I feel like my home is ablaze. I'm watching the fire swallow everything that I care about. The heat consumes the goodness underneath as smoke covers our future with a blanket of darkness. Is it at all coincidental that as I write this, rain begins to spill over me?
We are told we have freedom. We are told we have liberty. We are told that life is special; that we are each unique and important in this world. We are also told that God is alive and well, and he watches all that we do. He created us, He loves us, He is all forgiving, He is all knowing, all powerful... We are told to make love, not war. We are told that the true enemy is within.
Too many questions. No answers. Why do we go on believing the words of others while never questioning them? Why doesn't God show himself? Why won't he show me that he exists? He knows I am open-minded. He knows I would believe, and would become his most loyal supporter. Why would he deny me the love of a Christian years ago, which no doubt would have cemented my future as a Christian myself? Why does he claim to love me, but threaten to send me - his own child - to Hell... a place of eternal suffering and torture? And what does that say about him as a father?
None of this makes any sense to me. If he knows whether or not I truly believe, what is the point of going to church? If he already knows my thoughts and intentions, why pray? Do I expect him to alter his Divine Plan for me anyway? How arrogant of me... Why would he make my friends want to kill themselves? Why put them through that? His own children? In fact, why create misery or suffering or death or torture or pain in the first place? This is truly the most benevolent being in our universe? I don't get it.
Can someone please explain this to me?
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Sunday School Teacher To Face Death In Child's Killing
(CNN) -- Prosecutors will seek the death penalty against a former California Sunday school teacher accused of killing an 8-year-old girl earlier this year.
Melissa Huckaby, 28, was indicted last month in the death of Sandra Cantu, a playmate of Huckaby's daughter. Huckaby lived in the same mobile home park as Cantu and her family in Tracy, California.
Sandra's body was found April 6, stuffed into a suitcase and submerged in a pond at a dairy farm. She was last seen alive March 27 in the mobile home park.
Huckaby is charged with kidnapping and murdering Sandra, according to the indictment, along with lewd and lascivious acts on a child under 14 and rape by instrument. She pleaded not guilty in June, but entered another not guilty plea on Thursday at a hearing, minutes of which were provided to CNN by a court spokeswoman.
Prosecutors said at the hearing Thursday they plan to seek the death penalty.
Huckaby is the granddaughter of Clifford Lane Lawless, pastor of Clover Road Baptist Church near the mobile home park, and she taught Sunday school at the church, police said.
The church was searched as part of the investigation into Sandra's disappearance and death.
Before her arrest, Huckaby acknowledged to a newspaper reporter that she owned the suitcase that contained Sandra's body, but said it had been stolen.
In addition to the charges in Sandra's death, Huckaby is charged with attempting to poison two people, including a 7-year-old girl. A complaint alleges she "did willfully and unlawfully mingle a harmful substance with food or drink" with the intent to harm the child.
The complaint identifies the child only as "Jane M. Doe." Huckaby is also charged with one count of child abuse endangerment regarding the girl, who the complaint says was in her "care and custody." The other alleged poisoning victim was identified as Daniel Plowman, but no other information was provided.
A gag order has been imposed on parties in the case. Superior Court Judge Linda L. Lofthus has also sealed documents in the case, including the autopsy and toxicology reports and documents relating to a defense motion to exhume Sandra's body.
Huckaby remains jailed without bail. A hearing was set for September 25.
Melissa Huckaby, 28, was indicted last month in the death of Sandra Cantu, a playmate of Huckaby's daughter. Huckaby lived in the same mobile home park as Cantu and her family in Tracy, California.
Sandra's body was found April 6, stuffed into a suitcase and submerged in a pond at a dairy farm. She was last seen alive March 27 in the mobile home park.
Huckaby is charged with kidnapping and murdering Sandra, according to the indictment, along with lewd and lascivious acts on a child under 14 and rape by instrument. She pleaded not guilty in June, but entered another not guilty plea on Thursday at a hearing, minutes of which were provided to CNN by a court spokeswoman.
Prosecutors said at the hearing Thursday they plan to seek the death penalty.
Huckaby is the granddaughter of Clifford Lane Lawless, pastor of Clover Road Baptist Church near the mobile home park, and she taught Sunday school at the church, police said.
The church was searched as part of the investigation into Sandra's disappearance and death.
Before her arrest, Huckaby acknowledged to a newspaper reporter that she owned the suitcase that contained Sandra's body, but said it had been stolen.
In addition to the charges in Sandra's death, Huckaby is charged with attempting to poison two people, including a 7-year-old girl. A complaint alleges she "did willfully and unlawfully mingle a harmful substance with food or drink" with the intent to harm the child.
The complaint identifies the child only as "Jane M. Doe." Huckaby is also charged with one count of child abuse endangerment regarding the girl, who the complaint says was in her "care and custody." The other alleged poisoning victim was identified as Daniel Plowman, but no other information was provided.
A gag order has been imposed on parties in the case. Superior Court Judge Linda L. Lofthus has also sealed documents in the case, including the autopsy and toxicology reports and documents relating to a defense motion to exhume Sandra's body.
Huckaby remains jailed without bail. A hearing was set for September 25.
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Fanatic Hijacked Mexican Plane After 'Revelation'
MEXICO CITY — A Bolivian religious fanatic briefly hijacked a jetliner from the beach resort of Cancun as it landed in Mexico City on Wednesday, police said. All passengers and the crew were released unharmed.
The Bible-carrying hijacker used a juice can he said was a bomb to hold the 103 passengers and crew on the tarmac for more than an hour. Masked police stormed the aircraft with their guns drawn and escorted several handcuffed men away without firing a shot. Police later said there was only one hijacker.
Jose Flores, 44, told investigators he hijacked Aeromexico Flight 576 after a divine revelation, according to Public Safety Secretary Genaro Garcia Luna. Flores said Wednesday's date — 9-9-09 — is the satanic number 666 turned upside down.
Flores, speaking to reporters after he was detained, said he took control of the aircraft with "a juice can with some little lights I attached."
"Christ is coming soon," he added, smiling.
As the plane was landing, Flores stood up and showed his contraption to a flight attendant, saying he and three others were hijacking the plane, Garcia Luna said. Flores later told police his three companions were "the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost."
He ordered the pilot to circle over Mexico City seven times and asked to speak with Mexican President Felipe Calderon, saying he wanted to warn him of an impending earthquake, Garcia Luna said.
Garcia Luna said Flores is a drug addict who was convicted of armed robbery in Bolivia, and has lived in Mexico for 17 years. Flores described himself as a pastor in southern Oaxaca state who had gone to Cancun to preach.
He is also a Christian music singer who in videos posted on YouTube sings of leaving drugs and finding God.
"I was in jail, I was a despicable drug addict, but Christ freed me a few years ago," Flores sings along with recorded norteno music to a crowded stadium.
In other videos, Flores, who goes by the stage name Josmar, is seen playing with nunchackus and shooting a coin he tosses in the air.
At the Uncionmusic Web site, a Christian music distributor based in Oakland, California, that sells Flores' music on the Internet, he is described as "an international evangelist with a shocking testimony on how God rescued him after his family sent him from Bolivia to Mexico City on a one-way ticket ... because of his addiction to cocaine and alcohol."
Saul Bueno, of Uncionmusic, said that he doesn't personally know Flores and that his music has sold poorly since they began offering his CDs two years ago.
"As a Christian I think about what was going through his mind, because that's not the way to get attention," Bueno said.
The attorney general's office said it was opening an investigation into terrorism and kidnapping.
U.S., French and Mexican citizens were among the passengers, according to a U.S. official in Washington who was briefed on the situation. The official was not authorized to discuss the case and spoke on condition of anonymity.
A U.S. Embassay spokesman said at least 14 U.S. citizens were on the plane and they were being interviewed by Mexican authorities at the airport.
Passenger Rocio Garcia told the Televisa network that the pilot made an announcement after landing in Mexico City that the airplane was being hijacked.
"These were scary moments," she said.
Passengers said the hijacker stayed in his seat throughout the incident and the pilot came back from the cockpit to negotiate with him.
Mexican officials negotiated the release of women and children through the pilot before sending in the police. The plane was isolated at the end of a runway in an area designed for emergencies and the airport remained open.
The most recent hijacking attempt in the Americas occurred April 19, when a man with a handgun tried to commandeer a Canadian jetliner in Jamaica. The standoff ended before takeoff at Montego Bay's airport when military commandos burst onto the plane and disarmed the man, who was described as "mentally challenged."
The Bible-carrying hijacker used a juice can he said was a bomb to hold the 103 passengers and crew on the tarmac for more than an hour. Masked police stormed the aircraft with their guns drawn and escorted several handcuffed men away without firing a shot. Police later said there was only one hijacker.
Jose Flores, 44, told investigators he hijacked Aeromexico Flight 576 after a divine revelation, according to Public Safety Secretary Genaro Garcia Luna. Flores said Wednesday's date — 9-9-09 — is the satanic number 666 turned upside down.
Flores, speaking to reporters after he was detained, said he took control of the aircraft with "a juice can with some little lights I attached."
"Christ is coming soon," he added, smiling.
As the plane was landing, Flores stood up and showed his contraption to a flight attendant, saying he and three others were hijacking the plane, Garcia Luna said. Flores later told police his three companions were "the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost."
He ordered the pilot to circle over Mexico City seven times and asked to speak with Mexican President Felipe Calderon, saying he wanted to warn him of an impending earthquake, Garcia Luna said.
Garcia Luna said Flores is a drug addict who was convicted of armed robbery in Bolivia, and has lived in Mexico for 17 years. Flores described himself as a pastor in southern Oaxaca state who had gone to Cancun to preach.
He is also a Christian music singer who in videos posted on YouTube sings of leaving drugs and finding God.
"I was in jail, I was a despicable drug addict, but Christ freed me a few years ago," Flores sings along with recorded norteno music to a crowded stadium.
In other videos, Flores, who goes by the stage name Josmar, is seen playing with nunchackus and shooting a coin he tosses in the air.
At the Uncionmusic Web site, a Christian music distributor based in Oakland, California, that sells Flores' music on the Internet, he is described as "an international evangelist with a shocking testimony on how God rescued him after his family sent him from Bolivia to Mexico City on a one-way ticket ... because of his addiction to cocaine and alcohol."
Saul Bueno, of Uncionmusic, said that he doesn't personally know Flores and that his music has sold poorly since they began offering his CDs two years ago.
"As a Christian I think about what was going through his mind, because that's not the way to get attention," Bueno said.
The attorney general's office said it was opening an investigation into terrorism and kidnapping.
U.S., French and Mexican citizens were among the passengers, according to a U.S. official in Washington who was briefed on the situation. The official was not authorized to discuss the case and spoke on condition of anonymity.
A U.S. Embassay spokesman said at least 14 U.S. citizens were on the plane and they were being interviewed by Mexican authorities at the airport.
Passenger Rocio Garcia told the Televisa network that the pilot made an announcement after landing in Mexico City that the airplane was being hijacked.
"These were scary moments," she said.
Passengers said the hijacker stayed in his seat throughout the incident and the pilot came back from the cockpit to negotiate with him.
Mexican officials negotiated the release of women and children through the pilot before sending in the police. The plane was isolated at the end of a runway in an area designed for emergencies and the airport remained open.
The most recent hijacking attempt in the Americas occurred April 19, when a man with a handgun tried to commandeer a Canadian jetliner in Jamaica. The standoff ended before takeoff at Montego Bay's airport when military commandos burst onto the plane and disarmed the man, who was described as "mentally challenged."
Monday, September 7, 2009
Pastor's Obama Rants 'Incomprehensible'
TEMPE, Ariz. - The sermons at this east valley church are stirring controversy and for some, causing alarm. Pastor Steven Anderson says he's a man of God, but some are horrified at what he's preaching.
Anderson is standing by his controversial sermon, entitled "Why I Hate Barack Obama." Video of the sermon has hit YouTube, and he's taped explaining why he hates the President and praying for his death.
Sunday at church, Anderson told FOX 10, "I hope that God strikes Barack Obama with brain cancer so he can die like Ted Kennedy and I hope it happens today."
Anderson is continuing to encourage his parishioners to pray for the president's death, but says he doesn't condone killing.
"I will not take the law into my own hands. I will not take up any arms. It's a spiritual battle, spiritual warfare."
Sunday, about 30 parishioners of the Faithful Word Baptist Church were met by a handful of protesters.
"A pastor, a man of the cloth, doesn't condone assassinating people. He's not a pastor, he's a pas-turd," said protester Bill Demski. Some of the protesters tried to go into the church, but were denied.
"I find it incomprehensible that someone can say they believe in the message of Jesus and preach hate," added protester James Jones.
Tempe Police patrolled the area to make sure tempers didn't get out of hand, while many parishioners walked into the church carrying guns on their hips.
One of them was Christopher Broughton, who got national attention when he brought an AR-15 assault rifle to an Aug. 17 rally outside the Phoenix Convention Center where President Obama was addressing veterans.
We asked him if he wanted to clarify what the impact of Pastor Anderson's sermon was on his decision to bring a gun to the rally, but he had no response.
Anderson says his sermon about wanting Obama to die was not meant to rile people up. "If anything, I was talking him down," he said, "Not riling him up."
Pastor Anderson says his hatred of Obama and former president Bush stems from his views on abortion and the Iraq War.
"Look up the word hate. Look up the word abhor, the word loathe. You'll see there are a lot of people that God hates, and so we should hate. But see, I didn't write that, that's in the Bible."
The pastor says that since his sermon on Obama was posted on YouTube, he and his family have received death threats.
"If people want to wish deaths on me I don't have a problem with that. But when people say, 'I'm coming to kill you and your family within the next 36 hours,' that's different than them hoping or wishing something in their mind," said Anderson.
The White House had no comment.
Anderson is standing by his controversial sermon, entitled "Why I Hate Barack Obama." Video of the sermon has hit YouTube, and he's taped explaining why he hates the President and praying for his death.
Sunday at church, Anderson told FOX 10, "I hope that God strikes Barack Obama with brain cancer so he can die like Ted Kennedy and I hope it happens today."
Anderson is continuing to encourage his parishioners to pray for the president's death, but says he doesn't condone killing.
"I will not take the law into my own hands. I will not take up any arms. It's a spiritual battle, spiritual warfare."
Sunday, about 30 parishioners of the Faithful Word Baptist Church were met by a handful of protesters.
"A pastor, a man of the cloth, doesn't condone assassinating people. He's not a pastor, he's a pas-turd," said protester Bill Demski. Some of the protesters tried to go into the church, but were denied.
"I find it incomprehensible that someone can say they believe in the message of Jesus and preach hate," added protester James Jones.
Tempe Police patrolled the area to make sure tempers didn't get out of hand, while many parishioners walked into the church carrying guns on their hips.
One of them was Christopher Broughton, who got national attention when he brought an AR-15 assault rifle to an Aug. 17 rally outside the Phoenix Convention Center where President Obama was addressing veterans.
We asked him if he wanted to clarify what the impact of Pastor Anderson's sermon was on his decision to bring a gun to the rally, but he had no response.
Anderson says his sermon about wanting Obama to die was not meant to rile people up. "If anything, I was talking him down," he said, "Not riling him up."
Pastor Anderson says his hatred of Obama and former president Bush stems from his views on abortion and the Iraq War.
"Look up the word hate. Look up the word abhor, the word loathe. You'll see there are a lot of people that God hates, and so we should hate. But see, I didn't write that, that's in the Bible."
The pastor says that since his sermon on Obama was posted on YouTube, he and his family have received death threats.
"If people want to wish deaths on me I don't have a problem with that. But when people say, 'I'm coming to kill you and your family within the next 36 hours,' that's different than them hoping or wishing something in their mind," said Anderson.
The White House had no comment.
Friday, August 28, 2009
Suspected Kidnapper's Blog Reveals Religious Fanaticism
People who knew kidnapping and rape suspect Phillip Garrido said he became increasingly fanatic about his religious beliefs in recent years, sometimes breaking out into song and claiming that God spoke to him through a box.
"In the last couple years he started getting into this strange religious stuff. We kind of felt sorry for him," said Tim Allen, president of East County Glass and Window Inc. in Pittsburg, Calif., who bought business cards and letterhead from Garrido's printing business for the last decade.
Three times in recent years, Garrido arrived at Allen's showroom with two "cute little blond girls" in tow, he said.
In April 2008, Garrido registered a corporation called God's Desire at his home address, according to the California Secretary of State. During recent visits to the showroom, Garrido would talk about quitting the printing business to preach full time and gave the impression he was setting up a church, Allen said.
"He rambled. It made no sense," he said.
In a blog titled "Voices Revealed" that appears to have been maintained by Garrido, he wrote that he had hired a private investigator to verify his ability to speak to people using only his mind. In an "affadavit" posted there, he said he had the ability to "control sound with my mind and have developed a device for others to witness this phenomena."
Using the alias THEMANWHOSPOKEWITHHISMIND, the first post, titled Disclaimer, says, in all caps: "This all began by God removing a problem from my shoulders that behavioral scientist believe is not possible to remove. since then my life has seen major improvements allowing me to stand here today a free man."
Since his arrest, the blog had been overrun with negative comments from readers. By Friday morning, there were more than 300 comments, many of them with religious references.
"When the voices tell you to kidnap and rape children, it's not God. It's your own crminal self, Mr. Garrido! I hope you rot in jail and burn in Hell." - dejablues
"The Man Upstairs is going to have something to say about you making all these claims of being connected to Him while you were perpetrating such horrendous crimes against a child. Human judgment and divine judgment are both going to be swift and harsh." - silverladder
Monday, July 27, 2009
Baby-killing Mom Otty Sanchez of San Antonio Claims 'Devil Made Me' Do It
DALLAS - Police said they found a 3 1/2-week-old infant stabbed and decapitated in a Texas home on Sunday and his mother "screaming that she killed her baby" after the devil told her to do it.
The mother, Otty Sanchez, 33, of San Antonio, was taken to a local hospital in critical condition with self-inflicted stab wounds to her chest and stomach, said San Antonio police spokesman Joe Rios.
Investigators took a sword, a machete and a kitchen knife from the home.
Officers also found two children unharmed at the home, though it wasn't immediately clear where they were taken.
Sanchez will be charged with capital murder, Rios said. A spokeswoman at University Hospital in San Antonio said she couldn't release information on Sanchez's condition, but Sgt. Wes McCourt said her wounds didn't appear to be life threatening.
Rios said that when police arrived, Sanchez was sitting on the couch "screaming that she killed her baby." Police said the baby was Scott Wesley Buchholtz-Sanchez.
"She mentioned that someone or something told her to do it, she was hearing voices. So that leads us to believe that she was experiencing some type of mental crisis," Rios said. "The baby had obviously been decapitated."
McCourt said she told investigators that the devil told her to kill her son.
The mother, Otty Sanchez, 33, of San Antonio, was taken to a local hospital in critical condition with self-inflicted stab wounds to her chest and stomach, said San Antonio police spokesman Joe Rios.
Investigators took a sword, a machete and a kitchen knife from the home.
Officers also found two children unharmed at the home, though it wasn't immediately clear where they were taken.
Sanchez will be charged with capital murder, Rios said. A spokeswoman at University Hospital in San Antonio said she couldn't release information on Sanchez's condition, but Sgt. Wes McCourt said her wounds didn't appear to be life threatening.
Rios said that when police arrived, Sanchez was sitting on the couch "screaming that she killed her baby." Police said the baby was Scott Wesley Buchholtz-Sanchez.
"She mentioned that someone or something told her to do it, she was hearing voices. So that leads us to believe that she was experiencing some type of mental crisis," Rios said. "The baby had obviously been decapitated."
McCourt said she told investigators that the devil told her to kill her son.
Sunday, July 12, 2009
Church Bus Crash Kills 1 In Miss., Leaves 27 Hurt
MERIDIAN, Miss. — A coroner says a bus carrying a church youth group from Louisiana to Georgia flipped Sunday in Mississippi, killing one person and injuring 27 others.
The bus overturned three times around 10:20 a.m. on Interstate 20 near Meridian, Miss., and trapped some people underneath, Lauderdale County Coroner Clayton Cobler III said. Teenagers and adults were on the bus from First Baptist Church in Shreveport, La. A group of National Guard soldiers was on the highway at the time and helped rescue the injured.
The wreck was first reported by television station WTOK in Meridian.
One person died at the scene, Cobler said. One person was transported to the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson, while the other 26 injured were taken to three hospitals in Meridian, the coroner said.
The bus overturned three times around 10:20 a.m. on Interstate 20 near Meridian, Miss., and trapped some people underneath, Lauderdale County Coroner Clayton Cobler III said. Teenagers and adults were on the bus from First Baptist Church in Shreveport, La. A group of National Guard soldiers was on the highway at the time and helped rescue the injured.
The wreck was first reported by television station WTOK in Meridian.
One person died at the scene, Cobler said. One person was transported to the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson, while the other 26 injured were taken to three hospitals in Meridian, the coroner said.
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