Great Auditorium. Ocean Grove, NJ. Undated. By Paul Goldfinger © Blogfinger.net Click to enlarge.
The actual posts about the OGU letter to the CMA and the decision to drop out of the Sunday dedication ceremony are clear and specific in their content.
But the comments that have resulted are all over the place. As a result, for me as editor, it’s like herding cats. We have tried to stay focused, but it’s been difficult.
The fundamental flaw in all this talk is that a transcript or recording (audio or video) of Rabbi Jonathan Cahn’s sermon has not been made available so that we could find out for ourselves exactly what the Rabbi said, and we could judge for ourselves. ( addendum: Today we did find out where to locate an audio file of the sermon.* )
Too many commenters speak as if they were there, when actually they seem to be reacting to hear-say. Even the original OGU letter says, “Many people in town have brought it to our attention that today’s sermon in the Great Auditorium was filled with hateful commentary about marriage equality.”
Regarding the speaker’s views on homosexuality, we don’t even know if he was criticizing gay marriage only or if there were other related concerns. Without the actual content, how could anyone definitively decide that the speaker was “bigoted” and/or “hateful” unless they were actually there or had a transcript? But most of us were not there.
That is why some commenters are focusing on other aspects such as the speaker’s reputation, the process whereby speakers are chosen, attacks on the CMA, and even whether or not he is a real rabbi. They feel pressure to say something without actually knowing what the sermon contained.
Some commenters seem to be working from a list of talking points—resorting to name-calling (ie “bigot, bigoted speech, spewing hate, hateful,” are showing up repeatedly) Since we do not allow such language, we have had to reject those references. But even those who try to stick to the issues are handicapped by not having the exact sermon to read, view, or hear.
ADDENDUM: LISTEN TO THE ENTIRE SERMON WHICH IS NOW AVAILABLE:
* Try this link from the CMA:
I was able to listen to the entire 50 minute sermon by using the Firefox Browser. It the link doesn’t work on your computer, try it on your pad or iPhone.
For those of you who think you know what he said, but didn’t actually hear what he said, especially those who went on the record in Blogfinger, you should listen to him with an open mind and then ask yourself if this pastor is “spewing hate” and/or is “bigoted.” Or is your anger directed at him because he disagrees regarding the recent Supreme Court ruling on gay marriage? As a Christian pastor, should he be condemned for quoting the Bible? Let us know what you think after listening to the sermon. The parts about gay marriage kick in late in the presentation.
–Paul Goldfinger, Editor @Blogfinger