The Redding City Council seat that belongs to non-evangelical councilor, Mark Mezzano, is his to keep for another two years, alongside Winter. Scheide. Im not religious. Hes one of two 30-year-old Redding City Council candidates; a gentle spirit who jumped navely into the deep end of an election pool in which he is in waaaay over his head. Also, you know who else besides social media trolls say ethnic groups are going to hell? Its designed to attract shoppers downtown during the holidays and drive-by stoners, I guess, for the rest of the year. Is it religiously intolerant to reject the most obviously qualified candidates solely because of the churches they attend, and their religious practices inside those churches? But forget election-deniers for a moment. Contact him at RVScheide@anewscafe.com.. If you are new here, or if you just fell off a turnip truck, Bethel Church is a world-famous Redding mega-church that boasts more than 10,000 members. As evidence, she points to the Civic; to Winter's place on the city council; to the hordes of Bethel students who volunteer across Redding, saving the city money. Chamberlain holds a Bachelor's Degree in journalism from CSU, Chico. A dear Democrat friend of mine, whos voting only for Hill out of solidarity with his fellow progressive, said he finds Audette, Johnson and Shea just a bit too zealous for his liking. Even if Valenzuela hadnt liked [S]election Code on her Facebook page, the fact remains that Valenzuela like Hill and Vollmers lacks even a modicum of experience necessary to be an effectively qualified council member. One area of government that could see significant turnover: the Redding city council. Recreation Area, Shasta County Supervisor Kevin Crye (252), Win-River Casino Expansion: One Step(4,632), Gateway School District Update: Clif(3,529), Comment on Against Ad Hoc Committee Advice, New State California Secessionist Chriss Street May Be Countys CEO by Jolly, Comment on Against Ad Hoc Committee Advice, New State California Secessionist Chriss Street May Be Countys CEO by George Winship. My heartburn worsened after watching Audettes guest appearance on Bethel top-gun pastor Kris Vallottons podcast, where Audette discusses, among other things, Gods role in government and if politicians should Christianize a nation. Johnson, who publicly endorsed Trump in 2016 and 2020, teaches that part of that revival will come through ballot boxes. Is ctfirewood.com a scam or a fraud? James Crockett, who says hes a former Bethel Church member, is now a member of The Stirring. 2018. This became apparent after I wrote the story about it and was scolded by Bethels then-communications person for not mentioning that many of those in attendance were from The Stirring, too. Theres more evidence of collaboration between The Stirring Church and Bethel Church, but you get the idea. Earnest deputy county clerk Ian Hill falls into a bless his pea-pickin heart category. Danny and Sheri Silk moved to Redding to become a part of the Bethel Senior Team. These three appear the most polished, most prepared, most experienced, most articulate and most accomplished. These are all responsibilities of a city council member. The council voted 4-1 to draft a contract with Bethel for running the 41-year-old . The two churches sometimes share resources, facilities, musicians, staff and speakers. To make a donation,click here. I spend just 2 hours at Bethel each week and 45+ hours in the community, helping unlock funding for real estate deals, putting my financial skills to work, and investing in our local nonprofits. Bill and Beni Johnson, senior pastors Bethel Redding. Redding City Council approved Bethel to apply for development of a new church and school campus facilities. Local critics oppose Bethels promotion of gay conversion therapy, and its fight against COVID masks, vaccinations, and closures. Others have been threatened by Bethel supporters. Bethel can be felt in the trendy new coffee shops and restaurants where young, well-dressed people huddle at tables with open Bibles and nary a mask . Get involved and join us as we pursue the personal, regional, and global expansion of God's kingdom through His manifest presence. Bethel is a church not a PAC, she wrote. We are on the edge of the greatest revival of all time. This is preposterous. Thats where it says, [N]o religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States. Imagine you are overworked and stressed out, Crocket explained, and your neighbor took it upon themselves to mow your lawn. Work ethic and family values were built and fostered in me beginning in the . Thanks to Bethel, Redding is now known as a leader in the field of conversion therapy, the scientifically unfounded belief that LGBTQ people can purposely change their sexual orientation or gender identity using reparative methods such as praying the gay away. People who havent drank the Kool-Aid find themselves on the outside looking in and naturally resent Bethels newfound economic power, attached as it is to the on-earth-as-it-is-in-heaven Seven Mountain Mandate. Christian nationalist Doug Mastriano of Pennsylvania lost his Senate race to his Jewish opponent, while Kari Lake lost Arizonas governors race to the incumbent. Ive been in churches my whole life, she said, and Bethel is the least religious church Ive ever been in. Having written thousands of articles over the course of my career, I know when my palms are perspiring on the keyboard as I type, something is drastically wrong and its time to take a step back and ask myself some serious questions. The seven mountains are education, religion, family, business, government/military, arts/entertainment and media. The following is an open letter to Redding Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Jake Mangas in response to his blog post last week on the chambers website, Hate Speech and Bethel Church.. The wording in the article could lead some to believe that it is still in that fellowship. One of the most persistent criticisms against Dacquisto has to do with what should be a simple question: Michael Dacquisto, where do you live?. For the November 8, 2022 general election . I often find myself saying, each time a new Bethel business pops up, The place looks nice, but why would I want that? (This is probably because Im old. How about You can tellthose with a certain gender preferencerun this business because it has that look.?. Bloomberg News and on CNN, KQED and KPFA. Now Im not.. Full disclosure: Im a member of two such Facebook groups, Bethel Affiliated Businesses and Investigating Bethel. Let Us Worship participants, many from Bethel Church and The Stirring church, crowd around Sean Feucht and musicians. In a normal county, candidates religious beliefs wouldnt/shouldnt be relevant in local elections. Yes, Johnson attends the Stirring Church. While Crockett says its clear that Bethel is passionate about making a positive impact in the city, he worries that the ways they attempt to do so may not take into account the perspectives and needs of all. In reply to R.V. Bethel fought for the right to perform it on adultsand won. Julie Winter, a Bethel elder, already sits on the five-seat Redding City Council. Bethel Church is a charismatic megachurch in Redding, California, that is primarily known for their popular . While neither candidate directly addressed whether they might be able to pull on Bethel funding for the city in future, both said the churchs finances had not impacted their campaigns. You know the difference between Bethel Church and a casino, Jake? We are a non-profit, independent, civic news organization focused on Shasta Countys diverse and investigative stories. Like Munns, Hill seems a good guy who truly wants to make a difference. Once was the churchs vocal response to a 2018 California bill which would have made it illegal for Bethel to sell resources with the intent to reduce or eliminate same-sex attraction, according to a tweet from Vallotton. The last go-round she was running for the Shasta County District 1 race, but she dropped out mid-race, citing a lack of financial resources that would enable her to compete with the other well-funded candidates. Do you support free online news in Shasta County? While two of Bethels candidates won their races, former Bethel celebrity Sean Feucht was less successful in his worship-music-meets-campaign efforts on behalf of two Trump-endorsed candidates. In fact, Johnson agrees so much that he took to Facebook with an accounting of the some of the most damning charges against Dacquisto in a post that pretty much summarizes Johnsons stance, I voted for Michael Dacquisto 4 years ago. With 10 city council candidates competing for three seats in the Nov. 8 general election, its a contentious game of political musical chairs. Second, Bethel Church and its infinite number of horizontally networked sub-ministries has raked in hundreds of millions of dollars during the past decade and hasnt been shy about spreading the manna around. Since then, the North State is still in recovery over the dirty recall of a stellar supervisor, the baseless firing of the countys chief health officer and the resignation of a blackmailed CEO. These groups arent devoted to hating Bethel Church and its members, theyre devoted to exposing the grip Bethel has on Redding and their lives, and theyve garnered national media attention with their efforts. Audette called the idea that she has access to Bethel funding one of the biggest myths she has heard. Scientologists have bought most of downtown and the chamber of commerce. Julie Winter, Redding City Council member/Bethel Church elder, The 10 following candidates are competing for three available Redding City Council seats. Aside from being Dacquistos two-fer candidate, you may recall Partin from his ambitious 2012 Wine Village plan that never panned out. In reply to R.V. Bethel helped raise money to assist the completion of Redding's free water park, Fantasy Fountain, and design-savvy Bethel members voluntarily created a style guide for signage in city parks. Do you have a correction to this story? I realize many interpret it differently, as a mandate to Christians to control all institutions, She explained. I grew up embracing a ranch life with early mornings feeding horses and late nights mucking stalls. Christianity Today defines Christian Nationalism, Supervisor Jones Wants More Power To Set The Board, And The Peoples, Agenda. Like the $500,000 Garden of Lights project dreamed up by Redding City Council member and Bethel Elder Julie Winter and recently passed by the council. . The Redding City Council on Tuesday night unanimously approved renewing Advance Reding's contract to run the Redding . The City of Redding has allowed them to sleep and stay there For months. Shes engaged with the public. I think they are going to be disappointed after they find out that their positions will force them to be focused on municipal needs such as water, sewer, traffic issues and infrastructure needs, not drag shows and woke teachers.. Editors note: Portions of this column have been edited for clarity. Well just leave that there while we ponder the easy answer. Redding will lease its civic auditorium to Bethel Church for up to a decade. We break down why. As it grows, Bethel has better connected Redding to the world. Were talking about vision, Jake. If they lose, will they cry fraud? Hates a strong word. Patrick "Hacker" Jones He knows a thing or two about hackin', lemme tell ya. The feds will ultimately approve the casino, the tribal members of the Redding Rancheria will get their due, but one cant help wondering: Is this virtue signaling by the council and the supervisors just another case of whites speaking with forked tongues, or is a certain megachurch concerned a big fat casino might cut into its grift? Things got especially slick when you introduced HR departments to this conversation and mention of potential lawsuits. I know what he means, because Audette and Shea in particular do come across a bit on the Up-With-People uber-perky side. A casino is more honest about stealing its customers money, pays its taxes and rakes the cash in 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Dacquisto may have once been an active member in the community, but it is widely known locally that is no longer the case. Feb 20, 2023 5:15 PM . View Calendar. But after watching many hours of multiple candidate forums, and after spending entire days transcribing audio, trawling websites and doing deep dives into social media pages, Ive reached a conclusion: Of the 10 Redding City Council candidates, Audette, Johnson and Shea appear the most qualified to serve as Redding City Council members. In reply to Jeff Gorder. For example, when The Stirring held a preachers conference, among the slate of speakers were BSSM staff member Hayley Braun, and Pastor Tinasha LaRaye, a frequent Bethel speaker and performer. She didnt. Jack Munns is one of three Bethel Church members running for the Redding City Council. Hear his TEDxRedding talk and tell me you hate his ideas about neighborhoods. I confess to suffering significant election heartburn with the knowledge that Audette was Winters former campaign manager, and that Audette received more than $15,000 in campaign consulting fees from Sean Feuchts failed congressional campaign in 2019 and early 2020, along with $2,800 in reimbursements. Did you mean the Blue Man Group? Would your relationship with that neighbor be positive or negative?. Bethel frightens the hell out of a considerable number of people, many of whom shop at businesses represented by the chamber. Six evangelicalsthree Bethel members and three members of The Stirring church, which has connections to Bethelwere among 10 candidates running for three open seats, according to Doni Chamberlain, editor of A News Caf, a feisty local publication that expressed concerns about Bethel dominance. In 2018, the last year for which data is available, the church had annual revenue of more than $60 million. If youre suggesting the chamber supports LGBTQ rights, you should know Bethel Church actively opposes LGBTQ rights at the local, state and national level, and spends a lot of money doing it. Candidate Johnson agrees wholeheartedly. Annelise Pierce is Shasta Scouts Editor and a Community Reporter covering government accountability, civic engagement, and local religious and political movements. Like the $500,000 Garden of Lights project dreamed up by Redding City Council member and Bethel Elder Julie Winter and recently passed by the council. Listen to Sheas story, and then tell me youd reject this former Wall Street finance expert, the grandson of immigrants who fled Communist China. Its notable that Partin, like Valenzuela, has also been identified and selected as a true conservative candidate by some of the same ultra-conservative folks whove embraced Dacquisto. Dacquisto was recently quoted in a newspaper story with words that may eventually come back to haunt him: If people dont think I participate enough and want someone to do more, then they should vote for that candidate., Bingo! And with that slippery slope, youve hit rock bottom. No gold dust, please. Below are excerpts from Johnsons post of accusations against Dacquisto: City of Redding insiders describe incumbent Dacquisto as weary and worn out. Redding council backs Bethel's new campus. The fact that members of the group routinely observe and discuss whats known as the Bethel look is not necessarily hateful. This site uses cookies to provide you with a great user experience. But right now, after all the North States been through, Redding could benefit from some youthful zeal. A casino! However, as much as some members of The Stirring church might like to distance themselves from Bethel Churchs dramatic spiritual feats, its indisputable that The Stirring and Bethel Church are Christian kissin cousins. Crockett says while hes sure some in the church would endorse Christian Nationalism he doesnt believe most in the churchs rank-and-file are even sure what that term means and he has not heard it taught from the pulpit. Kathy Vallotton, Bethel Church senior pastor, $1,000. Of those 10 candidates, three are current Bethel Church members, and three are members of The Stirring Church, including one whos a former Bethel Church member. Some of them have been doxing you. In reply to Jeff Gorder. And even though I attended Bethel Church in my youth, way back in its early Assemblies of God days, there remain many, many things I will never understand about Bethel Church. Get new articles and breaking news delivered to your inbox. She cited the churchs involvement in bringing funding to the city to help secure a daily flight from Redding to Los Angeles on United Airlines, the half-million in funding given by Bethel in 2017 for local police staffing, and Bethels decision to form Advance Redding, a nonprofit that was awarded a contract to run the citys Civic Auditorium. There are three primary reasons members are concerned about Bethel, not all of them shared by all members. The problem with this rigid strategy is that generally speaking, once Bethel and Stirring-related candidates are removed from the playing field, the remaining choices are inoffensively OK at best, and stunningly out-to-lunch at worst. Bethel's first global campaign, Arise & Build . Article VI, Clause 3 works both ways. People post mean things sometimes. Shasta County Supervisor Kevin Crye (252), Win-River Casino Expansion: One Step(4,632), Gateway School District Update: Clif(3,529), Comment on Against Ad Hoc Committee Advice, New State California Secessionist Chriss Street May Be Countys CEO by Jolly, Comment on Against Ad Hoc Committee Advice, New State California Secessionist Chriss Street May Be Countys CEO by George Winship. Copyright 2023 Shasta Scout | Powered by Indiegraf Media, Privacy Policy | Subscriber Agreement | Terms of Use, Subscribe to get our latest articles and investigations sent straight to your inbox. However, Munns does have one interesting detail that sets him apart from the rest of the candidates: He spearheaded in Reno an award-winning homeless-assistance program that he believes could work in Redding. Redding City Council - Special Meeting - Budget Workshop. Crockett says he attended Bethel for nine years and continues to maintain friendships with individuals at the church. To donate, Invading Babylon: The 7 Mountain Mandate,, Jack W. Hayford, Charismatics Gold Standard, Has Died, Vandals Deface Church Hosting Sean Feucht New Years Eve Worship Event, Charismatic Revivalist Todd Bentley Widening Ministry Despite Scandals and Disqualification, Eden Village Ministry Aims to End Homelessness Through Tiny Home Communities, Gateway Seminary to Fund Short-Term Mission Trips for All Students, Vineyard Pastor Resigns, Wont Cooperate With Probe Into Sons Alleged Misconduct, Why Businessman Peter Chung Matters for the Future of The Kings College. If you believe their statements and I do these three are enthusiastic in their dedication and genuine desire to make Redding a better place. First, many members view Bethels strange brew of Christianity and New Age as a straight-up cult, a holy rolling, faith-healing pyramid scheme sucking the lifeblood out of the town and preaching a false gospel. Evangelical Christians who follow End Times theology (ahem, Bethel) that condemns Jews and other non-believers to an eternal lake of fire! They feel like their vision for Redding is being supplanted by someone elses, that theyre being replaced by Bethelbots, that the system is rigged. Literally. And then there is the $500,000 donation to the city police department: "They did that with one thing in mind, to curry favor," Brady says. I have no influence on Bethels decisions, financial or otherwise, Shea wrote, I am just one of several thousand people who choose to spend my personal time there as a private citizen on Sunday mornings.. But click on the link, and its soon apparent that theres no there, there, and that site has been non-functioning for some time. Michael Dacquisto is the only incumbent candidate, and hes struggling to keep his footing upon a slippery slope studded with loopholes, gray areas and alleged white lies.

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