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A local Christian radio network in Syracuse, N.Y., refuses to advertise a city-wide crusade because a female pastor is scheduled to speak at the event.
The Mars Hill Network's board of directors voted last week not to promote the June 7-8 City Wide Crusade and Conference featuring Pastors Jamal Bryant and Paula White. The all-male board "can't comfortably promote women in the role of pastor," said Wayne Taylor, general manager of the radio network, according to The Post-Standard.
Taylor was alluding to White's participation in the crusade which is expected to draw more than 3,500 people from throughout the northeast region of the country.
“It’s a doctrinal issue,” he said, according to the local newspaper. “It’s not about women preaching. It has to do with a woman taking on a pastor’s role.”
The network's board accepted a literal interpretation of the Bible in which women are prohibited from church leadership roles such as serving as a pastor.
While acknowledging that the board's decision will not be popular, Taylor said, "The word of God is what we're taught."
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“We want to follow the Scriptures as much as we can,” said board President Clayton Roberts, alluding to the New Testament book of Timothy, according to The Post-Standard. The Apostle Paul states in 1 Timothy 2:12, “But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence."
White is a popular life coach and best-selling author and was voted this year as one of the top 20 most influential Christians in America. She also co-pastors the 18,000-member Without Walls International Church in Tampa, Fla., with husband Dr. Randy White.
White had preached at the 2004 City Wide Crusade – an event that is meant to provide spiritual, economic and social balance to families and individuals – and this year is scheduled to speak again in Syracuse Friday Night.
City Wide Crusade founder Bishop Robert Jones, pastor of Apostolic Church of Jesus Christ, says he has "no problem with women pastors."
“I don’t know how you can discriminate against female pastors,” he said, according to The Post-Standard. “You should not sit in the judgment seat to determine who God will use to deliver the word.”
The City Wide Crusade returns to the city for the first time since 2004 and this year's main focus is the Youth Literacy Project which addresses the societal problem of illiteracy. The event is being advertised on other local radio stations, says Jones.
The Mars Hill Network has several Christian radio stations serving counties throughout New York as well as Canada. It became available worldwide in 2005 with live streaming on the Internet.
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