07/08/2026
WRITING PENTECOSTALS… AND EVERYONE ELSE… OUT OF CHRISTIANITY — This morning’s Baton Rouge Advocate contains a piece apparently designed to stimulate religious divisions and write many Pentecostals out of the Christian faith. It is also an ill-informed personal attack on Rev. Tony Spell of Life Tabernacle Church.
The headline is, “Spell’s Theology, Not Just Actions, Runs Counter to Historic Christianity.”
The reality is that Christians can and do have many deep divisions in their theology. That’s why there are so many denominations. If you can write a large portion of Pentecostals out of Christianity, you can just as easily make a case for writing virtually every other denomination out of Christianity as well.
Some of Christians’ views are completely incompatible with those of other Christian faiths. These divisions go to the heart of whether a person can get to heaven or be in fellowship with that faith. Does that mean they are not truly Christian?
Some examples of these divisions are:
• Whether the Bible is the inerrant Word of God
• Whether the sacraments are literally the body and blood of Jesus
• Whether mortal sins have to be confessed to a priest in order to receive forgiveness
• Whether a person has to baptized by total immersion
• Justification by faith, that is, whether a person is saved strictly by his acceptance of Jesus Christ
• Whether women can perform priestly duties
• Differing views on the End Times including the Millennium (1,000 year reign of Christ), and the Rapture (whether Christians will be taken up before or after the tribulation)
• Free will versus predestination
• Whether speaking in tongues is of God or of the devil
• Whether God is three persons or one God manifesting himself in three ways
These are just a few of the many ways various Christian faiths disagree with one another. The differences make it all very interesting and are the subject of unending debate.
Fortunately, Christians rarely attempt to marginize other Christian faiths and hold them up to contempt and ridicule. In America, we generally support one another and our right to believe what we believe. And we show respect for those beliefs, not contempt.
There is no question that much of the opposition to Rev. Tony Spell comes from religious bigotry. Some people just can’t stand that Pentecostals exist and worship as they do.
Yes, Rev. Spell was the preacher who stood almost alone (but with the support of his congregation) in keeping his church open during Covid. When others were afraid and said nothing, he said Gov. John Bel Edwards had no Constitutional authority to close churches to normal worship services. He pointed out that while the governor said his church could only have a maximum of 10 people in church, the governor was allowing the Neighborhood Walmart one mile away to have 1000 or more people in the store at any given time!
By the way, the media never seems to report the fact that on May 13, 2022, in the case of State of Louisiana v. Rev. Tony Spell, the Louisiana Supreme Court completely exonerated Rev. Spell and ruled that everything John Bel Edwards did to the pastor and his church was “illegal and unconstitutional.” Even the governor’s own attorney admitted under questioning before the Supreme Court that there was no constitutional way to ban churches while keeping Walmart open. Somehow, the media always leaves that out of their stories.
The media also conveniently leaves out of their stories the reason for the so-called “fight” on the morning of Tuesday, June 23, 2026. They make it appear that for some unknown reason the pastor started running across the road to beat up a poor innocent child. That is hardly what happened! The Sherwin house is directly across from the main entrance to the church, so that most people have to pass by their house going to and coming from the church. On that morning, the Sherwin’s 20 year-old full grown son did something he had done before. He threatened to r**e Pastor Spell‘s wife and r**e and murder the pastor‘s grandchildren. This was part of a long-running series of threats against not only the Spells, but against hundreds of members of the congregation. The Sherwin family had on over 1000 occasions shouted the N-word at Black members of the congregation, gave members the finger or grabbed their crotch, or threatened to r**e women and children on the buses as they come and go to church. In some cases, the Sherwin mother laid on her back and spread her legs. The endless brutal verbal abuse and threats of violence have been going on for six years. It has caused great anguish among members of the church. Little Black girls have been a particular target of the Sherwin’s abuse. And yes the Sherwin’s have been invited to church or witnessed to many times, only to curse out those who invited them.
On this occasion, the younger Sherwin shouted at the Pastor “I’m going to r**e your wife and when you’re out of town, I’m gonna r**e and kill your grandchildren! What the F are you going to do about it?”
The pastor went across the road to confront Sherwin. Sherwin threw the first three punches but the pastor got the best of him. Minutes later, the Central Police arrived and the pastor was arrested and charged with second-degree battery. He was released from parish prison later that day on a $25,000 bond. He could face up to eight years in prison as a result.
The video footage of the event was given to police by Scott Sherwin, the father who is shown in the photos, making crude gestures and hollering threats at church members. The video surveillance system in the Sherwin house was installed by the FBI in 2020 to surveil everything going on at the church. The camera that recorded the event runs 24 hours a day. However, the Sherwin’s have only released footage of the altercation and not what happened before, which would include the threats.
One of the amazing things about the past six years is that neither the Spell family nor the members of Life Tabernacle have done anything to justify this treatment. The congregation is simply holding church. On the other hand, the Sherwin’s have made a sustained, one-sided assault on religious liberty, and have directed racial hatred at the congregants, most of whom are black.
Since Covid, Life Tabernacle has baptized over 5000 people, which is more than some entire denominations in the state of Louisiana. They have been leading people to Jesus on a massive scale.
Today’s article in The Advocate sneeringly said “When he’s not fighting, Spell is running his church.” It was a dismissive statement. This seems devoid of any understanding of what that church actually does on a day-to-day basis. While people in Baton Rouge talk about high crime rates and the problems of the inner city, Life Tabernacle, Pastor Spell, and his wife are some of the few people actually doing something about it on a large scale. They have a ministry that is in the black areas of South Louisiana every Saturday and Sunday. They are not only inviting people to church and to be saved, but they are also tending to their physical needs on a large scale. Their bus ministry sends out 52 buses every Saturday to invite people to church and bring them to church. Children are fed a hot breakfast when they arrive and given a box lunch when they leave. Services are held every Sunday morning in seven different locations on the church campus. Sister Shaye keeps a closet at each location full of clothing and shoes for the women and children which they access free of charge as needed. The church also addresses the issues of homelessness, poverty, drug addiction, and alcohol abuse. The Safe and Sober Ministry meets every Saturday night for those fighting addiction. While some dismiss their work with sneers and derision, the reality is, they are making a huge difference in the Baton Rouge community and other areas of South Louisiana. Their contribution here outpaces the contribution of all their critics combined.
Pastor Spell is a man and as a man he is responsible for protecting his family. As a pastor, he is also responsible for protecting his church and his congregation. He has done a great job with that. That is undoubtably why the outpouring of support for him since June 23 is overwhelmingly positive.
The pastor is much like the American revolutionaries of old, who would not bow, bend or scr**e to oppression.
As Lincoln said, we will as a nation will live for 1000 years or die by su***de. Su***de comes about by division.
On that note, it may be important to know that at Life Tabernacle, Pastor Spell has no test of fellowship. Everyone is accepted and included. For example, he does funerals for all people, including people of other Christian faiths, Muslims, and atheists.
Those who say Pastor Spell is going to end up in prison are living in a dreamworld. People across the nation and here in Baton Rouge see through the media lies and one-sided reporting about Pastor Spell. For this particular incident, the chances of getting a conviction by a unanimous jury are very close to zero.
Across the globe, there are tens of millions of Pentecostals who share Pastor Spell’s beliefs. They are entitled to respect like everyone else in the Christian world.
PHOTOS: Scott Sherwin, the “neighbor” across the street from the entrance to Life Tabernacle Church, with his typical vile gestures at people going to and from church. He hollers insults such as F-you and the N-word, especially at black women and children, going and coming to the church. His 20 year-old adult son has repeatedly shouted that he will r**e and kill the women and children, especially the Pastor’s wife and his grandchildren. The video shows Sherman raising his shirt while his wife is laying on her back, spreading her legs toward the people coming and going to church. Some very sick people. This has been going on for six years week after week.
By Woody Jenkins, editor
St. George Leader
