Update: Zachary Morgan has removed himself as one of the plaintiffs.
(AZ Central) In October, three well-known pastors in Arizona sued a married couple and an independent journalist who were criticizing and accusing the church of misconduct.
Leaders at Apologia Church in Mesa said the couple and journalist “defamed” them and portrayed them so negatively that they were suffering damages.
The pastors, Jeff Durbin, Luke Pierson and Zachary Morgan, asked a Maricopa County Superior Court judge to force the couple and journalists to compensate them for the harm done and ban them from talking about the pastors, the church or the lawsuit — not just if the pastors’ attorney proved defamation, but immediately while the court case played out….
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This article was written by Taylor Seely and published at AZ central
7 responses to “Apologia Church Sues Former Congregant for Defamation”
Setting aside the particular case, whatever the facts may be, and which side or sides may be guilty, the church should not be running to Caesar, leveraging secular law to silence criticism, accusations, or anything else that is said against them, whether true or false. Leadership in the Body of Christ is not a business career, it’s a calling. And the church is not a business, and cannot be treated as such if it is to remain a church. Such temporal concerns are not what the church is supposed to be about. What’s most important is the Gospel and reaching the lost.
Jesus and the Apostles didn’t go running to Caesar every time somebody said something that made them look bad. Follow their example. And deal with matters the way they did. Honor the Lord’s instruction in Matt. 18 and 1 Cor 6. People with knowledge and understanding of scripture will tend to evaluate this, on the face of things, based on who was the quickest to go running to Caesar, and rightly so. The first question is who’s honoring the scripture and who isn’t. Who’s sinning and who isn’t. And as Paul said, it’s to their shame, is there not one among them wise enough? And so the existence of the lawsuit is itself defamatory and harmful to the church. Might be great for business and career, but it’s bad for the church.
I would add, on that note, that some of these ministries and outlets such as Roys Report, Check My Church, etc., which tend to appeal first and foremost to Caesar and the laws of Caesar, are often, in the same manner and for the same reasons, doing far more harm than good.
Those who teach as doctrine the commandments of men, just like the Pharisees did, will also go running to Caesar at the drop of a hat, just as the Pharisees did to Jesus, and as the Apostles were dragged to Caesar – as Jesus told them they would be, as a witness. And so when Peter and Paul were among those falsely accused of starting the fire in Rome, in 64 AD, what did they do? They bore witness to the Lord in His defense, and to the Gospel of Jesus Christ, not trying to save their own skin.
1 Corinthians 6:1-11. Either you take the Bible seriously (as rightly divided) or you don’t.
It seems strange that the pastor would sue for defamation rather than attempt to clarify the issue. Mistakes happen.
Not a good look for Apologia Church…… this woman is clearly not acting Biblically, conversely Apologia is acting in like manner.
Protestia is the evangelical gossip column of the internet.
“Reporting facts of a legal case is gossip” 🤣