Libchurchers Praise Planned Parenthood as “Doing God’s Work”

This is why there needs to be a Hell.

Those “church” leaders who blaspheme Jesus’ name to praise Planned Parenthood as they butcher babies will, if there is no heartfelt repentance, meet the same fate as those mainline German “Christians” who supported the Nazis as they slaughtered Jews.

Anathema!

Some Semi-Friendly Advice to the United Methodists

The United Methodists are not my cup of tea.  But I have to admit they are not going to Gehenna quite as fast as the “mainline” Presbyterians and Episcopalians.  Hey, I give credit where credit is due.

Yes, I am unusually magnanimous this morning.  So here’s some friendly advice for the United Methodists – close your D. C. office post haste.

The world’s lone Jewish state must be singled out for punitive divestment campaigns, while we should at the same time promote economic investment in North Korea, whose government has done absolutely nothing in the area of human rights worthy of specific criticism. And we should take our broad support for sex outside of marriage one step further by advocating to legalize prostitution.

This was the moral vision offered by our United Methodist Church’s apportionment-funded D.C. lobby office, the General Board of Church and Society (GBCS) at its Spring 2015 board of directors meeting.

I will spare the sordid details.  I will just say decades ago, an important factor that pushed me out of the “mainline” Presbyterian Church were its outrageous public policy pronouncements.  At the very least, they alerted me that something was very wrong with my denomination. 

One of the surest ways to shrink your church is to issue poison such as that coming from the UM’s Washington office.

Methodists, you know what to do.  Close it.  Now.

---

A hat tip to Christopher Johnson, whose title captures what the D. C. Office is doing to the United Methodist Church.

The Episcopal Church Cheerleads Lawless Tyranny … Of Course

Modern Mainline Protestant denominations have a history of aligning with tyranny, particularly that of a totalitarian bent.  See German Protestants under Hitler and the World Council of Churches and National Council of Churches during the time of Communist hegemony.

The Episcopal Church continues that tradition by supporting Obama’s dictatorial nullification of immigration law.

Yes, predictable, but I thought you should know.

The Wisdom of St. Ignatius of Antioch

Tonight is the Eve of the Feast of St. Ignatius of Antioch.  He was the Bishop of Antioch in the early 2^nd Century and, during an intense persecution of Christians in that city, was condemned to death by wild beasts, to be executed at Rome.

And we do not know much else about him except from a number of letters he wrote to churches as he was being taken to his sentence.

But what letters they are!  Ignatius’ heart and pugnaciously joyful personality shine through these letters.  Impending martyrdom did not discourage him but emboldened him.  He even looked forward with eagerness to “get to God” through his grisly martyrdom in the Coliseum.

And his letters are full of wisdom, particularly in how churches should relate to their leaders.  He also took aim at heresies, particularly Docetism.

I wish to conclude by quoting a statement of his about heresies in his Letter to the Trallians.

[Heretics] mingle Jesus Christ with their teachings just to gain your confidence under false pretenses.  It is as if they were giving a deadly poison mixed with honey and wine, with the result that the unsuspecting victim gladly accepts it and drinks down death with fatal pleasure.

And so it remains today.  The inventors of just about every false religion and heresy, even if mad and blind, still realize that the person of Jesus Christ is important and attractive.  Even in their delusions, they are compelled to answer his question, “Who do you say that I am?”  So they include in their falsehoods what I call a “token Jesus.”  They give lip service to Jesus to add attractiveness and legitimacy to their false religion.  But it is not the real Jesus Christ, but a supposed Jesus who is not the Son of God, the King of kings and Lord of lords.  And, yes, the Jesus of “mainline” libchurchers is such a token Jesus.

Which St. Ignatius so well warned against some 1900 years ago.  God’s Holy Church does well to remember his courage and wisdom and to thank the Lord for his teaching and godly example.

How to Shrink Your Church in One Easy Step

The Federalist has a very helpful article on “How to Shrink Your Church in One Easy Step”.  Of course, informed readers already know that step:

… A number of Christian denominations have already taken significant steps towards liberalizing their stances on homosexuality and marriage, and the evidence so far seems to indicate that affirming homosexuality is hardly a cure for membership woes. On the contrary, every major American church that has taken steps towards liberalization of sexual issues has seen a steep decline in membership.

I don’t want to steal Alexander Griswold’s thunder, so do go read.  He summarizes what has happened to several denominations that are going full rainbow.  But his summary of changes in North American Anglicanism particularly warms my heart.  And to avoid unseemly gloating, I better conclude with said summary:

In 2002, the number of baptized U.S. members of the Episcopal Church stood at 2.32 million.  By 2012, that number had fallen to 1.89 million, a decline of 18.4 percent. Meanwhile, attendance has fallen even more steeply. Average Sunday attendance in its U.S. churches was 846,000 in 2002, but had fallen 24.4 percent by 2012 to only 640,000. Other signs of congregational liveliness have fallen even further. Baptisms have fallen by 39.6 percent, and marriages have fallen by 44.9 percent.

As for the ACNA? It’s seen its membership rise by 13 percent and its Sunday attendance rise by 16 percent in the past five years. Since 2009, the ACNA has planted 488 new congregations. In 2012, the entire Episcopal Church managed to plant four new churches.

World Vision Proves Me Right (Again)

In my younger days, I supported World Vision.  Being naïve and idealistic, I was confident that this organization that all my young evangelical friends liked was surely all about feeding the hungry in Jesus’ name, and I was all about that. 

But then I noticed that there was a ministry philosophy about which held that effective ministry to the poor and hungry need not include a clear sharing of the good news about Jesus Christ.  So I looked closely at what World Vision said about their ministry, and I saw very little about actually sharing the Gospel.  Being a hard man even back then, I did not think assisting people in going to Hell well fed was particularly meritorious.  Therefore, sometime in the 1980’s, I decided to give my world relief donations elsewhere.  (The Anglican Relief and Development Fund is my favorite such organization now.)

Now some thirty years later, World Vision itself has proven me right in perceiving something was wrong in its DNA.  Its U.S. branch has decided to hire purported Christians in same-sex “marriages”.

The explanation given by World Vision President Richard Stearns is fatuous.  He claims World Vision is remaining neutral on the issue of same-sex “marriage”.  No, World Vision’s policy for employees was celibacy for singles and monogamy for the married.  By deciding that gay sex inside of same-sex “marriage” meets that requirement for employees, World Vision is most definitely taking sides.

He says, "This is also not about compromising the authority of Scripture."  Yeah, right.  Scripture is very clear about what God thinks about gay sex.  This decision has compromising the authority of Scripture all over it.

More from Stearns:

Stearns said World Vision's board has faced a new question in recent years: "What do we do about someone who applies for a job at World Vision who is in a legal same-sex marriage that may have been sanctioned and performed by their church? Do we deny them employment?

"Under our old conduct policy, that would have been a violation," said Stearns. "The new policy will not exclude someone from employment if they are in a legal same-sex marriage."

Stearns said the new policy reflects World Vision's parachurch and multi-denominational nature.

"Denominations disagree on many, many things: on divorce and remarriage, modes of baptism, women in leadership roles in the church, beliefs on evolution, etc.," he said. "So our practice has always been to defer to the authority and autonomy of local churches and denominational bodies on matters of doctrine that go beyond the Apostles' Creed and our statement of faith. We unite around our [Trinitarian beliefs], and we have always deferred to the local church on these other matters."

This is a cover for partnership with apostate denominations and letting them call the shots.  The United Church of Christ holds to the faith of the creeds?  Really?  As long as libchurchers can cross their fingers and mouth a creed, Stearns is just fine with partnering with them and letting them set, nay, abolish Christian moral standards for employees.  And that in the name of a unity which really destroys genuine Christian unity.

This serves as yet another object lesson for the orthodox.  Partnering with false teachers who claim to be Christian never ends well.  Unity-minded weak orthodox Christians greatly contributed to the downfall of most mainline denominations by such partnering, and now World Vision is and will be greatly weakened by partnering with apostates and the compromise that brings.

It is not for nothing that Scripture and the fathers again and again oppose partnering with false teachers who blaspheme by using the name of Christ as cover for their “doctrines of demons” (1 Timothy 4:1).  Partnering with them partners with their unfaithfulness and only leads to an increase in unfaithfulness. 

This sad World Vision news is not so much my being proven right as it is the Word of God being proven right yet again.

NCC Plays the Race Card

Yup, the National Council of “Churches” is playing the race card, big time:

In the wake of George Zimmerman’s acquittal of the murder of Trayvon Martin, the National Council of Churches joins other people of faith and conscience in a renewed call for racial justice.

This summer as we commemorate the 150th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation and the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington, we are reminded that racism is alive and well. We have seen this in the Supreme Court’s recent invalidation of parts of the Voting Rights Act and now in the shocking impunity granted by a Florida jury to a man who stalked and killed a black child.

Oh and J. Herbert Nelson, the former head of the Washington Office of the mainline Presbyterian Church, is at it, too:

I have heard both blatant and subtle inferences that the actions of George Zimmerman had nothing to do with race. The State Attorney for Florida [That’s Angela Corey, an impeccable source – Ed.] declared last night that Trayvon Martin was profiled, but she would not affirm that race was the basis of the profiling. Those persons who believe that this killing had nothing to do with race are either mistaken or naïve in their view of what history and our present reality reveals about the United States of America. This tragedy is only one example of many, that show that continued, insidious, and pervasive racism persist in this country.

Once again, I am thankful I shook the dust of the mainline Presbyterian "Church" and other members of the NCC off my feet decades ago.

Obamacare Ruling Open Linkfest

I think what I will do (now that I’ve prayed the Litany and calmed down a bit) is link to what I find particularly relevant or interesting concerning today’s ruling on Obamacare.  I may make extended comments of my own later.  But I suspect that would be simply repeating what someone else has said, sooo. . . .

. . . . Let the links begin:

Here are the opinions.  Note that Justice Thomas joined in the dissent, but also added an additional very brief dissent at the end.  He always has been known as a man of few words.

DNC Executive Director Taunts on Twitter: “It’s Constitutional. Bitches.”  No, I am not joking.  And I saw it on twitter myself.

AND (LANGUAGE WARNING) that’s not all he tweeted.

Mitt Romney raised $100,000 in less than an hour after the ruling.


Bluegrass Pundit cuts to the chase on Roberts opinion: “What Chief Justice Roberts is actually saying is the government can not force you to buy insurance, but they can tax you if you don't.”

Charlie Martin looks on the bright side.
The Anglican Curmudgeon is sharing his usual in-depth analysis.

The Knight Blog has posted his favorite parts of the dissent.  My favorite? "Article I contains no whatever-it-takes-to-solve-a-national-problem power."

Jay Cost also looks on the bright side.

From Twitchy, here’s a sampling of the vile racist attacks on Justice Thomas and more on the reactions from those lovely people at the DNC. Also there was not a little initial confusion on the ruling from the news media.  (To be kind, it is a strange ruling as the Bluegrass Pundit pointed out above.)

Christopher Johnson is on a rampage. ;)

Over at RedState, Erick Erickson is also looking on the bright side, in part “because John Roberts concluded it was a tax, the Democrats cannot filibuster its repeal because of the same reconciliation procedure the Democrats used to pass it.”

Ezra Klein’s take on John Roberts and his opinion is interesting.  I seriously doubt Roberts is a “political genius.”  But Klein’s piece is worth considering.

I’m listening to Mark Levin now.  He is not so sanguine about John Roberts or the ruling, and that is an understatement.  And I put a lot of weight on Levin’s judgement.

MORE: Levin calls John Roberts’ opinion with its tax contortions “Mickey Mouse.” And I agree.

Mainline libchurchers are in the Amen Corner for this ruling, of course.  I don’t trust myself to comment further in polite words at the moment.

Speaking of which, the Bible says not to let the sun go down on your anger.  Good thing there’s still over two hours of daylight left here.

(And yes, the formatting is a bit off.  Sorry about that.  The Blogger interface can be annoying that way.)

The Bishop of Brooklyn and Libchurcher Arrogance

If one wonders why I am so hard on libchurchers, i.e. liberal/left Protestants (and liberal/left faux Catholics), this column by Libchurch Priestess Susan Brooks Thislethwaite will give you more than a taste.

Now her so-called United Church of Christ has pushed for any number of Leftist enormities, with her support no doubt. But when the RC Bishop of Brooklyn suggests (and rightly so) that Catholics not give a platform to those politicians who support gay “marriage,” then it’s A VIOLATION OF CONSTITUTIONAL SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE!!! THE HORROR!!!

I do not know what is more amazing, Thistlethwaite’s arrogance or her hypocrisy. For while she and her church pushes the whole fetid rainbow of Leftism, she writes that bigots real Christians should be quiet and also forget about church discipline lest they cross “over the line” of Holy Separation of Church and State.

I thought that advocating for one’s views was protected by Freedom of Speech, and that church discipline was protected by Freedom of Religion. Silly me. Only liberal speech and liberal religion is protected.

I could rant and carry on about her column. I really could. But Christopher Johnson and David Fischler both dissect it so well, I will defer to them and urge readers to get thee hence.

But, first, I must mention that Mr. Fischler wonderfully fisks the conclusion of Thistlethwaite’s piece:

[Thistlethwaite:] “There are many wonderful things about living in a religiously pluralistic democracy, and one really great one is that people of faith start to think for themselves and make their own judgments. And that’s allowed in this country. In fact, it’s often encouraged.”

Unless, of course, the judgment you come to is a conservative, traditional one founded on Scripture and two thousand years of Christian orthodoxy. In which case, YOU’RE A BIGOT!

I myself will conclude where Mr. Johnson begins:

Nobody, and I mean nobody, does pompous, arrogant self-righteousness better than liberal Protestants.

More on Presbyterians Going Episcopalian

In the midst of mainline Presbyterians opening ordination to sexually active homosexuals, some salient facts have been overlooked. I share the blame for that as I did not spell those out yesterday. So, with a helpful nudge from Peter Ould, here goes.

First, reports give the impression that the PCUSA had a mean “No Gays Allowed” policy, and that it is now reserved. Not so. The requirements for ordination as far as sexuality is concerned were as follows:

Those who are called to office in the church are to lead a life in obedience to Scripture and in conformity to the historic confessional standards of the church. Among these standards is the requirement to live either in fidelity within the covenant of marriage between a man and a woman (W-4.9001), or chastity in singleness. Persons refusing to repent of any self-acknowledged practice which the confessions call sin shall not be ordained and/or installed as deacons, elders, or ministers of the Word and Sacrament.

Note that there was nothing disqualifying a gay person from ordination. What was required from a gay candidate was “chastity in singleness,” which is exactly what was required from a heterosexual single (a policy with which I heartily agree).

The second aspect of what the Presbyterians have done which is being overlooked is that there are now no clear standards for sexual behavior for candidates for ordination. Read the new language which now replaces the above and see for yourself:

Standards for ordained service reflect the church’s desire to submit joyfully to the Lordship of Jesus Christ in all aspects of life (G-1.0000). The governing body responsible for ordination and/or installation (G.14.0240; G-14.0450) shall examine each candidate’s calling, gifts, preparation, and suitability for the responsibilities of office. The examination shall include, but not be limited to, a determination of the candidate’s ability and commitment to fulfill all requirements as expressed in the constitutional questions for ordination and installation (W-4.4003). Governing bodies shall be guided by Scripture and the confessions in applying standards to individual candidates.

Of course, “scripture and the confessions” demand chastity from singles. But you know what happens to such guidance in the hands of libchurchers. In any case, there is now no direct mention of sexual morality.

So what the mainline Presbyterians have done really has more to do with sexual anarchy in the clergy than with including gays. There was nothing in the canons excluding chaste gays. Now there is little in the canons requiring chastity from anyone.

Alan Wisdom of the IRD is among those who get it:

This is a lonely day for Presbyterians who believe what the Bible and the Church have consistently taught: that God’s will is that we be faithful in marriage or chaste in singleness. Now we belong to a denomination that is no longer sure it believes that teaching.

Now we belong to a denomination that gives no clear counsel on sexuality. It is a denomination that will not necessarily support its members as they struggle to obey the high standards of Scripture. It will not call them to repentance when they fall short of those standards, and it will not offer God’s forgiveness for what it no longer recognizes as sexual sins. In a society where the abuse of sexuality is devastating millions of lives, this abdication by the PCUSA is tragic.

By dropping the ‘fidelity and chastity’ standard, the PCUSA separates itself from the Scriptures that are supposed to be its ‘rule of faith and life.’ It separates itself from the historic Christian tradition and the vast majority of the global Church. It separates itself from many of its own members who remain committed to upholding ‘fidelity and chastity.’

Presbyterians Go Episcopalian

I think it worthy of note that the deciding presbytery has voted to open ordination to sexually active gays in the mainline Presbyterian Church.

The New York Times report rightly notes that this is a reversal from just two years ago. As I’ve noted before, libchurchers, particularly in the mainline Presbyterian Church, do not care that much for peace and unity in the church. They push their agendas again and again and again without giving their churches a break.

But when they finally win, it’s like the Hotel California or a roach motel – once in, there is no going back and there is no escape . . . at least not without leaving much or all of your local church’s property behind. Despite the costs, the orthodox will now accelerate their departures from the PCUSA, solidifying the libchurching of the denomination that remains. There is no going back.

Presbyterian libchurchers seem not to care much about church growth either. Every denomination that has gone in the direction of actively gay clergy has shrunk and markedly so. So their celebration in the midst of committing seppuku is a bit odd.

But I guess they’d rather not have those nasty homophobic bigots Christians in the way.

Reverse Evangelism

Former Planned Parenthood clinic Abby Johnson is joining the Roman Catholic Church. In doing so, she is leaving The Episcopal “Church”. One reason behind the move is slightly ironic:

Johnson’s embrace of Catholicism was a natural development after she became pro-life but was precipitated by her pro-choice Episcopalian community’s vocal rejection of her change of heart, she said. Even before the dramatic experience of assisting in an ultrasound abortion, Johnson said God had been calling to her for several months through the penitential rite of the Episcopal service, which is similar to the Catholic prayer. With the Episcopalian Church one of the largest donors to the Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice, Johnson said she and her husband were not going to remain at the church anyway.

It is not every day that that a former abortion clinic director leaves a “church” because it is pro-abortion. But Ms. Johnson is not alone in leaving a mainline denomination over the abortion issue. I know first hand because I am one who has so departed.

Abortion was far from the only reason I swore off the mainline Presbyterian Church after being Presbyterian for my first 27 years. But it was an important reason. And that even though I’ve never had a traumatic experience with abortion as Ms. Johnson has.

I think it safe to say that mainline denominations have lost far more people over their pro-abortion stands than they have gained. And that is not to mention the quality of people support of abortion repels and the sort of people it attracts (if it does attract anyone). This is yet another example of evil people digging pits and then falling into them themselves. Support of abortion has greatly harmed mainline denominations in the U. S. Really, it is a form of reverse evangelism.

Well, since mainline denominations suck at positive evangelism, I guess they have to be good at something.

Ad Orientem John Nails It

In response to the “marriage” of two lesbians by a “bishop” of The Episcopal “Church”, John of Ad Orientem says something of import better than I could:

I think it was Perry Robinson who came up with the great line that in Christianity, you are who you are in communion with. With that in mind, you do know that you belong to the same church as these people, right? And that you are in full communion with the bishop who just blessed this "marriage," right? I am slow. So please indulge me and explain how anyone who self identifies as a Christian can in good conscience belong to a church that is by any reasonable standard utterly apostate. And yes, a church that does these things and ordains and promotes clergy who call abortion a blessing has ceased to be Christian. Do you call sinners into the Episcopal Church for their salvation? Do you in all honesty believe that the Episcopal Church is truly a branch of the catholic church spoken of in the ancient creeds? Do you seriously doubt for even an instant that if any of the Fathers of the Church walked the Earth today, that they would shout "ANATHEMA!" at the Episcopal Church?

Exactly. Now as I’ve said before, I respect those orthodox who feel they should endure in The Episcopal Church. But I think their position untenable.

What John posted could be applied to other mainline Protestant denominations as well. Looking back at my post-college church searches, I rejected churches in most mainline denominations out of hand for the reasons John spells out, although my ecclesiology was not so well developed as to think in John’s terms. I did know that I did not want to be in any denomination in which outrages against The Faith were committed, tolerated, and even promoted. And that ruled out the mainline Presbyterian Church in which I grew up, among others. I was tired of The Faith being undermined and my conscience outraged by my own church.

I could say more. But, like the title says, John nails it.

And thanks to the Good Professor for bringing this to my attention.

A Modest Proposal

A brilliant send up of libchurchers’ arguments for gay clergy, etc. may be found here in the guise of “a modest proposal,” namely temple prostitution.

I particularly find this excerpt deliciously on target:

First off, let’s address the common objections. Sure, there are a handful of Bible verses that might seem to condemn the practice. But all the condemnation of temple prostitution involves pagan practices or worship of false gods. The objectionable thing is the idolatry, not the physical act itself. Sanctified, faithful prostitution in service of the true God is a new thing. The Biblical writers never foresaw or contemplated sanctified, faithful, God-pleasing prostitution in the churches and thus never wrote about it. Attempts to find a Biblical injunction against the practice therefore fall short.

Sounds familiar, does it not?

Do read the whole thing, but not while drinking coffee.

But what is most amazing about this piece is that it comes from . . . a Lutheran. Lutherans do satire?

Libchurchers Support Obama’s Attack on Free Speech

It is becoming clear that the Obama Regime with the support of libchurchers is conspiring to attack the free speech of political conservatives. Part of this attack is disguised as going after “hate speech.”

United Church of Christ member Jeffery Lord documents much of this attack and the involvement of libchurchers in painstaking detail. And it is chilling.

It is no coincidence that this is occurring at the same time when the Obama White House is constantly seeking to delegitimize Fox News:

The Obama White House is now quite specifically using the presidential bully pulpit to de-legitimize Fox News.
Note how this works:

• White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel says: "…the way we, the President looks at it, we look at it is it's not a news organization" and that Fox is not "a legitimate news organization."

• White House senior adviser David Axelrod says Fox News is "not really a news station."

• White House Communications Director Anita Dunn says: "What I think is fair to say about Fox -- and certainly it's the way we view it -- is that it really is more a wing of the Republican Party," said Anita Dunn, White House communications director, on CNN. "They take their talking points, put them on the air; take their opposition research, put them on the air. And that's fine. But let's not pretend they're a news network the way CNN is."

Folks, this kind of attack on non-compliant news media is more what one would expect from a totalitarian regime than from a democratic White House. It is not enough that CNN, CBS, NBC, MSNBC, ABC et al are in the tank for Obama. Those on the airwaves who oppose The Dear Leader must be silenced!

Some may find me alarmist to point out again the totalitarian streak of the Obama regime. I find it enabling and dangerous to ignore it. And I find it beyond shameful for “church” leaders to support it.

On Being “Nice” to False Teachers

I’m quite busy today. In fact, I may have to cut back on blogging through next week. But I want to direct my good readers’ attention to this post by Fr. Matt Kennedy.

Matt+ questions the wisdom of being collegial with heretics. And so do I.

Moreover, I think a big reason for the downfall of the Episcopal Church and other mainline denominations is the past reluctance of the orthodox to call out heretics. There was a time when the march of these churches towards apostasy could have been stopped. But it would have required saying “No!” to false teaching and the exercise of church discipline against clergy persisting in the same.

Instead, the orthodox were “nice” and collegial. . . . And the souls of many and the faithfulness of whole denominations were sacrificed on the altar of that niceness.

I much prefer attitude of the church fathers. They most definitely were not nice to false teachers. (And that’s one reason I do not pull many punches on this blog.)

Whether you agree or not, I urge you to think upon Matt+ Kennedy’s post.

(In my haste, I was not clear that I don't believe in being collegial with heretical clergy. We've all had mistaken views at various times. All the more reason to insist on faithful clergy and teachers.)

How to Catch an Episcopalian

How does one catch an Episcopalian? Make a statement advocating baby-killing reproductive freedom and perversion sexual justice, invite religious leaders to sign and watch those Episcopalians come running. It will be like flies on . . . well, you get the picture.

Here’s the complete list of signers. Evil is so ecumenical.

Gene Robinson: No Future for ACNA, PCA, RCC . . .

Gene Robinson – the man will say anything. Remember him saying that he won’t be “the Gay Bishop”? Yeah, right. Well now, he says this about The Anglican Church in North America:

A church that does not ordain women or openly gay people - I don't see a future for that.

Now maybe he really believes that. If so, he would do well to look at the numbers of those churches who don’t ordain women or open gays, from the Presbyterian Church in America to the Roman Catholic Church and compare them to the slow-motion implosion of The Episcopal Church, the mainline Presbyterian Church, and other Libchurches.

Now, who does not have a future?

That’s not to mention he has his facts wrong. Some ACNA jurisdictions do ordain women. (But none may have women bishops.)

The Anglican Church in North America is not perfect; it is a work in progress. But if it does not work (And I think it will.), it will certainly not be because we do not ordain gays or women.

A Former Buddhist on the Zen Buddhist Bishop

Others have noted this first. But it is so prescient, I have to note it as well.

“Bill,” a former Buddhist cuts straight to the heart of the matter of the Episcopal Church’s Buddhist bishop in two respects.

First, trying to be both Buddhist and Christian doesn’t fly:

Having been a Buddhist, I also tried the whole, "I can be a Buddhist and a Christian at the same time." Eventually, I realized, no, you really can't ... unless you do some pretty serious intellectual violence to both religions.

Second, there is more than a little “bad faith” in non-Christians hijacking churches:

It's bad faith to attend a church where you don't believe its tenets. It's bad faith to attempt (and succeed) in taking over an existing church (or diocese) knowing you've re-interpreted the people's beliefs so that you don't really believe what they believe. If you believe something different — a universal church, or some kind of synthesis — have the guts to start your own church.

I couldn’t have said it better myself. And this succinctly summarizes the history of the mainline denominations. I’ve long been provoked by non-Christians hijacking what were Christian churches. And, like Bill, my problem isn’t that people have different beliefs than me, it’s that people who have completely different beliefs than the catholic church through the centuries try to hijack large portions of it (with much success I’m sad to say).

I have more respect for the Church of Satan than for such bad faith. At least the Church of Satan is somewhat honest about what they are up to. Instead, the pseudo-Christians, to paraphrase 2 Peter 2:1, secretly brought in their heresies into the mainline denominations, waiting until they were fully in control to reveal them. Even now, they still cloak them in churchy language and in liturgies they don’t believe.

It is dishonest. It is bad faith. And it should be called out as Bill has done. Kudos to him!