20 September 2023

Wednesday, September 20, 2023, 21:32

This news item was posted in Presbyterians Week category.

“But if the watchman see the sword come, and blow not the trumpet, and the people be not warned; if the sword come, and take any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at the watchman’s hand.” [Ezekiel 33:6]

“For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” [Ephesians 6:12]

Presbyterians Week Headlines

[1] Vanguard Presbytery: The Problem with Presbyterianism is. . . Presbytery

[2] Nineteen-Year-Old Woman Dies after Being Blocked by the UK National Health Service (NHS) from Pursuing Treatment Abroad

[3] Finland Prosecuting Christians For Quoting The Bible

[4] Oklahoma City Public School Hires Drag Queen as Principal

Additional Articles of Interest

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[1] Vanguard Presbytery: The Problem with Presbyterianism is. . . Presbytery

The title of this message will come as a surprise and a dismay to many Presbyterians. Presbytery is the genius of our system, so we think. How can Presbytery (which is Scriptural by the way) be our problem? The right of appeal from a lower court to a higher court (after which the American system of jurisprudence is modeled) is the bedrock foundation for Presbyterianism. How can that court be our chief nemesis? We must remember what D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones often said that we have to watch our strengths because they become our biggest problem areas. So it is with Presbytery.

Here is the problem with Presbytery. Presbyteries everywhere function contrary to the Constitution of their denomination whenever they choose to do so with virtual impunity. That has been true in all Presbyterian denominations and all nations and all time periods. Presbyteries never really get into trouble if they violate the Constitution. A light verbal reprimand is the most that ever happens to them. Process errors will be corrected by the higher court with a simple directive. But if Presbytery is guilty of more egregious errors, nothing is done to them. This problem with Presbyteries cuts across all boundaries between conservatives and liberals/progressives. It applies to each alike.

As a former member of the Standing Judicial Commission of the PCA for four terms, I saw enough instances of Presbyteries violating the Constitution to last a lifetime. Over forty-four years in the ministry of the PCA, I saw many other violations which never made it before the General Assembly for adjudication. In 2008, I was the prosecutor for the SJC in the trial of Louisiana Presbytery for harboring Steve Wilkins and his theological errors. The SJC was instructed before deliberations on that case that no General Assembly in American Presbyterian history had ever sanctioned a Presbytery. Louisiana Presbytery was found guilty by a vote of 11-7 following that trial in March of 2008 and the Presbytery had to have the sanctions read to them before the General Assembly a few months later.

Some people may think it is a great thing that only one Presbytery has ever been sanctioned by a General Assembly in American Presbyterianism, but I disagree. Just as sessions can and do err, so also Presbyteries can and do err. Westminster Confession of Faith 31.3 says:

All synods and councils, since the apostles’ times, whether general or particular, may err; and many have erred. Therefore they are not to be made the rule of faith, or practice; but to be used as a help to both.

No Presbytery should be accorded deferential treatment when they err. Their actions are not the rule of faith. Their pronouncements are not the voice of God. Their violations of the Constitution are not to be countenanced any more than a similar violation by the lower court would be countenanced by that same Presbytery. Yet, these are the kinds of things that I have seen during my life in the ministry:

Presbytery harboring theological errors and immorality with impunity (except in the lone case of Louisiana Presbytery in 2008).
Presbytery receiving allegations against a minister or a church without the Scriptural requirement of it being based on the mouths of two or three witnesses (Cf. Deuteronomy 17:6; 19:15; Matthew 18:16; and, 1 Timothy 5:19).
Presbytery receiving allegations against a minister or a session without allowing the party alleged to be in error to face his accusers or respond to the allegations.
Presbytery unconstitutionally removing a session and placing a commission over the congregation.
Presbytery ignoring the Scriptural requirement that no party is to be allowed to bring an allegation against someone else without first proceeding through the steps of Matthew 18:15-18.
Presbytery violating its own Constitution in appointing judicial commissions.
Presbytery usurping authority through bullying tactics and forcing pastors to leave their churches without justification.
And many more such things.

The Presbyterian Church was begun in America in 1706. In the three hundred fourteen years of its existence, there is that one instance—and only one—in which Presbytery received more than a slight slap on the wrist. Presbytery has sanctioned many pastors and churches, but has functioned without fear of any reprisals from the General Assembly for most of its time in this country. Presbytery after Presbytery has acted unconstitutionally on repeated occasions with near unanimous impunity. Is there any wonder then that Presbyterian denominations continue to go astray?

The excuse I often hear for why Presbyteries are allowed to get away with unconstitutional actions is that our system of government does not allow us to correct anything other than process errors. Not true. I have reviewed every Book of Church Order of every Presbyterian denomination that I could find and every one gives the higher court, the General Assembly, the right to correct the lower court in the same way that Presbytery can correct a pastor or a Session. The PCA BCO 14.6a and g says that “The General Assembly shall have the power:

-To receive and issue all appeals, references, and complaints regularly brought before it from the lower courts; to bear testimony against error in doctrine and immorality in practice, injuriously affecting the Church; to decide in all controversies respecting doctrine and discipline;

a. To suppress schismatical contentions and disputations, according to the rules provided therefore.

g. No book of polity that I have found limits the powers of the General Assembly to merely correcting process errors while ignoring error or immorality. Such a practice is straining on gnats and swallowing camels.

The effect of this erroneous thinking is that it emboldens Presbyteries to rule through intimidation and by fiat authority. Every pastor and church should tremble when they hear those dreaded words, “We are from the Presbytery and we are here to help you.” Ben Wilkinson, one of the founding fathers of the PCA, once told me about a Presbytery Committee visiting with a church, “If they stay around long enough, they will burn the whole church to the ground.”

So, what is the practical problem with Presbytery not being subject to any form of discipline from the higher court? Here it is. They forget that they are under authority. They think they are the authority and their actions are clothed in divinity. They develop a God complex. Is it any wonder then that Presbyterian denominations only remain conservative for about 30-40 years? How could they last any longer when we esteem them as an infallible court that replaces an infallible person? As someone has jokingly said, “Presbytery is papacy written small.” Such authoritarianism is wrong no matter the name. There is neither an infallible Pope nor an infallible court.

A dear friend of mine wrote me last week to look over everything with respect to Vanguard Presbytery one more time. He admonished me that if Vanguard does not start right it will never be right. So, on my morning walks, it came to me that the problem of Presbyterianism is Presbytery. Presbytery cannot be allowed to function as an infallible court with impunity if we want to erect a truly Scriptural Presbyterian denomination. All courts err—even Presbytery. Thus, Presbytery should not be allowed to be authoritarian, but should be encouraged to be the protector of good order while following the same. We will be adding protections to the proposed BCO of Vanguard Presbytery to prevent an infallible court, but everything depends on the blessing of God if any denomination is to remain pure.

Dewey Roberts, Pastor at Cornerstone Presbyterian Church, Destin, FL

Author of Historic Christianity and the Federal Vision;

Samuel Davies: Apostle to Virginia

Email me at: drob9944@aol.com to be added to my email list.

+ Vanguard Presbyterian Church, PO Box 1862, Destin, Florida 32540, (850) 376-3166, drob9944@aol.com

[2] Nineteen-Year-Old Woman Dies after Being Blocked by the UK National Health Service (NHS) from Pursuing Treatment Abroad

A nineteen-year-old Christian woman, locked in a lengthy legal battle with the NHS to be permitted to go abroad for experimental treatment which might save her life, has died in an NHS hospital.

For over six months she had been prevented by a Court of Protection order from raising funds to travel to Canada to join a clinical trial of cutting-edge nucleoside treatment.

Late on Tuesday evening (12 September) the woman, known only as ‘ST’ due to severe reporting restrictions, died from cardiac arrest.

On Friday 22 September, ST’s family, supported by the Christian Legal Centre, will appear at a hearing in the Court of Protection to ask for the reporting restrictions to be discharged and for them to be given a right to tell their story.

The current practice of the Courts which determine end-of-life disputes between families and the NHS is to impose draconian reporting restrictions so that the identities of families and doctors involved in the case never become known.

That controversial practice is currently under scrutiny in an ongoing Supreme Court appeal arising from two other high-profile end-of-life cases, Isaiah Haastrup and Zeinab Abbasi.

ST’s tragic case was reminiscent of Charlie Gard, Alfie Evans and Archie Battersbee, in that an NHS Hospital, which cannot be named under the restrictions, had asked the Court of Protection to authorise removal of life-saving medical treatment from ST, effectively condemning her to death.

Unlike in most such cases, however, ST was conscious, able to speak, and had instructed her own lawyers to argue that she should be kept alive and be allowed to go to Canada for experimental treatment which would give her a chance of survival.

ST was suffering from a rare genetic mitochondrial disease which caused chronic muscle weakness, loss of hearing, and damage to her kidneys, making her dependent on regular dialysis and other intensive care. It did not, however, affect the functioning of her brain.

The Hospital argued that while ST’s prognosis was uncertain and she could have survived for some months, her condition was deteriorating, and she was therefore “actively dying”. The NHS Trust had asked the Court to approve a “palliative care plan” for ST which would mean she is no longer given dialysis and would die from kidney failure within a few days.

Two psychiatric experts instructed by the Hospital examined ST and have told the Court that she was not suffering from any mental health illness and had the mental capacity to make decisions about her own medical treatment.

ST told psychiatrists she disagreed with the doctors and wanted them to continue to sustain her life. She wanted to be given a chance to participate in clinical trials of nucleoside therapy, which are due to resume in Canada later this year and would have given her a chance of survival. She said she realised that the experimental treatment might still fail to save her, but in that case, she said that she “wanted to die trying to live”.

However, the Hospital doctors argued that ST’s refusal to trust the judgment of her doctors and to accept her imminent death as inevitable amounted to a “delusion”.

In a judgement released on the 25 August, Mrs Justice Roberts ruled that the decisions about ST’s life and death should be taken by the Court of Protection based on an assessment of her best interests, and that ST lacks capacity to have a say in the matter via her own lawyers. Rejecting the opinion of both psychiatric experts, the judge concluded that ST was mentally uncapable of making decisions for herself because she does not believe what Hospital doctors say about her condition. She concluded: “In my judgment… ST is unable to make a decision for herself in relation to her future medical treatment, including the proposed move to palliative care, because she does not believe the information she has been given by her doctors.” [para 93]

ST grew up in a tightly knit Christian family who have spent all their savings to pay lawyers to resist the legal proceedings brought by the NHS to end her life. Despite her illness, she attended a regular school, achieved good GCSE results and was studying for her A levels when her health deteriorated after catching Covid in August 2022. She has been in an Intensive Care Unit ever since.

In November 2022, ST issued Lasting Powers of Attorney to authorise her parents to make decisions on her behalf in the future if she was to lose mental capacity to do so in the future. In February 2023, the Hospital asked the Court of Protection to set aside the document on the grounds that she did not have mental capacity to sign it. The Hospital then made a further application to approve a palliative care plan, said to be in ST’s best interests but which would lead to her death within a few days.

Like the family of Charlie Gard, ST’s only hope of cure was the experimental treatment known as nucleotide therapy, which is only available abroad. Her family wanted to appeal to the public to raise funds to enable her to participate in a clinical trial which is expected to start in Canada later this year.

However, in March 2023, the Court made a “Transparency Order” which imposes draconian restrictions on reporting any information which might lead to identification of ST, members of her family, or the Hospital. This prevents ST and her parents from giving any direct media interviews or making any appeal for funds. The Transparency Order was made at the request of the NHS Trust without any reasons.

ST’s parents made an urgent application to reconsider the Transparency Order to enable them to raise funds for ST’s treatment in Canada. The Court has held three hearings since that time, but has not found the time to consider that application to date.

The hospital Trust has tried to argue that it did not prevent the family from taking ST to North America to receive specialist treatment. However, this appears to be misleading as the severe reporting restrictions have prevented the family fundraising for the £1.5 million needed.

Furthermore, Trust lawyers argued in court that ST did not have capacity to make decisions for herself such as this. They also argued that powers of attorney given to her parents were invalid.

The Trust instead sought to impose their own care plan which said that ST should be moved to palliative care and should die in the UK hospital.

Anyone wishing to support the family at this time can do so by visiting this link.

In a statement communicated via their solicitors, the family (whose identity still cannot be revealed) has said: “On Tuesday evening we lost our beautiful and courageous daughter, known to the world as ST. To us she has a real name. Even now, in the hour of our grief, we continue to be gagged by the court order from saying her name aloud.

“To her family she was everything and we will cherish and never forget the 19 years we had with her.
“The past year, however, has been one of struggle, even torture, for ST and for her family at the hands of the hospital and the Court of Protection.

“Mitochondrial depletion syndrome (MDS) is very rare, and the particular version ST had has only a few known cases in the world. The UK has no expertise in treating the condition but three hospitals in America and Canada had offered to treat ST. Because of the court proceedings, however, ST was blocked from going there and because of the gagging orders we could not fundraise to finance her treatment and transport.

“ST said she wanted ‘to die trying to live’. This was her only chance, and that chance was denied to her.
“The disease ST faced was immense, but she and we refused to give up hope, no matter how small that hope was. ST was a committed Christian and firmly believed that life is the most precious gift we have from God. Every family faced with such a challenge and tragedy should have the opportunity to leave no stone unturned when trying to save the life of their child.

“Instead in our hour of need, when we needed it most, we were taken to court and had severe reporting restrictions placed upon us. We were essentially given a choice: give up and let us prepare your daughter for death, or have your lives dismantled and torn part if you wish to resist us. We chose to give up everything for our daughter. Day after day in the intensive care ward we and ST had to exist and keep going in an environment that had given up on her right and wish to live. Death we were told was the only remedy and the only hope.

“In such an environment, it meant we were afraid to leave her bedside, and were therefore forced to give up our livelihoods to the point we now do not know how we will pay for her funeral. We were not given any legal aid and had to pay for lawyers ourselves until recently Christian Legal Centre stepped in to provide pro bono legal representation. We still owe a massive debt to our previous lawyers which we slowly repay in monthly instalments.

“Because ST and our family refused to give up hope, doctors said that ST could not possibly have mental capacity to make decisions about her health. Despite the fact that two court-appointed expert psychiatrists and the Office of the Public Guardian all agreed that ST did have full mental capacity, the Court declared her to have no capacity either to make decisions about her health or even to instruct her own lawyers. From this case we have learnt that if you disagree with the NHS, you must for that reason alone be considered delusional. This has been deeply disturbing and traumatic to witness first-hand happening to someone you love.

“ST found herself trapped in a medical and legal system governed by a toxic paternalism which condemned her for wanting to live. She was in a race against time to escape ‘the system’ and the certain death it wished to impose on her. The system has now succeeded, but this is not the end. On 22 September we will continue to fight for these reporting restrictions to be overturned and for ST’s right to be identified and for her full story to be known.

“This system urgently needs to change, and we pray no one else will ever have to go through what ST and we as a family have been made to suffer this last year.

“Despite the draconian reporting restrictions, ST has fought long enough for the truth about her long torment to be exposed in the media. Despite her anonymity, she has been able to tell her story and to show the world what has happened to her, and what could happen to any of us. We feel she made a lot of new friends in the last week of her life, and we appeal for support in fighting for justice for our daughter and to bring what has been done in the dark into the light. We are not out for revenge but we want justice for our daughter and for other victims of this cruel system.”

Andrea Williams, chief executive of the Christian Legal Centre, said: “We take very seriously the privilege of serving people in their hour of need and seeking justice for them.

“The case of ST is not just about justice for her and her family but ensuring that justice in such cases is done with full transparency and proper scrutiny in this nation.

“ST was truly courageous and beautiful soul. She died advocating for the preciousness of life and importance of justice.

“As a committed Christian ST was determined to stand for life and no matter how weak and fragile she felt within the system. ST believed in the worth and dignity of every life and that such life was worth fighting for and not giving up on.”

+ Christian Concern, 70 Wimpole Street, London W1G 8AX, England, 020 7935 1488, Contact Page

[3] Finland Prosecuting Christians For Quoting The Bible

The following is excerpted from “Newest NATO Country,” The Federalist, Sept. 1, 2023: “In an appeals court Thursday, Helsinki’s top prosecutor said publicly quoting the Bible and publishing a booklet about Christian sexual ethics violates Finland’s ‘hate speech’ law. the appeal escalates this U.S. ally’s prosecution of dissidents from leftist politics, a marker of repressive regimes. the prosecutor has charged Member of Parliament Paivi Rasanen and Bishop Juhana Pohjola for writing and publishing, respectively, a booklet supporting natural marriage. ‘this [case] is a God-given wake up call for Christians and others worried about the direction our society is going,’ Pohjola said in a post-court press conference Friday morning U.S. time. He noted convicting a religious leader for publishing theological documents would in effect criminalize Christianity in Finland and encourage similar oppression worldwide. Rasanen is also criminally charged with posting a Bible verse to X (formerly Twitter) and stating Christian theology in a radio interview. the prosecutor wants all recordings of the radio interview taken down and the booklet to be unavailable online, and fines levied against both Christians. … ‘the content of my writings and my speeches represents the classical Christian view of marriage and sexuality, the same as the Churches have generally taught for two millennia,’ Rasanen said in a statement. ‘I do not condone insulting, threatening or slandering anyone, and my statements have not included content of such a nature. I consider this matter to be a theological discussion that should not be in a courtroom.’ … Friday morning, [prosecutor Anu] Mantila argued, ’there is material in the Bible that contradicts principles in our society. this is why the interpretation of the law against discrimination must be applied effectively.’ … Due to Communist influence, much of the West has enacted speech restrictions similar to Finland’s. that includes dozens of U.S. states and cities. All it would take is courts to interpret hate speech laws the way these Finnish prosecutors are arguing to criminalize Christianity across the West.”

+ Way of Life Literature, Post Office Box 610368, Port Huron, Michigan 48061, 519-652-2619, fbns@wayoflife.org

[4] Oklahoma City Public School Hires Drag Queen as Principal

The following is excerpted from FoxNews, Sept. 7, 2023: “the principal of John Glenn Elementary School, Oklahoma City, Shane Murnan, is a drag queen who goes by the name ‘Shantel Mandalay,’ Fox News Digital can confirm. … Dressed as a drag queen, Murnan has read books to children to celebrate Pride for the Metropolitan Library System. According to the Facebook page, Murnan was employed as a drag queen at a venue called ‘The Boom.’ Ryan Walters , superintendent of [education for] the State of Oklahoma, called on Western Heights School District to immediately terminate Murnan. ‘It’s outrageous to have a drag queen running a school, you know, here in Oklahoma that doesn’t line up with Oklahoma values, this individual is not fit to lead a school district,’ Walters said. ‘What they are doing is injecting this ideology for an end goal here. their end goal is to absolutely break down a child’s mind, break down the classroom, break down the family, and you see the results that have come from this. they want kids to turn on their parents and only listen to their leftist ideology.’” Earlier, Newsweek reported, “the hiring drew further attention when Libs of TikTok, an account on X, formerly Twitter, on Wednesday posted photos of Murnan’s personal Facebook page, his alleged drag queen persona, and past news stories of the child pornography allegations he was charged with. Murnan’s personal Facebook page has appeared to have been deactivated” (“School Investigated,” Newsweek, Sept. 1, 2023).

+ Way of Life Literature, Post Office Box 610368, Port Huron, Michigan 48061, 519-652-2619, fbns@wayoflife.org

Additional Articles of Interest

– Argentine Presidential Front-Runner: Pope Francis Has an ‘Affinity for Murderous Communists’

– Just Five Months to Kill: The Horrifying Relationship between Deaths, COVID Deaths, and Covid-19 Vaccination

– Evidence Shows HPV Vaccines Like Gardasil Are Causing Severe Injuries and Deaths

– Association of American Physicians and Surgeons: Mask Mandates Provide No Clear Benefits, Cause Harm and Violate the Right to Informed Consent

– The Firebombing of Maui: Part One

– A Nation of Snitches: US Department of Homeland Security Is Grooming Americans to Report on Each Other

– South Carolina Professor Finds 200 Billion Pieces of DNA Contaminating a Single Dose of Pfizer’s Covid Injection

– School Teaches Kids There are Thirteen Genders

– Dr. Peter McCullough: No One Should Take Another Shot, Covid Vaccines Are Not Safe for Human Use

– ONE IN A MILLION SHOT: COVID “Vaccine” Only Helps One Person Avoid COVID Death Out of Every One Million Jabs Delivered, US Centers for Disease Control Confirms