Pastor Goes On Hunger Strike To Protest Church Ban In City Schools

www.dnainfo.com:

WASHINGTON HEIGHTS -- Pastor Bill Devlin has dropped 40 pounds in a month, but the religious leader's crash diet isn't spurred by secular ideals -- it's part of a hunger strike in protest of the city's attempt to ban religious groups from renting space in public schools for services. 

Devlin, 59, of the Manhattan Bible Church in Washington Heights, hasn't eaten any food and has only had tap water to drink since he began his protest since January 17. The 5-foot-11-inch tall pastor dropped from approximately 190 pounds to 150, and he has no idea when his fast might end.

Read the whole story: www.dnainfo.com

Comments

[Asmodeus]

01:39 AM on 02/23/2012

Yay! Darwin wins another round.

[AngryHarpy]

07:32 PM on 02/21/2012

The Crawfish Etouffee I made for dinner was delicious.

[RonM64735]

05:44 PM on 02/21/2012

"... and if this doesn't work, I'm gonna fold my arms, hold my breath, stamp my foot, and pout!"

[MDean]

04:53 PM on 02/21/2012

I can't imagine why a community would turn down revenue for use of a school during non class time...

[Asmodeus]

03:54 AM on 02/23/2012

You mean besides the separation of church and state that is a founding principle of our nation?

[MDean]

01:10 PM on 02/23/2012

Renting a building for use is a far cry from endorsing the organization or group, or establishing a religion.

[Ashok Hegde]

04:45 PM on 02/21/2012

Hunger Strike. Cool. Hope it works and you starve.

[Vdiaz21992]

05:20 PM on 02/21/2012

^ That's what I call a "tolerant liberal"

[Ashok Hegde]

05:25 PM on 02/21/2012

I tolerate his choice to starve.

[morgansher]

04:35 PM on 02/21/2012

You're not entitled to use MY taxpayer money to hold your Church services in a Public School that my tax money helps fund!

[MDean]

04:54 PM on 02/21/2012

Not even if they pay for the use of the building?

[Vdiaz21992]

05:21 PM on 02/21/2012

No one is using your tax money...they pay the city for the use of the building.

[gazbo]

07:18 AM on 03/30/2012

The church is tax exempt therefore us actual taxpayers are subsidising their existence.

[psandysdad]

02:08 PM on 02/21/2012

We secularists don't, as a rule, hate Christians. You are mistaken on that. And the city government may well have perfectly valid reasons that have nothing to do with annoying religious groups.

If Christians would stop trying to force their weltanschauung on the rest of us, you'd be surprised how fast secular humanists stop caring what you do.

[daughterusmc]

02:51 PM on 02/21/2012

please read some of the posts below.

[Vdiaz21992]

05:18 PM on 02/21/2012

I will second what @daughterusmc said- read the posts below. No one is forcing anything down your throat. It is the minority of Christians that are adamant and demanding. I know it seems like the majority, because they're the ones that get the most media coverage.

[Vdiaz21992]

01:13 PM on 02/21/2012

It's ironic that secularists hate Christians because they are "intolerant," when in fact they are more intolerant than most Christians. As I read the comments below, I am shaking my head. So much hate for no reason.

As a fellow Christian, I commend this guy. The state is interfering with religious freedom. They are not hurting anyone by meeting inside schools. This legislation came completely out of the blue and it is unconstitutional.

[MDean]

05:00 PM on 02/21/2012

The pastor and his congregation are not being stopped from exercising their religious beliefs, as they can find some other place to meet. However, I do think the community is doing themselves a disservice by not renting the building during non school hours...

[Vdiaz21992]

05:15 PM on 02/21/2012

The thing is, they don't have anywhere else to meet. These churches service the under-resourced, so they have no money to rent or buy a building. Congregations have taken to the streets to hold services.

They do congregate during non school hours- on Sunday mornings.

[VA Jill]

12:09 PM on 02/21/2012

I still can't grasp what all the uproar is about. In Tennessee, where I used to live, and in Virginia, where I live now, churches have rented school gyms or auditoriums for years. They hold their services, they clean up after themselves, and if you didn't *know* they met there you'd never know they'd been there. No cross-contact with teachers or school kids is ever made. It's like any other group that rents space. Now if they wanted to offer after-school activities including Bible study, that would be something else again, but as far as I know that's never been part of the package.

[nevertofarleft]

06:26 PM on 02/21/2012

it’s a fair and balance issue. New York city aint Tennessee where your religous groups are more or less homogonous (Protestant Christians). NYC has many groups who's Sabbath is Friday to Saturday (Jews, Muslims), (Hindus on Tuesday) etc and the schools are not available on those nights/days due to school events (games, student groups etc) . This was done to be fair and balanced.

[VA Jill]

08:04 PM on 02/21/2012

Guess what, Richmond VA *isn't* exactly homogeneous (not homongonous) either, and they don't have a problem. Also, "fair and balanced" is not the way the issue is being presented. "Church and state" is what I'm hearing.

[Gary Sawyer]

11:09 AM on 02/21/2012

Just another ignorant fool.

[stacknef]

11:08 AM on 02/21/2012

Keep fasting!!! One less religious activist to demand that they be treated special.

[Vdiaz21992]

01:14 PM on 02/21/2012

He's not asking to be treated "special," just to allow him his constitutional right to congregate freely.

[MDean]

04:57 PM on 02/21/2012

No one is stopping them from meeting... I do, however, think that the community should reconsider not renting out the building during non school hours...

[stacknef]

10:55 AM on 02/22/2012

he wants t o"congregate freely" in a publicly funded school. Sorry,,go find a place in another church instead.

[krummlaw]

11:04 AM on 02/21/2012

Only another 150 to go.

[dbishop76]

11:02 AM on 02/21/2012

I believe this is the definition of cutting off your nose to spite your face.

[DevonTexas]

10:20 AM on 02/21/2012

Silly silly man.