|
Definition: (Encyclopedia & Wikipedia) "A label that has been used to refer to a particular subset of Christians who are rethinking Christianity against the backdrop of Postmodernism." ... "Members of the movement often place a high value on good works or social activism." Emerging Church groups have typically contained some or all of the following elements: * Highly creative approaches to worship and spiritual reflection. This can involve everything from the use of contemporary music and films through to liturgy or other more ancient customs. ... * A flexible approach to theology whereby individual differences in belief and morality are accepted within reason. * A more holistic approach to the role of the church in society. This can mean anything from greater emphasis on fellowship in the structure of the group to a higher degree of emphasis on social action, community building or Christian outreach. * A desire to reanalyze the Bible against the context into which it was written...." The late Dr. Walter Martin explains why liberalism is a cult: It is a cult because it follows every outlined structure of cultism; it's own revelations; it's own gurus, and it's denial--systematically--of all sound systematic Christian theology. It is a cult because it passes its leadership on to the next group that takes over--either modifying, expanding or contracting--the same heresies; dressing them up in different language, and passing them on. It is theologically corrupt because it is bibliologically corrupt; it denies the authority of Scripture, it ruins its own theology. And it ends in immorality; because the only way you could have gotten to this homosexual, morally relativistic, garbage--which is today in our denominational structures--is if the leadership of those denominations denied the authority of the Scriptures and Jesus Christ as Lord. That is the only way you got there. And there's a remedy for this, my brothers and sisters; the remedy is to start asking questions, start demanding definitions of terminology; start insisting that people tell you what they're giving your money to before you give them a dime. Examine the people that occupy the chairs of theology in the seminaries, and if they are not given to the historic Christian faith--"out with the rascals!" Examine your churches, your sessions, your Baptist boards--and everything else--and find out who is in the faith. You're told to do that in 1 Corinthians; you're told to do it in Galatians, you're told to do it everywhere in Scripture--examine to see whether you're in the faith [see--2 Corinthians 13:5]. Test all things; make sure of what is true [see--1 Thessalonians 5:21]. I'm not being harsh; I'm not being judgmental. I am being thoroughly, consistently, Christian; in the light of historic theology, and the holy Bible. And I think we have a right to demand that the men who occupy the seats of learning, and who preach from the pulpits, either preach Jesus Christ; or cut off their pensions, their salaries, their golf club memberships, and let them go earn their living as social workers because it is obvious they don't have any theology that is going to save anybody. With Luther, here I stand; God help me, I can do no other. (Walter Martin, (circa 1985) The Cult of Liberalism, CD Rom, available from Walter Martin Religious InfoNet.) Emergent Leaders Brian McLaren, Phyllis Tickle, Marcus Borg, Dallas Willard, Richard Foster, Leonard Sweet, Brennon Manning, Eugene Peterson, Donald Miller, Rob Bell, Erwin McManus, Tony Jones, Doug Pagitt, Tony Campolo, Richard Rhor, Andy Stanley, John Ortberg, Frank Viola, Laurie Beth Jones, Ruth Haley Barton, Shane Claiborn, Shane Hipps, Spencer Burke, Peter Rollins, Steve Chalke, Nadia Bolz-Weber and Jay Bakker. The Leadership Network has played a pivotal role in the Emerging Church movement. So have Catholic mystics. Be aware of Meister Eckhart, Ignatius of Loyola, St. John of the Cross, Teresa of Avila, Thomas Merton, Thomas Keating, Henri Nouwen, William Meninger and Basil Pennington. Also run from New Ager Ken Wilbur. ARTICLES A New Kind of Christianity By Tim Challies A Subtle and Dangerous Shift in Christianity By Marsha West Always Be Ready, articles, audio, video, books, DVDs Apologetics Index Brian McLaren: We're All God's Children By Ken Silva Carl Rogers - Father of the Emergent Culture By Sarah H. Leslie Caught up in a Cult? By Marsha West Cross Over to the Otherside By Orrel Steinkamp Did Brian McLaren Overplay His Hand? By Ken Silva Ditching Discipleship for the Doctrines of Demons By Ron Foster Doug Pagitt and Christian Universalism By Ken Silva The Emergence of the "Mystical Church" By Mike Oppenheimer The Emerging Church ad the New Progress Theology on Christ By Ken Silva Emergent Church Articles--From the Lighthouse Emergent Church Part 1 By Gary Gilley Emergent Church Part 2 By Gary Gilley Emergent Church Part 3 By Gary Gilley Emergent Church Spreading Spiritual Cancer By Marsha West Emergent Church: What is it? Emerging Writers--The Shack From the Lighthouse articles Got Meat? By Marsha West Hank Hanegraaff speaks out about the Emergent Church Is Emergent the New Christian Left? By Tim Challies Jesus: The Illumined Illuminator By Marsha West MacArthur interview: The Emergent Church is a Form of Paganism By Paul Edwards One Step Forward and Three Steps Back: Willow Creek's affiliation with the emergent church movement By Mike Oppenheimer Rob Bell: A Brother to Embrace, or a Wolf To Avoid? By John MacArthur Rob Bell Affirms Gay "Christians" and Brian McLaren is Really Happy By Ken Silva Tony Jones Continuous Leftward Slide Into Apostasy By Marsha West Tony Jones, the Emerging Church and Progressive Christianity By Ken Silva Subverting the Word of God By Marsha West What is 'Emerging Church'? - A definition from within the movement--Open Source Theology AUDIO How To Spot The Emergent Church Entering Yours --Jan Markell interviews Eric Barger Ken Silva with Mission America's Linda Harvey discussing "Emergent" Apostasy Emerging Church--Charlie Campbell explains ECM VIDEO The Real Roots of the Emergent Church Roman Catholic Mysticism and the Emergent Christianity--Richard Bennett John Loeffler interviews Gary Gilley John Loeffler interviews Johanna Michaelson John Loffler interviews Ray Yungen RECOMMENDED READING Becoming Conversant with the Emerging Church: Understanding a Movement and Its Implications By D.A. Carson |
||