Hosea 7:13
Woe to them, for they have strayed from Me!
Destruction is theirs, for they have rebelled against Me!
I would redeem them, but they speak lies against Me.
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2 Corinthians 6:14
Do not be bound together with unbelievers; for what partnership have righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship has light with darkness?
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Jude 1:3-5
Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints. For certain persons have crept in unnoticed, those who were long beforehand marked out for this condemnation, ungodly persons who turn the grace of our God into licentiousness and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ. Now I desire to remind you, though you know all things once for all, that the Lord, after saving a people out of the land of Egypt, subsequently destroyed those who did not believe.
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1 Timothy 6:3-5
If anyone advocates a different doctrine and does not agree with sound words, those of our Lord Jesus Christ, and with the doctrine conforming to godliness, he is conceited and understands nothing; but he has a morbid interest in controversial questions and disputes about words, out of which arise envy, strife, abusive language, evil suspicions, and constant friction between men of depraved mind and deprived of the truth, who suppose that godliness is a means of gain.
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Revelation 18:4
I heard another voice from heaven, saying, "Come out of her, my people, so that you will not participate in her sins and receive of her plagues;
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| Shalom in Christ Jesus, |
Our last Be Alert! compilation of articles (December 27, 2009) that concentrated on the great falling away now occurring in the
church generated the usual few negative letters from those wishing to
unsubscribe because we are just too pessimistic or unbalanced in our approach.
I know very well that this is a difficult and unpleasant
topic to deal with and I truly wish it were not the case, however, we are
working with the Word of God and what our great Lord and Savior Jesus Christ
and His apostles declare to be true. Most of those who call themselves
Christians, many who actually are and many who are false brethren have been
taught lies of a triumphant church (or some variation of the many false end
times teachings) that have set them up for an even greater deception of which
they already are partaking.
This is the whole reason why we do what we do at Moriel (although it is only a small part of the overall ministry). It is out of
great love and concern for the brethren to be turned to the straight and narrow
path that they may stand as the deception and persecution grows worse, and that
those who do not know the Lord may have a chance to come to know Him. It is
truly imperative that these sheep be fed correct doctrine, not warm fuzzy
feelings which all know do not hold up during the tough times of human
relationships, how much more during the tough times of spiritual warfare?
Please understand that our purpose is never to point the
finger and say "we are better" or any other such thing. We apply the Word of
God and point out false teaching and teachers to warn the sheep of poison that
can spiritually kill them just as the Old Testament prophets and the New
Testament apostles, not that we are on
any level of authority that they had, but we do have the same Spirit of love
and concern for the sheep.
It is important to note that Be Alert!
was designed to be a news and information feature for the discerning Christian
and not a replacement for other regular sources of godly fellowship, prayer,
encouragement and study. I only mention this because some comments suggest that
we are somehow falling short not fulfilling these needs. However, that is not
the reason or focus of this part of the ministry and there are many more capable ones from
which to choose and which the Lord has blessed that do minister to those needs.
May the Lord bless you and keep you,
BE/\LERT!
Scott
Brisk
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"I did not send these prophets,
But they ran. ..." - Jeremiah 23:21a
Haggard, Bentley, Liardon and Company
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"Is God's Word No Longer The Standard?"MORIEL MINISTRIES - By James Jacob Prasch - February 4, 2010
What do Ted Haggard, Todd Bentley, and Roberts
Liardon all have in common?
- All either compromised with false doctrine or
preached it even before their public falls from grace.
As we have warned repeatedly, like morally
discredited false teachers from Jim Bakker to Paul Cain and Bob Jones, when
someone goes off doctrinally it is a symptom that they have gone off morally.
And when someone goes off morally, it is almost inevitable they will also go
off doctrinally.
Such tragic figures always employ the same
arguments to justify their return to Christian leadership after publicly
discrediting the body of Christ and openly dishonoring the name of Jesus. While
I myself have no propensity towards homosexuality, I am not without my own
proclivities and can only prayerfully trust Jesus to prevent me from
transgressing in a manner no less serious and depraved. As Paul says, "Let he
who thinks he stands take care lest he fall". This
consideration should be foremost in all of our minds when we observe the
debauchery and hypocrisy of men like Bentley, Haggard, and Liardon.
However, God's standard remains fixed. In the
New Testament, someone cannot be in ministry unless they have a good name with
those outside of the church where the world cannot bring a discrediting
indictment against them. [1] We are warned specifically that those
being in ministry whose witness and testimony to the unsaved world is not good
that for such men to remain or return to ministry, or to be in ministry at all,
is a snare of the devil that will trap them, according to Paul, and that they
will fall into reproach. Yet, we repeatedly see the likes of Haggard, Bentley,
and Liardon throwing themselves into that trap when in fact they can never
have a good reputation with those outside of the church.
In order to justify their rejection of plain
teaching of the New Testament, such villains characteristically misinterpret a
narrative of the Old Testament where God forgave David for his sin with
Bathsheeba. An exegetically distorted misinterpretation of the Old Testament
can never negate the unambiguous instruction found in the New Testament. In
fact, David was never a member of the clergy. He was not an Aaronic priest and
held no Levitical office. He rather had a political office and was from the
tribe of Judah, not Levi. It is a false comparison, to say the least, to say
that a political figure being restored to leadership in the Old Testament has
an equivalency with a member of the clergy being restored to ministry in the
New Testament. Moreover, such an argument becomes doubly erroneous by virtue of
the fact that David was never restored to leadership because he was never
removed from leadership to begin with. The entire argument is absurd.
Yet, it is on this exegetically hollow basis and
the abject false conclusion derived from it that Colin Dye of the Elim Movement
in the UK brings money preacher Roberts Liardon into the ministry at Kensington
Temple in London. One can only wonder if the Word of God has any place or
meaning to the Elim Movement of Britain and New Zealand whatsoever.
After abandoning his wife and three children and
running off with another woman who he has since married in a scenario that
Jesus described as "an adulterous marriage" in the Sermon on the Mount, Rick
Joyner has sought to rehabilitate criminally convicted homosexual pedophile
Todd Bentley back into the ministry along with the woman he ran off with who is
now preaching prophetic dreams of dancing elephants and communication with the
dead. If Joyner's actions do not constitute a de facto endorsement of religious
whoredom and a sanction of necromancy, it is difficult to imagine what does.
Meanwhile, Bentley's three children languish at home in Canada with his
biblically rightful wife while Joyner shamefully applauds the spectacle.
Now Ted Haggard is making his play for an
auto-rehabilitation. He and his wife are cashing in on his history of scandal
with a book that has seen his wife appearing on the TV talk show circuit
speaking to unsaved television talk show personalities as the world witnesses
the church's humiliation upon further humiliation. His wife's book is the
prelude to his strategy for coming back into the ministry after it was revealed
that the former President of the National Association of Evangelicals, who was
already consorting with doctrinally off-base figures, was involved with paying
male prostitutes for unnatural sex and taking dangerous intoxicating drugs
recreationally. And then lied through his teeth about it to his church. All of
a sudden, he is supposedly "restored".
We have seen the same reprehensible pattern with
drunken pervert Paul Cain and sexual predator Bob Jones of the Kansas City
false prophets and, not least of all, Jim Bakker.
No one suggests that a fallen brother or sister
who truly repents cannot be forgiven and restored to fellowship, but once they
no longer can have a good name or reputation with those outside of the church,
1 Timothy teaches clearly that they can no longer be restored to ministry or
leadership. Indeed, the book of Proverbs teaches plainly that "a good name" is
to be desired above all else. And these pathetic individuals have given
themselves a bad name for which, apart from the devil, they can blame no one
but their own selves.
If someone in such an unfortunate situation
truly repented, they would accept the ramifications of their misdeeds, do all
they could to make amends, and abide by the teachings of Scripture that
prohibits them from being in further ministry or leadership. Instead, one after
another (including Jimmy Swaggart) they march headlong into what St. Paul
call's "Satan's trap". And in the eyes of the world bring further reproach to
themselves, to the church, and to the name of Christ.
We are forced to conclude either that their
repentance is therefore disingenuous and malmotivated or else they are so
fundamentally ignorant of God's Word that they should never have been in the
ministry at all to begin with.
Christianity is a faith based on forgiveness. We
can forgive, but we cannot
expect the world to forget. Satan and the unsaved will always have adequate
ammunition based on the past to use against them, against the church, and
against the cause of Christ. For sure, not all of the corruption and hypocrisy
has been sexually related, although most of it has
involved this kind of immorality. Or in the cases of Haggard, Bentley, Liardon,
and Paul Cain, even what they themselves admit is unnatural perversion.
The divorce and remarriage scandals of Paula
White, Ray McCauley of South Africa, and Ray Bevin of South Wales and the
financial shenanigans of Peter Popov, etc. are no less a public disgrace
destroying any semblance of a good name or credibility. Yet, these also remain
in the ministry, pretending it to be somehow acceptable to God when God in His
Word says it is not. The capacity of these people to delude themselves and others
can only in some way be the product of a reprobate mind.
For three days running, the Los Angeles
Times carried front-page stories alleging homosexuality by Paul Crouch of
TBN. Crouch vociferously denied the charges, expecting the church and the
public to believe that he paid $425,000 in and out-of-court legal settlement
with a secrecy clause stipulating that the recipient remain silent about these
charges of deviant sexual behavior in a wrongful dismissal suit.
The ultimate indictment however, is not of these
malefactors themselves despite their hypocrisy, The indictment is rather of a
church willing to tolerate it in abrogation of God's own divine standards of
holiness, sanctification, and qualification for the ministry. The Scriptures
decry a willingness by the church to compromise God's moral standards as
arrogance when the church fails to address such situations scripturally and
remove such people. [2] Moreover, in no uncertain terms we are
commanded to retain God's standards. [3]
For if one comes and preaches another Jesus whom
we have not preached, or you receive a different spirit which you have not
received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted, you bear this
beautifully. (2 Corinthians 11:4)
Link notes:
- 1 Timothy 3:7
- 1 Corinthians 5:2
- 2 Timothy 1:13
Originally Posted on the Moriel Website February 4, 2010 by
MORIELDANNY
http://moriel.org/MorielArchive/index.php/discernment/church-issues/false-prophets/haggard-bentley-liardon-and-company
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Printing Be Alert! from the email you receive (unless it is a text version) is not printer friendly. If you want a printer friendly alert you have two options. When you receive Be Alert! click the link at the very top that says " Having trouble viewing or clicking this email? Click Here" This brings you to a version of the alert posted online 90 days from the date it is sent. If you use Internet Explorer or Mozilla Firefox to surf the Internet select 'Print Preview' and you will notice that the dark background is gone and the white fonts now appear black. This is a printer friendly format, although the pictures will still print. From the "Print Preview' you can also adjust the overall page count by using the Percentage (%) tool that allows you to increase or decrease the size. The second option you have is to go the Be Alert! Archive pageThese alerts are archived for at least 1 year on the Internet and you can print them the very same way as the above procedure. You may want to bookmark the page in your Favorites.
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Ted Haggard defends his life
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EXAMINER [Clarity Media Group] - By Jackie Alnor, SF
Christianity & the Media Examiner - February 2, 2010
Ted Haggard, the former president of the National
Association of Evangelicals, showed up on a popular Christian blog today to
give his arguments for why he should be welcomed back into church leadership.
He also defended his wife Gayle Haggard's decision to write a book called
"Why I Stayed," in which she is said to set the record straight that
her husband is a heterosexual and a loving husband. The Haggards have been
promoting the book side by side this past week on various media outlets
including Oprah
and Larry King Live.
The Phoenix Preacher
blogger Michael Newnham featured two threads on the Haggards in the past
several days in which he took issue with his favorite theologian for endorsing
the book. More than 500 responses revealed many mixed feelings from Christians,
some were angry that this scandal has reared its ugly head again in the media,
while others were calling for forgiveness and understanding.
"I see a man," wrote Newnham in the first thread,
"who deceived people for years and confessed when he got caught. It's not
"a" sin, it's a pattern of deceit that hurt a great many people and brought
shame to the Body of Christ. It's way too soon after the facts for me to want
to hear anything he has to say from a platform. Trust takes time to build...a
long time... and for there to be an expectation of trust this soon is not
realistic, at least in my mind."
Then the blogger ran out and coughed up the $24.99 to buy
the book and came back with a changed attitude.
"I didn't like his theology, his politics, his idiotic
grin, or his vacuous quotes... I didn't like him...I don't want to care if they
were mistreated, I don't want to hear about their pain, I just want them to go
away. That, my brethren...is sin. We are all part of the same Body and when any
of us are hurt or abused the whole Body suffers. The Haggards have the same
right to be heard that anybody in the Body of Christ has...whether we like them
or not, no matter how offensive we find the sins."
Perhaps the changed attitude is what gave Ted Haggard the go-ahead to get in on the discussion. Haggard is very excited about his wife's book.
"Have you seen Gayle on TV or heard her on the radio?
Isn't she incredible! I would love to hear your thoughts. She just finished
Rosie's show and had a great opportunity to share so much of her faith. What a
great opportunity Jesus has given us."
And that's a problem that didn't get hashed out. Why would
the Haggards think it is a good thing to recount such moral failures in church
leadership before the onlooking world? It appears to many that they are using
their disgrace as a ruse to make a profit. The entire story brings ridicule to
Christians everywhere and feeds the cynicism of a post-Christian society. Would
it not be more prudent to go into obscurity and work on their marriage?
It is nice that a wife has stood by her man - but that story
has been told numerous times by - fill in the blank.
Do the Haggards love the media spotlight so much that they
turn a scandal into an opportunity to be in the limelight and gain their
celebrity like a Tanya Harding or a Joey Buttafuoco? What's next, their own
reality TV show?
Unedited :: Link to Original Posting
http://www.examiner.com/x-34556-SF-Christianity--the-Media-Examiner~y2010m2d2-Ted-Haggard-defends-his-life
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Ted Haggard returns to the pulpit in Colorado
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The disgraced former pastor is back in Colorado Springs, and his home prayer meetings have drawn an unexpected audience. 'I love a good redemption story,' a supporter says.
LOS ANGELES TIMES [Tribune Company] - By DeeDee Correll - December 7, 2009
Reporting from Colorado Springs, Colo. - Ted Haggard climbed onto a bale of hay, Bible balanced in his palm.
"Welcome to my barn," he called out.
"Does anybody need a blanket?" his wife, Gayle, inquired as men and women in down coats shivered in the frigid November air. Some huddled underneath a space heater.
Then the blue-jeans-clad preacher began chanting: "God is good, God is good, God is good."
This musty barn next to the Haggard home is barely two miles -- but a universe away -- from the massive stage the former evangelical star once occupied at New Life Church. There, he would appear every Sunday before microphones, giant television screens and a congregation so large that services had to be held in shifts.
But in late 2006 came what Haggard, now 53, refers to as "the crisis," the revelation that he'd had a sexual relationship with a male escort. Haggard resigned from the church he had started in his basement 25 years ago and left Colorado Springs.
Now he's back and, some speculate, launching his second act.
Last month, Haggard -- who declined to be interviewed -- opened his home for a prayer meeting. He expected a dozen people. More than 100 came, and the Haggards moved the furniture out of the living room to make space.
A week later, he swept out his barn and rented 75 chairs. When they were filled, people stood against the back walls.
Many were former or current members of his old church who called him Pastor Ted. They said they had missed him, that he was born to preach -- not to sell insurance as he had when he first returned here. They said they had forgiven what they and Haggard regarded as his sins.
"I love a good redemption story," said Elly Kraai, a former New Life member. "I'm seeing one playing out here."
If Haggard can make a comeback, it will be because many evangelical Christians find his story appealing, said Michael Hamilton, an associate history professor at Seattle Pacific University who studies evangelicalism.
"Sin, sorrow, repentance, conversion and trying to live out your new faith -- that's the standard evangelical way to look at one's life," he said.
But whether Haggard can achieve his previous success is questionable, said Larry Eskridge, associate director of the Institute for the Study of American Evangelicals at Wheaton College in Illinois.
One sticking point could be that Haggard reportedly did not complete a church-mandated "restoration process." New Life officials have said Haggard quit the process in early 2008; he maintains that the church ended the process and that he did not ask to be released from the obligation.
"The larger question is the inability to put himself under someone else's authority and whether it shows true repentance," Eskridge said. ...
As guests parked in his snow-crusted field and carried chocolate chip cookies and jugs of apple juice into the barn, he greeted them enthusiastically. "Look, everybody," Haggard announced when one person arrived with a special treat: "Chocolate cake!"
As the service began, he was jovial, even joking about his indiscretion. "If you're not getting enough snuggling [from your spouse], don't do it the way I did it," he said. ...
H.B. London, vice president of church and clergy at Focus on the Family and a former member of Haggard's restoration team, criticized Haggard's decision to start a new church located so close to New Life as insensitive and premature.
London said he had heard from many pastors who didn't think Haggard was ready to lead a congregation again, asserting that Haggard had not completed the restoration process and was still in need of counseling.
But London said it didn't surprise him that Haggard could attract followers. ...
Edited :: See Original Report Here
http://www.latimes.com/news/nation-and-world/la-na-ted-haggard7-2009dec07,0,2372048.story
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The 'Zeitgeist':
More Americans 'mix and match' religious beliefs, poll finds
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Many people attend services outside of their own religion, and blend Christianity with Eastern and New Age beliefs, according to a nationwide survey.
LOS ANGELES TIMES [Tribune Company] - By Nicole Santa Cruz - December 10, 2009
America is a melting pot not only of culture but also religion, according to a survey released Wednesday.
Many Americans attend services outside of their own religion, and blend Christianity with Eastern and New Age beliefs, the Pew Research Center's Forum on Religion & Public Life said.
The nationwide poll of 4,013 adults found that a third regularly or occasionally attended religious services at more than one location -- and 24% of the public overall worshiped outside their faith.
Three in 10 Protestants surveyed said they sometimes attended services representing other faiths, as did about 20% of Roman Catholics.
S. Scott Bartchy, a professor of the history of religion at UCLA, said the results were not surprising given the increasing cultural diversity of the United States.
"Once people become acquainted with various religions, it's easy to mix and match," he said.
Bartchy also said technology, such as the Internet, played a role in observing multiple religions.
"The great thing is, as an individual you can go online and get all kinds of ideas. You can go online and put it together yourself."
About a quarter of those surveyed expressed beliefs in New Age or Eastern religious principles such as reincarnation and the presence of spiritual energy in physical objects.
"People have talked about many Americans in the mainstream seeing themselves as being on a spiritual journey," said Paul Lichterman, a professor of sociology and religion at USC.
He said that over a lifetime, more Americans will try out different religions than will stay true to one faith.
The number of Americans who said they had interacted with a ghost had doubled over the last 13 years, from 9% to 18%, the survey found.
About 65% of those surveyed also expressed belief in or report having an experience with a variety of supernatural phenomena, such as believing in astrology, being in touch with the dead or consulting a psychic.
Regardless, Lichterman said, Americans have the idea that religion and spirituality are a matter of choice.
"That kind of religious individualism," he said, "is the American religion."
Unedited :: Link to Original Posting
http://www.latimes.com/news/nation-and-world/la-na-religion10-2009dec10,0,6236354.story
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Mixing Their Religion
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USA TODAY [Gannett] - By Cathy Lynn Grossman - December 10, 2009 Going to church this Sunday? Look around. The chances are that one in five of the people there find "spiritual energy" in mountains or trees, and one in six believe in the "evil eye," that certain people can cast curses with a look - beliefs your Christian pastor doesn't preach. In a Catholic church? Chances are that one in five members believe in reincarnation in a way never taught in catechism class - that you'll be reborn in this world again and again. Elements of Eastern faiths and New Age thinking have been widely adopted by 65% of U.S. adults, including many who call themselves Protestants and Catholics, according to a survey by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life released Wednesday. Syncretism - mashing up contradictory beliefs like Catholic rocker Madonna's devotion to a Kabbalah-light version of Jewish mysticism - appears on the rise. And, according to the survey's other major finding, devotion to one clear faith is fading. Of the 72% of Americans who attend religious services at least once a year (excluding holidays, weddings and funerals), 35% say they attend in multiple places, often hop-scotching across denominations. They are like President Obama, who currently has no home church. He has worshiped at a Baptist church, an Episcopal one, and the non-denominational chapel at Camp David. "Mixing and matching practices and beliefs is as much the norm as it is the exception," Pew's Alan Cooperman says. "Are they grazing, sampling, just curious? We really don't know." Even so, says Pew researcher Greg Smith, "these findings all point toward a spiritual and religious openness - not necessarily a lack of seriousness."
Among the findings: - 26% of those who attend religious services say they do so at more than one place occasionally, and an additional 9% roam regularly from their home church for services.
- 28% of people who attend church at least weekly say they visit multiple churches outside their own tradition.
- 59% of less frequent church attendees say they attend worship at multiple places.
The survey of 2,003 adults Aug. 11-27 has a margin of error of plus or minus 2.5 percentage points. It measures Protestants, Catholics and the unaffiliated; there were not enough people of other faiths surveyed for analysis. "For an extremely long time, most of us thought belonging or membership or home church was monogamous, even if it was serial monogamy, because we all know about church-switching," says sociologist of religion Scott Thumma, a professor at the Hartford Institute for Religion Research in Hartford, Conn. "Today, the individual rarely finds all their spiritual needs met in one congregation or one religion."
'Rampant confusion' In the 1980s, Albert Mohler and Julia Jarvis were in graduate school together at Southern Baptist Seminary in Louisville. Today, Mohler is president of the seminary and a leading voice for Baptist orthodoxy. He sees a "rampant confusion" about faith revealed in the Pew findings. "This is a failure of the pulpit as much as of the pew to be clear about what is and is not compatible with Christianity and belief in salvation only through Christ," Mohler says. Pew says two in three adults believe in or cite an experience with at least one supernatural phenomenon, including: 26% find "spiritual energy" in physical things. 25% believe in astrology. 24% say people will be reborn in this world again and again. 23% say yoga is a "spiritual practice."
Mohler calls these "the au courant confusions," attachments to the latest fashionable free-floating beliefs. "One hundred years ago, it would have been 'spiritualism.' They wouldn't have known what yoga was but might have been attracted to the 'New Thought' of the time," Mohler says. His former classmate giggles at that. She's an ordained minister in the progressive United Church of Christ and leads the Interfaith Family Project, which meets for weekly worship at a Silver Spring, Md., high school. Jarvis, of Takoma Park, Md., also studies with Buddhist teacher Thich Nhat Hanh and finds a spiritual dimension in yoga. "I don't do astrology, but my mother, who grew up in Birmingham, Ala., and was a staunch Baptist all her life, looked at her horoscope daily and totally believed it," Jarvis says. Jarvis says her late mother, like 49% of adults in the Pew survey, also had a moment of "religious or spiritual awakening." "My mother feared for years that I was no longer saved, but just two days before she died, she had an epiphany," Jarvis says. "She said she was 'told' in a spiritual experience to put aside all religious and political differences and just love each other. That was her blessing to me, and that's what I'm doing." ...
The growth of mixing Prothero sees a similar trend among Protestants, a "resistance to being told what to think." "Even people who call themselves by denominational tags don't really feel the identity attachment to them as they once did," he says. "And without that identity marker, what's to prevent you from checking out some other church? Nothing much." ... The faith-mixing trend has been building; other surveys in the past two years have touched on the swirling, unbounded paths of believers: Forty-seven percent to 59% of Americans have changed religions at least once, a Pew survey in April found. The top reasons for most: Their spiritual needs weren't being met, or they liked another faith more or changed religious or moral beliefs. The percentage of people who call themselves Christian has dropped more than 11% in a generation, and so many people declined any religious label that the "Nones," now 15% of the USA, are the third-largest "religious" group after Catholics and Baptists, according to the American Religious Identification Survey last March. Despite Americans' overwhelming allegiance to someone they call God (92%), in Pew's 2008 U.S. Religious Landscape Survey, 70% said "many religions can lead to eternal life," and 68% said "there's more than one true way to interpret the teachings of my religion." Most (55%) say a guardian angel has protected them from harm, and 52% believe in prophetic dreams, according to surveys by Baylor University released in 2006 and 2008.
In short, we believe our own experiences are authentic, and no "authority" can say otherwise. That's a very "Eastern" notion, says Jim Todhunter of Bethesda, Md. Retired after three decades leading United Church of Christ congregations, he has studied in a Hindu ashram in India and practices Zen meditation and Christian contemplative prayer. "In the Western religions - Judaism, Christianity and Islam - the focus is: 'What do you believe?' There is always a tremendous focus on doctrine and teachings," he says. "In the East, Buddhism and Hinduism in particular, the leading question is, 'Do you know God?' It's much more experience-based." ...
Edited :: See Original Report Here
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Religion in America Fading
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APOLOGETICS PRESS - By Dave Miller, Ph.D. - February 2010 - 9[2]:8-R
While it is extremely difficult to measure the extent to which religion impacts Americans, one polling organization has attempted to do so using four criteria. The poll was designed to acquire a sense of how the 50 states compare with each other on the matter of which has the most religious population. The four criteria used were the importance of religion in people's lives, frequency of attendance at worship services, frequency of prayer, and absolute certainty of belief in God ("How Religious...?," 2009). As one might expect, more Americans in the "Bible Belt" states indicate that religion is very important in their lives. Mississippi has the highest percentage of its population so indicating (82%), followed by Alabama and Arkansas at 74%, Louisiana at 73%, Tennessee at 72%, South Carolina at 70%, Oklahoma and North Carolina at 69%, Georgia at 68%, Kentucky and Texas at 67%. The states with the lowest percentage of its citizens indicating that religion is important in their lives are New Hampshire and Vermont with 36%. Sadly, the national average is 56%. Think of it. Only 56% of Americans say that religion is important to their everyday living. Specifically, only 39% of Americans say they attend worship at least once a week, only 58% say they pray at least once a day, and only 71% say they believe in God with absolute certainty. ...
Edited :: See Original Report Here
http://www.apologeticspress.org/articles/240306
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President Obama "a faithful Christian" but only has attended three church meetings since taking office
Holy BlackBerry! Obama Finds Ways to Keep the Faith During First Year in Office
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Has the First Family's D.C. Church Search Come to a Close?
ABC NEWS [American Broadcasting Companies, Inc./The Walt Disney Company] - By Devin Dwyer - January 29, 2010
and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near. - Hebrews 10:24-25
If church attendance is one measure of a man's faith, then President Obama may appear to have lost some of his. The first family, once regular churchgoers, have publicly attended services in Washington just three times in the past year, by ABC News' count, even bypassing the pews on Christmas Day.
Obama quit Chicago's embattled Trinity United Church of Christ months before taking office in 2008 and has not formally joined a new one in his new hometown.
But sources familiar with the president's personal life say Obama remains a faithful Christian while in the White House, practicing his beliefs regularly in private with family and the aid of his BlackBerry.
"Barack Obama is a Christian. He's always been clear and unapologetic about that, and he's comfortable with his own faith," Rev. Jim Wallis, an Obama friend and spiritual adviser, said. "But I think the president, particularly a president, needs the kind of pastoral care or spiritual counsel with people who don't have a political agenda. And it's hard for a president to get that."
Obama told ABC Nightline's Terry Moran that his personal BlackBerry, which he famously fought with the Secret Service to keep, has actually become a tool of keeping the faith during his first year in office.
"My Faith and Neighborhood Initiatives director, Joshua DuBois, he has a devotional that he sends to me on my BlackBerry every day," Obama said. "That's how I start my morning. You know, he's got a passage, Scripture, in some cases quotes from other faiths to reflect on."
Keeping the faith in quiet moments of worship may be the best Obama can do given the realities of the presidency that make it nearly impossible to join a church without inflicting a heavy burden on taxpayers, fellow churchgoers and his own spiritual life, sources say.
Security concerns mean costly and complicated measures to ensure the president's safety on church outings, including screening every member of the congregation for weapons and sweeping the church building and areas around it for threats.
Incessant media attention is also distracting for any president trying to commune with God, exposing what is traditionally a private practice to public scrutiny, Wallis said.
"I don't think for them [the family], it's a political decision," he said of Obama's church dilemma. "I think for the media, it's a political issue. Where they land and get their nurture, care and formation; that's very difficult for the first family to find."
After Quitting Home Church, Obamas Improvise
The Obamas announced a search for a new place of worship in late 2008 after a scandal over incendiary comments by then-pastor Rev. Jeremiah Wright forced their separation from Trinity, where they had been members for 20 years.
Days before his inauguration, Obama described to ABC News the "difficult time" of being without a church, saying that despite receiving daily prayers from supporters, "it's not the same as going to church and the choir's going and you get this feeling."
But weeks later, when the Obamas ventured to 19th Street Baptist Church -- one of the oldest, most historic African-American churches in the nation's capital -- aides say the family was shocked by the circus atmosphere surrounding their attendance and dismayed that some longtime church members couldn't even get into the service.
"It is tougher as president," Obama told ABC's George Stephanopoulos in his first year. "This is not just an issue of going to church, it's an issue of going anywhere."
Joshua DuBois, the White House religious affairs director, said last year that the Obamas "will choose a church home at a time that is best for their family." It's now looking increasingly like their search may be indefinite.
Aides and family friends have spent months visiting various local churches on behalf of the Obamas. And on two occasions, the first family turned to an old presidential favorite across the street from the White House, St. John's Episcopal.
Every president since James Madison has attended a service at St. Johns, where pew 54 is designated as "The President's Pew."
President Obama also enjoys worshipping "fairly regularly" at the Evergreen Chapel at Camp David, where the Rev. Carey Cash - a U.S. Navy chaplain and great-nephew of singer Johnny Cash -- ministers, White House spokesman Robert Gibbs has said.
"We've been attending church, there's a little chapel up in Camp David when we go up there," Obama told ABC News' "Nightline" in July. "There's a wonderful young pastor up there, a chaplain, who does just wonderful work. And the Camp David families attend."
Obama's predecessor, George W. Bush, also frequented the chapel at Camp David and ultimately chose not to formally join a church in Washington during his eight years in the White House.
Church Membership Not a Requisite, Presidential Historians Say
A president's not formally joining a Washington, D.C., church is consistent with precedent, historians say.
"For the modern presidency, it is not the norm that a president attends church regularly," University of Maryland presidential scholar Matthew Burger said.
Burger, who studies presidents, religion and public life, points out that George W. Bush and his father, George H.W. Bush, were both "frequent attendees" at local churches but did not formally join a D.C. congregation.
"Ronald Reagan stands out as someone who articulated certainly the values of evangelical Christianity but was a pretty infrequent church attendee," Burger said. "He wasn't a member officially anywhere."
Jimmy Carter, who joined First Baptist Church in Washington, stands out as one of the most prominent presidential church-goers. He attended 72 Sunday services at First Baptist while in office, according to records kept by the Carter Library.
"Whenever he could, when he was on the road, he'd go to church, too," Steven Hochman, Carter Center researcher and assistant to the former president, told ABCNews.com.
And the Clintons, who attended Foundry United Methodist church near the White House regularly but did not formally join, are perhaps the exception in modern history for first family participation in church life, experts say.
"The fact that Chelsea Clinton was able to be part of the youth group and sing in the youth choir and that all three of the Clintons could just drop in on a Sunday without creating too much of a stir really is a testament to that church congregation and may also have just been a stroke of luck," said Amy Sullivan, author of "The Party Faithful: How and Why Democrats Are Closing the God Gap," who also formerly attended Foundry Methodist at the same time as the Clintons.
"I don't think the Obamas could assume they can do the same thing, and the Bush family concluded they couldn't do that in D.C."
Obama Keeps the Faith on His BlackBerry
Despite the challenges of attending church while in office, Obama has indicated that he has not been detached from his faith or faith communities during his first year.
The President told ABC News in July that he prays every night before going to bed.
"I pray all the time now," Obama said. "I've got a lot of stuff on my plate and I need guidance all the time."
Aides say some of that guidance comes from the president's faith advisory council of 25 religious and non-profit leaders who help the administration partner with faith-based and community groups in providing social services.
Rev. Wallis, a member of the council, says the council is another means for the president to hear messages otherwise preached from the pulpit. "I think he certainly listens to people of faith when we speak about things we are about," he said.
Obama and all former U.S. presidents professed faith in Christianity, with most men identifying as Episcopalians, according to the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life. Obama is the first U.S. president who affiliates with the Christian Protestant denomination, the United Church of Christ.
Speaking on the eve of Martin Luther King Jr. Day earlier this month, Obama told a packed Vermont Avenue Baptist church in Washington, D.C., that faith keeps him grounded.
"I have a confession to make," he said. "There are times when I am not so calm. There are times when progress seems too slow. There are times when the words spoken about me hurt. There are times when the barbs sting. There are times when it feels like all these efforts are for not, that change is so painfully slow in coming and I have to confront my own doubt. During those times it is faith that keeps me calm."
ABC News' Sunlen Miller, Yunji de Nies and Russell Goldman contributed to this report.
Unedited :: Link to Original Posting
http://abcnews.go.com/print?id=9689272
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Flock Is Now a Fight Team in Some Ministries
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NEW YORK TIMES [NYTimes Group/Sulzberger] - By R. M. SCHNEIDERMAN - February 1, 2010
MEMPHIS - In the back room of a theater on Beale Street, John Renken, 37, a pastor, recently led a group of young men in prayer.
"Father, we thank you for tonight," he said. "We pray that we will be a representation of you."
An hour later, a member of his flock who had bowed his head was now unleashing a torrent of blows on an opponent, and Mr. Renken was offering guidance that was not exactly prayerful.
"Hard punches!" he shouted from the sidelines of a martial arts event called Cage Assault. "Finish the fight! To the head! To the head!"
The young man was a member of a fight team at Xtreme Ministries, a small church near Nashville that doubles as a mixed martial arts academy. Mr. Renken, who founded the church and academy, doubles as the team's coach. The school's motto is "Where Feet, Fist and Faith Collide."
Mr. Renken's ministry is one of a small but growing number of evangelical churches that have embraced mixed martial arts - a sport with a reputation for violence and blood that combines kickboxing, wrestling and other fighting styles - to reach and convert young men, whose church attendance has been persistently low. Mixed martial arts events have drawn millions of television viewers, and one was the top pay-per-view event in 2009.
Recruitment efforts at the churches, which are predominantly white, involve fight night television viewing parties and lecture series that use ultimate fighting to explain how Christ fought for what he believed in. Other ministers go further, hosting or participating in live events.
The goal, these pastors say, is to inject some machismo into their ministries - and into the image of Jesus - in the hope of making Christianity more appealing. "Compassion and love - we agree with all that stuff, too," said Brandon Beals, 37, the lead pastor at Canyon Creek Church outside of Seattle. "But what led me to find Christ was that Jesus was a fighter."
The outreach is part of a larger and more longstanding effort on the part of some ministers who fear that their churches have become too feminized, promoting kindness and compassion at the expense of strength and responsibility.
"The man should be the overall leader of the household," said Ryan Dobson, 39, a pastor and fan of mixed martial arts who is the son of James C. Dobson, the founder of Focus on the Family, a prominent evangelical group. "We've raised a generation of little boys." ...
Nondenominational evangelical churches have a long history of using popular culture - rock music, skateboarding and even yoga - to reach new followers. Yet even among more experimental sects, mixed martial arts has critics.
"What you attract people to Christ with is also what you need to get people to stay," said Eugene Cho, 39, a pastor at Quest Church, an evangelical congregation in Seattle. "I don't live for the Jesus who eats red meat, drinks beer and beats on other men."
Robert Brady, 49, the executive vice president of a conservative evangelical group, the Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals, agreed, saying that the mixed martial arts motif of evangelism "so easily takes away from the real focus of the church, which is the Gospel." Many black churches have chosen not to participate. ...
Edited :: See Original Report Here
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/02/us/02fight.html?hp
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"For My people are foolish, They know Me not; ..."
Dutch church retains "atheist" preacher
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Radio Netherlands Worldwide - By Rob Kievit - February 5, 2010
An atheist preacher has been allowed to stay in office by the Protestant Church of the Netherlands.
The regional church assembly in the southwestern town of Zierikzee decided that preacher Klaas Hendrikse's views do not fundamentally differ from those of other liberal theologians in the Protestant Church. A clerical court case against Mr Hendrikse has been suspended. The decision was opposed by about a quarter of the representatives at the regional meeting.
Mr Hendrikse was subjected to an inquiry following the publicaton of his book, Believing in a God who does not exist. In it, Mr Hendrikse explains that he does not believe in a personal God, or in his words, "To me God is not a being, but a word for what can occur between people." He has since been loosely referred to as "the atheist preacher", although he has not declared himself a total non-believer.
Multiply and go forth
Mr Hendrikse preaches from pulpits in Dutch-Reformed parishes in the cities of Middelburg and Zierikzee, in Zeeland province. His is a late calling, for he took up theology only later in life, after a career with a photocopying manufacturer.
Later this year the national administration of the Protestant Church will tackle the issue of how to discuss God in church. Formed in 2004, the Protestant Church of the Netherlands consists of the Reformed Churches, the Dutch-Reformed Church and the Evangelical Lutheran Church.
Unedited :: Link to Original Posting
http://www.rnw.nl/print/58541
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Mega churches mean big business
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CNN [Turner Broadcasting/Time Warner] - January 22, 2010
Mega churches across the United States are becoming increasingly popular which is not only bringing thousands of worshippers together, but also billions of dollars in profit.
From self-help books to CDs and DVDs, mega churches are becoming big money makers for the pastors and ministries they are a part of.
Mega churches are extra-large churches that can accommodate upwards of 15,000 people and are common among members of the evangelical Christian faith.
Scott Thumma, professor of sociology and religion at Hartford Seminary told CNN that "the mega church on average has about $6.5 million in income a year."
Video: 'In God We Trust'
"If you put together all the mega churches in the United States, that's easily several billion dollars."
Many ministers in the evangelical faith have become superstars in their own right -- Joel Osteen is one in particular.
Osteen is a pastor at the Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas and his televised service reaches over seven million people each week across the United States and around the world.
The Lakewood Church which Osteen is in charge of has a yearly budget of more than $80 million, but church officials deny that it's about money.
"We hear the criticism a bit, but we don't hear it as much as you think we would," Donald Iloff Junior, advisor for Lakewood Church said.
"One thing you find very absent is the asking of money and never once have we asked for money or donations on television."
However, some critics argue that it's hard to be both a pastor and someone in charge of a yearly budget in the tens of millions.
"When you have pastors thinking of themselves as CEOs, it's hard to tell the difference between a pastor and P-Diddy," Jonathan Walton, Assistant Professor of religious studies at the University of California Riverside told CNN.
The way the sermon is told at these mega churches has also completely changed.
"The plasma screen TVs have replaced crosses, Power Point-like presentations of the words of songs and liturgical practices have replaced the hymnals," Walton said.
"This really resonates with a younger generation."
The average age of a mega church worshipper is 40 years old -- 13 years younger than at a traditional church.
Mega church worshippers tend to not only be younger, but also more diverse.
"One thinks of them as a homogeneous group of white suburban American, but in fact when you go to most of the mega churches, you're going to find diversity of age, income and education levels," Thumma said.
"You can also find racial diversity because in almost 30 percent of these mega churches across the country, you have 20 percent or more integration of ethnic groups so it really is quite staggering."
Unedited :: Link to Original Posting
http://edition.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/americas/01/21/religion.mega.church.christian/
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'Mystery worshippers' go online
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THE SEATTLE TIMES [Seattle Times Co.] - By Danny Westneat - February 6, 2010
The help-wanted ad going live this week on Craigslist might raise some eyebrows. If not tempers.
"Need people who aren't Christians to review church service," it says.
It goes on. "Who: Age 20-35. Do not currently believe Jesus Christ is God. Not mad at Christians.
"What: Attend a church service (anonymously) and complete a survey."
The pay for this odd job? $50. To go, once, to the Sunday service at North Sound Church in Edmonds and rate it on everything from whether the music is tedious to if the sermon seems sincere.
It's the inspiration of Jim Henderson, a Seattle evangelical Christian, former pastor and self-described "spiritual anthropologist" who says it's past time Christians found out "what our true customers really think."
He came up with the Craigslist ad. As well as a Web site for ranking houses of worship, called ChurchRater.com.
"We say it's our mission to reach out, including to nonbelievers," Henderson, 62, says. "So why would we not want them to tell us what they think of our efforts to influence, change or even convert them?"
One reason might be that it can be brutal.
His Web site is free and open to believers and doubters alike, to say whatever they want. You can post reviews and one- to five-star ratings of churches, much as Yelp or Urban Spoon rank restaurants.
A church in Everett got one star because someone found the pastor too self-absorbed.
"All his stories are centered around his perfect life," it says, citing a "perfect blonde wife" and Hallmark kids. "And if we sign up for Jesus, we'll be perfect, too. Uhhhh ... is this really what Jesus told you to do?"
About a Kirkland church: "The service feels like a late night talk show gone bad."
And at a Seattle church, a whiff of scandal: "Moved my family when pastor and his wife had marital problems, which divided the church. Church fell apart."
The vast majority of reviews are positive - glowing, even. Still, the magazine Christianity Today wondered in a headline about the site: "Church Rater or Church Hater?"
Henderson had to take the site offline for a time because of "slanderous stuff about some pastors." He relaunched a few months ago with more stringent monitoring.
You can't muzzle the crowd, he says. Not in the digital age. Plus there are other church-rating sites (the most popular is Ship of Fools, the British "magazine of Christian unrest," with its cheeky reports by anonymous "mystery worshippers.")
"When people go to church they go out to lunch afterward and they dish about the sermon, the music, whether the pastor was boring that day," Henderson said. "We're just a vehicle to let people do in public what they already do in private."
Barry Crane, lead pastor at North Sound Church, says he's using the service because Christianity has a brand problem.
"It's terrible to say, especially coming from me, but a lot of people these days don't trust Christians. This isn't to turn us into some supermarket of religious goods and services. It's to open ourselves up, to see if we can regain some lost trust."
So far only 40 churches in Washington have been rated on the Web site, not enough for it to reach a critical mass. Henderson says 30 more have expressed interest in his paid ratings services, which can range from $250 (for two visits by raters plus a written report) on up to $2,950 (for a weekend-long focus group between "outsiders" and church members, moderated by him).
What's fascinating about all this is the way the Web and consumer culture are altering even the most traditional, cloistered institutions. Everything now gets polled, ranked, exposed, debated. I suppose Henderson is right - you either go with it or get passed by.
Henderson likes to quote Jack Welch, the former CEO of General Electric. It was Welch's business philosophy to ruthlessly question the premise of every company product, from light bulbs to jet engines.
"Nothing is sacred," he liked to say.
Not even churches.
Unedited :: Link to Original Posting
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/dannywestneat/2011003516_danny07.html
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Book Review: Ashamed of the Gospel by John MacArthur
When churches trade power for popularity
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WORLDNETDAILY - Book Review by Jim Fletcher - January 26, 2010
Everywhere there is apathy. Nobody cares whether that which is preached is true or false. A sermon is a sermon whatever the subject; only, the shorter it is the better. - Charles Spurgeon
This review will fall into the category of "one of the best books I've ever read." I don't say that often.
When it comes to John MacArthur, I don't believe there's a more trustworthy theologian in the U.S. The new, third edition of his classic apologetic, "Ashamed of the Gospel," is vitally important for understanding how far heresy and apostasy are reaching today in our culture.
I thought it was a brave book when it was released in 1993, and "Ashamed" continues to show its prescient nature, when describing false teaching in the church. The new edition, from courageous publisher Crossway, includes even more updated information, particularly on the seeker-sensitive movement.
In a most compelling way, MacArthur drops back and forth between our time and that of famed London preacher Charles Haddon Spurgeon. In fact, the book opens with this statement:
"As I stood by Spurgeon's grave, I couldn't help thinking how much the church needs men like him today. Spurgeon was not afraid to stand boldly for truth, even when it meant he stood alone," MacArthur writes.
A particular point of contention for MacArthur when he wrote "Ashamed of the Gospel" almost two decades ago was what is known as the seeker-sensitive movement. Popularized by Chicago's Bill Hybels (Willow Creek Community Church, South Barrington, Ill.), the movement begins by polling/canvassing a community in order to find out "what they want" in a church.
This, of course, is far different from the first preachers, such as Paul and Peter, who simply went out and boldly proclaimed the gospel. Although Paul worked within a community and was himself a tent-maker by trade, he didn't first offer to fix someone's oxcart, or hold their hand to listen to their inner child.
MacArthur, a preacher himself at Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, Calif., apparently never compromises the gospel message and, as such, sets himself quite apart from many preachers today. The fact that his earlier warning is now a full-fledged alarm is evidenced by "pastor/teachers" who sit in cars onstage, or recline on beds while discussing sex with a giddy congregation.
MacArthur makes a key point in his book by analyzing the theme of many seeker-sensitive groupies: pragmatism. The concept states that if something works, it must be good.
"Pragmatism as a test of truth is nothing short of satanic," MacArthur writes. ...
"Ashamed of the Gospel" is literally a must-read for any serious, conservative Christian who is called to preach.
Edited :: See Original Report Here
http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=123277
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Joel Osteen blesses Houston's new (gay) mayor Annise Parker
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USA TODAY [Gannett] > Faith & Reason Blog - By Cathy Lynn Grossman - January 5, 2010
Annise Parker, the newly-elected happens-to-be-lesbian mayor of Houston was sworn in Monday and the opening prayer was given by ... Rev. Joel Osteen.
Is your head spinning? Osteen heads the nation's most mega of evangelical non-denominational megachurches, Lakewood Church in Houston where about 45,000 people cycle through a revamped sports stadium for services every weekend.
Osteen has been all over telling folks (Larry King, Whoopi Goldberg) for years that homosexuality is not "God's best." I presume he means "God's best choice" because otherwise I'm lost in the dropped or implied rest of the sentence. But "God's best" is phrase Osteen never finishes so I'm just guessing.
Yet, Osteen hasn't joined the more strident wing of the religious right in damning gays. Indeed, Osteen takes heat from other evangelicals who condemn him for not laying down a line of fire about sin of any kind. That's not his style, says the preacher known for his broad smile and sermons that God wants you to be happy. Osteen's best seller was titled, Your Best Life Now.
Now (hat tip to Mark Silk for pointing me to the Box Turtle Bulletin) writer Timothy Kincaid suggests to his gay readership that they look at Osteen more fully and fairly. Kincaid's post (which carries a disclaimer that others on the staff of the webzine don't necessarily agreed) says:
I think it would be useful for our community to adopt a more nuanced view of religious leaders. By doing so, we might find ourselves with unexpected allies.
Joel Osteen does not agree with my understanding of Scripture; but his disagreement does not make him a hater or a bigot. And I recognize the value in having a lesbian politician -- elected despite her opponent's religion-based homophobic campaign -- being given blessing by the pastor of the largest congregation in the nation.
Does this change your idea of Osteen? For better or for worse?
Unedited :: Link to Original Posting
http://content.usatoday.com/communities/Religion/post/2010/01/joel-osteen-annise-parker-gay-rights-evangelical/1?loc=interstitialskip
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Megachurch pastor asks for urgent donations
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Warren wants $900,000 by Jan. 1, says church facing budget crisis
ASSOCIATED PRESS - December 31, 2009
LAKE FOREST, California - Evangelical pastor Rick Warren appealed to parishioners at his California megachurch Wednesday to help fill a $900,000 deficit by the first of the year.
Warren made the appeal in a letter posted on the Saddleback Church Web site. It begins "Dear Saddleback Family, THIS IS AN URGENT LETTER."
"With 10 percent of our church family out of work due to the recession, our expenses in caring for our community in 2009 rose dramatically while our income stagnated," the letter reads.
Still, Warren said the church managed to stay within its budget, but "the bottom dropped out" when Christmas donations dropped. "On the last weekend of 2009, our total offerings were less than half of what we normally receive - leaving us $900,000 in the red for the year," the letter reads.
"It's basically having to do more with less," church spokesman A. Larry Ross said. "The seasonal Christmas offering was down significantly and, commensurately, the need for services the church is expected to provide is up," Ross said.
Warren's appeal presents an opportunity for those who haven't been hit by the recession to step up and help, Ross said.
The letter details some of the church's accomplishments in 2009 and where the donations would be used, including the church's food pantry, homeless ministry, counseling and support groups. It then lists three ways parishioners can make their donations.
Warren was named the top newsmaker of the year by the Religion Newswriters Association. He gained attention with his invocation at the inauguration of President Barack Obama and comments in the aftermath of California's Proposition 8, which overturned gay marriage. Warren also gained attention for his work in Africa involving AIDS relief and other humanitarian activities.
Warren is the author of numerous books, including the best-selling "The Purpose Driven Life."
He founded Saddleback Church in 1980 in Lake Forest, southeast of Los Angeles.
Unedited :: Link to Original Posting
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/34640771/ns/us_news-us_faith/
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Crystal Cathedral stays optimistic amid declining revenue
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There's no separation of church and economy, so church leaders are trimming budgets, laying off workers and finding new ways to serve: 'You don't have to have money to do great things for God.'
LOS ANGELES TIMES [Tribune Company] - By Nicole Santa Cruz - February 15, 2010
On a recent Sunday morning in the Crystal Cathedral, Sheila Schuller Coleman, its co-leader, offered a sermon about the necessity of rising above turbulence in the storms of life.
It is familiar ground for the Garden Grove megachurch, which is in the midst of its own financial turmoil.
The church, founded by Robert H. Schuller in the 1950s, announced in late January that it is laying off dozens of employees, selling a 170-acre retreat, pulling its "Hour of Power" television show from seven stations and canceling its annual Glory of Easter pageant.
Crystal Cathedral officials said the church suffered a 27% drop in revenue in the last two years. In anticipation of a further decline, church leaders decided to cut $4.9 million from its $20-million annual budget, spokesman John Charles said.
The church attributes its struggles to the recession, as well as declining television viewership and a drop in contributions from its aging congregation.
"The reality is that the church has to operate like a business," said Coleman, 58, the eldest daughter of the ministry's founder, who appointed her in June to help lead the church. "We can't spend more than we bring in." ...
Edited :: See Original Report Here
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-beliefs15-2010feb15,0,585146.story
Also:
Megachurch prepares to shut down retreat center
THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER [Freedom Communications/Providence Equity Partners LLC.] - By Deepa Bharath - February 7, 2010
SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO -- Crystal Cathedral administrators have started shutting down all operations at their 20-acre campus in Rancho Capistrano, closing a church, preschool, retreat area, soccer fields, camping grounds and a conference and wedding center.
Edited :: See Original Report Here
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35263220/ns/local_news-orange_county_ca/print/1/displaymode/1098/
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Prosperity gospel is growing movement among churches
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ASBURY PARK PRESS - By Jason Method - January 30, 2010
Believing in Jesus is good for your bank account.
Shore Christian Pastor G. Dewey Friedel has long preached that God will bless believers with material riches: money, houses, and cars. And that God-given wealth will even entice others to believe in Jesus as well.
The prosperity gospel may seem unfamiliar to some churchgoers, but Friedel is one pastor in a growing movement among nondenominational churches.
Evangelist Paula White of the Without Walls International Church in Tampa, Fla., and wealth coach Mike Murdoch all proclaim that God's hand will be on believers' finances. Both have at various times made pilgrimages to Shore Christian to spread the message.
A more famous preacher, Joel Osteen of Texas, offers a similar, if less explicit, message. Creflo Dollar of Georgia is another famous adherent.
The prosperity gospel's message is that material is part of the "total salvation" brought by Jesus. It comes if you believe, and particularly if you donate one-tenth of your income to your church or give offerings to aligned ministries.
Friedel, in his sermon series "The Winner's Circle," talked about a congregant who prayed to make more money and secured a promotion the next week that moved his annual income from $40,000 to $100,000.
Jesus, Friedel said, "died and gave his blood that you might have your sins forgiven, that you might be protected, that you might be delivered, that you might be healed and that you might experience wealth."
Believers are often asked to "plant a seed" with their donations, which will come back to them in a harvest of heavenly blessing. They are told that God has called them into "dominion" on the earth and, quoting a passage from the Book of Deuteronomy, should expect to "be the head and not the tail."
In addition to material blessings, that prosperity may also include having a better marriage or avoiding disease or accidents.
Some 20 percent of U.S. churches hold to some form of the prosperity gospel, estimates Scott L. Thumma of the Hartford Institute for Religion Research.
Thumma said he's not aware of anyone who has attempted to study to see whether believing in the prosperity gospel works, but he hasn't seen much evidence that it does.
The prosperity teaching is criticized in other quarters of Christianity.
Ole Anthony, president of the watchdog group Trinity Foundation, has been investigating national prosperity gospel ministries and sending the information to the Senate Finance Committee, which has opened an investigation. Anthony said in an interview that he considers the prosperity message a scourge on Christianity.
"It's the antithesis of scripture, and they end up putting (congregants) in a bind," Anthony said in an interview. "Everything is a promise, and they deserve the wealth. They should end up living like millionaires, and they are working for minimum wage.
"The prosperity gospel has infected American Christianity unlike anything else," he added.
H. Vinson Synan, longtime historian of the Pentecostal and Charismatics movements, said the prosperity gospel did not become popular until after World War II, when Oral Roberts began preaching to formerly poverty stricken Pentecostals who had begun making money again.
Synan, who is Dean Emeritus of the Divinity School at Regent University, said he sees good things coming from a version of the prosperity gospel preached in Africa - where believers are taught to abstain from drinking, drugs and sexual promiscuity to obtain God's blessing.
But Synan said that the prosperity gospel is not part of any mainline denomination, nor of any Pentecostal denomination, and he does not believe there is a theological foundation for the idea that God will find ways to fill bank accounts and otherwise bless believers with material things.
"It's never been a big official doctrine," Synan said. "Most Christians have been poor for most of history."
Unedited :: Link to Original Posting
http://www.app.com/article/20100130/NEWS/1300336/1004
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Prominent Grapevine pastor linked to luxury
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WFAA-TV ABC DALLAS/FORT WORTH, TEXAS [Belo Corp] - By Brett Shipp - February 4, 2010
DALLAS - Not long ago, the Fellowship Church in Grapevine was one of the largest and fastest-growing churches in the nation.
Its pastor, Ed Young, was making national headlines by encouraging married couples to have more sex.
But since that time, sources say membership has waned and some say Pastor Young may have lost his way - putting himself and secrecy over God.
He's splashy and hip; his message contemporary and cool. His marketing is tops in the world of mega-evangelism, making huge waves ..."
But in the past few months, it's not theology but physics that may be impacting Young. Namely: What goes up must come down.
One former staff member who says he was close to Young but wishes not to be identified, described it this way: "The lack of accountability. The lavish lifestyle that keeps increasing, while the attendance keeps decreasing."
Over the past few weeks, News 8 has been in contact with a number of individuals who were once close to Young at his massive Fellowship Church in Grapevine, disturbed by his direction and treatment of staff.
Young recently replaced his chief financial officer and replaced him with his personal attorney, business partner and fishing buddy, Dennis Brewer Jr.
With Brewer's help and a complex series of business creations and transactions, Young is now jetting around the country in a French-made Falcon 50 private jet; estimated value, $8.4 million.
Records obtained by News 8 indicate Fellowship Church became the operator of the jet in March of 2007. News 8 discovered the jet parked in a hangar at Alliance Airport north of Fort Worth, tucked away where only a select few can see it.
Those who hear him preach every Sunday have never been told about the aircraft.
"The staff members are told that there is no plane, and several staff members who have actually been on the plane have denied that there is a plane," said the former employee source.
Young, who declined an on-camera interview, told News 8 through a spokesman he "travels globally offering messages of inspiration and transformation to his peers and other pastors."
He makes no mention of traveling in a personal jet.
But FAA records show that as soon as Young took possession of the jet in 2007, the aircraft logged a week-long trip to the Bahamas.
One month later, Young's jet logged a six-day trip to Chetumal, Mexico, also known as the gateway to Belize.
But it's not just the jet and the international travel the Young keeps out of sight.
News 8 has also learned that Young's 10,000 square foot, $1.5 million estate on Lake Grapevine is not listed on the tax rolls in his name, but rather in the name of "Palometa Revocable Trust."
Records show that Young was paid $240,000 a year as a parsonage allowance; that's in addition what sources say is a $1 million yearly pastor's salary.
Young declined to discuss his salary and compensation with News 8, but his spokesman said the pastor's pay "is governed without his participation by an Independent Compensation Committee, relying on outside consultation with knowledgeable and experienced church leaders."
News 8 has also learned that in 2007, Young sold the intellectual property of Fellowship Church's marketing Web site, CreativePastors. He also sold the church's membership mailing list to a newly-formed, for-profit company called EY Publishing.
Today, CreativePastors.com is used by the Youngs to sell his sermons and books for profit.
"When did the intellectual property, when did the preaching and the Bible notes and the books become intellectual property for the pastor?" asked Ole Anthony of the Trinity Foundation in Dallas. "That's the property of the church."
Anthony says he and his Trinity Foundation investigative team have been monitoring Ed Young for the past three years. He believes Young has fallen into the same trap as many other televangelists he has investigated over the years.
"But now he's just bought in to greed in the name of God," Anthony said. "They are sanctifying greed, and that's what's so evil." ...
Edited :: See Original Report Here
http://www.wfaa.com/news/investigates/Prominent-Pastor-Linked-to-Luxury-83600192.html
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PRESS RELEASE:
Kenneth Copeland Ministries Partners With United Theological Seminary to Offer Advanced Degree
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CHRISTIAN NEWSWIRE - February 1, 2010
NEWARK, Tx. -- A historical collaboration has just occurred between the United Theological Seminary (UTS) and Kenneth Copeland Ministries (KCM), one of the world's largest faith-based ministries, to provide a practical, hands-on, biblically based doctor of ministry degree in preaching and media. The classes will be held at the KCM headquarters in Fort Worth, Texas, as well as UTS in Dayton, Ohio. The five-semester, 2 ½-year program will involve advanced preparation for the practice of ministry. Each class will be held to a maximum of 15 students to ensure the best possible experience and growth for each participant.
In this program, pastors and leaders from across denominational lines will gain practical experience in how to build and grow their ministries and positively impact their communities. Students will learn how to use social media, build and sustain local, national and international television ministry, create a ministry magazine from start to finish, and preach faith in a way that impacts the listener. In addition, a unique strength of this doctor of ministry program is its mentor-based approach. Mentors are involved with the students and are readily available to help the pastor or leader navigate through this educational adventure. ...
Over the past 43 years, Kenneth Copeland Ministries has become one of the foremost leaders in teaching the principles of faith to meet the needs of people worldwide--proclaiming from the top of the world to the bottom and all the way around that Jesus is Lord. Though primarily a media-based teaching ministry, KCM invests millions of dollars each year into helping people around the world. As part of its outreach, KCM provides financial support and other means of assistance to over 100 ministries and agencies in more than 120 countries on a regular basis, including churches, evangelistic outreaches, orphanages, youth programs, and rehabilitation centers.
KCM utilizes a variety of media to share the message of Jesus Christ, including television, the Internet, books, audio and video materials, and a monthly magazine. Through its television ministry, which extends across the United States and into over 70 nations around the world, KCM reaches a potential audience of 965 million people worldwide with the life-changing message of Jesus Christ. Its free monthly publication, the Believer's Voice of Victory magazine, has a circulation of more than 500,000. In addition, KCM regularly provides free resource materials to over 50,000 inmates to encourage them, answers more than a million letters each year, and responds to the spiritual needs of thousands of callers each month through its 24-hour prayer line. ...
Edited :: See Original Report Here
http://www.christiannewswire.com/news/3125012914.html
See Also:
How Great is This Darkness?
APOSTASY WATCH
See Article Here
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Christians reconvert to Hindu faith in Thane in Maharashtra
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ASIAN NEWS INTERNATIONAL - October 27, 2009
Thane - A group of 6,000 Christians got reconverted and took to Hinduism at a function held in Thane on Monday.
The Hindus who had converted said that they were disenchanted which in turn prompted them to revert back to their earlier faith.
They said that promises of houses and other luxuries had tempted to take up Christianity.
"I don't have any problem. But they (Christian missionaries) tempted us. They promised us houses. We stayed with them for two years. Our religion is good," said Ram D'souza.
Swami Narendra Maharaj, head of a Hindu sect and organiser of this programme mentioned that he was on a mission to save Hindus who were misguided by Christian missionaries.
"Christian missionaries are carrying out conversion of religion. So we need to stop them," said Swami Narendra Maharaj.
This is the second function to take place this year.
In April, this Hindu seer, Swami Narendra Maharaj spearheading a religious campaign against Christians had reportedly converted about 1130 Christians. And last year, also in the month of April, over 1700 Christians were brought back to Hindu fold by him.
It is also claimed by Swami Narendra Maharaj and his followers that they intend to re-convert 100 thousands of people into Hindu faith.
Unedited :: Link to Original Posting
http://www.dailyindia.com/show/341316.php
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I looked, and behold, an ashen (Greek = chlōros) horse...?
Pastors in Northwest Find Focus in 'Green'
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NEW YORK TIMES [NYTimes Group/Sulzberger] - By William Yardley - January 15, 2010
MILLWOOD, Wash. - State auditors told Millwood Community Presbyterian Church last summer to close its farmers' market on the church parking lot or the lot could no longer be claimed as tax-exempt. Without hesitation, the church kept the market and paid the $700 in annual taxes.
Money is tight, but the locally raised beef and vegetables and, most important, the environmentally minded customers had become central to the 90-year-old church's ministry.
"It's like we've got more going on in our parking lot than we do within the walls of the church," said the pastor, Craig Goodwin.
Across the Northwest, where church attendance has long been low but concern for the environment high, some church leaders and parishioners are ringing doorbells to inform neighbors - many of whom have never stepped inside the sanctuary down the street - about ways to conserve energy and lower their utility bills. Some view the new push as a way to revitalize their congregations and reconnect with their nearby community.
Religious leaders have been preaching environmentalism for years, and much attention has focused on politically powerful evangelical Christian leaders who have taken up climate change as a cause. Yet some smaller, older and often struggling mainline churches are also going greener, reducing their carbon footprint by upgrading basement boilers and streamlining the Sunday bulletin, swapping Styrofoam for ceramic mugs at coffee hour and tending jumbled vegetable gardens where lawns once were carefully cultivated.
"I've never been good at door-to-door evangelism," said Deb Conklin, the pastor at Liberty Park United Methodist Church in Spokane, Wash., where an aging and shrinking congregation of about 20 people worships on Sundays. "But this has been so fun. Everybody wants to talk to you. It's exciting. It's ministry."
Several mainline church leaders in the Northwest said environmentalism offered an entry point, especially to younger adults, who might view Christianity as wrought with debates over gay rights and abortion.
A study released in December by the Barna Group, which more typically studies trends among evangelicals, said that older, mainline churches faced many challenges but that their approach to environmental issues was among several areas that "position those churches well for attracting younger Americans." ...
Edited :: See Original Report Here
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/16/us/16church.html?th&emc=th
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Therapists Report Increase in Green Disputes
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NEW YORK TIMES [NYTimes Group/Sulzberger] - By Leslie Kaufman - January 17, 2010
Gordon Fleming is, by his own account, an environmentally sensitive guy.
He bikes 12 1/2 miles to and from his job at a software company outside Santa Barbara, Calif. He recycles as much as possible and takes reusable bags to the grocery store.
Still, his girlfriend, Shelly Cobb, feels he has not gone far enough.
Ms. Cobb chides him for running the water too long while he shaves or showers. And she finds it "depressing," she tells him, that he continues to buy a steady stream of items online when her aim is for them to lead a less materialistic life.
Mr. Fleming, who says he became committed to Ms. Cobb "before her high-priestess phase," describes their conflicts as good-natured - mostly.
But he refuses to go out to eat sushi with her anymore, he said, because he cannot stand to hear her quiz the waiters.
"None of it is sustainable or local," he said, "and I am not eating cod or rockfish."
As awareness of environmental concerns has grown, therapists say they are seeing a rise in bickering between couples and family members over the extent to which they should change their lives to save the planet.
In households across the country, green lines are being drawn between those who insist on wild salmon and those who buy farmed, those who calculate their carbon footprint and those who remain indifferent to greenhouse gases.
"As the focus on climate increases in the public's mind, it can't help but be a part of people's planning about the future," said Thomas Joseph Doherty, a clinical psychologist in Portland, Ore., who has a practice that focuses on environmental issues. "It touches every part of how they live: what they eat, whether they want to fly, what kind of vacation they want."
While no study has documented how frequent these clashes have become, therapists agree that the green issue can quickly become poisonous because it is so morally charged. Friends or family members who are not devoted to the environmental cause can become irritated by life choices they view as ostentatiously self-denying or politically correct.
Those with a heightened focus on environmental issues, on the other hand, can find it hard to refrain from commenting on things that they view as harmful to Earth - driving an oversize S.U.V., for example.
Sandy Shulmire, a psychologist who lives in Portland, confesses that when she is visiting her sister in Abita Springs, La., she cannot resist bugging her about not recycling her plastic and cardboard, even though she knows she will be perceived as "bossy."
Cherl Petso, an editor of an online magazine who lives in Seattle, says trips to visit her parents in Idaho can be "tense at times," in part because she and her mother interpret each other's choices as judgmental.
If Ms. Petso prepares a vegan meal for the family, her parents prepare hot dogs to go alongside. Her parents serve on throwaway Styrofoam plates; she grabs a plate that can be cleaned and reused. Her mother, who says she prefers the way food tastes when it is served on Styrofoam, notes that washing dishes has its own environmental costs.
Linda Buzzell, a family and marriage therapist for 30 years who lives in Santa Barbara and is a co-editor of "Ecotherapy: Healing with Nature in Mind," cautions that the repercussions of environmental differences can be especially severe for couples.
"The danger arises when one partner undergoes an environmental 'waking up' process way before the other, leaving a new values gap between them," Ms. Buzzell said.
Changing the family diet because of environmental concerns can be particularly loaded, Ms. Buzzell added. She warns wives and mothers not to move a family toward vegetarianism before everyone is ready.
"Food is such an emotional issue," she said. ...
Edited :: See Original Report Here
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/18/science/earth/18family.html?th&emc=th
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Earth Religions Get Worship Area at AF Academy
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Air Force Academy establishes worship area for Pagans, Wiccans, other Earth-centered believers
ASSOCIATED PRESS - By Dan Elliott - February 1, 2010
DENVER -- The Air Force Academy has set aside an outdoor worship area for Pagans, Wiccans, Druids and other Earth-centered believers, school officials said Monday.
A double circle of stones atop a hill on the campus near Colorado Springs has been designated for the group, which previously met indoors.
"Being with nature and connecting with it is kind of the whole point," said Tech. Sgt. Brandon Longcrier, who sponsors the group and describes himself as a Pagan. "It will dramatically improve that atmosphere, the mindset and the actual connection."
The stones were moved to the hilltop last year because erosion threatened to make them unstable in their previous location near the visitors center. Crews arranged them in two concentric circles because they thought it would be a pleasant place for cadets to relax, Longcrier said. ...
Lt. Col. William Ziegler, one of the academy's chaplains, said designating the space is part of the school's effort to foster religious tolerance and to defend the constitutional guarantee of religious freedom.
"It's about our commitment as airmen to protect freedom and defend freedom. To me this is a freedom thing," he said.
The school also has worship facilities for Protestant and Catholic Christians, Jews, Muslims and Buddhists. ...
He said 15 to 20 cadets have shown an interest in Earth-centered beliefs, and eight to 10 regularly attend Monday night meetings. Of those, six or seven are devout believers and the others are "searchers," Longcrier said.
The academy has about 4,000 cadets. The school is one of five U.S. service academies, including West Point and Annapolis. Cadets graduate as second lieutenants.
"Earth-centered" spirituality encompasses many beliefs, Longcrier said, many that recognize multiple gods and goddesses and observe holidays tied to the seasons.
Longcrier said he personally doesn't consider gods and goddesses to be actual beings but personifications of natural events that human ancestors wanted to put a face on.
"The goddess is symbolic of the Earth," Longcrier said. "Do I believe I'm worshipping this female entity living in the Earth or up in space somewhere? No. The symbolism is very important."
The group's meetings are usually devoted to mediation, lessons or ceremonies, he said.
Longcrier, who oversees laboratories in the academy's astronautics labs, said he has military designation as a "distinct faith group leader."
Anyone is welcome to visit the new worship site but it should be treated as a religious structure, he said. A formal dedication is planned in March.
Edited :: See Original Report Here
http://abcnews.go.com/print?id=9719725
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Paying homage to music at the Church of Beethoven
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You could call the secular Sunday ritual a weekly concert series. But it's more than that.
LOS ANGELES TIMES [Tribune Company] - By Kate Linthicum - December 27, 2009
ALBUQUERQUE, NM -- It is a church without preaching, and without prayer.
At its Sunday morning services there is something spiritual, all right, but it doesn't have to do with Allah, or Buddha, or God.
Instead, it comes from music, from passionate renditions of works composed by Brahms and Bach and, of course, Beethoven -- for whom the church is named.
Each week the Church of Beethoven's musical performances draw a committed group of art-loving locals.
The service, which also features poetry, visual art and other types of music, is at home in Albuquerque, a city known for its eccentricities (its nickname: Albu-quirky) as well as for being a crossroads of culture.
Most regulars at the Church of Beethoven are not religious, said founder Felix Wurman, but are simply "people looking to be uplifted on a Sunday morning."
It's not really a church, of course, but it's not quite a standard concert series either. Its intent, Wurman said, is part entertainment, part spiritual awakening. ...
Edited :: See Original Report Here
http://www.latimes.com/news/nation-and-world/la-na-hometown-albuquerque27-2009dec27,0,7768977.story
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Jesuit Priest Admits Molesting Youth
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Germany Shaken By 'Systematic' Sexual Abuse at Berlin Catholic School
DER SPIEGEL [BMG: Bertelsmann Media Group/Gruner & Jahr Magazines] - Reported by Sven Röbel and Peter Wensierski - February 1, 2010
A priest last week admitted in a statement to SPIEGEL he had abused a number of pupils at an elite Berlin high school run by Jesuit priests. In recent days, around 20 former students have come forward alleging they were sexually abused by priests at the school. The director of Canisius College has described the years-long abuse as "systematic."
Berlin's Canisius College, a university-prep high school run by Jesuit priests, is one of the most elite schools in the German capital. Former students from the respected private school have reached the upper echelons of business, politics and society. For the past week, however, Canisius College has been at the center of a major sexual abuse scandall.
Last week, around 20 former students claimed they had been sexually abused by two teachers at the school, Wolfgang S. and Peter R. The abuse is believed to have been committed during the 1970s and 1980s.
'Nothing To Apologize For'
After being contacted by SPIEGEL, one of the former teachers admitted he had abused some of his students. Wolfgang S., a former sports teacher and Jesuit priest, issued a statement to his victims stating it was "a sad fact that I abused children and young men under pseudo-educational pretexts." The churchman, who today lives in South America, said that he had informed regional Catholic authorities in Germany in 1991 of his "criminal past." He claims the Jesuit priests had known for 19 years about the multiple incidents of abuse.
Stefan Dartmann, the Catholic Provincial Superior for Germany, confirmed to SPIEGEL that the order has knowledge of the crimes that had been committed by Wolfgang S. at the time. Dartmann said a lawyer had been hired to investigate the files "to determine what, exactly, the Jesuits knew at the time and what consequences they drew." Wolfgang S. left the order in 1992. Previously, he is also believed to have abused pupils at other schools, but he refused to comment on those allegations.
In addition to his time at the Berlin school, he worked at the Sankt-Ansgar School in Hamburg and at the Sankt-Blasien school in the southern Black Forest region from 1982 to 1984.
'Intimate, Fatherly Behavior'
The then-director of the school, Father Hans Joachim Martin, said that S.'s "intimate, fatherly behavior" towards some schoolchildren had attracted his attention. S. was later forced to leave the high school.
S. also claimed he had told the Vatican about his misconduct. In his statement, he says that he had provided testimony to the Vatican with "unvarnished honesty." And in South America, he had "again and again come into close contact with the torturers and victims" of the Pinochet dictatorship. "I was confronted with my mirror image as a tormenter of children," he said.
Several victims expressed their outrage over the tone of his statement. In the document, dated Jan. 20, S. addressed "all the people who I abused as children and in their youth." He added, "I'm sorry for what I did to you. And if you are capable, I ask you to forgive me." But he also told SPIEGEL: "I have come clean about my past to God and the world."
The second man alleged to have abused children at the school is a 69-year-old former religion teacher from Berlin, Peter R., who has disputed all allegations. SPIEGEL could not reach R. for comment by press time on Friday or on subsequent attempts on Monday. After his time at the school in Berlin, R. apparently worked as a pastor with young people in the state of Lower Saxony. He was reportedly the victim of a knife attack by a former Canisius College student several years ago. ...
Edited :: See Original Report Here
http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/0,1518,675331,00.html#ref=rss
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Huge Church Project Renews Downtown, and Debate
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NEW YORK TIMES [NYTimes Group/Sulzberger] - By Kirk Johnson - February 7, 2010
SALT LAKE CITY - For many devout Mormons, Utah's capital city is important mainly as a setting for the jewel that really matters: Temple Square at the city's center. Brigham Young, the pioneer leader of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, laid out the urban grid with street numbers starting at the temple. The secular world was thus defined by the sacred core.
But now a hugely ambitious, $1 billion church-financed redevelopment project near the temple, called City Creek Center, and a wave of recent church property purchases in the vicinity are prompting a new debate inside the church community and out over where the line between culture and economics should be drawn.
Some residents say the church, by opening its checkbook in a recession, rescued the city when times got tough. The 1,800 construction jobs at City Creek alone have provided a big local economic cushion. Completion of the project - 20 acres of retail shops and residential towers - is scheduled for 2012.
"City Creek has been a literal and figurative godsend," said Bradley D. Baird, the business development manager at the Economic Development Corporation of Utah, a private nonprofit group that has no direct involvement with the project.
Other people say that if the new heart of downtown has a strong church flavor, Salt Lake, which has become more diverse in recent years - could veer back toward its roots, for better or worse. About half of city residents are Mormon, according to many estimates, and if many, or most, of the roughly 700 apartment units at City Creek were occupied by Mormon families, the city could have a dramatic new feel.
"Our downtown has become a ghost town in my life - nobody lives there," said Dan Egan, 55, a lawyer and church member who works near the site but lives in the suburbs. "Having several thousand people live down here will have a big impact, and having many of them L.D.S. would be a very interesting thing to see."
Church leaders say they have no religious goals in mind for City Creek, or for their other recent acquisitions. Over just the last month, the church has bought three more properties, including a 13-acre parcel a few blocks south of City Creek. A spokesman said the purchases were investments.
"There will be no evidence of the church within those blocks," said H. David Burton, a former corporate executive who oversees the church's business interests as the presiding bishop. Mr. Burton said the civic spaces inside City Creek would be private property, but "with all the attributes of a public venue."
Alcohol, for example - always a cultural flashpoint because of the church's teachings to avoid it - will probably be allowed in City Creek, Mr. Burton said, under special contracts that will allow a restaurant wanting a liquor license to buy the underlying property. That would keep the church from being in the liquor business or from benefiting from liquor sales while still allowing sale and consumption on the premises.
As for who might want to move in, Mr. Burton said he thought proximity to the temple would make the apartments attractive to church families, but only time will tell. About 40 percent of the available condominium units have been reserved by deposit, but a church spokesman said the buyers' religious affiliations were unknown.
"If I were making a guess - and I don't have any empirical data - it might be more attractive to L.D.S. than to others," Mr. Burton said.
One former Salt Lake City planning official, Stephen A. Goldsmith, who is not a Mormon, said he was thrilled by the thought of people moving back downtown, but feared that the church's economic concentration would lead to a "Vaticanization" of the area. ...
Edited :: See Original Report Here
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/08/us/08saltlake.html?th&emc=th
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First Openly Gay Episcopal Bishop Says St. Paul Was Condemning Homosexual Acts by Heterosexuals
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CYBERCAST NEWS SERVICE (CNSN.com) [Media Research Center] - By Karen Schuberg - February 4, 2010
In a section of his New Testament letter to the Romans (1:22-27) dealing with God's admonitions against same-sex relations, St. Paul was actually writing about heterosexuals who engage in same-sex acts and not homosexuals, said the Rt. Rev. V. Gene Robinson, the first openly gay bishop in the Episcopal church.
"We have to understand that the notion of a homosexual sexual orientation is a notion that's only about 125 years old," Bishop Robinson told CNSNews.com. "That is to say, St. Paul was talking about people that he understood to be heterosexual engaging in same-sex acts. It never occurred to anyone in ancient times that a certain minority of us would be born being affectionally oriented to people of the same sex."
At the National Press Club on Tuesday, CNSNews.com asked Bp. Robinson: "St. Paul wrote in the Book of Romans, 'Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. ... Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones. ... Men committed indecent acts with other men and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion.' So my question is, was St. Paul right in-about engaging in homosexual acts as being against nature?" ...
Edited :: See Original Report Here
http://cnsnews.com/news/article/60952
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Thou SHALT shoplift: Priest tells congregation it's better than robbery or prostitution
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LONDON DAILY MAIL [Associated Newspapers/DMGT] - By Chris Brooke - December 22, 2009
Poor people who are desperate for cash have been advised to go forth and shoplift from major stores - by an Anglican priest.
The Rev Tim Jones said in his Sunday sermon that stealing from successful shops was preferable to burglary, robbery or prostitution.
He told parishioners it would not break the eighth commandment 'thou shalt not steal' because it 'is permissible for those who are in desperate situations to take food that they might not starve'.
But his advice was roundly condemned by police and the local Tory MP. Father Jones, 42, was discussing Mary and the birth of Jesus when he went on to the subject of how poor and vulnerable people cope in the run-up to Christmas.
'My advice, as a Christian priest, is to shoplift,' he told his stunned congregation at St Lawrence and St Hilda in York.
'I do not offer such advice because I think that stealing is a good thing, or because I think it is harmless, for it is neither.
'I would ask that they do not steal from small family businesses, but from large national businesses, knowing that the costs are ultimately passed on to the rest of us in the form of higher prices.
'I would ask them not to take any more than they need. I offer the advice with a heavy heart. Let my words not be misrepresented as a simplistic call for people to shoplift.
'The observation that shoplifting is the best option that some people are left with is a grim indictment of who we are. ...
Anne McIntosh, the Tory MP for Vale of York, has campaigned in Parliament for stronger sentences for shoplifters.
She said: 'I cannot condone inciting anyone to commit a criminal offence.
'Shoplifting is a crime against the whole local community and society.'
A North Yorkshire Police spokesman said: 'First and foremost, shoplifting is a criminal offence and to justify this course of action under any circumstances is highly irresponsible.
'Turning or returning to crime will only make matters worse, that is a guarantee.'
The Archdeacon of York, the Venerable Richard Seed, said: 'The Church of England does not advise anyone to shoplift, or break the law in any way. ...
Edited :: See Original Report Here
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1237470/Priest-advises-congregation-shoplift.html?printingPage=true
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Correcting the 'Mistakes' of TNIV and Inclusive NIV, Translators Will Revise NIV in 2011
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CHRISTIANITY TODAY [CTI Publications] - By Ted Olsen - September 1, 2009
Note: An earlier version of this blog post said that Keith Danby's remark that "some of the criticism was justified and we need to be brutally honest about the mistakes that were made" was in regard to the Today's New International Version. He was discussing the earlier New International Version Inclusive Language Edition, released in the U.K. in 1996. I sincerely apologize for the error.
In announcing a major revision of the New International Version (NIV) of the Bible, Biblica (formerly the International Bible Society and Send The Light, or IBS-STL) CEO Keith Danby said decisions surrounding the release of the NIV inclusive language edition and the 2002 revision, Today's New International Version (TNIV), were mistakes.
"In 1997, IBS announced that it was forgoing all plans to publish an updated NIV following criticism of the NIV inclusive language edition (NIVi) published in the United Kingdom. Quite frankly, some of the criticism was justified and we need to be brutally honest about the mistakes that were made," Danby said. "We fell short of the trust that was placed in us. We failed to make the case for revisions and we made some important errors in the way we brought the translation to publication. We also underestimated the scale of the public affection for the NIV and failed to communicate the rationale for change in a manner that reflected that affection."
Danby said it was also a mistake to stop revisions on the NIV. "We shackled the NIV to the language and scholarship of a quarter century ago, thus limiting its value as a tool for ongoing outreach throughout the world," he said.
"Whatever its strengths were, the TNIV divided the evangelical Christian community," said Zondervan president Moe Girkins. "So as we launch this new NIV, we will discontinue putting out new products with the TNIV."
Girkins expects the TNIV and the existing edition of the NIV to phase out over two years or so as products are replaced. "It will be several years before you won't be able to buy the TNIV off a bookshelf," she said.
"We are correcting the mistakes in the past," Girkins said. "Being as transparent as possible is part of that. This decision was made by the board in the last 10 days." She said the transparency is part of an effort to overhaul the NIV "in a way that unifies Christian evangelicalism."
"The first mistake was the NIVi," Danby said. "The second was freezing the NIV. The third was the process of handling the TNIV."
Gender-inclusive inclusion?
Doug Moo, chairman of the the Committee on Bible Translation (which is the body responsible for the translation) said the committee has not yet decided how much the 2011 edition will include the gender-inclusive language that riled critics of the TNIV.
"We felt certainly at the time it was the right thing to do, that the language was moving in that direction," Moo said. "All that is back on the table as we reevaluate things this year. This has been a time over the last 15 to 20 years in which the issue of the way to handle gender in English has been very much in flux, in process, in development. And things are changing quickly and so we are going to look at all of that again as we produce the 2011 NIV."
I don't think any member [of CBT] would stand by the NIVi today," Moo said. "But we feel much more comfortable about the TNIV." He expects many of the TNIV's changes to appear in the updated NIV.
"I can predict that this is going to look 90 percent or more what the 1984 NIV looks like and 95 percent what the TNIV looks like," he said. "The changes are going to be a very small portion of the whole Scripture package."
Nevertheless, Moo said, the NIV does not currently reflect developments in the last 25 years of scholarship in Bible translation. CBT has made 1200 changes to the text in its database since the TNIV's most recent 2005 revision. (About 100 of these, such as typos, appear in current print editions.)
"I sit in a church where the NIV is pew Bible," he said. "But Sunday after Sunday I hear the preacher say, 'I don't think the NIV is quite right here.' And I feel like saying I as a member of the CBT, 'Yes, but we've changed that!'"
Likewise, he said, the NIV is a translation that strives to reflect contemporary idioms and there have been significant changes to the English language in the last quarter-century.
"The English is understandable but not natural to people anymore. It's not what people are saying day to day," he said.
For example, Girkins said, the NIV uses the term alien rather than foreigner. Using contemporary English is particularly important internationally, Danby said, because that in some parts of the world the NIV is used for teaching English as a second language.
A question of process
Most translation revisions are not met with as much fanfare as today's announcement. But most translations have not been on top of the best-seller list for a quarter century. Nor had other translation committees previously announced that they would not update their text. Most importantly, other translations had not been the focus of boycotts, Christian bookstore chain bans, Southern Baptist Convention resolutions, and other outrage that accompanied the TNIV's release.
"We're trying to do this right and be as transparent as possible," Girkins said. The NIV team has already created a website, NIVBible2011.com, to solicit comments from scholars and Bible readers. Moo says the CBT will read and consider every suggestion received by the end of the calendar year.
Is the team's repeated emphasis on transparency and openness an admission that World Magazine was right when called the TNIV a "Stealth Bible" in a 1997 cover story that was the first volley against the translation?
"We're not saying the TNIV was a stealth Bible," Girkins said. "But the ways it was brought to market weren't transparent. We didn't bring people with us and caught people by surprise. ... We made a big press announcement today because want people to get on the page with us. We don't want to imply that we're going to overhaul the NIV. We could be giving the impression that this is a lot bigger than it is."
Best seller
The Evangelical Christian Publishers Association reports the NIV is still the best-selling Bible translation overall, though specific Bibles in other translations are outselling NIV Bibles. Last month, for example, the English Standard Version's Outreach New Testament and the New King James Version's Text Bible outsold the NIV's Adventure Bible. The TNIV is not among the top ten best-selling translations and no TNIV edition is among the best-selling Bibles. One bright spot for the TNIV, however, has been in sales to the Amazon Kindle e-reader, where the TNIV is the third-most popular translation (behind the NIV and King James translation).
The New International Reader's Version, a version of the NIV translated into simpler English in 1996, will stay as it is, Girkins said. The translation has had more commercial success than the TNIV; The NIRV Adventure Bible for Early Readers, for example, was last month's tenth-best selling Bible.
John Stek, who served as chairman of the the Committee on Bible Translation during the creation of the TNIV and the ensuring debate over the translation, died June 6.
Unedited :: Link to Original Posting
http://blog.christianitytoday.com/ctliveblog/archives/2009/09/breaking_transl.html
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