Redding residents are divided on the churchs impact on their city. Dacquisto may have once been an active member in the community, but it is widely known locally that is no longer the case. Editors note: Portions of this column have been edited for clarity. The North State city of 91,000 is home to a church, Bethel, with 11,000 members and a commitment to community so intense it's almost supernatural. Annelise Pierce is Shasta Scouts Editor and a Community Reporter covering government accountability, civic engagement, and local religious and political movements. In a few short weeks well learn one of two things: Either the Redding City Council will make history as the first council comprised of a majority of Bethel/Stirring Church members, or the fed-up-with-Bethel citizens will rise up and prevail with anyone-but-Bethel votes. A non-Bethel incumbent up for reelection was the top vote getter. Its not so easy for incumbent Dacquisto, who is trying with all his might to prevent an energetic pack of young evangelical candidates from overtaking Dacquisto and stealing his chair during his run for re-election. They say that judging by his frequent absences, it appears he no longer prioritizes his city council position. When Crockett quips that hes attended more city council meetings in these last few years than incumbent Dacquisto, that line always gets a laugh, but its no joke. While the Seven Mountain Mandate is controversial even among many Christian denominations for Bethel devotees, its considered gospel. Disclosure:Annelise Pierce is a former member of Bethel Church and a graduate of the first year of BSSM. Shea said he would represent all citizens in office, irrespective of their sexual identity, race, color, creed, religion, social status, housing status, or national origin. I certainly dont advocate boycotting, doxing or threatening anyone. No One Knows. And Lord have mercy, what does Bethel have against the LGBTQ community, outside of selective biblical literalism? Pity Partin, whos a respected professional in his own right. Kind of like Dacquisto. You then assert the same sort of hateful things are being posted, with Bethel taking the place of Blue People, in Bethel Affiliated Business, Investigating Bethel and numerous other Facebook groups you say are devoted to hating Bethel Church and its members., You write, Any of these posts would create a huge issue in the human resources department of your business and perhaps land the author in court for libel, defamation of character, or perhaps even a hate crime.. Here are nine things you should know about the Johnsons and the Bethel movement. Bethel.TV established. Crockett has impressively watched/endured every city council meeting since 2017. 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. As Trump ran for reelection, Vallotton used the Bethel pulpit to encourage attendees to vote for Trump or risk facing Gods displeasure. But Bethel Senior Associate Leader Kris Vallotton has made multiple political statements from the pulpit, including his prophecy that Donald Trump would win the 2020 presidential election. If you believe their statements and I do these three are enthusiastic in their dedication and genuine desire to make Redding a better place. When the Redding Civic Auditorium faced closure, Bethel created the nonprofit Advance Redding to lease the facility. Photo by Steve DuBois. The trio of Redding City Council candidates who attend Bethel Church are Audette, Shea and Munns. Having participated in various Facebook groups critical of Bethel for the past year-and-a-half, I can help answer that question for you. And while she believes the Bible calls homosexuality a sin, Audette added, the Bible also says no sin, including lying or greed, is greater than any other. Identity. 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. Hi. Is it fair to criticize any candidate who has the courage, confidence, vision and chutzpah to run for city council, board of supervisors, or any number of school boards or water districts? On the negative side theres that yawning gap in her leadership experience; a chasm too large for Vollmers to leap over and propel herself onto the dais as a qualified city council member. If they lose, will they cry fraud? He was an instructor at Fuller and Denver seminaries and the U.S. Air Force Academy. Redding is a city of 93,462 in Trump-red Shasta County, which has a population of 182,000. encourage attendees to vote for Trump or risk facing Gods displeasure. The Legislature banned performing this known harmful practice on people 18 years old and younger several years ago. Tenessa is a graduate of Leadership Redding, and serves on the Steering Committee, organizing the Government program. Yikes!! In reply to Jeff Gorder. What about Schreder, Sullivan, and Dacquisto? 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. Help increase access to important information. Well just leave that there while we ponder the easy answer. Bethel wields immense local influence: of Redding's 90,000 residents, 11,233 are Bethel members, according to a report from northern California magazine A News Cafe. Redding is teetering upon the unprecedented brink of being governed by a city-council majority comprised of followers of Bethel Church, The Stirring church or a combination of both. I've searched the names on the ballot and I found James Crockett and Erin Resner are both associated with Bethel. The additional negative news is that Vollmers social media pages suggest her comfort with election-fraud conspiracy theories, such as those promoted in the film [S]election Code, produced by My Pillow Guy Mike Lindell. Behind the scenes last week, a struggle played out over the Shasta County Board of Supervisor's agenda. They can be a nuisance. Feb 20, 2023 5:15 PM . 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. As you can imagine, the conversation sometimes gets testy. Riddle me this: Pretend you are a retired lawyer, and you have a beautiful Siskiyou County home, and a vacation get-away in Mexico. Some people even draw parallels between Councilman Dacquisto and his broken website address. Sunday morning sermons stream out to viewers in more than a hundred-and-fifty countries via Bethel TV, and church leaders are in demand as itinerant speakers both nationally and internationally. Ive never made such an inquiry, but it really is starting to look a lot like Clearwater around here. 2008. Munns did not respond to multiple requests for comment. She also praised the volunteerism Bethel students are required to engage in with the city as part of Bethels School of Supernatural Ministry, a total she says of over 14,000 hours of community service every year. Audette says those hours indicate strong community buy-in and that as a result of them, the city has regularly qualified for andreceived grant funding. 1313 Market Street Redding, CA 96001-0611 530.241.7320 www.shastaartscouncil.org shastar[email protected]astaartscouncil.org Funded in part by the California Arts Council, a state agency; The National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency; and the City of Redding. To donate, click here. At stake is whose vision of downtown Clearwater will prevail: the city councils or Scientologys? Such a deal! James Crockett, who says hes a former Bethel Church member, is now a member of The Stirring. Redding native Jack Munns sits down with KRCR's Sam Chimenti to discuss how he'd help improve his hometown if elected to council (9/1/22) Turn to KRCR: Nort. Slight segue, but Vollmers and Valenzuelas distrust in the election system begs the question: If the women win, will they accept the election results as valid? 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. Instead, I make my selections based upon candidates backgrounds, experience, endorsements, creativity, tenacity, enthusiasm, ideas, energy, and the amount of work theyve invested in their campaigns. 2018. Bethels pull on the local housing market, both short-term and long-term, is tremendous, and Bethel-connected dollars spent by attendees in the city are significant. Members of Bethel, the 11,000-member northern California megachurch famous for elaborate healing services, Bethel Music, and musician Sean Feuchts nationwide worship protests against COVID restrictions, now hold the majority on the Redding City Council after Novembers elections, according to nearly complete vote counts. 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. Also, any comments with profanity, name-calling, and/or a nasty tone will be deleted. Pastor Bill Johnson, who became leader of the Assemblies of God congregation in 1996, described his view of the churchs role in society in Invading Babylon: The 7 Mountain Mandate, a book he wrote with self-proclaimed Trump prophet Lance Wallnau: Give a gift of $30 or more to The Roys Report this month, and you will receive Escaping the Maze of Spiritual Abuse by Dr. Lisa Oakley and Justin Humphreys. Absences: Dacquisto has missed a number of meetings, including closed session meetings, joint session meetings, RABA, Library, Housing, Capital Services, and Successor Agency meetings. Hates a strong word. Julie was elected to the City Council in November 2016 for a four-year term, and re-elected in November 2020 for an additional four-year term. Plus, Jeremy Edwardson is a producer for Bethel Church-affiliated musician/failed congressional candidate/evangelical egomaniac Sean Feucht, dubbed by the Rolling Stone magazine as Jesus Christ, Super Spreader for his national protest/worship concerts held during the pandemic. The church used to be part of the Assemblies of God denomination but is now non-denominational. I have received no funding from Bethel, Audette wrote, In fact I have one donor from the over 400 staff that work there. Redding Municipal Library Board - Regular Meeting. Based upon his performance during forums (though absent from the Shasta Environmental Alliance event), he seems a nice enough, grandfatherly guy. Local critics oppose Bethels promotion of gay conversion therapy, and its fight against COVID masks, vaccinations, and closures. Candidate Ian Hill says he's running to to shine a spotlight on city needs and bring together resources and people to act on what's important. At worst, based on your weak analogies, a person belonging to one of these Facebook groups could be in danger of being fired, if chamber HR members whove read your blog post now feel justified in handing out pink slips to those who belong to Facebook groups youve characterized as Bethel-haters. Now Im not, Listen to Sheas story, and then tell me youd reject this former Wall Street finance expert, Northern Pygmy Owl Whiskeytown Nat. Discagem Grtis: Estados Unidos e Canad: 1.855.613.2303 ou 1.800.709.6205 - Brasil: (800) 591 4613 - WhatsApp: (+001) 310.844.0166 San Francisco: (415) 537-9877 - Fort Lauderdale: (754) 702-0257 - Tampa: (813) 803-9457 - Braslia: (61) 4042 1275 - Belo Horizonte: (31) 2342 1207 - Porto Alegre: (51) 2042 0087 - Rio de Janeiro . In fact, in most places it would be considered impolite and inappropriate to ask about candidates religious lives. 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. I dont understand Catholic incense, midnight mass, Mormon underwear or Jehovah Witnesses disdain for celebrating birthdays, Thanksgiving or other wonderful events. Ministry Watch 2022 All rights reserved. The Awakening Australia eventand its main speaker, Bill Johnsonare increasing the awareness of the controversial church throughout the continent. Your tax-deductible gift helps our journalists report the truth and hold Christian leaders and organizations accountable. Dacquistos now-predictable Partin endorsements usually include Dacquistos mention that one of the reasons he endorses Partin is because Dacquisto is sick of being on the losing end of so many 3-2 or 4-1 votes. Thats a vision for everybody, Jake. Hmm! Bethel Affiliated Businesses currently lists 67 businesses, including restaurants, bakeries, cafes and salons as having a Bethel affiliation. However on March 7th PA President Abbas said that recognising Israel as a Jewish state is 'out of the question,' a decision unanimously endorsed by the Revolutionary Council of Palestinian Authority and by the council of the Arab League. Subscribe to Signals from Shasta Scout our stories and news updates, right to you. Let Us Worship participants, many from Bethel Church and The Stirring church, crowd around Sean Feucht and musicians. Some of the replies are incorrect, such as the widely-reported assumption that candidate Johnson is a Bethel Church member. Redding is the economic and cultural capital of the Shasta Cascade region of Northern California and the county seat of Shasta County.Redding lies along the Sacramento River, 162 miles (261 km) north of Sacramento, and 120 miles (190 km) south of California's northern border with Oregon.Its population is 95,542 as of the 2022 census, up from 89,861 from the 2010 census. Submit ithere. 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. Jack W. Hayford, an author, radio teacher, and pastor once called The Pentecostal Gold Standard, died Sunday morning at his home in, Vandals defaced a California church hosting a New Years Eve event by controversial worship leader Sean Feucht with messages like F*** Sean, A charismatic minister is apparently widening his revival and healing ministry despite having been disqualified because of a steady pattern of ungodly. Ive been in churches my whole life, she said, and Bethel is the least religious church Ive ever been in. Its social media, Jake. Scheide is an award-winning journalist who has covered news, politics, music, arts and culture in Northern California for more than 30 years. Dacquisto delivers that line with a chuckle, but his meaning is serious: Dacquisto and Partin will vote in tandem. Theyre threatening to boycott not just Bethel businesses, but any business represented by the chamber. The second time they got involved, Audette continued, was when the city, county, and law enforcement asked for their help to pass Measure A (a 2020 proposed 1% county sales tax). Audette said the city ran a voter registration campaign at that time to encourage members to become more involved. Some say the church has helped the city in many ways: But some residents have grown frustrated with Bethels combination of other-worldly theology and increasing this-worldly clout, as the appearance of Buck Fethel T-shirts show. I have the financial skills and experience to help us navigate the coming recession. In 2016, I wrote a post titled, Bethel Redding: A Dangerous Evangelical Cult.Since that time, thousands and thousands of people (Almost 14,000 viewers in 2019, 18,000 in 2018, 24,000 in 2017, and 17,000 in 2016) have come to this site seeking information about Bethel Redding, an Evangelical megachurch in Redding, California pastored by Bill . Christian nationalist Doug Mastriano of Pennsylvania lost his Senate race to his Jewish opponent, while Kari Lake lost Arizonas governors race to the incumbent. 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.. I recall my concerns/fears/disappointment when Julie Winter first won a seat on the Redding City Council. The 2022 local election cycle is heating up in the Northstate. Yes, Johnson attends the Stirring Church. There are three primary reasons members are concerned about Bethel, not all of them shared by all members. Hand Counting, Supervisor Jones Says. 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. the three fall flat when it comes to suggesting tangible, realistic solutions for those problems. Theres also concern that some church members are fanning secessionist movements and supporting militia groups in Shasta County. Redding Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Jake Mangas. Atlanta Megachurch Files Suit Charging Lenders with Predatory Behavior, Alleges Widespread Fraud Against African-American Churches, MinistryWatchs 2022 Shining Light Awards. 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. 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. When the Redding Civic Auditorium faced closure, Bethel created the nonprofit Advance Redding to lease the facility. Bethel's first global campaign, Arise & Build . But you know what else has pretty lights? Methinks this explains wee Patrick's attempt to change the oath for county employees. Ministry Watch reports: Redding is a city of 93,462 in Trump-red Shasta County, which has a popula She left the church eight years ago. In this election cycle, one of the things that candidate Marcus Partin has become most known for is as Michael Dacquistos sidekick candidate. She's an award-winning newspaper opinion columnist, feature and food writer recognized by the Associated Press, the California Newspaper Publishers Association and E.W. Together, the trio has amassed hundreds of endorsements from the proverbial Whos Who of Shasta Countys movers, shakers, makers, workers, creators, business people, educators, elected leaders, law enforcement and influencers. Evangelical Christians who follow End Times theology (ahem, Bethel) that condemns Jews and other non-believers to an eternal lake of fire! Bethel fought for the right to perform it on adultsand won. ods role in government and if politicians should Christianize a nation. Lake has claimed the vote was rigged and B.S. and is challenging the outcome. Linen Service Companies near Redding, California, Petaluma, California and Irvine, California 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. If the voters dont like the way the city is run under the new city council, they can boot them out at the next election. Behold, Redding City Council candidate choices: (Click on their names for more information.).