THOU SHALT NOT BEAR FALSE WITNESS
A Public Response to Brian Schwertley
by Greg Loren Durand

Exhibit F:
Greg Durand's Second 24 September 2007 E-Mail to Brian Schwertley

To: Brian Schwertley
From: Crown Rights Book Company
Subject: Re: Beginning of Matthew 18 process
Date: 11:42 AM 9/24/2007

Brian,

Here is a copy of your email dated 24 August 2002 in which you requested a copy of my manuscript:

X-From_: schwertley.brian@acd.net Sat Aug 24 08:15:01 2002
From: "Brian Schwertley"
To:
Subject: article on the reconstruction movement
Date: Sat, 24 Aug 2002 09:48:03 -0400
X-Mailer: Microsoft Outlook Express 6.00.2600.0000
X-OriginalArrivalTime: 24 Aug 2002 13:09:53.0660 (UTC) FILETIME=[894A5BC0:01C24B6F]

Dear Greg,

I would like to see a copy of your article critiquing the reconstructionist movement.

Thanks,
Brian Schwertley

Rev. Brian Schwertley
Pastor, Chalcedon Christian Church
Haslett, MI
Reformed Presbyterian Church in the United States
www.reformedonline.com

As you can see, you are the one who initiated the request. If you did not have time to read it, you should not have requested it.

You are indeed free to critique any book that has been published, but you are not free — biblically or legally — to publicly misrepresent or defame the author in any way. Biblically, this is called bearing false witness; legally, it is called slander when done in a transitory form (i.e. during a sermon), and libel when it is done via a fixed medium (i.e. when that sermon is electronically broadcast). You are also not free to take the contents of a private email into the public arena without permission and misquote or misrepresent its contents as well, as you have done.

I have already given you enough specific examples of where you have misrepresented me in my initial communication of 2 September 2007 and in my second email of the following day. You have either ignored or further misrepresented the examples given. To engage you in further dialogue would not be wise, given your behavior thus far. I will therefore reserve the list of other specifics for steps two and three of the Matthew 18 process should it be needed.

Even if you do not believe that you have acted improperly, I, as a fellow Christian, have informed you of what I believe to be an offense against me, and you, as an older man and as a minister of the Gospel, should exercise humility in this matter by attempting to make amends per Matthew 5:23-24. Even if every word you have spoken was completely accurate, you are still in violation of the Ninth Commandment as explained by Question 145 of the Larger Catechism for "speaking the truth unseasonably, or maliciously to a wrong end...." It was clear from the tone of voice you used when speaking my name and in interacting with what I have (allegedly) written, that your goal was not to bring an erring brother to the truth per Galatians 6:1, but to publicly tear him down and make him an object of ridicule. This is contrary to the spirit of the Gospel ministry, an abuse of your pulpit, and does nothing to promote peace and unity in the Body of Christ.

I again ask you to issue a public retraction, edit my name out of part one of your series, and delete parts three and four (and any other part in which I am discussed) from Sermon Audio at the earliest possible time.

The longer your comments remain on Sermon Audio, the more potential harm may be brought to my business and the livelihood of my family. One-half of the visitors to my website are coming from Sermon Audio, so the impact could be substantial. I therefore believe that one week is a reasonable time to allow you to comply with my request.

Please do the right thing.

Soli Deo Gloria,
Greg Loren Durand

Crown Rights Book Company
www.crownrights.com

At 11:05 AM 9/24/2007, you wrote:
I don't recall ever reading the rough draft of your book in 2002. I get frequent requests from all over the world to read documents that I don't have time to look at. I'm a busy pastor. If I had read it, I certainly would not have approved of it. Furthermore, it's your session's job to evaluate your theology before publication, not mine.

In my lectures I am free to critique any book that is written which is in the public domain. If I have misrepresented your position, give specific examples.

Brian Schwertley
Pastor, Covenanted Reformed Presbyterian Church
Waupaca County, WI
Westminster Presbyterian Church in the United States
www.reformedonline.com