The Wartburg Watch » Family Integrated Church

Andy Davis and His Associations

deb — Sat, 10 Dec 2011 04:11:22 +0000

"This made such an impression on my heart that I got up out of my hammock, picked up a saw, and cut off a leafy green branch from a tree. As soon as the saw passed through the branch, I knew that the leaves were as good as dead, even though they looked as healthy as they had a moment before. Soon they would wither because they were cut off from the living source. I took that branch with me to work and still have it. The leaves are completely dead now, because I cut that branch almost ten years ago. It represented the end of the era of unregenerate church members dominating the life of FBC." (link) Andy Davis Cathedral in Europe (Taken by Deb) Andy Davis, senior pastor of First Baptist Church in Durham, North Carolina, claims to possess great discernment regarding what is "Biblical". In fact, he is so sure of himself that he proclaims the following at the conclusion of his reformation article posted on the 9 Marks website (see link above): "ONE OF THE GREATEST DISPLAYS OF GOD’S GLORY The reformation of First Baptist Church is one of the greatest displays of God’s glory that Continue reading →

Written by: deb on Fri, Dec 09 2011.

Categories: Authoritarian leadership, Carolyn Mahaney, Doug Philips, Doug Phillips/Vision Forum, Family Integrated Church, Ken Ham, Scott Brown

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Family Integrated Church Wrap-Up

deb — Thu, 29 Sep 2011 20:20:16 +0000

"A house divided against itself cannot stand." Abraham Lincoln Church in French Countryside (Taken by Deb) Family integrated churches are beginning to garner some attention in the Christian community, and it appears this is due, in part, to self-promotion. The documentary "Divided" is a case in point. This video plays the blame game regarding why youth are leaving the church and holds up the FIC model as the ONLY solution for keeping the next generation from slipping away from the Christian faith. Of course, the video presents valid criticisms regarding youth ministry, parents, and church structure (i.e. Sunday School). That’s what makes this propaganda piece so deceptive. The FIC model seems to work best in the homeschooling community, as one of our commenters pointed out. As I have mentioned before, I homeschooled my daughters for four years when they were very young, and I believe this educational option can be a wonderful choice for some families. What greatly concerns me about the FIC movement is that from what I understand, homeschooling is the only acceptable form of education. The “government schools” as the FIC crowd calls public schools, are lambasted. Where is the liberty in such a strict religious system? Continue reading →

Written by: deb on Thu, Sep 29 2011.

Categories: Answers in Genesis, Creationism, Doug Philips, Doug Phillips/Vision Forum, Family Integrated Church, Homeschooling, Ken Ham, NCFIC, Patriarchy, Scott Brown

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“Divided” Lives Up To Its Name

deb — Tue, 27 Sep 2011 03:27:11 +0000

"He that is not a son of Peace is not a son of God. All other sins destroy the Church consequentially; but Division and Separation demolish it directly…" Richard Baxter Mondsee Abbey Location of The Sound of Music wedding (Taken by Deb) How ironic that a documentary lambasting age segregation in the church is itself causing division and separation among God's people. Have you heard of a documentary appropriately called "Divided"? The caption atop the promo states: “One of the most controversial films of the decade: Is modern youth ministry multiplying or dividing the church?” Looks like the film’s producers were correct. Divided is so controversial that Ron Hunter, executive director and CEO of Randall House, which sponsors the D6 Conference, banned the film. Here is how Charisma News covered the development: (link) “Divided, a documentary film that raises probing questions about dangers associated with modern youth ministry, has been thrown out of a major conference. Having gone viral with over 100,000 online views, Divided has generated an enormous response in the blogosphere since being released on www.Dividedthemovie.com. The film's message—that churches should follow the Bible's pattern of ministering to young people, not disregard it—has been deemed as too controversial Continue reading →

Written by: deb on Mon, Sep 26 2011.

Categories: Answers in Genesis, Botkin, Doug Philips, Doug Phillips/Vision Forum, Family Integrated Church, Homeschooling, Ken Ham, Scott Brown

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NCFIC, Vision Forum, and the Bottom Line

deb — Sat, 24 Sep 2011 03:48:04 +0000

"Vision Forum has got it right! A lot of “modern” churches have got it wrong. God makes it quite clear how things are supposed to operate and when all parties are in submission to Him it is a wonderful thing. We must stand apart from the world. Vision Forum equips us with the resources and encouragement to do that. As hard as it is to be mocked by the world and labeled wrongly, I stand by the hope of hearing, 'Well done, my good and faithful servant.' " Cyndi L Taken by Deb Family Integrated Church seems to be all the buzz in certain Christian circles these days. How many of our TWW readers know the origin of the National Center for Family Integrated Churches (discussed in yesterday's post), and how long has this organization existed? Here is an excerpt from a blog post written by Scott Brown's colleague, Doug Phillips, who answers these questions. The Ten Year Anniversary of the National Center for Family Integrated Churches (link) "September 11, 2011, marked the 10th anniversary of one of the darkest days in American history. But it also marked the ten year anniversary of the founding of the National Center for Continue reading →

Written by: deb on Fri, Sep 23 2011.

Categories: Doug Philips, Doug Phillips/Vision Forum, Family Integrated Church, Homeschooling, Legalism, NCFIC, Scott Brown

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What are Family Integrated Churches?

deb — Fri, 23 Sep 2011 03:08:23 +0000

"Every single day last week, I received letters from people who were wanting to know more about the family integrated church movement. Many of them had attended a homeschooling convention in recent weeks and, like Momma Knows, had been subjected to a heapin’ helpin’ of FIC propaganda disguised as 'encouragement for homeschoolers.' " Karen Campbell (That Mom) European Tapestry (Taken by Deb) Throughout Christendom there appears to be a growing number of believers who are dancing to a different tune. The family-integrated church (FIC) movement is on the rise and causing discord within the body of Christ. With the D6 Conference getting into full swing today, it is time that we investigate this movement more closely. When a pastor is compelled to write a serious letter regarding the FIC movement, you can be sure that something is amiss. Here is what Pastor Andy sent to his congregation. (link) "Dear Church Family, Have you heard of the “family-integrated church” (FIC) movement? If you are familiar with classical Christian education resources like Vision Forum, you have probably encountered the influence of this growing movement. Or perhaps you have seen recent ads in World Magazine for an upcoming conference sponsored by the National Continue reading →

Written by: deb on Thu, Sep 22 2011.

Categories: Doug Philips, Doug Phillips/Vision Forum, Family Integrated Church, Homeschooling, Scott Brown

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Homeschooling Hijackers

deb — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 03:23:23 +0000

"I have never let my schooling interfere with my education. " Mark Twain The Louvre (Taken by Deb) We are navigating away from the Mahaney/Sovereign Grace Ministries debacle for the time being and beginning a series of posts on another hyper-authoritarian group that is wreaking havoc in some corners of Christendom. As Mahaney undergoes a time of reflection, we marvel that part of his therapy involves addressing the Capitol Hill Baptist congregation. Here is his sermon topic according to the CHBC website: “September 25 – When Someone Doubts, Guest Preacher: CJ Mahaney.” At some point we will weigh in on Mark Dever’s attempt to rehabilitliate his T4G buddy. ***************************************************** Back in the mid-1990s, my children were fairly small and homeschooling was becoming big. I did a lot of reading on homeschooling and was fascinated by the prospect of educating my own daughters. I read about Dr. Raymond Moore and some of the other pioneers of the homeschooling movement and was impressed by their tenacity. When my older daughter entered first grade, I jumped on the homeschooling bandwagon with great excitement. For three years in a row, I attended the North Carolina Home Educators (NCHE) Annual Convention in Winston-Salem. In April Continue reading →

Written by: deb on Mon, Sep 19 2011.

Categories: Authoritarian leadership, Doug Philips, Doug Phillips/Vision Forum, Family Integrated Church, Patriarchy, Scott Brown

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D6 – Not Just a Conference but a Way of Life!

deb — Sat, 17 Sep 2011 02:37:39 +0000

"D6 is more than a conference: it’s a biblical passage, a principle, a strategy, a way of life." (link) Taken by Deb Have you ever heard of a conference called D6? The conference planners must believe it is really AWESOME because they describe it as a WAY OF LIFE. It will take place next week in the Dallas metroplex. Perhaps you are wondering why this conference suddenly came onto our radar screen. I recently discovered that the producer of the video Divided (mentioned at the end of yesterday's post) has been "disinvited" to the D6 Conference. Wow! The only time I have ever heard of someone being "disinvited" to a conference was last May when Ken Ham was given the left boot of fellowship from a Christian homeschool conference. Just what is D6? The conference name centers around Deuteronomy 6:7 which, according to the D6 website, "tells us three things: Love God, treasure His Word, and teach this to the next generation. The vision of the D6 Conference is to champion a movement of parents who disciple their own kids and teens in partnership with their local church. The D6 Conference is dedicated to helping churches, leaders, parents, and volunteers to Continue reading →

Written by: deb on Fri, Sep 16 2011.

Categories: Authoritarian leadership, Calvinism/Calvinista, Conferences, Council of Biblical Manhood and Womanhood, Education and the church, Family Integrated Church, New Reformed Theology, Randy Stinson

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Is Sunday School Unbiblical?

deb — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 02:23:22 +0000

"THE LORD IS MY SHEPHERD: A Sunday School teacher decided to have her young class memorize one of the most quoted passages in the Bible; Psalm 23. She gave the youngsters a month to learn the chapter. Little Rick was excited about the task — but, he just couldn't remember the Psalm. After much practice, he could barely get past the first line. On the day that the kids were scheduled to recite Psalm 23 in front of the congregation, Ricky was so nervous. When it was his turn, he stepped up to the microphone and said proudly, 'The Lord is my Shepherd, and that's all I need to know.'" (link) Westminster Abbey (Taken by Deb) While the Sunday School quote cited above may be humorous, what is happening today in the body of Christ is no joke! As a follow-up to yesterday’s post, there is another group of helicopter parents on steroids that is wreaking havoc in some corners of Christendom. It has been quite a while since we focused on them, and we believe it is important to update our readers on the latest developments involving this close-knit group. This domineering clan, which touts homeschooling as the only Continue reading →

Written by: deb on Thu, Sep 15 2011.

Categories: Answers in Genesis, Authoritarian leadership, Botkin, Calvinism/Calvinista, Doug Philips, Doug Phillips/Vision Forum, Family Integrated Church, Homeschooling, Ken Ham, Legalism

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Do Birds of a Feather Flock Together in the Young Earth Crowd?

deb — Mon, 18 Oct 2010 20:32:58 +0000

Have you noticed an interesting phenomenon in God’s wonderful creation? Birds of a feather flock together… That certainly seems to be true of Homo sapiens as well, especially when it comes to those who hold to a Young Earth position. Ken Ham, the YE crowd’s icon, has developed quite a following, as evidenced by the attendance numbers at his Creation Museum. A September 3, 2010, Religion News story indicates the following: “We have consistently surpassed our own forecasts for attendance,” said Mark Looy, a co-founder of the museum and spokesman for the center. Last month (August), theCreation Museum counted more than 1.2 million guests since it opened in 2007, he added.” The $27 million Creation Museum, which opened on May 28, 2007, was funded by donors who made contributions to Ken Ham’s Answers in Genesis (AiG) organization. A July 2006 MSNBC article provides some insight into AiG’s successful fundraising effort. The article states: “Mark Looy, a vice president at Answers in Genesis, said the museum has received at least $21 million in private donations. He said two anonymous donors have given $1 million, and he expects the museum to be debt-free when it opens next May.” In Continue reading →

Written by: deb on Mon, Oct 18 2010.

Categories: Answers in Genesis, Creationism, Doug Philips, Doug Phillips/Vision Forum, Family Integrated Church, Ken Ham, Patriarchy, Quiverfull

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Randy Stinson and Another Kind of “Church Family”

dee — Tue, 19 May 2009 00:17:33 +0000

Categories: Al Mohler, C.J. Mahaney, Calvinism/Calvinista, Council of Biblical Manhood and Womanhood, Doug Philips, Family Integrated Church, Patriarchy, Randy Stinson, Southern Baptist Convention, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Spiritual abuse, Wade Burleson, Women and the church

A review of the rise of patriarchy thinking in the SBC

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