Stone - Campbell Unity Confession
The Stone Campbell Sectarian movement: The
identifier of the American Restoration Movement or the
Campbell-Stone movement has been radicalized into the Stone
Campbell Movement. We are collecting material here.SEEK THE WOLD PATHS: that which is written for our LEARNING.
The Stone-Campbell movent which is ANTI anyting church of Christ makes lots of fun with the OLD PATHS concept when they do not know what it means
8.19.11 The "pattern" for imposing instrumental music and sowing massive discord is primarily 2 Chronicles 29 where Hezekiah (the king) proposed a plague-stopping animal slaughter. What they missed is that the Levites were tasked by Moses to slaughter 3,000 of the "brethren" because of musical idolatry at Mount Sinai. He sentenced them to "bear the burden of their own sin" by being guards at the Tabernacle gate to execute anyone who came too close.
The Levites under the King and Commanders of the Army are clearly said to have made that great crashing noise during the burnt offering of the Goats for Israel (the musical sect) trying to get them to return to Jerusalem to protect Hezekiah. Musical Performers following the pattern of the Levites still have the task of keeping any of the body out of the "holy places."
The Message of the Levites making noise is that they will KILL YOU if you question their authority.
1.04.11 When people speak out of their own imagination instead of the Word as Spirit by Christ in the Prophets and Apostles, Christ calls it blasphemy. Of Hezekiah's Plague stopping exorcism used to say that "God commanded instrumental praise and we must not be disobedient" Christ calls them BLASPHEMERS.
See Christ defining Blasphemy of The Holy Spirit
For I spake NOT unto your fathers, nor commanded themDespise tthe Word of God of God and using your own words is:
in the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt,
concerning burnt offerings or sacrifices: Jeremiah 7:22
But this thing commanded I them, saying,
Obey my voice, and I will be your God, and ye shall be my people: (CENI)
and walk ye in all the ways that I have commanded you, (CENI)
that it may be well unto you. Jeremiah 7:23
Jer 23:17 They say still unto them that despise me,
The Lord hath said, Ye shall have peace;
and they say unto every one that walketh
after the imagination of his own heart,
No evil shall come upon you. "You can SOW discord and steal from the owners"
Blasphēm-eō , pf.8.19.11 The "pattern" for imposing instrumental music and sowing massive discord is primarily 2 Chronicles 29 where Hezekiah (the king) proposed a plague-stopping animal slaughter. What they missed is that the Levites were tasked by Moses to slaughter 3,000 of the "brethren" because of musical idolatry at Mount Sinai. He sentenced them to "bear the burden of their own sin" by being guards at the Tabernacle gate to execute anyone who came too close.A. “beblasphēmēka” D.18.10:—speak profanely of sacred things, “eis theous” Pl.R.381e; offer rash prayers, Id.Alc.2.149c; b. kata tinosutter imprecations against, Aeschin.1.180.2. speak ill or to the prejudice of one, slander, “peri tēs emēs diatribēs” Isoc.15.2, cf. D.l.c., ib.82; “b. kata tinos” Isoc.12.65, cf. Arist.Fr.44; “hosa eis hēmas eblasphēmēsan” D.51.3; “b. tina” Babr.71.6, Ev.Luc.23.39, etc.: abs., Phld.Lib.p.8 O.:—Pass., to have evil spoken of one, “beblasphēmēmenous” Id.Vit.p.12 J., cf. 1 Ep.Cor.10.30.3. speak impiously or irreverently of God, blaspheme, “eis ton Kurion” LXX Da.3.29(96); “eis to pneuma to hagion” Ev.Marc.3.29; eis ta theia Vett. Val.58.12; “tous theous” Id.67.20: abs., LXX 2 Ma.10.34, al., Ev.Matt.9.3.
The Levites under the King and Commanders of the Army are clearly said to have made that great crashing noise during the burnt offering of the Goats for Israel (the musical sect) trying to get them to return to Jerusalem to protect Hezekiah. Musical Performers following the pattern of the Levites still have the task of keeping any of the body out of the "holy places."
The Message of the Levites making noise is that they will KILL YOU if you question their authority.
Please Click to see that Mike Armour one of the "signers" spoke to the Disciples of Christ and placing the blame for division on the Church of Christ. However, the "UNION" he defents includes all "christian' churches united in "One, holy, apostolic, Catholic church." Only the Christian Church NACC sected out of the Disciples from 1927 to 1971.
First, you should understand that restoring the faith and practice to the Biblical teachings began in the Bible and has existed in all periods of history. John Locke was a strong advocate of DIRECT COMMANDS and EXAMPLES in a time when questioning either the Catholic or Protestant establishment could get you burned at the stake.
The freeing of the United States from English domination freed denominations from the STATE church. The heady freedom of the American Frontier brought forth many efforts at restoring religious freedom but always produced massive division and a crop of new denominations. The First Great American Awakening produced 321 new denominations of which most were Baptists. One can still cound 156 distinct Baptist organizations.
The Second Great American Awakening had its most outrageous outbreak in Cane Ridge, Kentucky in 1801. This was the result of Barton W. Stone's research of the Methodist's revivals and his attempt to promote the notion of free grace and was a frontal attack on Calvinism. He was, therefore, to the Presbyterians the GREAT DIVIDER rather than the Great Unifier. The backward glance of seening Stone as seeking unity at the cost of doctrine does not give 20-20 vision. His goal was unity on his terms but he found that the Baptists and Methodists were involved as sheep stealers and not ecumenical apostles.
The STONEITES gave rise to the Christian Churches and was fueled by charismatic, music and preaching-induced ecstasy. This was the LOOKED FOR SIGNS that God would save even non-Calvinists.
This did and does demand a direct operation of the "holy spirit" before one can believe. This belief is a gift from God and SAVES one before confession in Baptism. That originated by Zwingli in 1525 and not with Paul
Another Restoration Movement was led by Thomas Campbell and others. Because he preached a rational (spiritual) approach to church as A SCHOOL OF CHRIST or, as Jesus founded it, an ekklesia or synagogue or school of the Bible. Unity would be possible in a gathered sense if they obeyed Paul's solution to diverse backgrounds in Romans chapter 15. Campbell and others had their best work among the Baptists in Kentucky.
The Campbells and others teachings led to the Disciples of Christ and later the churches of Christ. In Thomas Campbell's Declaration and Address--before Stoneites became the Christian church, he uses the tithe THE CHURCH OF CHRIST or THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. When Stoneites took The Christian Church the Restoration Movement took the name of churches of Christ.
In 1832 a small group of Disciples and small group of reformers (Church of Christ) UNITED in the sense that they could hold joint meetings and projects. In no sense of the word was this a UNITING of the Christian churches and the Disciples or churches of Christ. Other congregationally-organized churches agreed to disagree but THERE WAS NEVER a unified denomination.
THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH has many distinctives such as female leaders, instrumental music, national organization, a Standard publisher of materials and the High Church view of Scripture as not authorizing in the form of Direct Commands as John Locke and Thomas Campbell and ALL of the non-Catholic historians.
THE CHURCH OF CHRIST, following the Bible of the first century, does not USE women in leadersip, does not attempt to worship a Spirit God with external to the MIND or HUMAN SPIRIT mechanical instruments, does not have any form of national "thought clearing house," does not have a structured body of class material and believes the BIBLICAL COMMAND that we are bound to BIBLICAL COMMANDS.
Therefore the STONEITE Christian churches are radically different in most respects from the CAMPBELLITE or churches of Christ. They assuredly have different ROOTS.
The churches of Christ never fell into radical "acts of worship" and DID NOT participate in the Cane Ridge "revival" except through later converts.
The Stonite movement rejected baptism FOR the remission of sin. As far as we can tell, all of the 'church of Christ preachers' who participate in the Stone-Campbell movement are already tolerant of mechanical music which the Old Testament defines as noise. Furthermore, most agree with women's fuller participation and define baptism as the Baptist and early Stoneite "Believer's Baptism." This holds, as did Stone contrary to John Calvin, that people were saved by FAITH ALONE and baptism is the saved person's PLEDGE to be good. John Calvin calls faith only a form of insanity.
Again: the Stoneites and Campbellites as they were often called NEVER had a core of beliefs around which to build a UNITY DENOMINATION. The Stoneites and Campbellites NEVER had such an arrangment other than as independant congregations.
The SECTARIANS who sowed massive discord by forcing instruments into peacable churches did not wake up to become sectarians: they had ROOTS more Anglican (Methodist) from the CHRISTIAN churches than non-musical, Psalm singing Presbyterians. It is a fact that the Church of England introduced the High Church idea of "progressive revelation" but it was never voted on. It is also a fact that the Church of England attempted to remove organs from their churches. They were vetoed by Queen Elizabeth--the head of the church--because the KINGDOM [like David's] needed pomp and pagentry.
WARNING: Those promoting the SECT called the Stone-Campbell Movement USE sympathetic preachers from churches of Christ [usually peddling books to anyone] and pretend that they are the RIGHT WING uniting with the LEFT WING. It is all a Lucifer type bluff.
One of the primary SEEKERS OF UNITY which sowed massive discord is reviewed: See where Bammel church of Christ and Eastern European Missions has decided that the Biblical Text is TOO HARD for the poor people in the Ukraine. Therefore, at $5.00 per copy Mike Armour is providing a book to explain the text. We have no doubts that it will be a post modern explanation. Post Modernism is based on Hegel, Machiavelli, Hitler and Marx represented by Antonio Gramsci.
"Both" Sides of Nashville Jubilee, Inc. J. E. Choate
"A defense for Jubilee set up by the Madison elders, and also the West End church, is that we want to hear both sides. There are indeed two sides to Jubilee, and we will hear from both. The agendas of the liberal change agents are now in sharp focus. The traditional churches of Christ have an honorable history. We do not need to apologize for our faith and love for the church. Let Rubel Shelly and Victor Knowles confess their own sins, not for the life of David Lipscomb.
"We need only to look at Jubilee '97 to gather our facts. ("We" is used in this article as a rhetorical device to refer to the traditional churches of Christ.] We belong to that great crowd of witnesses who reverence the memory of David Lipscomb and his kind who stopped the digressives dead in their tracks one hundred years ago.)
"We shall look at Jubilee from three vantage positions-what actually happened during Jubilee '97; how the conservatives see Jubilee; and how the liberal change agents are using Jubilee to capture unsuspecting churches.
"Jubilee '97 was carefully staged and orchestrated against the backdrop of the sports palace just across the street from the old Ryman auditorium where N.B. Hardeman preached the gospel in 1922. The arena was set up to seat 15,000. The arena office reported the actual count to be 10,500. The Pentecostals and Baptists never showed up. Careful plans had been laid for the opening night of Jubilee. An early mailing of Jubilee propaganda from the sponsoring Donelson church painted Jubilee '97 as the meeting which would relegate the previous Hardeman and Collins meetings to relics of another time.
"Rubel Shelly presented Max Lucado as the greatest preacher on planet earth who is best qualified to preach the pure gospel of Christ. To compare this pseudo-gospel preacher to N.B. Hardeman and Willard Collins would be like comparing a head of cabbage to a bust of George Washington.
See the Max Lucado Collected "creed."
See Max Lucado Index of Articles
"During the April 22 luncheon in the Sheraton Music City hotel. Dr. Shelly called upon "apostle" Don Finto to bless the food. Max Lucado told us assembled that Don Finto is his hero. The master plan for Jubilee '97 was opened up somewhat for viewing.
"Other Considerations
"Nine local churches supported Jubilee '97-down from previous years. The numbers indicate the DLU employees who attend these churches, 157 in all. The Otter Creek congregation (22), Madison (4), Antioch (15), West End (7), Donelson (7), Greenridge, Woodmont Hills (33), Brentwood Hills (40), Harpeth Hills (23), and the Hendersonville Community Church of Christ (15). We think that there are serious problems for David Lipscomb University reflected in these numbers.
"I counted in Mac Lynn's book 229 churches of Christ with Nashville mailing addresses, and the mailing address of nine big towns within a fifty mile radius of Nashville. Compare the number of nine Jubilee churches with that great number of churches who have nothing to do with Jubilee. 9/229
"Our postmodern liberal brethren are beginning to run scared. I have no doubt that the great majority of the churches of Christ out there love the simple gospel. There is no middle ground in the churches of Christ for those who speak half the language of the Jews and half the language of Ashdod.
See the Christian Chronicle the "organ" of the movement.
(Brother E. Claude Gardner has provided us with information regarding another misguided effort to establish unity among churches of Christ and Christian Churches. Historically there was unity [not union], but separation became necessary when some adopted unscriptural innovations such as instrumental music and missionary societies. The critical differences are in how we should apply biblical authority. Included below are the key parts of a "Confession of Sin" and "An Affirmation of Faith," which we believe to be a flawed approach. Observations regarding these statements are from both brother Gardner and myself. --Editor)
An invitation has been extended to everyone, including churches of Christ. It can be accepted by individuals and congregations. Here is the overture: "We invite all those of this heritage to join us in the confession and affirmation of faith, and to make them their own."
Who extended the invitation? It was submitted by 17 persons* which include at least four names recognized as members of churches of Christ. The invitation is a result of the meeting on June 1-2, 2000, in Nashville at the Madison Church of Christ. This was the second time the group has met. It is made up of men and women from churches of Christ, Christian Churches (Disciples of Christ), and Christian Churches.
In the June meeting a statement was accepted which was written by three of the representatives. The three are: Gary Pearson, minister of Westminster Church of Christ, Baltimore, MD, James North, from Cincinnati Bible College, and Peter Morgan, president of the Disciples of Christ Historical Society.
Submitted for endorsement are two brief and straightforward documents entitled "Confession of Sin" and "An Affirmation of Faith." The group invites others to endorse these statements. The effort seems to be to get congregational support of the unity effort so that it will move beyond the beliefs of a few self-appointed church leaders.
"Such cooperation isn't widespread, but some ministers have challenged churches on both sides of the 1906 split to end their hostility and find common ground.
In August 2003, speaking at the National Campus Ministries Seminar in Manhattan, Kan., Rick Atchley said that he hopes the two groups can meet in 2006 and reach a mutual understanding.
Atchley, of the a cappella Richland Hills church, Fort Worth, Texas, said he's not asking churches of Christ to install pianos or Christian churches to remove them, but he is asking them to resolve to spend the next 100 years working together. [Rick Atchley claims to be more sympathetic to the Christian church and HAS installed musical instruments!]
But the notion of apologizingfor the division is controversial among members of a cappella churches. "For what should we in the churches of Christ apologize?" asked Dan Winkler, a minister in Nashville, Tenn. "(That) we have, thankfully, defended the specificity expressed in God's commands? The Lord's church as a whole must not apologize for being 'set for the defense of the gospel.'" Several ministers told the Chronicle that increased interaction with instrumental churches could contribute to existing divisions and friction within a cappella churches of Christ.
"The people who are against this have some very valid concerns," Phillips said. They don't want a cappella churches of Christ to lose their identities and become part of a denomination. This would violate the spirit of the "Last Will and Testament," which warned against the adoption of human creeds.
See J. W. McGarvey and the Guilt Claus and other examples beginning with Adam
As Christians, we who are members of Churches of Christ, Christian Churches and Churches of Christ, and the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) are part of a movement that was in its beginning given a special trust to promote the visible unity of Christ's church.
That is, of course, the general lie. See the Declaration and Address that the proposal was for like minded people to work for the general good. The view of T. Campbell was that CHURCH was, as Jesus clearly stated, a School of Christ or a synagogue. Worship was defined as READING and dialoging the Word as Paul clearly commanded Timothy.
See Tom Olbricht also misunderstanding.
Thos who had "the church houses of widows" stolen out from under them have no need to apologize for BLEEDING when shot by the musical SECTARIANS.
This movement, begun in the early nineteenth century by leaders like Barton W. Stone and Alexander Campbell, has a great heritage of focusing on Christian unity.
The Christian church came out of the Great Awakening and had deep Anglican roots.
The Church of Christ had long existed in Europe and we have records. The Presbyterians of the Campbells were not connectect to the more state sponsored group. None of the Church of Christ participated in the musical, charismatic camp meetings officially.
Instead we have been guilty of dividing the body of Christ in thought, word, and deed. Many of us have fortified the spirit of division and have failed to do what we should have done to prevent or overcome division.
There was no "union" and participaton in evangelism ceased with the "society" in 1849 and more profoundly when the DISCIPLES (Christian Church) imposed the organ.
This betrayal of our trust has impoverished the whole church of Christ and weakened its mission.
We have deeply wounded one another through misrepresentation, suspicion, mistrust, and defamation.
We, therefore, participants in the Stone-Campbell Dialogue, confess to God and to each other that we are guilty of the sin of division and of harboring and maintaining a spirit of division.
This group invented by Leroy Garrett 25 years earlier promoted the STONEITES or the Christian Church as a CHURCH and the Church of Christ as a SECT meaning "excommunication."
We now bring to God our brokenness and repent of the sin of division. We ask God for forgiveness. We ask God to heal us so that our Movement within Christ's church can more perfectly embody the unity to which we are called.
As disciples of Jesus Christ,
We confess that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God, and proclaim him risen Lord and Savior of the world.
In Christ's name and by his grace we accept the mission to proclaim the gospel to all the world and live in loving service to all people.
We rejoice in God, maker of heaven and earth, and in the covenant of love that binds us to God and one another.
Through baptism into Christ we enter into newness of life and are made one with the whole people of God.
By the gift of the Holy Spirit we are joined together in discipleship and in obedience to Christ.
The Bible, Recorded history and Restoration leaders would call that the gift of A holy spirit (our spirit washed from UNholiness."
At the table of the Lord, each week we celebrate with thanksgiving the saving acts and presence of Christ and proclaim the Lord's death until he comes.
Within the Body of Christ we receive the gifts of ministry and accept the authoritative witness of scripture.
In bonds of Christian faith we yield ourselves to God and one another that we may serve the One whose kingdom has no end. Blessing, glory and honor be to God forever. Amen.
(*The statement was signed by: Mike Armour, Paul Blowers, Raymond Brown, Douglas Forster, Richard Hamm, Susan Higgins, Byron Lambert, John Mills, Peter Morgan, Phillip Morrison, Jame B. North, Gary Pearson, Jimmy Sites, Sharon Watkins, Henry Webb, Robert Welsh, Newell Williams.)
Wherein any are guilty of sin, they ought to repent and confess it. If the signers of the statements have been guilty as they confess, they need to make it right. There are, however, some implications in what is said that go beyond their personal contrition. In that they are inviting others to confess the same, there is a not very hidden implication that any who will not come together in spite of doctrinal differences must be guilty of the same.
Further, it is troubling that this "Affirmation" has the earmarks of a creedal statement which seems to provide what the writers offer as the essentials that provide a common ground for unity.
We strongly object to any implication that the separation between churches of Christ and the other groups is because of "misrepresentation, suspicion, mistrust, and defamation." With human beings involved, such sins may be sometimes present,
but there is also the issue of biblical authority. The reality is that sincere and good men had no choice but to break fellowship because of unscriptural innovations.
We also object strongly to any presumption that by affirming certain points in which there is agreement, other critical differences can be ignored. The following questions are in order.
1. Does the document imply that "our Movement" is a part of the system of denominations? Do the framers believe the church is a denomination among many denominations and that, therefore, open fellowship is permitted?
2. What evidence from journals, books or any source do the framers have that all the Christian Churches believe and teach all points in the affirmation?
3. Why does the affirmation not include issues that have long been controverted,
which include worship with instruments of music,
one man pastor system,
A different view of Scripture as authority
leadership by women in worship,
an organized missionary society,
a national convention for the congregations and such like?Was this an accidental omission? Was there an intent to gloss over these hard questions with the hope that the unsuspecting would not note or care?
Some of the signers had already PLANNED to introduce instrumental music and deaconesses.
4. Will unity and fellowship automatically come when we follow the divine plan? "But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses from all sin" (I John 1:7 NKJV). How can signing a deficient affirmation of faith provide a better result in fellowship than provided by walking in the light?
5. Should a person or a congregation sign a confession if there is no guilt of sin?
By sincerely opposing unscriptural innovations, churches of Christ are not guilty of causing the division.
Additions and substitutions caused the schism. There will be unity when there is a return to the Bible and we all follow the teaching of Christ.
E. Claude Gardner is a respected gospel preacher and President Emeritus of Freed-Hardeman University. Write to him at 372 Mill St., Henderson, TN 38340.
See Richard L. Hamm and the Disciples Creed to which one must be united.
Jimmy Sites helped preside over the breakup and division in the Madison Church of Christ. The primary methods come from the Purpose Driven Cults which aim to reduce Biblical teaching and turn the church from "school of the Bible" into a "Theater for Holy Entertainment." We have reviewed some of the end-time SOWING OF DISCORD pushed by the Jubilee Movement which is always "for the atonement." The Pope was sure that churches of Christ would be under his skirts by Y2K as a priest got a message from the Virgin of Quadalupe that the Virgin (Eve, Mary, Zoe) would return and kill all MASONS AND PAGANS. Click Here.
One of the promoters of the Purpose Driven Cult explained the system to his class, but the tape recorder was running. Ooops! We were asked to review the class here.
Our Notes from Denominational Headquarters (No, not Rome).
Our General Minister and President Dr. Richard L. Hamm
The General Minister and President fills two basic roles in the life of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in the United States and Canada.
As General Minister, he is the general pastor of the nearly 900,000-member denomination,
responsible for representing the wholeness of the church,
for reconciling differences,
and for helping the church retain its clarity of mission and identity.
As General President, he is
the chief executive officer for the denomination, responsible for overseeing the work of the church's various structures.
He strives to help the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) remain faithful to God's calling and to do its work effectively and efficiently.
The ecumenical world regards the GMP as
"head of communion" and as the
chief representative of the church in
national and world ecumenical councils.Disciples often speak of the GMP as the Disciples' primary leader.
The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) called the Rev. Richard L. Hamm to be General Minister in an election at the denomination's 1993 General Assembly. He is serving his second and final six-year term after re-election at the 1999 General Assembly.
The Rev. Hamm served in a variety of pastoral roles before becoming the General Pastor of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). He was pastor of several congregations, and started a congregation in the Kansas City area before spending nearly three years as the Regional Minister of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in Tennessee.
And don't forget the task of working with Mike Armour and Phillip Morrison (wineskins) and Jimmy Sites once at Madison.
See what Rubel Shelly threatens if you DON'T begin to fellowship instrumental churches. The word WINE was mentioned ten times in a short lecture at ACU in another installment of the "bringing the church of Christ back into the denomination."
2.05.05 8:26p
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