Posted on 06/13/2012 6:40:02 PM PDT by marshmallow
(CNN) – Jerry DeWitt entered the ministry when he was 17, launching a 25-year career as a Pentecostal preacher. He traveled all around his home state of Louisiana, preaching and ministering wherever he could.
All these years later, DeWitt, 42, is still on the road, and now takes his message all over the United States. But the nature of that message, along with his audience, has changed dramatically.
DeWitt is now an avowed atheist, and his audiences are made up of religious “nones,” the growing number of Americans who are atheist, agnostic, humanist or just plain disinterested in identifying with a religion. Today, DeWitt preaches a gospel of disbelief.
During his speeches, he talks about the process of leaving his preacher job. “If you don’t believe, then you will be like me – you’ll suddenly find yourself where you only have two choices,” DeWitt told a group in Johnson County, Kansas, earlier this year.
“You can either be honest that you don’t believe ... or you can pretend that you do,” he said. “Which is what so many people are doing and that is called faith.”
The transition from preacher to outspoken atheist has not been easy, and DeWitt is trying to smooth the way for other former believers. He is executive director of Recovering from Religion, an organization founded in 2009. Its slogan: “Thousands of organizations will help you get INTO religion, but we’re the only one helping you OUT.”
But a relatively new effort goes a step further than his own group by focusing on helping clergy in particular. In March 2011, a coalition that includes national groups such as American Atheists, the Freedom From Religion Foundation and the Richard Dawkins Foundation helped launch the Clergy Project, which is aimed at giving doubting and atheist preachers a community.....
(Excerpt) Read more at religion.blogs.cnn.com ...
Thank you for your words.
Proverbs 19:5, “A false witness shall not be unpunished, and he that speaketh lies shall not escape.”
Proverbs 19:9, “A false witness shall not be unpunished, and he that speaketh lies shall perish.”
Proverbs 21:6, “The getting of treasures by a lying tongue is a vanity tossed to and fro of them that seek death.”
Proverbs 26:28, “A lying tongue hateth those that are afflicted by it; and a flattering mouth worketh ruin.”
Proverbs 29:12, “If a ruler hearken to lies, all his servants are wicked.”
So I guess he believes in "The Eternal Chance" or " Father Chance".
Either this guys is in deep, deep deception and demonic influence and will one day break out of it and repent and be gravely sorrowful for the damage he is doing to the cause of Christ OR he never was a Christian and he finally realized that the devil pays more for his efforts. The retirement plan is NOT worth it and, one day, he will come to the knowledge of the truth. I hope it is before it becomes too late.
I’m always suspicious of believers who claim to have zero doubts about their faith and salvation. That’s not my experience. I wish I could say I never doubt, but sometimes I do.
I arrived at Christianity through the study of scripture. It wasn’t so much an emotional experience as an intellectual decision that Christ was plausible. He made a good case and seemed to have a very good explanation for why the world is the way it is (His parables, especially, are very enlightening).
Christ didn’t leave a lot of wiggle room either. You can either believe He was telling the truth, something that compels one to act, or you can think He lied. He himself didn’t leave any middle ground (contrary to those who think He was a prophet or just a guy with good intentions).
So it comes down to putting trust, call it faith, that Christ was who He said He was. If it turns out that I end up being a fool for Christ, I won’t know it. On the other hand, I hope and pray for mercy and will receive it if He was who He said He was.
BTW, I periodically re-evaluate my decision when doubts arise. I always come back to the realization that I’ve never heard a better explanation than Christ’s.
The kept on serving as clergy because they didn't know what else to do, or because they wanted to help people.
Same as it ever was though. Luther pointed this out about the bishops of his day, and it has never really changed. The life of a pastor is very appealing to a narcissist.
That’s just what Unitarians have been for years!
It’s not about you.
He’s an anti-Christian. Anti-Christians usually go one of two ways: They go into Christianity because they are so immersed in it or they find a kooky religion to follow.
I have problems with a few of Paul’s statements in Hebrews as they are inconsistent with Jesus’ teachings.
Re: The number of times forgiveness is available...
The parable of the vineyard workers
Jesus states in John that He did not come to judge, but to save.
These are just a few comments... I can see why Hebrews was questionable for inclusion when it came to the canon process.
Excellent reflection comments. There comes a point where your belief and faith are tested to the limit. At that time you are given an experience where you know longer believe based upon faith, but know based upon experience that the teachings are the truth. That experience is the journey through the dark-night-of-the-soul. There can be many false dark nights as the ego battles its diminishing, but when you truly go through it you realize why Jesus stated, “My Father and I are One.” after He went through it. It’s an experiential awareness that develops as a result of raising the operational frequency of consciousness to a new level of perception. It is a true born again experience.
Communion is Jesus offering us to realize that we are One with Him, and in being so are also One with our Father.
I use Russian nesting dolls to teach this concept in workshops. We are the little doll in the middle and God is the outer large doll. Jesus is the doll just below God.(1) As we grow spiritually, our awareness and perception of the higher (greater) levels develops. This is the basis for the sacred teachings of the squaring of the circle in some secret groups.
(1) This is the reason for the statement that you can’t get to God except through Jesus. It is a very true statement no matter which religious path you have chosen.
This honesty would be grace from God for healing what ails the congregations. These snakes hide and undermine in secret. Out ‘em and then oust them.
I have less and less doubts the more I read and apply God’s Word. I also enjoy reading and learning new things.
Even though I’m not a protestant [raised catholic, now non-denominatonal] I give much deference to Luther’s 5 solas:
God alone,
Christ alone,
Faith alone,
Grace alone, &
Scriptures alone -
there is no substitute for any of these and scriptures are the best interpreter of scriptures.
Some of the best Christian defenders of the faith:
Lee Strobel, Max Lucado, Josh McDowell, John MacArthur,
Joel Rosenberg, Dr. Walt Brown PhD, Dr Russell Humphreys PhD. ~ see my home page & links page for more.
A lot of wisdom with verses. I was thinking along those lines too. Amen.
“Thousands of organizations will help you get INTO religion, but we’re the only one helping you OUT.”
But i think he is doing the right thing, encourage the pretenders to come out in the open.
Many will be called but few will be chosen.
I’ve had several opportunities to renounce my faith in the past 20 years but I have not because, ultimately, the proof that God exists and is involved in our lives is everywhere.
There have been times when I’ve been bitterly let down by God but I know my life is worthless without Christ and I would rather kill myself than live without that belief because I already know how futile life is otherwise.
The only thing that keeps me going is the belief that, in some way, God has a plan and a reward for me. If that’s not true, my life was already wasted.
In my case it was not God who let me down but some how i did all of the letting down my self and don,t even know how it happened.
Some people live in pain, some brought on by them selves, others through some other means and i have to believe by my own experiences that it is all necessary for our salvation.
I could not help but think of the story about Job when i read your comment.
God bless and
keep up the faith.
Helping people out of a religion? I don’t get it. Are there religions (not cults) that force people to believe?
And why would someone preach a sermon about something he DOESN’T believe in?
Religion is nothing more than ritual, that is where the word religion comes from, an outward act to show what you supposedly believe.
You see it in many of the Churches every Sunday, many of them Jesus said not to do.
I do not know when the Christians started referring to them selves as being religious but it was not started by Jesus nor the Apostles.
There was a poster on FR from a while ago who interviewed a lot of pastors and priests, and found that quite a number of them no longer or never did believe in God.
The kept on serving as clergy because they didn’t know what else to do, or because they wanted to help people.
And naturally some of them would say they wanted to help people but how would they be helping people by teaching something they thought was a lie?
Please don’t take my above comments to imply that I am anti-religion. I am anti “pseudo religion.” In order to know thy Father, you must look within. As my Father is in me and I am in my Father. These words really do make sense when you experience God rather than just theorize.
I believe in God and his son with all of my heart but i do not believe in religion and i don,t think Jesus had any thing to do with religion except those things he did in order to keep the religious leaders from accusing him.
Most of the teachings of Jesus had something to do with ( do unto others as you would have them do unto you ), such as feeding some one who is hungry, or as the good Samaritan story.
And also if some one has done something stupid and know it and is suffering for it, , why persecute them and make them suffer more.
He was talking about personally doing good to people, it is easy to do good for other people if you are getting paid to do it and especially if you have a big crowd watching, but if no one is looking on it may mean something else entirely.
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