#Christ Centered Ministries Assembly

[jp-vampyrian616]

Pagan and witchcraft festivals confront growing Christian harassment

https://www.washingtonpost.com/religion/2022/08/26/christians-pagans-harassment/

As widespread immunity and milder coronavirus strains have spread across the United States, pagans and witches, like their neighbors, have begun to gather more freely this summer at annual community events after two years of relative isolation. So have some unwelcome guests. Street preachers and Christian protesters have long been a fixture of Earth-based religions’ gatherings as they try to distract and deter people from enjoying what are typically outdoor festivals and ritual gatherings. But this year, some attendees say, these opponents of witchcraft and paganism have become more aggressive and even dangerous.

“There were about 30 [evangelists] this year,” said Starr RavenHawk, an elder and priestess of the New York City Wiccan Family Temple and organizer of WitchsFest USA, a street fair held in the city’s West Village in mid-July.

Over the past seven years, barely a half dozen of these disrupters would show up, RavenHawk said. But the groups that have appeared this year “aren’t just protesting,” she added. “They are collectively at war with us. They made that clear.”

RavenHawk said the evangelists and street preachers walked through WitchsFest, holding up signs and preaching through amplifiers. By the day’s end, their presence had caused class cancellations and vendor closings. Without formal networks of houses of worship and often living far from fellow practitioners, American pagans and witches depend heavily on assemblies with names such as Pagan Pride and Between the Worlds to share information and camaraderie. While some are held inside conference centers or in hotel ballrooms, summer events tend to be visible and hard to secure.

In 2016, Nashville Pagan Pride Day was visited by street preachers Quentin Deckard, Marvin Heiman and Tim Baptist, who marched through the event with signs, Bibles and a bullhorn. In 2017, the Keys of David church protested Philadelphia Pagan Pride Day. In 2018, a Christian men’s group encircled a modest crowd at Auburn Pagan Pride Day in Alabama in an attempt to intimidate them.

Indoor events aren’t entirely immune. In 2018 and 2019, members of TFP Student Action, a division of American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property, were joined by Catholics in New Orleans to protest HexFest, held annually at the Bourbon Orleans Hotel. Religious fliers placed under hotel doors informed attendees they were surrounded. “Your only hope is to accept defeat and surrender your life to One who created you,” read one flier.

On the same weekend as WitchsFest USA, attendees at the Mystic South conference in Atlanta found Christian pamphlets in the lobby and on car windows outside the hotel where it was taking place. In Texas, pastor Kevin Hendrix has encouraged Christians to take a stand against the Polk County Pagan Market, held in October.

Many pagan events are not held in public spaces for this reason, although that has been changing over the past 10 years as occult practices have found more acceptance in the public eye.

Held in busy Astor Place, a tourist crossroads, the day-long WitchsFest USA is one of the most visible pagan festivals and, therefore, one of the most vulnerable.

“RavenHawk creates this marvelous event every year in the heart of New York City as a public celebration where everyone is welcome as long as they maintain an atmosphere of respect towards others,” said Elhoim Leafar, who was scheduled to lead a workshop at WitchsFest USA and has attended for years.

The Christian group took up a prominent position on one street corner as the festival began at 10 a.m. and began talking to attendees and preaching into amplification devices. Among them, RavenHawk said she recognized members of the New York City chapter of Christ’s Forgiveness Ministries, a Toronto organization that had sent visitors before.

After her security team asked the preachers to leave, RavenHawk called the police as she has done in past years. But, for the first time, the cops did nothing, she said.

“The Christians say nobody is being bothered,” RavenHawk was reportedly told by the officers. In past years, officers would relocate the preachers to the far side of Astor Place, where they would continue without the use of speakers, which require a permit.

This year, the Christian groups were allowed to remain at the festival with their sound amplification. According to RavenHawk, the officers called the preaching “freedom of speech.” It is unclear whether the groups had permits.

One attendee, Soror Da Glorium Deo, said, “When the police had the opportunity to downgrade things by possibly escorting the troublemakers off the area, they chose not to de-escalate.”

The New York Police Department did not respond to requests for comment.

“[The officers] treated us as if we were invading the Christians’ space, as if they had more rights than we do,” RavenHawk said. “[The preachers] were loud, and they were carrying on. Of course it was disruptive.”

When organizers moved the workshop tent away from the corner near the preachers, the Christian groups followed. “At a certain point, the protesters were not only in the surroundings and corners of the event with microphones and banners, but inside it,” said Leafar, whose class was canceled due to the preachers.

“We are not publicly protesting at their churches on a Sunday,” he said.

“It is not correct, moral or ethical to harass any individual in public or in private based on their individual or family beliefs,” Leafar said. He believes that this behavior comes from ignorance and a “contempt for our individual values.” By the middle of that day, two vendors had left, said RavenHawk, telling her that “they didn’t feel safe.”

RavenHawk said she is tired of “turning the other cheek.” She has called the city’s Street Activity Permit Office, the community board and the NYPD’s 9th Precinct. “I want a paper trail,” she said. “I want to know exactly what my rights are.”

RavenHawk also called Lady Liberty League, a pagan civil rights organization based in Wisconsin, for legal advice and support. “The United States is founded on religious freedom for all,” said Lady Liberty League co-founder the Rev. Selena Fox in a statement to RNS. “Safe gathering and the right to practice our faith is as much our right as it is anyone else’s,” she said. Some attendees have suggested that RavenHawk move the event to a less public location, such as a park or hotel.

“We shouldn’t have to move,” she said. “We fought for this location for eight years.” It took that long, according to RavenHawk, for the community board to designate “WitchsFest USA” an “annual” event. Until then she was required to reapply every year, she said, enduring questions such as, “Are you going to burn babies?” Leafar agrees that it is important to not back down. “If we remain silent in the face of these protesters, those people who are new to our community are going to feel that they do not have the right to express themselves and pursue their individual faith openly.”

— Religion News Service

[barbaramoorersm]

January 21, 2024

January 21, 2024

Third Sunday in Ordinary Time

Jonah 3: 1-5, 10

With God’s help and the preaching of Jonah, the city of Nineveh repented.

Psalm 25

The Psalmist reminds us to remember God’s goodness.

1st Corinthians 7: 29-31

Paul believes Christ’s return is eminent.

Mark 1: 14-20

After John’s arrest, Jesus begins to assemble his apostles.

The city of Nineveh is the center of our first reading from the prophet Jonah.  Many Jews were dispersed and living in exile.  And some lived in pagan cities like Nineveh in Assyria.   When God asks Jonah to preach to the city of Nineveh, he resists because they and the city are known for their wickedness.  But Jonah finally obeys and much to his surprise, conversion takes place among the people as well as their King.

The text that follows, tells us Jonah was angry with God because of God’s graciousness and forgiveness, and that God spares the wicked city.  God chastises him because the people of the great city did repent.  That repentance should make Jonah see the importance of the people’s reform and remind him that people and communities can change.  Remember the people of this great city were Gentiles. One author shares that “The extravagance of God’s mercy shocked Jonah…”  The outcasts are loved and accepted.  No matter who we are, or where we are from, what our culture, faith or status may be, we all are capable of mistakes and bad behavior, and we all are offered God’s forgiveness and genuine love.  We are all capable of change and growth.

We must admit that the Nineveh story continues to be played out in our own day and time.  White supremacy views abound, synagogues need protection, and immigration is feared.  Christian pastors and churches are dealing with these issues.  A recent book by Tim Alberta, entitled, “The Kingdom, The Power, And The Glory” addresses these issues and how some Christian churches seem to have lost their way.

Mark’s Gospel today recalls the opening days of Jesus’ ministry and his first steps to gather a band of disciples that he hopes, will assist him as he launches his ministry. John the Baptist predicts this step as he preaches, “This is the time of fulfillment. The kingdom of God is at hand.”  Jesus invites Simon and his brother Andrew as well as the brothers James and John to join him in inviting others into this “kingdom.”  But like Jonah in the first reading and many of us today, they will face difficult groups, antagonism, criticism, and rejection.  They will face people who accuse their leader of eating with sinners, tax collectors, and pagans.  They will also begin to realize that God loves and is merciful toward those their community despises. 

What are the lessons within these readings that we as Christians, especially during this new year are called to embrace?

God’s love is wider than ours, or any one institution that we call home.  None of us, no matter our race, sex, culture, or faith tradition should call the “other” inferior or not worth our attention or concern.  The sinful side of the City of Nineveh seems to be present and all around us during this very political season.  Lies abound, egos rule, violence and its threats appear to be the tools of some.  Some use the title of “Christian” and their interpretation of it to impose or force their views on others.  Immunity rather than responsibility is claimed by others.

And yet as we see in the city if Nineveh, God’s graciousness keeps being extended to all of us.  And you and I who carry the name Christian, are being invited to reflect that graciousness and love to one another especially as we enter this new year.  We face primaries, elections, political disagreements, wars, threats to democracy, and the list goes on. But all of us are living under the umbrella of God’s love, compassion and, acceptance.  May the citizens of Nineveh be our model and may all our actions be guided by God’s greatest commandment.  “Love one another as I have loved you.”

[wutbju]

Steven Lee Morris, age 72, died August 13, 2023, at Hutchinson Regional Medical Center following a short illness. He was born August 23, 1950, in Bethesda, Maryland to Ray and Violet Boehm Morris. He married Linda M. Shultz on July 8, 1978, in Hutchinson.

Steve was preceded in death by his parents, brother Richard Morris, brothers-in-law Don Meier and Ed Shultz, brother- and sister-in-law Bruce and Janice Shultz, and infant son Samuel Andrew Morris.

Steve is survived by his wife Linda and former foster daughter, Briana Gamblain-Weber, of the home. He is also survived by his brothers James (Jimmy) of Washington, D.C., and David (Dave). Other survivors include sister-in-law Wanda Morris Blevins of Culpeper, VA, sisters-in-law Theda Shultz and Marilyn Meier of Arlington, brother- and sister-in-law Ray and Evelyn Shultz of Randolph, KS, numerous nephews and nieces, cats Frankie and Pepper and his special companion, "nurse cat" Snowflake.

After graduation from Gar-Field High School in Woodbridge, VA, Steve began working for Dart Drug (81 stores in the metro D.C. area). A co-worker invited him to attend Marumsco Baptist Church, and Steve heard the Gospel for the first time: that Jesus Christ took our sin debt to the cross and paid the penalty of death, that He was buried, and that He arose after three days! Steve heard that he must be born again (John 3:7) by personally asking the Lord to forgive and save him. Steve had completed Confirmation classes, but realized that the waters of baptism can never cleanse the heart; only the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ can wash away sin. Steve gladly received Jesus Christ as his personal Saviour. "For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord, shall be saved," Romans 10:13. "Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Ghost" Titus 3:5.

Steve had a natural talent for drawing and Pastor Alec Bledsoe encouraged him to study art at Bob Jones University in Greenville, SC. Steve attended for two years. It was there that he met and fell in love with his wife Linda. After their marriage, the Morris's lived in Woodbridge for a year and Steve continued to work for Dart Drug.

Steve and Linda moved to Kansas in 1979, and Steve worked for Collins Bus as a wheelchair lift assembler, Walmart as a layaway associate, and Durham School Services as a bus driver. Steve was an enthusiastic league bowler with a 220 average. Steve enjoyed watching football on TV. It didn't matter to him who was playing, as long as the game was competitive. After retirement, Steve wrote and self-published (Amazon) two novels: Memories and Bad Men United – Déjà vu.

In the spring of 2002, Steve and Linda attended a revival service at Riverside Baptist Church, and Steve rededicated his life to the Lord. On May 12, 2002, Steve and Linda transferred their church membership to Riverside Baptist. Steve was later elected as Deacon. He also began representing the church in nursing home chapels. At one time, Steve preached in five different facilities. Steve encouraged the church to buy a bus with a wheelchair lift so he could pick up residents for the Sunday evening service. Because the residents had to miss supper to go to church, Steve would always stop at a fast-food restaurant and treat them to a meal before taking them back to the facility.

Steve's health began to decline following a bout with sepsis in 2021. Then in January 2022 he fell in the home and after spending almost a month in a hospital in Wichita, remained bedfast. Steve's hospital bed in the dining nook became the control central of the home. Using his laptop computer, he continued to create bulletins and word search puzzles for the nursing home ministry. He managed the family finances and ordered hard-to-find supplies online. Steve was Linda's go-to tech when she encountered problems with the desk computer, printer, or Wi-Fi router, and he was the one who reminded her to install computer updates. Needless to say, he also retained control of the TV remote.

Every evening at 9:30 Steve would ask Linda and Bri to come to family altar time. They took turns choosing a song to sing, and then they read a chapter in the Bible and prayed together. Steve loved his pastor Richard Haley dearly, along with church family. He very much appreciated their prayers, love, and support. We rejoice with Steve in his new home, complete with healthy body and sin-free mind.

The family thanks Enhabit Home Health and Enhabit Hospice for their wonderful care of Steve during the last year. What a blessing the Enhabit therapists, nurses, and other staff brought to our home! The family also thanks the staff of Hutchinson Regional Medical Center for the compassionate care that Steve and they received during the last week of his earthly life.

Funeral services will be held at 2:00 p.m., Friday, August 25, 2023, at Riverside Baptist Church, 1100 W. 21st Ave, Hutchinson, KS, with Pastor Richard Haley officiating. Visitation will be held on Thursday, August 24, 2023, from 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. at the church. Burial will take place at Memorial Park Cemetery, Hutchinson, KS. Memorials may be given to the Riverside Baptist Church- Academy Fund and can be sent in care of Hutchinson Funeral Chapel, 300 E. 30th Ave. Hutchinson, KS 67502.

[yellingintothedarkness]

Without leaving the campus sparks from the Asbury Revival are spreading like wildfire across the nation. The Holy Spirit is crossing state borders and national boundaries as He crosses denominational lines. A growing list of schools, churches, ministries and nations impacted by the outpouring of the Holy Spirit includes but is not limited to: GROUND ZERO — Asbury University (Wilmore, Kentucky); ✓Man of War Church (Lexington, Kentucky); ✓Arise Assembly of God Church (Brandon, Florida); ✓University of Cumberland (Williamsburg, Kentucky); ✓Samford University (Homewood, Alabama); ✓Pulse Evangelistic Ministry (Minneapolis, Minnesota); ✓Lee University (Cleveland, Tennessee); ✓Bethel Church (Redding, California); ✓Cedarville University (Cedarville, Ohio); ✓Fruitland Baptist College (Hendersonville, North Carolina); ✓Ohio Christian University (Circleville, Ohio); ✓King’s Way Church (Irondale, Alabama); ✓Campbellsville University (Campbellsville, Kentucky); ✓the River Church at Tampa Bay (Mango, Florida); ✓New Day Church (Paso Robles, California); ✓Colorado Christian University (Lakewood, Colorado); ✓Eastern Kentucky University (Richmond, Kentucky); ✓Eastern Nazarene University (Quincy, Massachusetts); ✓Georgetown University (Washington, DC); ✓God’s Bible College (Cincinnati, Ohio); ✓Indiana Wesleyan University (Marion, Indiana); ✓Hope College (Holland, Michigan); ✓Kentucky Mountain Bible College (Jackson, Kentucky); ✓Calvary Christian Center (Ormond Beach, Florida); ✓Heritage Fellowship Church (Florence, Kentucky); ✓Rock of Ages Church (Vine Grove, Kentucky); ✓Belmont University (Nashville, Tennessee); ✓Midway University (Midway, Kentucky); ✓Mount Vernon University (Mount Vernon, Ohio); ✓Olivet Nazarene University (Bourbonnais, Illinois); ✓Oral Roberts University (Tulsa, Oklahoma); ✓Greater Life Apostolic Church (Lake Charles, Louisiana); ✓The Ramp School of Ministry (Hamilton, Alabama); ✓Life Church (Little Rock, Arkansas); ✓New Beginnings Baptist Church (Longview, Texas); ✓Jackson High School (Jackson, Georgia); ✓Bethel Church (Austin, Texas); ✓Park Hill Church (Kansas City, Missouri); ✓Kingdom Life Church (Oakville, Maine); ✓Christ for the Nations Institute (Dallas, Texas); ✓Cornerstone University (Grand Rapids, Michigan); ✓Spring Arbor University (Spring Arbor, Michigan); ✓The Gate Church (Charlotte, North Carolina); ✓Phoenix Community Ministry (Athens, Georgia); and ✓Ottawa University (Surprise, Arizona).

There are also reports that revival is spreading

https://beforeitsnews.com/christian-news/2023/02/asbury-revival-update-4-the-campus-churches-and-community-are-overwhelmed-by-the-swelling-crowds-2613932.html

[carolap53]

FULFILLING THE FIVE FUNCTIONS OF THE CHURCH And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching. Hebrews 10:24-25

In the summer of 2010, I led an excellent team of Open Doors staff and supporters on a visit to North Korea. We were allowed to pray publically in the areas we visited and of course were presented with a formal church service on Sunday morning at one of the three churches functioning in Pyongyang. It was a well-executed performance–especially the choir. On its website, the Korean Christian Federation claims that there are ten thousand Protestant Christians in North Korea meeting at five hundred designated centers. In reality, Christians in the country experience tremendous challenges in worshipping publically.

Brother Simon, the leader of the Open Doors work in North Korea, says that the true church must operate underground in the country. “They can’t simply go to church to sing and to listen to the sermon. It is clear that being a Christian in North Korea is a lonely business.”

Simon’s thoughts turn to Sundays in North Korea. “It happens only sporadically that Christians consider themselves safe enough to meet together in small groups. Usually gatherings consist of only two people. For example, a Christian goes and sits on a bench in the park. Another Christian comes and sits next to him. Sometimes it’s dangerous even to speak to one another, but they know they are both Christians, and at such a time, this is enough. If there is no one around, they may be able to share a Bible verse which they have learned off by heart and briefly say something about it. They also share prayer topics with each other. Then they leave one another and go and look for a Christian in some other part of their town or village. This continues throughout the Sunday. A cell group usually consists of fewer than twenty Christians, who encourage and strengthen one another, plus one-to-one meetings in people’s homes.

“Only if the whole family has turned to Christ is it possible to have something like a real fellowship gathering, as long as you keep your faith hidden from the neighbours. Besides this, it is sometimes possible to hold a meeting in remote areas with a group of ten to twenty people. Very occasionally, it is possible for Christians to go unobtrusively into the mountains and to hold a ‘service’ at a secret location like a cave. Then it may be the case that there are as many as sixty or seventy North Korean Christians gathered together.”

In spite of severe limitations, believers can fulfill all five biblical functions of the church.

RESPONSE: I will thankfully take my place in the assembly of believers to fulfill the church’s functions.

PRAYER: Thank you Lord for the faithfulness of Your church in North Korea against all obstacles.

Open Doors Ministry

[cpmbumba2020]

October 22 | Memorial of St. John Paul II, Pope

“Open wide the doors to Christ,” urged John Paul II during the homily at the Mass where he was installed as pope in 1978.

Born in Wadowice, Poland, Karol Jozef Wojtyla had lost his mother, father, and older brother before his 21st birthday. Karol’s promising academic career at Krakow’s Jagiellonian University was cut short by the outbreak of World War II. While working in a quarry and a chemical factory, he enrolled in an “underground” seminary in Kraków. Ordained in 1946, he was immediately sent to Rome where he earned a doctorate in theology.

Back in Poland, a short assignment as assistant pastor in a rural parish preceded his very fruitful chaplaincy for university students. Soon Fr. Wojtyla earned a doctorate in philosophy and began teaching that subject at Poland’s University of Lublin.

Communist officials allowed Wojtyla to be appointed auxiliary bishop of Kraków in 1958, considering him a relatively harmless intellectual. They could not have been more wrong!

Bishop Wojtyla attended all four sessions of Vatican II and contributed especially to its Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World. Appointed as archbishop of Kraków in 1964, he was named a cardinal three years later.

Elected pope in October 1978, he took the name of his short-lived, immediate predecessor. Pope John Paul II was the first non-Italian pope in 455 years. In time, he made pastoral visits to 124 countries, including several with small Christian populations.

John Paul II promoted ecumenical and interfaith initiatives, especially the 1986 Day of Prayer for World Peace in Assisi. He visited Rome’s main synagogue and the Western Wall in Jerusalem; he also established diplomatic relations between the Holy See and Israel. He improved Catholic-Muslim relations, and in 2001 visited a mosque in Damascus, Syria.

The Great Jubilee of the Year 2000, a key event in John Paul’s ministry, was marked by special celebrations in Rome and elsewhere for Catholics and other Christians. Relations with the Orthodox Churches improved considerably during his papacy.

“Christ is the center of the universe and of human history” was the opening line of John Paul II’s 1979 encyclical, Redeemer of the Human Race. In 1995, he described himself to the United Nations General Assembly as “a witness to hope.”

His 1979 visit to Poland encouraged the growth of the Solidarity movement there and the collapse of communism in central and eastern Europe 10 years later. John Paul II began World Youth Day and traveled to several countries for those celebrations. He very much wanted to visit China and the Soviet Union, but the governments in those countries prevented that.

One of the most well-remembered photos of John Paul II’s pontificate was his one-on-one conversation in 1983, with Mehmet Ali Agca, who had attempted to assassinate him two years earlier.

In his 27 years of papal ministry, John Paul II wrote 14 encyclicals and five books, canonized 482 saints and beatified 1,338 people. In the last years of his life, he suffered from Parkinson’s disease and was forced to cut back on some of his activities.

Pope Benedict XVI beatified John Paul II in 2011, and Pope Francis canonized him in 2014.

Source: https://www.franciscanmedia.org/saint-of-the-day/saint-john-paul-ii

Photo and caption by: Simon Tanjutco

[trevisdampierministries]

May 27, 2022 - Watchman News - Acts 20:24 - Turkey-Syria War to Begin, Earthquake Warning over Atacama Giant, & More! from Trevis Dampier Ministries on Vimeo.

News Feed – liveactioneating.com/

VERSE OF THE DAY Acts 20:24 (New King James Version) But none of these things move me; nor do I count my life dear to myself, so that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.

Understanding of ARM vs Right Hand of Revelation 13;16-18 – youtu.be/o4nXtcnz0Ls

The Dove Release of Noah symbolism to the 3 End Times Ministry Segments – liveactioneating.com/2021/08/16/the-dove-release-of-noah-to-the-3-part-end-times-ministries/

Jacob ( Jesus) and His Work for the Father to gain Rachel (Bride of Christ),Leah (Israel), the Flocks (Church) and the World (Those that are lost) Timeline – 1988 -2028 – liveactioneating.com/2021/08/20/jacob-jesus-and-his-work-for-the-father-to-gain-rachel-bride-of-christleah-israel-the-flocks-church-and-the-world-those-that-are-lost-timeline-1988-2028/

________________________________________

Dream of Bill Larkin (7 Years Ago) La Palma Destruction Falling into the Sea – liveactioneating.com/2021/09/17/watch-vision-of-tsunami-in-east-coast-florida-new-jersey-underwater-bill-larkin-on-youtube/

________________________________________

High Watch Times

Nov 10th – Abomination of Desolation related to Daniel 9 & Jeremiah 52 Study by Leeland Jones

Nov 14th – Laudato Si (7 Year Covenant with Many to Begin)

Nov 18th-19th (Kislev 15) – when the Blood Moon occurs and the Abomination of Desolation according to the Book of Maccabees in 168 BCE.

Nov 21st – 17 Kislev (1947) – The United Nations General Assembly approves a plan for the partition of Palestine

Nov 23rd – Fibonacci Day (La Palma shown in I PET GOAT with Psalm 23 on the Wall + Math Equation of F = -F on Chalkboard)

Nov 26th – 7 Day Marker from Nov 19th Eclipse- 1 Kings 8:65

Nov 29th (Kislev 25) – This is 10 days from Nov 19th, brings us to Nov 29th, which is 4 years from the True Birth of Israel. Nov 29th, 1947 and the Parable of the Fig Tree.

Dec 1st (Kislev 27) – Forty days of rain end; begin 150 days of water’s swelling and churning,

Dec 3rd/4th – 14 Day Marker from Nov 19th Eclipse – 1 Kings 8:65

Dec 5th-6th – 8th Day of Hanukkah related to 1 Kings 8:65-66 and the 14 Days between the Blood Moons of Nov 19th-Dec 5th (Gen 8:5 – Tops of Mountain Seen – Noah Story)

Dec 7th-8th – 8th Day of Hanukkah (Torah Calendar). Ezekiel 1:1 on the 8th/9th – Ezekiel’s Vision of God

Dec 12th/13th (Tevet 8)- Festival of the Septuagint -Septuagint is Completed - Megillat Ta'anit (Daniel’s 70th Week) – 8th Day related to 1 Kings 8:66

Dec 14th – (Tevet 10) – Esther appears before Achashverosh for the first time and is chosen by him to be the Queen, Nebuchadnezzar besieged Jerusalem, Holocaust remembered in Israel

Dec 19th – Full Moon (Original 7th Day of Hanukkah 164 BCE)

Dec 21st – Winter begins in Israel (Midnight) (Original 8th Day of Hanukkah 164 BCE)

Dec 25th – Festival of the Septuagint -Septuagint is Completed - (Daniel’s 70th Week) – 8th Day related to 1 Kings 8:66 (Leeland Jones April 30th, 2018 - 1335 Day Count from Host of Daily Sacrifice

Jan 5, 2022 – 5G Turns On

Jan 8/9, 2022 – 1335 Day Count from Israel’s 70th Bday (911 Backwards)

Jan 11, 2022 – (Sh’Vat 9) or 911 backwards and 11/11

Jan 16/17, 2022 – Tu BiShevat – New Year for Trees & Full Moon

Feb 14-16, 2022 – Purim Katan – Adar I (Minor Purim) – Esther meets with the King, saves God’s People

Feb 20-23rd – 5 BCE Actual Esther Moment from Esther 9

March 15-20, 2022 – Purim - Adar II - Esther meets with the King, saves God’s People (Spring Equinox)

March 31st/April 1st – Swedish Boy’s Dream says we get pulled to Egypt on last day of March.

May 1st/2nd, 2022 – 150 Days from Kislev 27 (Iyar 0) New Moon

May 4th-7th, 2022 – Iyar 5, Israel celebrates it’s 74th Bday on the Hebrew Calendar

May 15th/16th, 2022 – Centered Blood Moon in between 100 Eclipses forward and Back

April 11th - 13th - (Nisan 10 & 11) - Fast of Nadab and Abihu & Fast of Ezra, Aliyah Day, Triumphal Entry of Jesus, Israel with Joshua enter Promise Land

April 14th - 23rd - (Nisan 13-21) - Fast of the FirstBorn & Fast of Esther begins, Passover

April 26th - (Nisan 26) - Israel Holocaust Memorial Day

April 30th/May 1st - Partial Solar Eclipse

May 28th/29th - Aliyah of Messiah (40 Days from Nisan 17) - Jerusalem Unification Day - 53 Yrs Old - Paul's Journey Age 53-58 (5 Days) This literally takes us to Pentecost as mentioned in the Scripture Timeline

June 2nd/3rd - The Day the Sun and Moon Stood Still - Joshua 10:12-15 . Possible UFO Landing in D.C.? The Day the Earth Stood Still Movie

June 4th/5th - Pentecost- Ezekiel’s Vision of Jesus on the Throne - Chariots of Wheels and the Angels ________________________________________

Prepare for the Coming of the Lord Jesus Christ!

Please repent and accept the free gift of Jesus Christ’s Death on the Cross for payment for your sins.

[redcarpetview]

Celebrated New York Choir Director Chantel R. Wright’s Youth Group Pneumatica Performs at ‘Gospel Night’ in Harlem

  (New York, NY – July 24, 2019) – Celebrated New York Choir Director Chantel R. Wright continues to celebrate the release of the group’s debut CD project, Chantel R. Wright Presents Pneumatica: All We Need. On Thursday, July 25th, the nine-member inspired youth-ensemble will join music artists Songs of Solomon, Petula Beckles, and Mark Prentice to perform a free concert at “Gospel Night” in Harlem from 5:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m., located at Adam Clayton Powell, Jr. State Office Building, 163 West 125th Street, New York, NY.

     Pnematica’s new single, “The One Who Endures,” recently released to Gospel radio was first presented at Carnegie Hall in April 2018 as part of the renowned venue’s “Our Voices” series. Featuring Wright and group member Nia Gaines-Greenwood, the song is buoyed by funky drums, fervent organ and slick picking guitar over jazzy chord changes reminiscent of The O’Jays’ classic “Family Reunion.”

    Produced by Wright and group member Orson Benjamin, who co-wrote the songs on the project, All We Need is an off-shoot of Wright’s 60-member choir Songs of Solomon. All We Need is available on iTunes and Amazon, and other digital music platforms worldwide.

   Released by label owners Damien L. Sneed and Bishop Iona Locke on LeChateau Earl Records, the vocal ensemble includes Orson Benjamin, Nia Gaines-Greenwood, Richard Sullivan, Jr., Yeshak A. Pellot, Yvette Benjamin, Alicia J. Etienne, Jamar Johnson and Faith Smith, who are also members of Pneuma Ministries.

    ABOUT CHANTEL R. WRIGHT

Chantel R. Wright is one of the most gifted, experienced, learned and anointed ministers of music blessing the world today. As a pastor, award-winning choral conductor, orchestral conductor, educator, community activist and spiritual advisor operating out of her home base of New York City, Chantel Wright has traveled to many parts of the world spreading God’s loving messages, the joy of music and the audacity of hope. 

    Wright was consecrated as a Bishop in the Lord’s Church known as Christ Centered Ministries Assembly (CCMA) and is given episcopal charge over Virginia, West Virginia, Kentucky, and Utah. Wright is a Choral Union president of the Thomas Dorsey National Convention of Gospel Choirs and Choruses, where she is on the national board of directors. She can also be found on WLIB-AM as the host of “The Hour of Power.” She is a recipient of The New York Times Teachers Who Matters Most Award, among numerous other awards and honors.

   For more information on Chantel R. Wright and Pneumatica, please visit www.bishopcrwright.org, and www.pneumaministers.org.

[araitsume]

The Acts of the Apostles, pp. 291-297: Chapter (28) Days of Toil and Trial

This chapter is based on Acts 19:21-41; 20:1.

For over three years Ephesus was the center of Paul's work. A flourishing church was raised up here, and from this city the gospel spread throughout the province of Asia, among both Jews and Gentiles.

The apostle had now for some time been contemplating another missionary journey. He “purposed in the spirit, when he had passed through Macedonia and Achaia, to go to Jerusalem, saying, After I have been there, I must also see Rome.” In harmony with this plan “he sent into Macedonia two of them that ministered unto him, Timotheus and Erastus;” but feeling that the cause in Ephesus still demanded his presence, he decided to remain until after Pentecost. An event soon occurred, however, which hastened his departure.

Once a year, special ceremonies were held at Ephesus in honor of the goddess Diana. These attracted great numbers of people from all parts of the province. Throughout this period, festivities were conducted with the utmost pomp and splendor.

This gala season was a trying time for those who had newly come to the faith. The company of believers who met in the school of Tyrannus were an inharmonious note in the festive chorus, and ridicule, reproach, and insult were freely heaped upon them. Paul's labors had given the heathen worship a telling blow, in consequence of which there was a perceptible falling off in the attendance at the national festival and in the enthusiasm of the worshipers. The influence of his teachings extended far beyond the actual converts to the faith. Many who had not openly accepted the new doctrines became so far enlightened as to lose all confidence in their heathen gods.

There existed also another cause of dissatisfaction. An extensive and profitable business had grown up at Ephesus from the manufacture and sale of small shrines and images, modeled after the temple and the image of Diana. Those interested in this industry found their gains diminishing, and all united in attributing the unwelcome change to Paul's labors.

Demetrius, a manufacturer of silver shrines, calling together the workmen of his craft, said: “Sirs, ye know that by this craft we have our wealth. Moreover ye see and hear, that not alone at Ephesus, but almost throughout all Asia, this Paul hath persuaded and turned away much people, saying that they be no gods, which are made with hands: so that not only this our craft is in danger to be set at nought; but also that the temple of the great goddess Diana should be despised, and her magnificence should be destroyed, whom all Asia and the world worshipeth.” These words roused the excitable passions of the people. “They were full of wrath, and cried out, saying, Great is Diana of the Ephesians.”

A report of this speech was rapidly circulated. “The whole city was filled with confusion.” Search was made for Paul, but the apostle was not to be found. His brethren, receiving an intimation of the danger, had hurried him from the place. Angels of God had been sent to guard the apostle; his time to die a martyr's death had not yet come.

Failing to find the object of their wrath, the mob seized “Gaius and Aristarchus, men of Macedonia, Paul's companions in travel,” and with these “they rushed with one accord into the theater.”

Paul's place of concealment was not far distant, and he soon learned of the peril of his beloved brethren. Forgetful of his own safety, he desired to go at once to the theater to address the rioters. But “the disciples suffered him not.” Gaius and Aristarchus were not the prey the people sought; no serious harm to them was apprehended. But should the apostle's pale, care-worn face be seen, it would arouse at once the worst passions of the mob and there would not be the least human possibility of saving his life.

Paul was still eager to defend the truth before the multitude, but he was at last deterred by a message of warning from the theater. “Certain of the chief of Asia, which were his friends, sent unto him, desiring him that he would not adventure himself into the theater.”

The tumult in the theater was continually increasing. “Some ... cried one thing, and some another: for the assembly was confused; and the more part knew not wherefore they were come together.” The fact that Paul and some of his companions were of Hebrew extraction made the Jews anxious to show plainly that they were not sympathizers with him and his work. They therefore brought forward one of their own number to set the matter before the people. The speaker chosen was Alexander, one of the craftsmen, a coppersmith, to whom Paul afterward referred as having done him much evil. 2 Timothy 4:14. Alexander was a man of considerable ability, and he bent all his energies to direct the wrath of the people exclusively against Paul and his companions. But the crowd, seeing that Alexander was a Jew, thrust him aside, and “all with one voice about the space of two hours cried out, Great is Diana of the Ephesians.”

At last, from sheer exhaustion, they ceased, and there was a momentary silence. Then the recorder of the city arrested the attention of the crowd, and by virtue of his office obtained a hearing. He met the people on their own ground and showed that there was no cause for the present tumult. He appealed to their reason. “Ye men of Ephesus,” he said, “what man is there that knoweth not how that the city of the Ephesians is a worshiper of the great goddess Diana, and of the image which fell down from Jupiter? Seeing then that these things cannot be spoken against, ye ought to be quiet, and to do nothing rashly. For ye have brought hither these men, which are neither robbers of churches, nor yet blasphemers of your goddess. Wherefore if Demetrius, and the craftsmen which are with him, have a matter against any man, the law is open, and there are deputies: let them implead one another. But if ye inquire anything concerning other matters, it shall be determined in a lawful assembly. For we are in danger to be called in question for this day's uproar, there being no cause whereby we may give an account of this concourse. And when he had thus spoken, he dismissed the assembly.”

In his speech Demetrius had said, “This our craft is in danger.” These words reveal the real cause of the tumult at Ephesus, and also the cause of much of the persecution which followed the apostles in their work. Demetrius and his fellow craftsmen saw that by the teaching and spread of the gospel the business of image making was endangered. The income of pagan priests and artisans was at stake, and for this reason they aroused against Paul the most bitter opposition.

The decision of the recorder and of others holding honorable offices in the city had set Paul before the people as one innocent of any unlawful act. This was another triumph of Christianity over error and superstition. God had raised up a great magistrate to vindicate His apostle and hold the tumultuous mob in check. Paul's heart was filled with gratitude to God that his life had been preserved and that Christianity had not been brought into disrepute by the tumult at Ephesus.

“After the uproar was ceased, Paul called unto him the disciples, and embraced them, and departed for to go into Macedonia.” On this journey he was accompanied by two faithful Ephesian brethren, Tychicus and Trophimus.

Paul's labors in Ephesus were concluded. His ministry there had been a season of incessant labor, of many trials, and of deep anguish. He had taught the people in public and from house to house, with many tears instructing and warning them. Continually he had been opposed by the Jews, who lost no opportunity to stir up the popular feeling against him.

And while thus battling against opposition, pushing forward with untiring zeal the gospel work, and guarding the interests of a church yet young in the faith, Paul was bearing upon his soul a heavy burden for all the churches.

News of apostasy in some of the churches of his planting caused him deep sorrow. He feared that his efforts in their behalf might prove to be in vain. Many a sleepless night was spent in prayer and earnest thought as he learned of the methods employed to counteract his work. As he had opportunity and as their condition demanded, he wrote to the churches, giving reproof, counsel, admonition, and encouragement. In these letters the apostle does not dwell on his own trials, yet there are occasional glimpses of his labors and sufferings in the cause of Christ. Stripes and imprisonment, cold and hunger and thirst, perils by land and by sea, in the city and in the wilderness, from his own countrymen, from the heathen, and from false brethren—all this he endured for the sake of the gospel. He was “defamed,” “reviled,” made “the offscouring of all things,“ “perplexed,” “persecuted,” “troubled on every side,” “in jeopardy every hour,” “alway delivered unto death for Jesus’ sake.”

Amidst the constant storm of opposition, the clamor of enemies, and the desertion of friends the intrepid apostle almost lost heart. But he looked back to Calvary and with new ardor pressed on to spread the knowledge of the Crucified. He was but treading the blood-stained path that Christ had trodden before him. He sought no discharge from the warfare till he should lay off his armor at the feet of his Redeemer.

[cassianus]

The New Evangelization Begins in the Confessional

What is the new evangelization?

The expression “new evangelization” was popularized by the important apostolic exhortation of Blessed Paul VI, Evangelii Nuntiandi, as a response to the new challenges that the contemporary world creates for the mission of the Church. As Saint John Paul II tells us in Crossing the Threshold of Hope, the new evangelization has nothing in common with restoration, proselytism, pluralism or tolerance: instead, against the spirit of the world, the Church takes up anew each day a struggle that is none other than the struggle for the world’s soul. Saint John Paul concluded that in its ever renewed encounter with man, evangelization is linked to generational change. Generations come and go which have distanced themselves from Christ and the Church, which have accepted a secular model of thinking and living. Meanwhile, the Church is always looking toward the future and She constantly goes out to meet new generations. And new generations clearly seem to be accepting with enthusiasm what their elders seem to have rejected.

Where does the new evangelization begin?

In a speech addressed to priests and deacons at an audience with the Pope in 2012, Pope Benedict XVI maintained that the new evangelization begins in the confessional. Consciousness of one’s own sinful condition helps one to realize the need for “openness of heart” to God. “The certainty that He is close and His mercy awaits the human being, even one who is involved in sin, in order to heal his weakness with the grace of the Sacrament of Reconciliation, is always a ray of hope for the world”, Pope Benedict said. The real conversion of our hearts means opening ourselves to God’s transforming and renewing action. In confession, through the freely bestowed action of divine Mercy, repentant sinners are justified, pardoned and sanctified and they abandon their former selves to be re-clothed in the new.

The necessity of confession

Confession is a part of our great Catholic heritage and has been practiced by our Christian ancestors since the earliest days of the Church. In the Teaching of the Twelve Apostles (Didache, ca. 100) it states quite unambiguously: “Assemble on the Lord’s day and break bread and offer the Eucharist, but first make confession of your faults” (14, 1). In his groundbreaking work, Jesus of Nazareth, Part Two, Pope Benedict XVI reminds us that although we are saved by our baptism, “even the baptized remain sinners, so they need confession of sins, for in the life of Christians, –for table fellowship with the Lord– it constantly requires completion: washing of the feet”. In the First Letter of John we read, “If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just, and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us” (1:8-10). According to Pope Benedict XVI, the use of the word “cleanse” signals an inner connection with the foot-washing passage. In confession, the Lord washes our soiled feet over and over again and prepares us for table fellowship with him. In the humble gesture of the washing of the feet is an expression of the entire ministry of Jesus’ life and death. The Lord stands before us as the servant of God –he who for our sake becomes one who serves, who carries our burden and so grants us true purity, the capacity to draw close to God.

Medicine for the Soul

The sacrament of the forgiveness of sins presupposes sins to be forgiven. What then is sin? Sin means disobedience to God’s commandments. It is a moral lapse, a free choice of the will. Sin must be admitted if it is to be forgiven, because we cannot be forgiven for sins we do not confess and repent of. “When Christ’s faithful strive to confess all the sins that they can remember, they undoubtedly place all of them before the divine mercy for pardon. But those who fail to do so and knowingly withhold some, place nothing before the divine goodness for remission… for if the sick person is too ashamed to show his wound to the doctor, the medicine cannot heal” (CCC 1456). “Sin is in the soul what disease is in the body. Forgiveness is a healing operation, a real spiritual change: it requires the light of truth to shine on it – by confession – and only then can we find peace.” (Dr. Peter Kreeft)

The joy after confession

As C. S. Lewis noted, “Humility, after the first shock is a cheerful virtue.” The greatest saints have always had the greatest joy –for joy is one of the fruits of the Holy Spirit (Gal 5:22). Yet these same saints see themselves as the greatest sinners. Pascal said there are only two kinds of people: saints, who know they are sinners, and sinners, who think they are saints. The confession of sin frees us and facilitates our reconciliation with others. Through an admission of sin, “man looks squarely at the sins he is guilty of, takes responsibility for them, and thereby opens himself again to God and to the communion of the Church.” (CCC 1455) On the level of human psychology, each of us needs to “let it all out” and “unload” so that our conscience may be clear. Thomas A Kempis exhorts us to maintain a clean conscience, stating : “Have therefore a clean conscience and thou shalt always have gladness. A good conscience may bear many wrongs, and is ever merry and glad in adversities; but an evil conscience is always fearful and unquiet.” Pardon and peace come from confession. “The forgiven penitent is reconciled with himself in his inmost being, where he regains his innermost truth… He is reconciled with all creation.” (CCC 1469) Following confession, the penitent finds peace and serenity with strong spiritual consolation. It is a peace that includes wholeness, harmony and a right relationship with God, self, and others. It is an echo from Eden and a foretaste of heaven. This is the peace Jesus Christ gives, “not as the world gives” (John 14:27).

Confession for conversion to holiness

All of us are under a continuing need for conversion. Conversion begins in Baptism, but conversion does not end in Baptism. It is an ongoing process because it is an ongoing need. Thomas A Kempis enlightens us in The Imitation of Christ with his observation, “How great is the frailty of human nature which is ever prone to evil! Today you confess your sins and tomorrow you again commit the sins which you confessed. One moment you resolve to be careful, and yet after an hour you act as though you had made no resolution.” Baptism is our first conversion, but through confession we undergo a second conversion because we are always in need of purification. St. Ambrose says of the two conversions that in the Church, “there are water and tears: the water of Baptism and the tears of repentance.” Pope Benedict states that the new evangelization draws its lifeblood from the holiness of the children of the Church, from the daily journey of personal and community conversion in order to be ever more closely conformed to Christ. There is a close connection between holiness and the Sacrament of Reconciliation, witnessed by all the saints of history. In the Introduction to the Devout Life, St. Francis de Sales encourages us towards repentant conversion in order to gain holiness, urging: “Even as a man just recovering from illness walks only so far as he is obliged to go, with a slow and weary step, so the converted sinner journeys along as far as God commands him but slowly and wearily, until he attains a spirit of true devotion, and then, like a sound man, he not only gets along, but he runs and leaps in the way of God’s Commands, and hastens gladly along the paths of heavenly counsels and inspirations.”

Through confession we emerge renewed

Pope Benedict XVI summarized the benefits of confession saying, “In the celebration of the Sacrament of Reconciliation, the faithful have a real experience of that Mercy which Jesus of Nazareth, Lord and Christ has given to us, so that they themselves will become credible witnesses of that holiness which is the aim of the New Evangelization.” As Saint John Paul II indicated, the new evangelization is about the struggle for man’s soul: and the way to regain the souls of men is to give them a new beginning through the sacrament that renews our encounter with Christ. Our Holy Father Pope Benedict concluded his remarks to Priests in 2012 with this strong appeal: “This is my hope for each one of you: may the newness of Christ always be the center and reason for your priestly existence, so that those who meet you through your ministry may exclaim as did Andrew and John ‘we have found the Messiah’ (John 1:41). In this way, every Confession, from which each Christian will emerge renewed, will be a step ahead in the New Evangelization. May Mary, Mother of Mercy, Refuge for us sinners and Star of the New Evangelization, accompany us on our way.”

[frederickwiddowson]

The Acts of the Apostles, the history of the early church, by Luke the physician - Acts 6:1-7 comments : choosing the seven, including Stephen

Acts 6:1 ¶  And in those days, when the number of the disciples was multiplied, there arose a murmuring of the Grecians against the Hebrews, because their widows were neglected in the daily ministration. 2  Then the twelve called the multitude of the disciples unto them, and said, It is not reason that we should leave the word of God, and serve tables. 3  Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business. 4  But we will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to the ministry of the word. 5 And the saying pleased the whole multitude: and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Ghost, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolas a proselyte of Antioch: 6  Whom they set before the apostles: and when they had prayed, they laid their hands on them. 7  And the word of God increased; and the number of the disciples multiplied in Jerusalem greatly; and a great company of the priests were obedient to the faith.

 If Ananias and Sapphira weren’t enough to throw a monkey wrench into communism, then the murmuring and complaining of the Greek Christians against the Jews would. Their complaint was that their own widows were being neglected. Every church at some point, because it is composed of fallible human beings, although hopefully saved human beings, who will argue and whose self-centered egos will sow discord and there is often favoritism and cliques, the in-crowd, will have these problems. This can lead to people being neglected or perceiving that they are being neglected. If this is typical human behavior, even saved human behavior on this scale imagine how hopeless communism would be on a national scale.

 The twelve Apostles were already overworked and needed help and so they could focus on the ministry of the word they needed deacons to assist them with the care of the congregation. I am reminding of Moses and how he was in danger of being crushed by his responsibility. He took the advice of his father-in-law, Jethro, to keep from burning out.

 Exodus 18:13 ¶  And it came to pass on the morrow, that Moses sat to judge the people: and the people stood by Moses from the morning unto the evening. 14 And when Moses’ father in law saw all that he did to the people, he said, What is this thing that thou doest to the people? why sittest thou thyself alone, and all the people stand by thee from morning unto even? 15  And Moses said unto his father in law, Because the people come unto me to enquire of God: 16  When they have a matter, they come unto me; and I judge between one and another, and I do make them know the statutes of God, and his laws. 17  And Moses’ father in law said unto him, The thing that thou doest is not good. 18  Thou wilt surely wear away, both thou, and this people that is with thee: for this thing is too heavy for thee; thou art not able to perform it thyself alone. 19  Hearken now unto my voice, I will give thee counsel, and God shall be with thee: Be thou for the people to God-ward, that thou mayest bring the causes unto God: 20 And thou shalt teach them ordinances and laws, and shalt shew them the way wherein they must walk, and the work that they must do. 21  Moreover thou shalt provide out of all the people able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness; and place such over them, to be rulers of thousands, and rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens: 22  And let them judge the people at all seasons: and it shall be, that every great matter they shall bring unto thee, but every small matter they shall judge: so shall it be easier for thyself, and they shall bear the burden with thee. 23  If thou shalt do this thing, and God command thee so, then thou shalt be able to endure, and all this people shall also go to their place in peace. 24  So Moses hearkened to the voice of his father in law, and did all that he had said. 25  And Moses chose able men out of all Israel, and made them heads over the people, rulers of thousands, rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens. 26 And they judged the people at all seasons: the hard causes they brought unto Moses, but every small matter they judged themselves. 27  And Moses let his father in law depart; and he went his way into his own land.

 Seven men are chosen to oversee service to the congregation in the way of physical needs. Most commentators report that these and those who follow after them were called deacons. There are later listed certain requirements and restrictions for deacons.

 1Timothy 3:8 ¶  Likewise must the deacons be grave, not doubletongued, not given to much wine, not greedy of filthy lucre; 9  Holding the mystery of the faith in a pure conscience. 10  And let these also first be proved; then let them use the office of a deacon, being found blameless. 11  Even so must their wives be grave, not slanderers, sober, faithful in all things. 12  Let the deacons be the husbands of one wife, ruling their children and their own houses well. 13  For they that have used the office of a deacon well purchase to themselves a good degree, and great boldness in the faith which is in Christ Jesus.

 Roman documents suggest that the early church had female deacons as well.

 Pliny the Younger was the governor Bithynia in what we know today as Turkey, geographically Asia Minor. He wrote a letter about Christians to the Emperor Trajan around 115AD. Here is the content of what we have today. Paul could not go to Bithynia but Peter may have gone there.

Acts 16:7  After they were come to Mysia, they assayed to go into Bithynia: but the Spirit suffered them not.

1Peter 1:1  Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the strangers scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia,

Here is one translation from the Latin between the two men.

“Pliny the Younger to the Emperor Trajan

It is my practice, my lord, to refer to you all matters concerning which I am in doubt. For who can better give guidance to my hesitation or inform my ignorance? I have never participated in trials of Christians. I therefore do not know what offenses it is the practice to punish or investigate, and to what extent. And I have been not a little hesitant as to whether there should be any distinction on account of age or no difference between the very young and the more mature; whether pardon is to be granted for repentance, or, if a man has once been a Christian, it does him no good to have ceased to be one; whether the name itself, even without offenses, or only the offenses associated with the name are to be punished.

Meanwhile, in the case of those who were denounced to me as Christians, I have observed the following procedure: I interrogated these as to whether they were Christians; those who confessed I interrogated a second and a third time, threatening them with punishment; those who persisted I ordered executed. For I had no doubt that, whatever the nature of their creed, stubbornness and inflexible obstinacy surely deserve to be punished. There were others possessed of the same folly; but because they were Roman citizens, I signed an order for them to be transferred to Rome.

Soon accusations spread, as usually happens, because of the proceedings going on, and several incidents occurred. An anonymous document was published containing the names of many persons. Those who denied that they were or had been Christians, when they invoked the gods in words dictated by me, offered prayer with incense and wine to your image, which I had ordered to be brought for this purpose together with statues of the gods, and moreover cursed Christ--none of which those who are really Christians, it is said, can be forced to do--these I thought should be discharged. Others named by the informer declared that they were Christians, but then denied it, asserting that they had been but had ceased to be, some three years before, others many years, some as much as twenty-five years. They all worshipped your image and the statues of the gods, and cursed Christ.

They asserted, however, that the sum and substance of their fault or error had been that they were accustomed to meet on a fixed day before dawn and sing responsively a hymn to Christ as to a god, and to bind themselves by oath, not to some crime, but not to commit fraud, theft, or adultery, not falsify their trust, nor to refuse to return a trust when called upon to do so. When this was over, it was their custom to depart and to assemble again to partake of food--but ordinary and innocent food. Even this, they affirmed, they had ceased to do after my edict by which, in accordance with your instructions, I had forbidden political associations. Accordingly, I judged it all the more necessary to find out what the truth was by torturing two female slaves who were called deaconesses. But I discovered nothing else but depraved, excessive superstition.

I therefore postponed the investigation and hastened to consult you. For the matter seemed to me to warrant consulting you, especially because of the number involved. For many persons of every age, every rank, and also of both sexes are and will be endangered. For the contagion of this superstition has spread not only to the cities but also to the villages and farms. But it seems possible to check and cure it. It is certainly quite clear that the temples, which had been almost deserted, have begun to be frequented, that the established religious rites, long neglected, are being resumed, and that from everywhere sacrificial animals are coming, for which until now very few purchasers could be found. Hence it is easy to imagine what a multitude of people can be reformed if an opportunity for repentance is afforded.

Trajan to Pliny the Younger

You observed proper procedure, my dear Pliny, in sifting the cases of those who had been denounced to you as Christians. For it is not possible to lay down any general rule to serve as a kind of fixed standard. They are not to be sought out; if they are denounced and proved guilty, they are to be punished, with this reservation, that whoever denies that he is a Christian and really proves it--that is, by worshiping our gods--even though he was under suspicion in the past, shall obtain pardon through repentance. But anonymously posted accusations ought to have no place in any prosecution. For this is both a dangerous kind of precedent and out of keeping with the spirit of our age.”(1)

(1)   http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/text/pliny.html. (accessed 3.28.2018).

  Female deacons were also present in the early Baptist churches of the seventeenth century.(2)

 (2)   McBeth, H. Leon. The Baptist Heritage (Kindle Location 780). B&H Publishing. Kindle Edition.

 Laying hands on someone to confer a blessing or authority was established a long time prior to this.

 Deuteronomy 34:9 ¶  And Joshua the son of Nun was full of the spirit of wisdom; for Moses had laid his hands upon him: and the children of Israel hearkened unto him, and did as the LORD commanded Moses.

 Notice how what was in the beginning thought to be merely a sect of Judaism was cutting into the company of the priests.

[bestcollegeadvisor101]

Pioneers in Christian Counseling

Gladys K. Mwiti, M. A., a counseling psychologist, is the Founder and Execute have Director of Oasis Counseling and Training Institute in Nairobi, Kenya. In addition to her work at Oasis, Gladys is the Chairman in the Christian Counselors Association of Kenya. Her husband, Gershon, is the national team leader of African Company, an indigenous African counseling ministry. Gladys and Gershon have three daughters and one son. At the 1997 AACC World Conference in November, I spent some time with Gladys, talking about her pioneer work through Kenya. Tell me about yourself, your background, and how you encountered God. I was born in Meru District in Kenya, which is near the snow-capped, northern slopes of Mt. Kenya. Its quite a cold vicinity indeed. I grew up in a Christian home. My mother loves the Lord. She has always been a woman of prayer, and Id love to be like her. She used to take me to church and to huge conventions. With Africa, we have the huge, evangelistic meetings, people sitting on the green grass under the sun. That's the types of setting where I receive the Lord as my Savior. We were at a 3, 000-strong convention and also the gospel was preached from John 3: 16. I remember that the preacher said, It is not so much the sin you have committed in your life; it's that the Lord loves you so , so much, and what he is asking you can be, Could you love me a little bit in return? As a seven year old, I did not see my sin consequently a bad thing. I knew I was guilty of licking the cream off the top of the milk as soon as my mom was not looking or taking and eating bread from the cupboard. What I really saw on myself that day was a heart that was desired and longed to know the love of Goodness. I probably should mention that my father used to be a Christian. He brought my mother to the Head of the family before they got married. She had never been to church, so when they met, my father took the woman's to church, and she accepted the Lord as her Savior in the East African Revival of the missed 1940's - 1950's that transformed most of the church is in Kenya to evangelical church is. Mom arrived at know the Lord in that revival, but then Dad backslid. He left Christianity he got richer, he grew to be a businessman, a farmer, and its as if he did not need much from the Lord. He even wedded a second wife, and there was a lot of tension and stress at home. Sometimes as a child I wished there would be more peace in my home. Dad would drink alcohol, come home sometimes, and rough up my mother. I actually longed for fatherly love, a father I could trust. There was so much insecurity with my dad, that when Document heard the preacher talking about a God who loved me, I longed for that security. I was aware that if this God was the God of my mother, I could rely on him as a father. In the event the altar call was made that day, I literally ran to the front, joining hundreds of other people. At this point, it's not unusual to dismiss or take lightly the fervent commitment of children at the revivals. A lot of people think that young children cannot make a decision for the Lord. But when I went to the front among the crowd of adults that will day, an old man around 70 years old he was wearing a huge coat, and he had such substantial, soft hand same to me, bent on his knee, and just gathered me to himself, hugging myself. I remember disappearing into his coat, and it was so sweet and comfortable, I did not want to give there. I still remember the smell of his coat today. He just hugged me to help himself, and that symbolized acceptance of me, a child, in the church of Christ. It also represented security and then a sense of belonging. I was one of the brethren. From then on, the church took me seriously, because the following that Sunday, they put me up on a table and asked me to share my testimony of everything that the Lord had done! I spoke out, and I am told today that some people were challenged and cried as a result of my testimony. From that time, I have not stopped talking about the Lord. I have talked to 1000s of young people in schools, women ministries, and couples ministries. After I married my husband, Gershon, who is an evangelist, we went on preaching together. I went to college, got my education, and taught physics and chemical make up in school for about 14 years before the Lord called me to the ministry of counseling. How have you ever seen the field of counseling center and change the part of the world where you work? Some people are literally pioneers in the field of counseling in the countries. When I began the Oasis Counseling Center in 1990, I knew very few people who were in full-time Christian counseling in Kenya. So I have actually been a part of that ministry of premiering professional Christian counseling. There's very little lay counseling, so most of my time is definitely spent in equipping the church to be a counseling community, rather than waiting for people to crumble and then coming to Oasis. The changes that I have seen are changes that have come through some of us in the field. The counseling ministry in Kenya is professional, Christian, and boldly prevent have in nature. Many people have opened the entranceway to us since my husband and I have worked with the church for a long time. We have been able to introduce programs like couples workshops along with our preaching and evangelism. The credibility of our lifestyle encouraged people to trust us. We seen doors swinging open from bishops to lay people, and I think this is what has helped counseling to advance through Africa. Yes, it's true. The reason I decided to change professions was because of the students who secured bringing their problems to me. I discovered that the kids had so many problems that I was not able to help these adequately. What actually drove me into counseling was the following story. I was a deputy major in a girl's high school. One morning I was just about to do assembly for the Morning Prayer when a person came running into school crying. I could see she was really stressed. Mrs. Mwiti, I need to talk to everyone right now. Susan, I cannot talk to you now, were just about to do assembly. But I have got to talk to most people! She said. OK, I said. Go to my office, and I will talk to you as soon as I am as a result of with assembly. When I finished assembly and went into my office, she was still crying. At this moment this girl was about 15 years old, and I had led her to the Lord the year before, so that i knew she was a Christian. I said to her, Susan, what's up? And she began to tell us this story: Since I got saved, I have been able to handle the stress in my family. There has been a lot of stress inside my family for a long, long time. Dad drinks heavily, comes home drunk, and then starts fighting with my mummy. We live in a marionette, and often, I have to climb up the stairs when Dad comes home. I have to put this ear to the keyhole, because I know anytime he will start beating Mom up and I have got to increase in to separate the two. I am the firstborn and I have got three other siblings, younger than all of us, and the baby is about two years old. This week, the tension has been very high at home. Last night, Dad came in again at 3: 00 A. M., and I stayed up to make sure he was fast sleeping before something erupted. But last night they did not fight. This morning I came downstairs, dressed for the school, and my little brother who never goes anywhere this early in the morning, was also dressed up. The house help, a young guy that lives with us to help with the baby, was also dressed up. I said, Parents, where is John going? and Mom said, We are leaving. Where? I asked. Who is leaving? Barbara, stop asking so many questions. What I want you to do is go up to your room, get whatever items you think you need and come down. We are leaving in the next five minutes. Even Dad? I asked. I am never talking about your father; I said we are leaving. I knew something was horribly wrong. So last of all I said, But we cannot leave Dad alone. If you think you love your father so much, then you can stick to him; if you think its me you love, you come with me. But Mom, its not a matter of really enjoy. Who's going to cook for him, look after him... I am confused. Someone has to stay with Dad! I eventually said, I do not know what I am going to do, but I am going to stay with Dad. Then I picked up my schoolbag together with I ran all the way to school. Mrs. Mwiti, I want you to tell me, did I make the proper decision? Now, in teachers college they taught me how to teach physics, how to check substances with chemistry, and how to do lab projects, but they did not teach me how to minister to kids who ? re hurting. I examined my heart and said to myself, Gladys Mwiti, you have had enough teaching physics and teaching chemistry get out of here! For quite a while, I had been feeling this frustration of seeing hurting small children in class unfocused, hungry, in pain, emotionally frozen. I went home, and I told my hubby, I am in the wrong place, and the Lord is saying get out! So by faith, I had to go back to class to study psychology. The only place I could study in Kenya was a secular university, the U. Ohydrates. International University they have a campus in San Diego, California (the mother campus), and this campus in Nairobi. I studied psychology for fI have years. I kept reading and integrating the work of Ray Crabb, James Dobson, and others. Soon the Lord made it very clear that he wanted me to do a faith ministry start Oasis Counseling Center. The struggle has been mighty, I mean really big, in setting up this succeed in Africa, but it's been very satisfying. So , has your work been primarily with teenagers? I help everyone. When you are talking of a ministry which is out there with nothing else, you cannot say, I do families, I really do youth. From the very beginning I have worked with youth, so I am very, very close to young people; I love them. People do a lot of youth counseling that automatically goes into family counseling to marriage counseling, which leads to despression symptoms, stress management, conflict resolution, leadership training, etc . We started out aiming at a small urban population within Nairobi. Nairobi is about three million today, and there's almost nothing else around. We have people coming meant for counseling sessions from the rural areas, 200-300 miles away. I sat back and I said, Our god, what else can we do now? The answer was to train lay counselors at the community and religious levels. Then the hurting people can find somebody who can work with them at least at the encouragement level of counseling, just before they look for the professional. If we help lay counselors set up counseling departments in the church, they are able to train other lay counselors to help in the counseling. Then we train pastors in supervisory skills. Some of the ways we got into the training of lay counselors to reach the rural communities and even the rest of the city that we is unable to reach. In 1990, we were focusing just on lay counseling in Kenya, but by the so next year, people were coming from the rest of Africa for three-weeks of training in lay-counseling skills, and then returning to their own countries to set up counseling ministries. Through that program, we have 500 people, scattered all over Africa, doing set counseling. How did you get involved with counseling the United Nations staff when they were evacuated from Rwanda around 1994? In April 1994, the United Nations evacuated over 300 of their staff employees with their families because of Kigali. All the hotels were fully booked in Nairobi. This was five days after the plane of the leader of Rwanda had been destroyed and the onset of the genocide. I was just finishing devotions, and a vehicle with a United Nations registration number drove up. The Christian dry hiver had a note on U. And. letterhead instructing me to report to one of the hotels in town. I told my secretary to cancel your appointments and I would call her from the hotel. When I entered the hotel's lobby, there were bags and folks everywhere. A woman met me and took me to a small room: Gladys, she said, we need want you to do something for us beginning now. We have a fax here from New York, from the U. N. headquarters, proclaiming that all the people evacuated last night need to be debriefed. The instructions are that we debrief them before they are used anywhere or sent home because they have seen such horrific things in Rwanda. We have set up a room for your needs and you can begin your first group as soon as you are ready. I called my office and said, reschedule almost everything for the next two months! As I counseled and debriefed the U. N. staff, I was joined in the future by the head of a counseling unit from New York, and two professional counselors/consultants from Canada. For two a long time, we worked with the employees and their families, and it was such tiring stuff. How did you love yourself in the midst of that work? I could not get self-care until the end of the two months; it was crazy. Nevertheless my husband is a great guy; he can just sit and listen to me for hours, so he did a lot of debriefing for me. But by the end of two months, I scheduled some time with a professional counselor. I saw your ex for several sessions, but I was in such a state of mind that I could not go back to work for another month. What That i realized about the U. N. staff is that very few of them had really experienced any trauma. Their own experience of trauma was hearing gunshots and grenades go off. A few of them remembered seeing gory stuff. For example , at least one said, I remember seeing a dog chewing a human hand as we drove out of Kigali to Bujumbura inside Burundi and then airlifted to Nairobi. I appreciated the fact that the U. N. wanted counseling for its staff members, whether the people felt traumatized or not. And some of them did not think they had been affected until the center of their sessions. Then they just broke down in tears. I had even more concern about the Rwandans left behind. That U. N. was so concerned about their employees, who hardly had lost a single member of their families (thought some of them had seen colleagues killed) but who was concerned about the millions of Rwandans? Men, women, and little ones who had seen blood, some of them lay under dead bodies for days, some of them live in holes to get months who is counseling the Rwandans? I asked the head of the counseling ministry, the offices in Nairobi, and the counseling unit in New York what they were doing to help the Rwandans. The answer came back the same: Not a single thing. So I went to the All Africa Council of Churches is, the overseeing body of the Protestant places of worship is in Africa. What are we doing about Rwanda? I asked. What can we do, Mrs. Mwiti? I just went to the Association of Evangelicals of Africa, the body that looks after the evangelical churches is. Nothing at all! I went to people that I knew had regional offices working in Nairobi but working in Rwanda nothing! I bought very frustrated, and so my husband one day looked at me and said, Gladys, you seem to be spending a lot of time wondering people what they are doing about Rwanda. What are you doing about Rwanda? Me? I asked. My organization is too small. Too small? he replied. If the Lord wants you in Rwanda, is he possibly not big enough to do that? I started reading, writing, and researching. By the end of 1994, I had supplies for training, but I did not know what I was going to do with them. Someone heard about me and produced those materials. By February 1994 we had materials published. By April 1994, they were translated into Kenya and Rwanda, and we were beginning trauma counseling in Rwanda. Since 1995, we have trained 216 counselors in Rwanda. But they, each of them has counseled or trained 60 others since then. So we have across 10, 000 people today counseling in Rwanda. Counseling and small groups are mushrooming all over the place. We get them through a process of healing themselves, because you cannot bring healing to others until you are healed one self. They go home with Bible-study materials and pastor's notes that we have prepared. In group counseling, they will support one another as they complete their healing. By the end of the 10 weeks of Bible study, these people already are addressing the needs of poverty, the needs of AIDS, and they are setting themselves up in small inter development projects, such as chicken and goat keeping. The are some of the programs that we are involved in at Oasis. Our three-week lay counselor training has evolved to other programs during the year, such as training for individuals working with disadvantaged children, street children, orphans, and abused children. What are some of your goals for the future? Your requirement in Christian counseling on the continent of Africa is not in just addressing people and problems, but to remain involved in helping to shape people's behavior. I am referring to the whole issue of values. Values that keep people from crumbling, values that keep kids from drugs. I am talking about biblically-founded beliefs that people sometimes do not hopeful bold enough to teach, and I think Christian counselors have the goal of teaching. More and more Christian counselors ought to be trained to boldly analyze what is happening and then help parents to teach values to their kids, help commanders understand the principles of servant leadership, help fathers to be better fathers. My dream for Photography equipment is for an all-African training institute of Christian counseling, where people do not just learn the skills but can now come up with materials and strategies for reaching the masses. If we do not teach people how to live, i am leaving them in a vacuum. We'll continue with the training of lay counselors, but we need more skilled counselors who will take a place in theological colleges, training schools, and universities, and make sure that Christian counseling might be part of the curriculum in those places. That's my dream. What would you want to say to AACC members approximately their contribution to counseling in Kenya and Africa? I am excited about AACC members looking beyond The united states. Whether I like it or not, America is our world influence today. The dollar has become an international foreign exchange. The whole world is hard on the heels of America. We are getting more from you than dollars. Each time a movie is released in Hollywood, it hits Nairobi in the next couple of weeks. With the Internet, communication between La and Nairobi is instant. My prayer is that AACC members will realize that they are shaping Religious counseling around the world by the very fact that we in Africa know you love the Lord and we are following ones lead. You cannot stand back and tell us, Do not follow. So we hope that God is in people's activities not just on their currency. Wherever the dollar finds its place, Christian counseling needs to find its position. So I would like for AACC members to remember that Africa is bigger than a country; it's a continent using Islam, Christianity, and animistic religions. It takes me eight hours to fly from east to Rest of the world Africa. The Lord may lead AACC members out there to help us in other ways and we shall be thankful, but basically, I want to encourage all of you to keep following the Lord, because we are following you. Sounds like a challenge for a higher accountability! Let me add briefly that about fI have years ago, the Lord put on my heart your requirement for a Christian counselors association to be an accrediting body. Because the need is so great, anyone can arranged himself or herself up as a counselor. We have individuals, who go for a week's training, and they return declaring, I have been through training and now I am a professional. I have been praying and working so hard, and finally in 1996, the Christian Counselors Association of Kenya got registered. I am the current chairman, and the accreditation committee is certainly working hard to set standards of training and accreditation. Its a dream come true. Already, many other countries for Africa are saying, come over and help us to form our own associations. Very soon we are going to start visiting several countries, bringing all of them together, and helping them to set up Christian counseling associations in their countries. This will inspire training, it will encourage standards, and it will also be able to push for universities or theological colleges in their areas to set up Christian counseling departments. When this happens, we shall be looking for AACC to send us people from time to time to return and teach in some of the places. At Oasis, we hope to have a diploma in Christian counseling, teaching the idea at the Institute, and also a Masters program. We need people from the America to come and help us set it up and people in publishing to help us with book old_resources. How large is your staff at Oasis, and precisely how would you characterize your approach to Christian counseling? There are six full-time staff members, including myself, and then four part-time professional counselors. We have 33 professionals on the training staff, because we have got a huge training program. The professionals comprise pastors, medical doctors, psychologists a few of them teach in universities psychiatrists, and university lecturers. All of them are committed Christians which love the Lord and follow our model of Christian counseling. Our approach basically assumes the fallen dynamics of man, the fact that God wants us to be transformed, not just to be spared but to be changed coming from within, and that when Christ comes in, he turns things upside down, and we need to live in obedience to her. I can actually say that around 75% of those who come to us, if they were not Christians first, these become Christians during counseling. Or if they are weak in their Christian walk, they get encouraged prior to when they leave. Our approach is not direct have; its more of an eclectic model. But it is basically some sort of model that helps people get to know the Lord and live in obedience to him by the end of treatments. Phone Therapy is a wonderful medium to help you. What kind of problems do you deal with at Oasis that might be unique to Kenya? There are not any that I need to tell you, because you see, with this global model issue, we are as sick since everyone else! High on the list are marital problems, family issues, youth rebellion, drug abuse, stress, and major depression. Basically the problems are due to the changes taking place in Africa. I am told that by the year 2000, 45% of Africans will be living in the cities. Child abuse is very much on the increase, so there is not whatever is unique there. Kenya is a nation where most people go to school, so we get the same problems that some other money-centered, material-centered society experiences. Most of our tribal structures were pretty solid, but with all the mobility of folks, were encountering all of the community structure crumbling, individualism coming in, and self-worship. When the problems arrive, they take from the core. The difference is that you do not have the tools and old_resources that we have in North America. Just! And that's why the disintegration will be faster, thus we need to work ever so hard. That's why my belief is that church presents the example. I want to work myself out of business very quickly. The more the church does just what the church is supposed to be doing, the better for society. God wants each person to use his or her gifts, plus the gift of encouragement can belong even to a child. So , I must multiply myself, and the sooner We do that before the year 2000, the better.

[a-queer-seminarian]

summing up Polity

this is another post that’s probably only of interest to other PCUSA folks -- it’s a compilation of the most important polity-specific notes that i took in my Presbyterian Heritage and Polity class last spring.

“Reformed” = our theology; “Presbyterian” = our polity

“The polity provides the architecture for the things I find precious.” - Cliff Kirkpatrick

Our theology connects to our life through the organization that polity provides

The Presbyterian Church has split up many times; some of those splits have been reunified over time, and some have not.

our polity leaves room for differences, but the question of what issues are worth splitting over is always in the background

we leave room for argument – “argument is an important ingredient in trying to discern God’s will for us” – Amy Pauw

The Constitution of the PCUSA consists of the Book of Confessions & the Book of Order, the latter of which is divided into principles of polity; form of government; the directory for worship; and the rules of discipline.

Recent changes to the Book of Order reflect a move from a church-centered polity to a missional polity, and from a polity based on common structures and procedures to a polity based on common principles (allowing for more flexibility based on context)

HISTORY: Calvin and Polity

Calvin was less about new theology and more about new polity

He wanted to change how power structures in society as a whole worked

Priests and bishops etc. had much power over not only their congregations but over society as a whole

Calvin made it clear that when you are ordained you are not endowed with special access to God

priesthood of all believers

a priest is called to a specific kind of priesthood – functional, not ontological; you don’t become a different kind of person, you step into different role

Calvin and other reformers also wanted to flip the monastery inside out

Monks spent their whole lives studying scripture -- let’s bring that to everyone, so everyone is studying scripture all the time

instead of saying God’s grace is focused on specific objects wielded by priests, see God’s grace as everywhere

The more each believer can have access to what’s in the Bible, the less susceptible they’ll be to the manipulation of those in power

if we don’t know the Greek and Hebrew, they can tell us anything is in there and we’ll have to take their word for it

THE BOOK OF CONFESSIONS

jk jk i already talked about the confessions yo!! see this post!

Great, now we can dive right in to the less interesting...

THE BOOK OF ORDER

What’s in this thing anyway? Basic outline:

F - Foundations of Presbyterian polity

G - Form of Government

W - Directory for Worship

D - Rules of discipline

Okay, time to dive into the most notable details in each of those above parts. Let’s throw it under a readmore cuz it’s boring to anyone who doesn’t need the info to like. say. pass a super important exam or conduct a session meeting or whatevs

Foundations of Presbyterian Polity

Each section has chapters whee!

F-1: The Mission of the Church

F-1.01 talks about God’s mission! “The good news of the Gospel is that the triune God...creates, redeems, sustains, rules, and transforms all things and all people. ...The Gospel of Jesus Christ announces the nearness of God’s kingdom...proclaiming the Lord’s favor upon all creation” ... “Human beings have no higher goal in life than to glorify and enjoy God now and forever, living in covenant fellowship with God and participating in God’s mission.”

The next few sections talk about who Christ is in charge of the Church and gives it life & hope, how the Church is the Body of Christ...

F-1.0302 -- the Marks of the Church -- we’re “one holy catholic and apostolic” -- meaning God’s gifts to the church are unity, holiness, catholic (universal), and apostolic (sharers of the gospel).

Unity is a gift; being joined to one another “is to become priests for one another”; “Division into different denominations obscures but does not destroy unity in Christ” so the PCUSA strives for ecumenical relationship

“In the life, death, and resurrection of Christ, by the power of the Holy Spirit, God overcomes our alienation and repairs our division.“

“The Church bears witness in word and work that in Christ the new creation has begun, and that God who creates life also frees those in bondage, forgives sin, reconciles brokenness, makes all things new, and is still at work in the world.” -- we are called to “participate in God’s new creation, God’s kingdom drawing the present into itself”

F-1.0303 -- the Notes of the Reformed Church

“Where Christ is, there is the true Church. Since the earliest days of the Reformation, Reformed Christians have marked the presence of the true Church wherever:

the Word of God is preached and heard,

the Sacraments are rightly administered, and

ecclesiastical discipline is uprightly ministered”

F-1.0403 - Unity in Diversity

“The unity of believers in Christ is reflected in the rich diversity of the Church’s membership. In Christ, by the power of the Spirit, God unites persons through baptism regardless of race, ethinicty, age, sex, disability, geography, or theological conviction. There is therefore no place in the life of the Church for discrimination against any person. The PCUSA shall guarantee full participation and representation in its worship, governance, and emerging life to all persons or groups within its membership.”

F-2: The Church and Its Confessions

2.01 - In the confessions “the church declares to its members and to the world who and what it is, what it believes, and what it resolves to do.”

2.02 - the confessions are subordinate to the authority of Jesus who is the Word of God, “as the Scriptures bear witness to him.”

We’re open to reform of doctrine and governance

Ecclesia reformata, semper reformanda secundum verbum Dei -- “The church is reformed, always to be reformed according to the Word of God”

F-3: Principles of Order and Government

3.0101 - God is Lord of the Conscience -- and so “rights of private judgment” are “universal and unalienable”

3.0103 - Officers (i.e. “ordered ministers”)

Jesus appointed officers to preach the gospel, administer the Sacraments, and to exercise discipline

3.0104 - “By their fruits ye shall know them” -- “there is an inseparable connection between faith and practice, truth and duty”

3.0105 - mutual forbearance

people of good character may have differences in belief, so we should respect that yo

3.0202 - “the church shall be governed by presbyters, that is, ruling elders and teaching elders (also called ministers of the Word and Sacrament).”

elders are chosen by the congregation to help guide it towards the Word of God and to help nurture its faith

Ministers of the Word and Sacrament teach the faith in word and in deed, equipping the people of God for their ministry and witness

The Form of Government

G-1: Congregations and their Membership

1.0101 - “The congregation is the basic for of the church, but it is not itself a sufficient form of the church. Thus congregations are bound together in communion with one another, united in relationships of accountability and responsibility, contributing their strengths to the benefit of the whole, and are called, collectively, the church”

so for 100+ years before this change, we were saying that the Church is the church universal; congregation is the particular church; only 6 years ago or so did we start saying congregations are the foundational church

this evinces a new prioritization and recognizing the importance of congregations as core to church’s mission

Congregations should be agents of God’s mission in the world

“The congregation reaches out to people, communities, and the world to share the good news of Jesus Christ, to gather for worship, to offer care and nurture to God’s children, to speak for social justice and righteousness, to bear witness to the truth and to the reign of God that is coming into the world.”

G-1.02 - The Organizing of a Congregation

only done by a presbytery in response to application from potential members

issues nowadays that we discussed in class: alienation from structures and organization; nowadays lots of informal groups worship instead of seeking to fit under a structure.

There’s currently a goal to get 1001 new communities in America (CCC is one and so is Elmer’s home churches; there are a lot of unorthodox ones like bar ministry, tend to be much more inclusive)

G-1.03 The Membership of a Congregation

 Faith and baptism as the keys to entrance into membership (G-1.0301)

“A congregation shall welcome all persons who trust in God’s grace in Jesus Christ and desire to become part of the fellowship and ministry of his Church” (see also F-1.0403)

Membership comes with responsibilities (1.0304), including proclaiming the good news; supporting the ministry of the church with money, time, and talents; and (an item added a couple years ago) caring for God’s creation

G-2: Ordered Ministry, Commissioning, and Certification

G-2.0101 - Christ’s ministry shows us that ministers are “not to be served but to serve.” The whole people of God are called to be ministers -- “form whose midst some are called to ordered ministries, to fulfill particular functions”

and then they define deacons and ruling elders and teaching elders yeet

G-3: Councils of the Church

Four councils: sessions, presbyteries, synods, General Assembly

G-3.0101 - Councils as an expression of the unity of the church

“Councils of the church exist to help congregations and the church as a whole to be more faithful participants in the mission of Christ.”

G-3.0105 - Meetings shall be conducted in accordance with the most recent edition of Robert’s Rules of Order Newly, Revised, except when it is in contradiction to this Constitution.”

G-4: The Church and Civil Authority

there’s stuff about property here and stuff

G-5: Ecumenicity and Union

G-5.0101 - The PCUSA “will seek to initiate, maintain, and strengthen relations with other Reformed and Christian entities.”

G-5.0102 - The PCUSA “at all levels seeks new opportunities for conversation and understanding with non-Christian religious entities” because of “God’s intention for the wholeness of all humankind and all creation.”

G-6: Interpreting and Amending the Constitution

G-6.02 - The General Assembly provides authoritative interpretation of the Book of Order

Directory for Worship

Preface

“This Directory for Worship reflects the conviction that the faith, life, and worship of the Church are inseparable.”

W-1: The Theology of Christian Worship

W-1.0101 - “Christian worship gives all glory and honor, praise and thanksgiving to the holy, triune God. We are gathered in worship to glorify the God who is present and active among us—particularly through the gifts of Word and Sacrament. We are sent out in service to glorify the same God who is present and active in the world”

W-1.0302 - “The mystery and reality of God transcend our experience, understanding, and speech, such that we cannot reduce God to our ways of speaking. Yet we are compelled to speak of the glory, goodness, and grace of the God who is revealed in the world around us, in Scripture, and above all, in Jesus Christ. The Old Testament speaks of God in personal ways, as creator, covenant-maker, comforter, liberator, judge, redeemer, midwife, mother, shepherd, sovereign, bearer, begetter. It addresses God as “Lord,” a word that conveys the sovereignty of God while standing in for the hidden name revealed to Moses at the burning bush. It also borrows images from nature, describing God as rock, well-spring, fire, light, eagle, hen, lion. The Gospels show how Jesus used and adapted these images when speaking to and about God, particularly in his intimate use of Abba, Father. He also claimed some of these terms in speaking about himself—as good shepherd, bridegroom, and Son of Man. In worship the church shall strive to use language about God that is intentionally as diverse and varied as the Bible and our theological traditions. Language that appropriately describes and addresses God is expansive, drawing from the full breadth and depth of terms and images for the triune God in the witness of Scripture. Language that authentically describes and addresses the people of God is inclusive, respecting the diversity of persons, cultures, backgrounds, and experiences that flow from God’s creative work. Such language allows for all members of the community of faith to recognize themselves as equally included, addressed, and cherished by God. Since Pentecost, the Church of Jesus Christ has been a community of many nations and cultures, united by the power of the Holy Spirit. Therefore our churches worship in many languages. The words we use in worship are to be in the common language or languages of those who are gathered, so that all are able to receive the good news and respond with true expressions of their faith. Through the rich variety of human speech we bear witness to God’s saving love for all.”

W-1.0304 - “Christian worship is contextual—emerging from a particular community and incorporating the words, images, symbols, and actions that best convey the good news of Jesus Christ in that gathering of God’s people. It is also cross-cultural—reflecting the diversity of traditions and cultures within and beyond the community of faith. Christian worship is transcultural—proclaiming the universal message of God’s grace in Jesus Christ and rooted in common elements of human life that transcend all cultures. It is also countercultural—asserting the scandal of the gospel and anticipating God’s reign of righteousness, justice, and peace. Finally, faithful worship should be an intercultural event—fostering mutuality, dialogue, and equality among all people.”

W-2: The Ordering of Reformed Worship

W-2.0102 - “Christian worship has always been marked by a tension between form and freedom. ...Fixed forms of worship are valuable in that they offer consistent patterns and practices that help to shape lives of faith and faithfulness. More spontaneous approaches to worship are valuable in that they provide space for unexpected insight and inspiration. In whatever form it takes, worship is to be ordered by God’s Word and open to the creativity of the Holy Spirit.”

W-2.0202 - “The gifts of the Spirit are for building up the Church. Every action in worship is to glorify God and contribute to the good of the people. Worshipers and worship leaders must avoid actions that only call attention to themselves and fail to serve the needs of the whole congregation.”

W-3: The Service for the Lord’s Day

W-4: Pastoral and Occasional Services

W-5: Worship and Christian Life

We worship not only in church but at home; communally and individually. We also provide education.

Also called to evangelism and “compassion” -- feeding the hungry, caring for the sick, etc. Also to seeking justice and caring for creation 

W-5.0401 - “The Church’s activities do not bring about God’s realm; they are our grateful response to the grace of God at work in the world. We seek to worship and serve God faithfully, with the confidence that God’s reign has already been established and the hope that it will soon be revealed in fullness and glory.”

Rules of Discipline

D-1: Principles of Church Discipline

“The purpose of discipline is to honor God by making clear the significance of membership in the body of Christ; to preserve the purity of the church by nourishing the individual within the life of the believing community; to achieve justice and compassion for all participants involved; to correct or restrain wrongdoing in order to bring members to repentance and restoration; to uphold the dignity of those who have been harmed by disciplinary offenses; to restore the unity of the church by removing the causes of discord and division; and to secure the just, speedy, and economical determination of proceedings.”

D-2: Judicial Process Defined

D-3: Jurisdiction in Judicial Process

D-4: Reference

D-5: Permanent Judicial Commissions

D-6: Remedial Cases

D-7: Trial in a Remedial Case

D-8: Appeal in a Remedial Case

D-9: Request for Vindication

D-10: Disciplinary Cases

D-11: Trial in a Disciplinary Case

D-12: Censure and Restoration in a Disciplinary Case

D-13: Appeal in a Disciplinary Case

D-14: Evidence in Remedial or Disciplinary Cases

Whew. We get it, there are lots of rules when you gotta discipline someone

[pope-francis-quotes]

10th May >> (@ZenitEnglish) #Pope Francis #PopeFrancis Tells Religious Superiors: ‘No One Can Rob us of the Passion for Evangelization’. Speech to Meeting of the International Union of Superiors General.

The Holy Father on 10th May 2019, received in audience, in Paul VI Hall, the participants in the Meeting of the International Union of Superiors General, being held in Rome from May 6-10, on the occasion of the 21st Plenary Assembly entitled “Sowers of Prophetic Hope,” with the participation of some 850 Superiors General from 80 countries.

Here is a translation of the Holy Father’s address in the course of the audience.

* * *

The Holy Father’s Address

Dear Sisters:

I’m very happy to receive you today, on the occasion of your General Assembly, and to wish you a paschal time full of peace, joy, and passion to take the Gospel to all corners of the earth. Yes, Easter is all this, and it invites us to be witnesses of the Risen One by living a new evangelizing stage marked by joy. No one can rob us of the passion for evangelization. There is no Easter without mission: “Go and proclaim the Gospel to all men” (Cf. Matthew 16:15-20). The Lord asks His Church to show the triumph of Christ over death; He asks that she show His Life. Go, Sisters, and proclaim the Risen Christ as source of joy that no one can take away from us. Renew constantly your encounter with the Risen Jesus Christ and you will be His witnesses, taking to all men and women loved by the Lord — particularly those that feel themselves victims of the culture of exclusion –, the sweet and comforting joy of the Gospel.

Consecrated life, as Saint John Paul II affirmed in his day, like any other reality of the Church, is going through a “delicate and hard” time (Saint John Paul II, Apostolic Exhortation Vita Consecrata, 13). In face of the numerical decrease that consecrated life is living, particularly the feminine, the temptation is that of discouragement, resignation or “arrocamiento” [hardening] in “it has always been done like this.”

In this context, I repeat to you energetically what I’ve said to you on other occasions: don’t be afraid to be few, but be afraid of being insignificant, of no longer being light that illumines all those that are immersed in the “dark night” of history. Neither <must you> be afraid of “confessing with humility and at the same time with great trust in God’s love, your fragility” (“Letter to All the Consecrated,” November 21. 2014, I, 1). Be afraid, more than that, panic if you fail to be salt that gives flavor to the life of men and women of our society. Work tirelessly to be watchmen that announce the coming of dawn (Cf. Isaiah 21:11-12); to be ferment where you meet and with whom you meet, even if that seemingly doesn’t bring you tangible and immediate benefits (Cf. Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Gaudium, 210). There are many people that need you and wait for you. They need your friendly smile which gives back confidence to them; <they need> your hands to support them in their journey, your word that sows hope in their hearts, your life in Jesus’ style (Cf. John 13:1-15), which heals the most profound wounds caused by loneliness, rejection, and exclusion. Never give in to the temptation of self-reference, of becoming “closed armies.” Neither should you take refuge “in a work to elude the charism’s operative capacity” (“The Strength of Vocation,” 56). Rather, develop the imagination of charity and live creative fidelity to your charisms. With them you will be able to “reproduce the holiness and the creativity of your Founders” (Saint John Paul II, Apostolic Exhortation Vita Consecrata, 37), opening new paths to take the breadth and light of the Gospel to the different cultures in which you live and work, in the most diverse ambits of society, as they did in their time. With them, you will be capable of re-visiting your charism, of going to the roots living the present suitably, without being afraid to walk, “without letting the water stop running [. . . ]. Consecrated life is like water: stagnant it rots” (“The Strength of Vocation,” 44-45). And so, without losing the memory, always necessary to live the present with passion, you will avoid “restorationism” as well as the ideology of whatever sign it is, which do so much damage to consecrated life and to the Church herself.

And do everything with your humble presence and service, always animated by free prayer and the prayer of adoration and praise. To pray, to praise and to adore is not to waste time. The more united we are to the Lord, the closer we will be to humanity, particularly suffering humanity. “Our future will be full of hope,” as the motto of this Plenary Assembly affirms, and our projects will be projects with a future, in the measure that we pause daily before the Lord in the gratitude of prayer, if we don’t want the wine to be turned into vinegar and the salt to become insipid. It will only be possible to know the plans the Lord has made for us if we keep our eyes and our heart turned to the Lord, contemplating His Face and listening to His Word (Cf. Psalm 33). Only thus will you be able to awaken the world with your prophecy, distinctive note and priority of your being religious and consecrated (Cf. “Letter to All the Consecrated,” November 21, 22014, II, 2). The more urgent it is to be de-centered to go to the existential peripheries, the more urgent it is to be centered on Him and concentrated on the essential values of our charisms.

Among the essential values of religious life is fraternal life in community. I see with great joy the great achievements that have been attained in that dimension: more intense communication, fraternal correction, the search for synodality in conducting the community, fraternal hospitality in respect of diversity . . . ; however, at the same time, it worries me that there are brothers and sisters that lead their life on the margin of fraternity; sisters and brothers that are illegitimately absent for years from their community, reason for which I’ve just promulgated a Motu Proprio Communis Vita, with very precise norms to avoid those cases.

In regard to fraternal life in community, I’m also concerned that there are Institutes in which multi-culturalism and internationalization aren’t seen as a richness, but as a threat, and they are lived as conflict, instead of living them as new possibilities that show the true face of the Church and of religious and consecrated life. I ask those responsible in Institutes to open themselves to the new — proper of the Spirit, which blows where it will and as it wills (Cf. John 3:8) and to prepare generations of other cultures to assume responsibilities. Live the change of your communities’ face with joy, and not as an evil needing conversion. There is no going back on internationalism and inter-culturalism.

I am worried by the generational conflicts when young people are unable to carry forward the dreams of the elderly to make them fructify, and the elderly don’t accept the prophecy of young people (Cf. Joel 2:28). As I like to repeat: young people run a lot, but the adults know the way. Necessary in a community are both the wisdom of the elderly as well as the inspiration and strength of young people.

Dear Sisters: in you, I thank all the Sisters of your Institutes for the great work they do in the different peripheries in which they live. The periphery of education, in which to educate is to win always, to win for God; the periphery of health, in which you are servants and messengers of life, and of a worthy life; and the periphery of pastoral work in its most varied manifestations, in which, witnessing the Gospel with your lives, you are manifesting the maternal face of the Church. Thank you for what you are and for what you do in the Church. Never stop being women. “It’s not necessary to stop being a woman to be equal” (“The Strength of Vocation.” 111). At the same time, I ask <you to> cultivate passion for Christ and passion for humanity. Without passion for Christ and for humanity, there is no future for religious and consecrated life. Passion will fling you to prophesy, to be fire that light other fires. Continue to take steps in the mission shared between different charisms and with the laity, calling them to significant works, without leaving anyone without the due formation and the sense of belonging to the charismatic family. Work on mutual relations with Pastors, including them in your discernment and integrating them in the selection of presences and ministries. The path of consecrated life, both masculine as well as feminine, is the path of ecclesial insertion. Outside of the Church and in parallel with the local Church, things don’t work. Pay great attention to formation, both permanent as well as initial and to the formation of formators, capable of listening and of accompanying, of discerning, of going out to encounter those that call at our doors. And, even in the midst of the trials we might be going through, live your consecration with joy. That’s the best vocational propaganda.

May the Virgin accompany you and protect you with her maternal intercession. For my part, I bless you from my heart and I bless all the Sisters that the Lord has entrusted to you. And, please, don’t forget to pray for me.

[Original text: Spanish] [ZENIT’s translation by Virginia M. Forrester].

© Libreria Editrice Vatican

10th MAY 2019 16:37PAPAL TEXTS

[level6shen-blog]

Moving To St. Paul, Minnesota

Saint Paul Regional Water Services supplies reliable, quality water and services at a reasonable cost to the city of Saint Paul and neighboring communities. Lake Agassiz, which was up to 600-700 feet (~200 m) deep, and at various times covered areas totaling over 110,000 square miles (~300,000 km2),  was formed from the meltwaters of the Laurentide Ice Sheet during the Wisconsonian glaciation of the last ice age The enormous outflow from this lake carved a wide valley now occupied by the much smaller Minnesota River and the Upper Mississippi River below its confluence with the Minnesota.

Blocked by an ice sheet to the north, the lake water rose until about 9,700 years Before Present (BP), when it overtopped the Big Stone Moraine , a ridge of glacial drift left by the receding glacier, at the location of Browns Valley, Minnesota The lake's outflow was catastrophic at times, 15 creating a wide valley to Saint Paul, where the massive River Warren Falls once graced the landscape.

Sioux and Ojibwa peoples were early inhabitants of the area. In 1680 the Franciscan missionary Louis Hennepin passed the site, and in 1766 explorer Jonathan Carver probed a nearby cavern (since known as Carver’s Cave). In 1805 Lieutenant Zebulon Montgomery Pike, leader of an American expedition to explore the headwaters of the Mississippi River, made a treaty there (never officially ratified) with the Sioux for possession of the region, including the site on which the military outpost Fort Snelling (now a state park) was later built. The first land claim was made in 1838 by tavern owner Pierre (“Pig’s Eye”) Parrant; he was closely followed by Abraham Perry. The settlement was known as Pig’s Eye Landing until 1841, when Roman Catholic missionary Lucien Galtier built a log chapel dedicated to the apostle Paul. In 1849 St. Paul became the capital of the newly formed Minnesota Territory, and it was made the state capital when Minnesota was admitted to the Union in 1858.

Saint Paul, east of the Mississippi River, was originally surveyed into 6x6 mile squares called townships. This survey was done by James M. Marsh in October of 1847. The townships were then surveyed into 1x1 mile squares called sections by Issac Higbee, Deputy Surveyor, during the months of October & November of 1847. Saint Paul, west of the Mississippi River, was surveyed into sections by Jesse T. Jarrett in September of 1853. The area now covered by Saint Paul was surveyed off the 4th Principal Meridian which runs through Wisconsin. Saint Paul covers parts of Townships 28 & 29 North and Ranges 22 & 23 West of the 4th Principal Meridian.

The City of Saint Paul was originally established as the "The Town of St. Paul" by an act of the Legislative Assembly of the Territory of Minnesota in November of 1849. Saint Paul remained a town until March of 1854 when it became the "City of Saint Paul, Minnesota Territory". In May of 1858 when Minnesota became a state the city became known as "The City of Saint Paul, State of Minnesota".

Large parts of the city of Minneapolis was developed around the turn of the 20th century and much of the empty space was mostly filled in by the 1950s, with postwar housing built mostly in less desirable neighborhoods in the far south and north of Minneapolis.

For sports enthusiasts, the Twin Cities area plays host to numerous professional sports teams, including the American Association of Independent Professional Baseball's Saint Paul Saints, Major League Baseball's (MLB) Minnesota Twins, the NBA's Minnesota Timberwolves, the National Football League's (NFL) Minnesota Vikings, the National Hockey League's (NHL) Minnesota Wild, the United Soccer League's (USL) USL First Division Minnesota Thunder and USL W-League Minnesota Lightning, and the WNBA's Minnesota Lynx.

Visit any church service, Roman Catholic , Protestant or Greek Orthodox , and it is the apostle Paul and his ideas that are central - in the hymns , the creeds , the sermons , the invocation and benediction , and of course, the rituals of baptism and the Holy Communion or Mass.

Primitive Christianity was a closely knit fellowship with the common meal and the Eucharist (thanksgiving for the sacrificial death of Christ) at the heart of it. But the Jewish purity rules made Jews reluctant to eat with Gentiles for fear of transgressing the Law.

Concordia University (1893) was founded by the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod It is part of the 10-member Concordia University System It was founded to provide a Christian learning environment to high school students planning to go into professional ministries with the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod.

New, modern housing, condos and apartments are available, especially in the fashionable parts of town, but if you want something contemporary the best places to look is in the old industrial districts around downtown Minneapolis for a refurbished warehouse apartment.

St. Paul and the Twin Cities metropolitan area traditionally votes for liberal, progressive politicians, but there are plenty of conservative areas for Republican folks, mainly in the Highland Park neighborhood, to feel at home in. St. Paul city government follows the trend with the current major, Chris Coleman , being a member of the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party , affiliated with the national Democratic Party.

As America's third most literate city , Minneapolis is also home to a stunning library and Open Book , the largest literary and book arts center in the US. For avid readers, this means that a good book or helpful recommendation is never far from reach.

Every major cuisine is represented is restaurants all over the city, with many on Grand Avenue, an Italian district in the northeast of the city, the District del Sol on the Eastside, and the best Asian food in the Twin Cities on University Avenue, just outside downtown St.

The city's notable recreation locations include Indian Mounds Park , Battle Creek Regional Park, Harriet Island Regional Park, Highland Park , the Wabasha Street Caves , Lake Como , Lake Phalen , and Rice Park , as well as several areas abutting the Mississippi River The Irish Fair of Minnesota is also held annually at the Harriet Island Pavilion area.

A Minnesota Department of Transportation study found that increased daily service to Chicago should be economically viable, especially if it originates in Saint Paul and does not experience delays from the rest of the western route of the Empire Builder.

St Paul Minnesota  is a beautiful city that offers all the benefits of big city wants with that small town feel. If your considering relocating to St Paul consider it during the spring and summer months when Discount Moving Companies offer their best rates due to good weather. 

[carolap53]

FULFILLING THE FIVE FUNCTIONS OF THE CHURCH And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching. Hebrews 10:24-25

In the summer of 2010, I led an excellent team of Open Doors staff and supporters on a visit to North Korea. We were allowed to pray publically in the areas we visited and of course were presented with a formal church service on Sunday morning at one of the three churches functioning in Pyongyang. It was a well-executed performance–especially the choir. On its website, the Korean Christian Federation claims that there are ten thousand Protestant Christians in North Korea meeting at five hundred designated centers. In reality, Christians in the country experience tremendous challenges in worshipping publically.

Brother Simon, the leader of the Open Doors work in North Korea, says that the true church must operate underground in the country. “They can’t simply go to church to sing and to listen to the sermon. It is clear that being a Christian in North Korea is a lonely business.”

Simon’s thoughts turn to Sundays in North Korea. “It happens only sporadically that Christians consider themselves safe enough to meet together in small groups. Usually gatherings consist of only two people. For example, a Christian goes and sits on a bench in the park. Another Christian comes and sits next to him. Sometimes it’s dangerous even to speak to one another, but they know they are both Christians, and at such a time, this is enough. If there is no one around, they may be able to share a Bible verse which they have learned off by heart and briefly say something about it. They also share prayer topics with each other. Then they leave one another and go and look for a Christian in some other part of their town or village. This continues throughout the Sunday. A cell group usually consists of fewer than twenty Christians, who encourage and strengthen one another, plus one-to-one meetings in people’s homes.

“Only if the whole family has turned to Christ is it possible to have something like a real fellowship gathering, as long as you keep your faith hidden from the neighbours. Besides this, it is sometimes possible to hold a meeting in remote areas with a group of ten to twenty people. Very occasionally, it is possible for Christians to go unobtrusively into the mountains and to hold a ‘service’ at a secret location like a cave. Then it may be the case that there are as many as sixty or seventy North Korean Christians gathered together.”

In spite of severe limitations, believers can fulfill all five biblical functions of the church.

RESPONSE: I will thankfully take my place in the assembly of believers to fulfill the church’s functions.

PRAYER: Thank you Lord for the faithfulness of Your church in North Korea against all obstacles.

Open Doors Ministry