Wis. Presbytery Approves Ordination of Openly Gay Man

Here is part of an article about this:

In a closed meeting, a regional body of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) on Saturday voted to ordain a partnered homosexual. John Knox Presbytery commissioners voted 81-25 to approve the ordination of Scott D. Anderson, who set aside his ordination in 1990 when he was outed.

Anderson was ordained in the PC(USA) by the Sacramento Presbytery in 1983. He pastored Bethany Presbyterian Church for seven years until two members of the congregation publicly announced that he was gay.

In 2006, Anderson sought to be ordained again as a PC(USA) minister after the General Assembly – the denomination's highest governing body – approved an authoritative interpretation of the church constitution that would allow gay and lesbian candidates for ordination to conscientiously object the ban against partnered homosexuals. The local ordaining body would discern whether the declared objection is disqualifying.

What great news for Progressive Christians everywhere! The tides seem to be turning in the favor for full inclusion into the church of gays and lesbians for the most part. We still have obstacles to face though as John Shuck and Ken Meunier astutely point out:

The presbytery of John Knox voted that Scott's scruple was just fine with them. According to the executive presbyter of John Knox, Rev. Ken Meunier:

"Not everyone is on the same page with this issue, but a great number of people have been very impressed with Scott Anderson's gifts for ministry. I believe the vote reflects a desire of persons within the Presbytery to make room for a variety of voices and opinions within the church, and to exercise biblical forbearance toward persons with whom they disagree."

Apparently some busybodies think forbearance is not very biblical and will challenge the decision.

John Knox could not be reached for comment.

We can only hope that the issue will someday be resolved.

Welcome Back Fred!

First, I would like to welcome back my friend Fred H. Anderson to the Blogosphere with his new Blog: Neoorthodoxology. Secondly, I'd highly recommend reading his Lenten post: The Desert Will Blossom. Here is a snippet:

Jesus will have as his center God alone.
What Jesus insists on is remaining in relationship with God.

Thus it is appropriate that Jesus does not answer on his own terms alone.
Jesus refutes the devil each time by quoting scripture.
Jesus answers every temptation by a reminder of his relationship with God.
Jesus answers in terms of that relationship.
The desert forces the question,
but Jesus will not isolate himself from God.

The desert where we sometimes find ourselves forces the same question on us:
Will we be faithful
or will we not?

Of course, the question comes to us in more attractive wrapping than that.

The first temptation is to turn stones into bread:

“If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become a loaf of bread.”

This is to satisfy our hunger at any cost,
to shrink to become nothing more than appetites,
a partial self
living a distorted existence.

Jesus knew that and responded with Deuteronomy 8:3:

"It is written, 'One does not live by bread alone.'"

The second temptation is to replace God with something else.

"Then the devil led him up and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world. And the devil said to him, 'To you I will give their glory and all this authority; for it has been given over to me, and I give it to anyone I please. If you, then, will worship me, it will all be yours.'”

Jesus knew that was a lie, and he responded:

"It is written, 'Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.'"

You see, what we put at our center,
if it is not God,
can never give us satisfaction,
but leaves us open to disintegration and despair.

The words of the Barmen Declaration show us our center:

Jesus Christ, as he is attested for us in Holy Scripture, is the one Word of God which we have to hear and which we have to trust and obey in life and in death

.

Lastly, I'd like to say Amen! At the center of Jesus is God as Jesus is both fully human and fully God and Jesus is the one Word by which we were created by God and by which we were Elected to New and Eternal Life in Him.

Encountering Those Of Different Faith Traditions

John Armstrong has an excellent post on ecumenism within a missional context if you haven't seen it do so. It is well worth the read. Here are some highlights of his post:

A regular reader of this blog, who is Roman Catholic in his faith and practice, told me that he was recently at an A.A. men's retreat conducted the Jesuit-run retreat center. This retreat was specifically geared toward men involved in A.A. but it incorporated the Spiritual exercises of St Ignatius of Loyola. Because of this Catholic connection the retreat included Catholic prayers such as the angelus, the rosary, the daily and Sunday mass, morning prayers, as well as evening eucharistic adoration and benediction. In such settings no one is forced to participate in these spiritual practices that are specifically Catholic but all are invited to participate to whatever degree they choose to do so. What follows is an account writer (end edited by me) of the letter my Catholic friend sent to me a few days ago.

“There was a man at the retreat from out-of-state who had traveled some distance to be there. He is a Baptist and, according to my Catholic friend, has a very close relationship with Christ. He accepted the invitation to be the prayer leader for morning, angelus, and before-meals prayers. He also participated in the mass and received holy communion with the rest of us. I personally told him that I was very impressed at his willingness to share in these aspects of Catholic spirituality and practice. He shared with me that even though he doesn't agree with some of the teachings of the Catholic Church he sees much value in the practices and disciplines...“My own spirit was lifted up by this brother who had so much respect, not only for his other Christian brothers in A.A., but also for our own Catholic tradition. I'm sure some Christians on both sides of the Tiber would be scandalized by this story but I saw it as a genuine work of the Holy Spirit, and totally consistent with the spirituality of St Ignatius.”

What do I make of my friends letter? What do you make of it? I think it perfectly reflects the very missional-ecumenism that I teach and practice through the witness of ACT 3. I do not believe that we have settled our very real differences in some important areas of theology and practice. At the same time I do not believe that we are living in a sixteenth century context any longer. Some act as though we are still fighting the exact same battles in the exact same way. When they believe this way they will always continue to stoke the fires of controversy saying Catholics are not Christians or their church is heretical. Others live as if we are in a pre-Vatican II time warp. This is true of many conservative Protestants and some very conservative Catholics as well. When I began to really study Vatican II (for myself) I realized how totally wrong the ideas were that some has taught me about this Council. Rome does change, in spite of the oft mentioned idea that she does not. Any careful reading of Vatican II, especially the parts on the kingdom of God, ecumenism and mission will prove this point. Because Rome does not “revise” history but functions as a “living” tradition many Protestants act as of nothing has really changed but this is a failure to understand how Rome changes...I was once an anti-Catholic, or at least I was publicly known as such. (In my book I explain this chapter of my life clearly and openly so I will save that story.) The most important thing that changed all this for me was not reading theology, though I have read thousands of pages of Catholic and evangelical theology. The most important single change came about by meeting living, breathing, loving Christ-centered people like the Baptist and the Catholic in the story that my friend shared with me. How has this unfolding story of missional-ecumenism worked in your life? I would love to hear your story and add it to the bigger story we are all a part of by God’s sovereign grace.

I whole-heartedly agree that Christocentric living is the best way to move beyond our prejudices of other traditions within Christianity as well as other faith traditions. Truly at the end of the day differences do not matter in the long run as long as Christ is at the center though there are some differences that still need to be addressed. Love is more important than doctrinal agreement as it is the sum and substance of the Law:

35 And one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question, to test him.
36 "Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?"
37 And he said to him, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.
38 This is the great and first commandment.
39 And a second is like it, You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
---Matthew 22:35-39 (RSV).

Wilmington News

First Presbyterian Church of Wilmington, NC's partnership with a Chinese church goes strong 100 years later:

You can't buy a 110-year relationship.For three members of First Presbyterian Church, working on that relationship with Jiangyin Church, its Chinese sister church, meant traveling to Jiangsu Province in October.

The group – Alex Munroe, Walter Conser and the Rev. Ernie Thompson – attended the dedication of the new Jiangyin Pastoral Training Center there, a venture the Wilmington church partially funded.

The center is one of the first projects of its kind to open in China using foreign funding, Thompson said.

Several high-ranking Chinese officials, including the undersecretary of the state administration for religious affairs, attended the opening.

“The government is having a stronger sense that the church is good for the overall good of society,” he said. “The Chinese government supports these partnerships with only three requirements – that the work be open, that the work be legal, and that the foreign churches treat the Chinese church as equals.”

A mission's legacy

The story of how the churches got to this cooperative point started in 1895 when First Presbyterian sent missionary Rev. George Worth to establish the Jiangyin Mission Station. (Jiang­yin is 200 miles west of Shanghai on the Yangtze River.) Until Worth left the country during the Cultural Revolution in the 1950s, he and his family founded a hospital, schools and nursing schools. After that, the churches lost touch, until Munroe visited Jiangyin in 2005 and found the original mission had grown to 14 government-recognized Christian churches in the province.But these churches had a problem. There weren't enough pastors to handle the needs of each growing parish – most megachurch-size – and new churches couldn't open without leadership. The Jiangyin Church, for instance, has four two-hour services each Sunday, all with the same pastor.

Pastors from the Jiangyin church and Chinese officials traveled to the United States to visit First Presbyterian for the first time during Tropical Storm Hanna in September 2008.

Since, the two congregations have been working together to establish the training center. Though not a divinity school, the training center will educate lay leaders to preach, direct choirs and provide continuing education for the ordained pastors in the province. It will accommodate 90 students at a time. In addition to the center, First Presbyterian also sent money to re-vamp the Jiangyin Bible School library – donating about $100,000 to both projects.

One of the marvels of the center's development was the government's support, agreeing to donate the building to the center for free.

(Read on: Here).

Time Warner Cable to announce new charity effort

From staff reports


Published: Wednesday, November 18, 2009 at 8:13 p.m.
Last Modified: Wednesday, November 18, 2009 at 8:13 p.m.
Time Warner Cable launches a new philanthropic effort at 3 p.m. Thursday on Wilmington's riverfront.

Called Connect A Million Minds, it will introduce youth to opportunities and resources to develop skills they need to succeed, the company said.

Time Warner Cable said it is making a 5-year, $100 million commitment in cash and in-kind support companywide, with $11 million of that going to North Carolina, according to spokeswoman Melissa Buscher.

Read more: Here.

Al Mohler, Tim Keller, Idolatry And Conscience

Recently Dr. Prescott posted this:

Al Mohler on Conscience

Al Mohler, President of Southern Seminary and architect of the heretical 2000 Baptist Faith and Message statement, has taken up writing about conscience lately. Today, he writes about "The Idolatrous Religion of Conscience" and concludes with a quote from Martin Luther:

"It is the nature of all hypocrites and false prophets to create a conscience where there is none, and to cause conscience to disappear where it does exist."

I find it ironic that Mohler is now demonstrating such concern about forms of idolatry. Particularly when the article on "Scriptures" that he wrote for the 2000 Baptist Faith and Message demoted Jesus and elevated the Bible to such and extent that his statement is the clearest expression of Bible idolatry ever approved by a Baptist convention.

For the record, I too believe that conscience can be elevated to idolatrous levels. No one should trust a conscience that is not informed by both scripture and by the Holy Spirit (Mohler also turns a deaf ear to God's Spirit).

I also find it ironic that Mohler cites Martin Luther so approvingly. I'm not sure where the quote he cites is to be found in Luther's corpus, but I'm certain that you can find quotes similar to this in Luther's denunciations of the Anabaptists whose conscience prohibited them from baptizing infants. Instead, they insisted on baptizing believers.

Interestingly enough it is not just the bible that has been made into an idol by the SBC and fundamentalists in general but also doctrines themselves specifically those doctrines that are deemed right and correct by fundamentalist leaders. Here is a quote from Tim Keller which demonstrates the doxolatry/orthodoxolatry of fundamentalists:

Tim Keller on The Idol of Right Doctrine
Posted on October 21st, 2009 by peteenns

“An idol is something you rely on instead of God for your salvation. One of the religious idols is your moral record: “God accepts me because I’m living a good life.” I’m a Presbyterian, so I’m all for right doctrine. But you can start to feel very superior to everyone else and think, God is pleased with me because I’m so true to the right doctrine. The right doctrine and one’s moral record are forms of power. Another is ministry success, similar to the idol of achievement. There are religious versions of sex, money, and power, and they are pretty subtle.”

Rev. Tim Keller, author of Counterfeit Gods: The Empty Promises of Money, Sex and Power, and the Only Hope that Matters, from an interview with Christianity Today.

We should beware of all forms of idolatry, false doctrines and false forms of conscience.

Top 10 Reasons Why Sharks Make Terrible Presbyterians

Here is a companion post to my previous post---TheoPoetic Musings: Top 10 Reasons Why Cats Make Terrible Baptists:

10. Will eat all the food before the rest of the congregation gets any.

9. Likely to switch presbyteries often just to go where the most food is.

8. Shark justice sometimes includes cannibalism instead of reconciliation.

7. Shark behavior is hard to predetermine even from the foundation of the world.

6. Likely to eat the altar and all the religious trappings in the church building.

5. Will regurgitate the elements of communion.

4. Won't sit still during church services.

3. Won't resolve conflicts easily so often resolve to eating the opposition instead of forming a new denomination.

2. Don't have much time for heavy-handed theology when survival is your top priority.

And # 1. Sharks are pelagic fish so you know they believe in Pelagianism instead of Calvinism.

Heaven's Highway: After Emergent - the Post Emergent Church?

Here's an interesting post worth checking out:

Heaven's Highway: After Emergent - the Post Emergent Church?

Preview:

There's a lot of narcissism going on with Western Christianity. We are more into navel-gazing theology and self-centered systematics than ever before. We want the Church to be what we want and if we do not find the right shape to fit our individual soul, we'll make it into whatever pleases us or we'll go and start a new one.

Western Christianity is dying on the vine right now and we're scrambling to find the last great hope to make us relevant, effective, and heard. Elsewhere in the world, Christianity is thriving because people know that our faith is really about life and death, not lifestyle and dying traditions.

.............................................................

I have to say I like a lot of what Stushie (John Stuart) has to say even if we are on different sides of the pole and spectrum theologically wise.

More On Rick Warren's Boo Boo

See TheoPoetic Musings: Rick Warren's Boo Boo first.

Here is part of something Drew Tatusko posted:

Rick Warren is doing some good things in the evangelical community. But he is now discrediting himself with this sort of populist bandwagoning that should be saved for politicians. Let us all take heed of Psalm 15:

O Lord, who may abide in your tent?
Who may dwell on your holy hill?

Those who walk blamelessly, and do what is right,
and speak the truth from their heart;
who do not slander with their tongue,
and do no evil to their friends,
nor take up a reproach against their neighbours;
in whose eyes the wicked are despised,
but who honour those who fear the Lord;
who stand by their oath even to their hurt;
who do not lend money at interest,
and do not take a bribe against the innocent.

Those who do these things shall never be moved.

(Read more: here).

John Dominic Crossan On Bible Literalism

I thought I had posted this video before, but I couldn't find it---so thanks to Shuck and Jive: Crossan on Fundamentalism: "Rev's Rumbles" and The Rev's Rumbles: The Dangers of Fundamentalism -- John Dominic Crossan---I am finally posting it.

See also: Living the Questions, Peter Rollins: On the difference between literalism and fundamentalism and The Dangers of Fundamentalism -- John Dominic Crossan.

How Proposition 8 Destroys Families

"Fidelity": Don't Divorce... from Courage Campaign on Vimeo.

Found On: Shuck and Jive: It Breaks My Heart.

Some Interesting Readings Of Fosdick's "Shall The Fundamentalists Win?"

For an Emerging/Emergent take see: Earl Barnett's Blog.


For a Unitarian Universalist take see: Paul Wilczynski's Observations.


For a progressive Presbyterian take see: The Presbyterian Outlook.


For an Evangelical take see: Christianity Today.


For another Presbyterian take see: First Presbyterian Church Kenosha.

Interesting documentary on Lloyd Geering

Some basic information on Lloyd Geering for those who don't know who he is:

Lloyd Geering
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Lloyd George Geering ONZ, PCNZM, CBE is a New Zealand theologian born in Rangiora, Canterbury, New Zealand, on February 26, 1918. He is Emeritus Professor of Religious Studies at Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand.

Geering 'came in to the Christian tradition' in 1937.

He holds a D.D. from the University of Otago, a Masters Degree in Mathematics and was a minister in the Presbyterian Church of Aotearoa New Zealand and turned to theological teaching in 1956.

Geering is a controversial commentator on theological issues and considers Christian and Muslim fundamentalism to be social evils.

In 1967 Professor Geering gained a high profile when in 1967 he was charged with "doctrinal error and disturbing the peace and unity of the (Presbyterian) church". He was acquitted on both counts by the 1967 General Assembly of the PCANZ. The charges were brought by a group of conservative laymen and a conservative minister. During his "trial" he claimed that the remains of Jesus lay somewhere in Palestine, and that the resurrection had been wrongfully interpreted by churches as a resuscitation of the body of Jesus. He also rejects the notion that God is a supernatural being who created and continues to look over the world.[1]

He is a member of the Jesus Seminar and a participant in the program Living the Questions, an alternative to the Evangelical Alpha course; he is also a member of the Sea of Faith Network (New Zealand).

He was honored in 1988 as a Commander of the Order of the British Empire and in 2001 as Principal Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit. In the 2007 New Year Honours List he was made a Member of the Order of New Zealand.

Geering is a patron of the Coalition for Open Government.

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Although I don't agree with everything Dr. Geering says, he does present an interesting alternative take on Christianity.