An Unjustifiable Attack

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There is a situation that I feel that I need to address that in regard to Bryan Davis Book: “Eye of the Oracle.” A young lady (Colleen) that I know began reading the series that this book is included in. She read the first two books and was impressed by them. She and her parents liked them enough that she read them out loud to her younger brothers. Upon reading the third book, she was unable to complete it because of problems that the Holy Spirit was trying to protect her from in regard to the content and biblical legitimacy. She recorded a post on her blog (which has since been removed) and her mom recorded a post on her blog (Ginger’s Blog post) as well. What ensued was an attack by the author (which to me shows some real insecurity) on a 14 year old and the enlistment of his loyal reading fans to do the same.

I have waited while I thought and prayed about this before actually making a post. I wanted to make sure that my response to the responses (this is starting to sound like a State of the Union critique) was done in the right vane.

Colleen and her parents are my friends and I have known them for just about all of Colleen’s life. I say that for those who will think I have some personal bias that I feel I need to hide. That is not the case.

I think that the first thing that should be noted— before even going into any type of response to the plethora of posts that have been launched on Collen’s blog— is that it is a BLOG. It is not a FORUM. That is Colleen’s space to put down her thoughts and to share what she feels, and in this case what God has impressed on her heart. With that in mind:

1) Mr. Davis was wrong to launch his attack here—particularly on a 14 year old—and his solicitation of his your loyal fans to join you in the attack was another huge blunder on his part. I do not feel that he handled this in the least in a Christian manner and I think that he has, by his choice of tactics, belittled the Christian that he professes to be.

2) It should be noted, that Mr. Davis is indeed a quite capable writer and I am not condemning his talent and abilities which God has given him.

3) To Mr. Davis’ loyal fans…..of course you’re not going to agree with what Colleen has to say (just by virtue of the fact that you are coming from the forum) and she is not expecting you too. In fact, I think it is safe to say that she was not writing to you. Many of your comments could have and SHOULD have been made in a much more respectful way. Your comments and rants and so on should also have been limited to the forum from which you came—with references back to Colleen’s post if you felt it was necessary. I do appreciate Tippie’s apology and restatement of Tippie’s comments on Ginger’s blog. That in itself shows a lot of character and deserves some individual recognition.

4) To others who have attacked Colleen’s stand as a Christian and have tried to refute her biblical arguments (solely because she has spoken out against one of your chosen forms of entertainment): God impresses us all in different ways. I am overjoyed that there are some who God has affected in such a way through Mr. Davis’ writings that it was actually beneficial to their lives and helpful in their path to salvation. But we all have to realize that Mr. Davis has also been used of God in this case to help a young lady see some things in a different light in her life than we see them when she holds them up to her biblical magnifying glass! We cannot argue how God has impressed one of us differently than another. The same happens with sermons and Bible reading. God sometimes speaks to many of us in different ways, although we hear and read the exact same thing. If we can accept that, then I think we can also accept Colleen’s interpretations of what she read.

I admit that I have not read any of Mr. Davis’ books. Because of that I cannot offer any review of his material one way or that other. But I feel that I can comment on the manner in which all of this has been handled. It is unacceptable to launch an attack just because someone posted their personal feelings on their personal blog in a personal way. Is that not one of the major purposes of the blog?

Colleen I think you have done an excellent job, as so many others have also pointed out. Your stand is one that is not easy for any 14 year old—or adult– to take and I, personally, am very proud of your for taking it. I applaud your parents for being level headed and not lashing out at all those who have inappropriately attacked your stand and for making you consider your response before letting you post it. I pray that God will continue to enlighten you and that you will continue to express your feelings in hopes that what you say can be a help to those God intends it to be a help to. For those of you who are not in agreement, perhaps you need to use your own medium to make your expressions or just figure out how to ignore it and move on.