A discernment I get from you: You came to the Chapel to get a name.

Hello,

I was very grieved by your choices of words, your anger and misinterpretation of the Word.

It's not anger, its called, "righteous indignation." But, seriously, you see me as you wish to see me. You read anger into my words, but the subject of Arnold Murray does not really make me angry. You think I'm angry, because that is the only way you know how to interpret my words. You don't know that I contemplated whether or not I should speak out against the Chapel for nearly ten years before I finally decided to go ahead and do it. You don't see the significance of the ten years of silence, you didn't see how I finally decided to speak up based on a sense of RESPONSIBILITY. My choices of words grieve you because they are not what you want to hear.

When people write me nonsense and try to corrupt the scriptures right in front of me, the words can get pretty heavy, I don't like when they do that, but very few people actually anger me. For example, when my wife read your email, she got angry, because of your false accusations, but I had a laugh because I don't take myself that seriously. I know you say what you say because you just found my website and you are reacting the way I would have reacted back when I was loyal to the Shepherd's Chapel, you don't deserve my anger. You deserve my sympathy.

It would seem with all those children you would set a better example.

I teach my children to stand up for what they believe in, and also to stand up to bullies. Arnold Murray is a bully of the first order and, as a former student, it is my responsibility to stand up to him. I teach my children that if they see a bully picking on other kids to step in and to defend the weak. That is what I do, I'm standing up for people that don't know how to stand up for themselves.

I have recently lost my husband and the comfort I daily receive in knowing where he is and the Word of God that he studied with me is awesome.

I am very sorry for your loss, but your husband has not ascended into heaven. Your husband is waiting for the resurrection on the last day. The Apostle Paul said that we should comfort one another in the knowledge that when Christ returns the dead would rise and we would meet them. To say that the dead have already risen and gone to heaven is to repeat the heresy of Hymenaeus and Philetus, who said the resurrection had already come.

Arnold Murray is no different. To be absent from the body is not to be dead (it never says that), to be dead is to be present with the body (his soul was not left in the grave), to be absent from the body is to be resurrected. I'm writing a long article on the subject of death and resurrection, I suggest you look for it and read it when it comes out. In the teachings of Jesus Christ we say that the dead are "at rest" or "sleeping" because by the power of God we believe they will rise again. In the bible the dead are spoken of as "sleeping" never as "departed" or as "with Him" or "in Heaven."

I know that is not very competitive with the smooth talk of that soothsayer, Arnold Murray, but its the truth. The dead are in their graves. They don't rise from the dead until the resurrection. If you don't want to believe that then you can listen to Arnold Murray who will tell you what you want to hear.

The chapel students are not ignorant. You would call me that.

Well, not totally ignorant. But you are ignorant on a few key points. Arnold Murray teaches you to "study for yourself" by following the breadcrumb trail he leaves for you. That is not exactly studying for yourself. If you repeat what he does, of course you reach the same conclusions. There is more to the bible than you are being taught.

Your advertisements and begging for money are sickening.

I never beg. Sound familiar? Then I suppose you also find it sickening the way Arnold says he never begs, but turns around and asks for money every single broadcast, every single day. "We are brought to you by your tithes and offerings, If we have helped you please help us keep bringing this broadcast to you." The phrase "please help us" sure sounds like begging to me. You have been conned. Arnold Murray used a little reverse psychology on you and you swallowed it hook line and sinker. Books for donations, CD's for donations. The guy asks for donations all the time, and he begs.

I never beg either, I never say "please help me," I have never asked for help, people ought to help, but they don't, and I say then so be it, because unlike Arnold Murray, I never beg. I just make a way for people to contribute to my ministry should they so choose. At least I don't try to cover it up with slick con-man talk and sound a trumpet before me about how "I never beg." Arnold Murray is a hypocrite, and if he is not a liar, he is a deceiver of the first order, this is just one of his little deceits.

Do you excuse him? Well, then excuse me too. I have gotten two donations this year totaling two hundred dollars, not even enough to pay for my website, let alone compensate me for enduring the abuse of nice folks like you. One of the donors wanted encourage me to do more of my bible studies and the other wanted to support my music ministry others want me to write more, others want more videos, but only a couple send any money to help me do all that. As far as I can remember no one has ever given me a donation for my opposition to the chapel. I ought to get paid for this, but this is a point where you are indeed totally ignorant.

A discernment I get from you: You came to the Chapel to get a name and have a seat at the top and they recognized the spirit within you and that made you mad. You left in a huff. No one cared.

Ok, this is the part that made me laugh the first time I read it. Funny you never discerned that Arnold begs for money. There is something screwy with your discernment. I went down to Arkansas in 95 to get married and to make connections to Chapel people from the Chicago area. I was 21 years old. My wife and I were quiet as mice down there. Everyone treated us nice and we didn't stir up any trouble because we were there to listen and learn. We were not much more than kids (21 years old). I talked to Dr. Murray and he spoke very kindly to me. You are not the first person to suggest things were otherwise, maybe I should post the whole video tape of my wedding so people can see just how nice and friendly things were.

As I said before, many times, I have nothing personal against Arnold Murray, it took me ten years to finally decide to speak against him, I have always had mixed feelings about it. When he baptized me he anointed my scars and I admired him very much. I could see right away the way people all hounded the guy and thought they were so important as "the very elect." We sat in on the broadcast for a week and everyone at the chapel was very nice to us, we had a lovely honeymoon on Beaver Lake nearby. I had no designs on Arkansas at any time, it a very funny suggestion, I was happy to go home to Chicago, I certainly never left the Chapel in a huff. I don't get huffy. We left with smiles and fond farewells. All I wanted to do was teach the bible to people in my area and turn them on to the Shepherd's Chapel and that is what I did until I began to question what I was teaching people.

You decided to become rich another way and you think you are succeeding.

Hmmm, I don't think I'm succeeding, if getting rich off Arnold Murray is the plan, then I know I'm failing. Fortunately, my goal is not to get rich, so I'm not failing, after all, thank God. My goal is to catch people before they become totally indoctrinated in the Shepherd's Chapel and turn them away. And on that score, I'm doing pretty good. If I had a thousand dollars for every person who wrote me saying that I turned them away from the Shepherd's Chapel, I wouldn't be rich, but I'd be very comfortable.

I'm not here to change the minds of hard-core Chapel students, I'm here to get the people who say, "I've been watching the Shepherd's Chapel for about 3 months and I was curious about some of the things pastor Murray was saying, then I found your website..." Those are the people I'm looking for, and those are the people I'm reaching. But like I said, I got two donations this year. So rejoice because I still have to work for a living. Unlike a certain Pastor who makes no money from teaching, but as president of a certain satellite network he is certainly entitled to a salary..., either that or his sons suck enough money out of the ministry for the whole family.

Newsflash: God remembers.

Thank you, I know you intended that as a warning, but it makes me feel comforted. Because I have sacrificed much to continue this ministry and I need God to remember me in my troubles, I've got all those kids you have seen, and if you look at my house and cars on the same webpage you will see that I'm not rich, I'm not even well off. Actually, I lost one of my jobs two weeks ago and I don't talk about it on my website, but if I could get you to please rejoice over my misfortune, I would appreciate that very much. I won't beg from my friends, but It would suit me just fine to have my enemies rejoicing over me. You could remind God for me.

You will remember too when He taps you on the shoulder.

Excellent, I look forward to it. In the meantime you ought to seriously question your discernment, because you are about as off as you could be.

Sincerely,

Paul Stringini