Post by bullhornbob on Sept 17, 2007 21:53:51 GMT -5
Here is an article in the NCSU Technician describing (one side of) the preaching on Friday 9/14/07. The crowds swelled up to 200 at one point. I witnessed one of the most powerful presentations of the gospel I have ever seen (Rob Stapleton-below).
This campus needs to be preached regularly, but permit "hoops" are an obvious discouragement. Here is the entire article with photos:
media.www.technicianonline.com/media/storage/paper848/news/2007/09/17/News/Preacher.Spices.Up.Brickyard-2971131.shtml
----------------------------------------------------------------
Preacher spices up Brickyard
Michael Venyah, a traveling preacher, came to campus Friday, and his group was especially vocal against homosexuality
A new Brickyard preacher's words rang in the cool air midday Friday in something of an organized chaos of discussion. He assured audience members, "I'll get to your question" as he called on students with challenges of his aggressive style.
Students gathered around. At least 10 members of Campus Police were present as Michael Venyah brought a message condemning homosexuals, smokers, masturbators and others.
In the midst of it all, Rob Stapleton, a graduate student in math, was trying to get Venyah's attention and finally succeeded in doing so.
"You seem a little flustered," Venyah said to Stapleton. "You're not a homo, are you?"
Stapleton said he isn't homosexual, but that he is bisexual. From that moment, Venyah spent more time than he spent speaking with any other student, trying to convince Stapleton he needed forgiveness for his bisexuality.
But after a long, impassioned speech by Venyah, Stapleton yelled back in opposition to the preacher's message.
"By my free will, I will never deny the purity of the love I have for the man I have chosen to be my husband. Never," Stapleton said. "Never will I deny that. Never will I admonish that. Never will I surrender."
Venyah suggested Stapleton didn't really love the man he said he loves, drawing strong response from the graduate student.
"He does maintain my levity of spirit," Stapleton said. "He does keep my heart light and allows me to live everyday with a smile on my face."
But Venyah said the happiness brought by actions don't ensure their moral quality.
"Killers kill with a smile on their face," Venyah said. "Having any type of self-deprecation does not ensure the rightness of an act."
Such was the atmosphere as students made their best efforts to confront Venyah for his stern message, especially against homosexuality. One of the men working with him held up a sign reading, "Homo sex is a threat to national security."
While his stance on homosexuality drew the strongest response, he also was critical of the way some of the women in the crowd were dressed, among other things. He even called Nina Strickland, a junior in political science, an "unchaste woman" because of the shirt she was wearing, which led her to call attention to the fact that she was married.
Strickland later said Venyah's message frustrated her.
"I'm a Christian, and it's sad to me when I come out and I see people that are preaching the word of God, and yet there's a lot of people out here who don't know a lot about God" Strickland said. "His preaching just deters them away from Christianity, and it bothers me."
Bethany Longley, a freshman in animal science, said she was also put off by what the preacher was saying.
"He's telling everyone they're serving Satan because they have skirts on" Longley said. "I just don't think they should be telling people how they should act."
Venyah's tactics were especially frustrating to James Miraglia, a freshman in engineering, who was smoking while talking with the preacher. Miraglia tried to point out the Bible verse that states a person without sin should cast the first stone of judgment.
"After you stop smoking, I'll place more credence in your Scriptures," Venyah told him.
Miraglia's response embodied the frustration felt by some of the audience members.
"If you stop yelling and stop banning people, maybe people will listen to you and take you seriously" Miraglia said. "Stop condemning people, and show compassion and love."
While some may have chosen to take on the newest Brick-trolling preacher in a battle of words, Jay Bettis, a junior in chemistry, said many of the students were probably just there for entertainment between classes.
"I think everyone else is out here for the show because he's not going to change anybody's mind" Bettis said. "You don't change anyone's mind like this. You can't call someone a sinner and then expect for them to be responsive to the message you're giving them. The first thing you're going to do is close off and be like 'You labeled me as something, and you don't even know me.'"
This campus needs to be preached regularly, but permit "hoops" are an obvious discouragement. Here is the entire article with photos:
media.www.technicianonline.com/media/storage/paper848/news/2007/09/17/News/Preacher.Spices.Up.Brickyard-2971131.shtml
----------------------------------------------------------------
Preacher spices up Brickyard
Michael Venyah, a traveling preacher, came to campus Friday, and his group was especially vocal against homosexuality
A new Brickyard preacher's words rang in the cool air midday Friday in something of an organized chaos of discussion. He assured audience members, "I'll get to your question" as he called on students with challenges of his aggressive style.
Students gathered around. At least 10 members of Campus Police were present as Michael Venyah brought a message condemning homosexuals, smokers, masturbators and others.
In the midst of it all, Rob Stapleton, a graduate student in math, was trying to get Venyah's attention and finally succeeded in doing so.
"You seem a little flustered," Venyah said to Stapleton. "You're not a homo, are you?"
Stapleton said he isn't homosexual, but that he is bisexual. From that moment, Venyah spent more time than he spent speaking with any other student, trying to convince Stapleton he needed forgiveness for his bisexuality.
But after a long, impassioned speech by Venyah, Stapleton yelled back in opposition to the preacher's message.
"By my free will, I will never deny the purity of the love I have for the man I have chosen to be my husband. Never," Stapleton said. "Never will I deny that. Never will I admonish that. Never will I surrender."
Venyah suggested Stapleton didn't really love the man he said he loves, drawing strong response from the graduate student.
"He does maintain my levity of spirit," Stapleton said. "He does keep my heart light and allows me to live everyday with a smile on my face."
But Venyah said the happiness brought by actions don't ensure their moral quality.
"Killers kill with a smile on their face," Venyah said. "Having any type of self-deprecation does not ensure the rightness of an act."
Such was the atmosphere as students made their best efforts to confront Venyah for his stern message, especially against homosexuality. One of the men working with him held up a sign reading, "Homo sex is a threat to national security."
While his stance on homosexuality drew the strongest response, he also was critical of the way some of the women in the crowd were dressed, among other things. He even called Nina Strickland, a junior in political science, an "unchaste woman" because of the shirt she was wearing, which led her to call attention to the fact that she was married.
Strickland later said Venyah's message frustrated her.
"I'm a Christian, and it's sad to me when I come out and I see people that are preaching the word of God, and yet there's a lot of people out here who don't know a lot about God" Strickland said. "His preaching just deters them away from Christianity, and it bothers me."
Bethany Longley, a freshman in animal science, said she was also put off by what the preacher was saying.
"He's telling everyone they're serving Satan because they have skirts on" Longley said. "I just don't think they should be telling people how they should act."
Venyah's tactics were especially frustrating to James Miraglia, a freshman in engineering, who was smoking while talking with the preacher. Miraglia tried to point out the Bible verse that states a person without sin should cast the first stone of judgment.
"After you stop smoking, I'll place more credence in your Scriptures," Venyah told him.
Miraglia's response embodied the frustration felt by some of the audience members.
"If you stop yelling and stop banning people, maybe people will listen to you and take you seriously" Miraglia said. "Stop condemning people, and show compassion and love."
While some may have chosen to take on the newest Brick-trolling preacher in a battle of words, Jay Bettis, a junior in chemistry, said many of the students were probably just there for entertainment between classes.
"I think everyone else is out here for the show because he's not going to change anybody's mind" Bettis said. "You don't change anyone's mind like this. You can't call someone a sinner and then expect for them to be responsive to the message you're giving them. The first thing you're going to do is close off and be like 'You labeled me as something, and you don't even know me.'"