Gateway member stripped of membership, removed by armed security while the church call the police on her all for demanding accountability...

::::::::

Click Here

The saying is trustworthy, and I want you to insist on these things, so that those who have believed in God may be careful to devote themselves to good works. These things are excellent and profitable for people. But avoid foolish controversies, genealogies, dissensions, and quarrels about the law, for they are unprofitable and worthless. As for a person who stirs up division, after warning him once and then twice, have nothing more to do with him, knowing that such a person is warped and sinful; he is self-condemned. - Titus 3:8-11 (ESV)

The arrogance of the purpose driven apostate church system knows no bounds. Since the Bicklegate scandal broke, I have called for the complete dissolution of IHOPKC, as the entire foundation was unbiblical, based on lies and false prophecies, and ruined so many lives. There was nothing redeemable at IHOPKC. The poor people who had been sitting under this shroud of cultish false teaching needed to be given referrals to real churches that preach the actual gospel, so that they might be saved. Instead, there are these constant rumors out of Kansas City that they are trying to salvage the 24-7 false prayer model and rebrand the satanic church. The same exact points can be made about Gateway Church in Texas. This church was always another cult of personality mega pastor church, headed up by uber tithing abuser, Robert Morris. He had built his empire by fleecing the flock with threatening and unbiblical teachings on giving. The "God will curse all of your money unless you give me the first ten percent as tribute" teaching originated with Morris. He leveraged this into a 100-million-dollar fortune, that he gets to "retire" on. The retirement was forced because it came out that he had sexually abused a 12-year-old for four years when he was an up-and-coming married pastor. He built his kingdom on the bones and spirit of this 12-year-old girl and lied about it for forty years. In an autobiographical book he referenced stepping down from ministry at this time but left out the "why." Even when first caught, he tried to lie to his elders that he had an inappropriate relationship with a "young lady." No, you broke the law and molested a little girl, while cosplaying as a pastor. Now, with Morris slinking off into the bowels of apostate church history, you would think that whatever powers that be were left at Gateway would operate with a sliver of humility. Well, you would be wrong. It appears that Gateway has used bullying, membership cancelation, church expulsion and even used local law enforcement against a member who had the temerity to speak out against the abuse and cover up. We will go through the above link, which contains excellent reporting from the Roys Report. So, let us reason once more together beloved.

"When Valentina Hansen walked up to the glass doors of Gateway Church near Fort Worth on the evening of Sept. 7, they were waiting for her. She was there to hear Gospel artist CeCe Winans speak. But the men, with guns holstered to their hips, wearing dark navy pants and shirts, with the letters SECURITY emblazoned in silver on their backs, barred the way. "Have you seen the email that the elders sent to you?" a security guard said on Hansen's video of the encounter. "Yeah, but it didn't say I can't attend church," Hansen replied. Eddie Miles, Gateway's campus operations director, approached her to say, "We're going to ask you not to come in." Hansen said she shook Miles' hand, then asked him to pass a message to church elder Tra Willbanks and Pastor Lorena Valle to send her a letter clarifying whether she can still attend church at Gateway. She said Miles told her he would pass on the message, but she never received a response. Then Hansen spotted a police car from Southlake, the suburb where the 25,805-member Texas church is located. She wondered if the church has some method of tracking her movements with her cell phone. She videotaped herself approaching the police officer in the car, her recording catching a shadow of her slim figure in a dress, her long hair blowing in the breeze. "Did they really call y'all about little old me?" Hansen asked the cop. "Notably, the #Southlake Police Department was present, having been contacted by Gateway Church in anticipation of an escalation," she later wrote on Facebook. "I regret that their time was diverted from potentially more critical situations.-- - Roys Report

You just have to love the image of church security guards needing weapons. Even more so, to use them to intimidate a woman, who was just trying to attend her church. That is right. It is HER church, not the fake, stand-in pastors. Read the biblical qualifications for ministry and pastorships. Humility is at the top of the list - not lording themselves over the sheep. We're going to ask you to not come in? Who the hell do you think you are Eddie? Then on top of this, the church arranged for the police to be there? What did they think this woman was going to do? Valentina Hansen did not molest little girls. That was Robert Morris. Valentina Hansen did not try and cover it up - that would be Tra Willbanks and the so-called elders of Gateway. This is just anathema beloved. If you still attend Gateway after this you are one step away from Jonestown. Hansen did find the email in her spam folder revoking her membership and directing her that she could no longer enter any of the church properties, under penalty of violating Penal Code 30.05! Did you get that? A church that claims to follow Jesus Christ threatened one of their sheep with criminal prosecution and called the police in case the woman "escalated" the situation. How utterly disgusting and revolting. To make matters worse, they invoked Titus 3:10 as their fake biblical justification, claiming Hansen had continued to "sow discord and conflict." We will come back to this absurd usage of Titus later.

'Hansen tells The Roys Report (TRR) the Texas megachurch is retaliating against her for a series of social media posts calling for accountability at the church. Not only was she booted from church membership for "continuing to sow discord," but she was also barred from the building after she publicly called for an investigation into the church's finances and mandatory reporting practices on child sexual abuse. The breaking point may have been a Sept. 4 post on Hansen's Facebook page where she announced that an investigative reporter from an unnamed publication wanted information on current and former staff. She invited members to secretly contact her. She told TRR that in the last 90 days, her posts have reached 450,000 people. "The Bible is very clear about what the biblical requirements are for deacons, pastors, and elders, and if they're not above approach, we as Christians and members of the bride of Christ. . . we're called to advocate for her honor," Hansen said. "There were many times I felt like I'm one person advocating for so many people that don't feel that they're strong enough to do this."' - Roys Report

It sure seems like the text book definition of retaliation. Hansen appears to be a very prolific poster on Facebook. I have seen the September 4^th post, as she has not tried to hide it. One can argue that perhaps she should have discussed with leadership first but it sure does not sound like gateway leadership deserves any such preferential treatment. They certainly have not earned it. The larger point of course, is what exactly are you trying to hide? Why such an overreaction to a reporter investigating church finances and governance? Hansen is 100% correct that elders are not above reproach. This sure smells like they did not want someone poking around in the business of Gateway. Ms. Hansen properly called for an investigation into finances and mandatory reporting practices and instead of being transparent, they pulled one verse out of context to steal her membership, prohibit her from entering the church and threatening her with criminal prosecution. We remember when Paul did this in the Cortinthi"oh wait, that's right he never did anything so ridiculous.

'On Sept. 6, the church told her to leave. Hansen's activism began June 19, one day after Gateway's founding pastor Robert Morris resigned amid accusations he sexually abused a 12-year-old girl beginning in 1982. Questions remain as to what the Gateway elders knew and when. The news was barely out before Hansen, who ushered at the church while holding down a daytime job as a federal law enforcement official, began regularly linking to news stories about the scandal on her Facebook page. She usually posts about Bible studies, working out, and references to her work in and training for a federal prison. Right after her June 20 post asking why the church had hired a registered sex offender as one of its pastors, Gateway blocked her from its Facebook page. (TRR published a story on that pastor, Stephen Wilson, several months ago, and now his page has been removed from Gateway's website. Gateway did not respond to our requests for clarification about Wilson's current status.) Things went downhill from there. On June 29, Hansen posted that Gateway Pastor Kendra Hunt approached Hansen while Hansen was ushering at Gateway and accused Hansen of being a "spy" because of her social media posts. In a face-to-face meeting with Associate Pastor Joseph Tenney a few days later, he asked Hansen if she was acting as an "investigative reporter" at church in this recorded meeting. Tenney also suggested her behavior struck some at the church as predatory, which Hansen told him was an inappropriate characterization, given that she deals with actual predators for her job for the U.S. Department of Justice.' - Roys Report

Make sure you do not get this twisted. She used to post bible studies and work out videos. What changed that is the Morris scandal. There is nothing wrong at that point with linking the news reports. Our role is not to protect Robert Morris. We should not fear the truth. Notice that she also called them out for hiring a registered sex offender as a pastor! Mr. Wilson molested a 13-year-old student of his when he was a science teacher. It is reported that while the bio for Wilson on Gateway's page originally included the prison term, they since scrubbed it, because you know, Jesus. It is the last bastion of scoundrels to make generalizations and pawn it off to other people. The only predator here was Robert Morris, not Valentina Hansen. Do not lose sight of the fact that Ms. Hansen is a law enforcement professional, not the elders of Gateway.

'In the recording, Hansen told Tenney she comes to church to worship and volunteers to serve people, but if she sees injustice, she believes she should speak up about it in a "professional" way that states facts. TRR reached out to both Tenney and Hunt for comment through their Gateway phone numbers, but didn't receive a response. A week later, Hansen posted that Gateway had changed her volunteering duties from interacting with the public to an upstairs and more out-of-the-way location in the church that is "away from my community." "I believe this decision contradicts biblical principles (Leviticus 19:15, Isaiah 1:17) and undermines the church's commitment to transparency and accountability (Matthew 25:21, 1 Corinthians 3:11)," Hansen wrote. Hansen continued to post generous amounts of research into the church's finances, calling into question Morris's ownership of a mansion, the church's financial transparency, and the church's compliance with mandatory reporting laws. On July 6, Hansen upped the ante by saying she has requested the Texas attorney general's office, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Internal Revenue Service, and the Texas Department of Family and Protection Services to investigate Gateway, its elders, and Morris. "Based on my research and credible sources, I have reasonable cause to believe that the church's financial bookkeeping may reveal: - Misappropriation of funds - Mishandling of local and international funds, outreach, and donations - Failure to report child sexual abuse to authorities," Hansen posted on Facebook.

Then Hansen posted that she - along with church member Katherine Leach - met with Gateway elder Tra Willbanks and Gateway Pastor Lorena Valle on Aug. 22 about these concerns. At that meeting, Hansen said she asked about the church's finances and the church's care of Morris's alleged victim Cindy Clemishire, now 54. Leach, who confirmed Hansen's recollection of the meeting, called Hansen's questions "direct" but "professional." TRR reached out to Willbanks and Valle for comment, but they didn't respond. Hansen posted on Aug. 27 that after the meeting, Valle blocked her on Facebook." - Roys Report

This is what cults do. Hansen served as an usher but because she was being too frisky about everything that might have been wrong or potentially illegal at Gateway, they switched her ministry assignment so she could not interact with others and then eventually kicked her out and threatened her. Again, this is supposed to be a church. Was Hansen's actions of asking for an investigation somehow out of bounds? It does not appear so, especially when we remember that it falls within her professional work. Even if they felt it was wrong, the reaction is to ghost her on Facebook? What are we, children? Notice also that at every turn, the elders refuse to respond to any outside questions. Not a good sign if you are innocent.

'On Sept.6, two days after her announcement about the investigative reporter, Hansen posted she got an email from Gateway's elders to tell her she could no longer be a member or volunteer.

"Despite our sincere attempts to walk with you down the path towards understanding and reconciliation, the Board believes that you have violated Biblical requirements by continuing to sow discord and conflict," the elders wrote in a letter to Hansen. The elders wrote that the decision was "difficult." "Bearing in mind the wisdom of Titus 3:10 and pursuant to our roles as the highest ecclesiastical authority of Gateway Church as set forth in the Church's Bylaws, it is with heavy hearts that we accordingly now inform you that we believe it is necessary to make the difficult decision to dismiss you from our church membership volunteer services at this time," the elders wrote. But the letter didn't say Hansen couldn't continue to attend services.

In response, Hansen wrote to the elders that she was given no prior warning or chance for correction before they revoked her membership. "This is in direct contradiction to the principles outlined in Titus 3:10, which emphasizes the importance of addressing divisive behavior through direct conversations and warnings," Hansen wrote." - Roys Report

First of all, the arrogance is staggering. Sincere attempts to walk with you down the path of understanding and reconciliation? Once again, who do these hirelings think they are? Understanding what? How you continue to cover up the scandal? Reconciliation for what? What exactly does Valentina Hansen need reconciliation for? She did not molest little girls - that was the pastor that this board supported. Now, I do not expect people as poorly taught as the elders of Gateway to properly handle the word of truth so let's examine Titus 3:10 in the correct context as the key verses for today. The bible teaches is in Romans that division enters the body of Christ through false doctrine, not calls for transparency. Gateway thus, was always divided because their pastor, who regularly lied about tithing and other false teachings, based his entire ministry upon the lies of his criminal activity when he was younger. That matters beloved. There was no heaviness of heart on their part. If there were, they would not have called the local police and had armed guards blocking her from entering the church. They are quick to quote Titus 3:10 because they assume their followers are too stupid to discern properly by checking the context. Realize they are calling Valentina Hansen; sheep, churchgoer, volunteer usher, and tithing church member - warped and sinful. Not the child molesting pastor they supported for decades. Not the wolf who fleeced their flock for 100 million dollars. Not the liar who tried to say molesting a 12-year-old was just an inappropriate relationship with a young lady. No, instead it is Ms. Hansen who is warped and sinful. Then we wonder why 40 million people have left the church in the last 25 years. The context of the key verses however starts with talking about us devoting ourselves to good works. I understand that the elders at Gateway might be embarrassed at the truth and maybe convinced themselves that secrecy is somehow protecting the church but it is not. It is excellent and profitable for us to avoid foolish controversies for they are unprofitable and worthless. The foolish controversy here is not Valentina Hansen's. It is Robert Morris'. He is the warped and sinful person that is self-condemned. He stirred up this controversy. He stirred up this dissension. The elders using Titus 3:10 shows they do not have the first clue how to handle scripture correctly. Dissension among the brethren is not asking for a proper investigation when your pastor has been busted for molesting little girls. I might add here how embarrassing it is that this sheep has a better grasp on the verses they cite. Clearly, Titus says two warnings and they gave her none. Instead, they cancelled her membership, cancelled her from entering the church and tried to set her up to be arrested. Hallelujah.

'Hansen posted an email she wrote to Gateway leaders requesting a copy of the church's bylaws, but told TRR the church hasn't responded. TRR also requested a copy of the bylaws from the church, with no response. Additionally, Leach, the member who along with Hansen met with Gateway leaders in August, asked Gateway Church on Sept. 9 to return her tithe money, pointing to Gateway's lack of integrity in handling the abuse scandal. "God's reputation"his good reputation"is everything to me," Leach told TRR. "When there's a question surrounding transparency or accountability, abuse, things like that, that's where I get really concerned."

Leach said she believes Hansen's membership removal was retaliatory. "The only threat that Valentina Hansen poses to Gateway Church is she asks questions that they don't like being asked," Leach said. "That is not God's heart. . . . He is not pleased with that kind of behavior."

Over the past few months, Hansen has also spoken to news media about her concerns of how Gateway is responding to the scandal. She also attended a protest in support of Clemishire. She publicly supported Leach in requesting a return of Leach's tithes. On Facebook, Leach posted videos from 2012, 2014, and 2022, of Morris promising to return people's tithe money if they're not "fully satisfied" at the end of the year. Leach told TRR that Gateway has not responded to her request. "I'm a voice for all of those who are currently being abused that feel silent," Hansen told TRR. "I'm a voice for all of those survivors who still don't understand the magnitude of abuse that they've gone through because their mind hasn't allowed them to understand that it was abuse similar to Cindy Clemishire. And I'm a voice for those who do realize the abuse that they've endured but aren't comfortable being vocal about it."' - Roys Report

Good for you Valentina Hansen! All of the tithes were procured under false teaching by a man who was lying the whole time. They should refund all of the money and if not, she should sue, since this is not part of the body of Christ. How ironic that they can use Morris' own inane teaching about guaranteeing a refund against them now. Hansen and Leach are correct here. This false church has not behaved honorably and continues to damage the good reputation of God. It sure seems that they have only dealt with Ms. Hansen from a purely retaliatory standpoint. They have punished her, marginalized her, openly admitted to accepting gossip about her, and threatened her. For the last time, remember this is supposed to be a church! Gateway has always been a bastion of abusive and false teaching. God is cleaning out the apostate church and Robert Morris is just one in a long line of wolves running cult of personality mega churches devoid of the spirit of God. This story reeks of carnal, punitive retaliation against someone who was not just a fly by night congregant but someone who was all in. A tither. A volunteer usher. Heck, she was still willing to come to service even after they treated her so badly. The big bad fake elders of Gateway Church however were apparently too scared of Valentina Hansen, so they kicked her out and threatened to prosecute her. That is horrific enough but they did so based upon a verse they clearly know nothing about. Valentina, you are not alone in this. If you are reading what happened to Ms. Hansen and are still at Gateway, you need to leave now before they escort you out at gunpoint while the Sherrif waits for you outside.

In Jesus name of course.

Reverend Anthony Wade - September 24, 2024

Authors Bio:
Credentialed Minister of the Gospel for the Assemblies of God. Owner and founder of 828 ministries. Vice President for Goodwill Industries. Always remember that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose.