God’s Word Is Central
The article “New Denominations” [Mar. 11] was interesting and informative. The strength of every ministry I am familiar with that is growing and alive in Christ has been the centrality of the Word of God. Faithful, expositional, systematic teaching of God’s Word has produced great health and great results.
If more pastors taught the Word, instead of giving ill-prepared book-of-the month reports, perhaps more fellowships would be vital and growing.
David Rosales, Pastor
Calvary Chapel
Ontario, Calif.
In spite of mumblings to the contrary, success in church work and the status of pastors is measured almost exclusively by Sunday morning body counts. (Your own articles reinforce this. They say hardly a word about the spirituality of churches but cite all sorts of statistics about numerical growth and decline.) Ambitious pastors and would-be denominational leaders almost invariably target upwardly mobile yuppies. The three things almost all religiously inclined, upwardly mobile yuppies want are (1) an uplifting, contemporary, and emotionally satisfying worship experience; (2) a social context filled with people like themselves with whom they can form friendships, and (3) a program that will occupy and benefit their children and hopefully impart some of their own values. Furthermore, they want these things with minimal demands or commitments. Successful church leaders have found that if they provide these three things and find out how to market them, they will have growing and hence “successful” churches.
Ronald L. Klaus
Philadelphia, Pa.
I believe many long-time evangelicals are becoming disillusioned by the simplistic theology and political conservatism rising to the fore in their congregations. My wife and I recently left the church of our youth and began attending a “liberal” United Methodist Church. We’re very happy in our new church and, quite frankly, consider the tolerance, openness, and social concern we find there as a breath of fresh air. The adherence to the Christian calendar has given us a newfound understanding of our heritage.
Michael R. Norlen
Olathe, Kan.
We mainliners are weary of whatever-is-politically-current sermons and the “Mark was written first, etc., etc.” approach to Bible study. That is why some of us wander around from church to church seeking soul food with or without baptism.
Alma Blanton
Torrance, Calif.
The authors leave room for speculation on whether Calvary Chapel, Vineyard Fellowship, and Church on the Rock will become viable denominations in the future, but give more credibility to these movements than they have earned. The most far-fetched comparison comes when John Wimber is compared to John Wesley and Larry Lea is compared to (please!) Martin Luther. It will take more than the media-produced aura of personality that Wimber and Lea depend on to lead their movements to bring either into the same dynamic that surrounds the work of Wesley and Luther.
Lee Saunders
Thayer, Mo.
You may have misled your readers in the article “The New Denominations” in the graph labeled “Conservative denominations and movements”; among these you have listed Mormons and Jehovah’s Witnesses. I hope CT is not suggesting these two “denominations” are Christian.
William Beyer
Baraboo, Wis.
Our chart lumped Mormons and Jehovah’s Witnesses with Southern Baptists for sociological, not theological reasons. Students of church growth recognize that these groups share a pattern of resisting cultural change (the breakdown of the two-parent family, for example) and of adhering to an authority of “supernatural” origin. The declining denominations, which we labeled “Liberal,” adapt more quickly to social change, and (sadly) frequently fail to measure social forces against a transcendent authority.—Eds.
Faith without commitment
Having pastored for ten years, I say “amen” to Robert Patterson’s “In Search of the Visible Church” [Mar. 11]. Too many want to be Christians without commitment to the local church and disciples without the discipline of the local church.
Glenn R. Felty
West Chicago, Ill.
Patterson assumes the twentieth-century denominational church is the body of Christ. A recent survey by Search Institute indicates that 68 percent of denominational Protestants have a “faith” that is mainly knowledge of Christian concepts. Most never spend any personal time helping the poor, sick, or suffering. My opinion is that this is not “faith,” it is hypocrisy.
Nan Van Andel
Ada, Mich.
The article reminded me of the “half-covenanters” in early colonial New England churches. “Religious” people seem quick to receive the privileges to be had with associating with the body of Christ while standing at arm’s length from the corresponding responsibilities. Scripture is clear: You can’t have one without the other!
Michael Madeleine
Mt. Clemens, Mich.
Patterson’s article is insightful and needed. The connection between evangelicals’ devaluing of the visible church and their unbiblical sidestepping of the sacraments is a message that especially needs to be heard and heeded.
Cynthia Erlandson
Ontario, Calif.
The reason parishioners are looking for the “best spiritual deal in town” is because preachers serve up a Scripture verse with a few disconnected stories and wonder why people don’t come back Sunday after Sunday. The folk go from church to church looking for spiritual food because they are getting a bare bone with no meat on it. It is not always convenient to run around from church to church, but it is a necessity to keep from starving to death.
Muriel Clement
Boston, Mass.
If ministers are going to develop a thorough grasp of the doctrine of the church it will come from our Christian colleges and seminaries. Do they have the courage of conviction to stress such things and cut their own throats?
Rev. Richard D. Chaffee
Marietta, N.Y.
Selective justice
J. Dudley Woodberry [“Our Turn in Babylon,” Guest Editorial, March 11] criticizes the U.S. government for its “selective sense of justice” in the Gulf War since it has not acted “similarly to protect other peoples when oil has not been involved.” Does he really mean the United States should attempt to right every wrong in the world? Such a stance would seem in clear conflict with another of his own principles: humility. In point of fact, Iraq’s attack on peace and justice, backed by a huge army and a growing arsenal of weapons of mass destruction, was extraordinary.
As for oil, no one should discount its significance to economic justice—not unless he is prepared to go without heat, transportation, and medicine. An oil market controlled by a Saddam Hussein is a terrible thought, not least in its impact on precarious economies and lives in underdeveloped nations.
John P. Smith
Rochester, Minn,
If Woodberry is looking for an opportunity to link the Gulf War with peace in the Middle East, why look beyond Iraq? What about the Kurds—a non-Arab people who have been seeking independence and autonomy for many years? There are 15 million Kurds—more than four times as many Palestinians—who live in the northern part of Iraq and Iran. Where is the cry for justice among Christian Arabists for these people? Why not link the Gulf War with Kurdish independence? Interestingly, the PLO—the recognized representatives of the Palestinian cause—does not support a Kurdish homeland. In fact, the PLO has supported Iraqi repression against the Kurds.
Louis Lapides, Pastor/Teacher
Beth Ariel Fellowship
Sherman Oaks, Calif.
The editorial has me wondering what happened to “turn the other cheek” and “if someone wants your coat, give him your cloak as well”?
Robert Grunden
Key West, Fla.
Changes at USCWM
Don Richardson contends “that without major changes in the structure … of the U.S. Center for World Mission, its future contribution to world missions is in jeopardy” [News, Mar. 11]. The only “major change” I’m aware of occured when Richardson and three other disaffected board members were asked to resign. A colleague on the board made the proposal in the interest of peace and unity, and also to offer opportunity for a new board acceptable to the staff.
Ralph Winter and team players who have held doggedly to the pristine focus of 15 years ago are now unshackled to pursue a disciplined missionary fellowship. Their goal remains the same as it was at its inception in 1976—to evangelize unreached ethno-linguistic groups on the planet.
Matthew J. Welde, General Director
Presbyterian Center for Mission Studies
Spring City, Pa.
The situation at the center is nothing so very new. Winter is simply facing the dilemma a number of Christian leaders faced, such as Hudson Taylor, William Carey, and St. Francis of Assisi—founders of organizations whose authority was severely questioned. Satan uses similar tactics against churches across America. The Enemy has always tried to quench any individual or organization that is being used by God; we shouldn’t be so surprised about it that we treat it as news.
Deborah J. Conklin
Wonder Lake, Ill.
More on women presbyters
I congratulate your courage in printing “Let’s Stop Making Women Presbyters” by J. I. Packer [Feb. 11]. For some time I felt CT had been unfair to those of us who did not change our position regarding women in ministry and leadership after CT made the change a decade ago. Thank you for this small step in restoring the balance with at least one article from the other side.
Dr. Nelson J. Annan
North Palm Beach, Fla.
In response to our esteemed brother, J. I. Packer, I affirm his right to a strong conviction, but I cannot endorse the attempts to support this conviction by the manner in which he exegetes the Scriptures he uses. Perhaps I, as a pacifist, should applaud his modeling male roles in church leadership on Jesus’ maleness, because Jesus also modeled pacifism, and such literalism will lead my brother to become a pacifist.
But in exegeting the Word, let us be as true to context as possible. This includes discernment between the prescriptive and the descriptive aspects of a passage. In the 1 Timothy 2:12–14 passage, the emphasis on “learn,” “modesty,” and “not usurp authority” are prescriptive. The reference to Adam and Eve is descriptive and should not be read otherwise.
Let us as men dare to be men of equality, and find our maleness fulfilled not in displacing women but in elevating women as Christ did, to the equality that maximizes the potential of each. There is room in the kingdom for more creative work by each, and no place for us to limit one another in struggles for dominance.
Myron S. Augsburger
Washington, D.C.
Packer’s article is a well-written but misguided argument. While “emphatically for women’s ministry,” he yet relegates them to working with children, women, or in the home. What ministry then is he for? A subordinate and ‘safe’ one, it seems. Is this what he means by “maternal … in flavor?”
Rev. David J. Graham, B.SC., B.D.
Glasgow Bible College
Glasgow, Scotland
For as long as I can remember, we’ve played in a softball league where just about every team had Baptist, Bible, or Evangelical in its name. This year we joined an ecumenical league, and I think we made a big mistake. Disparate church traditions and softball just don’t mix.
It’s not so much a matter of competition. Most of these, um, different churches are pushovers. Take the Mennonites, for example—always an easy victory. On principle, they refuse to play offense. They even seem to enjoy getting trounced.
I can’t say the same for the team from Calvary Spirit-filled Holy Ghost Power Temple. Their manager claims victory in each pregame prayer, which always makes us feel we have to lose to keep their faith strong.
Sometimes, hermeneutics gets in the way. When First Baptist played All Souls Episcopal, the game was delayed for an hour while they debated whether or not 1 Timothy 2:11 prohibited All Souls from using a lady pitcher—a tactical error tor the Baptists. They won the argument but lost the game, thanks to All Souls’ manly pitcher who threw a shutout.
The Methodists are actually quite fun to play against. They let everyone play, regardless of age, sex, creed, or ability. And if disputes arise over rules, we always win. They’ll believe anything.
All in all, though, I think we’ll go back to our all-Calvinist league next year. It’s nice to walk off the field with opponents who share our belief that the outcome had more to do with election than execution.
EUTYCHUS
