"Diploma Mill Used Churches to Recruit Pupils"

Alleged Diploma Mill Used Churches to Recruit Pupils: Congregations shared in tuition that immigrants paid for phony high school degree, state says, Jason Felch, Los Angeles Times, August 30, 2004.

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Church members are always being used to advance some fraudulent scheme--it deeply disturbs me that people of my own faith would be swindled by every ponzi scheme, MLM scam and shell game that comes along. Some years ago, a very respectable college Christian ministry to which my wife and I had contributed was drawn into a pyramid scheme that broke down with thousands of contributor dollars being stolen by con men--we never contributed to that ministry again, even though to this day we believe whole-heartedly in their mission.

Jesus said: be as gentle as doves but as clever as serpents.

 

Are churchgoers particularly gullable?

 

nosborne:

They may be--I'm a rather avid church goer (2+ days a week) and it breaks my heart to see it. Actually, I believe it's more related to greed: for the most part, you are unlikely to be taken unless you are out to get something for nothing--who is drawn into the Nigerian email scams but those who are willing to hope against all reason so long as easy money is in the bargain? What has me nonplussed is that fellow Christians would fit this description in light of Jesus' unequivocal statements about storing up treasures in Heaven, not earth, the love of money being the root of all kinds of evil, etc.--would seem as if many of my stripe have veered away from the truth. I suppose on some level no one is immune.

 

mrw142,

I agree with you, sometimes Christians don't practice what they preach by testing all things by scripture. If they did, they would not fall as often into such skeems, which seems to make all us Christians look a bit weak minded and yes, gullable!

Rich Hartel