ACNA’s C4SO Brings Back Soong-Chan Rah

Remember Soong-Chan Rah?  I sure do.  Back in 2017, I noticed he was going to keynote a Matthew 25 Gathering in my Anglican Church in North America (ACNA).  Curious, I did a little research on him, and the rest is history. I exposed some of his background.  Others found more and protested, and eventually he was quietly removed from the program.  Here are my posts about the matter back then.

One would think that less than four years later, ACNA’s dioceses would exercise enough wisdom not to have him as a focus of any program.  Especially since he has continued his woke act, including lovely quotes like this:

“The United States of America does not hold a morally exceptional position greater than Nazi Germany. We are not more just. Our sense of equality is not any superior. Our nation has never been Christian. We have just won our wars. And therefore, for centuries, we wrote our own history. And that has proven to be incredibly dangerous.” (Unsettling Truths: The Ongoing, Dehumanizing Legacy of the Doctrine of Discovery)

Oh, that’s right.  One of the dioceses in ACNA is the Diocese of Churches for the Sake of Others (C4SO), not exactly a font of wisdom.

C4SO not only has a congregation giving up Whiteness for Lent, one of the diocese’s programs is reading Rah for Lent with the apparent blessing of C4SO itself.

 

Now perhaps the diocese is so clueless about Rah, even after 2017, that this is only an honest mistake, a lapse of judgement.

But I doubt it.  And frankly I am so angry I do not trust myself to say more at the moment. 

BREAKING: Dr. Rah Will Not Be Speaking to Matthew 25 Gathering

I’ve just been informed by Canon David Roseberry that Dr. Soong-Chan Rah will not be involved in the Matthew 25 Gathering in September.  Previously, he was scheduled to be the keynote speaker.

In Canon Roseberry’s words, those in charge felt they “needed to focus on building the base, expanding Archbishop Beach's vision . . . and serving those workers who carry on the work of Matthew 25.”

I heartily support the decision and the refocus, but will refrain from further comment at this time.

Archbishop Foley Beach will be in attendance and will be asked to speak.

Canon Roseberry Promises to Address Concern About The Gathering

At a business meeting of the ACNA Provincial Assembly last week (about 1 hour 22 minutes into this video), Canon David Roseberry acknowledged online concern about “someone that we have in our lineup” for The Matthew 25 Gathering in September and promised to “get to that right after the first of next month [i.e. July].”  Likely, that someone is Dr. Rah.

I appreciate Canon Roseberry seeing the need to address concern about The Gathering lineup, and he should be given the space to do so.  I will say my main concern is not Dr. Rah himself.  It is hardly his fault he was invited to be the keynote speaker.

Most mainline denominations, including The Episcopal Church, have confused ministry and lib/left political advocacy.  That has greatly harmed those denominations (and was a factor in my leaving the mainline Presbyterians) and would harm the Anglican Church in North America if we repeat that error.  And it would harm the Matthew 25 Initiative as well.  I am not alone in withholding donations until I am confident funds will not go to lib/left advocacy I oppose. 

I pray God is using this episode to steer us and ACNA leaders away from that ministry error and will wait for Canon Roseberry’s statement with that hope.

Look who’s keynoting ACNA’s Matthew 25 Gathering.

In September, the Matthew 25 Initiative of the Anglican Church in North America will be putting on The Matthew 25 Gathering: Justice And Mercy Contending For Shalom.  The keynote speaker is Rev. Dr. Soong-Chan Rah of North Park Seminary.

Having dug around the internet, I now think his selection to keynote an ACNA conference is a matter for concern for ACNA members, especially pertaining to the Matthew 25 Initiative.  At this point, I want to stick to presenting what I know.  I may comment more at a later date, but for now, I just want to get the facts out there out there about aspects of Dr. Rah’s background.   

As I’ve mentioned, Dr. Rah is the scheduled keynote speaker for The Gathering.  His website may be found here.  His bio at Sojourners may be found here.  He is on the board of Sojourners.  I think most of my readers are aware of the background of that organization.

In 2016, he signed two open letters attacking Donald Trump, “Called to Resist Bigotry — A Statement of Faithful Obedience”, and “A Declaration by American Evangelicals Concerning Donald Trump.” Among the “Evangelicals” who signed the latter were Brian McLaren, Rachel Held Evans, Jim Wallis, and Ron Sider.  (For the record, I opposed Trump and supported other candidates for most of 2016.)

In contrast, just after the election of Barack Obama in 2008, he wrote, “I am Barack Obama, and Barack Obama is America.” Just after his inauguration in 2009, he wrote, “On January 20th, 2009, hope replaced cynicism.”

He was a keynote speaker at the DisGRACE conference, which had a very Leftist direction it is safe to say.

When Rev. Franklin Graham urged people to obey the commands of police for their own safety, Rah signed a letter denouncing Graham’s statement.  Rachael Held Evans and Jim Wallis were also among the signers.

He has called Michael Brown, shot and killed at Ferguson, a victim of violence.  (It is well established that Brown attacked a police officer, and that the officer acted in self-defense.)

In 2015, in a post listing numerous grievances, he denounced saying “All Lives Matter” instead of “Black Lives Matter”:

So next time, white evangelical leaders, you feel the urge to mouth off that “ALL Lives Matter” — CLOSE your mouth and OPEN your eyes, ears, and minds to get yourself some knowledge.

The above is obviously not comprehensive.  It what a brief time searching the net has produced.  And I’ve not investigated his theological views – other than his opposition to preaching, “All lives matter.”

With the above background, I contacted Canon David Roseberry of the Matthew 25 Team.  He said this about The Gathering and about having Dr. Rah as the keynote speaker, “Anglicans always try to be both modest and generous in their mission and their thinking. By modest I mean that we never believe that we have all the answers and all the right perspectives possible.  By generous I mean that we always want to engage others in discussion. No one who claims the name of Jesus Christ as Savior should imagine they are outside of our fellowship. And anyone who works for the name of Jesus Christ can be our partner in mission.”

And I will be modest and generous and let him have the last word for now.