And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. — The Gospel of John 3:19-20
Truth and repentance are fundamental to Christianity. If truth is missing there is no Gospel, and if repentance is missing there is no reconciliation to God or fellow human beings. In one of the most famous of all passages, Christ declared “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” Scripture presents truth as the door to eternal life, and repentance – our souls’ godly response to the truth of our own sin – as the key that opens that door.
Truth and repentance are not merely missing from Liberty University, they have been raped and murdered in broad daylight by the Board of Trustees of that iniquitous institution.
The Liberty University Board of Trustees has completed the fake inquiry forced upon their pseudo-Christian institution by the “godless” media. They did everything in their power to suppress the truth in unrighteousness (Romans 1:18). When critics began discussing Caner’s gross fabrications, they silently doctored his bio to hide the lies. Being alienated from truth, they did not realize their cover up would inflame the critics’ outrage and confirm their complicity in Caner’s crimes. When bloggers proved their contentions with video evidence on YouTube, Liberty (in collusion with pseudo-Christian apologist John Ankerberg) filed phony copyright infringement charges to get the videos suppressed. This worked for about a week until counter-chargers were filed and YouTube recognized that Liberty had made false accusations. Then Christianity Today picked up on this scandal and Elmer Towns (co-founder with Jerry Falwell of Liberty University) stated that the Liberty board had “held an inquiry” and had exonerated Caner of any wrongdoing. A few days later (after much public outcry caused by the CT article) Liberty spokesman Johnny Moore explained that the inquiry “wasn’t an inquiry or anything like that” and that a real inquiry would now be conducted. Given their initial attempt to make the scandal go away by lying about having already held an inquiry, and their active collusion with Caner and other deceivers to suppress the truth, the end result of their “inquiry” was a forgone conclusion. They would do everything within their power to pervert and/or suppress the truth to protect themselves and their star preacher/comedian and “trophy” Islamic convert whom they credited with tripling enrollment in their “Christian” University. It only took them seven weeks, but they finally found a way to publicly lie without it looking too much like a lie (in their own eyes, anyway – it’s quite obvious to everyone else). Here is there statement released at the end of the day on Friday, June 25, 2010:
After a thorough and exhaustive review of Dr. Ergun Caner’s public statements, a committee consisting of four members of Liberty University’s Board of Trustees has concluded that Dr. Caner has made factual statements that are self-contradictory. However, the committee found no evidence to suggest that Dr. Caner was not a Muslim who converted to Christianity as a teenager, but, instead, found discrepancies related to matters such as dates, names and places of residence. Dr. Caner has cooperated with the board committee and has apologized for the discrepancies and misstatements that led to this review. Dr. Caner’s current contractual term as Dean of Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary expires on June, 30, 2010. Dr. Caner will no longer serve as Dean of Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary. The university has offered, and Dr. Caner has accepted, an employment contract for the 2010-2011 academic year. Dr. Caner will remain on the faculty of Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary as a professor
Let’s walk through the details of this statement:
“Dr. Caner has made factual statements that are self-contradictory.” This is the perverted lawyer language the world expects from people who are trying to twist and hide the truth. It is the last thing anyone would expect to hear coming from anyone genuinely seeking to speak truth. And after a “thorough and exhaustive review” anyone with an ounce of integrity and half a brain (let alone leaders of an academic institution that compares itself with Harvard and Yale) could determine that Ergun Caner flat out lied about many important aspects of his personal biography. For example:
- Caner’s old bio (link) that was on his official site for years claimed that he had “debated Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists and Bah’ai over sixty times at universities and colleges.” There is no record of any such debates – not one! Caner implicitly admitted that this was a lie when he removed it from his bio. There are many records of similar lies in his speeches, such as when he claimed to have debated Shabir Ally.
- Caner claimed to be able to speak Arabic, and frequently presented moronic, mind-numbing, rank gibberish as if it were Arabic in his public speeches (link). This alone would disqualify him as a professor in any legitimate university.
- Within a month of 9/11/2001, Caner opportunistically invented the story that he came to America at age 15 after being trained in Turkey as a member of “Islamic Youth Jihad” to do that “which was done on 11 September.” In one sermon he claimed that he learned English when he immigrated to Brooklyn in 1978 and in another he claimed he learned English in Turkey by watching the Dukes of Hazzard before the show had ever aired. The truth is that his family came straight to Ohio from Sweden in 1969 when he was 3 years old and he grew up as an ordinary Midwestern kid in that state which is why he speaks fluent English with a Midwestern accent. The evidence is overwhelming. It is an incontrovertible fact that he profiteered off the pain, suffering, fear, and death of 9/11. He is a criminal for this and many other reasons. I could go on and on, of course. See Ergun Caner’s Crimes against God and the Global Community.
The most obvious proof of the absolute corruption of the Liberty Board of Trustees is that they whitewashed Caner’s blatant lies as nothing but “discrepancies related to matters such as dates, names and places of residence.” This statement is so absurd as to be a self-parody. It would be like saying that the Elephant Man was a fine looking guy with some superficial skin problems. Liberty left themselves no wiggle room at all. They have publicly convicted themselves as outright unabashed freakin’ God-mocking liars!
“Dr. Caner has cooperated with the board committee and has apologized for the discrepancies and misstatements that led to this review.” Huh? Come again? I see no evidence that Caner “misstated” anything at all (except when he got his lies mixed up, I suppose). His purpose was to LIE to make money and to create a reputation as an ex-Jihad Muslim, and he made the false statements required to accomplish that purpose. He did not “misstate” anything. He flat out LIED, LIED, and LIED again for a period of nine years, and everyone knows it because it has all been recorded on video, audio, court documents, and so forth.
If anyone wants further proof that Liberty’s style of the Southern Baptist religion is a deadly parasite that kills the mind and soul of its host, take a look at Pastor Tim Guthrie’s post in which he heralds Liberty’s statement as an exoneration of Ergun Caner! In his world, black is white, up is down, and lies are true.
Liberty University is illegitimate as both a Christian and an academic institution. The suppression of truth and advancement of lies is proof that they are not Christian. And their promotion of the rank absurdity of Young Earth Creationism in their Biology classes would invalidate them as a legitimate academic institution even if they were not chronic liars who had hired and retained a dishonest and incompetent professor.
A Christian University? Liberty is neither.
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See the Squirrel’s insightful analysis here: Lynchburg, We Have A Problem…
I think it was Tim Rogers (who said the post was from all at SBC Today) who actually wrote the post declaring EC to be exonerated–though I ran across a comment in another blog thread where TR (or someone using the same name) said that he knew this was not so. The rest of the details sounded about right. The timing of the “improvements” in EC’s history still causes me (literally and honestly–not just emotionally) to feel ill.
Hi Bennett,
I found the “Exonerated” post on Tim Gurthrie’s blog, signed by him. What makes you think it was written by Tim Rogers? Was it first published elsewhere?
I share your “ill” feeling. The thing that his so outrageous to me is the public nature of the deception. I simply can not imagine any honest individual ever deliberately deceiving anyone the way these folks are doing it. It gives me that sea-sick feeling like the ground is shifting under my feet. It seems unreal.
I can’t imagine how anyone could view the LU situation any different than your description.
This is from one of Wade Burleson’s posts (the one with B. Bob’s picture). There are multiple Tims on SBC Today–but they often sound a lot alike. I put in the whole comment so that Tim would not feel that he had been misquoted by any editing I might do.
Tim Rogers said… Wade,
Against my wife’s desires I am posting this comment and then I am finished with this issue. Trash me all you like as you reveal your true bias in this entire issue. First, if Dr. Caner were not exonerated then he would have been released and not given another contract to teach. Second, if you were not behind this from the beginning you would not have taken the posture you did when the report was released.
I only have one thing to say to you; I am praying for you. Luke 6:28 (NASB77)bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.
Matt,
You come over here for your audience to get your “sucker punches” in. However, allow me to help you understand something. If you will notice the tag on our post is “Announcements”. Announcements come from the SBC Today team as a whole. However, I do not mind telling you, I was the person who posted it. If you have problems with anything you have problems with me. However, why do you not become a SBC Pastor before you begin trying to voice SBC concerns. Trying to divide our group the way you have in this comment stream is not good. However, now that you know it was me, take your best shot. Luke 6:26 (ASV)
Woe unto you, when all men shall speak well of you! for in the same manner did their fathers to the false prophets.
Blessings,
Tim
Sat Jun 26, 01:31:00 PM 2010
http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2010/july/4.45.html An interesting editorial by Christianity Today.
An excellent take on the whole situation. And thanks for the link.
In the interest of full disclosure, however, I should inform you that I adhere to Young Earth Creationism. I believe it to be both Biblical and scientific, but that is a discussion for another time.
Squirrel
Thanks Bennett – it does look like Tim Rogers wrote it. Tim Guthrie should have mentioned that when he posted it on his blog.
For those interested, here is the link to Wade article (excellent as usual):
SBC Today: “We praise God that Dr. Caner Is Exonerated” — I say, “Huh?”
You ask me to not believe my eyes? 🙂 I’ll look for it.
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/megaflood/scablands.html
Bennett
Hi Squirrel,
That is a very interesting disclosure. I do not judge you for your beliefs about YEC – so long as you are not teaching it in a biology class in an institution of higher education.
And on the note of full disclosure – I chose YEC as a quick and easy example of why Liberty is not up to modern standards for a university. I could have chosen other examples, such as Caner’s ludicrous lecture in which he identified presuppositional apologetics with Limited Atonement and used that to indoctrinate his students against Calvinism (I’m not a Calvinist by the way). But I wanted an example that did not involve Caner or theological concepts unfamiliar to many.
Thanks for your comments,
Richard
LOL, deal. I won’t task you for your non-Calvinist theology & you’ll not judge me for my YEC beliefs. 😀
Continuing in this vein of non-self-contradictory self-disclosure – my college minor was anthropology and I got an A- in Human Evolution, so I’m not ignorant of the subject. 😉
Squirrel
Ha! It looks like we’d have no problem keeping a conversation going till the end of time! We both receive Scripture as divine, but come to such differing conclusions. Fascinating, isn’t it?
I would be delighted to know your general take on evolution. I was just chatting about it with my wife a few minutes ago. I find it difficult to believe that God intervened to create each variation that is well explained by evolution. If you have time, it would be great if you wanted to register on my forum and educate me there. It’s a little better format than post comment boxes.
All the very best,
Richard
The first sentence of that article says “It was the biggest flood in the world for which there is geological evidence,” writes Norman Maclean.”
Maybe he meant it was the biggest flood in that part of the world? Nah … there seem to be some “issues” with the idea of a recent global flood as well as YEC. I think the solution is Hermeneutics ~ it certainly would be a lot easier than completely reworking Geology and Biology and all the other scientific fields that would be impacted!
Over the last 6 months, the more I read, the more outraged I become at the systemic sickness that seems to permeate the SBC and everything it touches. I do know that many God-fearing people are still out in the trenches working for the Gospel. However, when I read these ludicrous comments from the likes of Lumpkins, Guthrie, Rogers, Geisler, et al., my mind keeps reverting back to the old hymn ‘Were you there when they crucified my Lord?’ How much more disdain will so-called Christians bring upon our Savior by departing from everything He taught us about living in the light of truth. The unbeliever’s look at this and say (and rightly so), “See those hypocritical Christians? Why would I want to be part and parcel of that?” My husband and I made a decision a few weeks ago to leave our SBC affiliated church and look for some small beacon of light remaining. Pray for us as we seek to do God’s will. We might well end up at Dr. James White’s PRBC, we shall see. But wherever any of us worship, we must clean up our acts and banish the entire idea of the celebrity Christian. May God guide us all.
Hey there Katie,
I feel exactly the same way, though I see the corruption extending far beyond the SBC. This scandal has been a watershed moment for me. My eyes are now open. The fact that almost all Christian leaders and institutions are allowing the Caner/Geisler/LU et. al. corruption to propagate unchecked and without comment indicates that the entire body of corporate Christianity is corrupt. They fill the airwaves with condemnation of Muslims, gays, and liberals but ignore the putrid stench that fills their own house. They are mean-spirited self-serving hypocrites. In general, Institutional Christianity has NOTHING to do with truth in any way at all. It’s all about partisan politics, power, greed and the lies needed to support those vices. I trust none of it, and I do not believe that God wants any of us to subject ourselves to its corrupting influence. I believe Institutional Christianity may have had a role to play in history rather like the OT law. God used it as a “formative agent” to establish modern civilized nations, but now it has run its course and God has allowed it to die. All that is left is its stinking, rotting corpse.
The fundamental problem with institutionalized religion is that it gives a structure which unscrupulous evil people can use to dominate others who are trained to obey and unquestioningly believe the leaders. It therefore BREEDS CORRUPTION. I’m not saying that folks should give up fellowship if they can find it in a local church if that’s what they want, but they must never give up their own independence of thought and conscience. The days when any man teaches another what to believe are long gone. Indeed, those days have been gone for two thousand years, as it is written:
Hebrews 8:11 None of them shall teach his neighbor, and none his brother, saying, “Know the LORD,” for all shall know me, from the least of them to the greatest of them.
Richard
I knew nothing of the scandels you’ve cited till I read your blog. I came to your blog after reading about the Bible Wheel. But after reading your comments such as ” They are mean-spirited self-serving hypocrites” I wandered with all the time you”ve spent looking at the DIVINE PATTERN in the framework of the Bible, some how the heart of God’s voice in the Word, Gods love, forgiveness, mercy and grace has not taken hold of your spirit. My friend read your comments and you will hear the same “mean-spirited” tone in your written words. Yes, call a spade a spade, but then do you go on to relentlessly “crucify” your brother and the church. Sad, you know all the FACTS ABOUT the Bible, but God’s character- His Love has yet to penetrate your heart.
Hi Marie,
First, your comment does not dispute any facts that I presented, so it really adds little to the conversation.
Second, your comment is ridiculously hypocritical! You set yourself up as a judge over me and then condemn me for lacking the “love of God” as if that were something you knew anything about! Romans 2:1 to you.
Third, you appear to be suggesting that the “love of God” means sinners don’t need to repent! Your position is absolutely unbiblical and contrary to the Gospel in every way. Are you really saying that its perfectly all right for Ergun Caner to LIE FROM THE PULPIT FOR NINE YEARS and then continue working as a professor at a “Christian” university without even acknowledging his sin??? Is that what you really believe? And do you believe that anyone calling for Caner to repent is really trying to “crucify” him? What is wrong with you? Do you know nothing about the Bible at all? Nothing???
It is folks like you who have been brainwashed by the Preaching Wolves to never “touch God’s anointed” that have allowed a criminal like Ergun Caner to LIE FROM THE PULPIT FOR NINE YEARS without anyone doing anything about it. Yet that’s just the beginning of the abomination. We all know with perfect certainty that Liberty U would NEVER have done anything about Caner’s lies if not forced by the “godless media.” This means that the world is closer to Truth than that “Christian” university. And abomination continues to grow. The entire world of “evangelical Christianity” is now revealed as a putrid cesspool of lies with leaders like Norman Geisler, Paige Patterson, John Ankerberg, and many others actively lying and/or perverting truth in support of Ergun Caner. If this what you call the “love of God” then I want nothing to do with it.
And finally, why do you think Ergun Caner is a “brother” in Christ? Anyone can stand on a stage and shout “Jah-EEZ-us is LARD!” – that means less than nothing, especially when the person uses that position and lies in the name of the Lord for nine years to make money and a position for himself and then adamantly refuses to repent even after the whole world has seen the incontrovertible evidence of his guilt! Have you forgotten that repentance is the first principle of the Gospel? A man who lies for nine years and refuses to repent for MONTHS after being caught is bearing witness that he knows NOTHING of Christ or the Gospel. His sins are greatly amplified because he has made a COMPLETE MOCKERY of Christ and the Gospel as if he actively HATES GOD with all his heart.
Richard
Richard, I ask forgiveness as, I never meant to set myself as judge, sometimes we don’t even see ourselves. So thank you for showing me my own false heart.
I stand dismissed as a novice, since in reality I know so little of the controversy and should not have commented. My apologies, I’ll quietly move on.
Hi Marie,
Thanks for your apology. You are a shining example of how we all should act when we see that we have erred. God bless you.
I am sorry if my response seemed harsh – but in truth I am stunned that anyone could fail to see the outrageous corruption revealed in this situation. But I understand that you are not familiar with the issues at hand and I’m sure my strong denunciations must have sounded unkind and uncalled for.
I hope you don’t feel a need to “quietly move on.” Your comments are most welcome. I am a human like anyone else and I will err from time to time. And if you show me my error I will publicly repent here on my own blog. The fact that we all sin is not the real problem. The problem is if we refuse to repent when our sin has been exposed.
All the very best,
Richard
This is interesting from Dr. Paul Martin who deals with spiritual abuse:
Of the 210 verses that refer to false prophets, priests, elders and Pharisees, here is a summary of their content:
99 verses (47%) concern Behavior
66 verses (31%) concern Fruit
24 verses (12%) concern Motives
21 verses (10%) concern Doctrine
Dr. Paul Martin