by NIKKI ROBERTI
Lifestyles Reporter

A crowd gathered on Sanford Mall Monday and Tuesday afternoon where moments of shouts were heard as students stood listening and challenging preachers John McGlone and Kerrigan Skelly of PinPoint Evangelism.

The two men from the church, The Light of Fayetteville, took turns preaching to the crowd.

Evangelist Kerrigan Skelly explains his position on the Bible to several Appalachian State University students on Sanford Mall. The religious debate triggered numerous discussions. Photo by Holt Menzies

According to their Web site, PinPointEvangelism.com, Appalachian State University had been scheduled for three days on their calendar for evangelism.

Wednesday was the last day.

McGlone said the two men were trying to help students understand the “whole truth” of the Bible, since the “half truth is a lie.”

McGlone and Skelly believe “the half truth” is that God loves you and by believing, one can go to heaven.

However, McGlone and Skelly said students can’t go to heaven unless they rid their entire lives from sin.

Freshman business major, Truman L. King was a student who spoke from the crowd, challenging Skelly’s teaching, receiving cheers from the majority of bystanders.

“There’s a man out here and he’s proclaiming Christianity without including the key messages of love,” King said. “He’s totally lacking in love.

He’s particularly rude and unkind. He’s also avoiding all the verses brought to say that the way he’s delivering the message is incorrect.”

Skelly spoke to the crowd about interpreting the Bible and said, “If the literal sense makes sense, then make no other senses, lest you make nonsense.”

Andy B. Stoker, a freshman special education major said he is a Methodist, but Skelly’s statement didn’t make sense to him.

“I have no clue what he meant. I think he’s out here for attention,” Stoker said. “No one’s really receptive to it. If he’s out here trying to influence people, it’s not working.”

“Do they honestly think they can get college kids to believe this [stuff],” Zach R. Gumm, freshman history major said. “I mean I can understand other people, but college kids. [College students] are honestly here to make up their minds over [stuff] like this.”

Gumm said he respects others’ beliefs and considers himself a deist.

However, he thinks it is people like Skelly who “give Christians a bad name.”

A girl shouted from the crowd that most of the people arguing with the preachers were Christians themselves, but Skelly said to her those people were only “professing Christians.”

In Skelly’s message, he said he is “morally perfect,” and though he was a sinner before, he does nothing wrong anymore.

“We were sinners. Now we’re saints,” McGlone said. “Somebody has to be the saints besides the Catholic Church.”

“I’m very offended because he thinks he’s perfect, which he’s not. It says in the Bible that no one is,” Katie L. Ramsey, junior elementary education major said.

King said other students were offended as well when two girls were called inappropriate names.

However, McGlone said there was no such name calling.

“We would never call someone a whore or a slut. We talk about sins. We do call out fashion, but we don’t call people whores,” he said. “The gospel is offensive enough. We don’t want to offend them because we just want to warn them that they are living in sin.”

Lt. Rich L. Matheson of University Police said his presence was just to stand and observe, and not due to any anticipation of problems from students or the preachers.

“They’re having a good discussion,” Matheson said. “They both are getting what they want.”

McGlone said if God gives him 20 more years, he will still continue to preach in this way.

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