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MUST WATCH:Rev. Walter F Houston: No Tithes! No Funeral!No Tithes No Funeral Rev. Walter F. Houston Refused To Funeralize 93 Year Old GrandmotherMUST READ:The Tithing Lie in postmodern Christianity : The Gentile Pastor who receives tithes is the thief and robberENFORCED TITHINGThe tithe on Trial: Exposing the Golden Calf of Today’s Prosperity Gospel |
Rev. Walter F. Houston Says No Tithes No Funeral: Refused To Funeralize 93 Year Old Grandmother!
PimpPreacher.com Houston Bureau11/22/2014
At the beginning of the week we shared with our readers a story about a pastor who refused to funeralize a 93- year-old church member because that member was delinquent on her Tithes! It was at that exact moment that our PimpPreacher.com community became outraged. Despite our outrage - at the request of the family, we did not stage any protest or revealed the name of the pastor until after the funeral of Mrs. Olivia Blair. We also agreed to keep all cameras far away from her memorial services.
If a pastor is forcing your elderly family members to pay Tithes - join this fight - Like us on Facebook
The No Tithe-No Funeral Pastor is none other than: Rev. Walter F. Houston of Fourth Missionary Baptist Church in Houston,Texas.
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To say Mrs. Olivia Blair loved her church is a true understatement. In actuality, her ministry was a major part of her life for half a century. Her daughter Barbara Day, shared with me how her mother, even in her senior years, was a very progressive thinker and remained mentally as sharp as a razor. Even as her health started to fail her, it was Mrs. Olivia’s mind and her heart that remained in Fourth Missionary Baptist Church.
It was because of her mother’s love and dedication to her church that Barbara Day assumed that the church would return that love and support during their time of bereavement but unfortunately, Rev. Walter F. Houston held an obvious grudge against Mother Olivia Blair. A grudge rooted in what he felt were delinquent tithes.
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Unaware of the church’s policy of “No Tithes No Funeral,” Barbara Day and her daughter approached Rev. W.F. Houston days after Mother Olivia Day passed away. To their shock and disbelief, they were told by Rev Houston, in a very firm tone, that they could NOT have the funeral at Fourth Missionary Baptist Church.
“I am not sure if a Pastor has ever spoken to me that way, he was very mean and arrogant,” the granddaughter told PimpPreacher.com. “We assumed that since my grandmother had been a part of this church most of her life, that Rev. Houston would have been more welcoming during this extremely painful time in our life. But what we encountered was a pastor who appeared to have a score to settle,” continued Mother Blair’s granddaughter.
That score to settle what the granddaughter referred to appears to be unpaid church dues or what we have come to know as Tithes.
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“When we buried my grandfather six years ago, it was at Fourth Missionary Baptist Church therefore, we never expected to be rejected like that. It was as if we were strangers, as if they never knew my grandmother at all. I want your organization to know that Mrs. Olivia Blair supported Pastor Houston 100%. She loved her church family and treasured her place of worship. So the last thing I ever expected was to receive a tongue lashing about tithing.” The granddaughter shared.
During the same conversation the granddaughter reflected on the last time she attended church with her grandmother – a story that truly captured Mrs. Olivia Blair’s financial commitment to her Pastor.
“Pastor Houston had just concluded the benediction, so I grabbed my grandmother by the arm and turned toward the exit but she pulled away. In a slow, steady stroll she weaved her way through, embracing church members as she made her way to the pulpit – determined to make it to the front of the church. As I trailed her, she finally caught up with Rev. Houston and I watched as she put something in his hand. It was her Tithe…”
Barbara Day then interrupted her daughter as she shared the story of how her grandmother always placed money directly in the pastor’s hand as well as in the Tithing envelopes. She shared the following:
“If I could say anything to Rev. Houston right now, I would let him know that my mother gave what she had to that church – what little she had. Because of her rising cost of care and prescriptions, there were times when my mother was only left with $60 from the State of Texas to get through the entire month, but we took care of her as a family. How could Rev. Houston expect her to give so much from so little resources? Where was the concern and compassion for my mother once she fell ill? It was like they threw my mother away once she was no longer a financial contributor to that church. I don’t ever recall reading in my Bible where Jesus turned someone away because they had nothing to give.”
Ms. Barbra Jean Day went on to say that Rev. Houston replied directly to her when she asked how did he expect her mother to pay tithes on a Fixed Income? In an exclusive interview with PimpPreacher.com she said she and her daughter were caught completely off guard by what the pastor said next.
"If Mrs. Blair didn’t have the money for her tithes, then it was the responsibility of the family to remember the Tithe."
If a pastor is forcing your elderly family members to pay Tithes - join this fight - Like us on Facebook
After my discovery interview with Barbra Day and her daughter, I set out to see if I could convince Pastor Walter F. Houston to reconsider. I also encountered the same bull headed Pastor that lacked all compassion for this family. In his opening statement to me on Sunday November 16th Rev. Houston made it very clear that celebrating the life of Mrs. Olivia Blair was the farthest thing from his mind.
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“I am not changing my bylaws for someone who was not active. Olivia Blair had not been a member of this church in 8 or 9 years! If the family cared so much then why didn’t one of them at least send a dollar over here to reserve her membership?” Pastor Houston told me last Sunday in a conversation that took place only moments after he had finished preaching.
My Reply: “Sir even though your church is closed on Friday, and I have offered to pay the cost to have this funeral in your church, you’re still refusing to allow this funeral for a member who has been a part of this ministry for 50 years?
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Pastor replied: “Membership has its privileges.”
My Reply: “Sir only you can keep your name off Pimp Preacher - I would rather have a happy ending to this but if you refuse to honor this member at this church - we will have no mercy on you!”
On November 20, 2014, members of the Church Folk Revolution / PimpPreacher.com took off for Houston with a destination set for Fourth Missionary Baptist Church. The reason/purpose of the trip was to show our support for Mother Olivia Blair’s family in their time of grief and to confront Rev. Walter F. Houston.
Read Part 2: Who Is Rev. Walter F. Houston?
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Houston Pastor Reportedly Refused to Host Funeral for 93-Y-O Member Because She Didn't Tithe Enough
By Leonardo Blair , CP Reporter
November 26, 2014|4:41 pm
(Photo: Screen Grab via FOX 26)The late Olivia Blair, 93.
According to a My FOX Houston report, Pastor Walter F. Houston of Fourth Missionary Baptist Church refused to bury longtime member Olivia Blair after she died because her lack of financial contributions made her ineligible for the courtesy under the church's bylaws.
The Christian Post reached out to the church for comment on the situation on Wednesday but did not receive a response at the time of publication.
According to Blair's daughter, Barbara Day, however, the church's refusal to bury her mother was devastating.
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"It was like the last insult in the world, there was nothing else that I could do for my mommy but funeralize her in the church that she loved and worshiped all of her life, even as a little girl," Day told My Fox Houston.
She said the pastor told her that her mother "had not paid her dues, and she had not attended the church in recent years."
Day explained the reason for the lapse was illness and the church knew that her mother was sick.
"For the last two years, my mother has been in either a nursing home or she's been in a hospital. ... And the last few months, she was in a coma!" said Day who was forced to get help from another church.
"There's no explanation for anybody that has been paying dues for a church that long, for him to make me have to roll my mother's body around town, and somebody finally picks her up and says, 'Yeah, we'll do the best we can,'" said Day. "They knew she was ill! They don't care! All they care about is getting money, money, money, money, money!"
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"Even retail stores give people more respect than that," she continued. "I don't understand why we've become so commercialized with religion! What does this have to do with God? Why can't I give my mother her last wish to be funeralized in a church that she loved so much?"
Tyrone Jacques of PimpPreacher.com said he reached out to pastor Houston to convince him to reconsider before going public with the story, but he would not relent from his position.
"After my discovery interview with Barbra Day and her daughter, I set out to see if I could convince pastor Walter F. Houston to reconsider. I also encountered the same bull headed pastor that lacked all compassion for this family. In his opening statement to me on Sunday, Nov. 16 Rev. Houston made it very clear that celebrating the life of Mrs. Olivia Blair was the farthest thing from his mind," wrote Jacques.
Jacques said Houston told him: "I am not changing my bylaws for someone who was not active. Olivia Blair had not been a member of this church in eight or nine years! If the family cared so much then why didn't one of them at least send a dollar over here to reserve her membership?"
Jacques said he even offered to pay the cost of the funeral but the church did not budge.