Recently, the hearing examiner in Federal Way approved a proposal that would allow a heliport for Pastor Casey Treat, who is the head of the Christian Faith Center.

With that approval, Treat would be able to fly his helicopter from his Everett church to his Federal Way church.

That proposal was approved even though a number of residents spoke up against it. But of course, money reared its ugly head. And as usual, money won out over common sense.

I have seen the Christian Faith Center. It looks more like an office park than a church.

I will admit my bias. I prefer my church to look like a church. Instead, this place looks like a refuge center packed with a bunch of insurance agents from Geico, minus the lizard.

I am always a little skeptical of these mega-churches and their ministers. I vividly remember Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker — or Jimmy Swaggart, the minister who used to make midnight cruises looking for God knows what. They and other fallen ministers really believe their press clippings.

I remember an old saying that my father taught me. He said it is never about the messenger, but always about the message.

I went to Treat’s church and was impressed with his service. But thousands of people were a little bit overwhelming for this guy, with a little too much glitter and flash. In the end, Treat is a mere mortal. He just has a helicopter.

I have an uneasy feeling about the example it sets. I wonder if the pastor thought about having the services at different times. That way he could take Interstate 5 like the rest of us mere mortals. Washington state has one of the lowest rates of church-goers in America.

It’s not like there will be a traffic jam with a bunch of people headed to Sunday services, full speed ahead.

I could imagine if Auburn and Kent allowed a mega-church complete with a heliport and helicopters flying around their own respective centers. There would no longer need to be any bumper sticker that said “Honk for Jesus.” The new slogan would be “Wave at Jesus.”

In all my readings about Jesus, he had 12 friends, rode a donkey and didn’t take the expressway. And according to rumor, he did a pretty good job of changing the world. Bigger is not always better.

I realize that the Federal Way City Council has the final word. The reason the heliport will pass is because of too many road improvements and too much money brought by the church. When I was growing up, the only mega-church I can remember is the Vatican in Rome which, as far as I know, only had a Popemobile to get the Pope around.

In the final analysis, whether the pastor has a big church, a little church or a medium church, and whether he drives a Rolls Royce or takes the bus, the most important thing is the size of the hearts of the people who go to that church.

No excuses.

Federal Way resident Walter Backstrom can be reached at: wkbackstrom@aim.com