harvest lift all nondisclosureagreements that employees are forcedto sign and let them out of theseprisons of silence and allow them tofinally tell what actually has gonewrong?
When Pastor John Secrest asked for hischurch back in Naples, why wasn't itgiven back to him immediately? Isn'tthat the right thing to do?
Why bother having church "elders"when, like a marionette quartet, theyhave no power whatsoever over puppetmaster James from what I can tell?
The service I attended this past Sundaybasically began with "The elders andPastor James agree that ..." Uh oh!
"He's still calling the shots from Naplesjust like Capone from prison,"whispered the guy next to me.
Why is it every time Harvest fires, kicksout or excommunicates someone theysay it's "covered in love?" How is that"covered in love?" It creeps me out.
Paul tells us in the Bible to "avoid thevery appearance of evil." Harvest hasfailed.
Pastor James should come home andface his church family and stop thisgame of charades. The so-called"elders" must all be fired. An outsidetruly independent group, not picked by
ADVERTISING
inRead invented by Teads
Harvest Bible's response The Daily Herald reached out to bothHarvest Bible Chapel and Pastor JamesMacDonald for response to this piece:
"While the peacemaking process isunderway, Harvest Bible Chapel does notpresently intend to respond to furthermedia inquiries. Our focus remains onseeking the Lord and ministering to ourchurch family."
-- Sherri Smith AssociateCommunications Director Harvest BibleChapel
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