Posted on 04/14/2005 12:00:51 PM PDT by Dean Baker
Baptist church 'fake pope' sign attracting attention, criticism By JEANNINE F. HUNTER, hunter@knews.com April 13, 2005
NEWPORT, Tenn. - Two days after being posted, a church marquee message that questions the purpose of the papacy is still attracting attention in this small community.
"What I am trying to do is to let people know there's only one way to heaven through Jesus Christ," said the Rev. Cline Franklin, pastor of Hilltop Baptist Church. "There's no need for help. God sent his son, Jesus Christ. We're all priests if we're saved. I don't need to go to anybody else to pray."
The sign's side facing Broadway, the main thoroughfare in Newport, reads, "No truth, No hope Following a hell-bound pope!" On the other side, facing the church parking lot, it reads: "False hope in a fake pope."
The message appeared days after Pope John Paul II's funeral last week.
"It is unfortunate when it comes from within the Christian church. It's really sad," said the Rev. Dan Whitman, 54, pastor of Newport's Good Shepherd Catholic parish and Holy Trinity parish in Jefferson City. "You learn how to deal with it and pray not to be that way yourself."
It does not reflect mainstream Baptist thought, said Dr. Merrill "Mel" Hawkins, associate professor of religion and director of the Center for Baptist Studies at Carson-Newman College in Jefferson City.
"When you see signs like that, they are almost like relics or artifacts of a bygone era," Hawkins said.
He spoke about animus between Protestants and Catholics persisting after the Protestant Reformation and for centuries, during which "harsh things were said, couched within misperceptions, misunderstandings."
Among the major misperceptions is that Catholics "venerate the pope on the same level as Jesus," Hawkins said, and that "the pope is connected to their salvation in place of Jesus Christ."
Catholics make up about 12 percent of the population in the South.
"Catholics are a minority faith in the South, and there's often bias toward minority religious communities because people don't understand," he said.
James Gaddis, a lay speaker who also chairs the board at First United Methodist Church, said he had not seen the sign but had heard about it.
"I understand that it's very degrading," he said. "I think it's tragic that any church group would stoop to this posture."
Following Tuesday night's council meeting, Newport Mayor Roland Dykes Jr. said he was a little saddened by the message.
"It doesn't behoove any of us to determine who is going to heaven or hell. I think the pope is a highly, highly respected person," he said.
Franklin's church is a five-year-old independent Baptist church. When asked what the message meant, he said: "What does 'pope' mean? It means father. We have a heavenly father, and the Bible says we shall call no man a father. "
He said people have been driving by or taking pictures or calling to share their views. He said the intent was not to offend Catholics and people are misunderstanding the sign.
Copyright 2005, Knoxville News-Sentinel Co.
Except for that part where Jesus Himself tells the Apostles "what you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven, what you bind on earth with be bound in heaven..." Did He anticipate them being around for 400 years so they could teach from "scripture"?
You will probably respond that all that the Apostles taught ended up in Scripture, yet John ends his Gospel by pointing out that in no way could he write down all that Jesus did during His ministry.
Maybe they did but no one was paying attention.
The reformation has been in progress for quite a while now and news out of Newport is mostly unreported.
If A then B
IS the same as
If Not B then Not A
All I was saying is that just because a belief stands the test of time, it doesn't make it true. Truth, on the other hand, does stand the test of time (and so does falsehood).
Inconceivable!
I know Protestants who believe the Pope is of the devil, and Catholics who believe Martin Luther is of the devil, and Methodists who believe anyone who doesn't read the King James version is going to hell, Church of Christ people who believe amplified music during worship services is a sin, etc, etc, so forth and so on. I guess it takes all kinds of people to make the world go round, but it's enough to make me want to convert to Judaism.
We had quite a bit of Old Testament in jr. high and the New in high school. You should have stuck around longer!
But you're right we didn't study It as much as learn about modern day applications.
I think we can all agree that most Catholic Religous education for the past 20-30 years is nothing to be proud of.
I guess I meant that we never sit down, and studied the bible with a bible in hand...Like I've since seen those of other religions do.
But yeah, went to Mass every day, and again on Sunday. (Odd thing though...My girlfriend's son attends a Catholic school, and he doesn't go every day like we did).
That's correct. Arab Christians also refer to God as Allah.
Actually, in the Greek text (consult any good commentary on the original text) Jesus said, "Whatsoever you shall loose on earth SHALL HAVE BEEN LOOSED in heaven, etc..." Jesus was not giving them the authority to make up their own doctrine, rather he was stating that their inspired utterances would echo what had already been determined in the mind of God.
Exactly. Mary was saved by her own Son in eternity, not yet come to Earth, that He would enter through a gate not stained with sin...
At baptism, you are born again.
Please explain to be how dunking is defaming. I don't see it as blastpheming at all.
If you want to explain it privately, you can freepmail me.
I do not think that word means what you think it means.
"well I go to church but I am told I am going to hell because I live in San Francisco"
LOL, The question is "will you notice?"
Is not the name "Allah" cognate with the name "Elohim" (Plural of Eloh)?
I don't think the Jewish religion would claim that all Jews go to heaven. Jews have to keep up their covenant with God. I don't think Judaism is an automatic pass to heaven.
It's just simple history. Rome needed the church on it's side for the inquisition. The Roman Brotherhood merged with the Catholic church to "fight for God". The Church became the ROMAN Catholic Church.
The "modern" Babylonian Brotherhood (as far as I know) has nothing to do with the Catholic Church today, but back then the merge was necessary for Rome to win a war. Many of the rituals were incorporated into the Church, and are still used today.
The agnostic won't be sure if he needs to go to the store or not. He won't be sure if the store even exists or not. He'll need to see the candy bar in person before he'll believe the store actually carries it.
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