There's this rumor about Bill and Hill's pastor, who supposedly was convicted of sexual abuse of a child.  It's unreal, and I can hardly believe people's ignorance ... but the fact is that it's CLINTON, NY - not Hillary Clinton.  A "Clinton NY" pastor .... got it?   Go to the link I just provided, and read the article ... then read the comments!  Now, our local newspaper had to do a story just to correct this rumor.

Apparently, more than a few people are running with this, and it even made it on Snopes.com

Well, Clinton NY is near to me, and I know the story well of the pastor who was tried and convicted of sexual abuse of a child.  I'll take this moment here to proclaim his innocence.  See, he had taken these girls in while their mom tried to get off drugs.  The 7 year old was restless, and like he'd done with his own girls, he lay next to her and rubbed her back and legs.  She did not claim he had touched her in very unapproachable places, just rubbed her back and the back of her legs.  He said he'd do the same with his own if their legs were jumpy.

His church members and supporters stand by him 100 per cent as do his daughters.  Of course, innocent until proven guilty does not seem to exist in our great land ... and several people heard the testimony and had him pegged as a pedophile right off the bat.

At any rate, a jury convicted him based on what they decided his motive was for the massage.  Now, understanding his own innocence, and never dreaming it would go where it ended up going in court, he spoke without an attorney in the beginning.  He was horrified that this girl had misread his massage (how much was she coached?), and sad that he had "hurt her."  He agreed that he had stepped over the boundry, as a pastor, just being alone with her.  Professionally, that was off limits.  His words were taken to mean he was "admitting wrong" as in he did have other things in mind.  But that was not what he meant.  He meant he had crossed the line professionally - not morally.

The prosecutor went on to twist his words, and sexualize everything, and the jury was told to decide based on what they felt his motive was.  They decided that he was giving her a massage for sexual gratification.  I'm just incredulous at this - that in America, it really is NOT innocent until proven guilty.  I mean, how do you get "beyond a reasonable doubt" from a jury deciding someone's motive of heart?  He is INNOCENT until PROVEN guilty.  12 people deciding your motive, based on stacked evidence, is not proof.  So the pastor is still innocent (no proof!), though he sits in jail.

This just seems wrong on every level.

Charactor witnesses were not allowed by the judge.  In fact, the judge - according to many there - denied, denied, denied the defense a lot of what they requested.  Everything seemed stacked against the pastor, and now he sits in jail and his wife and daughters wish he were home.  I hope he appeals.

Everything I've ever perceived about our judicial system has turned upside-down.  We live in scary times, and it's not going to get better.

So if you got here thinking you were going to read about Hillary's pastor, think again.  It wasn't Hillary Clinton, it was Clinton NY.  And in our local area, justice is not served.  Pray for Pastor William Procanick and his family, and the church he had to resign from.  May all grow strong in Him, and continue to be faithful 'till He returns.