As the news has shared to nauseum, Jon and Kate Gosselin of "Jon and Kate plus 8" are getting a divorce. What a shame. It is a shame for many reasons - the children will suffer; another marriage goes into the tank; proof that celebrity and money usually ruin a person (I am reminded of Ben Franklin's quote - "Contentment make poor men rich; and make rich men poor!") sad but true! But the greatest shame is that the Gosselins claim to be Christians. ANOTHER BLACK EYE FOR OUR TEAM!!
About a month ago, when all the scandal surrounding them broke in the news i was moved to email their church's pastor. They claim to attend Glad Tiding Assembly of God in Reading. You know how these thing go -- it might be attendance in name only, nevertheless I felt compelled to write their pastor. Here is the letter:
Dear Pastor Koch:
I am a pastor in Lancaster and we have never met but in the last few days I have been thinking about you and not sure if I even have the right guy – but here I go…
Somewhere along the way I believe I heard that Jon and Kate Gossellin were attending (members?) of your church. At least that is what Wikipedia says as well as my son who is a faithful watcher of the show. If you are not their pastor --- or they don’t attend – then hit DELETE or better HIT REPLY and tell me I got the wrong church….sorry for bothering you…..
However if this is the right church then I want to encourage you. In recent days it has been a heart break to watch all the media reporting about the trouble occurring in their household. The novelty of their situation has certainly worn off and now they serve as “just another” reality TV family gone wrong (or wild). I guess the issue is not whether all the rumors and innuendos were true, the fact is the “appearances” are not good – but more so how the response occurs is even more troubling.
Jon and Kate have made it clear that they are Christians. Their faith, church people helping them, attendance at church, speaking at evangelical churches is known and Zondervan is their publisher. With that being the case, then it would only make sense and be expected that when Christians face this kind of crisis and “potential sin” is made known, that there church and pastors would be on the fore front. Again I don’t know you process for discipline, counsel, restoration – but I would hope that there was some process in place for a family in this situation. Whether they are celebrities or not.
I know that people in these types of crisis are not looking for church intervention nor does the discipline or intervention by a shepherd often welcomed with high levels of gratefulness. However if they are true believers at their core they should receive it, welcome it and understand it is Biblically necessary. To avoid it will only prolong and probably do greater damage to the name of Christ, your church and the entire message of Christianity.
My writing you is simple – to encourage you to be the shepherd they need if they are in your church!! Kate said the other day – “I am doing all of this for my kids…” You know that “all we do should be for the King!” My heart breaks for them, but more so how potentially this could hurt the name of evangelical Christianity, not to mention your church!
Pastor I am praying for you today….may the Lord give you the courage, wisdom, clarity and boldness to execute your office as a shepherd and step in to the lives of these people. The church of the Lord Jesus again is being seen as hypocritical and ineffective and I do not believe it needs to be that way. May you without fear and with a desire to lead your people and remove confusion, provide the spiritual direction that they need!
With much sympathy
Pastor Jamie Mitchell
As of today -- no response. That's OK - he might be overwhelmed. Maybe he is helping the situation. Maybe he is embarassed to say anything. As a pastor I know I would be in knots on what to say and how to approach the situation. you want to guard their privacy, however their lives and their issues are not a matter of privacy; they have chosen to have their problems on display for the world to see and consider at $75,000 an hour episode. So I say again to Pastor Koch and the members of their church -- BE THE CHURCH -- and use your eccleisatical authority to discipline these who call themselves Christian or have them recant that profession. For the sake of the rest of us -- discipline the Body so that the world has no accusation against us especially that of hypocrite. "Judgement begins in the household of God" -- whether you are a celebrity or not.