Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Pasadena Threatens to Jail Pastor, Congregation Over Indoor Worship
Townhall.com ^ | August 21, 2020 | Todd Starnes

Posted on 08/21/2020 8:48:46 AM PDT by Kaslin

Che Ahn, the pastor of Harvest Rock Church in Pasadena, California, may soon be preaching from jail.

The city prosecutor threatened to press criminal charges against the pastor and the congregation of Harvest Rock Church. That's right, folks -- criminal charges.

I imagined such a circumstance would happen under the rule of Democrats in my new book, "Culture Jihad: How to Stop the Left From Killing a Nation."

Harvest Rock has been holding indoor worship services in violation of Governor Gavin Newsom’s China Virus orders. The congregation was also observed not wearing masks and not complying with social distancing rules.

"All of these are violations of the law," prosecutor Michael Dowd wrote in a threatening letter to the church.

The governor also says churches may not hold indoor services – and Christians may not sing songs or recite the Lord’s Prayer. Even home Bible studies are covered under the order. 

"Your compliance with these orders is not discretionary, it is mandatory" Dowd wrote. "Each day in violation is a separate violation and carries with it a potential punishment of up to one year in jail and a fine for each violation."

The city then threatened to arrest the entire congregation.

"Any violations in the future will subject your church, owners, administrators, operators, staff and parishioners to the above-mentioned criminal penalties as well as the potential closure of your church," Dowd wrote.

The city's prosecutor also threatened to permanently shut down the church building citing an "unprecedented and catastrophic health emergency."

"Your future compliance is expected," Dowd said.

Mat Staver, the founder of Liberty Counsel, is representing Harvest Rock Church. He said he was stunned by the threat of prison.

"Criminal activity," Staver said on The Todd Starnes Radio Show. "Let that sink in. You can face up to one year in prison and if you do it again and don't stop, another year in prison. That is stunning that this is happening in the United States of America."

Staver pointed out that city leaders are perfectly fine with people protesting in the streets.

"The same prosecutor has turned a blind eye to the thousands of protests that have paraded the streets and caused damage in the city of Pasadena," he said.

He said the crackdown on Christian worship in California is similar to what has happened in Marxist countries where government leaders shut down and padlocked the churches and then jailed Christians.

"The church is the template," he told Todd Starnes. "The church is the bastion of liberty and that's what oppressive regimes don't like."

Staver said that the city of Pasadena "has crossed the line from discrimination to persecution."

Regardless, Ahn plans to be standing behind the pulpit on Sunday and the church members will be seated in the pews.

"He counted the cost way before this happened," Staver said. "They will continue to worship."

"You might be able to padlock the doors, but you can't padlock the Gospel," Staver said.



TOPICS: Culture/Society; Editorial
KEYWORDS: calif; california; church; churches; churchgatherings; coronavirus; michaeldowd; pasadena; threat
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-23 next last

1 posted on 08/21/2020 8:48:46 AM PDT by Kaslin
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | View Replies]

To: Kaslin

“Sieg Heil!, mein Fuhrer!”

” “Of all the tyrannies, a tyranny sincerely exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive. It may be better to live under robber barons than under the omnipotent moral busybodies.” C.S. Lewis


2 posted on 08/21/2020 8:54:32 AM PDT by BwanaNdege ( Experience is the best teacher, but if you can accept it 2nd hand, the tuition is less!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Kaslin

Arrest them. The optics will be awesome. ;)


3 posted on 08/21/2020 8:56:27 AM PDT by cuban leaf (The political war playing out in every country now: Globalists vs Nationalists)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Kaslin

Those are some really evil people Pasadena is picking on there. . . . /sarc

Don’t they have some burglars or child abusers to pick on instead????


4 posted on 08/21/2020 8:56:59 AM PDT by RatRipper ( Democrats and socialists are vile liars, thieves and murderers - enemies of good and America.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Kaslin

President Trump: There must be no federal covid bailouts for any state or local government that is suspending the First Amendment right to worship

That right is FUNDAMENTAL. We’re fighting ISIS on the other side of the globe, supposedly for our “freedom”, but we’re allowing governors and mayors here at home to cancel our freedoms more directly than ISIS has ever done? SOMETHING IS RADICALLY WRONG WITH THIS PICTURE!!!!


5 posted on 08/21/2020 8:57:04 AM PDT by rintintin
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Kaslin

You can protest and loot all you want but don't you dare go to church or you will be arrested.

6 posted on 08/21/2020 9:05:36 AM PDT by seawolf101 (Member LES DEPLORABLES)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Kaslin

They need to get the word out and even people who ARE NOT parishioners at the church need to show up - let them arrest EVERYONE! What a bunch of hornswoggle.. I’ve heard about prohibiting singing but reciting THE LORDS PRAYER!!!! What kind of person is this prosecutor?

From a book I read recently - Secret Justice by James W. Huston:

“People ride their authority further than it was meant to take them.”

Nothing defines a politician better than that.


7 posted on 08/21/2020 9:05:55 AM PDT by Thank You Rush
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Kaslin

Christians need to be feared like Muslims; would threats like these be made against a Mosque?


8 posted on 08/21/2020 9:07:18 AM PDT by Truth29
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Kaslin

What are they gonna do?

Arrest them all and put them all together in a big jail?.............


9 posted on 08/21/2020 9:08:09 AM PDT by Red Badger (Sine Q-Anon.....................)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: BwanaNdege

I love those quotes. Here’s one of H. L. Mencken:

“”The whole aim of practical politics is to keep the populace alarmed (and hence clamorous to be led to safety) by menacing it with an endless series of hobgoblins, all of them imaginary.””


10 posted on 08/21/2020 9:08:51 AM PDT by Thank You Rush
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: Thank You Rush

One of my favorite quotes, also!


11 posted on 08/21/2020 9:10:22 AM PDT by BwanaNdege ( Experience is the best teacher, but if you can accept it 2nd hand, the tuition is less!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 10 | View Replies]

To: Kaslin

It’s a peaceful protest...

A few weeks? Okay...

A few months? No

The lock down should have been over months ago.

How are we going to stand up to the flu from now on?

It’s impossible to rationally demand the shut-down continue
at this point.


12 posted on 08/21/2020 9:14:16 AM PDT by DoughtyOne (Some of the folks around these parts have been sniffing super flu.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Truth29

Christians need to be feared like Muslims; would threats like these be made against a Mosque?

That’s what I was thinking. The pastor should start referring to himself as an imam and his church as a mosque.


13 posted on 08/21/2020 9:14:35 AM PDT by Flick Lives (My work's illegal, but at least it's honest. - Capt. Malcolm Reynolds)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 8 | View Replies]

To: seawolf101

Now is the time for all good Christians who are not providentially hindered to show up en masse. They can’t arrest all of us. I guess they can fine us. Whatever. Don’t comply. This can not stand.


14 posted on 08/21/2020 9:16:33 AM PDT by Persevero (I am afraid propriety has been set at naught. - Jane Austen)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 6 | View Replies]

To: Kaslin

Pastor Che Ahn is extremely well-respected in the evangelical world. If he is jailed, it will wake up most of the evangelical and other Christians to the danger of persecution. Pastor Lance Wallnau has said that a lot of evangelical pastors have been shaken awake by this. Persecution is already here. They need to take a stand.


15 posted on 08/21/2020 9:25:47 AM PDT by plushaye (God wins! Anarchy begone in Jesus Name!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Kaslin

Do it and hopefully the pastor will sue to the point whoever does the arresting goes to federal prison to a few decades.


16 posted on 08/21/2020 9:31:51 AM PDT by wastedyears (The left would kill every single one of us and our families if they knew they could get away with it)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Kaslin

Good for him and their church.

The response of American churches has been pathetic.

As I told one of the leaders at my church, this is our hill to die on.


17 posted on 08/21/2020 9:32:18 AM PDT by cyclotic (The most dangerous people are the ones that feel the most helpless)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Kaslin

Obviously it’s because they are Christians.


18 posted on 08/21/2020 9:38:32 AM PDT by I want the USA back (Voltaire: To learn who rules over you, simply find out who you are not allowed to criticize.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Kaslin

Then the City Prosecutor is a legitimate target.


19 posted on 08/21/2020 10:00:26 AM PDT by nonliberal (Sent from a payphone in a whorehouse in Mexico)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Kaslin

The legacy of Kamala Harris.


20 posted on 08/21/2020 10:40:56 AM PDT by Fedora
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-23 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson