Evangelical Free Church of America Seeks To Defrock Pastor For Defying Lockdowns

The Evangelical Free Church of America is the orthodox version of the credobaptist tradition stemming from Swede immigrants to the United States whereas the Evangelical Covenant Church has embraced liberalism. However the powers that be at the top echelons of the organization are extremely liberal and vindictive. After defrocking Pastor Jeff Kliewer, the pastor of Cornerstone Church in Mount Laurel, New Jersey, they have their sights on a new target: Pastor David Whitney. His crimes stem from his refusal to shut down his church during lockdowns.

In the small town of Taneytown, MD, a Republican organization, the Tri-District Republican Club held a Constitution Day fundraiser. Evangelical Dark Web was a sponsor of this event, as it’s founder, Ray Fava is also the president of the club. Pastor David Whitney was the keynote of the event given his work at the Institute on the Constitution. Despite teaching on the Constitution and God-given rights, Whitney explained that for defying lockdowns in 2020, under the orders of Governor Larry Hogan, the Board of Ministry Standing was coming after him.

David Whitney is the pastor of Cornerstone Evangelical Free Church of Bowie, Maryland. He explained that his church met in a 7th Day Adventist church, but when that church decided to lock down, they insisted on continuing to meet, as the Bible commands. So they met on the property of Michael Peroutka Peroutka is also a renown Constitutional scholar a part of the IOTC. Because it was private property, a health inspector could be arrested for trespassing if they tried to enforce Hogan’s mandates.

Earlier this week, Whitney published a response to the Board of Ministerial Standing of the EFCA.

Back in November of 2020, my cluster in EFCA East met by Zoom. During that session each pastor was asked how his church was doing during the pandemic. I replied that we had not shut down in-person worship during this time for two reasons: 

The first being the command of our Lord Jesus in Hebrews 10:24-25: 

And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some [is]; but exhorting [one another]: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.

The second being that the Governor of Maryland has no constitutional authority to shutter churches. It is a violation of his oath of office.

My statements seemed to upset and anger several pastors in our cluster. I didn’t know it at the time, but three pastors began investigating my sermons and demanded a meeting just before Christmas. The timing did not work for me, so we  ultimately met on Zoom in February 2021. Prior to the meeting I asked Pastor Guy Kneebone for a list of questions they would be asking so that I could prepare. No list was ever provided, a clear violation of the Biblical Standards of Justice. 

By not locking down, Whitney had made the other pastors look bad in their sin.

Pastors Kneebone, Kynes, and Riedel interrogated me for two and half hours. They were very aggressive in their attack on many things which I said in the sermons they had listened to. Pastor Kynes said he would be horrified if anyone in his congregation every listened to any of my sermons. Pastor Kneebone spoke of how they were spending a great deal of time and effort studying and learning from CRT. He and the others stated they believed I was a Christian Nationalist and that such a stance was unacceptable in the EFCA. 

They made it clear that nothing I was preaching was in error doctrinally, nor in violation of the EFCA Statement of Faith. They, however, concluded that I was not of the “Ethos” of the EFCA and asked me  not only to consider leaving the EFCA, but they also stated that I needed to answer them, telling them my decision.

In conversation, Whitney explained that the other EFCA pastors disliked how he preached on sodomy. So what started out as an issue of gathering, branched out into his views on other things.

One of the other things would be Christian Nationalism. Although, Whitney refuses to accept the label in the pejorative usage by the EFCA questioners, he does embody someone who believes in establishing or restoring a Christian heritage to a nation. In liberal fashion, the EFCA wants to purge Christian Nationalists from their ranks, both Jeff Kliewer and Whitney have been charged with it.

Additionally, the EFCA accused Whitney of violating his church’s constitution which had to do with not having a congregational meeting which was due to a failure to reach a quorum.

David Whitney travels to Minneapolis to face his accusers in an interview this week. Prayers for him are appreciated.