Posted on 03/07/2006 5:13:45 PM PST by Past Your Eyes
ANDOVER – As controversy grows over the United Church of Christ's support of same-sex marriage, New Hampshire congregations are being urged not to defect, but to become involved in a movement to reshape the church.
"It is a crisis of lost churches, lost funds and lost unity brought on by the actions of our national leadership," the Rev. Dr. Bob Thompson of Corinth Reformed Church, a UCC congregation in Hickory, N.C., told a group of about 50 gathered last night at Andover Congregational Church.
"It is wrong, unbiblical, and at best, divisive . . .," Thompson said of the non-binding resolution adopted by 80 percent of the 884-member General Synod last July. The resolution calls for member churches to consider wedding policies "that do not discriminate against couples based on gender" and to work against laws banning gay marriage.
(Excerpt) Read more at unionleader.com ...
Yeah...and notice how the church in question is calling themselves ___ REFORMED church, giving the impression that they are affiliated with something besides the UCC.
I've always wondered why it is that congregations consider denominational affiliation something more than a matter of convenience.
I have been trying to get mine to drop the denominational affiliation and just be independent. So far without success. We are affiliated with 2 different ones. Old ways die hard.
Of course some churches are "top down", like the United Methodists, and can't just decide to do away with their affiliation.
If you've read The Third Secret, by Steve Berry, you've delved into this territory. When you were done, you puked and kicked yourself for wasting the money.
If a church professes to be a Christian organization they need go no further than to read their Holy Bible. I left the United Methodist Church 2 years ago for the same issue. My parish there got pacified to believe it wouldn't spread nationally. They were wrong.
2 Timothy 3:16,17
Since it is apparent that non-Christians are in leadership of the UCC, it is fair to ask how they got there. Their presence there is probably not spontaneous, they didn't just spring into existence there, so they must at some level reflect the quality of the membership.
If this doesn't wake up the membership, it would be fair to ask if there are any Christians left in the UCC. And, if so, why?
The fellow, Don Towle, is an acquaintance of mine and a retired UCC pastor.
Our Congregation left the UCC 7 years ago. We had been a part of a movement called The Biblical Witness Fellowship.
The movemnt was an attempt to bring the Church back to the middle but with little success over a period of 20 years. The liberals had effectively taken over the denomination at the national level before they made know their intentions. Not all the BWF churches left but have carried on the fight.
Same sex marriage is just the tip of the iceberg. The worst is the defiance of the word. I could write a book.
2 Peter Chapters 1 and 2. The Apostasy.
Its apparent from reading the article that there is a widespread rebellion underway. You have to wonder what it is about this issue that makes its leadership willing to risk destroying their denomination.
On the other hand, the article mentions that they ordained their first openly gay minister back in 1972. So this has been a long time coming.
I am not Congregational, but am a descendant of New England Puritans. The Congregational churche is usually the centerpiece of most New England towns (along with the Unitarian Church that split off from the original congregation in the early 1800s), but I think the Puritan founders would turn over in their graves at the sort of Christianity taught in Congregational churches in New England today...
It must be tough, if you have grown up in a fellowship, to watch it drift away in the wrong direction. It would be wrong to abandon it at the first shot, but at some point you have to draw a line you won't cross, and then don't cross it.
It sounds like this is where you are.
So how are things now?
Apparently that is why certain graves always lose their snow first this time of year here in NH. It's friction from all the underground spinning.
Hey, if your pastor/rector's gay, then homosexuality is fine, even admirable. The Bible does seem to be against it, but maybe the Bible can be changed next....
My brother was a Pastor of a UCC church outside Detroit. He was President of Biblical Witness for a while but could not stand the officials of the UCC and finally took his church out of the UCC and into the 4Cs. His congregation is much happier and the ministry is growing.
Our Congregation is doing fine, actually growing. We left the UCC with a 98% vote. WE went back toour roots which was the Evangelical Synod of North America that joined with the Reformed church to become the E&R. We joined an Association of former UCC Churches called the Evangelical Association of Reformed Congregation Christian Churches after the four Denominations that made up the UCC. The Association is growing. It is not a Denomination. We have a yearly convocation which is essentialy a reunion and a place to network with other like-minded believers bound together with a very Evangelical set of beliefs.. WE have about 4 times the number of pastors as churches. So it is a pastoral referral association.
My Parish is old line we have a growing community and Bible based out reach program. We, I was an Elder, elected a good man as Pastor, and he was confirmed by the Parish and continues our mission.
Good to know that some are carrying on the tradition!
My congratulations in both cases.
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