/feedback
-reader mail
* "you sow a seed into threir ministry.!!!!" *
Uncostumarily, I have decided to leave every inkling of this e-mail's formatting completely intact, right down to the color, size, and boldness of the font. Mind you, this e-mail was sent to me on a white background with the bold red font highlighted in black.
It
really does not matter WHAT the St.Matthews church does with the offerrings
they recieve...but here is MY opinion.
As with everyone
else ,they come to you and me thru the mail and give YOU REAL SCRIPTURES,
REAL PROPHECY AND THEY ASK that you sow a seed into threir ministry.!!!!
(IT IS NOT BY FORCE) Look at the millions of fliers,coresponance,postage............LOOK
a lil deeper people!!!!where do they get the money to send this life
giving encouragement ,if not from other christians who can see the good
that they do for otherwise desolate, people............
The way I see it:If they are doing anything dishonest with the money
........GOD will handle them , shut them down, stop them...FOR ME? they
have been a blessing.....I dont NEED names because their encouragement
has been a blessing....
LOOK
AT IT THIS WAY: a bum on the street walks up to you and asks if u can
spare a dollar for him to get a burger.YOU KNOW YOU CAN....but YOU wonder
if that bum is REALLY going to get a burger or a hit of crank or booze....etc.
THAT IS NOT YOUR PROBLEM......GOD SAYS GIVE AND GIVE FREELY AND THE
LORD SHALL PROSPER YOU.
THAT IS GOOD ENOUGH FOR ME........................
Wow.
Overall, I would say that Kristie was displeased with the context in which I placed her above e-mail. Her response is below.
first,
you are rude....but you know that...right? You do not have to be a christian,
God is still there. I am by NO means anywhere near perfect,either. But
my view makes sense. Looking around your website I see alot of sadness....a
lot of criticisim...some "points" and quite a lot of junk...
Since initially reading your info on the ST Mattews Church , I myself
researced WHO they
were and what their motives were.....YOU said that there was no info
to be found .....dig deeper....it does appear that the leader has selfish
motives....My view about GIVE FREELY AND GOD WILL HANDLE THE REST.......I
STILL BELIEVE...the letters they send blessed me and even pulled me
spiritually from a sad situation. GOD works in very mysterious ways.Again
, people dont HAVE to wonder blindly through life and throw money to
the wind.....I guess what I am TRYING to say is you and I......we are
both right in our views to an extent. YOU are right that people should
not try to fool you to get your money and I am right that GOD will work
it all out to the good of them that love the lord. You say you are not
christian.....do u mind me asking what YOU believe?
And regarding the "evil red font on black background".......MY
SON is 16....He is a sports fanatic...............i.e. GA Bulldogs........Never
the less I have taken the time to change it since it freaks you out.......(things
arent always the way they seem, huh?)
OH
yeah , it's KRISTIE
BEST REGARDS..........pe@ce & luv
Finally, I decided to address the Christian response seriously.
Hello Kristie,
I
feel that while I have lambasted and/or downright ignored the few people
who disliked my St. Matthews rant in the past, perhaps now it is time
that I was perfectly honest. So let me be straightforward with you.
First of all, I am rude. I 
have
been more or less rude, sarcastic, and insincere in my replies to people
who have written me previously. Much of my behavior can be attributed
to a few simple prejudices: firstly, I have a difficult time taking
seriously anyone who uses extraordinarily improper grammar and/or spelling.
This may be unfair, but I value the above two things quite highly. So
if I have given less credence to your viewpoints due to this prejudice,
I am sorry. Know that the same has been true for others. Secondly, I
have a difficult time taking people who throw the word ‘God’
around very seriously. Again, this is a personal prejudice, and it is
most certainly less than fair. Quite simply, I have found that in the
past, I have had difficulty communicating any kind of meaningful argument
when ‘God’ is incessantly thrown into the picture. ‘God’
is not my area of expertise.
That being said, I wish to respectfully respond to your comments. You begin your second e-mail by saying that “You do not have to be a Christian, God is still there.” I very much disagree with this kind of absolutist statement. Examined from an objective standpoint, it can be easily deduced that religious assertions such as the existence of God are based on faith alone, and in fact, little evidence exists to either refute or confirm the existence of a God. I feel that these vague generalizations about the existence of God do not apply in the realm of logic. One either believes in ‘Him’ or one does not; telling a non-believer that ‘God is still there’ is tantamount to saying nothing at all.
On your next point, I feel that it is important to understand the purpose of my St. Matthew’s rant. As I quite bluntly pointed out to the last reader who responded to my rant, it was meant only to be satirical, and yes, humorous. You must understand that as an agnostic, receiving such a book really did nothing but bemuse me, and as I’m sure you’ve found, there are quite a few absurd passages within it. For example, the page that lists the offerings of the ministry, which proudly includes the word ‘Loneliness’ struck me not only as absurd, but rather humorous. None of my original article intended to critically address the St. Matthew’s ministry, my intent was only to poke a little fun at it. The reason I lambasted the previous reader is because I felt she had taken it far too seriously. It seemed farcical that she would inquire about the ministry at a website that makes fun of it so blatantly.
Which brings me back to the argument I am now unwittingly engaged in. The truth is that I don’t really care what you do with your money. I was brought into this silly argument when the previous reader made the holier-than-thou comment “And as far as my name in the book of testimonies, it's already in a book, it's called the book of life.” I felt I should respond legitimately, so I decided to look up some information on the church and pass it along. Which lead me to discover the article I posted previously. You can believe whatever you wish and give your money to whomever you wish: I personally think charity and goodwill are wonderful things. But this “financial ministry” seems rather dubious to me, and I call it like I see it, plain and simple.
If you truly wish to know what I believe, I will tell you that I am an agnostic. I have examined many areas of philosophy and religion and found that I personally prefer the most rational approach available. In this respect, I tend to be very worldly and scientific, and my view on ‘God’ is quite simple: no evidence exists that can either confirm or deny the existence of a ‘God.’ The entire idea of such a supreme power, invisible and unattainable to humanity, seems entirely abstract and wholly based on faith. In my life, I have found that faith can lead people to do great things, but I do not find any one faith superior to another, and I personally choose not to have one. In all fairness, one must keep in mind that faith-based belief systems have brought humanity not only Mother Theresa, but also Adolph Hitler. My philosophy follows closely those of Betrand Russel, R.A. Wilson, and H.P. Lovecraft, who once said that "In theory I am an agnostic, but pending the appearance of rational evidence I must be classed, practically and provisionally, as an atheist. The chance's of theism's truth being to my mind so microscopically small, I would be a pedant and a hypocrite to call myself anything else." For me, that about sums it up.
Lastly, I do not know where you pulled the “evil” out of my statement about your font. Truthfully, I felt it was more “obnoxiously-difficult-to-read” than “evil,” but think what you will. I tend not to classify things as “evil,” seeing as I believe in no such thing.
In closing, I am sorry if my previous lack of real response has put you in a negative context. I hope that this legitimate and heart-felt mail will clear things up a bit and close the case on this St. Matthew’s rant once and for all. Simply put, it was never meant to be taken this seriously.
On that note, I am sorry that you find little value in the work I have presented on my website. I would be curious as to your classification of what is “junk” and what is “sadness.” Much of my work is from one or two years ago, and I like to think it gets better as it goes along. I would appreciate your feedback, but not your judgment. That is all; thank you for your time.
Cheers, Francis.
I wonder: where will it go from here...?
Subject : This is where it goes from here...
Dear Frances,
First,
please accept my apology. I have spent hours this morning on your site.
As I said in my earlier letter, things are not always the way they seem.
It seems that my narrow minded eye could see nothing past your picture
and a few hard, but factual, observations. Your intelligence befuttles
me. Your insight into our country ,our children, our government , I
could go on and on and on.... I will just say this, after really spending
some time with your site we really aren't as different as I'd imagined
we were.
I write
poetry and song and I like to THINK that I am a deep thinker. (don't
laugh at me) Your poetry page grabbed me and wouldn't let go. My particulair
favorite is "The Exhibit" with "Untitled 1 and 3"
running close behind. Kudos! The links and pages on our government,
the war, the death of the innocent in multitude ,at least you are putting
it out there. That is more than most can say. More than I can say. I
say that I am a non-conformist . I say that I hate religion and politics.
I DO believe in a higher power , a supreme being, a creator of us all...
of IT all. I do feel that what we are doing as a human race is not working.
We are failing at life miserably in leaps and bounds. Realizing this
I pray for wisdom and enlightenment . I am a 34 year old , southern
woman , who quit school at 17, married and had a son. I am by no means
book smart and for my grammar and spelling shortcomings,I apologize.
I still think, feel ,see,experience and learn though and today was no
exception.
As per my very first letter to you regarding St.Matthew's Church, had
I researched
it all thoroughly ,before I opened my mouth, that letter I most likely
would not have sent. While I very much do believe that it is good and
right to give to those that are trying to shed light and hope and encouragement
to others ,it is foolish to do so blindly because there are those who
will use it for their own selfish gain.
Kristie
Thus concludes the St. Matthews saga- or does it? Will yet another reader
pick up the St. Matthews rant and rise to its defense? You and I will
just have to wait and see...