Wikipedia Mediation Cabal | |
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Article | Calvary Chapel |
Status | Close |
Request date | 16:35, 18 July 2011 (UTC) |
Requesting party | Esquire880 ( talk) |
Mediator(s) | J (t) - Oddbodz ( talk) |
Comment | stale |
We would like an independent opinion on whether the "Accusation of Cult Status" subsection under the "Criticisms" section of the article should remain.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calvary_Chapel
(Under "Criticims")-- Esquire880 ( talk) 16:35, 18 July 2011 (UTC)
The list of the users involved. For example:
Please place your signature here to indicate that you are aware of this mediation process and want to participate in it: -- Esquire880 ( talk) 16:35, 18 July 2011 (UTC)
Requestor seeks resolution between contrary opinions about whether it should remain. It is not a "major point of view," makes an extraordinary claim without supporting evidence, and its only reference is to the source that made the claim.
A calm explanation of what the problem is. Be as precise as you wish, but avoid general statements such as "User:X has a POV regarding article Y", as that's usually unhelpful. Provide diffs if possible, but try to keep the description brief. A list of issues that need to be addressed, such as this, would also help.
Would like the relevant subsection removed
Here, tell us what you would like to changed. Does the conversation need better structure? Are folks having difficulty communicating? Are they talking past each other? Stuff like that.
I believe the main proponent of retaining the subsection would abide by a neutral decision.
We are here to help you, but we need to know how. Sometimes mediators will look at a dispute and have no idea where to start, so please help us out. Do note that we will not "take sides" in any dispute.
I have joined as another mediator -- J (t) 13:07, 22 July 2011 (UTC)
Oddbodz, I'm not sure why you want me to "put your opinion on this in the mediator's notes section", as you suggest in the medcabstatus box above, but the reference supporting the content in question is not Christian Times, it is the article Losing My Religion from Metro Newspapers and the publisher claims more than half a million readers weekly for their papers. Mojoworker ( talk) 08:26, 4 August 2011 (UTC)
I would like to re-phrase the dispute. There are really three sides. The first, held by only one editor, is that the church is a cult and there should be discussion of this. The editor concerned cannot find any sources to back this opinion. The closest is that of a cult deprogrammer who states the church is not a cult but they do have authoritarian leaders.
On the other extreme is a group of attenders of various congregations affiliated with Calvary Chapel (the churches do not believe themselves to be a denomination, but a loose confederation of churches who have a similar opinion and goal, but that is not the issue. I add this parenthetical comment to explain the convoluted use of the term) who don't see any problems with the churches or the way they are run. They cannot offer any references to support their claim that the church is not authoritarian nor a cult since it's difficult to prove the absence of something if it's not perceived. They argue that the claim is slanderous or libellous/libelous.
And I feel like I'm walking down the middle of the debate. I recognize the one reference alluded to above as valid. The RS board did not clearly state that the source was unreliable. I also recognize that it's insulting and believe that the editor who added the section in question has a skewed WP:POV and has an axe to grind against the subject and appears to be using Wikipedia as her sounding board. It would be good to have some neutral opinions. -- Walter Görlitz ( talk) 18:39, 18 July 2011 (UTC)
I want to re-phrase a few of my concerns with the inclusion of the contested section. The section at issue was 1) is patently untrue, a fact acknowledge by all concerned including those who argue for its retention ( Walter Gorlitz, ckruschke) 2) added by an editor (sliceofmiami) on a clear vendetta against the topic subject (as shown by that editor's other, non-RS additions to the page which Walter removed) 3) cannot be called a significant minority opinion in any sense, since it was a comment made by one person, one time, thirteen years ago and has not been affirmed or supported in an RS by the original person or anyone else since (to my knowledge) 4) is given undue weight on the page. -- Esquire880 ( talk) 19:25, 26 July 2011 (UTC)
OK, since I was requested to add myself as a party, I will continue the discussion and attempt to correct some misconceptions. Some points:
Mojoworker ( talk) 19:59, 1 August 2011 (UTC)
I was asked to comment on this question by User:Mojoworker. A couple years ago, I made some efforts to spruce up this paragraph. I did this rather than trying to remove it, partly because it would have been contentious and I had recently finished trying to moderate some unrelated contentious issues on this very page.
This is a tough one. After reading the entire Templeton article and contemplating, I do think that the current Ross quote has to go. The word "cult" is a hot-button, and given that Ross is saying that CC is not a cult, it is unnecessarily inflammatory to mention the word at all. And the "authoritarian" bit is strange, in that it is not supported at all by the rest of Ross' quote or by the Templeton article in general. We see people driven to do unhealthy things because of their acceptance of (and, I would say, taking to an extreme) a particular Christian theology and practice, but no hint of unhealthy authority directly exercised by leaders in the sense of, say, the Branch Davidians. So I can see how the CC-inclined folks might legitimately see this line, especially given with little context, as kind of a hit-and-run job. In the same quote, Ross says that CC is "typical of a lot of groups" and that they are not "nearly as extreme as others". And I take him to be comparing CC to mainstream Christian groups there (Ross is not friendly to evangelicalism in general). So, if CC is not remarkable in this sense, why do we need to single it out?
On the other hand, the Templeton article is well written, informative, and has the ring of truth. Having grown up in CC myself (in case you're interested, I feel neither loyalty nor resentment, and am now an ordained elder in a different Christian denomination), some of Templeton's stories sound familiar, while others I see as things not normative in CC but as excesses to which it might be prone. I think it might be good to find a different quote to use in citing the Templeton article, and maybe this could be the foundation of a compromise that the pro-quote people could accept. -- BlueMoonlet ( t/ c) 14:56, 2 August 2011 (UTC) (cross-posted to Talk:Calvary Chapel)
I feel compelled to weigh in on this on this page since I have been involved in the discussions on the Calvary Talk page. Since I've attended Calvary's since 1998, I can attest, as many have already stated, that the criticisms which Esquire wants to delete are untrue. However, I am honest enough about the way people perceive Calvary (and sometimes churches as a whole) to know that there ARE CRITICISMS of the Calvary pastoral/church structure and that it is a cult. I heard this talk before the first time I stepped into a Calvary and have continued to read it from time to time since 1998. Although I "know" that this is all untrue, they compromise a legitimate point of view that society has concerning Calvary. My thought has always been that by deleting this section because I or Walter or Esquire "know" that the criticisms aren't true is an obvious example of independent research - the first thing someone would ask is "where is your proof". Therefore although untrue, I have been on the side of the camp to leave the sourced text in place. Will it be the end of the world for me if it is deleted? *No* - and I think Walter agrees with that as well. What we are simply doing is trying to enforce Wiki rules on how you remove sections (i.e. you don't just go in and delete because "you don't like it") and further collaboration to come to an agreeable solution. Unfortunately, Esquire is intent on simply blanking the section (and even did it again yesterday) unless he hears someone tell him that it needs to stay in place and this type of action IS NOT the way it should work. The thing I dislike about Rob Bell's page is that if shows a white as snow image of the man without any of the (legitimate) criticisms that he has received from parts of the Christian world. This white-washed POV is what it seems like Esquire is going for and is EXACTLY the kind of "non-NPOV" that the Calvary page has already been accused of by many editors. My 2 cents... Ckruschke ( talk) 15:22, 4 August 2011 (UTC)Ckruschke
Wikipedia Mediation Cabal | |
---|---|
![]() | |
Article | Calvary Chapel |
Status | Close |
Request date | 16:35, 18 July 2011 (UTC) |
Requesting party | Esquire880 ( talk) |
Mediator(s) | J (t) - Oddbodz ( talk) |
Comment | stale |
We would like an independent opinion on whether the "Accusation of Cult Status" subsection under the "Criticisms" section of the article should remain.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calvary_Chapel
(Under "Criticims")-- Esquire880 ( talk) 16:35, 18 July 2011 (UTC)
The list of the users involved. For example:
Please place your signature here to indicate that you are aware of this mediation process and want to participate in it: -- Esquire880 ( talk) 16:35, 18 July 2011 (UTC)
Requestor seeks resolution between contrary opinions about whether it should remain. It is not a "major point of view," makes an extraordinary claim without supporting evidence, and its only reference is to the source that made the claim.
A calm explanation of what the problem is. Be as precise as you wish, but avoid general statements such as "User:X has a POV regarding article Y", as that's usually unhelpful. Provide diffs if possible, but try to keep the description brief. A list of issues that need to be addressed, such as this, would also help.
Would like the relevant subsection removed
Here, tell us what you would like to changed. Does the conversation need better structure? Are folks having difficulty communicating? Are they talking past each other? Stuff like that.
I believe the main proponent of retaining the subsection would abide by a neutral decision.
We are here to help you, but we need to know how. Sometimes mediators will look at a dispute and have no idea where to start, so please help us out. Do note that we will not "take sides" in any dispute.
I have joined as another mediator -- J (t) 13:07, 22 July 2011 (UTC)
Oddbodz, I'm not sure why you want me to "put your opinion on this in the mediator's notes section", as you suggest in the medcabstatus box above, but the reference supporting the content in question is not Christian Times, it is the article Losing My Religion from Metro Newspapers and the publisher claims more than half a million readers weekly for their papers. Mojoworker ( talk) 08:26, 4 August 2011 (UTC)
I would like to re-phrase the dispute. There are really three sides. The first, held by only one editor, is that the church is a cult and there should be discussion of this. The editor concerned cannot find any sources to back this opinion. The closest is that of a cult deprogrammer who states the church is not a cult but they do have authoritarian leaders.
On the other extreme is a group of attenders of various congregations affiliated with Calvary Chapel (the churches do not believe themselves to be a denomination, but a loose confederation of churches who have a similar opinion and goal, but that is not the issue. I add this parenthetical comment to explain the convoluted use of the term) who don't see any problems with the churches or the way they are run. They cannot offer any references to support their claim that the church is not authoritarian nor a cult since it's difficult to prove the absence of something if it's not perceived. They argue that the claim is slanderous or libellous/libelous.
And I feel like I'm walking down the middle of the debate. I recognize the one reference alluded to above as valid. The RS board did not clearly state that the source was unreliable. I also recognize that it's insulting and believe that the editor who added the section in question has a skewed WP:POV and has an axe to grind against the subject and appears to be using Wikipedia as her sounding board. It would be good to have some neutral opinions. -- Walter Görlitz ( talk) 18:39, 18 July 2011 (UTC)
I want to re-phrase a few of my concerns with the inclusion of the contested section. The section at issue was 1) is patently untrue, a fact acknowledge by all concerned including those who argue for its retention ( Walter Gorlitz, ckruschke) 2) added by an editor (sliceofmiami) on a clear vendetta against the topic subject (as shown by that editor's other, non-RS additions to the page which Walter removed) 3) cannot be called a significant minority opinion in any sense, since it was a comment made by one person, one time, thirteen years ago and has not been affirmed or supported in an RS by the original person or anyone else since (to my knowledge) 4) is given undue weight on the page. -- Esquire880 ( talk) 19:25, 26 July 2011 (UTC)
OK, since I was requested to add myself as a party, I will continue the discussion and attempt to correct some misconceptions. Some points:
Mojoworker ( talk) 19:59, 1 August 2011 (UTC)
I was asked to comment on this question by User:Mojoworker. A couple years ago, I made some efforts to spruce up this paragraph. I did this rather than trying to remove it, partly because it would have been contentious and I had recently finished trying to moderate some unrelated contentious issues on this very page.
This is a tough one. After reading the entire Templeton article and contemplating, I do think that the current Ross quote has to go. The word "cult" is a hot-button, and given that Ross is saying that CC is not a cult, it is unnecessarily inflammatory to mention the word at all. And the "authoritarian" bit is strange, in that it is not supported at all by the rest of Ross' quote or by the Templeton article in general. We see people driven to do unhealthy things because of their acceptance of (and, I would say, taking to an extreme) a particular Christian theology and practice, but no hint of unhealthy authority directly exercised by leaders in the sense of, say, the Branch Davidians. So I can see how the CC-inclined folks might legitimately see this line, especially given with little context, as kind of a hit-and-run job. In the same quote, Ross says that CC is "typical of a lot of groups" and that they are not "nearly as extreme as others". And I take him to be comparing CC to mainstream Christian groups there (Ross is not friendly to evangelicalism in general). So, if CC is not remarkable in this sense, why do we need to single it out?
On the other hand, the Templeton article is well written, informative, and has the ring of truth. Having grown up in CC myself (in case you're interested, I feel neither loyalty nor resentment, and am now an ordained elder in a different Christian denomination), some of Templeton's stories sound familiar, while others I see as things not normative in CC but as excesses to which it might be prone. I think it might be good to find a different quote to use in citing the Templeton article, and maybe this could be the foundation of a compromise that the pro-quote people could accept. -- BlueMoonlet ( t/ c) 14:56, 2 August 2011 (UTC) (cross-posted to Talk:Calvary Chapel)
I feel compelled to weigh in on this on this page since I have been involved in the discussions on the Calvary Talk page. Since I've attended Calvary's since 1998, I can attest, as many have already stated, that the criticisms which Esquire wants to delete are untrue. However, I am honest enough about the way people perceive Calvary (and sometimes churches as a whole) to know that there ARE CRITICISMS of the Calvary pastoral/church structure and that it is a cult. I heard this talk before the first time I stepped into a Calvary and have continued to read it from time to time since 1998. Although I "know" that this is all untrue, they compromise a legitimate point of view that society has concerning Calvary. My thought has always been that by deleting this section because I or Walter or Esquire "know" that the criticisms aren't true is an obvious example of independent research - the first thing someone would ask is "where is your proof". Therefore although untrue, I have been on the side of the camp to leave the sourced text in place. Will it be the end of the world for me if it is deleted? *No* - and I think Walter agrees with that as well. What we are simply doing is trying to enforce Wiki rules on how you remove sections (i.e. you don't just go in and delete because "you don't like it") and further collaboration to come to an agreeable solution. Unfortunately, Esquire is intent on simply blanking the section (and even did it again yesterday) unless he hears someone tell him that it needs to stay in place and this type of action IS NOT the way it should work. The thing I dislike about Rob Bell's page is that if shows a white as snow image of the man without any of the (legitimate) criticisms that he has received from parts of the Christian world. This white-washed POV is what it seems like Esquire is going for and is EXACTLY the kind of "non-NPOV" that the Calvary page has already been accused of by many editors. My 2 cents... Ckruschke ( talk) 15:22, 4 August 2011 (UTC)Ckruschke