Subj: Presbyter Mike Cole, Heights Church, and Truth 
Date: 6/3/2003 3:54:04 AM Central America Standard Time
From: John WorldPeace


For those of you who are interested in the truth about Heights Presbyterian Church and Mike Cole of the Presbytery of New Covenant read on.  For the rest of you, go back to sleep, the truth will just confuse you.  This email has been sent to the 1,750 officers and staff of the General Assemby, all the Synods and all the Presbyteries in the United States.

The following appeared in the latest Presbytery of New Covenant newsletter.  It is just more lies endorsed by Mike Cole.  I have responded in italics to the entire article.

Interim Accounting
Heights Administrative Commission Reports
by Mark Cooper, Postlude Reporter

In its February meeting, the Presbytery voted to assume original jurisdiction of Heights Presbyteryian Church.

"What happened was that Joe Delgatto the lying, thieving, corrupt minister of Heights Presbyterian Church (HPC) and seven of the twelve members of the HPC session, without informing the rest of the session members, attended the quarterly Presbytery meeting unannounced.  They presented their lies to the Presbytery and I wrote the following to the congregation after the alleged vote of the Presbytery.

{{ I will be filing an official complaint with the Synod of the Sun regarding the illegal acts of Presbytery.  I have Lynn Johnson on video and Reagan Brown, attorney for Presbytery, deliberately lying to the congregation and the court about the authority of Presbytery to take control of the session.  Even when I pointed out the lies of Mr. Brown to the court, he still adhered to his misstatements.

There are two sources of authority regarding Presbytery’s intervention in the affairs of the session.

G-9.0503 (a)  The function ordinarily  entrusted to an administrative commission are: 4) to visit particular churches, governing bodies, or other organizations of the church reported to be affected with disorder, and to inquire and settle the difficulties therein…

G-11.0103 The presbytery is responsible for the mission and government of the church throughout its geographical district.  It therefore has the responsibility and power: (s) to assume original jurisdiction in any case in which it determines that a session cannot exercise its authority.  Whenever, after a thorough investigation, and after full opportunity to be heard has been accorded to the session in question, the presbytery of jurisdiction shall determine that the session of a particular church is unable or unwilling to manage wisely the affairs of the church, the presbytery may appoint an administrative commission (G.9.0503) with the full powers of a session.

As you can see from the above Rules per the Book of Order, the Presbytery does not have the authority to take over the session because it has done no investigation, it has not allowed the session members to speak and it has not considered that the problems with the session are the moderator, Joe Delgatto who has effective shut down the church.

In a word, the presbytery has overstepped its bounds and Lynn Johnson has lied to the congregation about his authority and the authority of the administrative commission.

In addition,

G- 9.0502 A commission is empowered to consider and conclude matters referred to it by a governing body.  The appointing body shall state specifically the scope of the power given to a commission.  A commission shall keep a full record of its proceedings, which shall be submitted to its governing body to be incorporated in its minutes and to be regarded as the actions of the governing body itself.
There has been no mandate from the presbytery giving the administrative commission any particular authority.  Lynn Johnson lied about it to the congregation and Reagan Brown lied about it to the court.  There is no mandate from presbytery defining the scope and duties of the commission.  Certainly there is nothing authorizing the commission to take over the session.}}

This action was taken at the request of the request of the church session, which found itslef unable to effectively lead the congregation.

"This action was taken in secret to push through the HUD project that Joe Delgatto and a few other corruptors were trying to foist on HPC for their personal financial gain.  The Presbytery is in on the corruption and the illegal forming of the administrative commission and its takeover of the session was to support Delgatto and the HUD project."

In the interim report of the Heights Administrative Commission, Doug Harper, the commission's chair, related substantial progress made at the church.

"This is an absolute lie.  There has been no progress made except the pushing through of the HUD project.  There have been two interim reports, 1) one, one page and 2) seventeen pages.  Both dealt virtually exclusive with the HUD project.  Both were full of lies.  The congregation is more tense now than ever before.  By the way, Mark Cooper has never attended Heights Presbyterian Church."

Doug explained that the commission has convened eight times since February, and has also met twice with the congregation and once with the session."

"The commission has met about three times, once a month, plus two meetings with the congregation, sort of.  The meeting with the congregation was on a one on one basis with a ten minute limit per member.  If husband and wife attended together, they were limited to ten minutes.  There has never been an open congregational meeting.  Mind you there are only about forty five active members of HPC.  About thirty of the members handed the commission a six page check list of things wrong at HPC that had been typed up by WorldPeace.  Most of the complaints were about Delgatto and were in the format of an official Book of Order complaint.  The commission told some of the congregation members that it had forwarded the complaints on to Presbytery of New Covenant for processing because the complaints were not within their authority. There has been one thirty minute meeting with the session as a group in four months. Each member was allowed three minutes to speak."

During this time they have planned and approved the 2003 Budget.

"The pledges to the church are about $40,000 per year.  Delgatto gets about $65,000 and the rest of the Budget expenses including Delgatto's salary adds up to $191,000.  The deficit is made up from the remainder of a million dollar bequest that was made six years ago when the church budget was $78,000. Since Delgatto came to HPC five years ago, $600,000 is unaccounted for.  Also the Budget compares last year's budget with this year's budget.  The Commission refuses to compare last years actual income and expenses to this year's budget.  The goal of the Presbytery is to bankrupt HPC and then sell the church's $2.5 million property and its $8 million (net)  thirty year old retirement home investment to add to the retirement fund of the preacher's union."

Developed a committee structure for church ministry.

"This is another lie.  The committees were already there.  They were just renamed.  Nothing was done and members of the church are discourage from working on the church if they do not belong to a committee."

And approved plans to celebrate the church's 100th anniversary.

"This is another lie.  No plans have been announced and the anniversary is next month.  Nothing has been planned and the chairman of the committee, Barbara Puckett, has stated that there may not be an anniversary event due to apathy.  This is the same member who is trying to gain control of the last $200,000 of the $1 million dollar bequest."

Their work has also included reports to the congregation, one of which was 17 pages, single-spaced type, prepared by Reagan Brown, legal counsel to the commission.

"Another half truth.  The only reports have been the one and seventeen page report regarding the HUD project.  Nothing regarding the healing of the church has been done or proposed."

The present conflict in the church centers on the church's association with a HUD housing project called the Independence Heights Project.  

"This is just one problem of many.  The real problem is the never ending lies of Joe Delgatto who would rather lie than eat.  Joe's lies have driven a permanent rift in the congregation."

As the commission seeks to resolve that conflict, they have "made certain" that the church has no financial obligation to that project.

"Another lie. The project could not go forward without a non-profit sponsor.  In court, Delgatto testified that he did not have approval from the session, the congregation or the Presbytery to obligate HPC to the project.  From May 2001 to February 2002, only three people knew about the project.  It was a big secret.  In February, Delgatto told the session.  In April, Delgatto and the promoters met with WorldPeace, attorney for trustee Joyce Wolter, and suit was filed three days later when the corruption was discovered; ie, buying the property for the $4.7 million project for $237,000 when it was on the tax rolls for $37,000.  HPC is obligated to cover the financial deficit in the building of the project and the monthly rental deficit, (apartments rent for $25 per month) for the next forty years per HUD.  The commission and Delgatto are lying to the congregation and everyone else they speak to.  There is a court date set for June 17th, in which a lot of truth will come out and maybe a few people will go to jail for contempt of court.  And by the way, the commission had Delgatto allegedly remove Joyce Wolter as trustee last month.  Joyce has been a member of HPC for over sixty years."

The commission is also in the process of securing a financial review of the chruch finances.

"Another lie.  There is a motion in the court for a CPA audit for the last five years.  Since Delgatto became minister, $600,000 is missing and no audit has taken place.  Two of the congregation who looked at the books last year refused to sign a statement that the church finances were in order.  The commission is trying to avoid an outside audit because they know the scandal that will emerge.  And Mike Cole is fully aware of the cover up."

Internal difficulties remain, including disturbances in worship and a lawsuit filed against the commission.

"There has been only one disturbance in the worship service in four months.  That was when Roy Keezel, attorney and arrogant member of the commission, made a statement from the pulpit that new members were welcomed. WorldPeace his wife and aunt got up and went to the front of the church to reactivate their membership.  Keezel in essence said that they would not be allowed to join, Delgatto who was sitting behind Keezel refused to even rise up and speak.  And nothing has been done.  In fact, there have been no new members in the church for almost a year.  All this was video taped by WorldPeace and anyone who wants a copy can get one by writing me.  WorldPeace video tapes parts of the service each Sunday in order to record the lies being told from the pulpit.  So far Delgatto, Art Greer and Lyn Johnson from the Presbytery, and Keezel have been recorded while lying to the congregation from the pulpit.  This is all evidence in the lawsuit which was filed against Delgatto and others eight months before the commission was even appointed."

Doug expressed great appreciation to Reagan Brown, Lyn Johnson, New Covenant's Stated Clerk, the GA stated clerk, and the commission members in dealing with this "unique phenomenon".

"The unique phenomenon is the fact that the Presbytery, Delgatto and other have conspired to bankrupt the church, cover up the theft of $600,000 and the  illegal commitment to a $4.7 million HUD project.  The unique part is that WorldPeace sued  thirteen months ago to stop the corruption."

They covet your prayers as they continue with this important and difficult task.

"Funny, they refuse to have an open congregation meeting on the record.  Funny nothing has been done except to push through the HUD project and have violated the court's injunction in the process.  Funny when the Presbytery met last month they did not set up a committee to investigate the 35 complaints against Delgatto.  Funny tey are now trying to cover up the theft if $600,000 by refusing to allow an outside audit.  Funny how Mike Cole is right in the middle of all this corruption.  Funny how only two members of the commission attend the Sunday services.  Funny how the commission insists that nothing be recorded of the meetings.

In the end, there will be an accounting to the courts, the congregation and eventually to Jesus.  In the meantime, Mike Cole continues to be the source of the problem as opposed to the solution.  For Cole, it is about preserving the church bureaucracy and not about serving Jesus.  Cole's master is the prince of darkness. 

And for those of you in positions of power in the Presbyterian Church and who actually read this and intend to do nothing, shame on you. 

WorldPeace

 


 

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