| American Christian Syncretism: A Dialogue ----- Original Message ----- From: James To: Everyone Sent: Saturday, May 28, 2005 11:45 AM Subject: American Christian Syncretism Gentlemen, I found some very disturbing and yet interesting information I felt I must pass along, as I read my latest copy of "Whistleblower." Four out of five Americans describe themselves as Christians: 54.7 percent self-identifying as Protestant 22 percent as Roman Catholic 2.7 percent as "other Christian" According to 2004 survey by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life. On any given weekend, 45 percent of us attend worship services and yet a recent study by respected Christian pollster George Barna showed that "born-again" Christian adults in the U.S. think and act virtually the same as non-believers. Barna surveyed 2,033 adults and found only 4 percent of the general population have a biblical worldview and suggested many of the nation's moral and spiritual challenges are directly attributable to this fact. Most Americans have little idea how to integrate core biblical principles to form a unified and meaningful response to the challenges and opportunities of life. We're often more concerned with survival amidst chaos than with experiencing truth and significance. The Barna Research Group, Ltd defined a biblical worldview as believing that absolute moral truth exists and that such truth is defined by the Bible as well as a firm belief in 6 specific religious views. 1. Jesus Christ lived a sinless life. 2. God is the all-powerful and all-knowing Creator of the universe and He still rules it today. 3. Salvation is a gift from God and cannot be earned. 4. Satan is real 5. A Christian has a responsibility to share their faith in Christ with other people. 6. the Bible is accurate in all of its teachings. Only 7 percent of Protestants overall maintained a biblical worldview. Of adults who attend mainline Protestant churches, only 2 percent shared those values. Among Catholics, less than one-half of 1 percent had a biblical worldview. The highest proportions were non-denominational Protestant churches with 13 percent, Pentecostal churches with 10 percent, and Baptist churches with 8 percent. Barna went further with the study to evaluate the lifestyle diversities between the different worldview groups. Adults with a biblical worldview possessed radically different views on morality, held divergent religious beliefs and demonstrated vastly different lifestyle choices. Those with a biblical worldview were 31 times less likely to accept cohabitation; 18 times less likely to endorse drunkenness; 15 times less likely to condone homosexual sex; 12 times less likely to accept profanity; and 11 times less likely to describe adultery as morally acceptable. Less than one-half of one percent of those with a biblical worldview said voluntary exposure to pornography was morally acceptable (compared to 39 percent of other adults), and a similarly miniscule proportion endorsed abortion (compared to 46 percent of adults who lack a biblical worldview). While I cannot personally attest to the complete accuracy of these statistics, I do agree with the needed call to evangelize the American church back to biblical values. I agree with the late Francis Schaeffer when he stated "accommodation" was the ultimate problem in America today. To quote Schaeffer: "This accommodation has been costly, first in destroying the power of the Scriptures to confront the spirit of our age; second, in allowing the further slide of our culture. Thus we must say with tears that it is evangelical accommodation to the world spirit around us, to the wisdom of this age, which removes the evangelical church from standing against the further breakdown of our culture. It is my firm belief that when we stand before Jesus Christ, we will find that it has been the weakness and accommodation of the evangelical group on the issues of the day that has been largely responsible for the loss of the Christian ethos which has taken place in the area of culture in our country over the last forty to sixty years." And as he spoke on this great hypocrisy, he said: "And let us understand that to accommodate to the world spirit about us in our age is nothing less than the most gross form of worldliness in the proper definition of that word. And with this proper definition of worldliness, we must say with tears that, with exceptions, the evangelical church is worldly and not faithful to the living Christ." What a great prophet we had in this man. America must realize the words given to this man were on similar grounds to those given to Ezekiel. Schaeffer was given words from God to call America to repent before the looming judgment on an unfaithful nation. ...through the Blood of Christ, (Eph. 2:13) Russ... ----- Original Message ----- From: Curtis Kekoa III To: Everyone Sent: Saturday, May 28, 2005 2:54 PM Subject: Re: American Christian Syncretism Does "think and act virtually the same as non-believers" include sending Christian kids to be instructed by a godless, humanist government school system? ----- Original Message ----- From: James To: Curtis Kekoa III Sent: Saturday, May 28, 2005 5:22 PM Subject: Re: American Christian Syncretism A better question would be: Do you feel powerless to combat the teachings of the schools to your children or do you feel confident and assured in God's ability to use your children to change the humanist government school system from within? The message below was that the church quit standing firm on God's word and representing Him to the world. While I certainly believe you can home school children who can become Christian examples to the world, I also believe it shows another level of faith and courage to meet the challenge on a more direct front (within the schools). ----- Original Message ----- From: Curtis Kekoa III To: James Sent: Saturday, May 28, 2005 6:58 PM Subject: Re: American Christian Syncretism It was just a question. So I suppose the answer is: Yes, "Christian adults in the U.S. think and act virtually the same as non-believers." Point: Christians think it's okay to forego their responsibility to instruct their own kids and instead send their kids to be instructed by godless humanists = Non-believers (the world) think it's okay to forego their responsibility to instruct their own kids and instead send their kids to be instructed by godless humanists. Huge resemblance concerning thinking and acting. ----- Original Message ----- From: James To: Curtis Kekoa III Sent: Sunday, May 29, 2005 7:48 AM Subject: American Christian Syncretism Amen!!! I believe it's our calling to start with those Christians you spoke of, exposing them to the word of God and then go out to the Non-believers (ie: to the Jew first, and then to the Gentile) ----- Original Message ----- From: Curtis Kekoa III To: James Sent: Sunday, May 29, 2005 9:44 AM Subject: Re: American Christian Syncretism Are we talking about the same thing, or is this a different "James" than from yesterday? Happy Memorial Day! ----- Original Message ----- From: James To: Curtis Kekoa III Sent: Sunday, May 29, 2005 1:06 PM Subject: Re: American Christian Syncretism Nope. Same as always. I've always believed the church can change the nation from within, just like Godly children, "taught by their parents", can change the school system from within. But it starts with the church/family (core biblical values & teaching), not the governmental officials (or boycotting public schools). It's goofy to believe that just because you send your children to public schools, you can't also teach them values at home. It's even encouraged by public school teachers that the parents get involved with teaching their children. I have no problem with my children getting a well-rounded education. How can they help non-Christians if they don't know what they are being taught. It's the same for me going out into a world who don't all believe in the Bible. I need to understand their hopes and beliefs before I can find a way to explain how Christ is the answer. It's hard to give an answer when you don't know the question. I believe you were correct when you stated the issues of "some" Christians thinking and acting like Non-believers. My answer was that this is the starting point of reconciliation and hope for our nation. Teaching them the Word of God in a manner in which they can understand and accept is the answer (just as it always has been). We need to teach them the "Good News" in a way they can apply it to their lives as they recognize what a Godly nation would look like. Part of this method of teaching includes the realization that we will learn and grow possibly as much as they. It's hard to be overly critical of someone else when you clearly see your own faults (that log and spec thing). However, we most certainly can aspire to Godliness and desire it for our brethren. Hope your big weekend is relaxing... ----- Original Message ----- From: Curtis Kekoa III To: James Sent: Sunday, May 29, 2005 10:00 PM Subject: Re: American Christian Syncretism Let's stay on point instead of meandering elsewhere. Your original email included morality / lifestyle issues such as cohabitation; drunkenness; homosexual sex; profanity; adultery; pornography; and abortion to demonstrate a difference between the worldviews of believers vs. non-believers. I wondered why the issue of government "education" was left out, perhaps because it would offend too many Christians who abdicate their responsibility to teach their own children to the government. Nonetheless, my point was this: "Christians think it's okay to forego their responsibility to instruct their own kids and instead send their kids to be instructed by godless humanists = Non-believers (the world) think it's okay to forego their responsibility to instruct their own kids and instead send their kids to be instructed by godless humanists." Even simpler, when Christians and non-Christians send their kids to government schools, there is no pronounced difference between the contemplations and actions of Christians and non-Christians. They - Christians and non-Christians - both think and do the same thing, hence: "Christian adults in the U.S. think and act virtually the same as non-believers." That's my point. No matter how you slice it with respect to public schools, Christian parents do the same thing as non-Christian parents: send their kids to government schools. I wasn't debating about whether or not Christians should send their kids elsewhere to be trained and instructed by heathen - that wasn't the issue. I was merely pointing to the stark reality that, concerning public schools, Christians and non-Christians do the same thing: send their kids to public schools. And this includes every Christian parent (not "some") who sends their kid to public schools. Yes, even that Christian parent does the same thing as the heathen no matter what the justification: send his kid to be trained and instructed by heathen. There's no getting around it. That's all. But if you want to debate about a "well-rounded education" to include sexual harassment (among many other "well-rounded" things) which occurs at intense levels at every government school, then we can do that. I suppose I don't want my daughters to be harassed as children, but I guess that's just my "goofy" parenting getting in the way - again. Because no matter what "teaching" I do at home to counter the harassment, the damage is done. And we can debate about how good it is that public schools encourage parent participation, as though the government had some say concerning when, where, and how far a parent can be engaged in his child's life. But I guess the government does have a say about how parents can be parents, since parents have entered into a de facto joint-custody with the government over children. (In some areas, it's not de facto - it's legal.) But my point wasn't to debate. My weekend would be better if it wasn't raining. I just bought this new gas grill and was ready to sweat over that thing all day Monday, but it looks like I'll be all wet instead. It could be worse, though; I could be an Iraqi with a war in his backyard. [end of dialogue] DuhMag.com Note: I did not receive a response from James this time as well. |