Sep-Oct, Year of Our Lord, 1993
Number 935
It is a battle of
jurisdiction. They are afraid that if they let one man out,
everybody will go with him - and they are right.
Paul Revere, Pastor
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FEDERAL MARSHALS INVADE EMBASSY USING AUTOMATIC WEAPONS TO SERVE WARRANTS FOR ALLEGED TRAFFIC VIOLATIONS. |
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 See articles inside. |
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May the Grace and Peace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. During the last two months, millions of people have heard the Great Message that the Kingdom of Heaven is NOW. Right now, God is moving across the land using the world's newspapers and radio and television stations as a vehicle to proclaim His Kingdom. The Embassy of Heaven has been in the news from coast to coast. We've reprinted some of the stories in this issue.
The publicity began when our ambassador in Florida, James Kelly, was thrown in jail and the "HEAVEN" vehicle impounded. The media caught the story and it appeared on TV and newspapers as far north as Canada.
For the last two months we have spoken on dozens of radio talk shows. Some call just to mock us. One host asked, "I'm just curious, since you're from Heaven, what kind of car does God drive?"
Another host from Fort Meyers, Florida said, "I am fascinated by all of this and I hope you pick up on the fact that I am not making fun or mocking you." After we talked for 40 minutes, I offered Him the peace of Christ. He confessed that he was going through some trying times and asked for our help and prayers.
A couple weeks after James Kelly was arrested, a Seattle Police Captain ordered the seizure of all "HEAVEN" plates. This caused an outpouring of TV, radio and newspaper articles debating about Heaven's authority to issue driver licenses. KATU channel 2 evening news in Portland did a five-minute spot where the reporter actually put "HEAVEN" plates on her vehicle and showed off her complimentary "HEAVEN" driver license. Evening Magazine, a television program originating in Seattle, also did a feature story showing that "where man's law collides with God's law, the fallout is sure to be great."
Less than two weeks after these major stories appeared, Marion County Deputies, City of Stayton police and U.S. Marshals stormed the Embassy of Heaven with automatic weapons. Their cause? To serve arrest warrants on minor traffic offenses. No one was hurt and no property of any significance was confiscated. One of our ambassadors, Michael Stevens, was arrested and is still in custody as of August 26th. The raid focused even more media attention on us. Through good report and bad report, Christ's Kingdom is being preached.
Our last retreat for the year is just around the corner. It starts on Thursday afternoon, September 16th and ends Sunday afternoon, September 19th. We will be showing video clips from TV broadcasts in Florida, Seattle and Portland and some exciting new revelations on "What is Caesar." Hope you can be with us.
Paul Revere, Pastor
One of our ambassadors in Tennessee saw this story while browsing through the National Examiner at a supermarket checkout line:
ROAD TO HEAVEN IS PAVED WITH TICKETS
A MOTORIST caught hell when police spotted a license plate from heaven on his car.
James Kelly was charged with driving a vehicle with an unassigned tag and resisting arrest without violence. He was jailed and his auto impounded.
The divine driver had to post $750 bail to get out of jail.
Through it all, Kelly maintained that he is a citizen of the Kingdom of Heaven, and that he had documentation to prove it.
In fact, the 47-year-old man showed the policeman a vehicle registration card and driver's license - issued by the Embassy of Heaven Church in Sublimity, Oregon.
The stage for a clash of earthly and heavenly authority was set when a policeman in Largo, Florida, spotted the word "HEAVEN" in bold letters above the numbers on the metal license plate of a 1978 Ford.
The officer stopped the car. But Kelly refused to answer questions, telling the officer: "I answer to a higher authority." The policeman took a dim view of Kelly's position, so he jailed him.
Kelly now claims his rights were violated when he was arrested and jailed. And he has given the city notice he intends to file a federal lawsuit seeking more than $150,000 in damages.
August 10, 1993/NATIONAL EXAMINER/Page 9
During a NEWSWATCH-8 TV broadcast of this story from Tampa - St. Petersburg, Florida on July 9, 1993, the reporter said, "While Kelly may answer to a higher authority when it comes to hitting the road, when it comes to his civil rights, Kelly is appealing to mere mortals. He plans on filing a federal lawsuit against the city of Largo."
The Anchorwoman concluded, "Kelly belongs to the Embassy of Heaven Church in Sublimity, Oregon. The church's pastor says Kelly shouldn't sue because the local and federal authorities have no jurisdiction in the matter. It belongs to the highest authority."
By Michael A. Barber, Seattle Post-Intelligencer, July 21, 1993, Section B, Page 1
Heavens!
License plates purporting to be from the hereafter have been popping up around town, but Seattle police aren't exactly getting into the spirit.
In fact, police have been directed to find the realistic metal plates, complete with numbers, that bear "Heaven" where a state's name should be, seize the plates and ticket the cars.
A memo yesterday from Capt. John Moffat, traffic section commander, said a police investigation showed that the plates come from the Embassy of Heaven Church in Sublimity, Ore. The church claims, Moffat said, that it has the authority to issue license plates and drivers' licenses.
Church Pastor Paul Revere said last night that the plates are "absolutely 100 percent valid. This is the Kingdom of Heaven, Nation of God, and all these documents are done in His authority.
"(Police) cannot declare that our plates are worthless because they are not representatives of our government," Revere said.
Revere said he was contacted by the Washington State Patrol about the plates and promised to send a detective a copy of heaven's motor vehicle code.
Patrol officers said they have been seeing the plates for about a year now. On Monday, police removed them from the front and rear of a car parked in the 400 block of Yesler Way. Police, of course, couldn't trace the plates, but neither could they find the owner nor trace the vehicle identification number of the car.
"Baptists, Methodists and everyone else has to get regular license plates," said a patrol officer who declined to be named.
What's a problem for police is that the plates are so realistic. They are metal and have numbers and a small tab affixed to them that looks like a validation tab.
"It's easier to detect a vehicle with no plates on it," said Lt. Steve Brown, of the traffic section.
Although the church claims otherwise, police are sworn to uphold state and local laws and don't recognize heaven's authority to issue license plates.
Moffat directed his officers to seize the plates from parked cars and ticket them for having improper or expired plates - a $24 fine. Moving cars get a $47 fine and seizure of plates.
"The Embassy of Heaven driver's license is, of course, worthless," Moffat informed his troops. "Do not engage in debate with the violators. License violations are status matters. They either have valid plates or not."
Police don't always have to play devil's advocate, however. When valid plates are used, their heavenly counterparts can appear as decorative plates, Moffat wrote.
Notice in the above article that the police are being directed not to "engage in debate with the violators." In several recent stops in the Seattle area, police have heard the gospel of the Kingdom and have not cited our ambassadors.
The police captain said, "License violations are status matters. They either have valid plates or not." What he means is that if you are a state resident, "HEAVEN" plates are not valid. But if you are a resident of "HEAVEN," then Washington state plates are not valid. It all boils down to your status.
Sublimity family wants to serve faith
By Mandy Baucum
The Statesman Journal, Salem, Oregon, July 22, 1993
Freedom to serve the kingdom of God is all a Sublimity pastor and his family say they want.
When their Embassy of Heaven Church began producing license plates without state authorization, they said their only intent was to declare allegiance to God.
"We are not citizens of the kingdom of the world. Our citizenship is in heaven," Pastor Paul Revere said.
He said that even his name was given to him by God.
Revere's wife, Rachel, said the idea for the license plates originated about five years ago when she and her two children were witnessing to their faith in Mount Angel and were stopped by police for having no license plates.
She said she did not have plates on her car because their church does not accept earthly government.
"We do not vote or participate in the courts or take money from the government," she said. "We remain separate."
The police officer told Rachel Revere that he had to pull over cars without license plates. He asked whether she could get some kind of identification for her car.
That question prompted the Embassy church, which circulates a newsletter to about 1,000 members nationwide, to begin silkscreening the word heaven onto manufactured plates.
Local and state officials, however, say the church has no authority to issue license plates or similar legal devices and documents.
Rachel Revere said that although church members continue to be cited for using the plates on their cars, they have no intention of filing lawsuits against police.
"That wouldn't be loving to our neighbor," she said.
The following feature article, complete with 5 color pictures, appeared in the Sunday Oregonian, the largest newspaper in the Northwest, claiming a readership of over 800,000.
The Sunday Oregonian, July 25, 1993, Northwest Living
MEMBERS OF THE EMBASSY OF HEAVEN CHURCH FOLLOW 'GOD'S LAW,' NOT THE STATE'S
Repent ye, for the Kingdom of heaven is at hand. Matthew 3:2
By STEVE WOODWARD of The Oregonian staff
WHERE IS THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN?
ANSWER NO. 1: Drive out Oregon 22 past Sublimity, a dozen miles east
of Salem. You bump along a gravel road, leaving a plume of gray
dust to settle on the patchwork farms and forests that roll like
ocean swells toward the green crest of the Cascades. Then turn
left on a dirt driveway that slopes past a couple of parked RVs
and pickups with camper tops into a shady hollow of land by a
stream. There sit a large trampoline, a car, a pickup and a small
wooden building, marked with a sign: "Embassy of Heaven Church.
'Where the spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.' II
Corinthians 3:17."
There's something else - the vehicle license plates. They say "Heaven."
WHERE IS THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN?
ANSWER NO. 2: "It lies in here," says Pastor Paul Revere, touching his thin, brown-and-white print shirt where his heart is. "It lies in here."
Welcome to Heaven - or at least its administrative headquarters.
This is the Embassy of Heaven Church, a lonely outpost of heaven in the midst of Satan's worldly governments.
Admission is simple: Renounce your ties with all governments except one - the kingdom of heaven, established on Earth 2,000 years ago with Jesus Christ as its monarch.
Doing so means you give up your state driver's license. Stop paying taxes. Quit your corporate job. Give up your Social Security number. Cancel your bank account. Cash in your insurance policies. Pull your children out of public schools. Take a new name given by God. Go back to your first marriage if you have remarried. Disown any church that has incorporated under state laws, because it has made the state - not God - its lord.
Then prepare to live by a new set of laws - Jesus' Sermon on the Mount.
Congratulations. You are about to become an ambassador of Heaven, traveling with diplomatic immunity through foreign nations and spreading the word of God.
News from those traveling in Heaven vehicles:
According to a recent Embassy of Heaven newsletter, Larry was stopped by a state trooper for speeding in Colorado. He offered the officer his new driver's license from Heaven. The trooper studied it a while. He asked if it was accepted in Oregon. Larry said yes, in some places. You should get a Colorado license, the trooper said, and handed Larry a warning ticket.
Later, another state trooper wasn't so nice. He ticketed Larry tickets for speeding and no valid driver's license, insurance or seat belts. "I am scheduled for court at the end of the month," Larry wrote. "It should be fun."
The Embassy of Heaven Church was born of an idea - that the kingdom of heaven wasn't a fantastic city in the sky, attainable only after death, but that it was a living government already established on Earth.
The church's founder and pastor is Paul Revere, born into the world in 1949 with the name Paul De Revoire.
Revere looks like a scholar, with his graying beard, his spectacles, his shirt pocket full of pens and a nose slightly askew from an airplane crash in 1986. He lives on the 34-acre church property with his wife, Rachel, their two daughters, 13-year-old Brooke and 10-year-old Skye, and Abraham ("Just 'Abraham'"), a staff member who is working on the church's own Bible translation.
Many who hear about the Embassy of Heaven Church conclude that it's one of an estimated 300 Oregon-based cults - mostly small, largely unorganized religious groups that form in rural areas, out of the public eye. Jason Chastain, program manager of the Cult Resource Center in Portland, says the Embassy of Heaven Church displays several traits common to cults: It has a single leader, it claims a direct pipeline to God, it recruits members, it's secretive about its membership, and it requires members to think similarly.
On the other hand, the bookish Revere doesn't have the hypnotic personality of a Jim Jones or David Koresh. Members don't live together as a community but are scattered throughout the country. Unlike the militant, anti-tax Posse Comitatus, the church preaches love of God and neighbor. Unlike churches in the so-called Latter Reign Movement, which believes that Armageddon is approaching, the Embassy of Heaven says heaven already has arrived.
Revere himself says he deplores cults. "I'm appalled by what happened at Waco," he says, referring to the recent siege of the Branch Davidian compound in Texas, which led to the deaths of more than 80 members of the religious sect.
By and large, Embassy of Heaven's members join not because they are drawn to Revere, but because they agree with the message that church and state must be entirely separate - an age-old view that found voice a century ago in A.T. Jones, a preacher whose writings were reissued by the church under the title "Christian Patriotism."
Revere's interpretation of the Bible doesn't impress some theologians.
"The theology is nuts, and it's nothing new," says Gerry Breshears, a professor of theology at Western Conservative Baptist Seminary in Portland and current president of the national Evangelical Theological Society. Breshears says the New Testament contains numerous passages that make it clear that Christians should respect earthly governments as well as God.
John, Steward of Jesus, sits in the Reno County Jail in Hutchinson, Kan., awaiting trial on charges of illegal display of a license plate, no driver's license and no liability insurance.
He has been there since June 30, awaiting trial.
Kansas authorities know him by his previous identity, [Person C], 51, of Hutchinson.
It's his second arrest on the same charges.
(Note: John was tried and released after serving 28 days in jail.)
The kingdom of Heaven is a sovereign government, says Revere, and like other sovereign governments, it requires a bureaucracy.
Embassy of Heaven's bureaucracy dwells on transportation: driver's licenses, vehicle plates, vehicle registrations, certificates of title.
Revere won't say how many Heaven vehicles ply the nation's highways. But in Seattle, it's apparently too many. A Seattle police commander last week ordered traffic cops to seize Heaven plates and issue tickets.
The Embassy of Heaven Church has a 70-page guide for Heaven drivers on how to establish residency in Heaven and how to obtain Heaven documents. Moreover, the church also offers a "Heaven Vehicle Code" with rules of the road, code of conduct and disciplinary actions for wayward drivers, all supported by biblical citations.
That approach doesn't go over well with licensing agencies around the country.
"The law is very straightforward," says Mike Unger, driver licensing manager for the Oregon Department of Motor Vehicles. "We consider driving a privilege. In order to drive on the roads in the state of Oregon, you need to have an Oregon driver's license." (We don't drive on the "roads in the state of Oregon." We drive on the "highways in the Kingdom of Heaven." P.R.)
For a dozen years, until 1984, Revere was a state employee, a computer systems analyst for the Oregon Department of Transportation - a fact he does not willingly talk about. He says his life as Paul De Revoire, before he became Paul Revere in 1985, is a closed book.
"Paul is probably the closest person to a genius I've ever worked with," says Loyd Henion, who now heads the department's future technology unit. "He was the most brilliant programmer the state of Oregon ever had."
One of Paul De Revoire's most notable accomplishments: a program that computed how much each car and truck contributed to the wear-and-tear on Oregon highways. The program reduced four months of manual labor to, in essence, a one-button operation. It's still in use today.
The calculation is used to determine how much gasoline tax drivers should pay - one of the few taxes, incidentally, that Embassy of Heaven members don't mind paying. Their philosophy: If you use the service, pay for it.
Revere grew disenchanted with government, he and others say, because government had stopped being a servant of the people and become a lord, compelling its subjects to do things against their will.
"The state, as a government, is for unbelievers," Revere says, "and does not represent the kingdom of Heaven."
Revere had been raised a Protestant. His wife, Rachel - she changed her name from Rachel De Revoire - had been Roman Catholic. Both rejected their religions because they saw hypocrisy in the churches. They became atheists.
That changed about a dozen years ago. They read a passage in the book of Matthew that detailed the trials of Jesus in the Roman courts. "For the first time, I had been able to see the Scriptures for what they were really saying," Revere says. That is, the government of Jesus was a separate entity from the government of people.
He began writing a newsletter on the difference between godly and worldly governments. He signed it with a pen name, Paul Revere. He began a speaking circuit, stopping at private homes from Portland to Medford to address groups of 10 to 20 families. He took Paul Revere as his God-given name.
Ambassador James L. Kelly was arrested June 4 by Largo, Fla., police for resisting arrest. He had been cited that afternoon for not carrying a proper driver's license, unlawful alteration of a license plate, driving uninsured and failure to have a vehicle registration. His car was impounded, and he spent a night in jail.
Kelly's defense: He answers to a higher authority.
But Kelly made one unforgivable mistake, Revere says. He threatened to sue over the arrest. Such a threat acknowledges the jurisdiction of the state, Revere says. Kelly, the pastor adds, should have kept his head and heart firmly planted in the kingdom of Heaven.
The first clash between Revere and government authorities came in 1985, when a Clackamas County sheriff's deputy cited him on several driving-related charges, including failure to display a proper driver's license, driving uninsured and driving with expired license plates.
Revere's view of the matter: He did not need a license or plates or insurance. After all, he was not a resident of the state of Oregon. He was, by now, a resident of Heaven. So he never showed up for his court hearing.
Over the next three years, Revere was arrested several times - once when he showed up at the Washington County Jail to preach to a prisoner - on charges stemming from the original traffic violations. The already gaunt, 135-pound pastor fasted and prayed during his jail stints, once going 16 days on water alone.
In 1987, Revere took another dramatic step: He issued a "proclamation of land use," declaring that the church property "has been removed from the ownership and control of the world and the rulers of men." Then he stopped paying property taxes.
Marion County did not acknowledge the proclamation but simply continued to send property tax bills. The county intends to begin foreclosure proceedings on the property next July if the church fails to pay off overdue property taxes. The church currently owes more than $7,500.
The church's defense is the same as in all other cases: The county has no jurisdiction over residents of Heaven.
As far as the federal government goes, the Reveres have not filed an income tax return for several years. The Internal Revenue Service wrote in 1989, asking about their Form 1040. Revere responded that they weren't required to file. Just recently, the IRS wrote again, but the letter sits unopened at the church because it is addressed to Paul De Revoire - and Paul De Revoire, Revere says, is dead. (The letter was sent back, unopened. P.R.)
The Reveres instead look to the future. They dream of building a domed sanctuary 60 feet in diameter in the woods, but that depends on the growth in church membership and finances.
The family and the church now live on donations from church members and sales of brochures on topics ranging from changing your name to educating your children at home. The church houses a kitchen - where members make their own bread from wheat berries -printing facilities, two personal computers and a VCR for showing movies such as "The Ten Commandments" and "Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure" ("Be excellent to everyone"). Also on the property are a small hydroelectric plant that generates all of the church's electrical power, a platform for lectures and performances, and the first of several small bunkhouses for retreat participants.
Revere is evasive about the number of members in the Embassy of Heaven Church. He says Saturday and Sunday sermons can draw as many as 50 persons. He told the Tampa Tribune earlier this month that the church has about a dozen members in Florida.
In 1988, he told the Hillsboro Argus that his mailing list contained about 1,000 names. Today, he says, his readers number in the thousands, but he won't specify the number who actually get the mailing.
Not everyone who wants to join is welcome, however. Revere tries to discourage people who want to join only to escape paying their tax obligations to the state and federal governments, labeling them hypocrites.
"What we preach is a full separation," Revere says, "We don't just pick and choose. It's either all or nothing."
Ten days after this article was published, the Embassy of Heaven was invaded by Federal Marshals, City of Stayton Police, and Marion County Deputies:
FEDERAL MARSHALS STORM EMBASSY OF HEAVEN WITH AUTOMATIC WEAPONS
A dozen Marion County patrol cars, plus several unmarked vehicles carrying Federal Marshals armed with automatic weapons, converged upon the Embassy of Heaven to serve two arrest warrants for alleged minor traffic offenses. One church member was arrested shortly after police arrived. Close to 30 officers and a dog joined in the ensuing 3-hour search of the Church buildings and surrounding woods for the other suspect. No more arrests were made at the Church, which is located in the Cascade Mountain foothills, about 20 miles east of Salem, Oregon.
The raid began about 12:15
p.m. on August 4, 1993, as police vehicles sped down the narrow
winding road to the Embassy of Heaven sanctuary.
The two children of Pastor Paul Revere were playing outside one of the
buildings. They looked up to see a great cloud of dust as the
first patrol vehicle slid to a stop, narrowly missing the playing
children.
"We were concerned about their high speed around a blind corner. Not only could the children have been hurt, but there might have been a huge explosion," said Pastor Paul Revere. "Later that same day a gasoline truck delivered gas to the Church. If the gasoline truck had been filling the tanks, there is no way the police could have stopped in time."
Several church officials greeted the officers when they arrived, telling
them they were violating the sanctuary of our Lord Jesus Christ.
The federal marshals, ignoring the Church officials, filed out of
the vehicles with black automatic weapons drawn. Finally several
of the Church members spontaneously fell to their knees and
pleaded, "Father, your sanctuary is being violated. Please forgive
them, for they know not what they do."
The raid has historical significance in two ways:
Shortly after the police arrived, one of the Church members, who knew he would probably be taken into custody, offered his hand in friendship to the marshals. "I am Michael Stevens, an ambassador of the Lord Jesus Christ. How can I help you today?" He was immediately handcuffed and put in the back of a police vehicle. He did not resist in any way. "It was not as if they came in and searched for him. He freely offered himself as a witness for the Kingdom of Heaven," said Pastor Revere.
The marshals apparently had a warrant for his arrest stemming from a recent visit to Fort Lewis Army base where Stevens and a fellow evangelist were given traffic citations by military police. Stevens was merely a passenger in a "HEAVEN" licensed vehicle. At the incident, military police tried to demand that Stevens give information to them, but he declined. "As a guest in a car, he had no obligation to talk with these people, under anybody's rules. Yet he was given several citations for failing to provide them with the information they wanted," said Pastor Revere.
Federal marshals, assisted by a dog, searched the Church and outbuildings, as well as the surrounding woods, but were unsuccessful in turning up any sign of the other Church ambassador who was also wanted for alleged traffic offenses at Fort Lewis. (See page 6 of Jul-Aug 1993 Newsletter, #934)
While federal marshals beat the brush, Church members formed a choir and sang praises. "We rejoiced that we have been counted worthy to be persecuted for our allegiance to Jesus Christ," said Abraham, a member of the Church.
Federal marshals admitted they treated the raid more like a felony search
because they did not know the nature of the Church. They were also
allegedly looking for another Church member, Frank Carrico, who
was accused of raping his daughter. However, federal marshals had
no warrant to search for Carrico.
Pastor Revere would not say whether Carrico was at the Church. "To reveal that information would be a violation of sanctuary," said Revere. He did say Carrico was an easy-going, quiet man who taught Revere's daughter, Brooke, how to do back flips on the trampoline.
Rachel Revere, wife of Pastor Revere, said she feared for the children who live at the church - not because the alleged rapist might be near, but because of the police violence.
"The police said, 'You should keep your children away from Frank Carrico. He's a dangerous rapist.' But the only real danger came from the police."
Rachel Revere said the violence could easily have been avoided if Embassy officials would have been given an opportunity to talk with federal agents prior to the incident.
We are a peaceful group," she said. "In the past, we have always
worked with the police. But they roared in here with machine guns
and were scaring the children. They reverted to being barbarians
and used violence as the only way to settle the matter."
While the marshals were searching one room, they saw a bush move outside and yelled, "Get your hands up." Then they leaped out of a window, with their automatic weapons drawn. But they were only chasing a bird that had alighted on a branch.
"The federal marshals were ready to shoot anything that moved. Skye Revere, one of the children who was watching, was petrified that her cats would be killed," said Rachel Revere.
"They came looking for a rapist and in the process they raped the sanctuary of our Lord Jesus Christ," said Pastor Revere.
One of the newspaper reporters was held off from entering the Church grounds for over three hours. She said that when she first approached the Church, a deputy sheriff slowly pulled his gun out of his holster and aimed it at her, telling her to stay away. She said it was one of the most frightening experiences of her life.
Rachel Revere said, "We forgive all those involved in the raid and we
will not retaliate. Our weapon is the word of God, not weapons
made with human hands. We love our enemies and do good to those
who hate us."
"We felt the presence and power of Jesus Christ, which to us was far stronger than all their fancy weapons," said Abraham.
Church members, concerned that the police officers might be hot and thirsty, offered them lemonade and watermelon. Though some of the officers brandished automatic weapons, Church members still felt bound to treat them as they would like to be treated.
"They weren't really interested in the refreshments, but when we brought out our books and pamphlets, they came running out of the woods to get copies," said Rachel Revere.
The arrest warrants were strictly for people, not property. However, police did seize a few incidental items. They also towed the Church's white Subaru, which was retrieved the following day.
When one Church member noticed a federal marshal searching through a pile of papers on a desk he remarked, "How small a person are you looking for? Do you think he is hiding in those papers?"
Pastor Revere told law enforcement, "The next time you are seeking someone who has aligned himself with the Embassy of Heaven or sought refuge in our sanctuary, please remember that God has established the Embassy as a holy place of refuge and protection. Those who flee to the Embassy are immune from arrest because they are in a sacred sanctuary under God's jurisdiction, not man's. As an alternative to using guns and a show of force upon those at the Embassy, we ask that law enforcement give us a telephone call and we will attempt to help. We desire to live peacefully among you, while remaining holy."
The Church has recently received widespread publicity for their "HEAVEN" driver licenses, vehicle certificates of title, registrations and license plates, issued out of the authority of the Kingdom of Heaven. "We are Christ's ambassadors, sent to the Kingdoms of the world, to urge men and women everywhere to turn back to God, for the Kingdom of Heaven is now," said Pastor Revere. "We will go to hell if we participate in the state sovereignty. We have only one Sovereign, Jesus Christ."
As of August 26th, the one man arrested during the raid, Michael Stevens, has been moved to three jails and remains in Federal custody. Since August 4th, Michael has been on a water fast. Michael prays that through his suffering, others may enter the Kingdom of Heaven. When he is dragged before the magistrates, he says his Kingdom is not of their world and remains steadfast in not accepting state-appointed counsel or making any agreements with them. He continues to ask to be returned to his Embassy.
The Church has several hundred members nationwide and puts out a bi-monthly newsletter. For those interested in establishing citizenship in the Kingdom of Heaven and participating in their "HEAVEN" licensing program, they offer a 70-page book entitled, Licensed by Heaven, available for a $5.00 donation from: Embassy of Heaven.
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Paul Revere and the Raiders |
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| Host | Hi Paul Revere! Good, good, I was hoping we could talk to you. You weren't in a rock 'n roll band in the '60's were you? |
| Paul | No I wasn't, but we were raided. |
| Host | Paul Revere was raided, that's really funny. We're talking about the people that broke into your church, for next to nothing. |
| Paul | Right. |
| Host | I've had a good number of calls on the KVAN command central number and people have a lot of questions for you. Why did the U.S. Marshals go into your church, arms drawn, guns drawn, automatic weapons? |
| Paul | They came in to serve arrest warrants on two individuals for the cause of minor traffic offenses. |
| Host | Was anyone hurt? |
| Paul | No, only the sanctuary was raped. |
| Host | Yes, what we heard on the TV, Paul, was that Federal Marshals were after some rapist and they went to this "cult" to find the rapist. |
| Paul | Ha, ha - yes, I wonder which one was the "cult," the ones who came slamming in here with automatic weapons, or the people who are just living here quietly and peacefully. |
| Host | You know God is unconstitutional in this country. The only thing worse than God is trying to be Godly. We are commanded to be Christ-like by the scriptures but every time we try to do that, or abide by the commandments Christ gives us, people figure us to be some terrorist organization. |
| So witnessing is now illegal. God is unconstitutional, you can't even mention the big 'G' in schools any more. With all this going on, and U.S. Marshals busting in through the doors of a church, do you see a prophecy coming true here? | |
| Paul | Well, here is what we preach. We preach that the Kingdom of Heaven is now. The Kingdom of Heaven is a government and the Kingdom of Heaven should be in place in every man's heart, instead of the kingdoms of this world. |
| Host | That is why you provide Heaven driver's licenses and license plates and all of this. |
| Paul | That's right. Because we preach the Kingdom of Heaven as the government of God. |
| Host | Have you filed for a semi-autonomous state? |
| Paul | Well, you don't file for it, you just simply declare it. This is a nation of God, separate and independent from the kingdoms of this world. And we are only responding to the Great Commission as declared in the Holy Bible that we are to preach the Gospel of the Kingdom of Heaven now. |
| Host | How many guys were there in black with automatic weapons, how many Marshals? |
| Paul | There were about 30 of them. The Marshals were in black, but they were actually wearing T-shirts and shorts. |
| Host | Shorts? Oh no, you were invaded by Club-Med! |
| Now these 30 people walked in and said, "the only thing we could find was this one guy who is wanted on a minor traffic violation up in Seattle." That's got to be sad. How did they leave you? Did they say, "Well, sorry for the inconvenience," or "We'll be watching you, Padre." What did they say? | |
| Paul | The U.S. Marshals didn't have a whole lot to say. The Marion County deputies were apologetic. They said they didn't really want to come here but because of their job, they had to come. |
| Host | Well, you know that didn't work for the Nazis at Nuremburg, I don't know why it should work for Marion County. How long are we going to let people say, "I was just doing my job," and let them get away with atrocities? |
| An important question - Are there weapons at the Church? | |
| Paul | Yes, we have the word of God and we use it all the time. |
| Host | Okay, good. So basically what I am getting at is there is no excuse to bring in automatic weapons. You guys have never communicated a threat to your community. |
| Paul | We have always held a very peaceful stance. We even have a friend who is a Marion County sergeant who has been out to the Embassy a number of times and partaken of our food. |
| Host | So U.S. Marshals had no cause or reason to do anything that they did. What are your grievance procedures from this point? I assume you have a grievance. |
| Paul | Oh yes, we have already done that. We sent letters to those involved and we forgave them for their trespassing. |
| Host | And that's it? What about litigation? Aren't you supposed to sue them? |
| Paul | Scripture says, "Vengeance is mine," saith the Lord. So we will put it in His hands. |
| Host | You're going to be kind to your enemies and heap hot coals on their heads. |
| Paul | Oh, absolutely. |
| Host | So you have just basically written letters forgiving them. Everything you have told me so far has been Godly and scriptural. |
| Paul | Just because some people do wickedness, it does not give us license to do wickedness in return. |
| Host | So you are turning the other cheek as it were. |
| Paul | Yes, it is mandatory that we turn the other cheek. |
We are inviting all seekers of the Kingdom to join us for Heaven's last retreat before winter. This retreat begins on Thursday afternoon and ends Sunday afternoon. Simple, wholesome meals and campsites are provided. Donations will be appreciated.
September 16 - 19
Mark your calendars and plan for fellowship with us in the woods. For further information, write for our "RETREAT BROCHURE."
