Unlike many other blogs written by Christian authors, this blog allows comments. However, Frank is not the one who moderates them. What follows are 10 reasons why your comment may not be seen OR approved.
Before you read this list: If you posted a comment but no longer see it, you must READ THE COMMENTS USING THE SAME BROWSER YOU USED WHEN POSTING IT. The reason is that some browsers don’t display all the comments. The other reason is it may have automatically gone into the spam folder – which is point 10 below.
Also, always read the other comments on a blog post because Frank will sometimes respond to the same question or objection written by another person. Either that, or someone else might have responded to what you may have written in their own comment. There’s no reason to duplicate an answer.
1. Spam — advertising one’s own work or the work of other people — will not be approved. If you want to discuss a particular blog post, interact with it in the comments section here. Do not refer people to a different site or other authors/speakers. This is advertising. If you wish to advertise a blog, website, or book, ask for our advertising rates.
2. Flames or anything remotely similar to a flame will not be approved. A flame is an attack on someone personally, impugning their motives and/or character.
3. Comments that bash or defame churches, other Christians, other leaders or ministries will not be approved. It’s one thing to critique a church or ministry by stating general principles (rather than by name). But it’s another thing to bash them, run them down by name, judge their motivations, and call them defamatory names. This would include calling other leaders “false teachers,” “heretics,” “the tools of Satan,” etc. If this confuses or concerns you, you can listen to these podcast episodes where Frank discusses what a “false teacher” and a “heretic” is according to Scripture. And what a Jesus follower should do if they are concerned about someone’s teaching.
#11: The Mark of a True Disciple, False Teachers, Heresy, and Jesus’ Humor
#40: Christian Unity and the Kingdom
4. Comments that slander, gossip, make personal accusations against, judge motives, or misrepresent others or their work will not be approved. Jesus and Paul said that if you have an issue with someone or their teaching, you go to them directly with an open mind, thinking the best. Misrepresentations and misinformation abound on the Internet, and they are usually fueled by people who have never contacted the individuals whose work they are critiquing. They usually come across slanderous allegations against them via some “hate website” which takes their words out of context or spreads false rumors about them. Paul said, “malign no one” NASB; “speak evil of no one” NKJV; “slander no one” NIV (Titus 3:2). Let us be obedient to our Lord and treat others the same way we wish to be treated if it were us. To speak about someone in a way that YOU would never want other people to say about you violates Jesus’ most important command in Matthew 7:12.
5. Posts that contain gossip about others will not be approved. Gossip is second or third-hand information that puts someone in a negative light without their knowledge or consent. The information can be true, false, or partial.
6. Comments that the Blog Manager doesn’t understand due to confusing content or language will not be approved. If the Blog Manager doesn’t understand it, there’s a good chance that others won’t either.
7. Comments that are incredibly long won’t be approved. All are free to share. But no one should monopolize the conversation. Keep your comments fairly short so the conversation is encouraged not hindered.
8. Too many comments by the same person on a single post may not be approved. Comment once, then wait to respond to someone else’s comment. But be careful how often you comment on a single post.
9. Comments that are purely contentious or defamatory won’t be approved. Disagreements are allowed, and you will find many disagreements in the comments section of the various posts. But contentious comments that contain a defamatory tone will not be approved. Neither will comments where you simply repeat the same points that you’ve already made without taking seriously the responses of others to what you’ve already written.
10. Sometimes legitimate comments go into the spam folder, so they are not seen. If your comment doesn’t violate any of the above standards, assume that it went into spam and no one saw it. Because the spam folder garners hundreds of spam comments per week, the entire folder is deleted each week without viewing the contents. But first, read the comments using the same browser you used to make the comment. You may see it displayed then.
Regards,
The Blog Manager