August/September 2002
Dear ones,
THE FALL RETREAT - 25th ANNIVERSARY
The coming Fall Retreat (4-6 October 2002) will mark the 25th anniversary
of the Believers' Retreats; the very first one was held at Brandon Spring
in the Land Between the Lakes in September 1977. At the time of the
first one, we didn't expect to have any more, but the youth said, "let's
do this again in the spring" and we did. Thus were born two Retreats
a year…for 25 years. Since this one will mark a significant, quarter-century
anniversary, we intend to make it a homecoming event, a celebration
of all that the Lord has done in so many lives during those years.
If you have been blessed by the retreats through the past 25 years,
you will want to make a special effort to join us for this very special
retreat. For reservations, email or call Marty (mmmck@apex.net - ph.
270-965-2174), or call the office (270-965-5060). For more information,
check the registration form on page four.
THE FUTURE OF RETREATS
In recent years, the question of continuing to have two retreats a year
has continued to come up in the deliberations of the Retreat Board.
For everything there is a season, and after much prayer we have decided
that this Fall Retreat will be the last one, as we have known them.
In the foreseeable future, there will be one Retreat/Gathering a year
(in the Fall) under a new generation of leadership. For those of you
who love the retreats, don't panic. Although the format may change,
the Lord's work and the retreat will continue. The Board members will
continue to serve as in the past but the mantle of leadership will be
passed to the younger generation of Board members (who will have the
support of the older generation, both spiritually and physically). The
Board members will take a weekend at the park in the spring to pray,
fellowship and plan for the fall. If anyone has suggestions to give
to the new leadership, email (mmmck@apex.net) or write us at Believers'
Retreat; PO Box 413; Marion, KY 42064.
MY HEALTH AND THE MAIL
My health is improving, but the head injury is healing very slowly.
As a result, I require much rest, and must minimize stress. Meanwhile,
I am still faced with deadlines on an overdue book. So, while I will
continue to read all mail, I won't be able to answer. If you have questions
that require answers, the secretaries will contact me for the necessary
information. I covet your prayers, and your patience with me.
OUR CHRISTIAN HERITAGE
In 1892, after exhaustive research, the U.S. Supreme Court, citing 87
legal and historical precedents, ruled in the case US versus Holy Trinity
Church. In the decision, the court ruled for the church, stating that
our laws and institutions "must necessarily be based upon, and
embody, the teachings of the Redeemer of mankind…our institutions
are emphatically Christian…this is a Christian nation."
PLANNED PARENTHOOD'S FOUNDER
Margaret Sanger, radical socialist founder of Planned Parenthood, whose
battle cry was "No gods, no masters!," promoted birth control,
not for its own sake, but as a means of attacking all authority, especially
that of the Church and its teachings. She declared, "Birth control
appeals to the advanced radical because it is calculated to undermine
the authority of the Christian churches. I look forward to seeing humanity
free someday of the tyrrany of Christianity, no less than (that of)
capitalism." (Joan Gaulard."Woman Rebel" 1978, PhD dissertation)
ABORTION: BLACK GENOCIDE
Margaret Sanger, remembered as founder of Planned Parenthood, was also
an ardent racist; and the two identities were not unrelated. Like all
such socialist elitists, she wanted human population controlled; unlike
some, she wanted to begin with the eradication of what she considered
inferior races, especially blacks. If the dead can know what is happening
on Earth, and if one can smile in Hell, she must be grinning from ear
to ear over some recent statistics. Abortion is now the number one cause
of death among black Americans. Although blacks comprise only 12% of
the American population, black women receive 34% of all abortions in
the country. The Rev.Jim Goode and others of the organization Black
Americans for Life are working to save black babies from this genocide;
may God bless them in their work. (PWB, et al)
HOPE FOR LONG-IGNORED OBSCENITY LAWS
Obscenity laws have been on the federal books for a long time, but have
not been enforced; the Clinton administration acted as if they didn't
exist. There is hope, however, that we may see some inforcement of these
old standards of decency. In June, the Justice Dept. conducted a seminar
in S.C. for federal prosecutors on how to enforce obscenity laws; it
was the first time the U.S. attorneys have focused on such enforcement
since the Reagan years. (PWB)
CHRISTIANS BEWARE: ANOTHER TRUSTED
SOURCE GONE SOUR
One of the most significant and distressing changes for the worse we
see today is that of once-trusted, "safe" organizations that
have turned radically wrong. Why? Because the "values free"
radicals that came out of our colleges in the '60s and '70s are now
in positions of policy making influence in such organizations. Notable
examples include the Girl Scouts, the PTA and the American Library Ass'n,
which controls librarian education and certification, thus most public
library policies. Add to the dismal list Scholastic, Inc., publisher
of educational materials for public schools. Last year its mail order
book service for children reported sales of $2 Billion, mostly through
catalogs which teachers distribute to children. Now, they are moving
into the growing market represented by Christian schools and Christian
parents, with a new "Inspiring Words" catalog. Among the good
books offered, danger lurks. Featured on the cover of the new catalog
is the book, "Conversations with God for Teens"; in the book
Scholastic's "God" says, "There is no such thing as right
and wrong….there is only what works and what doesn't work, given
what you are trying to do." A 16 year old from Miami asks, "Why
am I a lesbian?" Scholastic's "God" replies, "Go
now, out into the world, and celebrate who you are." (World)
A PAINFUL, BUT NECESSARY, TOPIC: CLERGY SEXUAL MISCONDUCT
The messy problem in the Roman Catholic Church concerning sexual abuse
of children by pedophile priests has been much in the news lately, and
is not likely to go away any time soon. There is no need to add much
here, except some things not commonly known. For one, the problem crosses
all denominational lines, Protestanrt and Catholic. It is much more
of a problem within Roman Catholic circles, however, because of the
authority of priests, the common belief that they must be obeyed, and
the concept of an infallible Church. The problem with them is undoubtedly
exacerbated because of the doctrine of an unmarried clergy, but this
is not the cause. Concerning the recent decisions of the conference
of American bishops, the policy adopted of forgiving past abuses, much
criticized by Catholics for being too lenient, is actually more permissive
than generally known; for it does not apply to priests in religious
orders, such as the Dominicans, Franciscans, etc, when they are ministering
within those orders. Why are they exempted? I don't know, but it is
probably because each of these orders has its own wealth and power.
But while the light of public attention has exposed the problem of pedophile
priests, they may be only the tip of an ugly iceberg, with the iceberg
being a growing tolerance of homosexuality in the Church. Much more
ominous than the current scandal, and with enormous potential for future
corruption, is the growing problem of the tolerance of homosexual practices,
taught in a number of Roman Catholic seminaries. The result is a "gay"
subculture, growing in the dark corners of the seminary system. According
to a new book, "Goodbye Good Men, How Liberals Brought Corruption
into the Catholic Church" by Michael S. Rose, some seminaries have
become notorious for homosexual behavior, with insider nicknames like
"Pink Palace" and "Notre Flame"; all this, while
bishops look the other way. Although some bishops and priests are saying
that nothing prevents the ordination of homosexuals, Catholic Canon
Law forbids it. John Vennari, representing the group, Roman Catholic
Faithful, writes that Canon Law Digest of 2 Feb 1961 states that "Advancement
to religious vows and ordination should be barred to those who are afflicted
with evil tendencies to homosexuality and pederasty, since for them
the common life and the priestly ministry would constitute serious dangers."
Today we know full well what those dangers are, and so did the Catholic
Church fathers who wisely wrote the law. Sad to relate, however, those
faithful and concerned Catholics who want to defend the purity of their
Church find themselves opposed by some bishops. When an official from
Roman Catholic Faithul asked the Papal Nuncio (the Pope's representative)
in Washington, DC for a copy of this canon law, the Nuncio refused,
saying that the document is "reserved to the use of the bishops."
This is the church equivalent of a military general's saying that the
document is classified and only certain high officials can see it.
Ralph McInerny, Prof. of Philosophy at Notre Dame, says of the book,
"Goodbye, Good Men," "I would recommend it to all bishops;
but any bishop unaware of what Rose has written is guilty of culpable
ignorance."
Watch for this problem to become increasingly public, a much more disruptive
and painful issue for Catholics, and fodder for a major feeding frenzy
among the secular media. And, if you would like to know more about those
Catholics who are disturbed about the cancer of corruption in their
Church and want to work for reform within it, a place to start is the
group Roman Catholic Faithful, at its web site. Any search engine should
take you directly there. E-mail at questions@rcf.org, or write to PO
Box 109 Petersburg, Ill 62675, or call (217) 632-5920/FAX 632-7054.(ANS,
RCF, et al)
MONEY, ABORTION AND RAPE OF CHILDREN
Sexual activity between an adult and a minor is, by definition a crime.
It is rape, statutory rape, for a child below the age of consent is
seen by the law (and logic) as being unable to give informed consent
to the act. Many people, mostly men, have gone to prison for it; quite
a number have been hanged. But now Mark Crutcher, Pres. Of Life Dynamics
of Denton, Tex, says he has "irrefutable" evidence that Planned
Parenthood and the National Abortion Federation have knowingly violated
state and federal laws that require them to report cases of sexual abuse
of children. Crutcher says that his group surveyed over 800 PP and NAF
facilities in which a caller presented herself as a 13 year old girl,
made pregnant by a 22 year old man. An overwhelming majority of the
clinics agreed to conceal the incident, even after admitting that they
were required by law to report it. Crutcher says, "We've got (people)…concerned
about the covering up of pedophilia by the Catholic church. What we've
discovered is that the real professionals at covering up pedophiles
are those who work at Planned Parenthood and the National Abortion Federation."
Why would these groups do this? Obviously, they will conceal the rape
of a child, in order to get the money for the abortion.(ANS)
A PHRASE TO WATCH: "SUSTAINABLE
DEVELOPMENT"
A phrase seen and heard more and more these days is, "sustainable
development." It is a favorite concept of the elitist global socialists,
environmentalist radicals, and others who would like to make our decisions
for us, who believe that they know more about what we should do than
we do, and those who worship nature and consider us to be no more important
than snail darters, spotted owls or roaches. They all see, in one way
or another, that there are too many people on the Earth, owning too
much property; they believe (and they are very sincere) that they should
decide how many children we should have, what should be done with our
land and other property, which babies should be allowed to live, and
how long the old and feeble should be allowed to live, since they consume
food, water and air, but aren't doing anything useful. If this seems
oversimplified, it is because it is difficult to summarize in the space
available here.
One of Bill Clinton's first acts as president was to issue Executive
Order #12852, creating the President's Council on Sustainable Development.
It is a concept dear to the hearts of elitist humanists such as he and
Hillary.
Sustainable development has been aptly described as "a homeowners'
association on steroids," and "pure socialism in a green cloak."
If you think such a thing could never happen in the land of the free
and home of the brave, think again; sustainable development, under the
name of the Community Character Act, has already been introduced in
Congress as S-975 (Senate version) and H.R. 1433 (House version). Under
this proposed legislation, decisions in local communities concerning
property use, vehicle choice, home building, etc., would be made by
the federal government, under advice of such radical NGOs (non-government
organizations) as Planned Parenthood, the Sierra Club and the National
Education Ass'n. Under policies of the planners, such things as air-conditioning,
single family homes, and vehicles with gasoline or diesal engines would
be illegal, and about the only "right" left to a property
owner would be to pay ever-higher taxes on it.
And remember: although we may get aroused over the thought of having
conveniences such as air-conditioning, private cars and trucks and private
homes taken away, the greatest threat is to human life. The basic belief
of these elitest, humanist, power seekers is that there are too many
people on the Earth, and not enough kangaroo rats and snail darters.
To reduce the concept to its most fundamental terms, they intend to
convert privately owned farm land into federally controlled wilderness,
private motor vehicles into bicycles, private homes into government
housing projects, provide/require unlimited abortion, enforce one-child
families as the Red Chinese do, and to empty nursing homes of "useless"
old people. This may sound like alarmist exaggeration, but is precisely
where the process will go. Gone would be property rights, the right
to life, and about the only choice left to us by these "champions
of choice" would be to conform or die. (Various, including Tom
DeWeese in Sierra Times,21 Jun 02)
ONCE IN A WHILE THINGS GO RIGHT
In this age of insane activist demands and irrational rulings by judges,
once in a while reason asserts itself and we can smile. A high school
graduating class in West Virginia this year planned to open their graduation
with the traditional invocation. In response to the complaint of the
one atheist in the class, Federal Judge John Copenhaver issued a restraining
order forbidding the prayer. He gave as his reason, to protect the atheist
senior from "suffering irreparable harm" by hearing the prayer.
More than 100 graduating seniors bowed their heads on their own, and
loudly recited the Lord's Prayer; they received a standing ovation from
the crowd. This makes me smile.(PWB)
TAMMY AND "GAY" PRIDE
Tammy Faye Baker-Mesner, one-time star of Christian TV and co-owner
of an entertainment and marketing empire, has somehow found her way
into a strange niche: she has become a public spokeswoman for, and a
new favorite of, the homosexual community. She writes an advice column
for a homosexual magazine; and, as one of the featured speakers at the
annual Washington, DC "gay" pride day in June, she was cheered
lustily (pun intended). (ANS)
WHENCE CAME MAY DAY?
The observance of May 1st as an important anniversary takes 2 forms,
each with its own pagan origins. The older one is the celebration of
Spring, originating in ancient European fertility cults, worshipping
nature, sex and fertility (dancing around a May Pole, a phallic symbol,
is still done in some areas). The more recent one dates to 1889 when
a worldwide Communist convention declared May 1st to be the day to celebrate
and rally "revolutionary" workers. It is the most important
day in the Communist year. Even today, with Communism collapsing, scattered
groups of Communists attempt to rally, march and riot on May Day.
Interestingly, the international distress call for aircraft and ships
in trouble is "Mayday" (one word), and derives from French,
"m'aider" ("Help me!"); it has nothing to do with
either celebratory sex in the Spring, or Communism.
THE ONGOING DECLINE OF PUBLIC SCHOOLS
While some public schools continue to strive for excellence, the overall
trend continues to be dismal. In Palm Beach County High School (Florida),
the final exam in History this school year consisted of 100 multiple-choice
questions. The system-wide grading standard for passing the exam required
the student to answer only 23 of the 100 questions correctly. (World)
REMEMBER KEITH GREEN?
Keith Green and his wife Melody came out of the drug/rock and roll culture
and became radical Christians, on fire for the Lord. Keith's music was
as intense as his teaching and his no-compromise life, and it gripped
us as has the music of few others. He inspired us, and challenged us
to rise higher in our Christian lives; and he and Melody were early
warriors for the right to life. Then a tragic airplane crash took him
and two of his small children, at the peak of his ministry. Melody,
their small son, and the daughter she was carrying at the time, were
at home at the time of the crash. Now, Melody Green has reorganized
the ministry, is publishing Keith's writings and distributing his music.
You can visit their web site at www.lastdaysministries.org., contact
them at Last Days Ministries, 825 College Blvd, Suite 102, #333, Oceanside,
CA 92057 or e-mail at lastdays@lastdaysministries.org. For those of
you who remember Keith, it will be like going home; those of you who
don't remember him have missed a blessing, but it's not too late.
A DOSE OF COMMON SENSE
William Buckley, product of an elite Ivy League education and founder
of "National Review," said that he "would rather be governed
by the first 100 people in the Boston phone book than by the faculty
at Harvard University." I say a hearty "Amen!" (PWB)
MARTY'S CORNER
"NIV's twisted sister" is the headline of the lead article
in WORLD magazine, Feb. 9 and is followed by a lengthy article in the
Feb. 23 issue. By playing word games, International Bible Society unveiled
a gender-normed NIV under a new name, "Today's New International
Version." Changing the name just slightly (by adding "Today's)
will cause thousands to think that they're just buying a newer edition
of the NIV - a deceptive marketing ploy. Beware of the deception, tell
your friends, Sunday school class, pastors, Christian bookstore owners
of the marketing trickery.
In truth, the mistranslations and changes in it are "not only poor
grammar but a loss of the Bible's emphasis on individual responsibility
AND individual relationship with God," especially the relationship
with Jesus.
There are hundreds of examples but my limited space allows for only
one example of the distortions. The NIV Hebrews 2:6 says "What
is man that you are mindful of him, the Son of Man that you care for
Him?" while the TNIV Hebrews 2:6 says, "What are mere mortals
that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them? The
TNIV mistranslates the singular Greek words huios (son) and anthropos
(man). It removes the connection of this phrase to Jesus, who called
Himself, "the Son of Man."
The TNIV goes beyond translating with modern language or replacing traditional
generic plural nouns like "men" with words such as "humans."
TNIV's goal to remove gender as much as possible and please a feminist
audience has relegated the goal of providing an accurate translation
to the back seat. It deviates from and distorts the actual meaning of
the text while the simple solution would be to explain that in English,
as in many languages, "he" or "his" is generic /
nonspecific - it includes women. Those responsible for the TNIV have
lost their concern for the inerrant word of God and their minds are
closed. Luke 24: 45 says, And He (Jesus) opened their understanding,
that they might comprehend the Scriptures. Pray for the closed minds
of the feminists and unbelievers to be opened, that they might comprehend
the Scriptures.
MILESTONES
Born
24 Apr - Rebecca Jane Bowles at 5 lbs., 6 oz., to Mary Beth (Ferguson)
and Ray Bowles, in Louisville, Ky. (Note: this makes 2 boys and 2 girls
for Mary Beth)
16 Jun - Lily Angeline Carothers at 7 lbs., 11 oz., to Pam (Jones) and Chris Carothers in Jackson, Tenn.
1 Jul - Phoebe Anne Sanders at 7 lbs., 1 oz., to Susan (Mills) and Fred Sanders, in La Mirada, Calif.
Married
14 Jun - Elizabeth Petrie and Neill Stover, of Union City, Tenn., in
Union City.
Died
17 Apr - Betty Ferguson (Mrs. Eddie, mother
of Mary Beth [above]), Summer Shade, Ky.
13 Jun - Gretchen Crouthers, longtime friend and wife of Rev. Charlie Crouthers, in Jackson, Tenn.
29 Jun - Jon Hutchinson, longtime Christian friend, in Savannah, Tenn.
FINAL WORD
Treasure and use each day as if it were your last, and never give up
hope; God has a limitless supply of new beginnings, and he makes beautiful
things out of broken pieces.
You are precious,
(Sources: AFAJ-American Family Journal; AFRN-American Family Radio News;
ANS-Agape News Service; AP-Associated Press; BP-Break Point; C-Charisma;
CBN-Christian Broadcasting Network; CR-Congressional Record; DR-Drudge
Report; EP-Evangelical Press; Fox (Fox News); FRC-Family Research Council;
GN-Good News Magazine; HC-History Channel; Ins-Insight Magazine; LAT-L.A.
Times; Mil-Military Magazine; NR-National Review; NW-Newsweek; NYP-New
York Post; NYT-New York Times; PWB-Pastors' Weekly Briefing; RTLB-Right
to Life Education Foundation Bulletin; USAT-USA Today; USNWR-U.S. News
and World Report; VOM-Voice of Martyrs; W-World Magazine; WND-World
Net Daily; WT-Washington Times; WW-Washington Watch.)