Pastor Tom pissing people off at UNT.
"Pastor Tom" (Tom Short, born March 23, 1957) is an evangelist who comes to UNT regularly to tell everyone they're going to hell if they hate God. He resides in Columbus, Ohio, a husband and the father of five children. He travels around the country, annoying liberals who have chips on their shoulders.
Short is often confused for "Brother Jed," another campus preacher who frequents UNT, but who is much more confrontational and condemning in style. (See Video Link)
Alleged anecdotes about Pastor Tom
Once he argued with a gay trans guy, saying the aformentioned gentleman's daughter should be raised by a straight couple. Reportedly, Tom lost, and everyone laughed at him.
Once, in March 2011, a person named Quaz apparently got crunk on Pastor Tom's ass for three days, one of those days dressing as Jesus Christ in protest.
Once ... a liberal threw a rock at Tom when he was talking in a normal tone of voice about the differences between the Qur'an and the Bible.
History
Partisan & Pastor
Tom Short was ordained without a formal seminary education (which is not unusual) in the late 1970s by elders of The "Blitz" Movement at Solid Rock Church (now Linworth Road Church) in Columbus, Ohio. Missionaries of the movement at the time operated by filling buses with people, musical instruments, and tracts in order to execute a 2- or 3-day campus blitz. They used singing, intensive tract distribution, and organized sidewalk canvassing to draw impromptu crowds and to achieve saturation of the intellectual marketplace. By 1980, Short himself began preaching on campuses while stationed at a church in College Park, Maryland, becoming a fixture outside the Hornbake Library on the University of Maryland campus. The movement which was The Blitz finally established itself as "Great Commission International".
Throughout the 1980s, Tom Short preached on college campuses, while also helping to establish New Life Christian Students, a campus ministry run by members of Great Commission International.
In 1984, according to the Youngstown State University Jambar, Short told students that rock and roll music was "evil" and that listening to it was a "serious sin." He also stated that "If they, homosexuals, have donated any blood, the Red Cross should give it back. ... Homosexuals carry deadly diseases. They are common carriers of hepatitis and gonorrhea." A Red Cross official responded to his comments, saying that accusing all homosexuals of being responsible for AIDS was misleading. The official Red Cross website says "You should not give blood if you have AIDS or have ever had a positive HIV test, or if you have done something that puts you at risk for becoming infected with HIV." The website goes on to say that "you are at risk for getting infected if you are a male who has had sexual contact with another male, even once, since 1977" as well as several other groups, including those that "have ever taken money, drugs or other payment for sex since 1977" which does not specify hetero- or homosexual sex. Heterosexual sex can lead to infection as well, but with a much less amount of statistical risk.[citation needed] Short responded to outrage over several of his comments, replying that he didn't think he insulted students, but rather, "Most of these people are wrong, and they need to be told so." He also said, "I’m not shocked when someone yells something filthy at me. They do it because they hate God."
In 1985, Short's ministry was criticized when campus religious leaders at the Towson State University became concerned over reports of GCI's 'mind control' techniques and fundamentalist ties. Short's ministry in particular was criticized by Father Bob Albright, Towson University's Catholic Campus minister, who stated:
"All religious groups are set up to minister to humanity and not the other way around. Yet from our observations about New Life, they came to this campus seeking people to fill their ranks. … He [Tom Short] was referring to girls as sluts and whores and he presumed every guy to be drinking and sleeping around … We've invited New Life to meet with the campus ministry staff and they've never accepted. If someone is Christian and they don't want to be involved, that leaves a question in your mind."
According to the Towerlight, Short had established New Life in 1982.
In 1986, Short commented on a "shouting match", where Republicans, Democrats, and the local chapter of the (pre-Scientology) Cult Awareness Network united against an apparent attempt by Great Commission International to strategically enter the political arena. At a Montgomery County bi-partisan press conference, Tom Short responded by saying he believed his church had been unfairly "labeled as a cult by innuendo..." CAN had classified GCI as a shepherding cult based on criteria including procedures, use of mind control and thought-stopping techniques, and the degree of member consent; they said that "Great Commission discouraged its members from listening to outside criticism... [and members were] being manipulated into a deepening commitment to the church and of turning control of their lives over to church leaders ..."
GCC official history tells that at Short's initial urging they drafted the 1991 Apology, a response by a newly organized Great Commission Association to concerns about abuse within GCI. In a thirteen-page letter written by GCA Secretary David Bovenmyer, the movement admitted "authoritarian and insensitive leadership," "improper response to criticism," "lack of emphasis on formal education," "excessive and unbiblical church discipline" and "treating dating as a sin." In this letter GCC addresses each of the issues and presents what it considers solutions for the admitted errors. Great Commission continued for a short time to be scrutinized by CAN, the Council on Mind Abuse (COMA) in Toronto and the American Family Foundation; however the CAN and COMA shut down in the 1990s. Short briefly served as pastor of Woodstock Community Church in Roswell, Georgia in 1990 while conducting services in the Roswell Holiday Inn, and then moved to San Diego to pastor MountainView Community Church.
Return to Campus
In 1996, he resigned as a full-time pastor and dedicated himself to the traveling ministry. Short's approach to preaching has continued to be a source of controversy. Rick Whitney, an ardent supporter of Short, and Regional Director within Great Commission said, "It's a public forum; it's a free speech issue, some people don't like the way Short presents his ideas." Observers note that Short makes no purposeful effort to cause offense, though that is often the result of his controversial views. Short himself says, "I realize when I come on campuses that I am presenting truths that are unpopular and do challenge commonly held beliefs in the university, so I realize some people will react to that, it is not my goal to upset people, but if a person hears God's truth and won't turn to it, it will be upsetting. We see that throughout the entire Bible where people are being persecuted for standing up for God and for truth."
Speaking loudly to gather the crowd, he points out that morality and issues of sexuality generally get the most attention. "You've eaten of the same tree Eve ate of, the same tree Hitler ate of," Short said at the University of North Texas. "And that's got us on the highway to hell."
One hot topic of debate that recurs in most of Short's messages: homosexuality. "I love homosexuals," Short declared in 2005, claiming that he and his wife Rosalyn have counseled 15 homosexuals to a successful heterosexual lifestyles with their love and prayer. He stated to the UCM Maneater in 1997, "Over the years, I have led many homosexuals to Christ. Often, I am the first one who's told them there is a way out of homosexuality and that is through Christ." At that time he had claimed to have led at least 20 people away from homosexuality. "I think God loves everybody, but he doesn't condone what they do," he said.
Short's website, "The Short Report," has been on the web since at least late 1999 with news relevant to Christian issues and a FAQ demonstrating his biblical views; it details upcoming dates and other ministry information. In 2001, Premier Publishing Company printed Short's 5 Crucial Questions About Christianity.
In 2004, Tom Short spoke in a non-debate forum aside Jamal Badawi, a renowned Islamic scholar at Iowa State University. The two featured speakers presented their religions' view of Jesus and answered questions in the forum, co-sponsored by Islam on Campus and the local Great Commission Churches student group.
Comments
2011-03-04 15:58:27 Awesome article! —Users/AlexHanselka
2011-03-04 22:09:51 Unfortunately, the history section is verbatim from Wikipedia. If anyone has done original research on Tom, we welcome their contributions. —Users/AndrewBroz
