Prank Calls and Church Persecution

In the early church, Christians were often rounded up and burned at the stake (or fed to the lions, or crucified, etc.). That was the way those hostile to Christianity would seek to hurt the Church. An interesting thing happened though, while some folks stayed away from the Church (for obvious reasons!), others did not. The persecuted church actually grew! Even more, it grew with folks who were truly committed and had a strong belief in the love of God!

When Christianity became the “state church” some actually retreated into desert monasteries because they felt that faith got too easy. A persecuted church had a greater depth and relevance.

For most of the last century, the Church in America was both very strong and rarely persecuted. These days, there are increasing numbers of people who are hostile to the church. People are no longer rounded up and killed for their faith, but the church is finding itself under new forms of attack.

In the past weeks, members of Sheridan have been receiving prank and disturbing phone calls. This is the second bout of this activity targeting our church family. No two calls are the same, but many have similar characteristics. The Lincoln Police Department is involved and is investigating.

I am uncertain how our database was compromised, whether online or the sharing of a printed directory. I do know that these calls are illegal.

Here are some basics to remember if you are contacted by a prank caller who identifies themselves as representing or connected to Sheridan Lutheran Church:
• The church has not “sold” your personal information to any organization.
• Sheridan does not collect offerings via phone solicitation.
• No pastor has disclosed any information about you to a third party.
• Never share any personal information about yourself to a caller. Even if they have your name, don’t share anything about yourself.
• Never give any financial information about yourself to anyone over the phone (credit card, bank account, social security numbers, etc.)
• The more quickly you identify the call as a scam, the faster the call ends.

First and foremost, if you have or do receive an annoying call representing Sheridan, know that I apologize for the inconvenience. Please also realize that this is not personal, but rather simply a means by which to hurt the church. I trust that you will not want these people to be successful in their attempts to hurt the church and I am thankful for your support. Sheridan remains a safe place where God’s Spirit is thriving.

Church folks have an axiom that is useful in these types of situations. I think it holds true for us at Sheridan at the juncture of our history together. “When things are going well, that is when the evil forces work their hardest.” Sheridan has had a tremendous summer and we have seen greater engagement, more people deployed in mission and a greater enthusiasm and overall peace than we have seen in years. I guess it is no wonder that the Church is being persecuted. We pray for those who perpetuate these crimes.

Like our early church brothers and sisters, we remain committed, strong, and ready to grow in our belief that Christ’s Church will never fail!

Peace,
Pastor Greg