After-school hellfire

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 13/10/2010 (5727 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Kids brought home from school an invitation to see a free show of amazing feats of strength at a Winnipeg church — and ended up hearing stories in gory detail of hellfire and a father sacrificing his son.

St. James-Assiniboia School Division superintendent Ron Weston is investigating how invitations to see a Texas-based evangelical organization were handed out at George Waters Middle School.

And Pastor Mark Hughes of the Church of the Rock has apologized for what he called a frightening and age-inappropriate event held at his church.

A Winnipeg mother said it started Sept. 13 at George Waters, when her 11-year-old son brought home free tickets to an evening performance at Church of the Rock, set for Sept. 19, to see feats of strength, such as bending metal bars performed by a group called Todd Keene and the Power Team.

When her son attended the event, he heard talk of “burning in hell” and a story in excruciating detail about a man sacrificing his own son to save a trainload of people, she said.

She added the group also ridiculed Buddhists and Muslims.

“How is it that a church group is seemingly given unvetted access to our children during school hours?” asked the mother, who wished to remain anonymous so her son is not publicly identified.

“We would not condone this — it’s not appropriate” to promote through a public school, said Weston, who was to meet with the George Waters principal Tuesday afternoon.

Weston said the Dallas-based group Todd Keene and the Power Team had performed feats of strength last month at assemblies at George Waters, Westwood Collegiate and Bruce Middle School, but literature for the separate evening performance was handed out only at George Waters. Weston said there were no religious overtones to the presentations at school. “This was an anti-bullying message: You’re in control of your own experience in school. It’s all about self-empowerment,” Weston said.

Hughes said the Power Team has been around for 30 years and appeared at his church for four nights, drawing 1,000 people on Sept. 19. That was the one night a group member told a story he didn’t use on other nights, taking Hughes by surprise.

“Frankly, we had complaints about it. If you’re 11, it’s kind of a brutal story,” Hughes said. “I didn’t think it was age-appropriate at all. If I was 11, I’d be frightened by it.”

Hughes said the story, supposedly true, was about a man operating a railway bridge. His son fell into the gears and he had to sacrifice either his son or 300 people on the train.

Hughes could not recall any reference to Muslims or Buddhists, and said any references to hell were part of linking the story allegorically to God’s reasons for having sacrificed his son, Jesus, to save others. The Power Team draws a clear line between church and school performances, said Hughes, who had sent mailings and DVDs to Winnipeg schools promoting the availability of school shows. The group held shows in 18 Winnipeg schools, Hughes said.

“In some schools, students (who attend Church of the Rock) would hand out invitations to the evening events. Some (schools) said ‘you can mention the event, you can hand out invitations;’ most wanted it low key.”

Hughes said he takes responsibility for an inappropriate evening for children and has apologized to the principal.

nick.martin@freepress.mb.ca