A History of the United States of America

January 25, 2012 Leave a comment

A new book from Solid Ground hoping to be published – but they need enough pre-pub sales to commit to it.

I’d love to get some recommendations on history books in general – which ones are the best in giving overviews of certain time periods (not just U.S.)?

A HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
From the Discovery of the Continent to the Establishment of the Constitution in 1789
George Bancroft

In this final edition (1888) of his great work George Bancroft has made extensive changes in the text, condensing in places, enlarging in others, and carefully revising. It is practically a new work, embodying the results of the latest researches, and enjoying the advantage of the author’s long and mature experience.

“It has not been granted to many historians to devote half a century to the history of a single people, and to live long enough, and, let us add, to be willing and wise enough, to revise and rewrite in an honored old age the work of an entire lifetime.” New York Mail and Express

“There is nothing that needs to be said at this day of the value of ‘Bancroft.’ Its authority is no longer in dispute, and as a piece of vivid and realistic historical writing it stands among the best works of its class. It may be taken for granted that this new edition will greatly extend its usefulness.” – Philadelphia North American

“The extent and thoroughness of this revision would hardly be guessed without comparing the editions side by side. The condensation of the text amounts to something over one-third of the previous edition. There has also been very considerable recasting of the text. On the whole, our examination of the first volume leads us to believe that the thought of the historian loses nothing by the abbreviation of the text. A closer and later approximation to the best results of scholarship and criticism is reached. The public gains by its more compact brevity and in amount of matter, and in economy of time and money.” – The Independent

In this six-volume work we have over 3500 pages of brilliant history written by a man known for his “History of the United States.”

George Bancroft (October 3, 1800 – January 17, 1891) was an American historian and statesman who was prominent in promoting secondary education both in his home state and at the national level. During his tenure as U.S. Secretary of the Navy, he established the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis in 1845. Among his best-known writings is this magisterial series, History of the United States, from the Discovery of the American Continent.

PRE-PUBLICATION TITLE – 55% Discount
 SGCB Price: $108.95 (list price $240.00)
SIX VOLUME PAPERBACK SET – OVER 3500 PAGES

VOLUME SIX: THE HISTORY OF THE US CONSTITUTION
 SGCB Price: $19.95 (list price $40.00)
This is the Only Volume That Can be Purchased Separately

 

http://www.solid-ground-books.com/books_PrePublicationSpecialOffers.asp
Categories: politics, theology

Why Ron Paul?

January 21, 2012 1 comment

Voddie Baucham gives his answer

Categories: politics

Bungee Jumping and Investing

January 10, 2012 Leave a comment

A while ago I wrote a post called What Caused the Financial Meltdown? A Guide to Understanding the Collapse in 3 Hours, in which I wrote:

@1:19:45 black woman “I’m being held accountable for my bad choices. But who in that industry is being held accountable?… I’m stupid, but you’re guilty. You’re literally guilty.” Wow. And she’s not guilty for lying? It is this absolute lack of personal responsibility that creates this mess in the first place. People naively think we have reached a certain place in the progress of society where we should no longer have to actually worry about making catastrophic, bad decisions. There will always be a safety net, so I don’t have to worry. This is what “moral hazard” refers to. It is this idea that you are not really at risk for decisions that you make in life. There will always be a safety net to catch you or a safety regulation to keep you from making bad decisions. For example, see Schiff’s comments about FDIC @38:13.

A news report I read this morning reminded me of what I said above.

On Dec. 31, Australian tourist Erin Langworthy became one of thousands of people to try bungee-jumping off the bridge that connects Zimbabwe and Zambia, within sight of the tourist mecca Victoria Falls. It’s 364 meters of sheer gravitational pleasure, followed by a gut-wrenching jerk just feet above the rapids below. The only problem, for Ms. Langworthy, is that her bungee cord broke and she fell into the Zambezi, which, in its quieter areas, is infested with crocodiles.

The reporter went on to make a few comments about being safe in Africa:

One: Tourists who come from litigious societies such as the United States may have an assumption that an activity is safe, because it is allowed to exist. Such an attitude may be reasonable in the US or Australia, but it doesn’t necessarily work in a country such as Zambia, where civil court cases can take decades to resolve.

Living in a nanny-state takes it’s toll on a person’s common sense and personal responsibility. But how could we ever survive without a nanny-state to protect us?

Langworthy’s plunge reminded me of the anecdote of a friend in Johannesburg, who took his clients on a year-end corporate junket to Victoria Falls. The last event was to be a bungee jump off the Victoria Falls bridge. All but one of the clients took the plunge. The one who didn’t jump had asked the bungee operator what would happen if the bungee cord breaks. The tour operator grinned: “We’ll replace it.”

Categories: economics, politics

Top Posts of 2011

January 5, 2012 Leave a comment

A little late, I suppose, but here are the most popular posts of 2011:

Categories: Uncategorized

Situational ethics

January 3, 2012 Leave a comment

Interesting story from Jeremy Walker Situational ethics.

Categories: theology

Why Abortion is the Sacrament of Feminism

January 2, 2012 3 comments

Denny Burk has a good post about an article written by a former feminist. Burk notes:

This article is fantastic and well-worth your time to read. Feminist ideals have become so much a fixture of American life that many people hardly realize the extent to which their own worldview has been shaped by it. I would challenge readers to test yourselves as you read this article to see how deeply you may have drunk from the well of feminism.

Burk summarizes her article, noting:

She argues that feminists sought to be equal to men with respect to having a career and having a promiscuous sex-life. The main obstacle to those two goals was the possibility of a pregnancy.

I don’t think it is a coincidence that the Bible says nearly the exact same thing. Paul explained that woman’s curse of desiring to rule over men “equally” would be overcome “through childbearing” (1 Tim 2:15).  Feminists see it as the obstacle, Paul sees it as the solution.

To understand what Paul meant by being “saved through childbearing” see Kostenberger’s excellent article Saved Through Childbearing? A Fresh Look at 1 Timothy 2:15 Points to Protection from Satan’s Deception

Paul here expresses concern that women be kept safe from being deceived by Satan, and that he therefore encourages women to embrace and pursue their God-ordained calling centering around the family and the home. Our concern today should be, like Paul’s, that women discern and adhere to their God-given calling in life…

…At the same time, the interpretation of 1 Timothy 2:15 advocated here has explosive implications for so-called “biblical feminism.” For if our reading of 1 Timothy 2:15 is correct, women will be vulnerable to Satan if they devalue and abandon a focus on the family and the home or encourage others to do so. They would be an easy prey for his age-old enticement (see Gen. 3) that the roles assigned to creatures by their Creator are too confining and that people must rebel against these roles and find self-fulfillment apart from God.

…How are women kept safe from the allurement of Satan? How are they to avoid falling into temptation as Eve, the mother of women, did? By adhering to, and finding fulfillment in, their Godgiven role centering on the family and the home.

Categories: theology

Resources for Studying the Sabbath

January 2, 2012 Leave a comment

Friends have asked me on more than one occasion what I recommend reading on the Sabbath. I finally got the sense to make a post about it that I can point them to. Since iron sharpens iron, I’ve also included in the list responsible resources opposed to sabbatarianism. If you have any further recommendations, please let me know.

Why So Many People Think of the Sabbath as a Burden

The reason that so many people feel it as a burden is partly that we have so much leisure, we don’t feel the need for the sabbath rest; but more important, I think, is the fact that not many people really enjoy what God intended us to enjoy on the sabbath, namely, himself. Many professing Christians enjoy sports and television and secular books and magazines and recreation and hobbies and games far more than they enjoy direct interaction with God in his Word or in worship or in reading Christian books or in meditative strolls.

Therefore, inevitably people whose hearts are set more on the pleasures of the world than on the enjoyment of God will feel the sabbath command as a burden not a blessing. This is what John says in 1 John 5:3, “For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome.” The measure of your love for God is the measure of the joy you get in focusing on him on the day of rest. For most people the sabbath command is really a demand to repent. It invites us to enjoy what we don’t enjoy and therefore shows us the evil of hearts, and our need to repent and be changed.

4 views:

I have heard very good things about this volume: Perspectives on the Sabbath

Con:

Pro:

Pro Articles:

Interesting Observations

  • Finally, here is an interesting book. I don’t recommend it as an argument, but as a simple observation of the 4th commandment written on the hearts of all men. It’s written by a non-Christian after trying to explain to his daughter where we get weeks from. Read the first 10 pages: The Seven Day Circle: The History & Meaning of the Week
“Unlike the day and the year [and the month], the week is an artificial rhythm that was created by human beings [or their Creator] totally independently of any natural periodicity.” p. 4
Categories: theology Tags: , , ,

Ten Suggestions to Help You Grow in Grace and Knowledge in the New Year

December 31, 2011 1 comment

Here are some great suggestions for growing in 2012. My wife and I implemented several of these in 2011 and hope to add the rest in 2012. As Andy notes, it has been very important for our marriage and our growth in grace and knowledge of the Lord.

By Andy Webb‡

1. Read your Bible before you read your email, login to FaceBook, turn on the radio, etc.
Far too many of us spend time in the world, before we spend time in the Word and as a result we begin the day with the wrong frame of mind and perspective, and not having “broken our fast” by partaking of the bread of heaven. For many people, this means that they begin the day having partaken of things that cause them to be irritable, anxious, or distracted, rather than filled with the things that promote peace, contentment, and knowledge. If we wonder why we are weak in the faith, it might just be because our primary diet consists of things that are not spiritual food. Let your first meal in the morning be the milk and meat of the Word of God!

“Oh, how I love Your law! It is my meditation all the day. You, through Your commandments, make me wiser than my enemies; For they are ever with me. I have more understanding than all my teachers, For Your testimonies are my meditation.”
— Psalm 119:97–99

2. Start attending the church events you normally miss
If there is one thing we learn from the Apostolic church, it is that they never missed an opportunity to worship together. “And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers” (Acts 2:42). This should still be the fondest desire of every Christian’s heart. “I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go into the house of the LORD” (Psalm 122:1). But it is also something that we desperately need for our growth.

Indeed, the Christians who are growing the most in the faith are almost invariably the ones who spend the most time in worship and study. Sometimes people really are providentially hindered from attending the services of the church, but more often than not we have simply made a decision not to go. There are many excuses we can generate for not coming to both worship services on Sunday or the Bible Study or the Prayer Meeting, but how often can we honestly say, “Lord, the thing that I am doing instead of going to church is more important than worshipping you with the saints and is better for my spiritual growth?” Do we really think that the eternal blessings that we gain from attending on the means of grace will not outweigh the temporary hassles of traveling to church? Do we expect that in heaven we will say, “I’m glad I didn’t go to church more often?” or that if we did attend all the church services we could that we will regret doing so?

Finally, before you protest that you would be physically exhausted if you attended more of the services of the church, make sure that there aren’t other activities you could cut out that would enable you to get more rest. Often church is the first thing we remove from our schedule rather than the last. Christians are by definition people who hope to spend eternity in the corporate worship of the Lord, and we need to begin living now as we mean to continue forever afterwards. Remember, we can suffer from a lack of grace, but it is impossible to suffer from having gotten too much of it!

“. . . not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.”
— Hebrews 10:25

3. Begin and stick to a pattern of daily family worship
Properly understood there are three different spheres in which worship should take place; privately, as we do our personal devotions, corporately, as we assemble for worship with the other saints on the Lord’s Day, and household, as families assemble to worship together on a daily basis.

While all the different spheres of worship have declined in modern times, perhaps none has suffered quite so much as family worship, and I believe that the results of this decline can be seen in the exodus of covenant children from the church. Simply put, an hour of corporate worship or even an hour of corporate worship and a youth program like AWANA cannot ever replace daily household worship and instruction. Fathers, you and not your pastor, youth pastor, or Sunday school worker have been charged with bringing up your children in the training and admonition of the Lord (Eph. 6:4). You simply cannot do this without following that daily pattern of instruction and worship set out in Deuteronomy 6. Additionally, Family Worship is a bulwark of any marriage, and you will find that although it is a cliché, there is a LOT of truth to the saying “The family that prays together stays together.” Indeed, it isn’t surprising to see that as family worship has declined, divorce rates have increased. In 10 years of pastoring, I have yet to encounter a family that kept a regular pattern of daily family worship that was on the verge of divorce.

Many families are intimidated by the thought of starting a pattern of family worship because they were not brought up doing it themselves, and were thus never taught how to worship at home. The keys to starting off a successful program of family worship are simplicity and consistency. If you have never done it before, I would recommend you start this way:

First, pick an event that the entire family already does together, such as eating a meal like then covenant that as soon as you have finished your meal you will assemble together for family worship. Keep your family worship simple and brief, and make your family wish there were more of it rather than wish that it would finally end. A sample pattern for worship might include:

  • Father or mother prays.
  • Father reads a short selection from the Bible (no more than a chapter!) that he is familiar with and can explain, or from a good family devotional like the ones written by Jim Cromarty.
  • Father explains the text and asks the children some questions about the text designed to stimulate thought and conversation.
  • The family closes by praying together and offering up their individual praises and requests to God.

Later, after your worship has grown consistent, you can begin gradually adding in other items like singing and reciting the Shorter Catechism, Lord’s Prayer, Ten Commandments, etc.

“We will not hide them from their children, Telling to the generation to come the praises of the LORD, And His strength and His wonderful works that He has done. For He established a testimony in Jacob, And appointed a law in Israel, Which He commanded our fathers, That they should make them known to their children; That the generation to come might know them, The children who would be born, That they may arise and declare them to their children, That they may set their hope in God, And not forget the works of God, But keep His commandments.” — Psalm 78:4–7

4. Start reading systematically through the Bible
One of the trends that has emerged over the years is that while Christians read email, text messages, magazines, novels, and FaceBook, they rarely read the Bible. The Bible reading that does go on is either needs based (I have to read this for a Bible study) or random. The result of this is that Bible knowledge amongst Christians is declining at a precipitous rate. As an example of that, one seminary president pointed out that while it used to be the case that only 1/3 of the incoming class failed the English Bible exam, now only 1/3 of the incoming class passes the English Bible exam. It should shock us that the majority of future pastors begin their training without a firm grasp of the content of the Bible, but it should be even more distressing when we consider that these men usually represent the most biblically astute members of the church.

A failure to read systematically through the Bible also tends to generate an atomistic understanding of verses. We may be familiar with what a particular verse says, but we are not aware of its context or its connection to the rest of scripture. This often leads to serious theological error. It also often means we fail to recognize the progressive nature of revelation in the Bible.

Instead, find a Bible reading plan such as McCheyne’s and read through entire books in BOTH the Old and the New Testaments. Even if you don’t want to begin a Bible reading plan, at least begin a process whereby you select books of the Bible and read them rather than merely letting your Bible fall open at random.

“But you must continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of, knowing from whom you have learned them, and that from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.” — 2 Timothy 3:14–16

5. Read at least two Christian biographies this year
Few things are as informative and encouraging as the biographies of great Christians. Through them, we learn that the God who equipped and sustained the Christians of the Bible is still raising up ordinary men and women like ourselves to go out and do extraordinary things for his kingdom. These biographies are packed full of practical Christian wisdom that would take us a lifetime or possibly several lifetimes to learn ourselves. My own testimony is that other than the Bible, no other kind of book, has taught me as much as biographies about the Christian faith and I include systematic theologies in that statement!

If you have never read Christian biographies before, I would recommend getting started with the excellent collections of short biographies written by Faith Cook.

“Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us.” — Hebrews 12:1

6. Start keeping a prayer log
We are told and shown again and again how powerful prayer is and encouraged with statements like “The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.” to be often in prayer for one another and yet many Christians have great difficulty praying on a regular basis, and many do not know what to pray for or doubt the efficacy of their prayers when they do. Other times we simply forget the things that we have said we will pray for.

Most of these problems will be immediately eliminated if you simply begin to record the things that you should be praying for, and then also record the way in which God answers your prayer. This will also help you to become consistent in your prayers. I would recommend you use an organizer, or a notebook, or your computer to start listing the things you are praying for and the way in which God answers those prayers.

“Then He spoke a parable to them, that men always ought to pray and not lose heart, saying: ‘There was in a certain city a judge who did not fear God nor regard man. Now there was a widow in that city; and she came to him, saying, “Get justice for me from my adversary.” And he would not for a while; but afterward he said within himself, “Though I do not fear God nor regard man, yet because this widow troubles me I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me.”’ Then the Lord said, “Hear what the unjust judge said. And shall God not avenge His own elect who cry out day and night to Him, though He bears long with them?”— Luke 18:1–7

7. Start meeting for fellowship and accountability with other Christians
One of the reasons we often wither in the faith, become susceptible to temptation, or simply “get into a rut” is a lack of regular fellowship with Christians outside of our own family. Make it your habit to meet with Christians, of the same sex, for regular fellowship and seek out Christians who are further along in their walk to be your mentors. Often in scriptures like Titus 2 we see it taken for granted that older Christian women will mentor younger Christian women, and that older Christian men will mentor younger Christian men. These brothers and sisters will pray for you, exhort you, teach you, and stir you up to love and good works. They will also keep you accountable in ways the world NEVER will.

“But exhort one another daily, while it is called “Today,” lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.” — Hebrews 3:13

8. Begin reading about and praying for the persecuted church
From time to time most of us will grumble about our lot in life and frankly be discontent about our circumstances. We will condemn anything the causes an uncomfortable change in our lives as “unfair” and our three great enemies the world, the flesh, and the devil can use these practices to cause harm to us and those around us. This is usually the result of making a habit of comparing ourselves to ourselves, or perhaps those whom we perceive to be in even more agreeable circumstances than we are. When, however, we are well acquainted with what our brothers and sisters are enduring for the faith in Islamic or Communist nations, we will quickly realize that our own circumstances are almost ideal by comparison. One Indian pastor I spoke with openly wondered how one could even preach the gospel in the midst of so much material wealth. His own congregation worshipped in a cinder block building with a corrugated metal roof and no air-conditioning. No one in his entire congregation owned a refrigerator, and the idea of being able to have flush toilets and clean hot and cold water coming out of taps in your own room was unheard of. What we take for granted, they considered to be like living in heaven already.

Also, if we consider what our brothers and sisters in Christ have to endure, we will recognize that Paul’s statement that “all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution” (2 Tim. 3:12) remains true. Indeed, our own faith may be strengthened by the fact that the Lord who sustains persecuted Christians in the midst of so much tribulation is the same God who has promised never to leave or forsake us as well.

Above all, we should be praying for the persecuted because we are commanded to do so, and if the circumstances were reversed and we were the ones being attacked or imprisoned for our faith, we would want to know that no matter how bad things were, other Christians were praying for us!

“Remember the prisoners as if chained with them — those who are mistreated — since you yourselves are in the body also.” — Hebrews 13:3

9. Start praying that the Lord would give you opportunities to share your faith with others
The results of Barna polls conducted in 2010 suggested that American evangelicals are becoming less evangelism oriented than ever, and “less inclined to discuss Christianity with their friends than was true in the past.” This is tragic for two reasons, first, because sharing the faith is one of the primary ways our own faith grows and is strengthened, and second because this is and always has been one of the primary ways that God uses to spread the gospel, even in times of persecution. “Therefore those who were scattered went everywhere preaching the word” (Acts 8:4).

Make it your aim to pray that the Lord would not only give you opportunities to talk about Christianity, but that when those opportunities arise, you would take advantage of them. In order to encourage you to do that, I want to share with you an exhortation that Charles Haddon Spurgeon delivered to the members of his own church on May 1, 1870:

If you have found mercy, you ought to praise God and tell others, so that they may believe and in their turn lead others to Jesus. This is the way the kingdom of God grows. I am afraid you are guilty here. See to it, dear ones, and who can tell of what use you yet may be? There was a dear servant of Christ who was just on the verge of the grave, very old and ill, frequently delirious. The doctors said no one must go into the chamber except the nurse. A little Sunday-school boy, who was rather curious, peeped in at the door to look at the minister. The poor dying servant of God saw him, and the ruling passion was strong even in death. He called him. “David,” said he, “did you ever close in with Christ? I have done so many a time, and I long that you may.” Fifty years later, that boy was living and bearing testimony that the dying words of the good man had brought him to Jesus, for by them he was led to seek Christ.

You do not know what a word might do if you would but speak it. Do not keep back the good news that might bring salvation to your wife, to your husband, to your child, to your servant. If you have indeed felt the Lord’s anger pass away from you, right now, on your knees repeat this vow, “My God, I will praise You! I have been a sluggard. I have been very silent about You. I am afraid I have not given You of my substance as I ought. I am sure I have not given You of my heart as I should. But oh, forgive the past, and accept your poor servant yet again. Then ‘I will praise thee; for though thou wast angry with me, thine anger is turned away, and you comfortedst me.’”

“But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear.”
— 1 Peter 3:15

10. Don’t do anything you couldn’t ask the Lord to bless in prayer!
Many years ago, an evangelist by the name of Brownlow North wrote the following simple but helpful rule for Christians: “If you are in doubt as to a thing being right or wrong, go to your room and kneel down and ask God’s blessing on it. (Col. 3:17). If you cannot do this, it is wrong. (Rom. 16:23).”

Sometimes we will have difficult decisions to make over issues that even sincere Christians disagree upon, but more often than not, the word of God contains explicit advice on the subject, but we would rather not follow it. For instance, we can be assured that whenever our action will clearly cause us to violate one of the Ten Commandments, it is wrong. If it is not of faith, it is sin, and if God wouldn’t bless it, you shouldn’t be doing it!

“And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.” — Colossians 3:17

‡ Andy Webb is a teaching elder in the Presbyterian Church America and serves as Pastor of Providence Presbyterian Church in Fayetteville, NC.

HT: The Aquila Report

Categories: theology

Christmas on the Lord’s Day

December 27, 2011 Leave a comment

I know I’m a little late, but here’s a good short post from Rick Hogaboam about Christmas on the Lord’s Day. My wife and I are out of town visiting family and their churches canceled Sunday services – but thankfully we were able to watch a live webcast of our home church on Sunday morning.

Rick’s post:
David Gibson with Brief History of Christmas Celebration in Culture and Church

Gibson notes:

Perhaps it’s a bit puritanical to insist that believers dump their cherished family traditions to march off to church on Christmas morning. But it’s also self-defeating to complain about keeping Christmas holy when churches close on Dec. 25.

Rick notes:

 I find it ironic that some folks will scream bloody murder over the use of “Happy Holidays!” or “Season’s Greetings!” over “Merry Christmas!”, and even muster courage to take a stand against certain stores that refuse the Christianized version, but lack the fortitude to even gather for corporate worship at, dare I say, a church, precisely because it is Christmas first (the secularized warm and fuzzy gift opening around the fireplace kind), and Lord’s Day second (the weekly gathering with the saints over Word and Sacrament).

Categories: theology

Trained in Hand-to-Hand Combat, Para-Military Operations, and Bible reading

December 15, 2011 Leave a comment

http://blog.gulflive.com/mississippi-press-news/2011/12/gautier_police_say_two_men_arr.html

Gautier police say two men arrested in home invasion also led neighborhood paramilitary group

Published: Thursday, December 08, 2011, 7:44 AM
Harlan Kirgan, Mississippi Press By Harlan Kirgan, Mississippi Press 
Gautier Police McMellon Display
Capt.Kenny McMellon of the Gautier Police Department stands with a bullet-resistant vest, a shirt, gloves and a manual seized from two men accused of a home invasion on Tuesday. (Harlan Kirgan/Press-Register)

GAUTIER, Mississippi — Two men described as the commander and captain of a neighborhood para-military group in north Gautier were arrested Tuesday and charged with home invasion and kidnapping after three people were attacked in their home in the 1700 block of Dailey Road.

Gautier Police Detective Sgt. Matthew Hoggatt identified those arrested as Michael Shaun Schaffran, 32, of the 1600 block of Dailey Road, and Cody Jacob Rogers, 18, of the 7300 block of Francis Street.

Shaffran, recently from Arizona and tagged as the commander, has a lengthy criminal history that includes felony convictions for theft, forgery and aggravated assault, Hoggatt said.

Schaffran had a knife at the time of his arrest, police stated in a news release. Rogers was not armed.

The victims were a man and woman in their 30s and a 70-year-old man, said Capt. Kenny McMellon.

Schafran and Rogers led four neighborhood youths, ages ranging from 16 to 18, in hand-to-hand combat, reconnaissance, para-military operations and Bible scripture reading.

The “training” was taking place in woods in the neighborhood, McMellon said.

The group had a manual and members held ranks in the organization, he said in a news conference Wednesday at the Gautier City Hall.

Hoggatt stated in a news release that the two were acting as members of “The Savior Unit” or “Tactical Support Unit.”

The two men were arrested at about 8 p.m. Tuesday after Gautier police responded to a report of a home invasion at a residence on Dailey Road, Hoggatt stated.

Detective Jonathan Whitfield said the three victims suffered bruises and was moved out the house against their will to the front yard where they forced to kneel.

One of the victims managed to run away and make the 911 call, he said.

The attackers were attired in a bullet-resistance vest and military garb, police said.

Hoggatt said police know of no connection between the victims and attackers.

“There is some conflicting information why this happened here,” he said. “But there is no indication the victims had any wrongdoing.

“Last night, there was no record of any police responses to their house in the past and there is no indication that they were doing anything illegal. So, that‚s part of what this investigation is to determine why there were targeted.”

McMellon said the group had come to attention of police a few days ago and tips were obtained as police investigated 18 burglaries that occurred in south Gautier last week.

McMellon said a link to the Tuesday’s arrests and the burglaries had not been made.

The burglaries involved kicking doors in, as did Tuesday’s Daily Road home invasion.

“Some of the tips about this group came in reference to those activities,” McMellon said. “Some of the tips and information we received put a spotlight on this group. We haven’t connected the dots yet.”

McMellon said an operation manual for the group was found and included the following statement:

“T.S.U. is a tactical search team that is faith based. Our purpose is to promote Christ. Obtain offenders who are a danger to society, do community service work for churches and halfway houses, and do security for different functions. Our training is a recon and infiltration, apprehension and retrieval. All team members are taught hand to hand combat skills, para military training and scriptures.”

McMellon said the group had been in existence for six weeks.

“You can use your imagination and speculate where was this headed, what could have happened, what might have happened,” he said.

McMellon and other officers said nothing similar had occurred in Gautier before.

Hoggatt said police are working with federal authorities to determine if federal violations have occurred.

“We don‚t know if there is any linkage to other groups,” Hoggatt said. “Nothing would surprise me at this point. You think you’ve seen it all and then you see something like this.”

Detective Danny Patrick said, “You look at a situation like this and you really don’t know where it could have gone to.”

Schaffran and Rogers were taken to the Jackson County Adult Detention Center.

Bail had not been set on the two as of Wednesday‚s news conference.

Anyone with information regarding this case is asked to contact the Gautier Police Department at 228-497-2486 or Mississippi Coast Crime Stoppers.

© 2011 gulflive.com. All rights reserved.

Categories: news
Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.