Rekjalhew

July 28, 2008

One More Reason I’ll Never Purchase a Book by Richard Abanes! He’s Had Apprising.org Shut Down, for Calling Out His Running Cover for Rick Warren. (*Updated*)

by IndependentConservative @ 3:17 pm. Filed under Evangelicals Under Attack

A big hat tip to Covina for sending me this.

Blog Shut Down by ‘Christian’ Apologist’s Threat

Contact: Pastor Dustin Segers, Coalition of Concerned Bloggers, ChristianResearchNetwork.com, 336-848-7197

MEDIA ADVISORY, July 28 /Christian Newswire/ — Pastor Dustin Segers submits the following and is available for comment:

How safe are our blogs? That question was raised again when on the evening of July 26, 2008, a popular religious blog was shut down by an Internet service provider. A complaint filed by Christian author and apologist, Richard Abanes, claiming that one article on the religious opinion site, Apprising.org, had slandered him, caused the web host, IPower, to send its publisher, Ken Silva, a 48-hour warning to remove the offending piece or be taken down. In that the piece was not believed to be slander at all, but rather religious and theological opinion, he refused to be forced into censoring his site by Richard Abanes. The site went down.

There are serious implications here for all bloggers, regardless of what sort of blog they publish. Anyone who has a complaint about your views can claim that you have engaged in slander and the ISP Terms of Service usually allow for the companies to remove your website if you don’t take the material in question down. The First Amendment means nothing in these cases. ISP’s cannot and will not explore the claims of slander and simply notify bloggers to remove whatever is causing the problem. This opens the door for anyone to censor what a blogger writes online.

Everyone who values the right to read and publish blogs on the Internet has a vested interested in the issue. There is growing concern in the blog world over this, and a number of servers are popping up that offer “First Amendment” hosting. These are web hosts which require a court order before they will remove someone’s website. Their day has clearly come.

Richard Abanes is a Rick Warren front man, who gets ticked whenever anybody calls him out for it. He especially does not like when anybody warns saints of what he’s doing. See the post on Jesus Christology titled More Evidence That Rick Warren Is Working For One Global Religion. There you see in the comments Richard Abanes attempted to pressure Job to remove a LINK he has to this post on John Baker’s blog: Rick Warren Apologist Richard Abanes: Going soft on Mormonism, Is this the direction Rick Warren is Heading?

You can also see the comments of Job’s post comments where me, Job, John Baker and another brother contended against Richard Abanes.

Well Rick Warren cover man (and soft on Mormonism) Abanes may have had Apprising.org shut down, but for a limited time, you can still view all the Apprising.org articles about Richard Abanes in Google’s cache, by clicking this link and then the “Cached” link under a page you wish to view. No doubt Abanes will seek to have Google purge their cache, so get copies ASAP!

And Richard, you know you don’t even need to try making a comment here, because I already told you I’m done with you and won’t let you have a single word here.

Richard Abanes has again proven he’s not a man who respects the Word of God. Instead of respecting 1 Corinthians 6 and not going legal on a matter of theology, he’s gone using legal methods in crying “slander”, to have a Christian’s web site taken offline. How is a real Christian to respond to being mocked?

1 Peter 2:21-25 (New American Standard Bible)

21 For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps,

22 WHO COMMITTED NO SIN, NOR WAS ANY DECEIT FOUND IN HIS MOUTH;

23 and while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously;

24 and He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed.

25 For you were continually straying like sheep, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Guardian of your souls.

I’ve always found Apprising.org to be a site that stood for the truth of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. And Richard Abanes’ actions only further prove the site to be good, but never will I purchase any of Richard Abanes’ material.


update 7/28/2008 4:33PM: Apprising.org is back online, well not the domain name yet. But Pastor Ken Silva already has his blog back online at this IP address. I’m sure the domain name is in the process of being switched, which may take up to a day or 2.

The last post Pastor Ken has up is titled RICHARD ABANES TO SUE APPRISING MINISTRIES OVER DEFAMATION-LIBEL?. He notes 1 Corinthians 6:1-6. I think he should have also included verses 7 through 12.

1 Corinthians 6:7-12 (New American Standard Bible)

7 Actually, then, it is already a defeat for you, that you have lawsuits with one another. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be defrauded?

8 On the contrary, you yourselves wrong and defraud. You do this even to your brethren.

9 Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals,

10 nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God.

11 Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God.

12 All things are lawful for me, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be mastered by anything.

Those additional verses are very pertinent, because Richard Abanes is the one who wrongs and defrauds in using legal action against a Christian. Not allowing himself to be criticized by a Christian. Not able to digest verse 7, that even if Pastor Ken had wronged and defrauded him, employing Matthew 18:15-17 was the appropriate course of action, not legal threats. He could not simply allow himself to feel as if he was wronged and leave it be, saying he was wronged and leave it there. No, Richard Abanes makes sure his lawyer’s phone number is near by and starts making legal threats when he is wronged.

Ken’s post quotes a full copy of the letter from Abanes to his web hosting company. Check out a few statements from it below:

…
By way of introduction, I am an award-winning, bestselling author/journalist with twenty books published by major publishing houses. My public reputation, therefore is of paramount importance to my livelihood and career.
…
Before turning this situation over to my attorneys, I respectfully request that IPOWERWEB.NET / IPOWERWEB.COM remove this particular article from it?s servers, and notify Ken Silva to cease and desist the posting similar articles. I have no wish to name IPOWERWEB.NET / IPOWERWEB.COM in a legal suit, and hope to resolve this issue as quickly and easily as possible.
…

Notice what is PARAMOUNT to Richard Abanes, his public reputation, so he can keep convincing people to BUY HIS BOOKS. Now I ask you, does Richard Abanes write books to promote the gospel, or to peddle in the Lord’s name?

2 Corinthians 2:17 (New American Standard Bible)

17 For we are not like many, peddling the word of God, but as from sincerity, but as from God, we speak in Christ in the sight of God.

It is apparent to me, that Richard Abanes is about peddling in the Lord’s Name. His reputation is what he really cares about, for his own belly!

Here are some scriptures, that Richard Abanes and anyone claiming to be a Christian needs to think about long and hard.

Romans 16:17-18 (New American Standard Bible)

17 Now I urge you, brethren, keep your eye on those who cause dissensions and hindrances contrary to the teaching which you learned, and turn away from them.

18 For such men are slaves, not of our Lord Christ but of their own appetites; and by their smooth and flattering speech they deceive the hearts of the unsuspecting.

and

Philippians 3:14-21 (New American Standard Bible)

14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

15 Let us therefore, as many as are perfect, have this attitude; and if in anything you have a different attitude, God will reveal that also to you;

16 however, let us keep living by that same standard to which we have attained.

17 Brethren, join in following my example, and observe those who walk according to the pattern you have in us.

18 For many walk, of whom I often told you, and now tell you even weeping, that they are enemies of the cross of Christ,

19 whose end is destruction, whose god is their appetite, and whose glory is in their shame, who set their minds on earthly things.

20 For our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ;

21 who will transform the body of our humble state into conformity with the body of His glory, by the exertion of the power that He has even to subject all things to Himself.

If we Christians are living for the sake of reputation, for money, for career, to the point we’d spark legal challenges against brethren. Are we who do so really acting like the example given to us? Are we who do such acting like Christians? How many of the many who spoke against Paul did he sue? As I’ve show in other scripture above, Christ was mocked without reviling in return. So is a Christian acting like Him, to go to court against a “brother”, or to even suggest it may be done? Certainly not! These things cause hindrances and are ungodly actions. So we can only pray, that if Richard Abanes really is a child of God and that if we are the Lord’s, that God will reveal Richard Abanes’ error to him and that God may reveal to us when we have a different attitude from what is sound instruction.

Richard Abanes is a man who I find is best avoided. Any man who defends a false teacher and carries on in this manner which is ungodly activity, is not a man I feel comfortable around at all. I’ve given him the warning of Luke 6:39-40 and if the Lord wills, one day he will turn from this evil he’s doing. So many saints have warned Abanes, but he will not relent. It’s sad to see a man call himself a “Christian” yet act so ungodly. I will have nothing to do with the man and warn saints he is best avoided. Keep the wicked man away from you, 1 Corinthians 5.



9 Responses to “One More Reason I’ll Never Purchase a Book by Richard Abanes! He’s Had Apprising.org Shut Down, for Calling Out His Running Cover for Rick Warren. (*Updated*)”

  1. elkrueger Says:
    July 28th, 2008 at 4:08 pm

    Even if Google deletes their cache, you can always do a search at the following address:

    http://www.archive.org/web/web.php

    This allows you to look at specific pages based on dates. It is usually 6-12 months behind, but very useful.

    ELKRUEGER

  2. ncatina Says:
    July 28th, 2008 at 5:44 pm

    It’s painfully apparent that people of this caliber have a vested interest in spreading the tripe of their making. There are collectively millions of dollars at stake for these pulpit pimps and their flunkie associates to keep the apostasy running. All one needs to do is look at the end of the money trail for those such as Rick Warren, Kenneth Copeland and others for the money that is made for their personal empires.

    I saw this article on another site just before reaching this one and coming upon this post. From what I gather, this puppet for Warren doesn’t seem bright enough to even mount a point-on-point rebuttal or challenge to what he believes to be slanderous information. The best course of action for Abanes could have taken (at least initially) was to adddress the specific points made in the blog he found objectionable. Yet, because Warren’s questionable associations and faulty theology have no scriptural grounding, Abanes would have been at a terrible loss in effectively disproving anything said against Warren.

    These are indeed desperate times for those that are truly opposed to the Word and things of God. The gay movement has already started the process of shuting up their opponents; be prepared for others in opposition to do the same.

    I continue to pray, IC, that your blog and others committed to righteousness continue to withstand the garbage of the enemy. En garde!!

    IndependentConservative reply on July 28th, 2008 at 6:23 pm :

    Richard Abanes has at times attempted to give his twisted take on things. As you can see in the comment exchange on Job’s blog and he’s at times made his own blog posts. But apparently he’s decided to take things beyond debate and discussion. He apparently never asked Ken, but has asked others to remove their posts about him. But I guess now instead of him simply accepting that some people don’t agree with him and will warn others, he’s now trying to invoke potential legal challenges. He’s got a “reputation” to uphold you know…

    When Abanes has attempted to offer some defense for what he’s doing, it’s about as lame as a false teacher defending what they are doing. Basically Abanes has been caught promoting error many times and he often responds with a sort of (paraphrasing) “that’s not what I meant” kind of response. And it goes on and on. But it’s clear who he is defending and what he’s not really standing firm for. But you can read the exchanges had with him and see for yourself.

    IndependentConservative reply on July 28th, 2008 at 6:23 pm :

    And thank you for your prayers.

  3. truthintheselastdays Says:
    July 29th, 2008 at 7:10 am

    Well, we praise the Lord that Pastor Ken is back online and looking real nice too :-D. I have lost any of the little respect I have for Richard Abanes. He is nothing more than another pimp-enabler, helping them gain respectability inspite of their damaging methods.

  4. DL Foster Says:
    July 29th, 2008 at 9:04 am

    Wow, once this tactic get around and the pimps realize they can with little effort shut us down, none of us will be safe. And they can continue to rape, pillage and lie without any opposing voices.

    Yet in spite of their attacks, I will believe that God will hasten his judgment on these wicked liars blogs or not.

    I for one will continue to speak truth and expose the unfrutiful works of darkness no matter what.

    IC, got a couple of questions for you offline.

    IndependentConservative reply on July 29th, 2008 at 10:51 am :

    This is why I encourage Christian bloggers to have backup plans and preferably own their own domain name. Then if pimps knock you off one web host, it’s a matter of simply moving to as the article notes:

    …a number of servers are popping up that offer “First Amendment” hosting. These are web hosts which require a court order before they will remove someone’s website. Their day has clearly come.

    Notice Ken’s blog was not down for even a full week, just a couple of days or so.

    Yes vengeance is the Lord’s.

  5. rascoe1 Says:
    July 29th, 2008 at 1:03 pm

    Like Pastor Foster, I do believe that “God will hasten his judgement on these wicked liars, blogs or not”. Likewise IC, I was hopeing that the emails I received about those pimps coming off the air were true. They do so much damage “in the name of the Lord”. I truely believe that no man can stop Gods’ work. They can only prove to be a stumpling block in our way, but the war is already won, to the glory of God.

  6. truthintheselastdays Says:
    July 29th, 2008 at 4:18 pm

    I just exported my archive today and burned it on several discs…and put ‘em in a safe. I have the feeling that my blogs might also be on the receiving end - particularly with persecution of Christians becoming legal.

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