It doesn’t bring any pleasure to have to draw attention to this issue but unfortunately it does dovetail with my own dealings with Richard Abanes, an apologist for Rick Warren and a member of Warren’s Saddleback Church (SBC). Most readers of Apprising Ministries know that a still unsubstantiated charge by Abanes alleging libel in my three year old A Pastor’s Assessment of Richard Abanes  successfully blew up AM’s old website. My point isn’t to go into all of that here so I refer the interested reader to the articles listed below.

As an SBC pastor my hope and prayer is that after his latest misrepresentatrion of the truth, this time involving Tom Schlueter who is the husband of my friend and colleague Ingrid Schuleter, that maybe Saddleback Church and particularly his own pastor Rick Warren will finally make it a point to get Richard Abanes to cease and desist with these bogus charges and his current unChristian conduct. In a recent blog post Abanes imports me into a situation with which I have zero involvement when he begins:

FYI faithful readers,

Since KEN SILVA has set a precedent for what appears to be an acceptable course of action when it comes to private emails and their contents, I thought that I’d better share with all of you the fact that in an email I just received, Ingrid Schlueter (see these article: #1, #2, #3) has just threatened me with a legal RESTRAINING ORDER!!!!! I kid you not.

This morning in an email to her, which included various biblical references to lying, I stated: “Judgment will come — in due time. I suggest you change your course before that happens.”

She has since informed me that she interprets this as a THREAT, and has contacted her corporate lawyer, who agrees, and they are now is in the process of possibly taking out a RESTRAINING ORDER against me unless I can elaborate on my comment to their satisfaction. (Online source)

1) There was no need to open his post by mentioning me and 2) I think, if this is true, perhaps he’s only going to get what he sowed; sow the threat of a possible lawsuit to my former ISP, and get a threat of a possible restraining order. But this gives you the background as to why Ingrid Schlueter would write today at her Slice of Laodicea:

I am posting this at the request of my husband, Tom. We do not intend to elaborate on the situation beyond this post, but it conveys the difficulty Mr. Abanes has with truth telling. Abanes posted the following yesterday at his blog:

And now, for those interested, this not about Ingrid Schlueter, it is about Tom Schlueter, Ingrid’s husband, who has just sent me a threatening email, telling me to STOP HARASSING his wife and LEAVE HER ALONE… He then invited me to handle it in a manly way by either calling him on the phone or better yet, paying him a personal visit (I suppose so he could punch me in the nose, wait, I thought Ingrid was going to take out a restraining order against me)…

And then Ingrid goes on to say:

Now, friends, you can read the actual letter sent by my wise and godly husband, Tom, who has been provoked beyond measure by the conduct of certain “men” in the blogosphere. You decide: Is Richard’s portrayal of Tom’s letter honest? (Online source)

What isn’t generally known in all of this is back during the time I originally published the assessment article there were a few of us fasting and praying that God would grant Richard Abanes repentance from the issues raised and/or covered within. But in my opinion as I monitor what Abanes has been saying around the blogosphere the past month or more I can’t help but think that I was indeed correct in what I wrote three years ago in A Pastor’s Assessment of Richard Abanes, which may be why it bothered him so.

You can read the post from Ingrid Schlueter referenced above in its entirety here.

For more information as to why we had to replace this video yet again we refer you to Richard Abanes Gets Video Pulled Again and Once Again, the Video is Back at Slice.

See also:

AS IT CONCERNS RICHARD ABANES AND KEN SILVA

KEN SILVA ON CROSSTALK: FREE SPEECH FOR BLOGGERS AND RICHARD ABANES

SETTING RICHARD ABANES STRAIGHT ON MY RICK WARREN ATTACK

TO WHOM DID RICHARD ABANES TELL THE SPECIFICS CONCERNING ALLEGED LIBEL BY KEN SILVA?

KEN SILVA, APPRISING MINISTRIES AND RICHARD ABANES