“We want everybody to act like adults, quit playing games, realize that it’s not just my way or the highway.” Barack Obama
Blog update: Please read.
- While in Iceland, I had lots of fresh vegetables and fruits. They have massive greenhouses heated by geothermal energy. We visited one that specialized in tomatoes. They let us eat freshly picked tomatoes and even served us tomato soup. Whenever I ate breakfast, I ate some of the sweetest watermelons I had ever tasted during the winter months. There are 395,000 inhabitants, but our guide believes it is much lower. They do an excellent job of managing a volcanic island. There was a new eruption today.
- I am currently working on an important story involving a group of women who were molested in an Assemblies of God (AOG)church in the 80s. The abuser is still a pastor in another church associated with a well-known pastor. This story has so many tentacles that I might have to write at least five posts. It will involve a lot of work and research into AOG central, which did something that will turn your stomach. I plan to post the first story on Friday.
- Finally, I am not at liberty to share details yet, but I want to alert you that there may be a focus on TWW in the coming month. It is a positive development, but it will also involve a lot of work on my part. Please pray for me as I navigate these important stories while dealing with some probable surprising attention. I will let readers know first, just as soon as I can. Given the coming holidays and the start of a bunch of work at my house, I may be distracted. Please keep me in your prayers. Feel free to contact me with questions.
I thought readers might find Park Street Church’s latest move (PSC) interesting. The Restoration Fellowship (RF) was founded to be precisely like its name…a fellowship. It was not established to be a church. It is rumored that the size of the Fellowship does not amuse the PSC leadership, which has decided that regular attendance of the Fellowship is akin to regularly attending an honest-to-gosh church. In their theology, one cannot regularly attend two churches simultaneously. Since the letters of ex-communication didn’t go over well, they decided to enforce the “attendance rule” in their membership reaffirmation.
Mark Dever and the boys at 9Marx enforce this rule in their membership requirements. Members who do not attend as suggested will be subjected to church discipline.
These concerns weigh heavily on the elders of DRBC, as it should on the whole congregation. We are called by God to love one another and are duty-bound by Scripture to care for each other by ensuring that we are fulfilling our commitments to the Lord and to one another (Galatians 6:1-2; 1 Thessalonians 5:11; Hebrews 3:12-13). We do this because, by God’s grace, we care deeply for the Lord’s honor and the welfare of one another’s souls.
For all of these reasons, we cannot stand idle when a member is not attending church on a regular basis (1 Peter 5:1-3). In these situations, the elders will lead the congregation in making inquiries of the individual’s status and, if necessary, will encourage them to honor their responsibility to attend services. If the member does not respond to the elders’ inquiries or fails to provide us with an adequate explanation for non-attendance, we will follow the command of the Lord Jesus as reflected in the DRBC governing documents and present the member’s name to the congregation for removal from membership as a matter of church discipline (Matthew 18:15-18).
As I have said in the past, I believe that a church takeover is in process. TWW does not recommend signing such a document because of the legal implications. Instead, if one must attend such a church, do so as a nonmember. Remember, being able to vote appears to mean little to the supposedly congregational leadership. Perhaps it would be in order to declare it a new type of congregational congregation. We could call it Congregationalism 2.0.
So, I present the Member Reaffirmation for those who, like me, love to read church documents with a jaundiced eye and a hearty laugh.
Dear Park Street Church Member,
Greetings in the Lord! I am thankful for how God is continuing to bless our worship and life together this fall. It’s been a particular joy to meditate on the Ten Commandments with many of you on Sunday mornings. May God help us to walk in the ways that he has prescribed for us as his children.
As we enter the last months of 2024, it is time for our annual reaffirmation of membership (accessible here). Our membership reaffirmation process serves to remind us of the commitments we have made to God and to each other and helps the Membership Committee maintain an up-to-date list of active members.
Membership at Park Street Church requires a continuing commitment to affirm and uphold the truths of scripture as summarized in our Confession of Faith and Covenant of Faith and Government. Membership also requires each of us to make and honor commitments to each other as fellow members of a local body of believers.
By reaffirming your membership, you are affirming that you:
- Continue to profess faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior,
- Subscribe to the personal confession of faith (parkstreet.org/about-us/beliefs) adopted by Park Street Church,
- Commit to the church’s Covenant of Faith and Government (parkstreet.org/about-us/bylaws), and
- Regularly worship in person at Park Street Church or are unable to do so due to health, temporary absence from the region, or other similar impediments that unavoidably prevent your regular presence in worship. (If you are not able to regularly worship in person at Park Street Church for any reason but would like to maintain an active membership, please briefly explain in the reaffirmation form.)
If these commitments remain true of you, we warmly invite you to reaffirm your membership and recommit yourself to our common life together under the lordship of Jesus. We want to grow together into greater maturity in Christ, so that we more clearly reflect what we really are—a local expression of the body of Christ.
After a difficult year in the life of our congregation, we recognize that this will not be an easy decision for some. These are not abstract commitments, but commitments to a particular and very imperfect flesh and blood community. The fourth commitment clarifies what has always been true but is not always well understood—that active membership ordinarily requires regular participation in our gathered worship of God. For a variety of reasons, we realize that some members may no longer be able to make this commitment. If this is true of you and you have decided not to reaffirm your membership, you can use this form to withdraw or transfer your membership.* If you would like to discuss this decision with a minister or an elder, we would be very happy to speak with you.
As you consider reaffirming your membership, I encourage you to prayerfully consider the following commitment that you made to the Lord and this community, and that this community made to you. These commitments date back to the origin of Park Street Church, and they were used in the service in which you were welcomed as a member.
- Minister: In the presence of God and this congregation, do you acknowledge your faith in the Triune God: God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit? Do you pledge yourself in a covenant of love and obedience to allow Christ to control your life, to commune with him in prayer, to worship him faithfully in his sanctuary, and to support the work of the church so that the Gospel may be known throughout Boston and the world?
- New Members: I do.
- Minister: Do you, the members of this church, affectionately receive these candidates into this communion of believers? Do you welcome them to join you in all the blessings of the Gospel, and on your part, engage to watch over them, bear their burdens, and seek their edification, as long as they shall continue among us? Do you covenant to hold their peace and welfare dear to you, and to help them, as the Lord may enable you, by your sympathy, Godly counsel, practical acts of love, and your prayers?
- Existing Members: We do.
Our prayer for Park Street and for all of Christ’s churches in Boston is that the God of endurance and encouragement would grant us all to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus, that together we may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. We are not yet who we ought to be, but we look forward in faith and hope that God the Father is working in us by his Holy Spirit to conform us to the image of his Son.
We thank you for your partnership in the gospel and your love for God and for Park Street Church.
Andrew Ziegler
Membership Committee Chair
Supposedly, if this form is not completed by October 29, one will receive the dreaded “pastor” email. Apparently, the pastors and elders are confused. They don’t know who to “care for” without the official form. I wonder how my church pastors can care for me without such a form.
Yep, I imagine the members feel the “peace of Christ” after all these forms. Just be careful not to let the door hit your backside on the way out.
This is a reminder to take a moment and reaffirm your membership at Park Street Church. Andrew Ziegler’s letter about reaffirmation can be found here, and you can find the reaffirmation statement and form here.
To add my voice to Andrew’s, reaffirmation of membership is important for two reasons:
- As a member, you are reminded that you have chosen to join yourself to this particular branch of the worldwide church, the body of Christ. Being a member means you have committed yourself to caring for the church (as a body and as individual members) which is part of the way we make disciples who become like Jesus together.
- Having a clear list of members helps ministers, elders, staff, deacons, and other volunteers know whom we should be caring for. This doesn’t mean that we don’t care for people who aren’t on the membership list, but it does mean that we are able to make a clear and (ideally) consistent effort to care for those who have intentionally put themselves under care of the church by becoming members.
Please let me know if you have any questions; I’d be happy to talk with you about reaffirmation or anything else.The peace of Christ be with you,Randall WetzigAssistant Minister (and staff Membership Committee representative (non-voting))Park Street Church
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I am reposting this from the previous topic. It seems to make more sense here:
____________________________________
I impart upon you all to make your own decision, but this was my decision with regard to reaffirming my membership with Park Street:
_______________________________
Randall,
I’m not at all interested in reaffirming my membership with Park Street Church under the current leadership for reasons you are well aware of. I am very happy with the new fellowship that was formed by the former Ministers, Elders, and Congregants of Park Street at Restoration Fellowship.
I am grateful to Park Street Church for the many times it has supported me spiritually/financially/emotionally over the 15 years that I have been a member and for the opportunity to lead the homeless ministry for six years, be a Deacon for four years, and a Missions Committee member for five years. It was a privilege to serve my church, and I regret that I’ve seen it fall so short and integrity that I have to leave.
I sincerely hope you all will learn from this reckoning that God has given you in the mass exodus from Park Street that occurred.
Sincerely,
~Susan E. Lane
____________________________
As for Restoration Fellowship, I do not feel that it is a confused mess of people, as the person who commented earlier who has decided to stay with Park Street, but it is a beautiful new beginning of a gathering of former members of Park Street, both new and old, who left in solidarity from a church whose integrity was compromised by the poor leadership. While some hurt, of course, was expressed initially, many of us have expressed relief and joy in joining with a ministry team and congregation excited to get to know each other more intimately and worship God without all the austerity and secrecy of the former church.
Isn’t it typical, that the ones who inherit a bad reputation because of their own doing, are the ones to protest the loudest? The Park Street leadership is a victim of their own demise, and that is all.
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Dee, you are such a glutton for punishment. I will pray for you and for TWW.
Glad you got away to Iceland and didn’t fall into a volcano. You’ve had a nice change of scenery.
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The greater church, the Body of Christ, is universal. It is comprised of all true believers in Jesus. As a Christian, you belong to the Body of Christ … the only covenant you need to enter into is the one written in red by Jesus. Every local church is to be a microcosm of this universal church, where believers live in unity and operate freely with their unique spiritual gifting, where clergy and laity stand equal before God, where the Body is working together to fulfill the Great Commission. Sadly, this is often not the case in the organized church. If it’s not where you attend, you are free to seek a place where you can find the genuine. Never sign a church membership agreement … they are intended to control you, and are often used to discipline the spiritual daylights out of you if you don’t agree with the direction church leaders are going.
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“Do you pledge yourself in a covenant of love and obedience to allow Christ to control your life, to commune with him in prayer, to worship him faithfully in his sanctuary”
For those who have suffered greatly at the hands of MB and church leadership “his sanctuary” is located at Wyndham Hotel 15th floor.
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FYI, there isn’t an eruption in Iceland at the moment – the story you posted is from May. This particular spot near Grindavik has been erupting every few months for a least a year, and another one is due perhaps before the end of the year.
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Yes.
In other news, the My Faith Votes leader is charged with child porn possession recently.
This Christian leader had a previous child porn conviction expunged.
So, as TWW has published repeatedly, a predator’s pedophilia does not disappear even if the predator’s records disappear. Pedophilia is a serious criminal deviancy and dysfunction.
Are leaders like Robert Morris changed men if they claim to be changed men? Behavioral experts would know. Experts. Regarding behavior.
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> Perhaps it would be in order to declare it a new type of congregational congregation. We could call it Congregationalism 2.0.
Perhaps, in ways reminiscent of many present-day political elections, the purpose of voting in such churches is not to allow the voters to express their preferences, but to create the appearance that they have consented to what the rulers are determined to do.
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Janice,
“n a covenant of love and obedience to allow Christ to control your life”
+++++++++++++++
I didn’t catch this from my initial reading.
A sick idea. I don’t think God or Jesus controls anyone’s life or is in the business of such a thing.
Interaction, communication, and help, yes.
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which really means “to allow US to control your life”
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“Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you?” (1 Corinthians 6:19).
His sanctuary goes where believers go … you are free in Christ to move where the Holy Spirit leads … within you is a temple which is not constrained nor controlled by the requirements of men to do church their way … no signing on the bottom line of a church membership contract needed!
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Iceland is a fascinating country though I’ve not been there. They’ve had a hard history; in the 1780s the Laki eruption resulted in the death of a quarter of the population due to the resultant famine. Religion there has state support, a tax for those over 16 goes to the registered religion a person declares they belong to (or if unregistered or undeclared to the university/government).
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“Reaffirmation of Membership” – is that Parkspeak for Loyalty Test?
And (like that Roman Emperor around the time the Book of Revelation originated) will those who pass the test be given some kind of visible Mark as proof? To show off they are Loyal Park Street Sheep?
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Max, for what it is worth, you are the best truly “Baptist” “preacher” I have run across in a long long time. Keep plugging away with the truth!
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Dee,
You wrote in your OP:
Praying for you….
You wrote in your OP:
I said a rather large number of expletive-deleted words when I read through the “Member Reaffirmation”….as well as saying a large number of targeted remarks. I’m intentionally omitting my targeted remarks, other than:
Evidently they don’t know their Bible. For one, allowing Christ to control your life eliminates free will. For another, they’re telling people how to relate to Jesus Christ. There are other things, but those two will do for a start.
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I’m not an attorney but I’d be tempted to respond with:
“In response to your letter of DATE, I’d like to remind you of the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing that exists as the basis for all contracts. By failing to deal forthrightly and honestly with members, Park Street has breached the covenant. No further communication is necessary.”
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On a different note, the report on John Smyth has just been published.
https://www.churchofengland.org/sites/default/files/2024-11/independent-learning-lessons-review-john-smyth-qc-november-2024.pdf
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Max,
yes, that’s the subtext.
how else in someone in power to adjudicate how well one is allowing “Christ to control your life” besides “are you doing what i want you to do?”.
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I truly hope this doesn’t sound too critical, because I’ve spent many years caring for PSC and still have a deep affection for it. But, to be honest, I’m increasingly concerned about the direction things seem to be going. It’s hard to ignore that this situation is clearly centered around RF, especially when so many have left PSC since Mark’s arrival—though it wasn’t such an issue until recently.
> Do you welcome them to join you in all the blessings of the Gospel, and on your part, engage to watch over them, bear their burdens, and seek their edification, as long as they shall continue among us?
> Having a clear list of members helps ministers, elders, staff, deacons, and other volunteers know whom we should be caring for.
When I look at the membership commitment, I wonder: can the leadership truly say it still holds true from their side? This past year has been troubling. The Board of Elders, and even some of the lay members, have been quick to cast judgment on petitioners. But have they truly shared in their burdens? Have they shown that they care for them as they should? From where I sit, some members of the Board (though certainly not all) have been far too quick to label petitioners and former ministers as troublemakers, as if they’re nothing more than rebellious voices. And then there are others on the Board who seem too afraid to speak out, choosing instead to follow the loudest voices in the room. Let’s not forget that it was only a year ago that Michael was let go in a 6-6 vote, with the treasurer having to cast the deciding vote.
What I truly pray for now is that the Board and ministers will find the courage to acknowledge that they, too, have failed to live up to the promises made in the membership covenant. The members who have been hurt by Mark’s actions need space to grieve, without being made to feel as though their pain is being overlooked or intensified. Many of these folks have been faithful members of PSC for decades, and their hurt is real.
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Arlene,
Whoops. I must have read the wrong name. This morning, there was a post on AOL News about a current eruption.
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Ted,
Hi Ted. It was really cold and the population base is small. They do a great job managing their resources. But my blood has thinned and I prefer the temps south of the Mason Dixon. The aurora was beautiful. I just read that there is a new solar flare and that they are trying to see if the lights will be seen further south.
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Well said.
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i.e. The Final Word on Jack the Whipper.
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I would regardless. Maybe run it by an attornry first.
My only change would be “Park street has breached the covenant and acted in Bad Faith.”
If there are two magic words to conjure with in contract law, it’s “BAD FAITH”.
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Manipulation, intimidation and domination are not fruit of the Holy Spirit.
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This is not speculation, this is 100% the reason for this. They want to flush out the RF attendees (and anyone now going to other churches) so that only the loyal remnant will have congregation power by the time the annual meeting happens.
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Gosh the “command of the Lord Jesus” is heavy!
Dee, I am glad you are more explicit in asking for prayers.
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When you flush dissenting members you flush their votes away. Votes from only a loyal remnant assures affirmation of Mr. Booker. Meanwhile, the Kingdom of God moves on unhindered by the games of little men in their little kingdoms who do church without Him.
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…along with affirmation of revised bylaws.
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SNB alum,
… a textbook church takeover
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This abomination was just released: The Solemn Assembly order of program PDF. I’ve skimmed it briefly and it is way worse than I expected. It is an answer to prayer that I could not attend in person! It’s 12 pages of manipulation using the good words from God in the Bible to again run roughshod over others. I’m not even sure how to give an adequate trigger warning…
https://www.parkstreet.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Solemn-Assembly-2024-final.pdf
How much longer until Jesus returns to end this weary and wicked chapter with wicked leaders? The wicked ones being the religious power brokers using our spiritual needs against us to line their pockets with our tithes and eat the fruit of other’s labors…. Oh, give me the honest and self aware “sinner” (um, that’s ALL of us, btw!) and we can have an honest conversation… about our souls and what they need.
Anyone want to join a four-week discussion group about the book “The Great Divorce” by C.S. Lewis? In the wicked leadership at Park Street Church, I see so many of the visitors to Heaven who decide to take the bus back to the hellish place they boarded the bus. They prefer the sounds of their own voices and the busyness of self-importance to the call to look away from self to the far off mountains and clear air of that new world.
Oh, leaders of Park Street “Church,” shed your vestments and feel the weight lift off of your shoulders. Become real. Become solid. Don’t take the bus back to the twilight… for soon the night will come there… Stay as the early dawn gives way to the full day. It is The Day that we have been waiting for from long before we knew it.
———————-
And blessings, blessings, on you, Dee! I think of you often and speak words of endurance, continued courage, safety (spiritual, emotional, physiological, physical, financial… all manner of safety!), strength, and divine wisdom in all aspects of your life!
One day (here or in that future world) we will get to sit down for a coffee and tea time. You are a blessing to many people and what you are doing is making a difference.
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Using the Bible to manipulate, intimidate, and dominate others is a violation of the Third Commandment which is to not use the name of the Lord in vain.
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“Having a clear list of members helps ministers, elders, staff, deacons, and other volunteers know whom we should be caring for.”
Shouldn’t christians care for everyone, inside or outside their bubble?
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Indeed! The focus of any church should be more outward than inward.
What church leaders are really saying in that statement: “Having a clear list of members helps us know whom we should be controlling.”
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I was trying to give them the benefit of the doubt with this one. Of course, I figured they wouldn’t be reaching out to members at another church to see how they could support them. But after giving it some thought, I realized—having been a member for so many years—they never previously reached out to me either, even before Mark was involved. They never checked in to see how they could care for me.
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I would echo your sentiment- no one has reached out to me since the Balbonis left
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Perhaps, if they keep whittling down the membership, they will be able to do that … when they get the congregation to a smaller manageable group that they care about caring about.
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Friend of PSC– our true friend indeed—- Great (and small) minds think alike —
Immediately after reading eNews on the Solemn Assembly, I searched for my copy of ‘the Great Divorce’ — my favorite guide to life abundant
Here is an Ode to PSC ‘s S.A. 10/25/24:
It is a tale, a sequel to Hamilton, moderated by Abraham,
full of fasting, singing and sorrow, CONFESSING NOTHING ?!
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Headless Unicorn Guy,
The more fashionable churches like to run into trouble about “Sex” because it decoys from all their other devilry, such as teaching the public to stop praying. Unlimited damage causing sets limits on damage limitation.
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Wanderer,
Is the quality of their prayers going to improve now that they have “rid the town of you renegades that betrayed them”? I myself followed the fashion of not praying, hence I also am behind your not being cared for.
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… then they will need to sell some of that prime real estate!
Eager to rent a flat there… maybe, you know, start a home church… It won’t be long until a new congregation is ready to buy the buildings and move into 0, 1, 2, and 3 Park Street after Park Street “Church” finishes cannibalizing itself.
Galatians 5:14-15
[14] For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” [15] But if you bite and devour one another, watch out that you are not consumed by one another.
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I meant: … that “betrayed” them by remaining faithful – to prayer. Regrets for omission
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Funny back-peddling at Park Street “Church” announced yesterday! Looks like someone familiar with US law informed CEO Booker and his lapdog and acolyte Andrew Ziegler that the membership purge wasn’t going to play well for them at trial.
They still feel the need to gaslight (play to your strengths, perhaps?) in the announcement. “Our doors are open and we would love to talk.“ Hahaha! Oh, talking? Is that what you now want? All the years of stonewalling and silencing and spinning (all part of the abuse)… and NOW you would have “love” to talk?? Like when you get served divorce papers and suddenly you are open to marriage counseling / couples’ therapy / marriage coaching?
(To be clear: healthy long term relationships could all benefit from these forms of input. No one is meant to go it alone!)
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Subject: PSC Reaffirmation Questions
Date: Fri, 8 Nov 2024
From: Park Street Church info@parkstreet.org
Good Afternoon Park Street Members,
Thank you to the many of you have already filled out the reaffirmation form. We’ve appreciated reading some of the notes of encouragement left in the comments section. There have also been a couple questions that have come up in one form or another and I wanted to send a quick note to briefly address them.
What if I’m not ready or able to reaffirm my membership right now? If I don’t reaffirm, will that be treated like a request to withdraw my membership?
No. A decision not to reaffirm is not the same as a request to withdraw. If, for one reason or another, you are not ready or able to reaffirm your membership commitments at this time, we (a minister or elder) will reach out to talk with you. We want to hear how you are doing and to engage with any questions or concerns you may have.
If I decide to withdraw my membership, would I have to retake the New Members class if I wanted to rejoin in the future?
No. We are very happy to have former members return to an active commitment to our congregation. Unless a former member has been away for several years, we would not ask them to retake the new members class.
If you have any other questions that you’d like to discuss before completing the reaffirmation, please feel free to send an email to reaffirmation@parkstreet.org and I or one of the other membership committee members will get back to you. If you are ready to reaffirm, but would still like to speak with a minister or elder, the reaffirmation form provides a place to make that request. Our doors are open and we would love to talk.
Have a wonderful weekend, and we look forward to worshipping with many of you on Sunday!
In Christ,
Andrew Ziegler
Elder and Membership Committee Chair
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In the Phillips translation of that passage:
“It is to freedom that you have been called, my brothers. Only be careful that freedom does not become mere opportunity for your lower nature. You should be free to serve each other in love. For after all, the whole Law toward others is summed up by this one command, ‘You shall love your neighbour as yourself’. But if freedom means merely that you are free to attack and tear each other to pieces, be careful that it doesn’t mean that between you, you destroy your fellowship altogether!” (Galatians 5:13-15)
The “lower nature” has been on the throne at PSC. It first manifested itself with Mr. Booker’s narcissistic treatment of PSC staff and spread from there into the elder board and pew. Such departure from “serving in love” never ends well for a church.
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when i read the solemn assembly notes, all i could think about was the salem witch trials and the control the church had over its members and the way the ministers manipulated, accused, judged and condemned what they could not understand throwing common sense out the window, all to remain in power. it was quite alarming… one as only to read the biography of anne hutchinson to see..
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When I was a kid (long, long, time ago) growing up in Wisconsin, there was an instance where the Aurora got as far south as the Milwaukee area.
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I saw them in southern Missouri during a magnetic storm in February, 1958.
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I don’t know. I was a Park Street member for ten years (2006-2016) after attending for three years before that and there was a whole lot I was eligible to do once I was officially on the membership rolls. And when I started regularly attending another church instead I did the paperwork to formally withdraw my membership. There was no scandal, nothing nefarious, they were sad to see me go, happy to see me come back to visit, but of course if I was regularly engaged in another congregation I should be a member there instead.
I know people who attended PSC for decades without ever becoming members and that’s fine they had their reasons. But that is very much not the norm for Congregationalists. Maybe the current PSC leadership is doing Congregationalism badly but you can’t do Congregationalism at all without a defined membership.
I am generally on RF’s side in this whole mess but I don’t understand what they mean about being “a Fellowship not a church.” I think I’m a bit nerdier than your average bear and I do not recognize this ecclesiology.
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Wikipedia editing shenanigans by User 74.118.24.158:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Contributions/74.118.24.158
Briefly altered the Park Street Church entry on Wikipedia several times last month.
And in July, this person added the following to The Wartburg Watch entry on Wikipedia:
“…functioning as a ‘Christian gossip aggregator,’ and thus viewed skeptically by many Bible-believing Christians…”
Previous editing activity and a search of their IP address suggest they work[ed?] at Azenta Inc./Brooks Automation.
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I think we have to ask ourselves “What is Church and what isn’t?” … “Is the Church (the real one) a place or a people?” The word church is derived from the Greek word “ekklēsia”; ecclesiology, the doctrine of the church, is also based on this word. Ekklesia is used over 100 times in the New Testament and in all instances refers to a people, an assembly, a fellowship who gather, responding to the call of God through Christ. The Church (the Body of Christ) is not a place, a building, an institution, a denomination. Not all who attend a church fellowship together in Christ … you will know ‘the’ Church (the ekklesia of God) by the love they have for one another, where there is no distinction between clergy and laity, where their mission is only the Great Commission. Anything else is doing church without God and Lord knows there has been an outbreak of that across America! I would rather attend a genuine fellowship than a counterfeit church.
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“Having a clear list of members helps ministers, elders, staff, deacons, and other volunteers know whom we should be caring for. This doesn’t mean that we don’t care for people who aren’t on the membership list, but it does mean that we are able to make a clear and (ideally) consistent effort to care for those who have intentionally put themselves under care of the church by becoming members.”
Jesus already answered the question about who to care for when he told the parable of the Good Samaritan.
Being “under care” is not anything you want to hear in a Neo-calvinist church. Didn’t Village Church emails include the phrase “pushing her under our care” with regard to the woman who was seeking annulment from her husband over his use of child sexual abuse materials? (Not entirely sure the word was “push” but it seems it was something like that. whether the verb is “pushed” under care or “put under care” or even just “We want to care for you,” the actual meaning of “care” is “under our control.” It is a euphemism for the the process of church discipline.
And there is precious little actual “care” given in the normal understanding of the word at many of those Neo-calvinist churches. Christian doublespeak.
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Also, I am happy for those who left Park St that they have the Restoration Fellowship. So often when people are forced to leave a church because of the behavior of the leaders, they end up alone. They are not only separated from those who remain in the organization that had been their church, but typically from others who also left. Some cannot walk through the doors of any church, but others will end up in different churches, often “sitting in the back” possibly both literally and metaphorically. It can take a long time before people are able to trust again. So many bonds get severed. Blessings to those who stood up to abuse and shenanigans.
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I, too, am nerdier than most, or I wouldn’t have started this blog.
Let me give you some examples. Christian Medical Dental Associations hold Bible studies and fellowship gatherings for members. These meetings resemble church services, with music, prayer, missionary reports, and a talk. They give tours to the Holy Land and provide medical services to impoverished areas. The members belong to every denomination, including the RCC and Orthodoxy. In other words, the members go to a church as well. There are many such examples, but I’m sure you get my drift.
Before I joined my LCMS church, I was burned out and attended but did not join for 21/2 years. Yet the pastors reached out to us, cared about us, and made us feel welcome. They didn’t need an official membership to provide pastoral care. Maybe they are different from pastors in other denominations.
In my LCMS, one joins without the commotion of signing this or that. The only thing one attests to is that one believes the church is fulfilling the mandates of Scripture and that one will pray and care for the church. I felt very comfortable doing that. However, I will never sign a document in which I must say I will submit to the discipline of a church leader. I’ve seen far too many abusive church leaders who play with that mandate, including the legal aspects of that. Spend time reading the accounts of people here who have been harmed.
Perhaps, you have been fortunate not to have experienced what others have. Until 16 years ago, I was like that, a theology nerd, and then I quickly got schooled on the problems.
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LOL. Was it after Cindy’s story?
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True words!
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Jerome,
I corrected Wikipedia for the first time. Let’s see how passionate my detractor is.
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Dee,
Nope, they are a Park Streeter. You can see who edited that and that they have also “fixed” the PSC wiki page.
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Exactly. A lot of folks in NeoCal churches, including TWW regulars, can speak of having the spiritual daylights disciplined out of them by “caring” church leaders. Members in such churches who dare to question leadership or belief and practice of the church have found themselves being interrogated by an elder board under a hot spotlight, shunned and/or excommunicated. Manipulation, intimidation and domination are tools of New Calvinist “pastors” and their yes-men elder boards.
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There are many Bible-believing Christians who would not agree with that characterization. Christian watchblogs like TWW serve an important role. Speaking the truth in love to inform and warn is not gossip. Some folks don’t like to know the bad and ugly about their church leaders … but the greater Body of Christ need to know.
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What quality and method of “believing” does the Bible deserve? Does that re-editor have testimony of a god bigger than his boss men classes? Did the prayers of his peers overcome the cookie cutter?
When I and others left a certain slithery grouping, concrete circumstances were created decisively stopping us stay in contact to aid each other.
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Doesn’t sound like Christianity to me.
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This.
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Max,
The party who are currently in full possession of the church that they as party currently want, don’t have moral grounds to target the others. In our case, read “parties” plural. Unwanted inclusion in exclusion, in myriad rancid flavours, gets named variously.
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Thank you m, Max, for this clear and concise statement! Your diagnosis is spot on! Thankful for your words!
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It reminds me of Romans 8… the internal battle of the Spirit in those who belong to Jesus the Messiah with the “former person” the “dying flesh”… Saint / Apostle Paul’s duality sometimes doesn’t sit well with me, but other times it is exactly my experience!
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(To be clear I think the duality that bothers me is a misunderstanding of Paul… that our physical bodies are bad and inferior to our soul / spirit / essence / spark / et cetera. Sort of a flat reading of Romans 8 without the broader context of Brother Saul, now Paul.)
The best sermon I heard about this topic was from a person who used the Greek word for “dying flesh” or “former person” sarx instead. Sometimes using a word in Greek or Hebrew can help define it without all dragging in all the English connotations.
I could not figure out how to copy and paste using the Greek Alphabet, but here is a bit about the Greek work often translated as “flesh” in English. And then the Hebrew word for “flesh” used in the Hebrew Bible.
Also, I’m not trying to be geeky or arrogant…I have a Hebrew and Greek Bible app that helps me when the English is giving me trouble… and, honestly, when is the porous English language not troublesome?! I also enjoy pointing people to the Journal of World Englishes, a peer-reviewed academic journal about the various Englishes (yes, plural) around the world!
Sarx
(Transliterated from Greek)
Definition
NOUN-Genitive, Singular, Feminine I.
– Greek –
Strongs nt: 4561
(Greek word) – sarx
• (Greek word) probably from the base of (Greek word); flesh (as stripped of the skin), i.e. (strictly) the meat of an animal (as food), or (by extension) the body (as opposed to the soul (or spirit), or as the symbol of what is external, or as the means of kindred), or (by implication) human nature (with its frailties (physically or morally) and passions), or (specially), a human being (as such): carnal(-ly, + -ly minded), flesh(-ly).
Used 130 times in the Bible.
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Bae-sawr’
(Transliterated from Hebrew)
Definition
– Hebrew –
Strongs ot: 1320
(Hebrew word) baw-sawr’
• (Hebrew word) from (Hebrew word); flesh (from its freshness); by extension, body, person; also (by euphem.) the pudenda of a man: body, (fat, lean) flesh-ed), kin, (man-)kind, + nakedness, self, skin.
Used 241 times in the Bible
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So interesting, Grace! Which biography of Anne Hutchinson do you recommend? (Or maybe there is only one so far?) Such an apt and sorrowful comparison!
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Friend of Park Street Church,
Everything in Paul is shorthand metaphors, and his grammar breathless. His letters were geared to being read by strangers en route so as to not appear as any “wrong” kind of countercultural. He not infrequently means the opposite of his apparent wording, a Greek habit. He names the part instead of the whole. This is in addition to specific local and contemporaneous factors that strongarming commentators like to ration or twist. His readers and their hearers knew his doctrines beforehand. The Spirit brings alive. James chs 3-4 deal with the topic you focus on: the daily work of strengthening virtues. Both writers imply both inbreathing / indwelling, and the infillings, by Holy Spirit, prophesied by the OT as being offered when Christ would ascend.
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Years ago, I learned to take ‘Paul’ with only so many grains of salt.
I some circles of Christianty, Paul is everything, Paul is the gold standard.
To use a loose illustration, they’re like ultra-orthodox Jews at the wailing wall in Jerusalem, bobbing their heads while reading Torah.
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The Bylaws are being changed… but not in the manner prescribed by the bylaws themselves. They have, built in, a process by which the bylaws can be changed. CEO Booker doesn’t like this method (because it puts the power in the hands of the congregation and cramps his narcissistic style)… so he gathered some lackeys to get the job done.
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… which really makes one wonder… why bother with all the charades and accompanying mental gymnastics? Just suspend the Bylaws and be done with it! It really points to a 1984 situation…. Big Brother Booker is eager to put the Newspeak into the Bylaws.
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https://mailchi.mp/parkstreet.org/enews-thursday-november-14-2024
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Bylaws Committee Update
The Bylaws committee has been meeting since June of this year, approximately once every two weeks. The current members of the committee are Jim Bruce, Evan Burnham, Julie Halvorsen, Sarah Schaffer Raux and David Rix (Chairperson). The task given to the committee was to comprehensively review the current Bylaws, and to make recommendations to the membership of the congregation of proposed changes. The committee has received quite a few recommendations and comments, and it is not too late to offer further suggestions by emailing bylawscommittee@parkstreet.org.
The review of the Park Street Church Bylaws will be a deliberative process that will include review and comment periods for firstly the Board of Elders and Senior Minister and secondly the membership of the congregation. Any final proposal will certainly not be available by the Annual Meeting in February 2025. The committee is about halfway through a first draft of any proposed changes, which it will then review a second time at the committee level before initiating the comment periods.
Again, please do not hesitate to contact the committee if you have further suggestions and comments.
Thank you,
David W. Rix
Chairperson, Bylaws Committee
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Does anybody have additional information regarding the squashed Christianity Today article? The cover up for PSC by VOCA, 4C’s, and even CT seems noteworthy.
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Save the Date… I guess… and go with your spiritual armor on!
Park Street Church newsletter
Annual Meeting 2025
The 2025 Annual Meeting will be held on Sunday, February 23. More details will be available in the coming weeks.
Sunday, February 23, 2025 | Sanctuary
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In my experience watching several church takeovers at this point, their belief is always that the ends justify the means–they do what they want to do if they have the power to do it because God gave them that power. If Booker already has control of the finances, I doubt there’s much the congregation can do at this point. If he doesn’t, then the congregation has to work fast before he does.
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Keep your head down, be quiet, don’t respond, preach unremarkable”biblical” sermons but never acknowledge or respond to any actual charges… and people eventually seem to forget or give up. At least God will not forget. At least with God there is a coming act that will bring all into the light.