News Sports Opinion Obituaries Business

Entertainment Lifestyle Classifieds Calendar

Follow Us

SubscribeMenu Search Log in

Buy Photo

(http://dailyherald.mycapture.com/mycapture/remoteimage.asp?backtext=Click%20here%20to%20return%20to%20story%20&backurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.dailyhe

Updated

11/28/2018 7:05AM

News »

Harvest BibleChapel sues critics,accusing them ofdefamation

Pastor James MacDonald at the HarvestBible Chapel in Elgin.( Bev Horne | Staff Photographer )

Show photos

Show photos

Show photos

A suburban megachurch, fed up with criticism from

Susan Sarkauskas

Follow 823 followers

Suburban Chicago's Information Source

rald.com%2Farticle%2F20181120%2Fnews%2F181129284%2F&thumbpath=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.dailyherald.com%2Fstoryimage%2FDA%2F20181120%2FNEWS%2F181129284%2FAR%2F0%2FAR-181129284.jpg%26updated%3D201811280705%26amp%3Bmaxw%3D300%26amp%3Bmaxh%3D300&previewpath=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.dailyherald.com%2Fstoryimage%2FDA%2F20181120%2FNEWS%2F181129284%2FAR%2F0%2FAR-181129284.jpg%26updated%3D201811280705%26amp%3Bmaxw%3D800%26amp%3Bmaxh%3D800&pricingsheetid=1690&photographerid=0&affphotographerid=1&affphotographername=Be

several former members, is suing them, accusing them ofdefamation.

And it is using the Illinois Deceptive Trade Practices Actto do so.

Harvest Bible Chapel(http://www.harvestbiblechapel.org/campus/naples/)and its founder and senior pastor, James S. MacDonald,filed the suit Oct. 17 in Cook County circuit court.

The suit names Ryan and Melinda Mahoney of Wheaton,Scott and Sarah Bryant of Geneva and Julie Roys ofCarol Stream as defendants. Former church membersRyan Mahoney and Scott Bryant run the website TheElephant's Debt (https://theelephantsdebt.com/), whichincludes articles about Harvest Bible Chapel.

Melinda Mahoney and Sarah Bryant are named ashaving provided material support for The Elephant'sDebt. Roys is a religion writer, speaker and blogger andwas a show host on radio station WMBI, run by MoodyBible Institute.

The Elephant's Debt has been critical of the church'sfinances and borrowing; changes to the governingstructure of the church, including how much authorityrests with MacDonald; and the excommunication ofthree elders, among other topics.

MacDonald founded Harvest Bible in Rolling Meadowsin 1988. It has campuses in Elgin, Aurora, Deerfield,Crystal Lake, Highland Park, Niles, Chicago and Naples,

v%20Horne%20%7C%20Staff%20Photographer&notes=)

Florida, and it has regular attendance of more than12,000 people weekly, the lawsuit states. It has alsohelped start about 150 other Harvest Bible Chapelsworldwide and owns a camp in Michigan. MacDonaldhas a daily television show on the Trinity BroadcastingNetwork and a show on WMBI.

In the lawsuit, the church accuses The Elephant's Debt ofconducting "an ongoing campaign of harassment" andpublishing defamatory statements that paint MacDonaldin a false light. The suit says the critics' publicationconstitutes "commercial disparagement."

"To fund the mission of the Church, Harvest must relyupon donations for the congregation and others, andwhile Harvest is a nonprofit entity, its 'business' is thepromotion of faith and spirituality and Defendants'actions and words threaten Harvest's ability to conductthe business of the church, and threaten its ability toraise the funds necessary to conduct that business," thelawsuit states.

The lawsuit says Ryan Mahoney was a former teacher atHarvest Christian Academy who was accused of"influencing" students to share his "cynical view ofHarvest and its culture." His contract was not renewedafter 2010, the lawsuit states. Scott Bryant was a churchmember, according to the lawsuit.

The lawsuit says Roys made false statements about thechurch and MacDonald in digital and written media.

MacDonald has published an essay in Christianity Today(https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2018/november-web-only/james-macdonald-harvest-bible-chapel-suing-our-critics-bibl.html) defending the decision to sue.According to a statement on the church website, theelders believe they are responsible for protecting themembers of the church from harm.

"We believe governmental authorities, whether criminalor civil, are His (God's) protection when those whooppose us are actually breaking the law," it says, citingthe Bible verse Romans 13:1-2.

Roys, the Mahoneys and the Bryants have declined tocomment on the advice of their attorneys.

A judge denied a temporary restraining order in lateOctober. The parties are due back in court Thursday.

In August, Harvest Bible Chapel sued the EvangelicalChristian Credit Union of California, saying it reneged ona promise to refinance five of the church's mortgages.The church said it had to start paying more interest onits mortgages after the credit union did not refinance.

The suit was filed in Kane County, but the credit union isasking a federal court judge to move the suit to anOrange County, California, court.

Related Coverage

Topics in this ArticleJames S. MacDonald, Harvest Bible Chapel, Cook County circuit,Julie Roys, Harvest Christian Academy, Scott Bryant, IllinoisDeceptive Trade Practices Act, Ryan Mahoney, Orange county,Kane county, Moody Bible Institute, Sarah Bryant, MelindaMahoney, Evangelical Christian Credit Union, Carol Stream,Crystal lake

Recommended For You

Wisconsin man indicted in death of Illinoistrooper Christopher LambertCook County prosecutors on Tuesdayannounced an indictment against theWisconsin man they say caused theJanuary accident on I-294 that claimed thelife of ...

O'Donnell: Will Duchossois retiring fromChurchill board push Arlington Park closerto tilt?THE FUTURE OF ARLINGTON PARKmoved closer to the brink of uncertaintyThursday with confirmation that DickDuchossois is retiring from the board ofdirectors of ...District 15 bus driver suspended after near-miss with bus carrying high schoolstudentsA Palatine Township Elementary District 15

bus driver received a five-day unpaidsuspension for veering off a thoroughfare ona yellow light and winding up in a ...Local talent have eyes on making CubsrosterAmong the veteran nonroster invitees toChicago Cubs spring training are fourplayers from the Chicago area looking foran opportunity to hook on with the ...

Boy, 17, to face murder charges in case of2 missing teensA prosecutor says a teenage boy will becharged with murder in connection with thedisappearance of two northwestern Indianateenagers....

Endorsements: Gustin, Hinterlong, Hansonand Kelly for Naperville councilNaperville voters will choose four citycouncil members on April 2 from a field of11 candidates that features Bradford Miller,Theresa Sullivan, Paul ...

Now that it's March, let's talk about ... morewinter?!?If nature was cooperating it should be in the40s, but snow is possible Sunday, the highis 11 degrees Monday, and the weekendlow will be around 0 degrees....

How an anti-inflammatory diet can helptame an autoimmune conditionA healthy immune system can plainlydistinguish between a foreign invader andits own body. This self-attack is anautoimmune condition....

Copyright © 2018 Paddock Publications, Inc., 155 E. Algonquin Rd, Arlington Heights

FacebookTwitterGoogle+PinterestLinkedInYouTube

Help & Info

Customer Services

Advertise

Subscribe

Privacy Policy

Terms of Service

About Us

Daily Herald Events

Daily Herald Media GroupNews

Jobs at Daily Herald

Newsletters

Share Article or Event

Back to Top▲