ya know, hundreds of people witnessed him alive after his crucifixion.
Ohio pastor charged for housing the homeless
- Thread starter Neuromancer
- Start date
ya know, hundreds of people witnessed him alive after his crucifixion.
Elim Garak
Veteran
fukking ridiculous.
This is fukking wack, I’m sorry.
But man, does this country let you get away doing the WRONG, harmful things and hurting other people.
They’re using our tax money to prosecute and build a case against this guy by the way.
This is who they’re going after?
If they don’t like you or what you’re doing they can get/ding you for the most minuscule shyt.
fukk this system.
But man, does this country let you get away doing the WRONG, harmful things and hurting other people.
They’re using our tax money to prosecute and build a case against this guy by the way.
This is who they’re going after?
If they don’t like you or what you’re doing they can get/ding you for the most minuscule shyt.
fukk this system.
Last edited:
southpawstyle
Superstar
My Mom and Dad used to take me every weekend to feed the homeless chili dogs and root beer floats outside the rescue mission and talk to them about god. The cops shut us down after a couple years.
My parents ended up renting a couple mobile homes and set up some of the guys who were trustworthy and really trying to get on their feet.
It was crazy the protection we had in Santa Ana for doing that. I was 7-8 years old walking by myself around at least 100 dudes asking if I could talk to them about the word. The dudes who ran the street (sold dope) always said we had nothing to worry about. Shout out Mom who was one of the realest Christians I ever knew. I miss her every day
My parents ended up renting a couple mobile homes and set up some of the guys who were trustworthy and really trying to get on their feet.
It was crazy the protection we had in Santa Ana for doing that. I was 7-8 years old walking by myself around at least 100 dudes asking if I could talk to them about the word. The dudes who ran the street (sold dope) always said we had nothing to worry about. Shout out Mom who was one of the realest Christians I ever knew. I miss her every day
↓R↑LYB
I trained Sheng Long and Shonuff
Like I said breh, people don’t rise from the dead.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/ohio-city-targets-pastor-who-helped-homeless-stay-warm-in-freezing-weather-whats-the-crime/ar-BB1gZ6oz
The Columbus Dispatch
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While our society leaves far too many out in the cold, Rev. Chris Avell of Dad's Place in tiny Bryan, Ohio in 53 miles southwest of Toledo finds himself in legal hot water.
The pastor's supposed crime: taking in the homeless.
Avell is accused of violating the law when he opened the doors to his church 24 hours a day for those who need a place to escape the elements.
That he was arraigned Jan. 11— Avell plead not guilty — on 18 zoning violations speaks volumes about adhering to policies even when doing so is utterly ridiculous and harmful.
It speaks even more about our collective neglect of the needy. That very thing was on my mind as I laid warm in my bed thinking about the case as temperatures outside dropped below freezing on a recent night.
This weekend's temperatures in Columbus are expected to be below freezing again. Many of this city's homeless residents will be in shelters. Many will be left out in the cold.
What Avell did seemed a humane no-brainer.
The people needed shelter.
Despite being warned to stop in November, the pastor kept providing that shelter even though his church was not zoned to do what churches do — feed and house those in need.
Dec 21, 2023; Columbus, Ohio: A man lights a candle for a participant in the Columbus Coalition For the Homeless 20th Annual Memorial Service for the 94 homeless people who died in Columbus in 2023. The service was held at Trinity Episcopal Church Downtown.© Doral Chenoweth, Doral Chenoweth-The Columbus Dispatch
Between 2022 and 2023, the number of homeless people in the nation increased by 12%, according to the Department of Housing and Urban Development's annual Homelessness Assessment Report to Congress.
Nearly 11,386 Ohioans experienced homelessness — sheltered and unsheltered — on a single night in January 2023, according to that assessment.
Where's the compassion? As folks freeze to death in Milwaukee, Ohio pastor charged for offering shelter
The Community Shelter Board counted 2,337 people designated as unhoused right here in central Ohio during the Jan. 25, 2023 "point-in-time" count.
I thought about those struggling to find safe housing in Columbus when I read the inhumane rationale from Bryan city officials for the charges against Avell: the city's engineer received complaints about people living in the church which in zoned for business, a designation that prohibits residential usage on the first floor.
Like those housed in Avell's church, that man needed somewhere to go. The only place he had was a dumpster.
We have got to do better.
A Milwaukee Journal Sentinel column I read about Avell reminds me of what Jesse Vogel, a fellow at The Legal Aid Society of Columbus, recently wrote in his Dispatch opinion guest column about a father he encountered at a legal clinic for former Colonial Village Apartment residents.
An unlicensed property manager at that 508-unit apartment complex on Columbus’ East Side rented to people despite being rooms being boarded up and having no heat.
Why would anyone stay in conditions like that?
“Where else could we go?” the father, a Haitian immigrant, told Vogel.
In a Dec. 13 letter, Bryan police Chief Gregory E. Ruskey cited case law that backed up the charges Avell faces.
The law might be on the side of the city, but that does not mean much to those who find themselves struggling to find shelter even if it is not ideal, safe or warm.
What Avell did was not perfect, but he did something. How many of us can say the same?
The long arm on the law came down on him for doing what we as a society should do: providing a place for those among us who struggle.
"No one wants to stay in a church, but they have nowhere else to go," Avell told Fox News two weeks ago. "Many of these people, they been rejected by their families, they've been casted aside by their communities. If the church is not willing to lay down her life for them, who will?"
The counts Avell faces disregard a few facts.
The unhoused need somewhere to go. Being homeless is not a crime. Helping the homeless should not be a crime.
The real crime is that we do not do nearly enough to help those in need.
For this, society is the one who deserves a day in court.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio city targets pastor who helped homeless stay warm in freezing weather. What's the crime?
The Columbus Dispatch
Follow
Ohio city targets pastor who helped homeless stay warm in freezing weather. What's the crime?
Opinion by Amelia Robinson, Columbus Dispatch • 2dWhile our society leaves far too many out in the cold, Rev. Chris Avell of Dad's Place in tiny Bryan, Ohio in 53 miles southwest of Toledo finds himself in legal hot water.
The pastor's supposed crime: taking in the homeless.
Avell is accused of violating the law when he opened the doors to his church 24 hours a day for those who need a place to escape the elements.
That he was arraigned Jan. 11— Avell plead not guilty — on 18 zoning violations speaks volumes about adhering to policies even when doing so is utterly ridiculous and harmful.
It speaks even more about our collective neglect of the needy. That very thing was on my mind as I laid warm in my bed thinking about the case as temperatures outside dropped below freezing on a recent night.
This weekend's temperatures in Columbus are expected to be below freezing again. Many of this city's homeless residents will be in shelters. Many will be left out in the cold.
What Avell did seemed a humane no-brainer.
The people needed shelter.
Despite being warned to stop in November, the pastor kept providing that shelter even though his church was not zoned to do what churches do — feed and house those in need.
Thousands of Ohioans are in need of shelter every day
Dec 21, 2023; Columbus, Ohio: A man lights a candle for a participant in the Columbus Coalition For the Homeless 20th Annual Memorial Service for the 94 homeless people who died in Columbus in 2023. The service was held at Trinity Episcopal Church Downtown.© Doral Chenoweth, Doral Chenoweth-The Columbus Dispatch
Between 2022 and 2023, the number of homeless people in the nation increased by 12%, according to the Department of Housing and Urban Development's annual Homelessness Assessment Report to Congress.
Nearly 11,386 Ohioans experienced homelessness — sheltered and unsheltered — on a single night in January 2023, according to that assessment.
Where's the compassion? As folks freeze to death in Milwaukee, Ohio pastor charged for offering shelter
The Community Shelter Board counted 2,337 people designated as unhoused right here in central Ohio during the Jan. 25, 2023 "point-in-time" count.
I thought about those struggling to find safe housing in Columbus when I read the inhumane rationale from Bryan city officials for the charges against Avell: the city's engineer received complaints about people living in the church which in zoned for business, a designation that prohibits residential usage on the first floor.
'The only place he had was a dumpster'
I thought about a homeless man I wrote about years ago. He climbed in a dumpster to stay warm one cold winter night and was crushed to death the next morning by a garbage collector who did not realize he was in there.Like those housed in Avell's church, that man needed somewhere to go. The only place he had was a dumpster.
We have got to do better.
A Milwaukee Journal Sentinel column I read about Avell reminds me of what Jesse Vogel, a fellow at The Legal Aid Society of Columbus, recently wrote in his Dispatch opinion guest column about a father he encountered at a legal clinic for former Colonial Village Apartment residents.
An unlicensed property manager at that 508-unit apartment complex on Columbus’ East Side rented to people despite being rooms being boarded up and having no heat.
Why would anyone stay in conditions like that?
“Where else could we go?” the father, a Haitian immigrant, told Vogel.
In a Dec. 13 letter, Bryan police Chief Gregory E. Ruskey cited case law that backed up the charges Avell faces.
The law might be on the side of the city, but that does not mean much to those who find themselves struggling to find shelter even if it is not ideal, safe or warm.
What Avell did was not perfect, but he did something. How many of us can say the same?
The long arm on the law came down on him for doing what we as a society should do: providing a place for those among us who struggle.
"No one wants to stay in a church, but they have nowhere else to go," Avell told Fox News two weeks ago. "Many of these people, they been rejected by their families, they've been casted aside by their communities. If the church is not willing to lay down her life for them, who will?"
The counts Avell faces disregard a few facts.
The unhoused need somewhere to go. Being homeless is not a crime. Helping the homeless should not be a crime.
The real crime is that we do not do nearly enough to help those in need.
For this, society is the one who deserves a day in court.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio city targets pastor who helped homeless stay warm in freezing weather. What's the crime?
Pastor faces charges for keeping church doors open to help homeless
The Ohio church is located next door to a county homeless shelter but often takes in those the shelter cannot help.
www.wbtv.com
Pastor faces charges for keeping church doors open to help homeless
Dad’s Place opened its doors 24 hours a day last March to anyone in need of a place to rest or get out of the cold. (Source: WTVG)By JD Pooley and Gray News staff
Published: Jan. 19, 2024 at 9:00 AM EST
BRYAN, Ohio ( WTVG/Gray News) - A pastor has pleaded not guilty during an arraignment in municipal court in Bryan, Ohio, after opening the doors to his church 24 hours a day last March to anyone in need of a place to rest or get out of the cold.
Pastor Chris Avell of Dad’s Place faces numerous zoning code violations.
“We’ll see, but I’m just, I’m praising God that at least as of now if I’m understanding correctly, the people can stay,” Avell said Jan. 11 while standing next to his attorney outside of the courtroom.
The church is located next door to a county homeless shelter but often takes in those the shelter cannot help.
“We’re disappointed with the city that they would take that extra measure,” said Jeremy Dys, the attorney representing Avell. “There are multiple attorneys on this case. Mayor (Carrie) Schlade and anyone from the city could have come and talked to any of us at any time.”
A reporter’s call to the mayor was not returned.
Last November, Avell said the Bryan City Zoning Commission told him Dad’s Place, which does not have bedrooms, could no longer house the homeless.
A court filing states the building is zoned as Central Business, and people are not allowed to eat, wash clothes or sleep on the property.
In a statement released in December, the chief of Bryan Police said in part: “A reasonable amount of time was given for both the tenant and property owner to fix the issues. Due to the safety of all involved, the city moved forward with filing charges.”
Avell said he will continue to keep his church doors open throughout the winter.
“So, my concern would be, ‘Hey, let’s make sure we’re representing Christ well in all of this.’ We’re a church, you know. This is what we do,” Avell said.
The visiting judge ordered that another hearing is to be scheduled within 30-45 days.
Copyright 2024 WTVG via Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
