I would highly encourage you to check out this post from my friend Josh Gelatt regarding the issue of man-made rules. The post is interesting and the discussion following is...spirited.
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Can we be sanctified by manmade rules?
joshgelatt.com: Sharper Iron - Younger faces, but is it the same old legalism?
I would highly encourage you to check out this post from my friend Josh Gelatt regarding the issue of man-made rules. The post is interesting and the discussion following is...spirited.
I would highly encourage you to check out this post from my friend Josh Gelatt regarding the issue of man-made rules. The post is interesting and the discussion following is...spirited.
The clothes make the man
Someone I know posted this as a defense of ministers wearing robes. Shockingly, I am not a big fan of vestments. That probably surprises you. Here is what one church where the minister wears robes says about it:
First, the white robe, among other things, helps emphasize the office of the pastor and de-emphasize the personality of the man in the pulpit. Sometimes it is hard to be led in worship by an elder or pastor who is a good friend or a peer or even (especially) one who is younger. To help us get over this feeling, the church has traditionally placed special robes on her ministers when they conduct worship. This helps the people to remember that it is not just good old Jeff Meyers up there; rather, the Lord’s ordained minister is leading us into God’s presence and speaking God’s Word to us. Strictly speaking, the worship service is not conducted by Jeff Meyers anyway, but by the robe of office that Jeff Meyers happens to be filling at the current time. We submit to the office, not to the man, during worship.
Interesting that it is hard to be led in worship by a "peer". I guess that implies that pastors are not our peers which makes them...our superiors? I would also agree that it is hard to be led in a authoritarian sense by a friend. On the other hand, I would say it is far easier to be lovingly guided by the men I know and trust precisely because they are my friends instead of some clerical office holder. I guess I would rather be ministered to by (and conversely be a minister to) my friend who I know rather than my friend who is supposed to be transformed into an office based on a robe he wears. I listen to council from my friends like James and Josh and Rick and John because they are my friends and know me, not because they are being paid to "lead" me. Vestments separate people. That guy is the pastor, he has a robe on. You are not, no robe for you! This again lays bare the disconnect between saying we are a priesthood of all believers in theory but have a very distinct priestly caste in practice.
Take off your robes. It is OK to be just a guy, to be the peer of the other redeemed sinners in your gathering. All authority has been given to Christ, not to humans with ordination certificates or seminary degrees or clerical robes.
First, the white robe, among other things, helps emphasize the office of the pastor and de-emphasize the personality of the man in the pulpit. Sometimes it is hard to be led in worship by an elder or pastor who is a good friend or a peer or even (especially) one who is younger. To help us get over this feeling, the church has traditionally placed special robes on her ministers when they conduct worship. This helps the people to remember that it is not just good old Jeff Meyers up there; rather, the Lord’s ordained minister is leading us into God’s presence and speaking God’s Word to us. Strictly speaking, the worship service is not conducted by Jeff Meyers anyway, but by the robe of office that Jeff Meyers happens to be filling at the current time. We submit to the office, not to the man, during worship.
Interesting that it is hard to be led in worship by a "peer". I guess that implies that pastors are not our peers which makes them...our superiors? I would also agree that it is hard to be led in a authoritarian sense by a friend. On the other hand, I would say it is far easier to be lovingly guided by the men I know and trust precisely because they are my friends instead of some clerical office holder. I guess I would rather be ministered to by (and conversely be a minister to) my friend who I know rather than my friend who is supposed to be transformed into an office based on a robe he wears. I listen to council from my friends like James and Josh and Rick and John because they are my friends and know me, not because they are being paid to "lead" me. Vestments separate people. That guy is the pastor, he has a robe on. You are not, no robe for you! This again lays bare the disconnect between saying we are a priesthood of all believers in theory but have a very distinct priestly caste in practice.
Take off your robes. It is OK to be just a guy, to be the peer of the other redeemed sinners in your gathering. All authority has been given to Christ, not to humans with ordination certificates or seminary degrees or clerical robes.
Parents versus teachers
Trouble in paradise!
HONOLULU--At a time when President Barack Obama is pushing for more time in the classroom, his home state has created the nation's shortest school year under a new union contract that closes schools on most Fridays for the remainder of the academic calendar.
The deal whacks 17 days from the school year for budget-cutting reasons and has education advocates charging that Hawaii is drastically cutting the academic calendar at a time when it already ranks near the bottom in national educational achievement.
While many school districts have laid off or furloughed teachers, reduced pay and planning days and otherwise cut costs, Hawaii's 171,000 public schools students now find themselves with only 163 instructional days, compared with 180 in most districts in the U.S.
That poses a couple of problems. As the article points out, the Obama administration has made having kids in school more hours a year, starting earlier, one of the hallmarks of its “education” policy. So here is his home state cutting back on the school year. But I don’t think the big issue is “education”. Here is the real problem:
"It's just not enough time for the kids to learn,'' said Valerie Sonoda, president of the Hawaii State Parent Teacher Student Association. "I'm getting hundreds of calls and emails. They all have the same underlying concern, and that is the educational hours of the kids.''
Riiiight. Maybe it is me being cynical, but I am thinking that the real problem is not as much education as it is supervision. What are working parents going to do when their kids are not being warehoused by the state on Fridays? I imagine that the outraged parents are more likely outraged by the inconvenience of having their kids home 17 days of the work week unexpectedly. If the real concern was education, it is easy enough for teachers to assign extra homework (since home in the evenings is where an awful lot of school takes place anyway) or even, GASP, some independent reading projects that require more than scribbling notes and regurgitating information. Oh no, this has nothing to do with education and everything to do with inconvenience.
This event is not isolated, but is the very real direction we are heading. It is really interesting in that it pits two groups against one another because of a violation of an unspoken but very real social contract: Schools will continue to suck money out of the community in return for warehousing kids for most of the work day so that both parents can work outside of the home. That is the deal and it has been in force for all of my life. That is being broken as schools, bloated with bureaucracy and overpaid staff, find that revenue is not keeping up with expenses. So in the balancing act between keeping staff employed and “education”, keeping staff employed wins out.
It should be interesting to see how this pans out. The recession we are in is exposing the funding issues in education, as public schools keep coming with their hands outstretched to ask for more and more money at the same time people are losing jobs and their homes are losing value. The old system where housing prices kept going up and therefore property taxes, the main driver in most states of education funding, also kept going up is clearly broken. Ask a homeowner in Michigan who has seen the real value of their home plummet with no corresponding drop in their property taxes or even in many cases an increase in their taxes. I wonder if you put it to a vote, lay off some staff or close school on Friday, how parents would vote? I would bet the “lay of staff” stance would win out.
As the economic world changes and America’s dominance diminishes we are simultaneously seeing a precipitous decline in the birth rate in America along with a rise in the number of kids in private schools, charter schools or homeschooled. If there 1 million kids homeschooled in America and you figure an average class size of 30 pupils per teacher, that works out to some 33,000 teachers who are not employed because of homeschoolers. Add to that the millions more that are in public and charter school and you can see why teachers unions are so incensed whenever anyone mentions schooling alternatives that don’t include union teachers. As the teachers unions get more desperate, expect them to push even harder to restrict home education and fight tooth and nail to shut down charter schools. Lest you get the impression that I think teachers unions have no purpose, let me quote a few more lines from the article:
The new contract, approved by 81% of voting teachers, stipulates 17 furlough Fridays during which schools will be closed, with the first happening Oct. 23. The teachers accepted a concurrent pay reduction of about 8%, but teacher vacation, nine paid holidays and six teacher planning days are left untouched.
The new agreement also guarantees no layoffs for two years and postpones the implementation of random drug testing for teachers.
Now there is a noble goal for the union, negotiating out random drug testing for teachers! See, teachers union do have a purpose, protecting teachers who use illegal drugs from detection.
HONOLULU--At a time when President Barack Obama is pushing for more time in the classroom, his home state has created the nation's shortest school year under a new union contract that closes schools on most Fridays for the remainder of the academic calendar.
The deal whacks 17 days from the school year for budget-cutting reasons and has education advocates charging that Hawaii is drastically cutting the academic calendar at a time when it already ranks near the bottom in national educational achievement.
While many school districts have laid off or furloughed teachers, reduced pay and planning days and otherwise cut costs, Hawaii's 171,000 public schools students now find themselves with only 163 instructional days, compared with 180 in most districts in the U.S.
That poses a couple of problems. As the article points out, the Obama administration has made having kids in school more hours a year, starting earlier, one of the hallmarks of its “education” policy. So here is his home state cutting back on the school year. But I don’t think the big issue is “education”. Here is the real problem:
"It's just not enough time for the kids to learn,'' said Valerie Sonoda, president of the Hawaii State Parent Teacher Student Association. "I'm getting hundreds of calls and emails. They all have the same underlying concern, and that is the educational hours of the kids.''
Riiiight. Maybe it is me being cynical, but I am thinking that the real problem is not as much education as it is supervision. What are working parents going to do when their kids are not being warehoused by the state on Fridays? I imagine that the outraged parents are more likely outraged by the inconvenience of having their kids home 17 days of the work week unexpectedly. If the real concern was education, it is easy enough for teachers to assign extra homework (since home in the evenings is where an awful lot of school takes place anyway) or even, GASP, some independent reading projects that require more than scribbling notes and regurgitating information. Oh no, this has nothing to do with education and everything to do with inconvenience.
This event is not isolated, but is the very real direction we are heading. It is really interesting in that it pits two groups against one another because of a violation of an unspoken but very real social contract: Schools will continue to suck money out of the community in return for warehousing kids for most of the work day so that both parents can work outside of the home. That is the deal and it has been in force for all of my life. That is being broken as schools, bloated with bureaucracy and overpaid staff, find that revenue is not keeping up with expenses. So in the balancing act between keeping staff employed and “education”, keeping staff employed wins out.
It should be interesting to see how this pans out. The recession we are in is exposing the funding issues in education, as public schools keep coming with their hands outstretched to ask for more and more money at the same time people are losing jobs and their homes are losing value. The old system where housing prices kept going up and therefore property taxes, the main driver in most states of education funding, also kept going up is clearly broken. Ask a homeowner in Michigan who has seen the real value of their home plummet with no corresponding drop in their property taxes or even in many cases an increase in their taxes. I wonder if you put it to a vote, lay off some staff or close school on Friday, how parents would vote? I would bet the “lay of staff” stance would win out.
As the economic world changes and America’s dominance diminishes we are simultaneously seeing a precipitous decline in the birth rate in America along with a rise in the number of kids in private schools, charter schools or homeschooled. If there 1 million kids homeschooled in America and you figure an average class size of 30 pupils per teacher, that works out to some 33,000 teachers who are not employed because of homeschoolers. Add to that the millions more that are in public and charter school and you can see why teachers unions are so incensed whenever anyone mentions schooling alternatives that don’t include union teachers. As the teachers unions get more desperate, expect them to push even harder to restrict home education and fight tooth and nail to shut down charter schools. Lest you get the impression that I think teachers unions have no purpose, let me quote a few more lines from the article:
The new contract, approved by 81% of voting teachers, stipulates 17 furlough Fridays during which schools will be closed, with the first happening Oct. 23. The teachers accepted a concurrent pay reduction of about 8%, but teacher vacation, nine paid holidays and six teacher planning days are left untouched.
The new agreement also guarantees no layoffs for two years and postpones the implementation of random drug testing for teachers.
Now there is a noble goal for the union, negotiating out random drug testing for teachers! See, teachers union do have a purpose, protecting teachers who use illegal drugs from detection.
Monday, October 19, 2009
New conversation in the blogosphere
First Things, an unabashedly Roman Catholic publication, has added a blog section for evangelicals, sort of an ongoing conversation like The Corner feature from National Review. First Things is one of the most intellectually challenging publications out there today and the list of folks writing in the new blog are an eclectic mix of Protestants, from Russell Moore and Justin Taylor to Joe Carter and Frank Turk (who I like even though he called me a "theological malcontent", a title I have come to embrace). Check it out here.
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Two resurrections?
Today our Bible study hour is looking at the passages in Revelation 20 that some premillenialists argue indicates a literal 1000 year reign of Christ on earth prior to the final Judgment. The key this morning is on the idea of two resurrections. Here are the passages in question:
Then I saw thrones, and seated on them were those to whom the authority to judge was committed. Also I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! Over such the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him for a thousand years. (Rev 20:4-6)
I am going to suggest that the 1000 years is not a literal thousand years and that in apocalyptic vision there are many things we don't and should't use a wooden literalism to interpret and that perhaps the first resurrection being spoken of here is the new birth, the regeneration of dead sinners into life by the power of the Spirit and the Word of God. We will see how that goes. I am not expecting to change a lot of minds but I am hoping to shake the tree a little bit so that some of my brothers might not take Scofield at his word about everything he wrote.
Then I saw thrones, and seated on them were those to whom the authority to judge was committed. Also I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! Over such the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him for a thousand years. (Rev 20:4-6)
I am going to suggest that the 1000 years is not a literal thousand years and that in apocalyptic vision there are many things we don't and should't use a wooden literalism to interpret and that perhaps the first resurrection being spoken of here is the new birth, the regeneration of dead sinners into life by the power of the Spirit and the Word of God. We will see how that goes. I am not expecting to change a lot of minds but I am hoping to shake the tree a little bit so that some of my brothers might not take Scofield at his word about everything he wrote.
The Senior Pastor
dy has (finally!) finished up a pretty exhaustive study of the concept of a human "senior pastor", looking at all sorts of angles from the Old Testament to Judaism, to the early century church to (of course) the New Testament. Like many others, he has found the evidence for the office of a human senior pastor to be flimsy at best. I would encourage you to check out the whole series. Start with the into here.
Friday, October 16, 2009
Nothing scarier that a Christian athlete!
A recent editorial in USA Today exposes the overwrought hand wringing that comes from the secular elites of the world when faced with a religious person who is actually serious and expressive about their faith. The article focuses on athletes and faith with one particular target. Tom Krattenmaker, writing for USA Today, runs out a thinly veiled hit piece called And I'd like to thank God Almighty
You can, and perhaps should, have a discussion about the outward religious expression in athletics. On the one hand, I find the over the top “I would like to thank God” a bit disingenuous from many athletes who don’t seem to thank God when they lose. On the other hand, there is a solid core of people who are genuine believers throughout the sports world, the guys who don’t generally run people over in their Bentley while drunk and high, who don’t organize dog fighting rings, who don’t get stupid drunk between baseball games and hit their wives. These people take their faith seriously and I would never ask them to not recognize and praise God, win or lose.
Underlying this conversation is a deeper issue Mr. Krattenmaker exhibits in his editorial. He doesn't so much have a problem with exhibitions of faith. He has a problem with Christianity. At least Christianity from Christians who take Christianity seriously. I would assume that he would have no problem with vague, fuzzy ecumenical Christianity that stands for nothing other than being nice to people. But woe to the athlete that dares say what is obvious: we can’t all be right. His particular target is an easy one, Tim Tebow, the homeschooled, prison ministering, Christ proclaiming missionary who also happens to be the most visible player in college football.
But there's more to his story. Tebow does his missionary trips to the Philippines under the auspices of his father's Bob Tebow Evangelistic Association. The Tebow organization espouses a far-right theology. Its bottom line: Only those who assent to its version of Christianity will avoid eternal punishment. The ministry boldly declares, "We reject the modern ecumenical movement."
Good for them. The modern ecumenical movement being referred to is not seeking Christian unity around the truth of the Gospel, it is seeking unity with almost anyone by watering down or denying the Gospel. I went to the beliefs section of the Bob Tebow Evangelistic Association and their statement of belief is pretty standard stuff. I might quibble with a watered down decisional regeneration position and their dispensationalism stance, but otherwise what they believe is what orthodox Christians have always believed. There is nothing new or scary here. Meanwhile, Bob Tebow's group runs an orphanage in the Phillipines that cares for around 50 orphaned children. I wonder what Tom Krattenmaker has done for orphans lately?
Again, the Bible teaches that anyone who does not have faith in Christ goes to hell. Jews, in spite of the horrible way they have been treated, do not get a free pass anymore than Muslims do.
The Tebow organization's literature estimates that 75% of the Philippines' inhabitants "have never once heard the Gospel of Jesus Christ." This in a country where more than 80% of the citizens identify themselves as Roman Catholic.
If Mr. Krattenmaker bothered to do any research, he would realize that this is the position of most of Protestant Christianity over the past five hundred years.
But there's a shadow side to this. If their take on God and truth and life is the only right one — which their creed boldly states — everyone else is wrong.
Not a mere abstraction, this exclusiveness sometimes morphs into a form of chauvinism and mistreatment of non-Christians. Witness the incident with the Washington Nationals baseball team in 2005, when the Christian chaplain was exposed as teaching that Jews go to hell. Then there was the New Mexico state football team, which was the target of a religious discrimination lawsuit in 2006 after two Muslim players reported being labeled "troublemakers" and were kicked off the team by their devoutly Christian coach. The case was settled out of court and the students transferred.
A “shadow side”? That is the reality of religion. By believing in belief system A you are implying that every other belief system is by default wrong. The major world faiths are inherently mutually exclusive. But Mr. Krattenmaker has a guaranteed way to get around that: consult a public opinion poll!
What this comes down to is a bigoted but completely expected attack by an unbeliever on Christians who have the temerity to actually believe what they say they believe, to be open in saying so and to reflect those beliefs in their actions. I don't think Tim Tebow is a saint even if he is a Heisman trophy winning, evangelizing, homeschooled, soon to be multimillionaire virgin. I do think that he is facing a tough road because the world loves to worship famous people but hates people who follow Christ. Tim Tebow is going to face a long, hard road. Being rich and famous doesn't make your life easier and that is infinitely more true for a believer. More than fansites, more than money or accolades, Tim Tebow needs prayer because he is going to be a target of small minded people like Tom Krattenmaker.
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Blog Contest
From Energion Publications:
I am working on my essay right now and I would encourage you to put one together. It is an interesting, challenging exercise and it really asks the important questions we need to be asking right now. Don’t be intimidated because I am entering the contest, there are prizes for second and third place.
Energion Publications will host a blogging/essay contest. Entries are open immediately and will close November 2, 2009 when Dr. David Alan Black’s new book Christian Archy is released. Judging will take place during the first week of November, and winners will be announced by November 16.
To enter, simply write an essay in answer to the question: What should a congregation following Jesus Christ in ministry look like?
If you are a blogger, post the essay on your blog and link back to this post, then also e-mail pubs@energion.com just to make sure. We will add your post to the list of those participating. If you are not a blogger, e-mail your essay in either Word document or Open Document Text (OpenOffice) format to pubs@energion.com and indicate in the e-mail that you are entering the 21st century church contest.
Entries will be judged in the following areas, with each area receiving a score of from one to ten:
- Biblically rooted
- Historically aware
- Complete
- Clear and Concise
- Overall impression, including appearance, discussion generated, and anything one of the judges wants to include
Note that 1 & 2 and 3 & 4 may conflict in the approach of some people. That is why there will be three judges, who come from different theological traditions:
Alan Knox (The Assembling of the Church), a doctoral candidate at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary
Geoffrey Lentz (GeoffreyLentz.com), associate pastor of First United Methodist Church in Pensacola, FL, doctoral student at Drew University, and author of The Gospel According to Saint Luke: A Participatory Study Guide.
Elgin Hushbeck, Jr., author of Evidence for the Bible, Christianity and Secularism, and Preserving Democracy, (all from Energion Publications), and owner of Aletheia Consulting, Inc. Elgin is a member of a Christian Reformed congregation.
Each judge will rate the entries independently. One of our copy editors will also rate the essays, but that rating will only be used to break a tie. Judges will not consider whether or not you use or quote from Energion Publications products or web sites in your post.
I am working on my essay right now and I would encourage you to put one together. It is an interesting, challenging exercise and it really asks the important questions we need to be asking right now. Don’t be intimidated because I am entering the contest, there are prizes for second and third place.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Burning Bibles, that will show 'em!
Yikes, I am going to just reprint this. I am not even sure what to say here:
CANTON, N.C. – A North Carolina pastor says his church plans to burn Bibles and books by Christian authors on Halloween to light a fire under true believers.
Pastor Marc Grizzard told Asheville TV station WLOS that the King James version of the Bible is the only one his small western North Carolina church follows. He says all other versions, such as the Living Bible, are "satanic" and "perversions" of God's word.
On Halloween night, Grizzard and the 14 members of the Amazing Grace Baptist Church also will burn music and books by Christian authors, such as Billy Graham and Rick Warren.
Telephone calls to the Amazing Grace Baptist Church and Grizzard's home were not immediately returned Wednesday.
Ugh. Their webpage is...different.
CANTON, N.C. – A North Carolina pastor says his church plans to burn Bibles and books by Christian authors on Halloween to light a fire under true believers.
Pastor Marc Grizzard told Asheville TV station WLOS that the King James version of the Bible is the only one his small western North Carolina church follows. He says all other versions, such as the Living Bible, are "satanic" and "perversions" of God's word.
On Halloween night, Grizzard and the 14 members of the Amazing Grace Baptist Church also will burn music and books by Christian authors, such as Billy Graham and Rick Warren.
Telephone calls to the Amazing Grace Baptist Church and Grizzard's home were not immediately returned Wednesday.
Ugh. Their webpage is...different.
Glocks in flocks?
I am as conservative as anyone I know. I love theology and the church. I am a lifelong gun nut. But even I found this a bit...off.
Kentucky pastor drops flock for his Glock
he Kentucky pastor who drew notice earlier this year for hosting a God-and-guns event at his church is giving up his flock for his Glock.
Pastor Ken Pagano resigned his post last month at the New Bethel Church in Louisville, Ky., after nearly 30 years in the ministry, saying he wants to focus on Second Amendment and church-security issues.
"Thirty years was a good, long run, but it's time for a change," Mr. Pagano said in an interview with The Washington Times. "If I can write my own ticket, I want to get involved more in Second Amendment issues as they affect the church, and I can do more from outside the pulpit than from behind it."
----
Mr. Pagano said he was considering a career change even before the event, but the ripple effect led him to Rabbi Gary Moskowitz of New York, who has long worked with synagogues on protection from terrorist threats.
Mr. Pagano and Mr. Moskowitz have since teamed up to form the International Security Coalition of Clergy, an organization dedicated to "making the vulnerable less vulnerable," according to their mission statement.
----
Mr. Pagano advocates a security team of five church members who have at least 40 hours of training in firearms and other tactics. The advantage of using church members instead of a hired guard is that they're better able to separate the regular attendees from the first-time visitors.
The idea is self-defense, not aggression, Mr. Moskowitz said.
"I'm not taking the position that everyone should have a gun. I'm taking the position that every house of worship or any other high-visibility target should have a person or persons trained in the use of firearms," the rabbi said.
I found this part especially hard to swallow....
What some people don't realize is that a pastor isn't a "sanctified sheep," Mr. Pagano said, but a shepherd, the protector of the flock. That includes the physical safety of the parishioners within the church building.
"People have this idea that Christians have to turn the other cheek," Mr. Pagano said. "That's true, but I don't think there's anything in the Old or New Testament that requires them to roll over and die if someone attacks them or their family."
Right out of the gate I think he may be a bit off target (get it, off target! Ha!) regarding the purpose of a pastor. I don't recall "Being a good shot" as a quality we should seek in an elder and I am pretty sure that "protecting the flock" applies to false teachers.
What do you think? Should we put on the whole armor of God, grab the sword of the Lord and lock and load before we gather with God's people?
Kentucky pastor drops flock for his Glock
he Kentucky pastor who drew notice earlier this year for hosting a God-and-guns event at his church is giving up his flock for his Glock.
Pastor Ken Pagano resigned his post last month at the New Bethel Church in Louisville, Ky., after nearly 30 years in the ministry, saying he wants to focus on Second Amendment and church-security issues.
"Thirty years was a good, long run, but it's time for a change," Mr. Pagano said in an interview with The Washington Times. "If I can write my own ticket, I want to get involved more in Second Amendment issues as they affect the church, and I can do more from outside the pulpit than from behind it."
----
Mr. Pagano said he was considering a career change even before the event, but the ripple effect led him to Rabbi Gary Moskowitz of New York, who has long worked with synagogues on protection from terrorist threats.
Mr. Pagano and Mr. Moskowitz have since teamed up to form the International Security Coalition of Clergy, an organization dedicated to "making the vulnerable less vulnerable," according to their mission statement.
----
Mr. Pagano advocates a security team of five church members who have at least 40 hours of training in firearms and other tactics. The advantage of using church members instead of a hired guard is that they're better able to separate the regular attendees from the first-time visitors.
The idea is self-defense, not aggression, Mr. Moskowitz said.
"I'm not taking the position that everyone should have a gun. I'm taking the position that every house of worship or any other high-visibility target should have a person or persons trained in the use of firearms," the rabbi said.
I found this part especially hard to swallow....
What some people don't realize is that a pastor isn't a "sanctified sheep," Mr. Pagano said, but a shepherd, the protector of the flock. That includes the physical safety of the parishioners within the church building.
"People have this idea that Christians have to turn the other cheek," Mr. Pagano said. "That's true, but I don't think there's anything in the Old or New Testament that requires them to roll over and die if someone attacks them or their family."
Right out of the gate I think he may be a bit off target (get it, off target! Ha!) regarding the purpose of a pastor. I don't recall "Being a good shot" as a quality we should seek in an elder and I am pretty sure that "protecting the flock" applies to false teachers.
What do you think? Should we put on the whole armor of God, grab the sword of the Lord and lock and load before we gather with God's people?
Monday, October 12, 2009
Worthy of double honor
Let the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in preaching and teaching. For the Scripture says, "You shall not muzzle an ox when it treads out the grain," and, "The laborer deserves his wages." (1Ti 5:17-18)
I wonder if this is what Paul meant?
Graham's 2 CEO posts boost pay, draw critics
Concerns about his rising financial compensation during tough economic times have prompted evangelist Franklin Graham to temporarily give up future contributions to his retirement plans at the two charities he leads.
As president of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association and Samaritan's Purse, he receives two full-time salaries and two retirement packages. Last year, his total compensation from the two Christian ministries was $1.2 million.
The size of Graham's total 2008 compensation - $535,000 from Samaritan's Purse and $669,000 from Charlotte-based BGEA - drew questions from nonprofit experts interviewed by the Observer. They doubted that one person - even the energetic, globe-trotting Graham - can do two full-time jobs leading organizations that employ hundreds and spend hundreds of millions around the world.
I wonder if this is what Paul meant?
Graham's 2 CEO posts boost pay, draw critics
Concerns about his rising financial compensation during tough economic times have prompted evangelist Franklin Graham to temporarily give up future contributions to his retirement plans at the two charities he leads.
As president of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association and Samaritan's Purse, he receives two full-time salaries and two retirement packages. Last year, his total compensation from the two Christian ministries was $1.2 million.
The size of Graham's total 2008 compensation - $535,000 from Samaritan's Purse and $669,000 from Charlotte-based BGEA - drew questions from nonprofit experts interviewed by the Observer. They doubted that one person - even the energetic, globe-trotting Graham - can do two full-time jobs leading organizations that employ hundreds and spend hundreds of millions around the world.
Does the form matter?
Check out this article in the Wall Street Journal about churches abandoning the common cup and even getting rid of the ritualistic handshakes because of swine flu fears (the handshake is replaced by an “elbow bump”?!) in the Lord’s Supper. Especially in the germaphobic West, the idea of sharing a cup of wine with a bunch of other people is already icky. Add to that fears of the H1N1 flu and you have a recipe for people panicking. Really, does anyone else think that this obsession with sanitizing everything, vaccinating for everything, taking antibiotics and other medicine for every sniffle, etc. all make us eventually at risk for an even worse disease? It is OK for little kids to get dirty and have the occasional runny nose with pumping them full of zithromax and dousing them in hand sanitizer. But I digress…
The question this article raised for me was: does it matter? More specifically, does the form of the Lord’s Supper matter? Is a whole loaf and a common cup “better” than a cracker and a tiny cup? Is there something inherently better about unleavened bread versus regular bread or in wine versus grape juice? This is an area where I have come to a radically different view than I used to have. I get that we want to be as close to the original as possible but even in the most liturgical of churches the Lord’s Supper is little more than a ritual. Where is the pre-meal footwashing? The reclining around a table? The loving fellowship. How can we have a grim agape feast? Doesn’t that seem to be contradictory? We worry about the incantation of certain words but seem to have lost the purpose of the Supper in the first place. We have clung to our idea of being faithful to the form but have done so at the expense of the meaning and purpose.
I tend to think we spend too much time worrying about the form of the ritual and not enough enjoying the Supper for what is was intended, i.e. a joy filled fellowship meal where the people of God gathered to break bread and have a meal with one another. Everyone is so uptight about the Supper that it becomes more of a chore and less of a joyous occasion. I gave taken the Supper in a number of churches and there is lots of solemnity but not much joy. What kind of fellowship is there in a bunch of people sitting rigidly in their pews, looking straight ahead and waiting for a plate to get passed to them in silence? Heaven forbid someone crack a smile. You would think we were passing around plates of broken glass and cups of castor oil.
Next time you celebrate the Supper at church, show some joy. We are redeemed from an eternal hell and raised to newness of life in Christ. Rejoice in that if you are going to rejoice in anything! Smile at your wife who will share eternity with as your sister in eternal fellowship with the Son. You can have the perfect liturgy and just the right elements and not have a Biblical celebration of the Lord’s Supper. We are joined together in a celebration of our common salvation in Christ, not sentenced to a lifetime of nibbling bread and chugging little glasses of juice. You can be solemn and exhibit the proper gravity without looking like you are sitting through an 8 AM Econ class.
Try joy on, you might like it!
The question this article raised for me was: does it matter? More specifically, does the form of the Lord’s Supper matter? Is a whole loaf and a common cup “better” than a cracker and a tiny cup? Is there something inherently better about unleavened bread versus regular bread or in wine versus grape juice? This is an area where I have come to a radically different view than I used to have. I get that we want to be as close to the original as possible but even in the most liturgical of churches the Lord’s Supper is little more than a ritual. Where is the pre-meal footwashing? The reclining around a table? The loving fellowship. How can we have a grim agape feast? Doesn’t that seem to be contradictory? We worry about the incantation of certain words but seem to have lost the purpose of the Supper in the first place. We have clung to our idea of being faithful to the form but have done so at the expense of the meaning and purpose.
I tend to think we spend too much time worrying about the form of the ritual and not enough enjoying the Supper for what is was intended, i.e. a joy filled fellowship meal where the people of God gathered to break bread and have a meal with one another. Everyone is so uptight about the Supper that it becomes more of a chore and less of a joyous occasion. I gave taken the Supper in a number of churches and there is lots of solemnity but not much joy. What kind of fellowship is there in a bunch of people sitting rigidly in their pews, looking straight ahead and waiting for a plate to get passed to them in silence? Heaven forbid someone crack a smile. You would think we were passing around plates of broken glass and cups of castor oil.
Next time you celebrate the Supper at church, show some joy. We are redeemed from an eternal hell and raised to newness of life in Christ. Rejoice in that if you are going to rejoice in anything! Smile at your wife who will share eternity with as your sister in eternal fellowship with the Son. You can have the perfect liturgy and just the right elements and not have a Biblical celebration of the Lord’s Supper. We are joined together in a celebration of our common salvation in Christ, not sentenced to a lifetime of nibbling bread and chugging little glasses of juice. You can be solemn and exhibit the proper gravity without looking like you are sitting through an 8 AM Econ class.
Try joy on, you might like it!
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