24 March 2010

Presbyterians Week Headlines

[1] Christian Defense Coalition Director Responds to U.S. House of Representatives Passage of Health Care Legislation

[2] ARP General Synod Moderator Expresses ‘Grief, Shock, and Dismay’ over Erskine College and Theological Seminary Lawsuit

[3] History Professor Puts Erskine College and Theological Seminary Controversy into Historical Perspective

[4] Hope College Alumni Group Pressuring for Removal of 1995 Institutional Statement on Homosexuality

[5] United Nations Commission Panel Discussion for Girl Scouts Features Planned Parenthood Brochure Encouraging Girls to “Talk Dirty” and Engage in Aberrant Sex

[6] Westminster Seminary Graduate Dr. Anthony Bradley Publishes Liberating Black Theology

[7] Philadelphia PCA Pastor Seeks to Replace Prosperity Gospel in Black Churches with Biblically-Grounded, Redemptive Christianity

[8] Atlanta Superior Court Issues Summary Judgment Against UCC Southeast Conference in Attempted Church Confiscation


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[1] Christian Defense Coalition Director Responds to U.S. House of Representatives Passage of Health Care Legislation

Reformed Presbyterian minister and Director of the Christian Defense Coalition the Rev. Pat Mahoney responded in the late evening of Sunday, 21 March 2010, to the U.S. House of Representatives passage of the Health Care Bill earlier in the evening:

"Today is a tragic and sad day for America. As part of health care legislation, we are now asking all Americans to pay for the killing of innocent children through abortion with their tax dollars.
"As we have been saying during this entire debate, abortion is not health care. Health care should be about compassion and mercy not violence and the diminishing of women.

"Although the pro-life and faith community is profoundly saddened by this vote, we are also highly motivated and energized as we look toward the midterm congressional elections in the fall of 2010.

"We plan to mobilize the pro-life and faith community in record numbers to see that Speaker Pelosi and Majority Leader Reid no longer serve in those positions during the next Congress.

"Our message will be clear and simple to the voters this fall regarding every member of Congress who supported this legislation. Here it is: These legislators who voted for the passage of this health care bill are the ones who are now forcing you to pay for the killing of innocent children with your tax dollars.

"We are confident this will have a powerful impact on Catholic and Evangelical voters this November.

"After the defeat of the Alamo, a powerful cry was heard across the nation which has inspired Americans for generations. That cry was, 'Remember the Alamo!'

"From the ashes of this defeat, another powerful cry will be heard. 'Remember March 21!' We believe as Americans understand what happened today they will work with unprecedented passion to ensure this bill is reversed and human rights and social justice are once again embraced in this country."

+ Christian News Wire, 2020 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest, Washington DC 20006, 202-546-0054, newsdesk@christiannewswire.com

+ Christian Defense Coalition, Post Office Box 77168, Washington DC 20013, 202-547-1735, ChristianDefense@gmail.com

+ U.S. House of Representatives, Washington DC 20515, 202- 224-3121, Contact Page


[2] ARP General Synod Moderator Expresses ‘Grief, Shock, and Dismay’ over Erskine College and Theological Seminary Lawsuit

A 22 March 2010 article by Felicia Kitzmiller in The Index-Journal titled “ARP Delegates Shocked over Suit” reports that the Rev. Dr. John deWitt, Moderator of the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church’s General Synod (ARP-GS), on behalf of himself and the ARP-GS delegates, expressed ‘grief, shock and dismay’ over the lawsuit by Erskine College and Theological Seminary board members against the ARP-GS for the recent vote by an approximately two-to-one margin to dismiss fourteen Erskine board members and establish an interim Board of Trustees.

DeWitt is quoted as saying that Presbyterian Church tradition is that decisions are made at various levels within the church courts, and that decisions requiring further examination are done “…in an orderly way, under the provisions of our Book of Government.”

Dr. deWitt continued: “It is a firm conviction with us that we do not seek redress by going to law, a conviction based squarely in the New Testament (1 Corinthians 6:1-8). Most of us find it difficult to understand why the church, which is the proprietor of Erskine College and Seminary, should not be able to put in place trustees who represent the mind and heart of the sponsoring body.”

+ The Index-Journal, 610 Phoenix Street, Greenwood, South Carolina 29646, 864-223-1411, jburns@indexjournal.com

+ Associate Reformed Presbyterian Center, 1 Cleveland Street Suite 110, Greenville, South Carolina, 29601, 864-232-8297, Fax: 864-271-3729

+ Erskine College and Seminary, Post Office Box 668, Due West, South Carolina, 800-770-6936, gaston@erskine.edu


[3] History Professor Puts Erskine College and Theological Seminary Controversy into Historical Perspective

Assistant Professor of History at Patrick Henry College, Visiting Professor of Church History at Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary, and member of Good News Presbyterian Church (ARP), Frederick, Maryland, Dr. William VanDoodewaard, wrote a March 2010 article for the Reformation21 Blog titled “Shifting Sands at Erskine,” which briefly reviews the recent actions of the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church’s General Synod (ARP-GS) regarding Erskine College and Seminary and the subsequent lawsuit against the ARP-GS by Erskine, then examines the historical context and implications of these events, concluding:

“Whether the suit will prove successful is not clear. However, the circumstances themselves are far more revealing of the college's condition. It is very evident that a portion of the Erskine constituency, along with a minority in the denomination, have little regard for working through God-given patterns of church government, perhaps because of the continual growth of the more conservative evangelical majority. That a Synod would call for a greater integration of faith and learning, and a more distinctively Christian worldview in her institutions ought to be encouraging to a Christian. That a Synod would seek to have its institutions uphold the infallibility and inerrancy of the Scriptures is a baseline, historic distinction between evangelical and liberal trending to secular.

“Though astonishing, this historic event also provides helpful clarity, and a sobering reality check on the depth of decay to address. Concerns regarding the former board and leading parts of the administration, along with a small portion of the denomination, are verified. One would be hard pressed to see why an evangelical denomination would accommodate in her ministries those willing to pursue an end run through civil courts, in defiance of the very nature of Christ's church and her desire to pursue faithfulness. It is difficult to see any reflection of grace, gospel, or biblical justice in attempting to wrest the control of these institutions away from the denomination which formed, supports, and has owned them for nearly 200 years.

“Yet, the sure comfort even in the midst of deep tensions and challenge is that God does honor those who honor Him; He does work all things together for good to those who love Him. He will certainly do this for a denomination taking up this cross to follow Him, striving for greater faithfulness to His glory.”

+ Reformation21 Blog, r21@alliancenet.org

+ Associate Reformed Presbyterian Center, 1 Cleveland Street Suite 110, Greenville, South Carolina, 29601, 864-232-8297, Fax: 864-271-3729

+ Erskine College and Seminary, Post Office Box 668, Due West, South Carolina, 800-770-6936, gaston@erskine.edu


[4] Hope College Alumni Group Pressuring for Removal of 1995 Institutional Statement on Homosexuality

A 16 March 2010 The Grand Rapids Press article by Nate Reens titled “Influential Hope College Alumni Protest Policies Opposing Homosexuality on Campus” describes efforts by a Hope College alumni group to pressure the Hope College trustees to remove a 1995 Institutional Statement on Homosexuality and otherwise make the Holland, Michigan, institution be tolerant of homosexuality.

The 1995 Institutional Statement on Homosexuality says that Hope College “will not provide recognition, financial or logistical support for groups whose purposes include the advocacy or moral legitimization of homosexual behavior.”

+ The Grand Rapids Press, 155 Michigan Street Northwest, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49503, 616-222-5818, dgaydou@grpress.com

+ Hope College, Holland, Michigan 49423, 616-395-7780, Fax: 616-395-7111, bultmanj@hope.edu

+ Reformed Church in America, 4500 60th Street Southeast, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49512, 800-968-6065, questions@rca.org


[5] United Nations Commission Panel Discussion for Girl Scouts Features Planned Parenthood Brochure Encouraging Girls to “Talk Dirty” and Engage in Aberrant Sex

The 17 March 2010 issue of the Wednesday STOPP Report written by Rita Diller describes a recent meeting of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women where a panel discussion held for the World Association of Girl Scouts and Girl Guides, where parents were not invited, featured Planned Parenthood handing out a brochure titled “Healthy, Happy and Hot,” which encouraged girls to “talk dirty” to their sex partners, to engage in aberrant sex, and claiming there is no right or wrong way to have sex.

The brochure additionally affirms that young people living with HIV have the “right to sexual pleasure” and “have the right to decide if, when and how to disclose their HIV status;” and that laws requiring young people to disclose their HIV status to sexual partners “violate the rights of people living with HIV by forcing them to disclose or face the possibility of criminal charges.”

+ American Life League, Post Office Box 1350, Stafford, Virginia 22555, 540-659-4171, Fax: 540-659-2586, info@all.org

+ Planned Parenthood Federation of America, 434 West 33rd Street, New York, New York 10001, 212-541-7800, Fax: 212-245-1845

+ World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts, World Bureau, Olave Centre, 12c Lyndhurst Road, London NW3 5PQ, England, 44-0-20-7794- 1181, Fax: 44-0-20-7431-3764, wagggs@wagggsworld.org

+ United Nations Commission on the Status of Women, Women's Rights Section, Division for the Advancement of Women, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, United Nations, DC2, 12th floor, New York, New York 10017, Fax: 212-963-3463, daw@un.org


[6] Westminster Seminary Graduate Dr. Anthony Bradley Publishes Liberating Black Theology

Westminster Seminary graduate, visiting professor of theology at The Kings College in New York, New York, and a research fellow at the Acton Institute for the Study of Religion and Liberty, Dr. Anthony Bradley, on 28 February 2010 published Liberating Black Theology, a critique of the "victimology" theme within black liberation theology and its long-standing spiritual and social implications.

Dr. Bradley’s publisher, Crossway Books, describes Liberating Black Theology thusly:

“When the beliefs of Barack Obama's former pastor, Rev. Jeremiah Wright, assumed the spotlight during the 2008 presidential campaign, the influence of black liberation theology became hotly debated not just within theological circles but across cultural lines. How many of today's African-American congregations-and how many Americans in general-have been shaped by its view of blacks as perpetual victims of white oppression?

“In this interdisciplinary, biblical critique of the black experience in America, Anthony Bradley introduces audiences to black liberation theology and its spiritual and social impact. He starts with James Cone's proposition that the "victim" mind-set is inherent within black consciousness. Bradley then explores how such biblical misinterpretation has historically hindered black churches in addressing the diverse issues of their communities and prevented adherents from experiencing the freedoms of the gospel. Yet Liberating Black Theology does more than consider the ramifications of this belief system; it suggests an alternate approach to the black experience that can truly liberate all Christ-followers.”

The Christian Observer, on 20 January 2009, republished the March 2008 Reformed World article “What Makes You So Strong?,” by Jeremiah A. Wright, Jr., which is illustrative of Pastor Wright’s theological beliefs.

+ Good News/Crossway, 1300 Crescent Street, Wheaton, Illinois 60187, 630-682-4300, Fax: 1-630-682-4785, info@crossway.org

+ Westminster Theological Seminary, 2960 West Church Road, Glenside, Pennsylvania 19038, 215-887-5511, Fax: 215-887-5404, communications@wts.edu

+ The Kings College, Empire State Building, 350 Fifth Avenue, Suite 1500, New York, New York 10118, 212-659-7200, Fax: 212-659-7210, info@tkc.edu

+ The Acton Institute, 161 Ottawa Avenue Northwest, Suite 301, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49503, 616-454-3080, Fax: 616-454-9454, info@acton.org


[7] Philadelphia PCA Pastor Seeks to Replace Prosperity Gospel in Black Churches with Biblically-Grounded, Redemptive Christianity

An article in the March 2010 ByFaith Magazine by Melissa Morgan Kelley titled “Seeking Revival Within the Black Church” describes a small group of black Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) teaching elders preparing to lead a 4-6 June 2010 conference called “Revival 2K10: Worshiping God Through Preaching, Prayer, and Praise,” being held at the New Song Community Church in Baltimore, Maryland.

Ms. Kelly interviews the Rev. Lance Lewis, pastor of Christ Liberation Fellowship PCA in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, which is a plant of Tenth Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia. Mr. Lewis expresses concern about the entrenchment of the prosperity gospel and word of faith teaching that have increased within African-American churches over the past twenty-five years, and says that these movements are “…as much a threat to the historic black church as theological liberalism was to the evangelical church in the early part of the twentieth century.”

Mr. Lewis continues: “When people see that the prosperity gospel doesn’t work they may reject God altogether….” and expresses a vision of a more biblical way of believing, “where people no longer measure their lives by their circumstances, but seek to serve the Lord as an end to itself. That helps to provide a foundation for a growing, thriving, and flourishing walk with the Lord.”

Describing the upcoming conference, Mr. Lewis says: “Revival 2K10 seeks to offer preaching and teaching that provides biblical answers to the questions that are on the minds of churched and unchurched black people. They’re chiefly concerned with what is the substance of salvation in the here and now.”

+ Presbyterian Church in America, 1700 North Brown Road, Suite 105, Lawrenceville, Georgia 30043, 678-825-1000, Fax: 678-825-1001, ac@pcanet.org


[8] Atlanta Superior Court Issues Summary Judgment Against UCC Southeast Conference in Attempted Church Confiscation

In a summary judgment order filed 3 March 2010, Superior Court of Fulton County, Georgia, Atlanta Judicial Circuit Judge Christopher S. Brasher, using neutral principles of property law, ruled that Center Congregational Church (CCC) of Atlanta, Georgia, is the rightful owner of their church property, and that claims of ownership by the Southeast Conference (SC) of the United Church of Christ (UCC) are invalid.

CCC exited the UCC because of doctrinal actions taken by the UCC in 2005, and subsequently associated CCC with the National Association of Congregational Christian Churches. SC-UCC then sued CCC to have the congregation ejected from the CCC church property.

For further background information, see the 27 May 2009 Presbyterians Week article [8] Southeast Conference of the UCC Sues to Oust Thirty-Six Member Center Congregational Church in Atlanta, Georgia from Church Property, and the 5 August 2009 Presbyterians Week article [5] Center Congregational Church of Atlanta, Georgia, Being Bankrupted by UCC Southeastern Conference Efforts to Seize Church.

+ Center Congregational Church, 1055 Moores Mill Road Northeast, Atlanta, Georgia 30327, 404-351-2747, JRMcAlileyIII@netscape.net

+ Southeast Conference United Church of Christ, 1330 West Peachtree Street, Suite 350, Atlanta, Georgia 30309, 800-807-1993, Fax: 404-607-7939

+ United Church of Christ, 700 Prospect Avenue, Cleveland, Ohio 44115, 216-736-2100, ogm@ucc.org

+ National Association of Congregational Christian Churches, Post Office Box 288, Oak Creek, Wisconsin 53154, 800-262-1620, Fax: 414-764-0319