10 February 2010
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Presbyterians Week Headlines
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[1] Naval Leadership throughout U.S. History
[2] Two Christians in Boynton Beach, Florida, Murdered for Sharing the Gospel
[5] Open for Business Investigates Peacemaker Ministries and the Modern-Day Diotrephes
[6] Cumberland Presbyterian Church Celebrates 200th Anniversary
[8] Monrovia, Liberia Presbyterian Church Conflict Settled by Departure of Pastor
[10] Calvin Synod Central Classis Meeting Postponed until 13 March 2010
[11] February 2010 Reformation Voice Available for Download
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[1] Naval Leadership throughout U.S. History
[Note: The editor sometimes tries to deal with the incredulities of the present culture by putting the subject irony into historical perspective – either that or by writing a song parody…]
Captain John Paul Jones – “I have not yet begun to fight.”
Admiral David Farragut – “[%$&#] the torpedoes! Full steam ahead!”
Admiral Bull Halsey – “There are no great men. Just great challenges which ordinary men, out of necessity, are forced by circumstance to meet.”
Admiral Chester Nimitz – “God grant me the courage not to give up what I think is right even though I think it is hopeless.”
Admiral Raymond Spruance – “A man’s judgment is best when he can forget himself and any reputation he may have acquired and can concentrate wholly on making the right decisions.”
Admiral Hyman Rickover – “Good ideas are not adopted automatically. They must be driven into practice with courageous patience.”
Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Admiral Mike Mullen – 2 February 2010 – “No matter how I look at the issue, I cannot escape being troubled by the fact that we have in place a policy which forces young men and women to lie about who they are in order to defend their fellow citizens.”
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+ Christian Observer, Post Office Box 1371, Lexington, Virginia 20110, christianobserver@christianobserver.org
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[2] Two Christians in Boynton Beach, Florida, Murdered for Sharing the Gospel
Steven Ocean, Tite Sifra, and another young Christian man went onto the streets of Boynton Beach, Florida on 30 January 2010 to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Ocean and Sifra were following the call of God to minister to troubled youth in the same city where the two themselves had experienced prior run-ins with the law.
The three men shared the Gospel with Jeriah Woody for about fifteen minutes, then began to walk away from Woody. Woody then ran after the trio, pulled a gun, and shot Ocean and Sifra dead. The third evangelist fled to safety. Woody was arrested and has confessed to killing the two evangelists.
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+ Christian Anti-Defamation Commission, Post Office Box 1115, Vista, California 92085, 866-508-2232, Fax: 760-630-2232, contact@christianadc.org
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A 5 February 2010 Radio Netherlands Worldwide article titled “Dutch Church Retains “Atheist” Preacher” reports that a regional church assembly of the Protestant Church in the Netherlands (PCN) in Zierikzee, The Netherlands, has decided to retain atheist preacher Klaas Hendrikse because the atheist minister’s views do not differ fundamentally from liberal theologians in the PCN.
The PCN was created in 2004 by a merger of Reformed Churches, the Dutch-Reformed Church and the Evangelical Lutheran Church.
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+ Radio Netherlands Worldwide, Box 222, 1200 JG Hilversum, The Netherlands, 31-35-6724211, Fax: 31-35-6724239, letters@rnw.nl
+ Protestant Church in the Netherlands, Postbus 8504, 3503 Utrecht, Netherlands, 880-18-80, 880-18-80, info@pkn.nl
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A 7 February 2010 article by Tom Peterkin in The Scotsman titled “Kirk Disputes Pope’s View of The Past,” describes reaction within the Church of Scotland to an early February 2010 statement by Roman Catholic Pontiff Pope Benedict XVI that characterizes the Protestant Reformation as a “great rupture” that has resulted in religious intolerance.
Church of Scotland leaders characterize the pope’s remarks as “unhelpful” and as a boost to those against official recognition in 2010 of the 450th anniversary of the Scottish Reformation.
Former Moderator of the Church of Scotland, Andrew MacLellan, while welcoming the Pope’s September 2010 visit, disagrees with Benedict XVI’s characterization of the Protestant Reformation, describing the Scottish Reformation as “the great renewal of Scotland‘s Christian past.”
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+ The Scotsman, Barclay House, 108 Holyrood Road, Edinburgh EH8 8AS, Scotland, 131-620-8620
+ Church of Scotland, 121 George Street, Edinburgh EH2 4YN, Scotland, 0131-225-5722
+ The Vatican, Città del Vaticano, Rome, Italy, 39-6-69-88-35-11, Fax: 39-6-69-88-54-47, Contact Page
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[5] Open for Business Investigates Peacemaker Ministries and the Modern-Day Diotrephes
Two recent articles in Open for Business (OFB) examine what OFB writers see as problems associated with church discipline, and suggest remedies for the problems.
Timothy R. Butler’s 9 January 2010 article titled “The Hidden Danger of Peacemakers” details Peacemaker Ministries (PM) and what Butler sees, beneath the stated goal of bringing more individual accountability to church members for their behavior, as PM programs giving too much power to church leaders, facilitating a presumption of guilt upon the person being prosecuted, and providing that person “little room for fair appeals or due process.”
Eduardo Sánchez’s 3 February 2010 article titled “Stopping Jerks from Abusing the Church,” examines the modern-day Diotrephes (3 John) who Sánchez dubs a “jerk,” defined as “someone inclined to grab power at organizations with no regard to the cost meted out to other people.”
Sánchez similarly says that programs from groups like Peacemaker Ministries “espouse granting power to [church] leaders but few protections to members under the justification that somehow this is “biblical,”” then suggests that churches studying church discipline go first to Matthew 18 and 1 Corinthians, then examine the Manual of Church Discipline by 19th century Reformed Baptist pastor the Rev. Rev. Eleazer Savage, and the 1619 Church Order of Dordrecht, the 17th century concord of ecclesiastic community of the Reformed Churches in the
Netherlands, of which Sánchez affirms as providing a more balanced approach to church discipline.
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+ Open for Business, St. Louis, Missouri
+ Peacemaker Ministries, 2590 Holman Ave Suite A, Billings, Montana 59102, 406-256-1583, Fax: 406-256-0001, Mail@Peacemaker.net
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[6] Cumberland Presbyterian Church Celebrates 200th Anniversary
A 2 February 2010 article in The Tennessean by Chris Gadd and Lindsay Melvin titled “Cumberland Presbyterian Denomination to Celebrate 200 Years” reports that members of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church (CPC) gathered 4 February 2010 at the Montgomery Bell State Park in Burns, Tennessee, and 7 February 2010 at CPC churches to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the founding of the CPC, on 4 February at a site in the park which is now marked by a chapel and a replica of the home of denomination co-founder Samuel McAdow.
McAdow and two other Presbyterian ministers previously suspended for their support of The Great Revival met at McAdow’s cabin to form a new denomination with less formal education required for clergy in a region of harsh conditions and limited education.
The CPC today has 50,000 members in 730 churches. CPC General Assembly Stated Clerk Robert Rush describes CPC theology as a mixture of Reformed and Evangelical Christianity.
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+ The Tennessean, 1100 Broadway, Nashville, Tennessee 37203, 615-259-8000, Fax: 615-726-5921, feedback@tennessean.com
+ Cumberland Presbyterian Church, 8207 Traditional Place, Cordova, Tennessee 38016, 901-276-4572, Fax: 901-272-3913
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A 6 February 2010 article in ThisDayOnline titled “Presbyterian Church Lauds Jonathan” reports that the Rev. Ndukwe Nwachukwu Eme, Abia Principal Clerk of the Presbyterian Church of Nigeria (PCN), commended Nigeria’s Vice President Goodluck Jonathan for taking action in Jos to stop the latest rioting by Muslims and Christian gangs that have killed 200 people, seen the burning of houses, churches, and mosques, and forced thousands of residents to flee the city that is located in central Nigeria.
Erne additionally commended Vice President Jonathan’s promise to bring the rioters to justice, which would help to curb religious disturbances in the country. Riots in Jos in 2008 killed 200 people, and in 2001 killed 1000 people, with the rioters never being brought to justice.
The PCN has directed its churches nationwide to raise funds for the relief of those in Jos affected by the rioting, emphasizing that the relief effort is part of the Church’s social responsibility in line with Jesus’ teaching for assistance to the needy.
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+ ThisDayOnline, 35 Creek Road, Apapa, Lagos, Nigeria, 234-8022924721-2, Fax: 234-1-4600276, info@thisdayonline.com
+ BBC, 201 Wood Lane, London W12 7TS, England, Fax: 020-8008-2398
+ Presbyterian Church of Nigeria, 26 Ehere Road, Post Office Box 2635, Aba, Abia, Nigeria, 082-234-780
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[8] Monrovia, Liberia Presbyterian Church Conflict Settled by Departure of Pastor
A 7 February 2010 article in the Daily Observer titled “Presbyterian Church Conflict Resolved,” by Joaquin Sendolo reports that in October 2009, several members of the Presbyterian Church on Broad and Johnson Streets (Presbyterian Church of Liberia (PCL)) in Monrovia, Liberia, protested the leadership of church Pastor Lawrence Bayusie on the grounds that Bayusie was allegedly carrying on satanic practices in the church. The protesters demanded Bayusie’s departure or else the protesters would leave the church themselves.
Bayusie was alleged to have buried ‘juju’ in the church compound – an amulet or fetish superstitiously venerated by some West African tribes.
Moderator-elect of the PCL, the Rev. Sando E. Townsend, reported that church members who had left the church because of the allegations about Bayusie have begun to return, and said that the damage caused to the church since October 2009 will take some time to heal. Townsend additionally reported that Bayusie has been transferred to another PCL church that Townsend would not identify.
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+ Daily Observer, Post Office Box 1858, Monrovia, Liberia, editor@liberianobserver.com
+ Presbyterian Church of Liberia, Broad and Johnson Street, Post Office Box 10-3350, Monrovia 10 1000, Liberia, 231-227012, Fax: 231-227047, ocean@awli.net.lr
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Reformed Presbyterian pastor and Director of the Christian Defense Coalition (CDC) the Rev. Pat Mahoney is working to free the American missionaries jailed in Haiti on kidnapping and human trafficking charges, and has reminded Washington DC and Haiti of several inconvenient truths about the missionaries and various government responses to the situation.
A CDC 4 February 2010 press release says that “The Obama Administration‘s silence on this issue has slowed efforts to free these Christian missionaries,” and reveals that the missionaries “…attempted to comply with local Haitian law, to the best of their ability, as they reached out to these thirty-three children. They were actually arrested as they were returning back to Port-Au-Prince [Haiti] to secure the necessary paper work for their charitable mission.”
A CDC 6 February 2010 press release “…calls for the Obama Administration to treat the American missionaries jailed in Haiti with the same commitment they are treating the three American hikers jailed in Iran,” as Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has called for the release of the Americans held in Iran, but has washed her hands of the American missionaries, saying the missionaries fate is “…a matter for the Haitian judicial system.”
A CDC 8 February 2009 press release reminds:
— The Obama Administration gave attempted underwear bomber Abdulmutallab his Miranda rights hours after he tried to kill hundreds of Americans, yet Obama has not demanded the release of ten American missionaries jailed in Haiti.
— The jailed missionaries’ Haitian lawyer, Edwin Coq, was fired because he tried to extort a US$60,000 bribe to obtain their release.
— The Haitian Prime Minister called them “kidnappers” even before any formal charges were filed.
— Haitian officials publicly stated they “wanted to make an example” out of the missionaries even before they were charged.
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+ Christian News Wire, 2020 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest, Washington DCnewsdesk@christiannewswire.com 20006, 202-546-0054
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+ Christian Defense Coalition, Post Office Box 77168, Washington DC 20013, 202-547-1735, ChristianDefense@gmail.com
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[10] Calvin Synod Central Classis Meeting Postponed until 13 March 2010
Due to an overabundance of snow and a weather forecast for more of the same, the Calvin Synod Central Classis Meeting originally scheduled for 12 February 2010 at the First Hungarian Reformed Church of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, has been postponed until 13 March 2010.
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+ Calvin Synod, C/O Rt. Rev. Koloman K. Ludwig, Bishop, 7319 Tapper Avenue, Hammond, Indiana 46324, 219-931-4321, kkludwig@aol.com
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[11] February 2010 Reformation Voice Available for Download
The February 2010 Reformation Voice is available for download at the Heidelberg Reformation Association website.
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+ Heidelberg Reformation Association, Rev. Howard Sloan, Secretary, 5543 Business 220, Bedford, Pennsylvania 15522
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Mid-America Reformed Seminary will hold its Spring Conference 2010 on 16 March 2010 beginning at 2:00 p.m. at the First Reformed Church (Reformed Church in America (RCA)) of Lansing, Illinois, with the topic ‘Shepherds and Sheep in Communion with God.’
Speakers will be the Rev. Mike Pitsenberger, pastor of Christ Memorial Reformed Church (RCA) in Holland, Michigan, and the Rev. Jacques Roets, pastor of Redeemer United Reformed Church (United Reformed Churches in North America) in Dyer, Indiana.
Admission is free.
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+ Mid-America Reformed Seminary, 229 Seminary Drive, Dyer, Indiana 46311, 219-864-2400, Fax: 219-864-2410, cvenema@midamerica.edu
+ Reformed Church in America, 4500 60th Street Southeast, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49512, 800-968-6065, questions@rca.org
+ United Reformed Churches in North America, c/o Mr. Bill Konynenbelt, 5824 Bowwater Circle Northwest, Calgary, Alberta T3B 2E2, Canada, 403-286-0521, Fax: 403-286-0759, urcna@shaw.ca
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The Reformed Congregational Fellowship will hold its 2010 Confessional Conference 13-15 April 2010 at the Wonderland Conference Center in Sharon, Massachusetts. A conference brochure is available for download at the RCF website – http://www.reformedcongregational.org/.
The conference themes are ‘Saving Faith’ and ‘Repentance Unto Life and Salvation’ as they are found in chapters fourteen and fifteen of the Savoy Declaration of Faith.
The RCF is a fellowship of officers and members of churches in the Congregational tradition committed to advancing the doctrine of the Savoy Declaration and the polity of the Cambridge Platform.
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+ Reformed Congregational Fellowship
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Google Books has digitized the 1893 history by the Rev. Matthew Hutchison titled The Reformed Presbyterian Church in Scotland: Its Origin and History: 1680-1876, which is available for download in PDF and EPUB format at:
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+ Google Inc., 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, California 94043, 650-253-0000, Fax: 650-253-0001, press@google.com
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Kevin DeYoung, Senior Pastor at University Reformed Church (Reformed Church in America) in East Lansing, Michigan, on 9 February 2010, published an article on the DeYoung, Restless, and Reformed Blog titled “A Forgotten Voice,” which is a historical essay about 18th century Dutch Reformed minister Theodorus Jacobus Frelinghuysen, who left the Netherlands at age twenty-eight to be a pastor in the Raritan Valley of New Jersey.
DeYoung writes of Frelinghuysen: “He preached emotional sermons, prayed free prayers, practiced church discipline, and aimed squarely at the conversion of sinners. His messages were experiential, fruitful, and popular. He could also be an irascible fellow.” Frelinghuysen was lauded by both Jonathan Edwards and George Whitfield, and had great influence upon the ministry of Gilbert Tennent.
DeYoung concludes the essay with seven lessons from the life and ministry of Frelinghuysen that impart much valuable wisdom about the characteristics of a true minister of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
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+ DeYoung, Restless, and Reformed Blog, c/o The Gospel Coalition, 2065 Half Day Road, Deerfield, Illinois 60015, contact@thegospelcoalition.org
+ Reformed Church in America, 4500 60th Street Southeast, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49512, 800-968-6065, questions@rca.org
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The Association For Church Renewal is sponsoring the “Answering the Call: New Life in the Mainline Church” Conference, 5-8 August 2010, at
Elmhurst College in Chicago, Illinois, in order to issue the call for a new generation of ECOT (evangelical, conservative, orthodox, traditional) pastors and leaders in the historic mainline churches.
Conference speakers include John Armstrong, Carmen Fowler, Jim Harrell, David Runnion-Bareford, Bob Thompson, Jim Tomberlin, and David Runnion-Bareford.
Registration and information about meals and accommodations are available at:
http://mainlinecall.org/registration/
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+ Association For Church Renewal, Post Office Box 102, 182 High Street, Candia, New Hampshire 03034, 603-867-7711, Renewall.acr@gmail.com
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[Correction]
Contrary to the headline, and in agreement with the body of the 3 February 2010 Presbyterians Week article [7] New Hampshire PCUSA Pastor and Wife Indicted for Embezzling US$137,000 from Congregation’s Bank Account, the headline’s subject state should have been “Massachusetts” instead of “New Hampshire.”
The editor sends many thanks to the long-time New Hampshire resident reader who so graciously brought this error to the editor’s attention, and beyond that did not disparage the obvious lack of proofreading prowess leading to the headline’s “altered state.”
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