Posted on 03/08/2015 8:37:15 AM PDT by Gamecock
A recent Wall Street Journal story profiling twin brothers who followed separate spiritual paths — one to become an Anglican bishop, the other a Catholic priest — represents failure by the Southern Baptist church in which they were raised, according to Southern Baptist Theological Seminary President Albert Mohler.
Mohler, who posts a daily podcast commenting on current events on his personal website, said March 6 he has no firsthand knowledge of First Baptist Church in Elkin, N.C., home church of the men now in their 40s featured in a March 3 article headlined “When We Leave One Religion for Another: How two brothers, raised Baptist, found their way to two different faiths.” But the story of young seeking answers outside their evangelical upbringing is all too common.
“We are losing far too many evangelical young people as they reach older ages because they are simply not adequately grounded theologically in the Christian faith,” Mohler said. “They may go to vacation Bible school, and they may go to Sunday school, but the question is, are they really grounded in the Christian faith? Are they well-grounded in the beauty of Scripture? Are they well-grounded in a knowledge of the deep theological convictions that define us as Christians?”
According to the Wall Street Journal piece, 43-year-old Brad Jones, a Roman Catholic priest in the Diocese of Charlotte, N.C., and Bishop Chad Jones, rector at St. Barnabas Anglican Church in Dunwoody, Ga., grew up in the Baptist congregation where their parents remain faithful members. Both felt something was missing in the Baptist church, and they embarked on different paths to find it.
 Like many kids, the story says, in their early teen years the boys began questioning things, including the teachings of the Baptist church. Their interest piqued when an older cousin converted to Catholicism and took them to Our Lady of Grace Catholic Church in Greensboro, N.C., when they were about 12 or 13.
The article describes the scene:
“The beauty of the building itself — the vaulted ceilings, marble steps, intricate woodwork, statues and stained glass — the smells of burning incense and the sounds of bells had a mystical quality that is hard to explain, says Father Brad. What struck Bishop Chad was watching the priest standing in front of the altar and elevating the Communion host.
“For them, the Catholic liturgy made the invisible God palpable and tangible to the senses. Their own Baptist church, where the walls are white and flat, the altar austere, and the worship focused largely on Scripture alone, didn’t. ‘We weren’t theologians. We were children. But as children we had open hearts and minds to it and were very receptive,’ says Bishop Chad. He remembers painting a picture of Jesus during vacation Bible school, hanging it on his bedroom wall and wishing his church had pictures.”
Mohler said failure to ground children in Christian doctrine leaves them vulnerable “to be led by their senses” rather than “a theological understanding grounded in the explicit teachings of Scripture.”
“When these two boys, identical twins, were asking deep theological questions, who was there to help them?” Mohler asked. “Who was there to guide them? Who was there as an evangelical thinker, apologist, theologian, friend, pastor and guide to help them to understand these questions?”
Mohler said the article comes as “judgment upon all those who missed the opportunity and failed in the responsibility to ground these young boys as they were then in the Christian faith, in the truth and the beauty of evangelical Christian doctrine, in the theological principles that based upon long biblical consideration and the long argument of the church have meant the differences between the Roman Catholic Church and evangelical Christianity — the differences between the understanding of a Scripture-centered Christianity and one that is centered in the sacraments, as is the Roman Catholic system, and at least much of Anglicanism.”
Mohler said he knows of “no specific failing” by First Baptist Elkin, a congregation affiliated with the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of North Carolina with characteristics described on the church website as “worship that is intentional and inclusive,” a “vision of becoming a loving and accepting community of faith” and “a heart for missions.”
“What I do know is this,” Mohler said. “This story appears as judgment and as challenge to every single one of us: as pastors, as parents, as youth leaders, as those who care about the perpetuation of the faith once delivered to the saints. If we do not ground our children in the faith, then they are going to find the answers to their questions elsewhere.”
Mohler contrasted the boys’ two spiritual paths.
“When you look at this news article, we come to understand that the shift of one of these twins to becoming an Anglican is quite a different shift than the one who became a Roman Catholic,” he said. “Becoming an Anglican doesn’t necessarily mean in any sense the denial of the very essentials of the gospel that would be at stake in terms of the official teachings of the Roman Catholic Church — in terms of those Reformation principles that we believe to be at the very heart of the gospel: of justification by faith alone, by grace alone, by the work of Christ alone, knowable by the authority of Scripture alone, and ultimately to the glory of God alone.”
Mohler said occasionally a “well-taught” young person will at some point later in life depart from the faith, “but for those who are not well-taught, it’s not just a possibility, it’s a probability.”
“This is a huge question,” Mohler said. “It’s a haunting question. I raise this article simply because every single evangelical parent needs to take it as a serious challenge, because every single evangelical church has to understand this story is telling us in one sense what we’re up against.
“The story of these two identical twins can be replicated thousands and thousands of times over, and surely will be, if we fail now in the responsibility to raise up the next generation in the faith, to defend the faith once for all delivered to the saints.”
Your comment about the more you try to overcome a sin, the more you think you are a sinner. {I am paraphrasing what you wrote]. But, I see that as a rather normal thing as one grows closer to God. The sense of our unworthiness makes us a bit more critical of our own behavior and shortcomings.
That is not a bad thing. A little more humility will keep us on the straighter path. God bless you.
“Baptists don’t let your babies grow up to be Catholics”
Too late, I know the truth! Says this former Baptist.
The big difference between people in the Baptist church and the Catholic church? The Baptists talk about being Christians and the Catholics do it.
I agree, but our basic source should be scripture
whatever we read, it has to agree with what the Bible plainly says.
Concerning Peter, Paul directly contradicts any claims that Peter was the apostle to the gentiles, even though Acts chapter 10 shows him being the first one to bring the gentiles into this, Paul plainly states Paul is the apostle to the Gentiles while Pete is the apostle to the Jews
To make a doctrine that is the opposite or contradictory..well, it might be what a person thinks, but it aint Biblical.
Except they cut a bunch of the books..............
Yep.
“Your comment about the more you try to overcome a sin, the more you think you are a sinner. {I am paraphrasing what you wrote]. But, I see that as a rather normal thing...”
Spot on! The Apostle Paul went on in Romans, chapter 7 quite elegantly about his own struggle with his sin, then wrapped it up beautifully! Rm 7:24-25 where he writes (NIV) What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God-through Jesus Christ our Lord!
elegantly=eloquently
DOH!
I do, I don’t espouse universalism.
I am SB, too. I know we do not believe that but the CoC does. The sister of a friend lives in another state. When she came here for visits, she had to pretend to be married after her divorce. I do not understand.
Was it E.G.Stair’s church/cult?
I can’t see how all these people find time to worry about whether others are on the right path or doing the right thing,
Concerning Peter, Paul directly contradicts any claims that Peter was the apostle to the gentiles, even though Acts chapter 10 shows him being the first one to bring the gentiles into this, Paul plainly states Paul is the apostle to the Gentiles while Pete is the apostle to the Jews
7 And when there had been much disputing, Peter rose up, and said unto them, Men and brethren, ye know how that a good while ago God made choice among us, that the Gentiles by my mouth should hear the word of the gospel, and believe.
13 And after they had held their peace, James answered, saying, Men and brethren, hearken unto me:
14 Simeon hath declared how God at the first did visit the Gentiles, to take out of them a people for his name.
15 And to this agree the words of the prophets; as it is written,
Not necessarily disagreeing but many of the arguments that different Churches have does come from scripture, in a case such as this I would have to say we just should not argue about them.
“...if I some how stay out of hell I doubt if any one else will have much problem.”
I hear you.
One of the best (and few) movies I’ve seen in the past couple of years was Clint Eastwood’s “Grand Torino”. When he tells his late wife’s priest that he’s just a 27 year old overeducated virgin scaring old women out of their money, sorry, but that was the most honest statement about American religion I’ve seen in years.
When he tells his late wife’s priest that he’s just a 27 year old overeducated virgin scaring old women out of their money, sorry,
And in so many cases it is not a joke.
My feelings exactly. It’s going to boil down to faith, merciful God and God being able to see what’s in my heart. But like I said before my mind is willing but my flesh is weak and after fail I just try again. It’s like push ups and eating well , you know it’s good for you but you just shrug , watch TV and drink a beer. Then hate yourself afterward.
Then hate yourself afterward.
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