Accused Pastor Did Not Misuse 'One Cent,' Attorney Says - Inver Grove Heights, MN Patch. At Least He Was Not a WELS "Consultant"

  

Leon Piepenbrink, 52, faces seven counts of theft by swindle after police say he took $62,500 from the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Church Synod. Credit Facebook

Accused Pastor Did Not Misuse 'One Cent,' Attorney Says - Inver Grove Heights, MN Patch:


Pastor Leon Piepenbrink did not pilfer, pillage or plunder "one cent" of the $62,500 he is accused of taking, says defense attorney Kenneth Ubong Udoibok.

Piepenbrink is facing trial for allegedly stealing $62,500 from the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Church Synod (WELS) between 2007 and 2010. Piepenbrink was charged in May 2011 with seven felony counts of theft by swindle.

"He is a good man. He is a good pastor. The state will not be able to prove that a cent of the church's money was misappropriated. Not even one cent," Udoibok told Patch. "Every dime of what Pastor Piepenbrink spent was to develop churches in Southeast Asia."

Udoibok also highlighted the way in which he feels privileged information was used against his client.

"When (Piepenbrink) spoke to his brother—and by 'brother' I mean within the establishment of the Church—he believed the man to be a religious counselor. When you go to confession you don't expect the government to be involved in that," he said.

"[Pieperbrink] admitted using the funds without authorization, but strictly for church-related work ... He believed he was sharing the information in a forum that was confessional," Udoibok added.

Dakota County District Attorney James Backstrom could not be reached for comment, but his office did confirm that a settlement conference has been scheduled for April 18, 2012.

In the event no settlement is reached, Piepenbrink is scheduled to appear before a jury on May 7.

While the offenses against Piepenbrink each carry a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a $20,000 fine, Backstom's office also confirmed it is seeking a maximum of 23 months behind bars. No mention was made of a fine.

According to the complaint, WELS officials grew suspicious of Piepenbrink and contacted Inver Grove Heights police after the pastor requested reimbursement for security systems, bulletproof glass and a gun—all for self-defense. See Patch's original story by clicking here.

Piepenbrink allegedly told his superiors that violent members of the Hmong community had threatened him, and that he had been driving near Hastings in 2010 when the occupants of another vehicle shot at him. Piepenbrink worked closely with the Hmong community in his role as a pastor.

But WELS officials couldn’t find the police reports that Piepenbrink claimed he filed, according to the complaint. The synod also checked with the businesses from which Piepenbrink claimed to have purchased personal protection equipment, and found that many of his claimed expenditures were fabricated, the complaint said.

Officials confronted Piepenbrink about his claims, at which point the pastor allegedly admitted he had falsified documents and stolen money from the synod.

Police say Piepenbrink was a pastor in charge of a Hmong outreach program at Shepherd of the Hills Church in Inver Grove Heights.

  

Shepherd of the Hills Church in Inver Grove Heights. Piepenbrink was a pastor in charge of a Hmong outreach program at the church, police say. Credit David Henke
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Child porn nets man 45 days in jail - New Brunswick - CBC News

Child porn nets man 45 days in jail - New Brunswick - CBC News:

"Hayward will serve the sentence intermittently on weekends, followed by a one year of probation, said Pare.

He was also ordered to submit a DNA sample and his name will be added to the national sex offender registry for 10 years.

Hayward was arrested on March 23 as part of Operation J Treasures, an ongoing joint police investigation in New Brunswick into peer-to-peer computer file sharing of child sexual abuse images.

Two other men and a male under age 18 were also arrested after search warrants were executed in Moncton, Dumfries and Grand Bay-Westfield."

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Former Assistant Principal Joshua Myers Gets Minimum Sentence for Child Porn Charges

Former Assistant Principal Joshua Myers Gets Minimum Sentence for Child Porn Charges:

But government prosecutors say "forensic analysis of Myers’ thumb drive and school-issued lap top revealed at least fifty videos of child pornography, including infants, toddlers, and other prepubescent children being sexually abused.”


In a statement, the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, Neil Macbride said,
"...Agents found online chats he had with more than 40 individuals involving child pornography, sex with children, and grooming children to be sexually abused. This case is a sobering reminder that a sexual predator is often someone familiar, and we are committed to doing everything in our power to remove these predators from our communities."


Read more: http://www.myfoxdc.com/dpp/news/virginia/former-assistant-principal-joshua-myers-gets-minimum-sentence-for-child-porn-charges-12911#ixzz1g5Ur30EV

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Martin Luther College (WELS) News - Gay Video No Longer on YouTube - But Still on Facebook

This is a still from Party in the MLC,
found on Google Images,
but also posted on Facebook.
This will not look good at the evidence hearing for Joel Hochmuth.

Someone in WELS told me Party in the MLC was no longer on YouTube. I checked and could not find it there.

I looked up the link on Facebook, and the video is still showing there. I am no video expert, but the one on YouTube claimed to be cloned and was a bit off from the quality of the original. The one still on Facebook looks like the original. The boys who made the video are now studying to be WELS pastors.

Here is the Facebook link.

I noted the Facebook link more than once before. It also shows up in Google searches. You do not want to land on the sites that linked it in the first place, although they show the video link taken down, the Google search still takes people to those homosexual website.

The Word Converts - Not Love, But What Is More Loving Than Deploying John 16:8?

The Apostles of Love have tried to sell their wares for many decades now. No one laughs harder than I do when hearing from the Slander Machine (WELS grapevine) that I an "uncharitable."

Pietism always worried itself over carnal sins, so they taught that the Law will cure the problems revealed by the Law. In other words, if an x-ray shows a broken bone (good diagnosis), an x-ray will also cure it (an early remedy that led to cancer and lost limbs).

Alcoholism was a problem, so Pietists had people take the pledge not to drink any alcohol, not even in Holy Communion. The Methodists built their denomination on the pledge. My friend in at a Methodist college school learned that Adam and Eve fell from grace because of a fermented grape, not the often-blamed apple.

Pietists want to transform the world, so they skip justification by faith and apply their Law:

• You must be in a cell group because small groups are the true Church.
• You must follow the orders of your cell group leader.
• You must shun those who do not share our deep, deep insights.

The Pietists love-bomb people into their groups and hate-bomb anyone who sees their hypocrisy. Banning all alcohol led to Prohibition and an explosion of crime through the high value illegal hooch. Making love the cause of conversion turned Pietists into selective love machines. They love large grants and bad music, but they have no love or tolerance for anyone not serving their interests.

Pietists move from the state of

1. true-cellulite thinking to
2. obvious hypocrisy
3. to atheism and hedonism.

KJV John 16:8 And when He is come, He will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: 9 Of sin, because they believe not on Me; 10 Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see Me no more; 11 Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged.

The Holy Spirit reproves the world of sin - the sin of not believing in Christ for justification (forgiveness). Jesus Himself teaches that the unbelief is the foundational sin. Therefore, justification by faith is the primary work of the Holy Spirit.

But the Pietists do not tolerate the simple, plain words of the Bible. They offer themselves and their love as the reason for people converting. And yet the three nastiest websites in the Free World are:

• LutherQuest
• Cyberbrethren
• The fake blog (when they are sober).

All three are so "passionate about Jesus" that they expend their limited vocabularies in mindless attacks. Several UOJ gurus managed to satirize themselves recently when they snarled at Rolf Preus (another UOJ Stormtrooper) for daring to come back to the Missouri Synod. An unrepentant Paul McCain demanded repentance from Rolf Preus, although both of them were born forgiven, according to their own imaginations.

WELS Michigan Lutheran Seminary Calls Its 475th President Since 2010. Schroeder Hopeful That Someone Will Agree To Close the School for Him

I lost track of the calls issued, so I will just pull a number out of thin air for each new call.

On Nov. 29, the Michigan Lutheran Seminary Governing Board issued a call to Rev. Joel Petermann to serve as the next president of Michigan Lutheran Seminary (MLS), Saginaw, Mich. MLS is one of two WELS preparatory high schools.

Petermann, a 1986 graduate of Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary, Mequon, Wis., is currently pastor at St. Paul, Amherst, N.H. He also has served as president of WELS’ North Atlantic District since 2004.

Rev. Petermann and his wife, Jane, are familiar with MLS because their two daughters have attended the school. One graduated in May 2011, and the other is currently a junior at MLS. The Petermanns also have an 11-year-old son.

The position of MLS president has been vacant since September 2010. The vacancy is being filled by Dr. William Zeiger, vice president of MLS.

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GJ - The congregation he serves has the sermons linked on the website. How odd. The really cool pastors in WELS simply copy their sermons from Groeschel or another clown.

If Peterman accepts the call, will he institute a program to halt the practice of plagiarism in WELS?

Obviously the most basic doctrinal training is lacking in that sect. I get angry, misspelled comments from graduates of their elite system. One little word (sic) fells them.  They are too juvenile to realize that their public hissy fits are not an argument for their position or a refutation of Lutheran orthodoxy.

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AC V has left a new comment on your post "WELS Michigan Lutheran Seminary Calls Its 475th Pr...":

Interesting how there's a reference to WELS' "This We Believe" but not to the Book of Concord on the "What We Believe" page:

http://stpaul-amherst.org/WhatWeBelieve.php

This is typical WELS. LOTS on what we do, but not much on what God has done in Christ. To many in WELS, the Bible is more a "how to" book of morality, but not primarily the revelation of Jesus Christ who justifies the sinner through faith. WELS barks a lot about "inerrancy" and "infallibility" (don't get me wrong, those terms are important), but WELS misses the point if it neglects the "efficacy" of the Word. Big difference.

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Page kelmed below -

What We Believe

We believe that we all have sinned and deserve only death. Jesus died for our sins and ransomed us from death so that we may live with him in Heaven. Our faith is a free gift from God. Praise be to God for the gift of eternal life.

Creeds

These creeds add nothing to the Bible, but restate the Truth of God in the Bible. Each was brought about because of an attack on the faith. We still use them today to guard our faith.

• Apostles' Creed
• Nicene Creed
• Athanasian Creed

This We Believe

This document summarizes the main teachings of our church body. This document is produced by the WELS. St. Paul Lutheran Church belongs to the WELS and agrees with the teachings of the WELS.

This We Believe

Luther's Small Catechism

This was originally published by Martin Luther to aid in the education of the church. We continue to use it for education today and it is also an excellent statement of our faith.

Luther's Small Catechism