On Punching Bullies

In a moment of real confession here, I think I always get more nervous around the time of my wife’s scans than she does. She goes every three months. I try to forget or I stew. Why pray when I can worry?

Twice, I got reminded of Christy’s scans by Mike Pence. Once, when he was Vice President, he called to check on her because he and Karen Pence knew her scans were coming on and just wanted me to know they were praying. Once, when he was in his presidential campaign, I went to an event with him in Atlanta and he knew her scans were coming up because they were praying. It was, admittedly, a bit shaming that the Vice President of the United States and then a presidential candidate on the campaign trail had a better sense of my wife’s oncology appointments than I did.

But that’s the type of person Mike Pence is. Free free to disagree with his politics, but he takes his faith seriously. He has been ridiculed in the press for his faith. He is a real prayer warrior and a faithful Christian.

You will recall my piece a few weeks ago about noted theologian John Piper, a man who has not only led many people to Christ but also a man who has been arrested for his public profession of faith at an abortion clinic, being set upon by Christian Nationalists for quoting scripture. Piper has an annual Bible reading play. His tweets go out at 6am and 6pm. They repeat every few years. This was a passage about taking care of sojourners. He got attacked by some who claimed he was endorsing illegal immigration.

Again, and importantly, Piper’s scriptural tweets recirculate on Twitter every few years. They are scripture references tied to a Bible plan.

One of those who set up Piper is named William Wolfe, who leads a website called Center for Baptist Leadership. It’s not a real organization as far as anyone can really tell. Where it gets weird is that this supposed Center for Baptist Leadership is tied to a group called American Reformer. My denomination, the Presbyterian Church in America, denied American Reformer space at last year’s General Assembly meeting because, in part, American Reformer is tied to some unsavory characters.

In fact, American Reformer is tied to an organization that itself is tied to a Nazi pornographer.

The whole project is one of those Christian Nationalist projects with a bunch of unsavory characters, some of whom have ties into racist garbage.

In other words, the Center for Baptist Leadership has questionable ties and its Executive Director attacked a world renown conservative theologian for quoting scripture. Wolfe has previously attacked the late Tim Keller and others. I finally had enough of watching him bully people and called him out.

Since then, Wolfe has shown up in my timeline repeatedly. He did not like it when I noted he had spent more time attacking actual Christians than the would be Wiccan Surgeon General and, for a man who insists women should not be in the pulpit, I cannot find him criticizing Paul White being the leader of the President’s faith team.

Yesterday, on Twitter, I posted about Wolfe’s new found desire to show up in my timeline attacking me any time I talk about faith. In private messages, he has called me a slob, fat, a hypocrite, a fake Christian, demanded I repent, etc. And then he also sent me the following.

Think about that. A guy who claims to be a Baptist leader treats the former Vice President as a pejorative. A man who attacked my Christian faith as fake is more concerned about NeverTrump and Mike Pence than Christianity.

I finally had enough. Wolfe bragged to me that he had ratioed me. Well, I turned him into a trending topic on Twitter.

What happened next has been the most remarkable thing, though.

I started getting messages on Twitter, text messages, and emails from people.

I have heard from former co-workers of his. I have heard from people who used to go to church with him at multiple different churches. I have heard from people he has harassed. This morning, I have more emails and messages that came in overnight.

Pastors who have been bullied by him or know people who have been bullied by him reached out to thank me. Faith leaders across denominations have thanked me. People have presumed he had some clout or power and were amazed someone like me would push back on him.

Folks, William Wolfe runs a largely do-nothing website and is a social media bully. He is a paper tiger and his clout only exists because people mistake him for someone of importance. He actually is a nobody with no clout, no power, and you do not have to take his abuse any more than I do.

The Israelis and Americans are right now trying to set conditions for the Iranian people to take to the streets and rise up against the abuse of their mullahs. You’re not going to get shot for standing up to a jackass like William Wolfe. The water is warm. Come on in.

I’m a pretty low key person, but when you try to shame me for funny tweets (seriously, that was funny) or seventeen year old tweets or you start attacking distinguished theologians who have been carted off to jail for their faith — that’s too much for me.

This is a disturbed individual who has bullied men and women of real Christian faith. The word that has kept coming up from pastors in the last day is “unregenerate.” Given the large number of people I have heard from who he has harassed, I must say I think that assessment might be fair.

The other day, after he jumped into my Twitter direct messages to attack me and call me names, I told him I did not need the affirmation or acceptance of anyone who was praising him, but he actually needed support from those glad that I stood up to him. That he thinks a ratio on Twitter is the real world and that he can burn bridges to get his way is a pretty good sign his Christian Nationalism project is going to collapse.

At the end of the day, people just get tired of jackasses, particularly those jackasses that purport to be Christian, but can only ever be political. I’d rather be on that island with Mike Pence than live in a world where people entrust the care of the kingdom to a jackass like that.