Research sheds light on PCUSA’s problems
Posted Friday, June 27, 2003
The Research Services Office of the Presbyterian Church (USA) recently conducted a survey of over 3,600 randomly chosen Presbyterians – 1,102 members, 1,145 elders and 1,435 ordained ministers. Some of the results may shed some light on the difficulties that our denomination currently faces.
70 percent of members, 75 percent of elders, 71 percent of pastors and 55 percent of specialized clergy said they agree or strongly agree that “the only absolute Truth for humankind is in Jesus Christ.” (This means that 29% of pastors think that there is some Truth (with a capital “T”) that is not contained in Jesus Christ)
43 percent of members, 50 percent of elders, 39 percent of pastors and 24 percent of other clergy said they agree or strongly agree that “only followers of Jesus Christ can be saved.” (Over six out of ten pastors and an even greater number of the total number of ordained ministers think that there is another way to salvation than through faith in Christ)
Two-thirds of members and specialized clergy and 80 percent of pastors and elders said they agree that “Jesus will return to earth some day.” (One out of five Presbyterian ministers do not believe that Jesus is returning)
Our seminaries are obviously not teaching the essential tenets of the faith. Unless the ordained clergy understand and teach scriptural truth, the flocks which they minister to will be lost. It is very dangerous for a minister to make statements contrary to the Word of God.
(James 3:1 – “Not many of you should presume to be teachers, my brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly.”)
(Mark 9:42 – “And if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to be thrown into the sea with a large millstone tied around his neck.”)
The efforts of the Presbytery of San Diego to ensure that candidates for the ministry of Word and sacrament will be examined and prepared is a vital first step, and I would pray that other presbyteries would follow suit. We also need to make sure the seminaries we support are teaching the Word of God. I have been privileged to have been taught and mentored by men of sound theology with a clear conscience. It would appear that many in our denomination have not been so fortunate.
Brian Ahier, deacon Gateway Presbyterian Church, The Dalles, Ore.
Transgendered minister should leave ministry
Posted Friday, June 27, 2003
Romans chapters 1 to 3 could not be any clearer on man’s condemnation, yet the gay agenda seeks, not only to Re-Imagine the PCUSA, but to call for the repeal of G-6.0106b, which is no surprise.
If Erin Swenson wants to be a woman, who once was Eric Swenson, that is her business, but to be a minister in the PCUSA, and violating G-6.0106b is so wicked. Erin Swenson would be better off leaving the ministry, preserving what honor and respect she has for herself, which is not much on the scale of 1 to 10.
Homosexuality, lesbianism and transgendering all violate the Holy Bible’s teaching on ethics and morality.
How ironic for Erin Swenson to state, “Church is not the place to hide from the truth,” while at the same time Erin Swenson violates the very same truth she wants the church not to hide.
The Church preserves, preaches and defends the truth, but for the Church to validate her behavior and others’ betrays the very same truth Christ commissioned the body of Christ to preach and the Apostle Paul’s instructions on man’s condemnation (Rom. 1-3). Erin Swenson is not only violating Scripture, but in her behavior, Erin Swenson and others reject the Holy Scripture as the Word of God.
Lou. S. Nowasielski Wilmington, Del.
PCUSA is selling one lemon after another
Posted Friday, June 27, 2003
Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you are like whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within they are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. Matthew 23:27
Loyalty to petrified opinion never broke a chain or freed a human soul. Mark Twain.
I bought my first new car from Bob in 1966. I wish you all could know Bob; he is such a nice man, polite, helpful, and my concerns are always his top priority. Unfortunately, the car was a lemon.
Bob was very upset about that. He urged me to trade it in on the 1967 model, which he assured me would be much better. “Unfortunately,” he apologized, “I can’t give you much for your trade; after all, it is a lemon.”
After driving the 1967 model for a year, I told Bob that it was worse than the 1966. Bob was very upset; he had been hearing that from other customers, too. He said he would make me a “real good deal” on a 1968, but, unfortunately, the trade wouldn’t bring in much, since no one wanted the ’67s.
I feel so sorry for poor Bob. I have had to trade in my car every year because each one was worse than the year before. Bob is so embarrassed. He says he complained to his superiors and they have promised to make changes. But each change just makes things worse. Bob doesn’t know what else he can do; but he promises to keep trying.
I trust Bob. He is a good man. I believe him when he says my concerns are his top priority. So I will keep buying my cars from Bod. Wouldn’t you?
I met with a new pastor in our presbytery recently. In the course of our conversation, I observed that Presbyterian ministers were intelligent, capable people, so I had to wonder about how committed they were to renewal in our denomination if, after nearly 40 years, everything was worse than it had been before. I suggested that maybe they weren’t really committed to succeeding.
The pastor rankled at that notion. He assured me that he knew many of the people in the renewal movement personally; you couldn’t find nicer folks, polite, helpful, with the concerns of the church always their top priority.
(Something about the way he described these renewal people sounded familiar. Why, they sounded just like Bob!)
For nearly four decades, we have been sold one lemon after another. Always with the assurance that our leaders were real sorry about how things had gone last year, but trust them to make next year better. And we have – except for those 2,000,000 who got fed up with the lame excuses and left – because they are such nice people.
Of course this is an exercise in the theology of accommodation. Instead of demanding concrete results based on sound Biblically doctrine, we make excuses for them and accept failure because we don’t want to offend anyone.
(Interestingly, this pastor did not attend a denominational seminary, and does not use denominational Christian Educational materials.)
There can be no healing until we confront the root causes of our problems. Just being nice and sincere has accomplished nothing but a mass hoodwinking of the church members who remain.
The Bible teaches us that we are trustees of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We do not have the luxury of allowing, as we have been doing, those in leadership positions to dilute and pollute this message, even if they are nice, polite, helpful, and have the interests of the church as their top priority.
Fool me once, shame on you! Fool me twice, shame on me!
Well, enough about church; I need to go see Bob. He assured me the ’04s were going to be much better!
The Old Gray Dog, Jim Tuckett
Lucifer, also, wanted to be like God
Posted Thursday, June 26, 2003
Rita Nakashima Brock and her gang admit Christ did not die for the elect. If that be true, how can one attain perfection? Brock admits working to be like God. Isaiah 14:28 teaches that Lucifer’s strategy is to be like the Most High. Lucifer seeks to dethrone our triune God and be worshipped as the true God.
Lou. S. Nowasielski Wilmington, Del.
Moderator’s communion was low point for YAD
Posted Thursday, June 26, 2003
As a YAD to the 215th General Assembly, I was present at the evening caucus where Erin Swenson related his/her story to the YADs. While I listened to the story respectfully there, and when he/she spoke during the open hearing for the Church Orders and Ministry Committee, on which I served, I could not help but be moved by some of the statements made.
As a college student I have taken several courses on “gender issues” and have studied transgendered experiences in a limited setting. I was saddened to hear this story and could not help but think that Erin Swenson, who had so firmly stated his/her commitment to the church and to faith in Jesus Christ, could not rely on God to solve a perceived problem of gender. Instead he took matters into his own hands and violated God’s law.
As a related note of interest, the YADs had opportunity to view presentations made by different groups each night during the caucus time. Several renewal groups showed up, but night after night it was the “liberal” groups who consistently showed up to spread their vitriol. I would just like to encourage the renewal groups to do a better job of reaching the young people of the church. Do not write us off as a lost generation, with no hope!
I will close with this story. At the last caucus, Friday evening, the moderator, the Rev. Dr. Susan Andrews, brought the YADs greetings and spoke with us for a brief while. Later she presided at holy communion. During the invitation, when stating the words of institution, she was following a liturgy that included praises to God for creating all people “… short and tall, dark and light, gay and straight … etc.” I was horrified by this statement, and seriously considered not partaking of the sacrament. But I did for the sake of unity, and that is the one time since being confirmed in 1995, that I have regretted taking communion in the Presbyterian Church, even though it was rightly administered and the moderator was rightly ordained.
Just two nights before I had the pleasure of serving Communion with the past moderator, Fahed Abu-Akel, a true man of God! Just an interesting thought on how our new moderator will probably operate this coming year.
May God help our church!
A.D. Lorenz, elder First Presbyterian Church, Warsaw, Ohio
Why waste time attending women’s conference
Posted Thursday, June 26, 2003
Why would any woman waste her time to attend the women’s conference August 9-12 at Montreat? Of course, I really wonder why the denomination invites such speakers to the conference. It is hard to financially support such strange themes and events.
Steve Wilson
Amen to Parker’s self-therapy
Posted Thursday, June 26, 2003
As one of the previous letter writers stated, “Your comments on the re-imagining gathering seemed ‘the sort of breathless chatter better suited for the National Enquirer than a publication claiming a Christian imprimatur.” I agree.
Your line “Two feminist theologians, considered leading lights in the Re-Imagining movement, told their fellow travelers,” was clearly beyond the limits of responsible journalism. Definition: fellow traveler-noun: a communist sympathizer (but not a member of the Communist Party.) Editor’s note: Fellow traveler, “One who sympathizes with or supports the tenets and program of an organized group”, American Heritage Dictionary.
The line: “Both unmarried, they work together and travel together,” was addressed by Pastor W. Patterson Lyles, I’m surprised you failed to mention their butch haircuts.
Until now, I’ve never heard greetings for a speaker referred to as a ritual, “While some of the participants claim that they do not worship a goddess named Sophia – after the Greek word for wisdom – their rituals unquestionably leave that impression. The wave and chant were standard greetings for speakers at the conference.”
Also, “One called Bush a fascist” is not too far off target. Definition: fascist [n.] An adherent of fascism or other right-wing authoritarian views.
Considering the multitude of children who have been abused, and suffer into adulthood, I was impressed with Professor Parker’s self-therapy “Saying she was abused as a child, Parker told of retreating to a Hindu community and living for a while in silence. She described one of her paintings in which she portrayed her body as having been penetrated “by an old gray penis.” With her paints, she said she surgically removed it, sutured up that area of her body and concluded, Surely, goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life.” I say amen, and amen!
Dick Blanton Owensboro, Ky.
PCUSA has enough heretics without Unitarian speaker
Posted Thursday, June 26, 2003
It saddens me to no great end the current round of charges being fired off around our church. We have enough heretics of our own denomination without needing to bring others in, such as Rita Nakashima Brock of the Unitarian “church.”
I heard a series of three lectures delivered by Ms. Brock several years ago as a part of an ongoing lecture series sponsored by the religion department at the college I attend (a Presbyterian College in Ohio). I was dismayed at her less-than-orthodox beliefs then and continue to be disappointed that she persists in spreading aberrant theology.
It was very difficult to repair the fissure her lectures caused within the Christian community on our campus. I was offended by her statements but managed to keep a level head about the situation and realize that she was very far out in “left field.”
Unfortunately many of the less theologically astute students had a difficulty in making the separation and were either unduly influenced by her theology or became virulently opposed to what she was saying and refused to remain as a part of the dialogue, which I found to be the most important aspect of her lecture series.
I could continue writing about all of the heterodox theology Ms. Brock tried to use on some simple college students, but I imagine that most readers, from what they have already read, know what I would write about.
A.D. Lorenz, elder Warsaw Ohio
It’s time to consider separation from PCUSA
Posted Thursday, June 26, 2003
Have you considered separating yourselves completely from the PCUSA altogether. It looks like it is going to get worse in the PCUSA, as well as other mainline denominations, based upon what I am reading.
Ron Bowling Jr.
Re-imaginers are ‘Devil’s Disciples’
Posted Wednesday, June 25, 2003
The re-imaginers do not believe that Jesus Christ died for them because they don’t belong to Christianity any more. They are “Devil’s Disciples.” I know, and so does the Holy Bible tell me, that the Lord Jesus Christ did die for my sins and delivered me from darkness of Devil’s kingdom. Now I am sure I live in glittering hope of eternal life. I really don’t care what these women say. Yet I do care about the reaction of the church on such blasphemous statements. I wrote earlier that such people who have altogether different “theology” (pagan theology) must be excommunicated from the church, the body of Christ should not have such scares like the re-imaginers and all who disobey the Word of God.
Rev. Timotheus Nasir Pakistan
Why don’t some Presbyterians become Unitarians?
Posted Wednesday, June 25, 2003
I was sad to read about the re-imagining conference recently celebrated in Minneapolis. I was sad to read of the two Unitarian theologians who spoke and cannot understand why those in the PCUSA who agree with these two heretical teachers do not just go to the Unitarian church?
Some folks speak about keeping the unity and peace of the church but in practice do just the opposite! We of the PCUSA are a confessional church, which means we stand for certain basic fundamental theological and ethical truths. If this is so hard for some folks to understand, why do they remain within the PCUSA? I think they will be more respected if they honestly left and not stayed around to cause our PCUSA to be at war.
I understand that some will not leave because they consider themselves to be Presbyterian. But having denied basic truths we have affirmed as a body, they are not really Presbyterian; even though they may believe in our form of church government. (There is a tendency to even deny the basics of our church government wherein presbyteries can make up their own mind as to who is capable of being ordained even if they do not meet up to our doctrinal and ethical requirements).
It is true that we can stay and try to change what we have believed and practiced, but the flagrant violation of what is presently accepted just goes to show that these folks really do not respect our decisions as a body of Christian believers – “our way or no way” seems to be their motto. When things are voted their way everything is OK and should be obeyed to the letter, but when things are not voted their way then violation of our standards as a body do not matter. God help us!
Rev. Eddie Soto Faith Presbyterian Church, Tallahassee, Fla.
The inconsistency: Anti-violence, pro-abortion
Posted Wednesday, June 25, 2003
I have never understood why the feminists are not able to see that the destruction of unborn babies is an act of violence, especially when the baby’s brain is sucked out of its head. Brock and Parker seem to be against violence in general, but condone the violence done to aborted unborn babies. Let’s have some consistency.
Dale Parker Analomink, Pa.
Encouraging sinfulness is cruelty
Posted Wednesday, June 25, 2003
I would like to concur with Rev. Rob Harrison’s comments. I consider myself a sinner, both in the sense of falling short of ideals and in the sense of sometimes behaving in a way that I know is wrong. I also understand that it is as much the denial of my own sins as the act of committing them that separates me from the love of God.
Therefore, in the context of “loving my neighbor,” for the church to support and encourage me in my sinfulness would be one of the most cruel and unfeeling things it could do to me. It is rather like organizing a chapter of Alcoholics Anonymous and then providing an open bar at the meetings
God’s response to us in love, as expressed in the prophetic tradition, of which Jesus is certainly a part, is both a “yes” and a “no” – yes to us as people, often no to our behavior. To fail to recognize this is to no longer be a real part of the body of Christ, God’s witnesses to the world.
Bruce M. Williams San Francisco, Calif.
Re-imaginers’ thinking is confused
Posted Wednesday, June 25, 2003
I found the article by The Layman Online difficult to understand. Not that the reporting was not good. Rather, the sayings of Brock and Parker are ramblings and all based on false premises. Nothing seemed realistic or logical in their apologetics. As such, it is wise to dismiss it as the confused, subtle hate-talk of desperate revisionists who hope that if they repeat their thinking often enough someone will think it must be true. Unfortunately, there will some confused souls who will accept confused thinking.
R.A. Halsted
Does paper lack mention of resurrection?
Posted Wednesday, June 25, 2003
In reading “Essential Tenets and Reformed Distinctives” set forth by the San Diego Presbytery, I do not see direct mention to the resurrection of the body, where, as believers in Christ through God’s grace, we may have life after death? Is this an oversight on my part?
Gary Bligh Calvary Presbyterian Church, San Francisco, Calif.