A Response to The News of Jordan Hall’s MDG Retraction (And How it Affects Us)
Protestia (formerly Pulpit & Pen) has been around in some form for the last decade, publishing over 12,000 articles since 2002. For years we’ve served as a repository for discernment and polemics, garnering tens of millions of page views for people looking for information on the latest false teacher or the respectable leader who has some scurvy theological beliefs. We are a ministry of a local church, where polemics is only a small portion of all we do, and we are deeply committed to being a tool and resource for the believer wanting to navigate their faith in a world full of hucksters, heretics and bible-crooks.
We’re also very, very independent.
While Pulpit & Pen always had writers, JD was the face of it, banging out zingers on the daily and bringing down empires with his giftings and flair, crafting the ‘wrecking ball” method of writing that would shape our identity for years. Over time he saw what was happening to his state, dominated by liberal news sources, and identified a niche and need for an organization to start punching back, and therefore Montana Daily Gazette ( MDG) was born.
As JD got MDG up and running, and as it gained in popularity, it took more and more of his time away from writing for Christian polemics. He brought on a writer that would be able to focus on Pulpit & Pen while he turned the scrappy upstart paper into a force to be reckoned with. Over the years Pulpit & Pen became throttled and shadow-banned into oblivion – seeing our traffic drop 80% nearly overnight, and so we changed our name and website to Protestia, to escape our social media overlords and get a bit of breathing room, which was in early 2020. During this time, JD’s direct involvement in Protestia waned considerably.
Of the 2500+ articles that we’ve written over the last two years, JD has written less than 20 of them. Not 20%, but 20 articles in total. He has entrusted the direction of Protestia to the Managing Editor, who writes 95% of the articles, creates or sources all the thumbnails, clips all the videos, transcribes all the audio, and oversees all social media, including Twitter, Gab, two Facebook pages, and a couple of other minor sites. Regarding any of Protestia’s social media sites, JD doesn’t have access to any of them and is not listed as an admin or editor, having entrusted them to capable hands.
We also have several people who work in the background helping to source articles and moderate the bunker, as well as two new writers who post once or twice a week. JD has hosted the Polemics report for years- something he enjoys doing as a relaxing endeavor, but over the last few months that has been taken over by David Morrill, who has been affectionally dubbed ‘the pope of polemics’ and who has likewise written for Protestia.
All this to say that for the last two and a half years JD has been pouring his literal blood, sweat, and tears into his church his family, and his company, to the point that he’s broken down his body and has been worked over in ways few will ever experience, at great personal cost. He’s done that, but he hasn’t been active in creating written polemical content or its distribution.
We have. Faithfully so.
Last month, JD announced that he was quitting polemics to focus on the pastorate. This is something that needed to happen and we were glad for it. Then weeks later, he was stopped and charged with a DUI, which we’ve addressed here, but whose gist is that he blew 0.00 but was so medically unwell, that he was exhibiting symptoms similar to drug use, forcing law enforcement to take him in. Once out, and with the support of his church, he was put on bed rest, where he has been since, his wife and doctors taking care of him as he recovers.
True to his word, he got a new phone and gave the number to a small handful of people, none of which are us.
Now he’s in the news again for issuing a retraction for an article he wrote about trans activists, with folks blasting tweets like “Hate-preacher admits he made-up false accusations against queer politician” after he acknowledged he got portions of the story wrong, and that certain segments were untrue. Consequently, some people are asking how it affects Protestia and our ministry here.
The long and short answer is that it doesn’t.
We’re our own thing and are in very good hands. We are supported financially by our beloved and loyal Patrons whom we love the most and thank God for their sacrifices and gifts, followed far behind by our filthy freeloaders who we barely tolerate, and who likely spend half their time “going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it” when they’re not listening in to the free part of the podcast. ; )
JD is the publisher of both pages, Protestia and MDG, but they are run very differently.
Now we have this new retraction story from Montana Daily Gazette, a perfect storm of circumstances for folks to drop a couple of kicks in his belly with their boots, after JD issued a ‘Mea Culpa’ for a story he wrote more than a year ago, apologizing for errors in the article which got him sued for $250,000 and now facing bankruptcy.
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There are a lot of people with old scores to settle leaning into what it doesn’t say in ignorance of what it does. The Lord will deal with them. For us, we’re anxious for the day JD will join us for the Polemic report once again, healthy and recovered after a long and deep slumber.
May the Lord be with you all.
Dustin and David.
About Author
Anyone with an ounce of maturity understands humans aren’t perfect and know the difference between an award given by mistake and one by deceit.
And it is those practiced in deception whom have jumped, with malicious acceleration, to point at JD Hall holding up a wrong score card, as if he had, for example, deliberately lied at the behest of Old Beelzebub himself.
These are disgusting people. May God grant JD rest, revitalization and Protestia and the Gazette wide publication.
P.S. And supposing the worst is true, if we were to give the devil hearing, I would laugh in his face and say I’d rather hear from JD Hall on his worst day at his worst moments then you damned devils on your best day in a tuxedo telling me how much Jesus loves me because you don’t even know who Jesus is
i am a loyal reader. I HAVE THOUGHT ABOUT SUPPORTING YOU AND JD MANY TIMES BUT THEN I HEAR OR READ THAT THOSE THAT DONT ARE FILTHY FREELOADERS, WHICH IS REPULSIVE TO ME.STOP THAT!
I completely agree.
Hey Don, sorry for the mix-up. We refer to those who don’t patronize as “freeloaders,” but it’s intended to be tongue-in-cheek. I’ll be adding the use of the term “freeloader” to a FAQ page, hopefully soon. God Bless!
Bite down on that hand that feeds you David!!
I havent given to you because of your “tongue in check” comment. Dont misunderstand me here; I do give!! I dont give to you though. I dont give to those who “facetiously” state that I am a freeloader. I have made comments in the past about being insulted by this comment. You must have overlooked them.
What does God say about let your yes be yes and your no be no? Did God write an addendum for your sarcasm? Arent donations much too important for you to be insulting the potential donors?
Ephesians 5:4
Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving.
Ephesians 4:29
Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.
Perhaps you should put childish things aside and act like a grown up.
The “filthy freeloaders” comment is a joke, guys. On a more serious note, JD is human and people make mistakes. JD has the best intentions at heart and he deserves the benefit of the doubt. Mockers and scoffers will come.
I have followed you guys for several years, and have never once found anything wrong with your reporting. I cannot tell you how much I have learned, and I hold you all, and especially J.D. in high regard and with a great deal of respect. The only real problem is in the hearts, minds, and mouths of your haters. There is nothing you can do to satisfy them. Ever. And more often than not the loudest of them are the very ones whom you have exposed as false teachers, charlatans, and pseudo-Christians. And it seems the worst of them protest the most! As Shakespeare once said, “The lady [or gentleman] doth protest too much, methinks!” Keep doing what you’re doing, and keep giving glory to God. You can’t go wrong! God bless!
Christians ought to be above reproach, but when we aren’t, we should not be above giving and receiving reproof. This is a command from God’s Word that is oft neglected today.
I have been a fan who’d followed closely Brother J.D’s work and have been a paying supporter at one time. I had developed concerns when he began sharing his phone number on Signal but not responding to prayerful concerns that he might be in over his head. I also developed other concerns but aside from sharing them and remembering him in prayer have left those matters at the feet of my Lord Jesus Christ.
I am sorrowful to hear about the DUI, which even if it isn’t alcohol related is unsafe. He should know that he is to follow the laws in our land where there is no conflict with God’s Word. No party spirit, partiality or respect of persons should keep us from acknowledging this reality plainly.
However, I am rejoicing that he is returning to one of his foremost and primary responsibilities in his service to the Lord, that being the tending of the flock of which he is an undershepherd (or underoarsmen).
May Mr. Hall make a full and speedy recovery and be restored to his station in accordance with the will of our Lord Jesus Christ.
May the Lord continue to bless the ministry of this website, despite my intermittent (and perhaps minor) reservations that I’ve developed as a follower of this ministry since long before the name change from Pulpit & Pen to Protestia.
@David Morrill – I don’t know that putting the use of the term “freeloader” in the FAQ is sufficient. Are we not called to esteem others are better than ourselves?
Donate buttons, indecent ads and pay walled podcasts won’t compel the Lord, from whom all blessings flow: He is Almighty.
Your Brother In Christ,
CS
Job 1:7
7 The Lord said to Satan, “Where have you come from?” And Satan answered the Lord, “From roving about on the earth, and from walking back and forth across it.”
Protestia
[of those who do not financially support Protestia via Patreon]:
‘…and who likely spend half their time “going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it’.
Are there any other Protestia revenue-generating advertisement-watching freeloaders out there who take exception to being likened to Satan?
You can add me to the list of folks who take exception to being likened to Satan for not paying up. Although I was a paying supporter at one time and attended their Wrecking Ball events, there are a handful of things JD Hall has done which I have shared with him privately that I certainly also take exception to.
I hope the new custodians of this ministry will prayerfully consider reflecting on these comments, not for my sake or my glory but for the glory of God and our Saviour the Lord Jesus Christ.
Unfortunately, JDs lawyer. ,Vcçfdddfdfdddfdddfdfdfddfdffdfdddfffddfddfdfdffdfdfddfdfddfddfddfeffeffdf
While many news sites who wrote about
Huh? Maybe everyone else understands this part of the article but I do not.
Probably a Russian hack job.