Yesterday, June 21, 2011 was the opening day of this summers Independent Baptist Fellowship of North America (IBFNA) Family Conference.  Pastor Chuck Phelps who was scheduled to speak twice on the opening day of this family conference was pulled from the Speakers Schedule.

Not so at the FBFI Conference from the previous week.  Chuck Phelps spoke at the Fundamental Baptist Fellowship International conference held at Crosspointe Baptist Church, Indianapolis, Indiana. Chuck Phelps remains the Vice-Chairmen of the FBFI.   Dr. Ed Nelson said this about Pastor Phelps at the conference.  (Ed Nelson’s full message can be heard here.)

 ”The only way you get publicity is to have somebody hate you, as brother Chuck Phelps has had, and they come up with evil reports [about you,] then you get in the papers.  And by the way, thank God he (Chuck Phelps) stood right all the way through all of this and we ought to stand with him and encourage him, but I don’t suppose newspapers here in Indianapolis write a whole lot of articles about Crosspointe.”

Someone who is very close to Tina, pointed out to Chuckles that Ed Nelson has one major problem.  He is assuming hate. Tina does not hate Chuck Phelps.

Secondly, Phelps own testimony has conflicted with nearly everything he said on his website and to individuals.  He showed arrogance and belligerence as he testified on the stand.

Nelson is reading from the same old script that, “people came up with evil reports on Chuck Phelps.”

Really, Dr. Nelson?

Guess it wouldn’t change your mind that Phelps misrepresented the situation to his congregation, lied to the congregation and to the media and the public. Phelps set it up to ship a frightened teenager across state lines to live with strangers.  Phelps in his ‘wisdom’ decided the best place for a rape victim to be sent to live was with a family who only had teenage boys.  Phelps did this to keep her pregnancy secret. Phelps did not counsel Tina’s mother to stand with her daughter against the monster in their home, and then he assisted Tina’s mother in getting rid of the ‘problem’ once again by making sure Tina was sent to live with friends of his.  Thankfully, this ended up being a good home.  Tina has repeatedly expressed that this family was good to her, and her love for them.  However, it could have just as easily gone another direction for a child who had the adults in her life putting nothing but their own selfish welfare over a young girl who was raped.  Phelps made sure that the father paid for her plane ticket out of dodge.  In doing so, Phelps insured that this degenerate rapist could walk around free for the next 14 years.  Then when it finally became public, Phelps set up a website that attempted to tear apart the credibility of a rape victim.  It appears, much of the defense teams strategy came directly from that web site.  Then it only gets better.  During last minute, ‘hail Mary,’ legal maneuvering, David Gibbs, III worked with the defense team to keep Phelps ‘copious notes’ out of the trial.  Phelps and his attorney tried to claim ‘clergy-congregant privilege.’  Problem is Phelps had breached any privilege long ago when Tina was made to stand before that congregation that October night in 1997.  If any signs of life were left in the claim of ‘clergy-congrigant’ privilege that fact that Phelps could not keep his mouth shut when he talked to numerous people, including the media.  Any chance at resuscitation was futile when Phelps chose to set up that website.  Privacy in cases such as Tina’s belongs to the victim, not the perpetrator. Besides one can’t claim privacy with something you have placed on the world wide web for everyone to see.

“…thank God he (Chuck Phelps) stood right all the way through all of this…”

Really, Dr. Nelson?

Did you forget that Ernie Willis was convicted fourteen-years later on four counts of rape, after he plead guilty on a separate count of ‘statutory rape?’  Does it not make any difference to you that Tina Anderson could have had justice sooner if Phelps had done the right thing 14 years before?

There really should be no surprise here.  Dr. Nelson has a history of standing with pastors who abuse lambs in their flocks.  Even with pastors who were convicted of nearly beating a little lamb to death. Dr. Ed Nelson along with Dr. Bob Jones III,  endorsed, “The Embrace of Grace” written by convicted felon Caleb Thompson.  Caleb Thompson is still currently incarcerated in a Texas prison for holding down a eleven-year old Hispanic boy while his brother Joshua Thompson beat the boy over 100 times according to court documents.  What did the little boy do that would cause these two Independent Baptist Fundamentalist pastors to beat the boy with two tree branches until his kidneys failed?  The boy, whose first language was not English, quoted the wrong verse in a sword drill.  More documents here.

Dr. Nelson was Jocelyn Zichtermans pastor when she was a teenager.  If you watched the 20/20 interview.  Jocelyn recounted a story of being made to stand up in front of the congregation and apologize for her sin of a sexual relationship with her teenage boyfriend while her sexually abusive father and brothers looked on from the pew.

God has a dire warning to these Shepherds who abuse His flock.

“Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of My pasture!” says the Lord. Therefore thus says the Lord God of Israel against the shepherds who feed My people: “You have scattered My flock, driven them away, and not attended to them. Behold, I will attend to you for the evil of your doings.” says the Lord. —Jeremiah 23:1, 2 (NKJV)

When is it going to be that the FBFI begins to hold Phelps publicly responsible for what he has done?