Minnesota U.S. Senator Klobuchar Requests $500K Earmark for Christianist Program Tied to Ex-Gay Ministry

Ken Avidor has a diary up at Daily Kos that should send shivers down your spine. Minnesota U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar is requesting a $500,000 earmark for Minnesota Teen Challenge. What is that you say?

MNTC is a ministry of the Assemblies of God. MNTC believes that Halloween, Harry Potter and Pokemon are gateways to drug addiction. MNTC has fostered close ties with many politicians, mostly Republicans such as Congresswoman Michele Bachmann and Governor Tim Pawlenty (Tim Pawlenty's wife was a MNTC board member).

You can see the religious batsh*ttery in the Teen Challenge literature on the right (click for the full PDF). Teen Challenge, btw promotes Exodus International's "pray away the gay" ministry. Check out its Student Handbook, which includes under Conduct: "Students must conduct themselves in a manner pleasing to God. There shall be no smoking, alcohol consumption, drug use, or homosexual behavior." The application also asks: "Have you ever engaged in homosexual activity? "

Andy Birkey at the Minnesota Independent has been covering this

If you accept taxpayer money, you have to accept that you're going to receive public scrutiny. That simple point seems to be eluding Minnesota Teen Challenge (MNTC), the faith-based drug treatment program which secured a federal earmark in early 2008 arranged by Rep. Jim Ramstad and Sen. Amy Klobuchar, for its "Know the Truth" program which aims to prevent drug use.

Operating close to the border of church and state, the group's members are unrealistic if they think their work is not going to get attention.

...The point of my article was not to suggest that MNTC was not successful or beneficial, as Scherber implies. Rather it was to point out the overtly religious nature of the organization and that the program has historically been controversial. In the interest of brevity, I left some examples out. For instance, MNTC's stance on Halloween verges on the comical ("Halloween is a day set up totally for Satan ... The more people who go out dressed as demons, ghosts, witches and goblins, the more glory Satan receives"). Scherber's claim that the Holy Spirit told an MNTC bus driver to avoid the 35-W bridge on the day of its collapse in August 2007 is touching but, let us say, unverified.

I don't question that faith-based programs can be very effective for those that share the programs' faith. Faith is a huge motivator in people's lives. I think MNTC has been very effective for the clients it serves. However, I don't think it's appropriate for judges, prosecutors or public defenders to suggest the program as an alternative to jail.

Ken says the MSM in the state has completely ignored this story; Dump Michelle Bachmann has been covering this as well. I'm still wondering why tax dollars should go to a whackjob program like this -- church/state separation is definitely on the table here.

Why look -- here's our soon-to-be-former President hailing Teen Challenge! Watch the video; counting down to January 20th...

Dump Michelle Bachmann pulled this unhinged interview with a Teen Challenge graduate from its newsletter.

At Minnesota Teen Challenge, we have an increasing number of residents who have been involved in occult activity. We help individuals break the bonds of sorcery and witchcraft as well as drugs and alcohol.

Q: What does Halloween mean to the Satanic church?

A: "Halloween is a day totally set up for Satan. It's our biggest recruitment day of the year, so we usually meet a couple days beforehand to pray for an abundance of people to be out on the streets. The more people who go out dressed up like demons, ghosts, witches and goblins, the more glory Satan receives."

Q: What evil things would you do on Halloween?

A: "We would have people put curses over candy and place jewelry with demonic symbols in Trick or Treat bags. When the kids take it willingly, it opens the door for demonic attack. Kids would be sick for weeks after Halloween. Drug dealers were out in full force. We would all try to recruit at least one person to come back to the Satanic meeting. Usually, we would just try to impress them with different displays of demonic power, like levitation and casting spells."

Q: Which Halloween experience was the scariest?

A: "Different moons require different sacrifices. One Halloween, we received a letter from the head church in San Diego with blood and a crow's foot on it. This meant that there had to be a human sacrifice. The leader of our group walked over to an older, unimportant man and handed him a knife, saying: 'You know what you need to do.' The man took the knife and split his stomach open, letting his intestines spill out on the ground. He screamed in agony, and as he fell to his knees he cried out, 'Satan, take me home!' We would never sacrifice a Christian, because that would bring glory to God. It would be disgusting. Satan was our God, and we wanted all the glory to go to him."

Q: What made you want to leave the Satanic church?

A: "I began to question Satan's power when our plans would be wrecked by my Christian mom. We would plan something for months, then my mom would find out about it and somehow stop it with her prayers. I couldn't understand how this tiny woman could stop the whole Satanic church. Then when people started dying, I really wanted out. The suicide rate in our town went out of control, and kids began killing their parents. I was haunted by images of that Halloween when Satan required one of his own to die. I couldn't understand why Satan would want to kill his own people."

This crap better not slip through the cracks and receive funding next time around.

Comments

[caterpol]

Thanks for this article.

Just wrote to Klobuchar. Hope everyone does.

[Subversive]

[MTC considers more questions to ask prospective members.]

1. Have you ever watched and enjoyed Richard Simmons?

2. Have either of your parents worn spandex?

3. Do you watch Jane Fonda movies?

4. Have you ever eaten at Hooters?

5. Did anyone in your family vote for Paul Wellstone?

[Positive responders are considered blackballed]

[schatsie]

I want to pray away the chocolate....

[Skepticat]

It's bad enough that there are self proclaimed religious groups equating Harry Potter, and Pokemon with Satanic ritual without supporting such ignorant myopia with public funding.

[noamjunior]

Any other ex-SNL writers want to run for Senate/

[onagadori]

Religion is poison....Time and again, that quote is just verified over and over.

[smithshaw08]

Rachel Maddow where are you??? Please contact Amy
Klobuchar about this. This doesn't sound like something Amy would rally for.

[susanlc]

Sen. Klobuchar...you should address your constituents (me) and explain this one. Was it a mistake, you didn't read the fine print? Or are you bonkers? This is not a good time to be bonkers in government. Get it together!

[aliceinthewater]

Sewing the seeds of Satanic Panic again.

I wonder how soon it is until Minnesota finds it's Damien Echols?

[BGraham]

I'd suggest everyone who cares about this issue email Senator Klobuchar:

http://klobuchar.senate.gov/emailamy.cfm?contactForm=emailamy&submit=Go

We've just been through 8 years of crazy. Enough is enough.

[dapperd72]

If the MN Teen Challenge is a genuinely *religious* program, then the US Constitution automatically precludes it from receiving any governmental funds, as it prima facie violates the 1st Amendment's Establishment Clause, such that "Congress shall make no law respecting the establishment of religion nor the free exercise thereof." Numerous Supreme Court & lower federal district court cases have been decided over the past 200 years which clearly defined this clause as precuding any public support for religious denominations. I'm particularly surprised that Sen. Klobuchar of all people (who until now struck me as a perfectly level-headed and Constitutionally minded legislator, would stoop to the level of supporting such propaganda & attempting to solicit federal funds for its financial continuity. This program also blatantly violates the 14th Amendment's Equal Protection Clause by preaching against homosexuality, as if it was a sin rather than equal to heterosexuality in its individual nature as orientation. So long as it remains private without government support, its administration is perfectly free to discriminate against whoever its operators wish, just as the Boy Scouts as a private organization are unfortunately free to discriminate against homosexuals & atheists (I regrettably admit this as an Eagle Scout myself). However, as soon as Sen. Klobuchar and Michele Bachman have their way, all this freedom to promote bigotry goes out the window. Their religious affiliation would also have to be disposed of in order to avoid a judicial challenge by all those affected by their discriminatory practices.

[M1]

This is why funding religious programs is dangerous. Even our 1st Amendment right to exercise free speech has been denied to allow religous based family planning programs funded by the federal government to place a gag or silence the speech of employees to prevent them from even mentioning the alternative of abortion.

The religious groups are gaining power and influence via federal funding and it needs to be stopped. I believe that any groups (Athiests, Gays, believers in separation of church and state of all religions) in favor of Separation of Church and state need to unite in their efforts to protect the bedrock principal of separation of church and state.

[IndyReader]

I'm certainly disappointed that Senator Klobuchar would back something like this.

[cautionbug]

Wow, and i thought all that absurdity had faded 25 years ago with the PMRC trying to sue heavy metal bands. Will we start seeing kids disappear to "religious rehab" camps again?

While this nonsense is amusing to anyone with even the smallest capability of rational thought, it's unnerving that stuff like this can and does gain traction in America.

[AddyGmom]

No Federal $$$ for MNTC. No $$$ for those who preach that kind of hate.