"By the time of the 18th century in Europe, much of religious life was a sham.
It needed to be broken in order to reform."
It seems that this is a well worn battle plan.
Are You Playing Into *Their* Hands?
by cameo-d 3 Replies latest watchtower scandals
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cameo-d
So, how does "reformation" take place?
It's rather like an amoeba this time. It divides and hides. It converges and diversifies. Then it divides and hides again.
Each time it converges, it merges with other entities and forms a new corporation or alliance under a new umbrella. The umbrella has a new name and a new "purpose".
Lesson learned: As long as truth is still hidden and agendas are manipulated to put forth an altruistic image, it is still the same lie being transformed into new light.
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freydo
Should A Pastor Rule Over You?
"Authoritarianism in the church is one of the most serious problems that Christian churches face today. Authoritarian regimes and political machines within Christian churches are not only totally unbiblical, but they empower men to take a church anywhere they wish, bypassing the normal checks and balances found in the Bible. A church that has given control to a single man (often called a Senior Pastor) or to a small group of men (often called a board of elders) is helplessly tossed about in very dangerous waves..."
Read More...http://www.truthguard.com/ -
freydo
http://www.admin-assist.com/blog_detail/7_Church_By_Laws
1. Most denominations, and some other churches as well, have a "Congregational" form of church government where all power resides and emanates from the congregation, with the members of the Board of Directors (Deacons or Trustees) elected by popular vote. Often the Trustees are the Board members, having authority over land and building issues, with the Deacons over the spiritual affairs of the Church. They have brought the "Corporation" or secular "Democratic" form of government into the church.
2. Some churches have been established with the pastor as the sole authority, and the Board clearly subservient to his direction. One pastor said to me, "Yes, I am a dictator, but I am a benevolent dictator." Too often this thinking has come from a negative experience of having to deal with a Board controlled by influential, spiritually immature people. When a pastor is put in the unrighteous and untenable position of being directed by, and accountable to people who often are not discipled, or immature Christians, this pastor often says, ‘Never again!" And then forms a church government that is just as unbiblical.
We can find no Biblical basis, in either the Old or New Testament, for either of these extreme forms of government. As a matter of fact, whenever the people in The Old Testament attempted to institute a "Democracy," God intervened with harsh judgment. Consider the following accounts:.............