God Spot

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God Spot
This Christian Resource Blog has been created by a group of friends from around the world. Our purpose is to provide links to useful resources, some commentary on topical or doctrinal issues, a place where anyone can come with questions and a means whereby we can share our faith. And above all, to grow and encourage each other. As Christians, we believe we bear God's image in this world, and seek to glorify God's name in this endeavour. Any Christian who wants to join with us is very welcome!

Saturday, September 23, 2006

Exclusive Brethren in the News

There's heaps on them in today's Age exposé.

This on their financial accountability:

THE leaders of secretive Christian sect the Exclusive Brethren enrich themselves to the tune of millions of dollars a year, tax free, by drawing systematic donations from their flock.

Former Australian Brethren leader Ron Fawkes told The Age that a previous world leader, American James Symington, boasted of buying 600 hectares of prime North Dakota ranch land out of the proceeds of the donations.

Mr Fawkes was excommunicated in 1984 and cannot comment on the size of gifts going to the current "Elect Vessel" of the church, Sydney office equipment supplier Bruce Hales, but believes they would be worth millions of dollars a year (that's Hales and his family in the pic).

"I was very close to Symington. He received big money. I estimated at that stage, in the 1980s, that it was well over a million a year," Mr Fawkes said.

The group also claims council rate exemptions on each of their dozens of parcels of land in Australian capital cities on the grounds that they are used for religious worship.

The closed and immensely wealthy Exclusive Brethren have been outed recently as spending large sums trying to influence elections in the US, Australia, New Zealand and, most recently, Sweden.

The Age discovered that the Brethren were planning a foray into Victorian state politics with a campaign in support of Nationals leader Peter Ryan, and against the Greens.

Then this on how they regard the rest of us:

IN THE minds of the 40,000 or so worldwide devotees of Bruce Hales, the world is divided into "us", the Exclusive Brethren, who live in the light of God's love, and "them", the rest of the community. Only through this, the doctrine of separation, can the Brethren be understood. "You come in touch with worldly people; if you get a little close to them, you'll have some sense of defilement," says Hales in one of his regular sermons.

In this singular scripture, Hales, a tangle-tongued Sydney office equipment supplier, is the direct spiritual descendant of the sect's biblical hero, St Paul; he is God's representative on Earth, the only route to salvation. The Exclusive Brethren's God is judgemental and interventionist, particularly in politics. "We do not mix in politics; we are not of the world; we do not vote," said church founder John Nelson Darby in 1878.

And some history of the practice of 'shunning':

WHEN a pair of Exclusive Brethren came to visit Melbourne Presbyterian minister Rowland Ward they refused even a cup of tea. As a member of the Free Church, Ward is about as theologically conservative as a Protestant can get, but he wasn't pure enough for them. "A cup of tea is fellowship, and that's not acceptable — they have to be utterly separate," says Ward, author of Religious Bodies in Australia.

They believe purity comes by separating from evil people and associations — everyone outside the group. They are called exclusive, in contrast with other brethren groups, because they shun anyone outside their teaching, including other Christians. They believe this brings them closer to God.

Exclusive Brethren say the Bible is the literal, inspired Word of God, but they interpret it very narrowly. Worship is simple, with no ritual or liturgy, and women may not preach or pray aloud.

They have two distinctive beliefs, according to Ward. First, they have no clergy, because the New Testament talks of the priesthood of all believers. The second is a particular theory about how the world will end, called pre-millennialism, which focuses on certain Bible prophecies they think are yet to be fulfilled.

According to this theory, Christians will be lifted out of the world by God in a "rapture", the rest of the world will suffer a period of intense tribulation, then Christ will come again and rule for 1000 years from Jerusalem before a final apocalyptic battle with evil. (Some other Christians also believe this scenario, which is filled out in the Left Behind series of novels, which have sold more than 60 million copies.)

The Brethren movement began in Ireland about 1830, as a reaction to the low spiritual state of the churches. According to Religious Bodies, they wanted a fresh start, without authority, precedent or guidance beyond the letter of the Bible.

The early leaders were mostly university-trained, and the various groups of Brethren have always been a middle and upper-middle class movement. But with no structure for resolving conflicts, there have been many splits, the first in 1848.

Exclusive Brethren followed one leader, J. N. Darby, who believed that existing church organisations were doomed and that true Christians must have nothing to do with them. He died in 1881, and his followers divided in 1885, 1890 and 1908, with another group splintering off in 1970.

Because of the insistence on avoiding evil, when members leave the group they are shunned to avoid contaminating the others.

And finally, some of the thoughts of Chairman Hales:

On the world:

See, it's whether I can pour scorn on the world, look at the world as an utter object of contempt as I go through the streets and the book-stalls and anywhere I go, and through the crowds, and I look at the world as an utter and absolute object of contempt, because it's already been judged… To be intelligent as to that, the world has no grip on you, it's utterly demeaning for a Christian to be sucked in by the world.

On avoiding contamination by "worldly" people:

It's really by the power of the Holy Spirit. It says, greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world. And that forces these wicked worldly people back. You don't need to know that they're wicked or whatever, but it forces them back, and you're in control, you're superior, I mean morally.

They might have a point about mobile phones...!

# posted by geoff @ 10:21 am

0 comments

Wednesday, September 20, 2006

Exclusive Brethren & Politics

They're getting involved in politics down here, and quite a powerful lobby group it seems on account of their wealth and zealous views.

From today's news (The Age), there are some typical cultish responses by the Brethren:

Sydney businessman Warwick John, styled as a "church spokesman", said he knew nothing about the meetings when contacted yesterday by The Age.

He also declined to identify any of the church's Victorian leaders, and said nobody from the church would be interested in talking to the media.

"The facts are twisted. You are taking information from four or five disaffected people who have left the fellowship, who cast innuendo and spread false stories," he said before hanging up.

Athol Greene, a church elder and the father-in-law of the sect's supreme leader, "Elect Vessel" Bruce Hales, said The Age's questions were "over my head", adding, "I'm sorry, I'm a very old man, I'm 74".

And some cultish practices:

The Age was denied entry last night to a meeting of hundreds of sect members at their main hall in Pascoe Vale, at which the men were neatly dressed in collared shirts and the women wore headscarves.

A guard on the gates, Henry Burgess, said it was a public meeting of worshippers but "we have a set way of doing things", including making an appointment and being interviewed by "a couple of us" before being permitted to enter a meeting.

"This is a Christian group. We are believers in the Lord Jesus; you could be the most corrupt person in Melbourne. Do you think we'd let anyone in?" Mr Burgess said.

When the reporter tried to walk down the driveway anyway, four heavies came out of the dark and escorted them off the "private" property.

Why on earth would a real Christian group try to stop "the most corrupt person" from getting in? Thought that was the purpose of Christianity, to reach out to corrupt people.

As Cameron the chaplain to the Melbourne Football Club ("The Demons") said, in response to a query as to what's a good Christian doing associating with a club whose nickname is Demons, where better for a Christian to be than mixing amongst the Demons in this world (and presenting what we are created to present, the image of God in such an environment).

Cameron incidentally challenged us men to get out from the cosy four walls of church, to take up the challenge of being Christians where we really can make a difference. He quoted Leigh Matthews quoting General Patton:

"Accept the challenge. Be prepared for the depression of failure, in order to experience the exhileration of victory". And thus it is in our Christian lives...

# posted by geoff @ 5:38 pm

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Monday, September 18, 2006

Steve Irwin again.

It's Monday night and an old Bible College friend from 30 years ago rang me up. During our conversation we talked about Steve Irwin and the e-mail that was forwarded on to me. Bruce then told me that their church in Queensland has looked into this report (that Steve Irwin gave his life to Christ) and says that it is apparantly a hoax. Terry does attend different churches at times, so I guess there has been truth mingled with untruth.

So now I'm in the dumps again. Why on earth do people have to say things like this if they aren't true??

# posted by shellymac @ 9:49 pm

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Pope - Infallible But Still Sorry

For Protestants like myself, the notion of an infallible Pope is rather weird. On account of being deeply aware of human inadequacies, even in the strongest of faith (like Abraham and Jacob, for starters...) Still, they really believe it. Just today my RC mate informed me (with a smug grin) that as far as the Pope goes, "whatsoever he binds on earth is bound in heaven, and whatever he looses on earth..." As he said, what power! I asked "what if he gets it wrong" and the response "that's not possible"! And he wasn't joking.

So, rather incongruous (but somehow reassuring) to read today that the Pope is sorry for a mistake he feels he's made. I know infallibility only extends so far, but a papal apology is surely newsworthy.

And while he's at it, why stop there? There's the crusades, the inquisition, myriads of burnings of "heretics" at the stake,... Guess I shouldn't quibble, we've got a PM who can't even get the word "sorry" out, his teeth are gritted so hard...

# posted by geoff @ 8:14 pm

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Irwin

Michele, here's a pic to go with your post on Steve Irwin. Gary can't post here, something mucked up. I've restarted him but he needs some encouragement to get his enthusiasm back. He's at church tonight (and we're on hol's from BSF - ha!) BTW do you still want to work on the election, as a polling official on Nov 25th? Gary is planning to, me also (have done for many years now and enjoy it). If so, let me know and I have a friend who can organise it!

# posted by geoff @ 8:05 pm

3 comments

Sunday, September 17, 2006

Steve Irwin

This past couple of weeks has seen two famous Australians die. One was Steve Irwin, a unique man, full of vitality and enthusiasm for wildlife and nature. The other was Peter Brock, a racing car driver.

This really stunned me - especially the death of Steve Irwin and I said to my mother that sometimes I don't understand God. Why should Steve die at such a young age, with a loving family, when rapists and murderers live to 100.

Fortunately the decision is not up to us, and we have to accept that God is in control even though we do not understand.

Yesterday I received this email. I cannot say for sure that it is true, but if it is then Praise The Lord!..........

Decision for Christ.

Fantastic News. It appears confirmed that Steve Irwin became a born again Christian two and a half weeks ago at the Kings Church AOG, Buderim, QLD, going forward publicly before the congregation to ask Christ to become his Lord and Saviour.

Many of us will now spend eternity with him. I am sure Terri is comforted as a Christian, in the fact that she will be with Jesus and also Steve again, for eternity. Steve declared the day before he died, that he was the happiest he had ever been in his whole life. Terri is known around the Sunshine Coast area for making surprise visits to local churches, bringing her children Bindy and Bob with her.

# posted by shellymac @ 6:58 pm

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