Warren Jeffs has been given life plus 20 years in prison for his conviction of child molestation.  As you know, if you have followed the case in this newspaper, Mr. Jeffs was found guilty this past week of molesting two girls, ages 12 and 15.  Please refer to the article in last Frday’s Tribune section A page 3 Bigamy or Bigotry.   The jury has awarded Jeffs the maximum sentence allowable under the charges of which he was convicted.   A number of his close relatives have breathed sighs of relief at his being put away.

• Do you agree with the judgment handed down?
• Was this sentence too harsh?
• Was it too lenient?
• Once again, should the District Judge presiding have refused Jeffs’ request to dismiss his legal team to defend himself?  Did she have the legal right or the requirement to do so?
• Is this a warning to all whom in the name of religion start what amounts to a commune or a religion based on extremely liberal or self interpretation of the Bible?
• Understanding that not all criminals in our prisons are child molesters, do you believe, or do you have hopes that Mr. Jeffs will be “married” to, or become the concubine of a prison mate?  Would this be further justice served?

TRIBUNE SPECIAL

Modos Church members and community leaders are discussing the trial of Warren Jeffs in Texas.  Father Abe is concerned about a recent meeting held at the church.  As the City of Modos has come to recognize, Abe holds meetings on a regular basis in the church Common Rooms.  These gatherings are discussion groups, open to all who interest, which consider topics ranging from local religious issues to worldwide politics.  Abe understands he is treading on the threshold of separation of church and state and that if he goes too far the church stands to lose its tax free shelter.   That being established the Pastor feels that in these present times no place other than his church is willing to step up and confront these issues and that under his leadership no place is better able to face these problems.

Abe reports that fifteen percent of the congregation and city leaders feel that the trial of Warren Jeffs presently taking place in Texas is not much more than a show.  Their feelings are that Federal and state laws have no business interfering in church matters.   In fact several present argued that religious bigotry was the driving force behind the trial.  If the reader is not aware of his predicament, it is that Jeffs’ teachings are that one man does not have to limit himself to one wife.   Nor does that wife have to be of the age of consent.  Multiple marriages are appropriate in his religion and according to him, are sanctified in biblical teachings.  Father Abe is quoted as saying:

“The Jeffs’ trial is an issue that has become another story we continually see in society today.  We have a man; supposedly a spiritual leader in his community.  A man of power and influence who like so many has taken advantage of the innocent.  Just today I read of another man of influence who downloaded child pornography; when caught he found a doctor who blamed his behavior on a spinal tumor.  My question is, are the media outlets in the modern day making us more aware of these individuals?  I mean, has this been going on forever?  Or is mankind becoming less feeling and less responsible?  I feel that with the increase of instant gratification, the technology at our fingertips, mankind is becoming weak and submitting to temptation.  These men are intelligent, no doubt thinking themselves as being good men; they feel safe in an environment they have created or in the privacy of their homes or offices.   They thus conduct themselves in any manner they see fit.  These risks are taken because they are weak and without moral fiber.  Society has lost the values and conscience it once had.

It is written that technology will destroy our society.  This is just one of many signs that the end of days is drawing near”.

Abe

The trial as it presently stands:

• Warren Jeffs has been found guilty on counts of sexually molesting two girls.  One twelve years old and the other fifteen years old.
• The trial now moves into its penalty stage.
• Jeffs had been accused of sexual molestation of children.
• Marriages have been performed; referred to as “Celestial Unions”, between underage girls and adult men.
• The case was dismissed in Arizona.
• A guilty finding was reversed in Utah.
• Jeffs stated he “will be delivered before the trial”.  No reference has been made as to what this meant.
• He could be sentenced to spend up to 119 years in prison.
• He fired his defense legal team and from that point defended himself.
• Jeffs’ fired attorney has now been reinstated for the sentencing phase of the trial.
• Question – Will his church implode without him?  Already one splinter group has formed a separate church.
• Question – Did Warren Jeffs make an error in firing his lawyers?
• Question – Will reinstating his lawyers result in

o        Getting Jeffs paroled,

o         Granted the minimum sentence allowed under law, or

o         Makes no difference whatsoever?

If President Obama says “I can tell you that if it was me, I would resign”,  should Anthony Weiner put in his resignation as Congressman?  Or should a politician’s personal actions remain just that, personal and private?

We have received a few of the following opinions and want to know yours…

• He should definitely resign
• If he’s a good Congressman, it’s his business what he does outside of House doors
• I don’t care and wish the story would go away
• He represents this country and what he did goes against moral values, marriage values, biblical values, etc

Feel free to leave your comments here.

If you want to know what the rest of the nation thinks, please check out the latest public policy poll at:

http://www.publicpolicypolling.com/pdf/WeinerPoll.pdf

Two 18 year olds have recently sought sanctuary and protection in MODOS Church.  The two, not accurately identified in this accounting, recently graduated from high school.   The young lady’s parents are from the Middle East, where they lived until 12 years ago.  Shia Muslims; they emigrated with their three children to the U.S. by way of Egypt.   The couple has come to the church asking Father Abe to marry them and to provide protection from the wrath of both families.

When her father found out “Nancy” wanted to date a Christian,” he and my older brothers beat me and told me they would see me dead and in Hell before they would allow this disgrace.  My mother did not try to stop them.  I am ready to convert to Christianity.  Your Jesus was compassionate and taught love, tolerance and acceptance” she told Father Abe.  Continuing, she went on “Mohammed was not compassionate and taught hate and fear of non-believers”.  “Joe’s” parents told him to leave the house when they found he was seriously involved with Nancy.  Joe commented “I pray nightly that our parents will come to their senses after we are married and they have grand children.  As a Christian, I can forgive them”.

Sharia means “path” in Arabic.  Sharia Law is the basis of Muslim life.  It guides and governs each facet in the life of a follower of Islam.   Who you may marry; who may and may not divorce; how to conduct yourself within and without the family; how you are to live your daily life; financial matters and, yes, even jihad is found along this path.

Recently there have been instances where judges in America and elsewhere in the world have ruled that Sharia Law will be accepted within their courts.  Some labor unions have been quick to demand new contract negotiations so as to eliminate some American holidays in favor of Muslim holidays.  As examples we have courts in England and Florida, a company in Tennessee, a university in Michigan, another in Connecticut and a large city in Michigan surrendering to this law.

Question:  Do the readers of this newspaper believe the United States should surrender its laws, beliefs and constitutional rights for political correctness?  The political correctness demanded by a small percentage of the population; most of whom are recent arrivals in this country?

ATTN: MODOS COMMUNITY AND CHURCH MEMBERS

The Rapture is coming. Tomorrow, 3PM, Saturday, May 21^st 2011 we will be holding a gathering of the final day or the beginning of time.  Bring your open hearts and minds as we will be hosting an open house for all to come and discuss your thoughts on fate.

Congregate to make amends with each other, most important with yourselves.   This will be a day to release from judgment.

“The Rapture is a reference to the being caught up referred to in the Biblical passage 1 Thess 4:17 when in the End Times the Christians will be gathered together in the air to meet Christ.

The primary passage used to support the idea of the Rapture is 1 Thessalonians 4:15-17, in which Paul cites “the word of the Lord” about the return of Jesus to gather his saints.

… and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.^1 T” reference: ^{http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rapture}

Aside from your daily Bible and Book of Revelation readings, LA Times has provided us with  a last minute Rapture Reading List.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/jacketcopy/2011/05/the-rapture-in-books.html.

Due to the high call volume to the Modos Church office, we will not be accepting calls but please feel free to address your concerns, questions here.

We will see you tomorrow prepared to travel together and see for yourselves if there is life after death.

Modos Church announces that controversial lecturer and atheist Professor Stephen Hawking will speak at the church next Thursday at 7 PM.  Dr. Hawking will talk on his experiences as a physicist and cosmologist relative to how we view God’s influences or non-influences on our daily lives.  The public is invited.  Attendance is free.  A donation is asked for the church sponsored summer camp: Children’s World Organization.  Coffee and donuts will be served in the vestibule after the talk.

Professor Hawking is a world renowned theoretical physicist and cosmologist.  He is Lucasian Professor of Mathematics and Theoretical Physics at Cambridge University in England.  Stricken as a young man with a form of ALS, Lou Gehrig’s disease, as the illness progressed he became a quadriplegic.  A bout with pneumonia twenty five years ago left him unable to speak as the result of an emergency tracheotomy.  He now communicates by use of a computer and a voice synthesizer.   Dr. Hawking is a writer of numerous books on his areas of expertise as well as a children’s series of space stories with his character George the adventurer.

Earlier this month Hawking told the Discovery Channel that aliens may be out there.  “They won’t be arriving with coffee and donuts either.”  Our first contact with aliens could kill us all.  As he put it “If aliens visit us…….. (recall it) didn’t turn out well for Native Americans when Columbus arrived”.  Hawking also holds firm to his belief that there is no heaven or an afterlife.  This is a “fairy story” written for people afraid of dying.

Books written by Dr. Hawking include: A Brief History of Time a book suggesting existence of God is unnecessary to explain the origin of the universe; The Grand Design, in which he states he does “not believe in a personal God” and wherein he asks the question “is the way the universe began chosen by God…. or determined by laws of science?”  Elsewhere he examines the difference between religion and science by proclaiming religion is based on faith and imposed dogma whereas science is based upon observation and reason.  Science works: so in any confrontation it will win any argument.

Father Abe, Church Pastor, urges his congregants and all from the Modos Community to attend. “Being a scientific person myself, I find much of what the professor says of interest.”

We are asking for your feedback.  We here at Modos Church believe in a higher power, a being, a GOD. You, our members, have worked hard to establish this church we are proud to call Home.   So you can understand our compromise when an Atheist family, who prefers to remain anonymous at this time (we will call them the Jones family), recently moved to our town in need of a house of worship. Why would they want to worship anywhere if they do not believe in a God, you ask?

The Jones family of five, believe in community. Being new to our town, they feel the best way to gain that sense of community and belonging would be to enter our church.  They are willing to volunteer with our shelter but they will not contribute to the church itself.  Mr. and Mrs. Jones, want to teach their children about giving back.  They have been turned down everywhere else.  Their son is unable to join the Boy Scouts, one of many examples of how this country still turns away those who turn away GOD.

With that, do we follow the church and only accept those who believe in GOD?  Do we fear the potential of the angry immoral family of five?  If we do not accept this family, do we go against our open door policy which became more pronounced when we opened our doors to the homeless?

Our question to you – to Atheist or not to Atheist?

In a bizarre similarity of a tragic story from California comes this story from MODOS Police Department Lt. Gregory Maddux.  A 45 year old man was found dead in his apartment on King James Way yesterday.  Cause of death has not been determined as the autopsy has yet to be completed.  While the details of the case remain unclear, we do know the victim, Seymour Johnson, based on decomposition, had been dead for at least two weeks.  MPD detectives state Mr. Johnson was found lying in his bed after neighbors complained to the Department of Health of a vile odor emanating from the Johnson’s apartment.

Mrs. Johnson, Celeste, has been confined to an unidentified facility after MPD had to force the door to gain entrance.  Inside they found Mrs. Johnson, lying next to her husband, talking to him.  The death of Seymour is very suspicious as he was found to have multiple contusions and two broken fingers.  The Johnson’s were having financial problems and argued often and loudly according to neighbors.

The idea to take the trip and exchange vows, making their love for each other “official”, came about after Ellen read an article about the church helping people during trying times.  Ellen was touched by the Modos church reminding the community that “God helps those who helps themselves”.  “Apparently, their God and our God are different”, says Jane.

The Modos Church, along with their community, stands by their decision.

Get Ready; Get Set; Get going to Comic Con this July 21-24, 2011 at the San Diego Convention
Center. If you haven’t already secured your 4-day badges to see guests such as Ernie Chang (Artist, Conan, Batman, Jonah Hex), Alan Davis (Writer/Artist, X-Men, ClanDestine, Avengers Prime), Dave Gibbons (Artist, Watchmen, Give Me Liberty), David Finch (Artist, Ultimate X-Men, New Avengers, Batman: Dark Knight) and
others you just may miss out on the once-a-year congregation of the best comic artists, writers and publishers in the world!

Comic Con is known for its propensity to attract the die-hard comic book character fans so don’t forget to dress up and find one of our own Modos Angels in the crowd. We will reward you well for finding SYDNEY our Modos Angel in the crowd and getting a little something from her telling you how to enter an upcoming FREE ONLINE DRAWING!!! By entering the drawing, you may be able to win coveted and rare Modos Memorabilia as well as an equally coveted and rare walk-on guest spot in one of our upcoming episodes! Don’t forget to join
our Facebook Fan page where we will draw the winner and announce them LIVE on FB!

See you and Sydney at Comic Con!