This was a private letter from the Chairman of the 3ABN board, which was published by Linda Shelton's representative, Gregory Matthews, and then widely distributed and posted on other internet forums.From: "Walt Thompson"
To: [Removed by GM.]
Subject: Re: 3abn
Date: [Removed by GM.]
Dear [Removed by GM.],
Thank you for your e mail sharing your frustrations with 3ABN. It is understandable that you may feel frustrated regarding the breakup of Danny and Linda. You are not alone. Had the devil sought a more effective place to point his fatal arrow, he could not have found one. He aimed at its heart, and made a direct hit. However, like the promise in Genesis 3:15, though 3ABN has been wounded, it has risen again, and stronger than ever. Praise the Lord.
Let me summarize some of the events as viewed from my perspective during the past couple years. Perhaps it will allow you to view things a bit differently.
Though we have attempted to keep the leaders of the church attuned to what has been transpiring at 3ABN, we have not said much publicly for Linda's sake. We all still care about Linda, and know she must be hurting terribly.
A little more than two years ago a live television program aired on 3abn from Green Bay, Wisconsin. During that program Linda told of meeting a special person that had changed her life. She did not give the name or the sex of that person, but we later learned that he was listening in Norway. A few months earlier, a doctor visited 3ABN from Norway. He found out about Linda's son being hooked on drugs and told Linda that if he would come to his place in Norway for a month, he would be cured. Arrangements were made and Nathan went there in Feb. 04. While there Linda and one of her closest friends went to visit and spent 3 days with them. During this time Linda and the doctor struck up a relationship that her friend became very concerned about, and eventually came to the place where she decided she needed to speak out. I have heard that testimony. I will not describe it in detail, but it was described as much more than the usual doctor - client relationship. One of the things was that Linda had made arrangements to meet the doctor in Norway to spend 10 days with him touring the pretty places in the country during the following June.
In early March Danny called me. He was very distraught as he told me what Linda was doing. I immediately traveled to 3abn to find out for myself, and for the next two to three months was there for a few days almost every week. During this time I and a small committee of the board had a number of sessions with Linda, encouraging her to break off the relationship that was ruining her home and putting a serious strain on the ministry. Pastor John L. was one of the first to counsel Linda. From the start, before meeting with Danny and Linda together he warned Linda that what she was doing was wrong, and must stop. He then spent hours counseling the two of them together. I am not sure how many other sessions were had. When I arrived, I arranged for Pastor John, Linda and Danny and I to meet together. We met, talked and prayed. Both Danny and Linda were anointed, and committed to God to do what was right. Linda promised us to cut off the relationship. Not long (I don't remember the length of time, but probably less than an hour) she was secretly on the phone to Norway with the doctor again. We had other sessions with her where she reluctantly made similar agreements, but usually said she was not going to give him up until she was sure Danny would stop interfering in her affairs - as if it was Danny's fault they were having trouble. On one occasion I was able to get the doctor on the phone. I begged him to break of the relationship. He told me he would not. We arranged for Danny and Linda to visit a marriage counselor couple out of state. They were not Adventist, but devout Christians of another faith. They were chosen so that Linda could not claim that they were biased, if Adventist. Danny and Linda spent eight hours with the counselors. They were the one's who told Linda she was committing "spiritual adultery" and that it was wrong and must be stopped at once. She made excuses, said she was doing nothing wrong. They warned her that the way she was going it would soon become physical.
Our committee of the board invited a lady friend of Linda's to sit with us, thinking that, being a woman, she would be able to make Linda comfortable. As soon as she heard Linda's story, she confided to Linda that she was wrong, and needed to correct the problem. Linda requested her to query some of the 3ABN leadership to hear their views. she did this, only to find that Linda used the negative feedback she received as evidence she was not a friend to her cause. Linda would not talk to her again - the same as she had done to the friend that went with her to Norway.
Meanwhile, all during this time, Linda was spending long hours on the phone with the doctor on international calls using phone cards, credit cards, etc. We have records of those cards and can verify the amount of time spent. Some calls were overheard by Danny when she did not know he was around. Whereas she says that she was discussing her son, the calls were, in fact not about her son, but were very personal. Arrangements were made, and tickets purchased to meet him in Florida. (We have evidence such a meeting did indeed take place) When that was discovered, they planned to meet in Las Vegas, and New York. And as you might expect, Danny was by this time checking things out pretty carefully. One night she came home all cheery. While she and Danny were getting ready for bed, she left to do something else (I have forgotten what). While out, Danny found a sack of things in the closet. Upon opening it, he found a pregnancy test kit. (He is "fixed" so he cannot have more children.) When she found out that he had discovered it, she was at first angry because he had "snooped" in her things, and then told him she had just purchased it to see his reaction. We also have evidence that the doctor had given her an expensive wristwatch.
While this was going on, Linda refusing to give up the doctor, and Danny not willing to live with a third party disrupting things, they began talking divorce. Linda's mother lived in Las Vegas (I think) and Linda began making plans to move there long enough to gain residency status and then was going to get a divorce. Discovering the possibility of getting a divorce through Guan, they jointly agreed. Danny was driven by several factors. One, she was not about to be faithful to him. She was running up huge credit card debts on joint accounts making him responsible for paying them off, and he was concerned about 3ABN and the effect the situation was causing on the ministry. It simply could not continue the way things were going. Though I and the board did not get involved in the marriage, we were very much concerned about the ministry.
All the while, this was taking a real toll on the ministry. Work was not getting done. The employees were pulled in both directions. Finally, I sent Linda a registered letter (she was not answering my e mails or phone calls). In it I told her that we were offering to send her away for counseling to a place and with people mutually acceptable. I told her that if she would not accept our offer and find help to get rid of the doctor, we would have to consider removing her from her positions. She did not respond to my letter.
At camp meeting time (the end of May), we also had a board meeting. On Friday night of camp meeting, the doctor and Johann (our European representative before this all developed) came and sat in the back row. Danny was very uncomfortable with them there, fearful they would make a scene on international television. He asked us to ask them to leave. They refused. They walked out just as the meeting was ending. I and some other people went out after them. When we got outside, Johann grabbed me by the shirt and started to shake me in anger. When other bigger people came to my support, he calmed down, and we all talked together for a half hour or so - I am not sure of the total time. In the meantime, Mark Finley spoke with the doctor. I joined them for a few minutes. While I was with Mark and the doctor, something was said that upset Johann, and he and the doctor left, angry and fast, spinning dirt as they left. Because they had begun to hand out papers of a proposed article they were planning to submit to the local newspaper discrediting 3ABN, we warned them not to come back.
The next day, Sabbath, we got hold of Johann by phone and he agreed to meet with us at a park and talk things out. The doctor was also invited, but he said he had said all he had to say the night before, and refused to come. We spent an hour or two with Johann, going over all of the events until then. Finally, I took him to the hotel where they were staying. We sat in the car and talked for some time. At that time he confessed to me that maybe he was wrong in supporting Linda. We had prayer and parted. The three of them left and returned to Springfield shortly after that.
Linda did not come to the board meeting on Sunday morning. She sent a letter instead. The board considered her letter carefully in light of all that had gone on, and unanimously agreed that she could no longer serve the ministry under these conditions, nor continue to serve on the board. (We have since been accused of refusing to let the doctor and Johann represent her at the board. No such request was ever made, either by voice or by pen.)
Linda did go to Norway for her ten-day vacation with the doctor in June. We know that. There have been many other trips back and forth by both of them since.
Linda said on her web site recently that I had told Johann a year before that I had never accused her of adultery. She was correctly quoting a portion of my statement to Johann, but what she did not bother to say is that I was defending 3ABN against an accusation that we had fired her for adultery. I was merely telling him that it was for defiance of her board that she was let go, not because of adultery, an accusation, it is true, I never stated. As you can see from the few things I have included here, we have had ample evidence to suggest adultery, but it is true, we have not seen the two of them in bed together.
Our position on the board all through this process was to take the high road and not to tell things like this to the public, attempting to protect Linda from even more hurt that she was doing to herself. In all of our public statements, we have tried to be discrete. To protect the ministry from a public confrontation, we also gave Linda a good settlement with the agreement that she would not bad mouth 3ABN. And while she has partially fulfilled her obligation, her "friends" have kept the pot boiling - contrary to her agreement.
She wrote on her web site in March that they were not divorced, that the Guam divorce was being contested. It is interesting to know that this was posted on the web site after (or about the time that) the judge's decision had been made in favor of Danny. It is also interesting that the only reason she filed suit against Danny was to get more money from him than they had agreed upon originally. One might wonder why she would file for a new divorce if it had been Danny that had insisted on it in the first place as she alleges!
Sometime fairly early on during this experience, Linda began to accuse Danny of abusing her. She told people she was afraid to stay home with him for fear he would take his gun and hurt her. On a number of occasions during their discussions she would go off in a huff to stay with her daughter in Springfield (two hours away). On at least one of those occasions, I was on the phone with Danny when she was preparing to leave, and I heard nothing suggesting abuse of any kind. I will admit that at first, Danny was "in her face" an awfully lot trying to get her to stop talking with the doctor. This stopped after their visit with the counselors. We believe that the Dr. advised Linda to use the "abuse" language to justify their relationship - and have good evidence upon which this is based. I believe it was during the GC session in Toronto when abuse was included among the justifications for divorce. If you know Danny at all, one thing he is not, is an abuser. Talk! Perhaps! But certainly not dangerous or physical.
Just to make this letter a bit more complete, let me tell you what I know about Danny's attempt to save Linda for himself - even after the divorce papers were signed. He paid off the remaining debt on her new car, her daughter's car, all of the credit cards, and other joint bills. He bought her interest in the house, helped her move to Southern Illinois, build a porch on her home there, gave her all of the things in their home including things that were really his. (He did these things with money obtained in a loan from a friend.) Over and over again he took her out to eat and did many other things to show how much he really cared for her. In fact, many of the employees and some of us on the board were concerned because of how she was leading him on and keeping him in turmoil. Over and over, she threatened him, saying, that if she was going down, she would bring him and the ministry down with him.
One more thing. Linda has said that she was not censured by her church. The fact is, her church did meet and confidentially went over all of the evidence they had, and wrote an 8 page letter outlining the reason they had to conclude that she was wrong. Rather than drop her from membership, out of concern for her, they agreed do a letter of censure.
As for Danny getting married, let me make a few more comments. Our board has been well informed on all of these things. We were the ones that unanimously let Linda go, as much as we all hated to take that step. We all love her, care about her, and continue to keep her in our prayers. We have also been fully informed about Danny and his new-found friend. I was at 3ABN the day she and her two girls arrived from Florida with all they possessed. I shared some peanut butter and grapes that I had left over as I was about to return home. My heart went out to them. Danny's eventually did too. They are really nice people who have a heart for Jesus and for hurting people. She has had a hard life. (Her twin sister is dead.) There relationship has grown since that day more than a year ago. (Contrary to rumor, there was no relationship going before that!) A number of the staff and some of us on the board advised Danny to "cool it." He tried. But Danny is a people person. He needs people around him. I have concluded that Brandy came to 3abn at the direction of either the devil or the Holy Spirit. I have had no trouble deciding which. I believe God has given Danny just what he has needed to continue to serve that ministry with the power and enthusiasm that is characteristic to him. He loves the Lord supremely, and seeks His guidance in all things. What you see of Danny on television is who he is. He is not a fake. Yes, he is human. He has human tendencies, just like you and I. Just because he is on television does not automatically take away those personal drives.
Before Danny married Brandy, our board met by conference call and went over the evidence again. It was our conclusion based upon the information we have, only some of which I have shared here, that Danny was morally free to re-marry if he wished. We were all concerned about the timing, but did not feel that was a just reason for condemning the action. Those of Church leadership with whom we have shared these things agree with our decision.
In all of the Bible, I have not been able to find a single instance where God had a prophet condemn any one for anything that was not either illegal or immoral. As our board, and leaders of the church, have carefully examined the evidence, we find nothing for which to condemn Danny either. As regarding age difference, I find nothing in the Bible or the SOP that speaks to this issue. You may remember Elder Archo Dart, a General Conference officer doing family counseling during the fifties. He married a patient of mine who was at least 20 years younger when he was in his late 70's. They had an excellent marriage. Teddy, his new wife, loved every minute of their time together - as she told me. They are both dead now.
Linda, in spite of what I have noted above, refuses to acknowledge that what she was doing was wrong - nor is she telling the facts as they happened. It is one thing to forgive and forget, but is altogether something else when one is unable to acknowledge wrong doing. Yes, and I truly would like to know what Jesus would have done differently. As I see it, we gave Linda every imaginable opportunity to remain and work with 3ABN - except for one condition. When she refused, what more is one to do? Jesus was patient with Judas too, but He did not prevent Judas from doing what he did.
For my part, I have asked God for wisdom to guide in all that we have done. I have insisted at every step that we do everything in a way that could never be honestly faulted. I believe God has honored our desire, and blessed the ministry beyond measure because we have tried so hard to be faithful. You may remember that even God lost some of his best friends (Lucifer, Ananias and Saphira and others). It hurts. But sometimes one must act to stop bad things - even when it hurts!
I hope this helps to clear the confusion. NO ONE at 3ABN wanted to get rid of Linda, least of all, Danny. I don't think there are very many people that would condemn Danny for not waiting longer to agree to divorce if they had been there and witnessed the situation. Even God has limits to His tolerance. If you have further questions or need further evidence, please let me know.
Sincerely in Jesus' precious name,
Walter Thompson MD
Chairman, 3ABN Board
