Just before the Central Florida Tourism Oversight Board entered its regular meeting, Pastor David Netorg was asked to speak to the Board hand-picked by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. Netzorg is the founder of the Emmaus Church in Winter Garden, Florida, which has run into controversies of its own.
Netzorg told the Board that government work is a “calling” and that they “actually work for God.” He closed his remarks by reading a passage from Romans 13.
The passage reads:
Every person is to be in subjection to the governing authorities for there is no authority except from God. And those which exist are established by God. Therefore, whoever resists authority has opposed the ordinance of God and they who have opposed will receive condemnation upon themselves.
Netzorg ended his comments by adding, “So we’re to obey the police, firefighters, government all of those in authority.”
In an ironic twist, once Netzorg finished his remarks, the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District continued its discussion on perks that once belonged to the Reedy Creek firefighters that the Board eliminated at their last meeting.
The Board of DeSantis appointees received a $2.5 million bill from the Walt Disney World Resort and immediately sought to cut the money from its budget, calling it a “scheme” to defraud Florida taxpayers. The Reedy Creek Professional firefighters protested the removal of those benefits, as they were perks employees received even after retirement from the District.
As a part of its agreements with the Reedy Creek Improvement District, firefighters and other District employees received Disney World season passes every year, even after they retired. They also received discounts on food, merchandise, and Walt Disney World Resort hotels. The firefighters union and the CFTOD are working on a resolution to the removal of these benefits.
Who is David Netzorg?
Netzorg was originally from South Florida and worked in the surf business. He moved to Central Florida in 1992 to enter the seminary. He formed the Emmaus Church in 2012.
In 2014, a “worship minister” at the Church was accused of possessing child pornography. Mark DeHaven was accused of two counts of receiving child porn and one count of possession of child porn. In a statement released to the Orlando Sentinel shortly after DeHaven’s arrest, Netzorg said that DeHaven was fired from the Church soon after he learned of the charges against him.
In 2017, the Church expanded to its current location in Winter Garden, Florida. Netzorg moved the Church’s operations into the Garden Theater in the downtown area.
As he finished with the Board, Netzorg told them:
And when we help other people and when we love other people and make their lives better, enhance their lives, that’s loving your neighbor as yourself, which you probably know is the greatest commandment from the Bible.
While Pastor David Netzorg preached being a good neighbor, Walt Disney World would argue that the new Board has been anything but. The Walt Disney Company is currently in a power struggle with the Board members over the future of the former Reedy Creek District.
Disney is suing in State Court over the removal of its development agreement that has been in place since the 1960s. Disney has sued, seeking damages, and hopes to return control of the Board to Reedy Creek.
For now, it does not appear that Disney will be heeding Pastor Netzorg’s advice and submit to the authority of the Board appointed by Gov Ron DeSantis. It will soon be for the courts to decide.
