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"Letter Page"
Letters On Friday's Commentary
April 2008
Comments on Friday’s Web
cast. (scriptures used are from KJV of the bible)
1 Peter
3:15 But sanctify the Lord
God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to
every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you
with meekness and fear:
Glancing
through the website, I was able to catch the Friday broadcast on
Saturday morning in sunny Florida. It was no surprise to me
upon hearing Sister Leverene Greenwood’s truthful statements
about Noel Jones and his so called City of Refuge. This is a
true representation of the state of the church in the United
States today. With all the shenanigans, sexual immorality, and
pimping, it’s no wonder the churches in the United States as a
joke to this dying world (2 Peter 2:1-2) I am thankful to
Christ that you asked us to go back a listen to this broadcast.
There are many questions pondering through the mind, not about
the validity of Ms. Greenwood’s personal accounts with Noel, but
the error that caused her, and others to stay so many years
under Noel Jones (I do not call him bishop). There are some
questions that the scripture can answer in this whole ordeal:
Can err of females being preachers cause a woman to not obey the
truth of God’s Word? Is this City of Refuge a church and
why/why not? Where were the strong men? Can a person lose an
anointing? Could all this be true? What does all this have to
do with me as a Christian?
Error in females
being in authority.
The biblical
account of women being called to minister/preach is not recorded
in the blessed canon. This error alone can cause men and women
to be blinded from the fact that they are being pimped. Let’s
start in Genesis 3:
Genesis 3:1-8
Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field
which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea,
hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?
And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of
the trees of the garden: But of the fruit of the tree which is
in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of
it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the serpent said
unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: For God doth know that
in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and
ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. And when the woman
saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to
the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of
the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband
with her; and he did eat. And the eyes of them both were
opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig
leaves together, and made themselves aprons. And they heard the
voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the
day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of
the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden.
Here we see the woman being deceived by the serpent. The
interesting note in the context of this passage is the woman
gives the fruit to the man to eat of the tree in the midst of
the garden. Here the woman takes an authoritative role that is
in clear violation of what God had given to Adam. We see the
Lord Almighty mentioning of this error in the beginning of verse
17.
Adam listened to the voice of his wife, and not the voice of the
Lord. The woman took authority when Adam should have spoken up
against this error. Instead, the woman gave the fruit to Adam,
and the woman did not at all see that she had been deceived
early by the serpent. So is the case for female ministers.
They have not been given the authority to usurp over man, and
like the woman in Genesis 3, miss all of the deception coming
there way.
Sister Leverene stated several times that she noticed strange
things during the 20 some years the mess was going on. Why did
she not leave at the first sight of deception? Why didn’t she
get heard by the snake (Noel Jones) when she spoke up for
righteousness? Could it be as the scriptures state, she is in
error usurping authority over men by preaching. According to
Genesis 3,
this is so. Also I must check out
2 Corinthians 11:3 and 1 Timothy 2:13-14
to even bring more confirmation from the biblical standpoint.
Also, sister Leverene made a comment about God speaking to her
through the scripture of Acts 22:18.
Her description and explanation sounded really valid, but err
always reveals its ugly head. She stated “she saw the scripture
as a direct command to her to leave!” She saw? Let’s check out
2 Timothy 3:16:
2Timothy 3:16 All scripture is
given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for
reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:
Scripture
interprets scripture. The Word of God speaks for Himself, not
what it says to us. Could that be why she missed all the
obvious signs to leave this debauched circus called the City of
Refuge? When we want to see the scripture the way we desire, it
can lead us to err. I don’t say this because I know it all. I
don’t know a thing, I’ve done it myself and said it was Christ
“showing me.” Showing me what? Exactly!, this is why we must
obey the scriptures and not what we think God Almighty is
saying? O how sweet is that of
Romans 3:11.
Is this place a
church?
One striking
thing about this interview was the mentioning of Noel not
wanting to do communion. How can this be the church of God if
the so called bishop is not even willing to honor the
remembrance of our Lord’s sacrifice on the cross? How can you
even been a Christian and not speak on such things. Again, the
Holy Scriptures speak to why:
2Peter 2:1
But there were false prophets
also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers
among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even
denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves
swift destruction.
This pimp Jones, basically is denying the Lord. Flat out no
getting around it. To not even desire to have communion is
clearly denying the Lord Jesus Christ. The communion is what we
as Christians are to remember that Jesus Christ blood was shed
for our sins:
Matthew
26:26-28 And as they were
eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave
it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body. And
he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying,
Drink ye all of it; For this is my blood of the new testament,
which is shed for many for the remission of sins.
1
Corinthians 11:23-32 For I
have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you,
That the Lord Jesus the same night in which he was betrayed took
bread: And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said,
Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in
remembrance of me. After the same manner also he took the cup,
when he had supped, saying, This cup is the new testament in my
blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me.
For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do
shew the Lord's death till he come. Wherefore whosoever shall
eat this bread, and drink this cup of the Lord, unworthily,
shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. But let a man
examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of
that cup. For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and
drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord's body.
For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many
sleep. For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged.
But when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord, that we
should not be condemned with the world.
Where are the strong
Godly men?
Other factors that are not shocking are the silhouette of Noel
Jones, the man made doctrine of, “you can do anything while
you’re saved”, and the fact the elders did not do anything to
remove Noel, shows this place of foolishness is not a church.
Out of those factors I’ve mentioned, the most disturbing one was
the last. When you don’t have Godly elders (or I will say men)
stand up and contend for the faith (Jude
1:3-4), there is no church that can
stand. Looking at the scriptures, why would Paul admonish his
son in the faith, Timothy, to commit the things he heard of Paul
to faithful men (2 Timothy 2:2).
Or why would Paul say for Timothy to rebuke them that sin openly
(1 Timothy 5:20),
so that others may fear? Because when a Godly man stands up, it
makes it difficult for us to run into error.
My heart was
broken to hear you ask Ms.Greenwood about the elder who was
crying because of the foolishness. Actually several times in
the webcast, I heard questions asked about why the men did not
do anything. It saddens us younger men to see such disgrace
with men. As a black male, there is a longing to see a Godly
man stand up and take the responsibility as leader. I would
become angry at my father when he would not speak out about the
wrong my mother was doing. He would sit there and say absolutely
nothing, just as the men of the City of Refuge. That’s great
that they got out of City of Refuge, but why did they not speak
out as men of God!
And he said unto me, Son of man,
stand upon thy feet, and I will speak unto thee. And the spirit
entered into me when he spake unto me, and set me upon my feet,
that I heard him that spake unto me. And he said unto me, Son of
man, I send thee to the children of Israel, to a rebellious
nation that hath rebelled against me: they and their fathers
have transgressed against me, even unto this very day. For they
are impudent children and stiffhearted. I do send thee unto
them; and thou shalt say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD.
And they, whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear,
(for they are a rebellious house,) yet shall know that there
hath been a prophet among them. And thou, son of man, be not
afraid of them, neither be afraid of their words, though briers
and thorns be with thee, and thou dost dwell among scorpions: be
not afraid of their words, nor be dismayed at their looks,
though they be a rebellious house. And thou shalt speak my
words unto them, whether they will hear, or whether they will
forbear: for they are most rebellious. But thou, son of man,
hear what I say unto thee; Be not thou rebellious like that
rebellious house: open thy mouth, and eat that I give thee. And
when I looked, behold, an hand was sent unto me; and, lo, a roll
of a book was therein; And he spread it before me; and it was
written within and without: and there was written therein
lamentations, and mourning, and woe. (Ezekiel 2:1-10)
This is a
great scripture to see why a man of God should take the
responsibility of standing up for the truth of Christ. In the
context of Ezekiel, God is commissioning Ezekiel to a
rebellious children of Israel. So, he is called to a people
that are acting a mess, yet the Lord affirms Ezekiel not to be
afraid but to fulfill the mission of God. Now reading the rest
of the chapters of Ezekiel, do we not see him obeying the Lord,
not being a sissy in confronting that evil house in Israel.
Why should men
of God stand up? Simple, verse 8
tells us why, to not speak up as a
man is to rebel against the Lord. Ezekiel is called to open his
mouth and eat what the Lord was to given him. Heading down to
verse 10
we see that this man of God ate words of
lamentation, mourning and woe. Not such a good thing to tell
the people huh? Neither would it feel good for the men of City
of Refuge to stand up and speak what the scripture says against
Noel Jones.
The
responsibility of being a man of God is heavy duty. Glory to
God, He made it that way (Genesis 2). Looking at
1 Timothy 3,
the qualifications of being a bishop or a deacon involve heavy
responsibility. Is that why the men will not stand up? Is that
why they are afraid? Then females sometimes feel they can jump
in since then male is not standing up for righteousness and
truth. This is error:
As for my people, children are
their oppressors, and women rule over them. O my people, they
which lead thee cause thee to err, and destroy the way of thy
paths. (Isaiah 3:12)
God is not
pleased with the error of men not standing up. So where are the
Godly men? They are out there, and they are standing up, just
apparently not in the building of the City of Refuge.
Can a person lose an
anointing?
Upon hearing this question, the mind quickly answers, “no a man
of God cannot lose an unction of the Holy Spirit?” But the real
question should be this: What is anointed?” How should we
define that what Laverne sees as being anointed? Well let’s
look at Galatians 5!
But
the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering,
gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such
there is no law. And they that are Christ's have crucified the
flesh with the affections and lusts. If we live in the Spirit,
let us also walk in the Spirit. Let us not be desirous of vain
glory, provoking one another, envying one another.
(Galatians 5:22-26)
Here we have a
clear definition of what is the fruit of the Holy Ghost. Now if
Noel Jones was like this before, why would he all of a sudden
turn into a mad man? Well sister Laverne stated that he would
preach the gospel until they had to tell him to stop. Why would
you want to stop an anointed man from preaching the Gospel? She
also mentioned that people were getting saved by the numbers, so
what is the proof that they know these people were saved? Did
they show the fruit described in Galatians 5?
This is what
takes place when the true Gospel is being preached:
And they
continued stedfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship,
and in breaking of bread, and in prayers. And fear came upon
every soul: and many wonders and signs were done by the
apostles. And all that believed were together, and had all
things common; And sold their possessions and goods, and parted
them to all men, as every man had need. And they, continuing
daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from
house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness
of heart, Praising God, and having favour with all the people.
And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.
(Acts 2:42-47)
Can you see
the fruit of the Spirit? Yes, and it lines up well with
Galatians 5. But what was really taking place with this so
called anointing that Noel Jones had? Quite simple and the
lovely Word of God speaks of it.
For such are false apostles,
deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of
Christ. And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an
angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers
also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end
shall be according to their works. (2 Corinthians
11:13-15)
See what
appeared to be an anointing was just a flicker, it was nothing
but a lie. Of course that is what is taking place in the
churches of America. These pimps appear to be so awesome in the
Word, but it’s not real Light. O, I have had them prophecy many
lies over my life that sounded like they were anointed only to
watch the same pimp try and hit on my own wife! Yeah, a snake
is a snake from the beginning.
Could all this be true
and what does this mean to you?
I decided to
address these last two questions together. Yes, all this is
true. What Laverne Greenwood said was no lie. This mess is
happening in churches all around the country. The most
important thing is that what does this mean for me as a follower
of the Lord Jesus Christ? Well, I ponder through my mind, and
examine my motives. Am I doing what God has called me to do?
Am I being obedient to the scripture? I must look at myself and
began to examine my walk with Christ by the Holy Bible. There
is a responsibility for me as a 30 year old man and father of
soon to be three boys, to speak out against unrighteousness in
where God calls me and to raise my boys to be men of God. I,
through Christ Jesus alone, must strive not to fade away or
detract from Philippians 3:14.
Plain and simple, do what God has called you to do, and don’t
whine about it!
I am a little
behind with this, but I am interested in learning from the Word
of God. Hopefully I can catch up to Tuesday’s broadcast. Thank
God for the help you have given PJ. In Christ alone, Karsten
Miller Now I want to
post another letter received also this week from a female that
heard the interview. . . Hold On Now, This letter is from
a female!!!
Hey Pastor John,
i just listened to both the Fri web cast interview & Sun web
cast. Wow!!!
Yeah, you keep
working. You are an excellent interviewer - you say a lot
without saying anything.
Can a man who has been anointed lose his anointing?
I believe Ms. Laverne stated Noel Jones was once anointed. Well
that leads me directly to answer the question with a question.
For me that is one of those church folk saying "anointed."
After hearing it being mentioned a few times speaking about a
spiritual gain &/or loss - I had to ask myself do I understand
what is being said when someone is "anointed." I did a cursory
bible study on the word and came across
2 Cor 1:21-22, as you know
I am no theologian but when I read this scripture I would have
to answer the question,
No I do not believe if a man is
anointed by God does he lose the anointing. It
appears to me that when the scripture says "he has set his seal
of ownership" - we are assured this is a seal of promise and He
keeps his promises. I believe from my infinitesimal brain that
if one can lose the anointing given to them by God - then
certainly one can lose their salvation. Am I making
the wrong leap? Wouldn't an "anointing" be part of the
assurance for the perseverance of the saints? I believe
spiritual gifts are given to us for the edifying of the saints
for the building of the kingdom - so, with that in mind if
Christ has given us a gift to build his kingdom and he then
decides to remove that gift from us then we will be removed from
this world. Does that make any sense? I see it like this.
Christ has given you a gift of preaching/teaching when you no
longer have the gift of teaching/preaching he will call you from
the earthly realm to the heavenly kingdom.
Maybe I am
leaping from one bad Lilly pad to another bad Lilly pad.
So anointed
today, anointing lost tomorrow, regained again - that sounds
like something from Bewitched. Remember when Samantha's
mother. If today she liked Darren she would be doing her own
thing but tomorrow she may not like what he said or did so she
would cast a spell on him and he would no longer be Darren but
Derwood and she would turn him into a frog or something. Or a
scene from I Dream of Jeanie - she would bonk her head and blink
her eyes and you would have whatever you needed and then maybe
later on she would blink her eyes again and remove whatever you
were given earlier.
You also asked, what does this have to do with me?
I think a lot. I was reminded of something from this web cast.
What will I follow, the testimony of men or the Word. Be
careful not to get
swept up in a "movement" - study to show thyself
approved a workman that needs not to be ashamed rightly dividing
the word. When listening to the web cast i kept hearing over
and again some doctrinal missteps and while she was sharing the
erroneous goings on over at the City of Refuge, i kept being
reminded that while you are attempting to point out the beam in
your brother's eye be aware of the mote in your own eye. For
me, it was like being a JW having the audacity to teach a Mormon
and vice-versa neither one of you have a clue about who Jesus
the Christ is.
Something that I
found very interesting was your guest often mentioned that what
she found most problematic was that the people of the City of
Refuge formerly Greater Bethany
has allowed permissiveness more so than anything
else, I believe was her statement. Was it not a spirit of
permissiveness when the church allowed her to preach from the
pulpit - was that not a warning sign?
I thought it was
masterful how you "held back" questions/comments so the guest
could feel comfortable because if you would have questioned her
understanding of scripture I believe the guest wouldn't have
been at ease to be so forthright in her pronouncements.
Wow! it was one
thing for Ms. Laverne to state that the City of Refuge broadcast
a DL movie from the sanctuary a movie that probably has no
connection to kingdom building but to state that the "bishop"
was involved in producing the movie - wow! now if that doesn't
open eyes - those are eyes that probably aren't meant to be
opened.
Ms. Laverne has
a zeal - but I would say that zeal for a "holiness" - taste not,
touch not, do not, is out of context and unless that
righteousness will exceed that of the Pharisees . . . Well,
thanks for allowing me to share. Keep plugging away PJ,
Love, Debora Carter / Anselm Bible Church.
My
Comments: I am grateful that I do
not have to speak negatively about statements from others alone.
I have taught over many years that error breeds error.
Each of us must stand and give an account to God about those
things that are not clear. My students, friends and fellow
Christians are not speaking up for those things which must be
stated accurately. I would like to thank Laverne again for
her insights, and I would ask her to read these comments and
glean from the biblical passages. I did not think that I
was the only person in the world reading my bible in the correct
mannor. PJ
Czarina Writes February 2007
Pastor John! I just read through some of the emails
on your page and had to give you an update on my current situation.
I originally found your site about a year ago from Pulpit Pimps and
listened in at least once a week; sometimes 6. (Remember me from the
friends page?) This is the course of about 2 years. From the time relied
on myself, to the time I relied on Christ.
My original church in which I got saved was much like the
church in Revelation who kept the word of God, but lost their first
love. I can honestly say that they didn't teach heresies, but the
undercover dealings eventually led to the death of it. After the main
pastor died, the assistant pastor moved on to his own church, and so on
and so forth. Over time reading the word, getting to know more about
proper exegesis and a line by line study, I began to realize all that
was wrong with my original church. The more I found out about truly
living broken-hearted and meek for the Lord, the worse I felt about my
previous behavior and what I thought being a good Christian was. I now
see the pride I had. I would constantly compare myself to the other
Christians my age. (16-19)
After the church ended, my one on one time with God
began. Slowly I began to drift away from the members of the church and
became isolated. No ones fault, jus Gods plan. I was alone and in this
time really sought to look for the fellowship I longed for. Where was
everyone? Christians aren't supposed to feel this lonely. Or so I
thought. I now know God placed that emptiness on my heart so that I
could learn (the hard way matter of fact) that He truly was all I had.
After I acknowledged this in my head God placed it in my heart.
After about a year by myself (spiritually) God began
to bring things into the picture that I now know were for my good. I
found good websites to learn from. I stumbled across a site that spoke
directly on the heretical prosperity teaching and eventually your site.
I prayed for study help and it came. I prayed for like-minded Christians
to speak with and he granted it to me. I prayed for a church home and
literally the last day of the year the Lord heard my prayer and provided
a way. I now visit St. Andrews Chapel (not catholic, reformed) headed by
R.C. Sproul.
I recently took a trip to see an old friend and fellow
youth member of my old church. She is away at college and invited me to
visit her. My plan for this trip was to witness to her roommates/buddies
there and if anything show them how true believers should behave. To my
assumption, my old friend is living as a Christian in word only. Her
actions are mirrored of her 'unsaved' counterparts. It was during this
time that I prayed to God and he showed me just how far He brought my
walk. I now question whether my friend is even saved or not. No fruit;
no salvation. Its strong messages like yours and Gods grace that has
allowed me to see the road I was on unbeknownst to me. I thank the Lord
for that.
So this is a line to encourage you to keep doing what
you're doing with RAM Radio. I've tuned in for almost a year and will
continue to. It seems more and more people are becoming aware that
Christianity is more than just going to church and mans feeble attempts
to live righteous. This was just a letter of thanks, so Thanks. God
bless,
I cannot thank God enough for the influence that I've had on these
young Saints. . . It so reminds me of the many days past when the Vett
was full of young Christians that were once excited about listening to
nothing less than the word of God. Pastor John (Loving the note to
me)
This
is because of you PJ
In my pursuit of bible truth I have found that not everyone is so
inviting. There is a famine for the true un-diluted word of God in
this country. A Scottish man declared that the gospel in America is
3000 miles wide and 2 inches deep. I painfully agree with this
statement. Over the years of my saved life I have come up empty
through this malnourished watered down gospel that proclaims riches
and prosperity. I took a long sad ride on this gospel and
experienced some minor benefits but over all, just high hopes and
declarations. I longed for the real thing. I desired more than just
programs, singing, feel good preaching, anniversaries and revivals.
As I began to look closely at the activities of the church I began
to feel angry. The children sang real good, they passed out
envelopes for offerings, we jumped and shouted the victory but that
was just surface stuff with no power. We had a so called witnessing
program that consisted of the members going out to different
locations and inviting people to church. I grew weary with this
practice due to it not aligning with scripture. I sometimes even
felt skeptical of inviting people to my church. What was wrong with
me? Why all of a sudden what used to work for me, now no longer
worked. Instead, I became grieved with those things I used to
invite. Was I falling away? Was I rebelling against the pastor or
even God? I began to search within myself and examine what it was
that I was going through. I went to scripture and began to compare
what we were doing in the church with scripture. The comparison was
terrible! We were so far from what the scriptures taught. Instead of
worshipping Jesus, we were worshipping church programs and religion.
We spent thousands of dollars on paying visiting preachers while we
had able ministers right in the congregation. I was in charge of the
tape ministry which charged people five dollars for a copy of the
teaching of Gods word which was totally against scripture. Our
church which was predominately black, unified with another
denomination which was mostly white. This new merging according to
the pastor was from God and would assist in the breaking down of the
division between black and white Christians. This seemed pretty
alright with me but there were some things that just didn't seem
right. Whenever the pastor would talk about our new affiliation
there was always a mention of the BENEFITS of this new union.
Benefits such as, life insurance for ministers, the ability to
borrow MONEY from the conference, the possibility of getting a new
church building and so forth and so on. I never heard anything about
how on fire these people were for the truth of Gods word or their
commitment to the leading of the Holy Spirit. All I would hear was
money this and money that. This bothered me but I never said
anything. I wondered that if these people did not have money or big
buildings, would we be so anxious to join forces with them. I began
to question everything that I ever been taught. One time at a men's
fellowship meeting, one of the ministers referred to the ministry as
being a business. This really bothered me and I spoke out against
that statement. This really helped to open my eyes to what was going
on. My church had become a part of the new age church which
practices the marketing techniques of the world in order to attract
sinners. We became money, building and program oriented in an
attempt to "win the lost at any cost". The apparent question for me
was...." isn't the word of God still powerful to save?" Why do we
have to resort to the methods of the world in order to reach the
lost? Jesus preached "repent. for the kingdom of heaven is at hand".
The disciples preached Christ alone, without basketball games and
talent shows in order to ATTRACT sinners. Another thing that was
being taught as a principal doctrine was tithing. People were taught
that if they did not give 10% of their income then they were cursed.
I studied the topic of tithing in the scriptures and found that
doctrine to be false. I approached the pastor and other ministers
concerning this teaching and the ministers dared not to challenge me
on this. The pastor on the other hand challenged me by saying that
food was the primary source of sustenance in the old testament but
today- money is our sustenance. I told him that food is still what
sustains us today and that tithing had nothing to do with money in
the old testament. He grew angry and told me to find a church that
did not tithe and go there. Well, needless to say, I left! Thanks to
God and pastor John, I have started teaching my family out of our
home. There is no scripture in the bible anywhere that says that I
should become a member of any church. Don't get me wrong, I long for
fellowship and I believe in attending church meetings but only if
the whole truth of the word is being taught. My dear black men and
brothers in the gospel....get your families and get out of these
money driven cults. Teach your families the truth of Gods word at
home until the Lord provides somewhere for you to fellowship and
learn. The Holy Spirit is still our teacher and guide. Pastor John,
if you don't mind I would love to connect with some of the brothers
that write to you. I read their letters and I burn inside for them.
I know what their dealing with and I would like to keep in contact
with them. One of the things that I've found out since leaving the
apostate church that I was in is that I get lonely. It's hard to
find believers here in my area that believe in "Sola Scriptura".
Shawn Scott Snowhill, NC February 2007
Shawn
would love to be in contact with many of you that have had
experiences. He has offered to place his e-mail address next
to the article. I think it would be best for you to request
his address and then I would send it to you. That way there
would be no public email scandal on the behalf of anyone.
Sounds good to me!!!
More Letters Below!!!
A Letter To Pastor John /
From Jeff Harley
Pastor Coleman, Happy New Year!! You are
such a blessing. I apologize for just getting back to you, but I had
a very bad case of the flu and I literally have been in the bed for
thewhole month of January. However, we did receive the Introductory
DVD package, and my sickness allowed me to watch the lesson over and
over again, which I did because I am so excited. I don't know
where to start, but I will be calling you when I get my voice back
completely. You stated so many things that are true. Especially that
in the Black community we don't strive to study the word of God
diligently. My Grandfather always said to me when I was
younger that if you want to hide something from a Black man then put
it in a book. They were from South Carolina and he said that is why
the white people always hid their money in books, so if a black man
tried to rob their house then the black man would never find their
money if they put it in a book. Therefore he said try to read as
much as possible, and study everything!! I was always frustrated in
the churches that we attended because they tried to discourage you
from wanting to go to a Bible school, as a matter of fact one of my
Pastors said that he had a Masters in theology and none of what he
learned he in seminary helped him to cast out a demon or heal the
sick, but I said what about doctrine? He literally said what Fred
Price said on the clip you showed. Anyhow I don't want to take up to
much of your e-mail space. I am truly excited, my wife is as well.
When you talked about being a five point Calvinist I showed he one
of the R.C. Sproul programs that I tape everyday from his TV. show
called, "Renewing the Mind". Doctor Sproul was talking about the
five points of Calvinism, and I had never heard of this before until
I watched your DVD. I tape and watch his show everyday along with
John McArthur. We laughed because we usually fall asleep during
their programs, and you talked about studying the word being a
"Discipline" and not sleeping. It goes to show you how our minds
have been trained in the black church that if we are not being
entertained then we are "bored" and the church is not on "fire"!!
What a farce, but also what shame all of the souls that are being
deceived. Anyhow we are in the process of buying some of the books
you mentioned, and I am going to order the McArthur Bible NASB
version so that when we start the DVD classes with you we will be on
one accord with what you are teaching from. Let me know if you are
finished ret aping the DVD series? If you are prepared and we
look forward to studying the Truth of Gods Word with you!! Let's get
INTO THE WORD!!!!!!! Grace and Peace Pastor Coleman and God bless
you!!!!!!!!
What can I say
except PRAISE THE LORD!!! I am so full of joy right now with
how GOD is using you to bring forth His Holy Word in a bold,
uncompromising, and relevant manner. Here is a copy of an e-mail
that I sent to some dear sisters in Christ:
“By the Grace of GOD, I happened upon these two sites and have been
up (literally) for days (well into the wee hours of the morning)
reading and studying its content. The gentlemen represented on
these two sites are an absolute GOD-send. The information has
really captivated my spirit and I feel that GOD’S Holy Spirit
directed me to these two sites for deliverance as well as
confirmation. I had been dealing with a lot of frustration
regarding the state of the church and the spiritual and financial
bondage that seems so prevalent. The information contained in the
websites is uncompromising, bold, and so relevant to the state of
Christianity today—especially in the Black community. If you feel
led by The Holy Spirit, then please pass this information on. The
false teachings must end and sound doctrine must begin.” Enjoy and
be Blessed! Love Julia Julie then gave the
web addresses to Melvin Jones Pulpit Pimps and My site address:
Pastor Coleman, a
heavy burden have been lifted from my heart. As I continue to
witness women being taken advantage of by these “pulpit pimps” it
has brought a great deal of sadness and frustration. I am a praying
woman and always wondered if GOD even cared about this fleecing and
false hope/false sense of security. It grieved my heart aplenty
because I perceived that GOD just didn’t care. Then, by GOD’s
Grace, I was led to your site and I rejoice because my prayers were
already answered. GOD always cared and He still has a remnant that
is not afraid to stand on the infallible Word of GOD. To know that
there are true Christian Men
out there that have taken a special interest in the fleecing of
well-meaning Saints of GOD is an absolute GOD-send. It is
absolutely disturbing to my soul what has transpired within the
Black church community. As GOD continues to use you mightily, I
will continue to spread the word about these websites that GOD is
utilizing to get out His perfect truth. Pastor Coleman, I know that
you don’t take offerings. However, this work must continue and it
takes finances to ensure that this truth continues spread. I don’t
have a lot to offer. Yet, it would bring me much joy to simply
bless your ministry with a free-will offering so that the work of
the Lord may continue. GOD has used you to Bless me and I am sure
that there are others out there that need to read and study the
information that GOD has brought forth through you. My only motive
is to support GOD’s work through you. Take care and GOD Bless
you Brother, Sis. Julia A. Lyons
Hello Pastor Coleman, GOD bless you and the many lives that
have been changed by allowing GOD to use you. I wrote you awhile
back and I thank you for your response. Every since I have ran
across your website and Melvin and G. Craig things have been a lot
different for me. It feels like the movie Matrix. I writing the
letter because GOD being my witness I don't know where to turn. I
feel very isolated from the people I hold very near to me. It is
because I don't attend the as regularly. Most Of the people that
know me because I was always there. I believe that they think that I
have fell away from GOD but nowadays I don't know what to feel
anymore. You see Pastor Coleman you do not know anything about me at
all and I have seen people that love to dump all their problems on
people. I hold things inside and know I talk about them. I go back
to this church because I don't have any other church home and my
wife and kids attend the church. But every time I go there, I don't
like being there. Most people may say that I don't like listening to
the truth being preached but if that were the case then websites
like yours and Melvin wouldn't have came to my attention when I
desperately needed them. Now I'm like a Jonah because I have a call
to preach the gospel as my pastor and wife have said and dreams I
have had when I did not know anything about the bible or the life of
a Christian. My life has been turned upside down because I hope that
I have not made a mistake. When I showed some of the clips on Melvin
website to a person that I care about deeply she said that I had a
problem with leadership, when I attend a service for some strange
reason, at some point of the message I will hear how knowledge can
make you arrogant and what the bible says that the anointing flow
down from Aaron beard and that is how it works in the church. Now I
have learn something about what is a being taught I had shared
something's with people and in men meetings and now I feel the cold
shoulder, This all started when I really started to read the bible
and actually study what was meant by certain scripture. I had no
attentions of arguing GOD words but That is what is being labeled.
You see pastor for me it seems to have got worse because I feel
alone. I was tired of going to church and being churched and not
having my life changed, I was tired of feeling that GOD hated me
because I have not help the church get out of debt, for some people
talking like this is a touchy subject but all I want is answers. How
much authority does pastor really have on a person life? I know that
when people have question like this that it may be a indication of
that person not liking authority but that is not me. I want to feel
free to ask question like this without feeling like some kind of
demon-possessed rebellious backslider. I know that the Lord hear and
see all but brother Coleman I feel like have let GOD down and my
wife would put the church before she would ever hear me out. I know
she tells the pastor about what I'm going but Me and the pastor and
his wife were really close. I don't believe that they're are bad
people but I believe the teaching which was COGIC was not all
scripturally correct. They are not in COGIC anymore but are under a
pastor from Sacramento and that pastor is affiliated with Fred
Price. Change the name from community to international when we have
not done that much to help the community that we are in. I take some
blame for this because I was not what Christian in the Bible were
like. I actually isolated myself from non believer think that was
the church folk is supposed to be. I want to be a real Christian and
I know that I can't be that in the present state that I'm in. I
attend church, my prayer life has suffered, my studying habit has
dwindle because I didn't want feel like I was being some egghead
Christian. Like I said before you don't know me
and there is always another side to the story but my heart is what I
type to you and I want to be in a ministry that is making me a
better servant of Christ and not a building. I want to be in a
ministry not by fear but by reverence for GOD and love for him. I
wasn't to have enough courage to talk to them not that I'm afraid
but I don't want to get angered and I want it discussed like adult
and not arguing GOD word. Thank you very much and I hope
I don't sound like a down and out loser but I want to feel GOD
again. Please keep my brother
lifted up in prayer!
A Recent Letter:
Hi Pastor John,
I stumbled across your site tonight and you have an awesome
site!!! I consider myself an apologist and it's nice to know
there are people out there who stand on the Word of God and
believe it; as well as those who are not afraid to speak the
truth in love!!! You will be in my prayers!!! Greetings
from Omaha, Nebraska; Your Puerto Rican Brother from NYC
now living in Nebraska! :) Judges 6:12..."The Lord is with you,
O valiant warrior..." Miguel Soto
Another Recent Letter:
Hello Pastor Coleman my name is Brandon Pitts
from San Antonio Texas. Let me tell you a little
bit about myself. I got saved my freshmen
year in college back in 2003 and the Lord filled
me with His Spirit in the summer of 2005 going
into my senior year. Now I just recently
graduated this past May of 2006.
I check out your website all the time and have
long agreed with what your saying before the
Lord showed me your website. And I just wanted
to encourage you to keep on speaking because
there were those people who turned away from
Christ also and stopped listening. But NOT all
turned away, as Christ asks if they(12
disciples) were going to leave Him to?? Like
Peter answered we also answer "Lord were we
would go you hold the keys to eternal life." So
people that want the truth here the truth
because the Holy Spirit reveals the truth to
those who seek the truth.
Brother I know how it can get lonely sometimes,
I feel the way same way at times. But stay
strong and I will be praying for you, even us
young one's are doing what your doing and we
have gotten rebuked from some Christians. We
can't let them stop us because there is someone
else who needs and wants to the here truth and
are not happy in their current position
spiritual nor physical (Saved and Unsaved). So
brother, remember what Paul said as the Holy
Spirit spoke through him in Philippians and
press on and encourage yourself in the Lord.
Sincerely your
little brother in Christ
Brandon P.S. Hope
this helps It
does Brandon! God bless you and thanks for
writing to me.
A
Listener Writes This Week: July 2006
Hi Pastor Coleman,
I heard you for the first time on Dean Gocher's program
recently and enjoyed your conversation with him very much.
Yesterday, I visited your website and browsed around. It
was wonderful to see pictures of you and your lovely wife of
so many years. That's a Guinness Book record these days, to
say the least.
Thank you for sharing the preaching tape of Dr. R.G.
Lee. Wow! Indeed, we don't hear preaching like that
today.... and what a shame that is so true. Even after so
many years having past, the fire of the Holy Spirit's
anointing still remains on that tape. I tell you I was
glued to my seat and totally engaged as well as
exceptionally edified.
Can copies be gotten in MP3 format? I have my closest
friend, an Indian national and missionary of many years in
South Bangalore, India, who would just thrill to hear such
preaching. I could email it to him. As you may know there
is much persecution going on over there. I have remained
very close to him, his wife and family for over 15 years.
He will be fully delighted to know of your website.
Anyway, I just wanted you to know how much I rejoiced to
know there are still zealous, biblically motivated and
postured servants of the Lord out there in these last days.
And of course, because of your stance on the Truth, which so
few can hear in these times, you are always going to be
misunderstood, except by those who love the Truth and
thereby love Jesus and are living just for His glory and
praise.
You are reaching out to many in great bondage and a
number have been appointed to salvation, so do continue. I
find you to be a gallant and obedient soldier of Christ, who
follows the orders of the Book. The Lord holds the highest
place in your heart and that is clearly discerned.
So I didn't write to flatter you but to attest to the
stature of Christ that came through your sharing with
Brother Dean as well as what comes across from your website,
writings and your speaking.
I pray the Lord enables you to continue on this extremely
narrow path we are all traversing on and so blessed to carry
with us the Lamp unto our feet, the Word of God. I truly
find your life a living testimony and a strong encouragement
to my own life-walk with Jesus.
Have a wonderful day today in His light.
Your brother in Christ, Michael
|
Hi, Pastor John:
Thank you for your kind
words. I will be sure to go on your site and
read your article.
A few months ago I was
asked by a friend whom I've known for years, a
woman, to come and speak before the ladies group
at the church where she is a member. I had done
it in the past so it was no problem for me. She
said she'd send me a letter outlining the topic
to be discussed in the workshop. Well, about a
week later I received her letter and I was
"dumbstruck!" At the bottom of the letter, she
signed her name, "Rev. so and so." I
immediately called her and asked for
"clarification." She then told me she had been
"called to preach and had been ordained." It
seemed their "former" pastor, a man, had become
ill and could no longer function and had stepped
down. Since the church was "predominately"
women, "they" voted another woman in as pastor
and the "new" pastor had ordained her and a few
other women. Needless to say, I advised her I
could not be a part of their workshop.
She began to give me all
the "usual" biblical texts (out of context) why
a woman can preach and pastor a church. She
took me to the famous Deborah text, the famous,
"'there is neither male or female..." text, the
famous "God used a donkey" text, the "4
daughters of Philip who were "prophestess"
text. After I explained what these scriptures
meant in their context, God's design and role
for women, and then taking her to the I Timothy
3 and Titus 1 text, she still insists she was
"called" of God to preach and the other ladies
who are "anointed" have also been called to
preach and pastor. I was threw with it.
Women, in this time and
culture, have some tremendous
problems-emotionally and spiritually. And it's
basically a spiritual problem. We will not
"bow" to the authority of God or HIs Word. We
will not submit to God's Word. Many women are
in open rebellion against God, totally deluded
into believing they are "God's Women."
I did a workshop at another
church in the city, a well known traditional
Black Baptist Church in Los Angeles. The
workshop was for the Women's Ministry of the
church and the question about women pastors came
up. I dealt with it. The pastor and a few
elders were sitting in the back of the room. I
had no problem with it. Some of the women in
attendance didn't like what I was saying. It
didn't matter. They don't like what God says.
But after the session ended, the elders came up
to me to "thank" me for "telling it like it
is." One elder said, "I've never, never, never
heard a woman talk up and against female pastors
like that." My response to him, "I'm praying
you, too, will speak out boldly against female
pastors!" I left it like that.
You
keep doing what you're doing and I will keep
doing what I'm doing. May the Lord cause His
face to shine on us both. Take care, Norma
Brown Mr. Coleman,
I am shocked that you would post the information
about Pastor Creflo Dollars
on your website. What's even more shocking is
that you call him a pimp. Shame on you and you
call yourself a Pastor. How can you call an
annointed man of God a pimp. He has been chosen
by God to teach on Prosperity. That's his
ministry.
Just because you don't agree with his teaching
doesn't justify you blastin him like that. Pastor
Dollar teaches on the laws of money and how to
prosper God's way. He always talks about he
doesn't need our money because
God will provide. He is obviously doing something
right because God has prospered his ministry.
Everything he teaches lines up with the word.
Prosperity is more than money. He wants God
people to prosper in all areas
of their life not just financially. He wants
people to prosper to help build the Kingdom of
God. Jesus taught about in Matthew about of the
sower. It's nothing wrong with sowing into
this ministry and giving unto a good work.
So is Pastor TD Jakes, Pastor Randy & Paula White,
Biship McCleandon wrong because they ask for
money. It takes money to help build God's
kingdom. It takes money to feed and cloth the
homeless. It takes money to build homes and
orphanages for people. So tell me what are you
doing besides slammin other Pastors?
It's none of our business what these Pastors do
with the money that comes in. God will judge
that. God know if the money is being mishandled.
Who are we to judge? Instead of slammin the
brotha what you need to do is pray
for him if you think he's leading people astray.
Get's God direction. You blastin him on your
website isn't God. You raisin up mouth against
him isn't God. There is nothing wrong with
his teaching. I've listened to it, have been
blessed by it, I've applied it and it lines up
with the word. I wouldn't sow a penny into your
Ministry because you have Integrity/Value issues.
I'm going to forward this email over to Creflo
Dollars Ministries so they can pray that your eyes
may be open and your mouth shut.
I did not change anything in the letter to me.
I just thought that you might want to see this
saints. There are many people out there
somewhere over the rainbow, seeking to know truth
through means of prosperity. Yes, I am "blastin
and jammin the so called brother in order that
many of the readers and listeners might no longer
support false doctrine. Oh what a joy to be
able to receive these letters, and ten to display
them for the real church to take a look at and
then to JUDGE RIGHTEOUS JUDGMENT. jec
Pastor John,
I am curious to know
how you are feeling about this. It puts a
little bit of a bitter taste in my mouth. I
would like to respond out of outrage or disgust
but I am not sure that you would want me to do
so. I am sorry I haven't been in touch with you
for a while. Been dealing with some serious
demons of my own. Still struggling a little bit
but getting better. Let me know how you are and
how you are taking this. I do not like the way
this letter is worded at all. NO aplogies at
all that I can see. After how many years of
funding their station and providing God's
essential word to the so many that need it.
Myself I would be beyond myself. I believe that
you should at least have received a phone call,
some warning, and an apology and explanation.
To me that only seems fair.
You don't know what
an inspiration you have been to me in my
outreach efforts and keeping my web-site alive.
I consider you a friend, although we have never
met, I feel your heart and know it is a good
one. You are the kind of Pastor that tells it
like it is. Not many brave enough to take that
stance. I pray this does not discourage you but
strengthens you and leads you to a better and
further reaching station. I don't understand
why God moves the way he does. I believe he
continally is refining us for that promise that
we anticipate. I also believe that powerful
crusaders, such as yourself, are under the
constant attack of Satan's vicious and deceptive
attacks.
This situation seems
unpleasant to me and if it is bothersome to you,
as is my thinking, I will be praying for
strength, guidance, reassurance and
encouragement thru this trialsome time. Please
respond at your convenience so I can better
understand your feelings on this. I would love
to blow off a little steam on this Earl guy. I
do not like the disrespect in how he handled
this. To disrupt your ministry of, I don't know
how many years, with such a blunt and
distasteful letter sickens me to the core. I
will use my best Christian discernment in
writing this man, if it is your wish, that we as
your fans do so. I will tell him how I feel
about this in as tactful a manner as possible.
I do not like this cowardly e-mail way of him
handling this.
Don't lose the faith
Pastor John. Lots of people depend on you. I
know they do without even meeting you but just
by visiting your web-site occasionally and
reading your messages. You are an instrument of
God if I have ever seen one. The path you have
chosen is one of the toughest to stay on yet you
have remained steadfast in the face of many
tough issues where other pastors would have
thrown in the towel.
If it means anything
to you, you have always had my utmost respect,
trust and love as a brother in Jesus. Please
keep me updated as I will look for updates on
your web-site. You do not have to respond
immediately. I am sure there will be a lot of
mail similar to mine in your box. I will pray
that this leads you to a more productive
ministry whatever it is God has in His divine
plan for you. Keep the faith my friend. I
know that is easy to say when it is not me that
has to go thru this but I know that you are
truly a Godly man and receptive of any words
that come from His children.
Glad to have gotten
to know you the way that we did. I treasure you
as a distant friend and encourager of my
ministry and objectives. You are in the prayers
of many as you are reading this, mine included.
I truly believe that God has something so big
for you, lying ahead, that you cannot anticipate
it. He will redirect the funding that you have
provided this radio station faithfully for so
many years and put it to a use you had never
anticipated. All in His time! He is just
sharpening your sword a little more preparing
you for the future of this country and the
trials that many of will face in the days
ahead. I hope to hear from you and that you
tell me that you are relieved to be doing
business with this radio station and do
have bigger doors opening up for you. I pray
you are not discouraged as I am feeling about
this, that my feelings are inaccurate and this
is a relief to you. When you get time, let me
know please.
Praying hard for you
in the state of Wisconsin.
Friends always,
Steve Thanks
Steve. . . I am blessed in the Lord, waiting for
another op to tell the truth to His people.
Pastor John
May 2004 _The
Long March Through Christendom:
Evidences of Cultural
Marxist Methodology in Evangelic Christianity.
Larry
Dozier
Nothing
could seem more American than a wholesome afternoon spent
at church, fellowshipping with those who share a common
belief of God. Next to mom, apple pie and baseball, church
is an institution in American society. To suggest that
most evangelical Christian churches had been infiltrated
by Marxism might sound ludicrous. To propose that many
churches are using Marxist methodology to achieve their
goals might sound almost insane. Nevertheless, this
is the case.
Prior to
1987, there was a clearly accepted delineation between two
opposing worlds. East of the Berlin Wall was the world of
soviet Marxism. West of the wall was capitalism. The wall
existed, not only as a simple geographic boundary, but as
a philosophic demarcation as well.
When the
wall fell, a collective sigh of relief was heard coming
from the west. No longer would the theories of Marx and
Engels threaten the free and open society of capitalism.
The enemy had fallen, and Marxism was, undeniably, dead.
Unbeknownst to many, Marxism was still alive and healthy.
Soviet style Marxism may have collapsed. Cultural Marxism,
however, was doing very well. Cultural Marxism began
in 1899 when Eduard Bernstein published 'Evolutionary
Socialism', a treatise advocating an evolution into
communism, as opposed to revolution. A schism soon arose
between the classic Marxists, who believed that violent
revolution was necessary to effect societal change, and
the Social Democrats, who favored more peaceful means.
An early Hegelian Marxist who agreed with Bernstein was
Antonio Gramsci. Antonio Gramsci was the founder of
the Italian Communist Party, and one of the most prominent
Marxist writers of the early 1900's.
Gramsci
believed that a frontal attack on modern industrial
democracies would be futile. He observed that modern
industrial societies were governed by the consent of the
populace, and argued that consent was produced by the
cultural institutions of a society, such as schools,
churches, newspapers, arts and entertainment. Gramsci
believed that control of a country could be achieved by
gaining control of its culture. Social change, he
believed, was best accomplished by "the long march through
the institutions." To achieve this, Gramsci proposed a 3
step plan: First, existing institutions, values and
norms must be de-legitimized. Second, the institutions of
a society must be infiltrated and controlled. Third,
alternative institutions and values were to be created.
Gramsci was heavily influenced by Hegel, a German
philosopher, who believed that change occurred when there
was conflict between opposing views. In Hegel's opinion,
change could be brought about when a thesis and an
antithesis collided, producing a synthesis.
Frank
Schallow describes the dialectic like this:
"From its inception, Hegel's dialectic has
continually been the brunt of attempts to modify, improve,
and revamp it. These revisions began with Marx's
dialectical materialism and later gathered momentum
through the efforts of critical theorists who adjust for
the initial "materialist" slant, compensating for the
overcompensation...
In its elemental form, the dialectic
instills patterns of organization within the chaos of
experience, channeling the creative forces into higher
levels of development and
ultimately capturing them within a circuit of mediation.
In radically siding with otherness, imagination does not
introduce another stance of identity, which can in turn be
negated at a subsequent stage of the dialectic. Rather,
imagination stands as the most extreme emissary of
otherness, occupying a place prior to the inception of
dialectic in its effort to mediate opposites within the
unity of the Absolute.
1
A
simplistic example of this is to imagine two boys walking
into a pet store. They have only enough money to buy one
puppy, which they will share between them. The first boy
is absolutely convinced that a German Shepard would be the
best breed to purchase. This is his thesis. The second
boy, however, introduces an antithesis by strongly
favoring the purchase of a beagle. Stress is introduced to
the relationship due to the opposing viewpoints, and a
vigorous debate follows. Because the boys are strongly
motivated to retain some harmony in their relationship,
they eventually come to a synthesis of opinion, and walk
out of the store with a beautiful Labrador retriever, each
boy convinced that they purchased the best puppy in the
store.
Gramsci
believed that Hegel’s dialectic could be put into practice
in order to bring about social change.2
Gramsci coined the term "Praxis", which he explained as
being a combination of social theory and practice.
Building on Gramsci's work was the Institute for Social
Research.
The
Institute for Social Research, also known as The Frankfurt
School, was founded in 1924 to provide a forum for
discussing communism which was outside of the control of
the Communist Party. The Institute’s members, Herbert
Marcuse, Eric Fromm, Theodor Adorno, Max Horkheimer,
Wilhelm Reich, and others, believed that they could
combine Marxism and psychology in a way which would cause
social change.3
"Historically, Antonio
Gramsci's thought shares features with other writers who
are classified as "Hegelian Marxists" -- the Hungarian
Marxist Georg Lukacs, the German thinker Karl Korsch, and
members of the "Frankfurt School" (e.g., Theodor Adorno
and Herbert Marcuse), a group of theorists associated with
the Institute for Social Research founded in Frankfurt,
Germany in the 1920s, some of whom attempted to synthesize
the thinking of Marx and Freud. All emphasized that the
decisive struggle to overthrow the bourgeois regime (that
is, middle-class liberal democracy) would be fought out at
the level of consciousness. That is, the old order had to
be rejected by its citizens intellectually and morally
before any real transfer of power to the subordinate
groups could be achieved.“4
In 1933,
when Hitler came to power, the members of the institute
fled to the United States, and the Institute was
re-created in New York. Jay Martin, in his
book, describes how the relocation came about:
"Over the years, the Institut
had made several contacts with prominent figures — in the
American academic world, such as Charles Beard, Robert
MacIver, Wesley Mitchell, Reinhold Niebuhr, and Robert
Lynd, all of whom were at Columbia University. Thus when
Horkheimer made his first trip to the United States in
May, 1934, he was able to gain access to Columbia's
patriarchal president, Nicholas Murray Butler. Much to his
surprise, Butler offered the Institut about affiliation
with the university and a home in one of its buildings, at
9 West 117th Street. Horkheimer, fearing he had
misunderstood Butler because of his limited command of
English, wrote a four-page letter asking him to confirm
and clarify his offer. Butler's response was a laconic
"You have understood me perfectly!" And so the
International Institute for Social Research, as
revolutionary and Marxist as it had appeared in Frankfurt
in the twenties, came to settle in the center of the
capitalist world, New York City."
5
The members of the Institute found a
warm welcome in American academia, and many went on to
hold prominent university positions.
Eric Fromm, the internationally
renowned psychologist and humanistic philosopher, began
his teaching career at Columbia University soon after
fleeing from Germany. Fromm had a significant impact on
modern psychology. His philosophical writings were largely
critical of authoritarian value systems.
Herbert
Marcuse, after a short stint with the OSS, also taught at
Columbia University, as well as Harvard during the 1950's.
In 1958, he began teaching at Brandeis University, where
he was professor of philosophy and politics. Marcuse was
credited with coining the phrase 'Make love, not war'
during the Vietnam War. In 1965 He accepted a position
with the University of California San Diego. Marcuse's
critiques of capitalist society were popular with the
leftist student movement of the sixties, and he became
known as the "father of the new left". Throughout his
life, Marcuse identified himself as a socialist, a
Marxist, and a Hegelian. Kurt Lewin and Abraham Maslow
became famous for their work in group dynamics.
Lewin, dubbed 'the father of sensitivity training’, taught
first at the Cornell School of Home Economics, then at the
University of Iowa. While teaching at the University of
Iowa, he undertook research for the US Military related to
troop Morale, and changing the eating habits of civilians
away from foods in short supply. During his research,
Lewin found that housewives could be more effectively
persuaded to purchase certain foods when placed in small
discussion groups than when lectured to.
Lewin
believed that it was the strong psychological motivation
to belong to the group which accounted for the dramatic
change brought about in these housewives. Lewin’s Field
Theory proposed that "human behavior is the function of
both the person and the environment: expressed in symbolic
terms, B = f (P, E)".6
By changing the environment of a group setting, you could
change the behavior of individual members. The bulk of
Lewin's research involved practical experimentation in
effecting change through small groups.
Lewin
later founded National Training Laboratories, where he
perfected Group Dynamics, using T-Groups. His experience
with T-groups showed him that after a group had been
brought to a new level of change, the group would slowly
settle back to its initial level. To prevent this, he
developed a three step technique which is eerily parallel
to Gramsci's three step formula for cultural subjugation.
"A successful change includes
therefore three aspects: unfreezing (if necessary) the
present level . . . moving to the new level . . . and
freezing group life on the new level."
7
In
essence, group dynamics is peer pressure on steroids.
Small groups are led dialectically by a facilitator who
manipulates the environment of the group to achieve a
predetermined goal. This is accomplished by introducing
tension, or conflict, into the group, and allowing the
group to dialogue toward a reconciliation, or synthesis,
of the conflict. Using the inherent desire of individuals
to 'belong', a skilled facilitator can achieve incredible
change in an individual’s behavior. Because the group
member believes that he was intimately involved in the
group's progress, he is more likely to embrace the group
consensus and exhibit behavioral and attitudinal change.
Resistance to change is broken down by an individual’s
fear of being ostracized by the group.
"If the individual should try
to diverge “too much” from group standards, he would find
himself in increasing difficulties. He would be ridiculed,
treated severely and finally ousted from the group. Most
individuals, therefore, stay pretty close to the standard
of the groups they belong to or wish to belong to. In
other words, the group level itself acquires value. It
becomes a positive valence corresponding to a central
force field with the... [forces] keeping the individual in
line with the standards of the group."
8
Lewin,
who died in 1947, had a profound effect on modern
psychology's understanding of how to effect change in
individuals through the use of groups.
"It is difficult to assess
fully the great impact that, Lewin's work had on social
psychology; Lewis Coser observed that, in less than a
decade at the University of Iowa, Lewin "raised a whole
generation of social psychologists who were to dominate
the field for several decades" (Coser, 1984, p. 25)."
9
Lewin's
methods and techniques have found their way into many
facets of American life. Social psychology, group therapy,
sensitivity training, conflict resolution, Total Quality
management and Outcome Based Education are all built upon
the foundation laid by Lewin's Group Dynamics, and all use
some flavor of the dialectic process.
Surprisingly, the dialectic process, developed and refined
in a steady progression from Hegel to Lewin, has found its
way into much of the Christian world. It first
surfaced with theologians like Paul Tillich, who sought to
redefine theology as a fusion of culture and religion.
Tillich say's
"It is therefore the task of
theology, working from a concrete standpoint, to draw up a
normative system of religion based on the categories of
philosophy of religion, with the individual standpoint
being related to the standpoint of the respective
confession, the universal history of religion, and the
cultural-historical standpoint in general. This is no
hidden rationalism, for it recognizes the concrete
religious standpoint. Nor is it hidden supernaturalism,
such as may still be found even in our historical-critical
school of thought, for it is the breaking down of all the
authoritarian limitations upon the individual standpoint
by means of a philosophy of history. It is oriented to
Nietzsche’s notion of the "creative" on the basis of
Hegel’s concept of "objective-historical spirit"
10
The
dialectic may also be seen at work in "Christian
Psychology", which often embraces the social psychology of
Lewin. It is common to find small encounter groups in many
churches which address any number of issues, from divorce
to addiction. The focus is placed upon the therapeutic
value of shared feelings. In many ways, the church has
come to see psychology as a competitor for providing salve
to wounded souls, and strategically pre-empted the social
psychology industry by adopting group therapy techniques
and counseling.
David
Fitch observes:
"In the past, Evangelical
Christians have gone to the 'preaching of God's word for
conviction, correction, repentance, direction and change.
Preaching is 'good for the soul'. But now it appears that
counseling has taken over many of these functions. It is
in counseling that we locate, understand and take
responsibility for our dysfunctions and make commitments
to change. In some sense, then psychology and preaching
are engaged in a turf war in the American Christian
church." 11
Christian
psychologists argue that by fusing scripture with
psychology and its methodology, you develop a tool which
is more powerful than biblical preaching alone. The
problem with this is that psychology and Christianity
espouse diametrically opposing views, and cannot be
combined except through a Hegelian synthesis. Psychology
begins with the premise that an individual is basically
good, marred only by external factors, while Christianity
teaches that man is, in his natural state, and depraved
whose only hope of goodness comes from a transforming
encounter with Jesus Christ. In order to employ
these opposing views, they must be dialectically
synthesized to resolve the two, resulting in something
which isn't quite psychology, and isn't quite Christian.
Psychology has also made its way behind the pulpit, with
sermons becoming a strange mixture of scripture and
psychology. Bill Hybels, pastor of Willow Creek Community
Church, a 'mega-church' in Chicago, and a leader of the
Church Growth Movement, states that
"a significant amount of weekend message content comes
from psychology".
12
Willow
Creek has long been a proponent of using small groups for
evangelism. Gary Poole, the Director of evangelism at
Willow Creek, wrote a book entitled Seeker Small Groups
detailing the advantages and methodology of small group
evangelism. While his zeal for evangelism is laudable, his
methods correspond directly to Lewin's Group Dynamics.
Social psychologists stress the need for a 'safe and
no-threatening' environment for groups to meet in, an
environment where individuals are more likely to risk
vulnerability. Poole agrees:
"The first distinct advantage
of a seeker small group is that it's a very safe place.
Seekers can investigate the claims of Christianity at
their own pace. They are accepted no matter where they are
in their spiritual journeys. There is no judgment, only a
spirit of acceptance...The goal of this safe place is to
provide an invitation, opportunity, and environment for
seekers to openly express their thoughts and feelings, to
voice their observations and questions, and even to go so
far as to assert their objections - all without inhibition
or any fear of criticism."
13
Lewin's
unfreezing stage often consists of icebreakers where the
individual begins to lose their individuality and join the
group. Poole also suggests beginning with an icebreaker:
"Next comes a pivotal
transition in your group discussion, when you should move
your group from light-hearted interaction to one of
greater significance. This can be accomplished with what I
call a 'transition icebreaker...It's a tool to assist you
in turning the corner with your group and getting more
focused on the topic you want to discuss."
14
Poole's
unfreezing 'ice breaker' allows all of the participants to
establish a personal thesis by asking them "If you could
ask God one question you knew he could answer right, what
would it be?” 15
While this sounds innocent enough, Poole is actually
drawing out the participants, and subtly inviting them to
voice their objections to the concept of God. Next
in the Lewinian model is the 'moving to the new level'
phase, which is accomplished by introducing tension into
the group. Poole is right on time with this phase:
"Inform the group that before
you wrap things up, you'd like to get their knee-jerk
reaction to some verses you read aloud from the Bible."
16
By
introducing scripture to a group of non-believers, Poole
has just introduced an antithesis, and created stress in
the group dynamic. The individual members, who are either
ambivalent to, ignorant of, or critical of the Bible, now
have a conflict to wrestle with. As a skilled facilitator,
Poole leads them into a group dialogue:
"After
they hear the passage, ask them what it means to them or
what stood out or how it impacts them. Again, there are no
'wrong' responses here."
17
Finally,
Poole 'freezes' the group at its new level by asking the
group to decide if they wish to meet again and if so, to
commit to a certain number of meetings. Poole explains the
rational of this exercise:
"This is a very important
exercise for the group, because it transfers ownership
from you to them...you have given them greater ownership,
and their commitment to the group will be much stronger.
High ownership is crucial to the successful launch of your
group..." 18
Throughout the process, Poole refuses to teach, lecture,
or answer questions directly, forcing the group members to
learn through the dialectic process. Willow Creek is
not the only mega-church to use small, dialectic groups.
Rick Warren's Saddleback Community Church in Los Angeles
has a weekly attendance of over 15,000 people.
Warren encourages his parishioners
to join one of the thousands of small groups hosted by the
church. Warren explains the rationale for using small
groups as being "the most effective way of closing the
back door"19
of the church by entangling parishioners in relationships
they would hesitate to leave. While this may happen
naturally in many churches, at Saddleback it is a
calculated manipulation technique using the group dynamics
explained by Lewin. Many of the groups at saddleback
take on a distinct group therapy flavor:
"Many of our support groups
are related to providing support for and fellowship during
a specific stage of life, such as new parents, college
students, or empty nesters. Others deal with healing
specific hurts encountered by those who have lost a mate
by death or divorce. We also have a full menu of recovery
groups." 20
The
smorgasbord of support groups found at Saddleback and
other mega-churches was enough to prompt The Economist, in
an article tellingly entitled Therapy of the masses, to
state that "American churches are
therapeutic, not judgmental. They stress "soft" qualities
such as guidance and mutual help, not "hard" ones like sin
and damnation".21
If
American pastors are using the Hegelian dialectic process
on their parishioners, perhaps it's because they learned
it while attending a seminar, like the 'Interactive
team-building seminar' held in Fort Worth, Texas, and led
by Keith Kline, director of Southwestern Baptist
Theological Seminary's Center for Leadership Development,
and Christian futurist Leonard Sweet:
"Leadership development of
the future will be conversation-based, not [based] on
people attending conferences," Sweet said in an interview.
"With this interactive team-building seminar, Southwestern
is on the cutting edge of this new learning strategy."
Sweet told the group that people's method of learning is
being rewired. Just as people no longer watch TV the same
way they did in the days of "Father Knows Best," the style
of learning also is changing, and seminars need to change
in order to reach the postmodern world. "Seminars must
change from the seminars in the past where the style was,
'Come and hear a lecture,' to a more relational style of,
'Come and be a participant and a team-builder,'" Sweet
said. 22
Clearly,
the Hegelian dialectic has infiltrated Evangelic
Christianity at all levels under the guise of social
psychology, group therapy, team building, sensitivity,
compassion and tolerance. Although it can be shown
that the dialectic process was developed by an unbroken
procession of Marxists who harbored ill intent toward
democratic institutions - the question arises as to
whether it is harmful or beneficial to Christianity. One
might argue that, regardless of its roots, group therapy
seems very helpful to many people. Shouldn't the church,
therefore, embrace it? When used in the context of
ministry, the dialectic process, by it's very nature, is
in direct contradiction to the basic tenets of
Christianity. Christianity puts forward the concept
of an all-knowing Creator who exists outside of time and
space and who communicated certain absolute truths to his
creation which are preserved in scripture. A foundational
principle of Judeo-Christian thought is that man is not,
and will never be, equal to God. Where man is finite, God
is infinite. While man must struggle to acquire knowledge,
God is all-knowing, and has always been so.
In the
dialectic, the antithesis is considered to be equal to the
thesis. When the dialectic process is applied to
Christianity, the antithesis (our beliefs) is given parity
with God's truth (the thesis), thus negating God's
superiority, and destroying a cornerstone of Christian
theology. In his article, What's Wrong with the 21st
Century Church?, Dr. Robert Klenck explains why the
dialectic process will always lead to a dilution of the
Christian message:
"When
the Word of God is dialogued (as opposed to being taught
didactically) between believers and unbelievers, with
multiple Bible versions utilized...and consensus is
reached...then the message of the Word of God has been
watered down ever so slightly, and the participants have
been conditioned to accept (and even celebrate) their
compromise (synthesis)."
23
The
world's most respected authority on Christianity - Jesus
Christ - did not seem to favor subjecting his relationship
with His Father to a dialectical discussion. When tempting
Jesus in the wilderness, Satan appears to offer several
antitheses in an effort to bring about an attitudinal
change in Jesus. Jesus, however, doesn't take the bait,
and holds to his didactic thesis of God's word being the
absolute authority in a believer's life:
"But he answered and said, It
is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by
every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God".24
Jesus,
most obviously, would not get along well in most evangelic
Christian support groups.
Work Cited
1. TEXTUALITY AND IMAGINATION: THE
REFRACTED IMAGE OF HEGELIAN DIALECTIC ,
By: Schalow, Frank, Research in
Phenomenology, 00855553, 1996, Vol. 26
2. CIVIL SOCIETY AND ORTHODOX
CHRISTIANITY ,
By: Kharkhordin, Oleg, Europe-Asia
Studies, 09668136, Sep98, Vol. 50, Issue 6
3. THE PROJECT OF THE FRANKFURT
SCHOOL ,
By: Morgan, Ben, Telos, 00906514,
Spring2001, Issue 119
4. WHY THERE IS A CULTURE WAR ,
By: Fonte, John, Policy Review,
01465945, Dec2000-Jan2001, Issue 104
5. Jay, Martin, "The Dialectical
Imagination: A History of the Frankfurt School and the
Institute of Social Research, 1923-1950," University of
California Press, 1973.
6. Deaux, K. & Wrightsman, L S.
(1988) . Social Psychology. Pacific Grove: Brooks/Cole
Publishing.
7. Kurt Lewin, Group Decision and
Social Change, In Readings in Social Psychology by
Theodore M. Neweomb and Eugene L. Hartley, Co-Chairmen of
Editorial Committee, Henry Holt and Co., 1947, pp. 340-44)
8. ibid.
9. THE LEGACY OF MAX WERTHEIMER
AND GESTALT PSYCHOLOGY,
By: King, D. Brett, Wertheimer,
Michael, Social Research, 0037783X, Winter94, Vol. 61,
Issue 4
10. Paul Tillich, On the Idea of a
Theology of Culture
Religionsphilosophie der Kultur,
(Berlin: Reuther & Reichard, 1919)
11. The Need for More Preaching in
the Psychologist's Office or “Why Therapy Never Should
Have Left the Church in the First Place”
By: David E. Fitch, Pastoral
Psychology; Jan 2000, Vol. 48 Issue 3, p197, 13p
12. Pritchard, G.A. Willow Creek
Seeker Services, Baker Books, Grand Rapids, Michigan,
2001, p.274.
13. Gary Poole, Seeker Small
Groups, Zondervan, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 2003, p. 43
14. ibid p. 104
15. ibid, p. 105
16. ibid p. 107
17. ibid
18. ibid, p. 108
19. Rick Warren, The Purpose
Driven Church, Zondervan, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1995, p.
327
20. ibid, p. 146
21. Therapy of the masses,
Economist, 00130613, 11/8/2003, Vol. 369, Issue 8349
22. 'Interactive team-building
seminar' called cutting-edge way of learning
Nov 6, 2002 By Richard D.
McCormack BP News
http://www.baptistpress.com/bpnews.asp?ID=14603
23. What's Wrong with the 21st
Century Church? By: Dr. Robert Klenck
http://www.crossroad.to/News/Church/Klenck2.html
24. Jesus Christ, Sermon on the
Mount,
King James Version of the Bible,
Matthew 4:4
Background Sources:
What is the Frankfurt School?
by Dr. Gerald L. Atkinson CDR USN
(Ret.)
http://www.newtotalitarians.com/FrankfurtSchool.html
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