Newly empowered, badly behaved

We of Chapel Guardian were ready to congratulate the new pastor and board members this week in light of their successful election on Sunday April 18. But in light of the newly elected pastor’s tactics reported to Guardian on April 18, and now a posting at the Friends of Chapel blog site, it is apparent that such congratulations are not in order yet. We hold out hope that can change sometime soon.

We are saddened, disheartened and disappointed that their tactics continue despite their success. We had honestly hoped that a new era could begin with both sides abiding by mediation and moving Chapel forward. It was even hoped that the purpose of Chapel Guardian would come to an end. This week has shown that this cannot yet be the case.

Rather than empowering harmony for everyone at Chapel of Awareness, they are pouncing on a power play. We believe they have failed the benefit of the doubt already.

Cases in point:

Newly elected pastor Reverend Don Miller is already bulldozing over the new Board of Directors (which happens to include his own allies such as Reverends Nell Rose Smith and Sherry DeLoach), setting agendas that are not appropriate for him to set.

It was reported to Chapel Guardian that to the protest of the third-party election mediator who ran the election on April 18, Reverend Miller proceeded to take the podium and announce the setting of a board meeting and the opening of the chapel, a direct challenge to the new Board of Directors’ functions. This was followed by his Friends of Chapel announcement on their blog that he “announces the immediate re-opening of the Chapel of Awareness Sunday Services”. (http://friendsofchapel.blogspot.com/2010/04/chapel-of-awareness-sunday-services.html)

The former Board voted in a properly convened meeting to close chapel services as the church was under the assault of Friends of chapel. Now it is for the new Board to vote the Chapel open, and to unanimously approve the reactivation of retired Chapel ministers (one of whom happens to be Reverend Miller). So a retired minister who has to be approved as reactivated is setting service dates and Board agendas before the Board even has had a chance to meet. That is not appropriate and does not make sense, in Guardian’s opinion. It is certainly not in keeping with the spirit of cooperation and a “new era”.

It is ironic that the Friends of Chapel who have cried “Point of Order!!” throughout the last six months over the chapel’s Bylaws are now flouting those very Bylaws. This further calls Friends of Chapel motives into question: Friends of Chapel never had intention of following Chapel’s Bylaws themselves. Or they do not understand or know the Bylaws as they claim.

It was also reported that in the course of the April 18 election that Reverends Sherry DeLoach and Nell Rose Smith were sharing a proof of the so-called Spiritualist’s Bible, which claims to be a compilation of Founder Reverend Eugene Larr’s works. (http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=0AZVukuKH9FnkZGNnZng1YmpfMTdmd3Y1NXNmNg&hl=en and http://sites.google.com/site/friendsofchapel/)This book has been clearly established as a Friends of Chapel publication, yet they revealed it at the Chapel of Awareness election. Will Chapel itself ever see a cut of this book’s profits when it is released, in support of the church he founded? Doubtful.

It was also reported to Chapel Guardian that certain candidates for office, among them Reverend Ann Lorenzini and advisor candidate Roman Koenig, were noticeably hissed at by Friends of Chapel members as they prepared to make some remarks. Chapel Guardian assume that these hisses were Friends’ attempt to prove their stated mission of “loving kindness”. So be it.

Based on the time and date stamps on their posts April 18 (http://friendsofchapel.blogspot.com/2010/04/special-election_18.html), Friends of Chapel flouted the stated order of the third-party election mediator to turn all cell phones off. Yet Friends of Chapel defied this order as they posted election actions live to their blog in the middle of that election.

Those who care about the state of Chapel of Awareness, as expressed through Chapel Guardian, will continue to call Friends of Chapel on their behavior. They cannot honestly expect that their questionable behavior will go unnoticed or unchallenged by those who desperately seek a balance of some kind, especially knowing what Reverend Larr's philosophy truly represents.