14 May 2005 update2

This letter was acknowledged as received by Elder Reg Cracknell but was never responded to. The congregation were NOT informed as to its contents. Just a month later the Elders were found to be at fault by a mediator. In the secular world demands for the resignation of directors would have been made - not at South Calgary Community Church. The Pendergasts would take a long time to recover from the deliberate harm done to them physically, emotionally and spiritually - never mind the great harm done to their reputation.

It would take time but Barry & Jennifer determined they would follow God's direction, and work with others to responsibly act, to prevent another person being harmed by pastors and elders at South Calgary Community Church. It would be after the Pendergasts were excommunicated a second time- 20 months later before the first signs that God's hand was at work. Other responsible members of the worldwide Christian community would join Barry & Jennifer to agree South Calgary was just a small part of a much larger problem needing education, action and healing. No purpose greater than to redeem those who could no longer face entering God's church because or previous abuse.

From: Barry Pendergast <barrypendergast@shaw.ca>
Date: Mon Oct 27, 2003 3:36:11 PM US/Pacific
To: Clark Grue <cgrue@shaw.ca>, Denise Chaulk <dechaulk@telus.net>, Reg Cracknell <Reg Cracknell <rcracknl@telusplanet.net>>, Diane Young (E-mail) <DYoung@samaritan.org>, Kevin Phillips <kpaj.phillips@shaw.ca>, Kevin Phillips (Work) <kevin.phillips@encana.com>
Subject: Our Response

Copy of letter delivered to SCCC Office

Dear Elders,
In your letter of September 22, 2003, you announced that the Elders decided to strip Jennifer and I of our ministry obligations without even speaking with us. As you could well expect, given that we have spent almost nine years working lovingly and diligently to make SCCC a better place for people to worship and serve God, this pronouncement caused us grave spiritual and emotional loss.
As a result, we asked the Elders for time. In our e-mail to Kevin Phillips of September 21, 2003, we said we were waiting for the right opportunity to meet with the Elders after a very painful period in our lives. In so doing, we were acting on the advice of a Christian psychologist who is helping us through these difficult times and the advice of a number of respected Christians in this city and elsewhere.
We received your October 26, 2003 letter, which also contained a letter dated October 14, 2003 which we had not previously seen, in which you unilaterally determined to terminate our memberships at South Calgary Community Church and to revoke our ability to attend any service, meeting, group or activity.
It is particularly distressing that you sent your letter on that particular date. We were in the process of drafting this letter to you and your termination of our membership came as a complete and unwelcome surprise.

We believe that the decisions contained in your letters of September 22 and October 26 are not in accordance with principles of Christian love, procedural fairness, or even basic human dignity. We feel that you are directing disciplinary action against us because we are seeking guidance from the Elders and others about problems that are chronic, distressing, and affect the body life of SCCC. We are especially concerned with those practises, policies and personal interactions that do not flow from or follow Biblical principles or the Church’s own rules.
In your letter you state that: “We continue to be ready to pursue reconciliation.” Jennifer and I want to restore a relationship with the leadership at SCCC and remove the barriers preventing us from serving in the ministry we have adopted as our life’s work.

In the spirit of reconciliation, we propose that we jointly seek the assistance of a Christian from outside SCCC who is mutually respected by us and has proven experiences in cases of this kind. His or her job would be to listen to each and all of our concerns and help us lovingly, and in the best Christian tradition, work towards a long-term solution that will honour our God and bring healing and genuine restoration to this, His church. We seek the assistance of a respected, mutually acceptable individual as we fear, based on these letters, that if we meet with only the Elders, our concerns may not be fully heard and we may not be treated fairly.

Due to our affiliation and shared values, the North American Baptist Association may be an appropriate source to find a candidate willing to assist us for this purpose

We know that you are meeting tonight and would ask you to consider this request for an assisted reconciliation. We also petition you to reinstate our membership privileges. It is important to us as Christians that we be allowed to serve God fully and in this way.

Yours truly,
Barry & Jennifer Pendergast