Post by Deleted on Feb 22, 2017 21:51:55 GMT -5
This story caught my eye this evening, because the pastor is a conservative Protestant (Nazarene) from the American South.
Talk about demonizing America's favorite con artist...
‘Demonic activity was palpable’ at Trump’s rally, pastor says
www.washingtonpost.com/news/acts-of-faith/wp/2017/02/22/demonic-activity-palpable-at-president-trumps-rally-pastor-says/?utm_term=.a5981c21b15b
February 22, 2017
A Florida pastor who took his 11-year-old daughter to a campaign-style rally for President Trump said he hoped the event would serve as a civics lesson — but that it turned instead into a spectacle where “demonic activity was palpable.”
Joel Tooley, lead pastor at Melbourne First Church of the Nazarene in eastern Florida, said that when he heard that the president and first lady would be passing through town, he decided to go see them in person.
“I am enough of a sentimentalist that when I found out THEEEE President was coming to town, I got online quickly and reserved two tickets,” he wrote on Facebook.
But the rally last weekend was not what the pastor had in mind.
“As people were coming in, there was a lot of excitement and a strong sense of patriotism,” Tooley wrote.
However, during a rendition of “God Bless the USA,” some attendees began to sing along and raise their hands in an almost religious way.
“People were being ushered into a deeply religious experience,” Tooley wrote, “and it made me completely uncomfortable.
“I love my country; I honor those who sacrificed their lives for our freedom and I respect our history and what we stand for, but what I experienced in that moment sent shivers down my spine. I felt like people were here to worship an ideology along with the man who was leading it. Don’t get me wrong, it wasn’t the song per se — it was this inexplicable movement that was happening in the room. It was a religious zeal.”
Tooley could not immediately be reached, and the White House did not immediately respond to a request for a comment.
[An anti-Trump disabled boy was booed at a rally. The next day, he got to meet President Obama.]
On Saturday, Tooley said, he talked his daughter into going with him to the rally in Melbourne, near Orlando.
“After all, how many times do you get to see the President of the United States in person — let alone in your hometown?” Tooley wrote. “I was eager for her to have this experience. It has to be a pretty cool thing, as a kid to see Air Force One, the President and the First Lady.”
Once the duo made it through the lengthy line, he said, they were handed pom-poms and signs saying “Make America Great Again!”
They were then ushered into a massive crowd at Orlando Melbourne International Airport.
The music, he said, moved from patriotic to pep rally — “more Star Wars themed.” Then Air Force One rolled up to the hangar.
“As they entered the venue and walked to the platform, there was terrific celebration,” Tooley wrote. “I have been in the room when other Presidents were in a similar mode — it is always such a meaningful experience to be that close to them, regardless of whether or not you view them with adoration. Theeeee President of the USA!”
“The First Lady approached the platform and in her rich accent, began to recite the Lord’s prayer,” he added. “I can’t explain it, but I felt sick. This wasn’t a prayer beseeching the presence of Almighty God, it felt theatrical and manipulative. People across the room were reciting it as if it were a pep squad cheer. At the close of the prayer, the room erupted in cheering. It was so uncomfortable. I observed that Mr. Trump did not recite the prayer until the very last line, ‘be the glory forever and ever, amen!’ As he raised his hands in the air, evoking a cheer from the crowd, ‘USA! USA! USA!’ ”
Talk about demonizing America's favorite con artist...
‘Demonic activity was palpable’ at Trump’s rally, pastor says
www.washingtonpost.com/news/acts-of-faith/wp/2017/02/22/demonic-activity-palpable-at-president-trumps-rally-pastor-says/?utm_term=.a5981c21b15b
February 22, 2017
A Florida pastor who took his 11-year-old daughter to a campaign-style rally for President Trump said he hoped the event would serve as a civics lesson — but that it turned instead into a spectacle where “demonic activity was palpable.”
Joel Tooley, lead pastor at Melbourne First Church of the Nazarene in eastern Florida, said that when he heard that the president and first lady would be passing through town, he decided to go see them in person.
“I am enough of a sentimentalist that when I found out THEEEE President was coming to town, I got online quickly and reserved two tickets,” he wrote on Facebook.
But the rally last weekend was not what the pastor had in mind.
“As people were coming in, there was a lot of excitement and a strong sense of patriotism,” Tooley wrote.
However, during a rendition of “God Bless the USA,” some attendees began to sing along and raise their hands in an almost religious way.
“People were being ushered into a deeply religious experience,” Tooley wrote, “and it made me completely uncomfortable.
“I love my country; I honor those who sacrificed their lives for our freedom and I respect our history and what we stand for, but what I experienced in that moment sent shivers down my spine. I felt like people were here to worship an ideology along with the man who was leading it. Don’t get me wrong, it wasn’t the song per se — it was this inexplicable movement that was happening in the room. It was a religious zeal.”
Tooley could not immediately be reached, and the White House did not immediately respond to a request for a comment.
[An anti-Trump disabled boy was booed at a rally. The next day, he got to meet President Obama.]
On Saturday, Tooley said, he talked his daughter into going with him to the rally in Melbourne, near Orlando.
“After all, how many times do you get to see the President of the United States in person — let alone in your hometown?” Tooley wrote. “I was eager for her to have this experience. It has to be a pretty cool thing, as a kid to see Air Force One, the President and the First Lady.”
Once the duo made it through the lengthy line, he said, they were handed pom-poms and signs saying “Make America Great Again!”
They were then ushered into a massive crowd at Orlando Melbourne International Airport.
The music, he said, moved from patriotic to pep rally — “more Star Wars themed.” Then Air Force One rolled up to the hangar.
“As they entered the venue and walked to the platform, there was terrific celebration,” Tooley wrote. “I have been in the room when other Presidents were in a similar mode — it is always such a meaningful experience to be that close to them, regardless of whether or not you view them with adoration. Theeeee President of the USA!”
“The First Lady approached the platform and in her rich accent, began to recite the Lord’s prayer,” he added. “I can’t explain it, but I felt sick. This wasn’t a prayer beseeching the presence of Almighty God, it felt theatrical and manipulative. People across the room were reciting it as if it were a pep squad cheer. At the close of the prayer, the room erupted in cheering. It was so uncomfortable. I observed that Mr. Trump did not recite the prayer until the very last line, ‘be the glory forever and ever, amen!’ As he raised his hands in the air, evoking a cheer from the crowd, ‘USA! USA! USA!’ ”
