Sad News
In France over the last few weeks, the Assemblies of God has made the news. Unfortunately, it's not in a good way. In this country, where atheism has reigned since the Enlightenment, pentecostals are viewed as a weird religious sect, at best. There are frequent television “exposées” on news magazine-type shows, portraying all evangelical protestants as crazy, fanatical nuts.
A recent event in Perpignan (on the Mediterranean coast) has made it all even worse. These are the facts: in the AG church in Perpignan, a woman (who was not a member but a frequent visitor) felt that God called her to a special fast. She also made her four year old daughter fast with her. On Dec. 26, a young intern pastor and another member of the church were doing a routine visitation and found them weak and emaciated. The young intern went straight out and bought a sack of groceries, imploring the woman to eat. However, he didn't force them to eat; he trusted the lady to fix something after he left. The following day, the senior pastor and his wife visited to be sure that everything was okay. They found a terribly grave situation with the lady and her child. The senior pastor, M. Denizou, is an acquaintance of mine and I have found him to be a fantastic pastor, worthy of respect in every way. He called the paramedics, but had to argue and call again and again for an hour and half before they finally came. By that time, the child had died in the arms of Madame Denizou. The lady herself was hospitalized and remains in hospitcal care even now.
There was an immediate enquiry into the whole situation, ending in the young intern pastor and his visitation partner being handcuffed and led to the police station for questioning. This is the footage that has made news. While the intern pastor and the other church member have since been released, there is still a pending investigation and possible charges of negligence. The media is using this, of course, to paint a negative picture of the church and their beliefs in fasting, in particular.
Please pray for this church and the pastoral staff there. I cannot imagine their grief or their regret for the whole situation.
A recent event in Perpignan (on the Mediterranean coast) has made it all even worse. These are the facts: in the AG church in Perpignan, a woman (who was not a member but a frequent visitor) felt that God called her to a special fast. She also made her four year old daughter fast with her. On Dec. 26, a young intern pastor and another member of the church were doing a routine visitation and found them weak and emaciated. The young intern went straight out and bought a sack of groceries, imploring the woman to eat. However, he didn't force them to eat; he trusted the lady to fix something after he left. The following day, the senior pastor and his wife visited to be sure that everything was okay. They found a terribly grave situation with the lady and her child. The senior pastor, M. Denizou, is an acquaintance of mine and I have found him to be a fantastic pastor, worthy of respect in every way. He called the paramedics, but had to argue and call again and again for an hour and half before they finally came. By that time, the child had died in the arms of Madame Denizou. The lady herself was hospitalized and remains in hospitcal care even now.
There was an immediate enquiry into the whole situation, ending in the young intern pastor and his visitation partner being handcuffed and led to the police station for questioning. This is the footage that has made news. While the intern pastor and the other church member have since been released, there is still a pending investigation and possible charges of negligence. The media is using this, of course, to paint a negative picture of the church and their beliefs in fasting, in particular.
Please pray for this church and the pastoral staff there. I cannot imagine their grief or their regret for the whole situation.