WILLOWDALE CHAPEL PART 2: USING WEALTH TO POWER UNBIBLICAL “CULTURAL MANDATE” SUPERCEDING “GOSPEL MANDATE” POWERED BY THE HOLY SPIRIT

CHRISTIANIZED WORLDLINESS
ALIGNING & UNLEASHING 
“GOSPEL INSPIRED PASSIONS & TALENTS”

DO MAN’S EFFORTS PRODUCE 
GREATER RESULTS
THAN THE HOLY SPIRIT’S?
COMBINING COLLECTIVISM, DOMINIONISM, 
AND A SOCIAL GOSPEL;
AN AMALGAM OF ECUMENICAL 
APOSTASY WITH SECULAR HUMANIST
METHODOLOGIES
1 John 2:15-“Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.”

1 John 4:5-“They are of the world. Therefore they speak as of the world, and the world hears them.”
Ecclesiastes 11:9-“Rejoice, O young man, in your youth, And let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth; Walk in the ways of your heart, And in the sight of your eyes; But know that for all these God will bring you into judgment.”

Deuteronomy 8:6– “Therefore you shall keep the commandments of the LORD your God, to walk in His ways and to fear Him.”
Proverbs 3:7-“Do not be wise in your own eyes; Fear the LORD and depart from evil.”
Job 22:2-“Can a man be profitable to God, Though he who is wise may be profitable to himself?”




Job 9:4-“God is wise in heart and mighty in strength. Who has hardened himself against Him and prospered?”



Isaiah 5:21-“Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes, And prudent in their own sight!”

Proverbs 26:12-“Do you see a man wise in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him.”




Proverbs 12:15-“The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, But he who heeds counsel is wise.”

WILLOWDALE CHAPEL, UNIONVILLE, PA
http://www.willowdalechapel.org/
GREG LAFFERTY, PASTOR

REDEEMER PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH, NYC
http://www.redeemer.com/
TIM KELLER, PASTOR

“BIRDS OF A FEATHER FLOCK TOGETHER”:

WILLOWDALE CHAPEL & REDEEMER PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH: 

FAITH & WORK, CULTURAL MANDATE, 
“Ei” ENTREPRENEURSHIP INITIATIVE” 

Revelation 3:17-“Because you say, ‘I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing’ — and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked —.”

    We previously posted about Willowdale Chapel’s “Shine Like Stars” initiative at:
https://ratherexposethem.org/2013/02/willowdale-chapel-advised-by-tim-keller.html. Because Willowdale is “missional” minded as an “emerging church”, its pastor trained at Rick Warren’s Saddleback church, and its affinity for Tim Keller’s Redeemer Church in New York City, with its Catholic contemplative leaning, neo-reformed, savvy, cutting edge high income young professional adherents, we were not surprised that Willowdale wasn’t content to just coast along on its “merits”.
    Now, we discover that Willowdale is continuing down the unbiblical path of putting on a good face to garner the approval and admiration of the unregenerate world, calling it the “cultural mandate”, which by itself is not found anywhere in the Bible, nor is it a command of God or Jesus Christ, but rather a convenient man-made invention to impress the money classes which call Willowdale their church home, and those in the upper social strata in the surrounding neighborhoods. This is an easy sell to folks who already live their “Christian” lives parading their success and wealth in sundry ways so as to impress and influence the lesser classes of Chester County, Pennsylvania, surrounding areas, workplaces, and vacation retreats. A veneer of nominal Christianity suits them just fine, hiding the secular humanist core.
    This so-called “cultural mandate” fits perfectly with Tim Keller’s “Faith & Work” and “Ei” initiatives, http://old.faithandwork.org/about_ei_page2884.php, described as follows:


“The Entrepreneurship Initiative (EI) was created to encourage and support entrepreneurs within our congregation who have a bold vision to start a new arts, for-profit, or not-for-profit venture that fosters shalom and brings about gospel-centered renewal to New York City and beyond. The initiative is now expanding as a movement beyond Redeemer, as churches in other cities join our Ei Forum and develop ways to serve entrepreneurs in their communities.”


On the steering committee for Ei is:

CALVIN CHIN


Before joining the Center for Faith & Work, Calvin worked in the finance industry for seventeen years. Most recently, he was a director in the investment banking group of Burnham Securities. He also gained investment advisory experience at Chase Manhattan and Sanford C. Berstein & Co., where he managed relationships with high net worth individuals. Calvin holds a B.A. from the University of Buffalo and an M.B.A. from NYU Stern School of Business. Calvin serves on the advisory board of Hope for New York and on the College of Arts & Sciences Dean’s Advisory Council at the University of Buffalo. 
Calvin Chin
Director, Entrepreneurship Initiative http://old.faithandwork.org/speakers_page2882.php#57:
Calvin directs the Entrepreneurship Initiative (Ei), an innovative ministry that supports the growth of entrepreneurs, their ventures and their stakeholders, to help bring about human flourishing to New York City and beyond. Under his leadership, Ei has been featured in several publications for its work, including Duke Divinity’s Faith & Leadership (“Block by Block”). Prior to joining CFW in 2007, Calvin worked in the finance industry for seventeen years. Most recently, he was a director in the investment banking group of Burnham Securities. He also gained investment advisory experience at Chase Manhattan and Sanford C. Bernstein & Co., where he managed relationships with high net worth individuals.
Calvin was born and bred in New York City. He holds a B.A. from the University of Buffalo and an M.B.A. from NYU Stern School of Business. Calvin serves on the advisory board of Hope for New York and on the Dean’s Advisory Council of the College of Arts & Sciences at the University of Buffalo. He is also an adjunct professor of corporate finance at The King’s College. Calvin lives with his wife, Amy, and two daughters in Westchester

Calvin Chin 
http://www.faithandwork.org/ei/steering-committee/:
Before joining the Center for Faith & Work, Calvin worked in the finance industry for seventeen years. Most recently, he was a director in the investment banking group of Burnham Securities. He also gained investment advisory experience at Chase Manhattan and Sanford C. Bernstein & Co., where he managed relationships with high net worth individuals. Calvin holds a B.A. from the University of Buffalo and an M.B.A. from NYU Stern School of Business. Calvin serves on the advisory board of Hope for New York and on the College of Arts & Sciences Dean’s Advisory Council at the University of Buffalo.

Chin was interviewed and introduced at Willowdale on November 17, 2013 as the Former Director of the Entrepreneurship Initiative at Redeemer Presbyterian Church, NY” in this audio:
http://www.willowdalechapel.org/index.php?pID=491, wherein Chin maligns the traditional biblical concentration on gospel preaching and salvation.

Chin was also interviewed here:
http://servingleaders.podbean.com/2013/05/24/the-great-purpose-of-entrepreneurship/

May 24, 2013 @ 1:35 pm

The Great Purpose of Entrepreneurship

Calvin Chin is interviewed by Darrin Grove about the Entrepreneurship Initiative and entrepreneurs.
From Gotham Institute are these two PDFs, which purport to say:
“What does the gospel say about renewing culture through starting new ventures?”
“2012 Ei Forum: Re-Imagine Power”:
“Ei Forum: Creation and Creativity”:
Serving Leaders (Pittsburgh Leadership Foundation) gave a glowing report of Calvin Chin’s visit:
“The Great Purpose of Entrepreneurship with Calvin Chin” 
reprinted below in full unedited for educational purposes. Bold and red type are ours for emphasis:
Serving Leaders was pleased to welcome Calvin Chin, Director of the Entrepreneurship Initiative at the Center for Faith & Work, Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York City to Pittsburgh on May 16th at our Breakfast on the Great Purpose of Entrepreneurship. As we prepared for Calvin’s visit, we asked him to consider some questions about the work of Redeemer and its Center for Faith & Work. Here are a few thoughtful insights from Calvin:
How does a Center for Faith & Work help to realize the Redeemer Vision?
Redeemer was founded on a vision of “The Gospel Changes Everything!” It changes individuals, communities, and the world so that we have different values, intentions, and results.
Redeemer has done this by teaching us to live out the gospel in real and tangible ways—Jeremiah 29:7—so that our lives that are fully integrated, spiritually and practically.
In New York City, the identity people take from their work is much more pronounced than the rest of the country. Tim Keller tackled that first by preaching from the pulpit about the importance of cultural renewal and that work we do in the marketplace is part of cultural renewal and we must recognize that work is good but because of the fall is broken and distorted. The traditional thinking of the Christian is that work (toil and labor) is just something to do while we wait for Christ to come back or until we die and go to heaven. But this is unbiblical thinking—work is what most of us do for a large part of our waking hours and it is a vital part of renewing culture.
Also, we know that work is extremely important but it cannot be the thing we rest our worth and hope on; it is very easy to make work an idol. So even before the Center for Faith & Work was created in 2002, there were ad-hoc programs early on to help people see how God cares about their work and how their work is part of worship. The Bible supports the importance of work but as a mandate God gave us rather than the foundation we rest our hope in.
The CFW’s tag line is to Equip, Connect, and Mobilize.
  • Equip – theologically and practically,
  • Connect – people in the marketplace who feel isolated or ineffective and need touch points with other believers to remind them of their mission
  • Mobilize – by being equipped and having community inside and outside of the church community, they can be the best possible worker, boss, manager or partner as they go about influencing in their role.
Why would a church make a decision to invest in entrepreneurs?
After CFW started showing some real traction in starting great conversations about why we work so hard and what is work’s purpose in our lives and the biblical narrative of redemption, we realized something profound and deeply rooted in the Gospel. While the gospel can transform people into excellent employees and senior corporate leaders, institutions are harder to change because, as Mike Novak shared, they are living organisms with fallen people running the show and carrying out legacy practices. An intentionally integrated Christian is limited in the change they can affect even if they rise to become CEO and are in positions of significant influence.
We believe that Entrepreneurs by nature are missional! Entrepreneurs can create and run new ventures and from day one they can infuse the gospel in to its mission and practice. From the vision, to the products and services, to the organizational culture and values and to the way they engage themselves. Biblically, entrepreneurs embody the creative spirit of God. Entrepreneurs want to solve problems, meet unmet needs, or do things better or in a new way, they are all about rearranging the particulars into something new that creates value and opportunity. They are true missionaries in the marketplace trying to make Jesus Christ real and tangible to their neighbors.
What sets gospel centered entrepreneurship apart?
Gospel centered entrepreneurship is about the end result and the motivation – why we are doing it and where does it lead? Similarly, with your job and career – why are you doing it matters as much as how you are doing it. If the gospel is the center and foundation of every little thing you do then you will be will energized, emboldened, and supported—regardless  of the outcome.
Gospel centered entrepreneurship also points toward the redemptive love of Christ in that being involved in an entrepreneurial venture is a spiritual and physical sacrifice. The big uncertainty in entrepreneurship is always –will it fail or succeed.  Someone who has the gospel as the center of their life and their venture will be able to deal with the journey and outcome in a much more loving and joyful way. Meaning, they can let go and take comfort in how God’s spirit used them to glorify Him and the other way around.
To listen to the entire interview of Calvin, conducted by Darrin Grove on May 16th click here to get the podcast.
For more information about The Ei and the Center for Faith and Work and Redeemer go www.faithandwork.org
______________________________________________________
A JOURNEY THROUGH NYC RELIGIONS http://www.nycreligion.info/?p=9487,
had an excellent article about all this:

A little bit of faith in Tech New York

Are New York City religions contributing to the city’s booming start-up scene? Can Manhattan’s Silicon Alley rival Silicon Valley for faith-inspired enterprise?
Excerpts:


“Katherine Leary Alsdorf, founder of Redeemer’s Faith and Work initiative, cut her teeth in tech as a CEO in Silicon Valley during the great crisis of the dotcom bust in 2001. She has a pretty good idea about the challenge of joining the inner toughness that it takes to be an entrepreneur with the values of doing good to society.” “Under former Silicon Valley executive Alsdorf’s leadership, Redeemer has promoted a vision for cultural renewal in the workplace. One practical way that they are pursuing this vision is through their Entrepreneurship Initiative (EI), a network of social entrepreneurs. The effort includes workshops, conferences, mentoring and relationship-building.” At the center of EI is the belief that a business can reflect the truth and beauty of Christ by providing great services, products and honor to its customers.” 
EI Director Calvin Chin points to Restore NYC, a non-profit providing rehabilitation to women rescued from sex trafficking, Inheritance of Hope, a non-profit serving children with a terminally-ill parent, and Tegu, a toy manufacturer with overseas operations and American investors, as examples of the successful ventures EI has supported. “This is just a starter,” Chin said. “We’d want people to gush over the product, service or experience.””

Willowdale Chapel’s Shine Like Stars Vision:
Constellation Learn & Launch Community” at:
is described as, quote:
“Constellation “LLC” (Launch & Learn Community) is an ad hoc gathering of everyone interested in the idea. It’s people who want to catch a vision for restoration in all areas of life and culture. It’s anyone who wants to dream about what could happen as we align and unleash our gospel-inspired passions and talents.”
“In the coming months we will be privileged to host some of the most innovative thinkers and entrepreneurs in the country. They’ll share their stories and experiences, while also interacting with our vision. The goal is to stir our imagination; fuel our passion; and create momentum toward the launch of a new organization in the fall of 2014. And even beyond this, our aim is to help you think about your gifts and calling.”
The line up of guest speakers being invited to Willowdale Chapel for “alignment” purposes is as follows:
ANDY CROUCH on “Culture Making”, December 15, 2013



Andy Crouch is one of the leading voices on Christian engagement with culture. He is the Executive Editor of Christianity Today.
Ken Silva of Apprising.org says of Crouch’s glorifying of heretic Rob Bell at: 
“Please keep in mind here that Rob Bell happens to be the pastor that writer Andy Crouch chose to use as he opens his 2004 CT article on the Emergent Church. Crouch tells us:
The Bells started questioning their assumptions about the Bible itself–discovering the Bible as a human product,” as Rob puts it, rather than the product of divine fiat. “The Bible is still in the center for us,” Rob says, “but it’s a different kind of center. We want to embrace mystery, rather than conquer it.”
“I grew up thinking that we’ve figured out the Bible,” Kristen says, “that we knew what it means. Now I have no idea what most of it means. And yet I feel like life is big again–like life used to be black and white, and now it’s in color…”
The Bells, who flourished at evangelical institutions from Wheaton to Fuller Theological Seminary to Grand Rapids’s Calvary Church before starting Mars Hill,…[felt] that very world, as the Bells tell it, became constricting–in Kristen’s phrase, “black and white…”
And how did the Bells find their way out of the black-and-white world where they had been so successful and so dissatisfied? “Our lifeboat,” Kristen says, “was A New Kind of Christian [by Brian McLaren].” (Online source, emphasis mine).”
David Cloud of Way Of Life says this about Crouch at:
“Andy Crouch calls the emerging church “post-evangelicalism.” 
He says: “The emerging movement is a protest against much of evangelicalism as currently practiced. It is post-evangelical in the way that neo-evangelicalism (in the 1950s) was post-fundamentalist. It would not be unfair to call it postmodern evangelicalism” (“The Emergent Mystique,” Christianity Today, Nov. 2004).”
________________________________________________________ 
CATHERINE HOKE ROHR on “Social Sector”, January 26,2014

Catherine Hoke (Rohr) is founder and CEO of Defy Ventures, a non-profit that offers entrepreneurial training and mentorship to people with criminal backgrounds. 
LISA SLAYTON on “Backbone Org”, February 23, 2014

Lisa Slayton is the president of the Pittsburgh Leadership Foundation (PLF) and Serving Leaders guiding the mission to raise up Christ-centered leaders who work for the transformation of the city and culture.
KEVIN PALAU on “Collective Impact”, March 16, 2014

Kevin Palau is the President of the Luis Palau Association. Kevin was so savvy that he built a bridge, and lasting friendship, with the now former mayor of Portland, who is openly gay. 
See our previous post about Luis Palau at: 

where we headed the post with this:

“ECUMENICAL LUIS PALAU & SONS: MINISTRY MODELED AFTER BILLY GRAHAM’S DECISIONAL REGENERATION LEAVING OUT MAN’S DEPRAVITY & NEED FOR REPENTANCE~WORKS WITH CATHOLIC CHURCH~USES PSYCHOHERESY”

JOANNA TAFT on “Arts Sector”, April 27, 2014

Joanna Taft is the founder and Executive Director of the Harrison Center for the Arts in Indianapolis which is a leader in grassroots cultural development in the arts. 



 

JERRY FALWELL’S SPIRITUAL COMPROMISE & ERROR

David Cloud of Way of Lifewww.wayoflife.org, presents a fully researched profile of Jerry Falwell and his ecumenism. Reprinted in full below unedited for educational purposes:

Jerry Falwell:
Should We Warn or Praise?

Dec. 11, 2013

Republished December 11, 2013 (first published April 19, 2011) (David Cloud, Fundamental Baptist Information Service, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061, 866-295-4143fbns@wayoflife.org) –
Was the late Jerry Falwell’s (1933-2007) overall influence to the Independent Baptist movement good or bad?
Falwell’s spiritual compromise and error was not late in coming and was not small by any measure. It was evident even by the 1970s that the man had made a 180 degree turn from his earlier stand and that he was determined to conduct a broadly ecumenical ministry. He was doubtless sincere in his desire to “bring America back to God,” but sincerity didn’t keep Moses from being judged by God when he struck the rock instead of speaking to it. “And if a man also strive for masteries, yet is he not crowned, except he strive lawfully” (2 Timothy 2:5).
In 1999 I issued a warning report entitled “Jerry Falwell: The Billy Graham of Independent Baptists.”
Though Falwell claimed to be a fundamental Baptist, in reality he was a groundbreaking ecumenist who helped pave the way for the end-time harlot “church.” He happily worked alongside Roman Catholics, Charismatics, unregenerate Jews, Mormons, and religionists of many stripes who are staunchly opposed to the doctrine that he professed to hold in his Baptist church.
In a sermon preached in Evansville, Indiana, on December 12, 1978, Falwell said, “I believe God has called us in this last quarter of the 20th century to bring respectability to fundamentalism” (cited from Don Jasmin, Why Do Fundamental Schools Go Apostate, 2007, p. 171).
That was the same unscriptural objective that was announced at the founding of the New Evangelical movement in the late 1940s. When Christianity becomes respectable in the sight of this sin-cursed world, it has left its Biblical moorings. The Lord Jesus Christ is Almighty God, but He wasn’t respected when He came into the world 2,000 years ago, and He is not respected by the world today. Christ’s apostles were certainly not respected by the religious crowd or by the world at large. They were mocked, hounded, persecuted, and killed.
One of Falwell’s first concrete steps toward compromise was in the late 1970s when he decided that he needed to influence politics, and toward that end he formed the Moral Majority.
This was a dramatic change of his doctrine. In the 1960s Falwell had said, “Nowhere are we commissioned to reform the externals. We are not told to wage wars against bootleggers, liquor stores, gamblers, murderers, prostitutes, racketeers, prejudiced persons or institutions, or any other existing evil as such. I feel that we need to get off the streets and back into the pulpits and into our prayer rooms” (“TV Evangelist Jerry Falwell Dies at 73,” USA Today, May 15, 2007).
By the late 1970s Falwell had made an 180 degree change in doctrine with the formation of the Moral Majority. By 1986 the organization had 500,000 active contributors and a mailing list of six million people. At that time, Falwell said that Catholics made up the largest constituency (30%) (Christianity Today, February 21, 1986).
In his autobiography Strength for the Journey, Falwell referred to the “Catholic brothers and sisters in the Moral Majority” (p. 371).
Christianity Today , Nov. 2, 1979, recorded an ecumenical gathering Falwell attended that year. “Seated with Falwell on the platform were ministers of varying racial, ethnic, and denominational backgrounds, including traditionalist Catholic theologian, William H. Marshner.” A “traditionalist” Catholic theologian, of course, is one who teaches that salvation is by grace plus sacrament and works, that infants are born again through baptism, that the Pope sits in the seat of Peter and is the legitimate head of all churches, that the mass is the unbloody re-sacrifice of Christ in which Jesus Himself appears on the Catholic altar in the form of a wafer and is to be worshipped under that form, that Mary is the immaculate Mother of God and Queen of Heaven, etc.
Falwell was one of the speakers at the April 1980 “Washington for Jesus” rally. On that occasion he joined hands with Catholic priests John Bertolucci, John Randall, and Michael Scanlon, as well as modernist Robert Schuller, and a host of radical, doctrinally goofy Charismatics, including Jim Bakker of PTL, Pat Robertson of the 700 Club, and Demos Shakarian of the Full Gospel Business Men’s Fellowship International.
In an interview with the National Catholic Registerpublished in the May 9, 1982, issue, Falwell said that Ronald Reagan and Pope John Paul II are “the greatest men in my lifetime.” Falwell did not give any warnings about the pope’s false sacramental gospel that is cursed of God. While admitting that there are differencesbetween Roman Catholics and “conservative Protestants,” Falwell made the amazing statement that Roman Catholics accept “the new birth experience.” Surely the man knows that the Roman Catholic Church equates the new birth with baptism and that in no sense do Catholics believe in “the new birth experience” in a scriptural manner. While attending the St. Louis 2000 ecumenical conference with press credentials, I asked many “conservative charismatic Roman Catholics” who work for various Catholic ministries when they were born again, and not one of them gave a scriptural answer. Many of them did not even know what I was talking about. One replied, “That isn’t a Catholic term, is it?”
In 1983 Cal Thomas, Moral Majority’s director of communications, said that the group was composed of Jews, Catholics, Mormons, Protestants, and some “non-religious” members. He noted that they do not pray in their meetings. How could they! Jerry Falwell told a meeting of the Religious Newswriters Association that “if we ever opened a Moral Majority meeting with prayer, we would disintegrate” (The Flaming Torch, Jan.-Feb, 1983, p. 14).
That same year Gary Habermas, a professor at Falwell’s school, co-authored a book which, according to an advertisement in Charisma magazine, reached an amazing conclusion: “The Shroud [of Turin] [which the Catholic church claims to be Christ’s burial shroud] is almost certainly authentic. Through its revelation about the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, it helps build faith in an unbelieving age” (The Flaming Torch, Jan.-Feb. 1983). Habermas would have us believe that a bogus Catholic relic can actually build faith in an unbelieving generation, an amazing conclusion for a supposed fundamentalist to reach. There are many biblical reasons for rejecting the Shroud of Turin. For one, the image on the Shroud depicts a longhaired man. This could not possibly be the Lord Jesus Christ, according to 1 Corinthians 11:14, which says it is a shame for a man to have long hair.
In the December 1984 issue of Falwell’sFundamentalist Journal, a Roman Catholic cardinal was given a forum to tell biblical fundamentalists what he felt they needed to hear. This is like asking the Devil what he thinks of fundamental Baptists! Journal editor Edward Dobson said:
“‘What would you say to a fundamentalist if given the opportunity?’ This was the question we recently asked a Jewish rabbi, a Roman Catholic cardinal, an evangelical leader, and an articulate voice for liberal Christianity … For too many years, we fundamentalists have existed in our hermetically sealed world and promoted the attitude that we do not care what anyone else thinks about anything. In this issue of the Journal , we venture into new territory and listen to what others say and think about fundamentalism. The article by Joseph Cardinal Bernardin is especially interesting. It reflects many of the changes that have occurred in the Roman Catholic church in recent decades. We view much of that change in a positive light. … To Cardinal Bernardin’s unique insight into the American Catholic church we say, ‘gratias'” (Fundamentalist Journal, Dec. 1984).
God has not called His people to listen to heretics; He has commanded that we mark and reject them (Romans 16:17-18)! The apostle Paul didn’t ask the Pharisees and Judaizers to critique his and Timothy’s ministry. And for a supposed fundamentalist to call the changes in Rome “positive” is evidence of overwhelming ignorance and spiritual blindness.
In his 1984 biography about Falwell, Dinesh D’Souza, quoted Falwell as saying, “I know many Catholic priests who are born again and who preach the same message I do” (p. 169). D’Souza added: “To the chagrin and horror of fundamentalists, [Falwell] is frequently seen at prayer meetings with Catholics and Jews. … He has become more gracious–he is more accepting of Roman Catholics and orthodox Jews” (Falwell Before the Millennium , pp. 180-181).
It is not graciousness in any biblical fashion to join hands with heretics and unsaved religionists in ministry and to have an “accepting” attitude.
Well does the Bible warn, “Be not deceived: evil communications corrupt good manners” (1 Corinthians15:33). Falwell ignored this warning to his own spiritual downfall.
The March 1985 issue of Falwell’s Fundamentalist Journal contained the following statement on page 14:
“Extremists who declare that the Papacy is anti-Christ, or who dehumanize others with emotive declarations of their own bigotry, are insensitive to others and lack the love of Christ.”
Ever since the founding of the Roman Catholic Church, Bible believers have labeled it anti-christ. In our 331-page book Rome and the Bible we provided many such quotations from Albigenses, Waldenses, Anabaptists, and Protestants. Falwell slandered all of these persecuted brethren of the past for his foolish statement mis-characterizing their zeal for the truth and love for the Lord as bigotry and hatred.
In was also in 1985 that Falwell gathered with thirty-two Catholics, Protestants, and Jews at Indiana University for discussions sponsored by Rabbi Leon Klenicki (Australian Beacon, Nov. 1985).
That same year Falwell invited radical, immoral Catholic Senator Edward Kennedy to speak at Liberty Baptist College and Thomas Road Baptist Church, thus providing this confused, immoral man a platform from which to influence not only Falwell’s church members and students but also those who watched the televised event.
“The Senator announced to the audience of 5,000, ‘I am an American and a Catholic.’ He then lectured them on Pope John XXIII’s renewal of the gospel call and the voice of Catholic bishops in the U.S.A. He opened his speech with these words. ‘I have come here to discuss my beliefs about faith and country, tolerance, and truth in America. … I love my country and I treasure my faith.’ … In spite of Kennedy’s travesty of historical facts, open defiance of Biblical standards (‘I utterly reject any such standards,’ he said), his obvious scorn of Biblical truth and defense of his Roman faith, the Senator was given two standing ovations and was interrupted a dozen times by applause. Cal Thomas’ impression as Moral Majority spokesman was that this is a step towards ‘disarming ideologues on both sides'” (The Flaming Torch , Jan.-Mar. 1985).
This “ideologue,” for one, refuses to be “disarmed.”
The Fundamentalist Journal for December 1986 ran a photo of Falwell addressing the students at Notre Dame University, a major Roman Catholic school. Not only is Notre Dame University, which is named after the Catholic Mary, a hotbed of Catholic dogma; it is a hotbed of theological modernism. The professors teach that the Bible is a mixture of truth and myth, that Adam and Eve were not historic figures, that the world evolved, that Jonah was not swallowed by a whale, etc.
In an editorial in the January 15, 1988, issue ofChristianity Today, author Terry Muck described Falwell’s radical, ground-breaking ecumenism as a wonderful thing.
“Perhaps Falwell’s greatest accomplishment, however, was getting Protestants, Catholics, and Jews to work together on common causes. The Moral Majority is a coalition of groups that heretofore had let theological differences stand in the way of coordinated activity on shared concerns like abortion and pornography. It stands as a model of ecumenicity of the best sort-an agreement to work together on issues without trying simply to gloss over theological differences” (Christianity Today, Jan. 15, 1988).
Falwell spoke highly of the pope on several occasions. In his January 1985 Moral Majority Report, Falwell called the pope and Billy Graham great moral and religious leaders.
In 1988 Falwell mailed a letter to bookstores advertising a film about Pope John Paul II. Falwell made the following amazing statement about this Mary-worshiping pope:
“Dear Christian Bookstore Owner: Pope John Paul II will never become a Baptist, and it is for sure that I will never convert to Roman Catholicism. However, I have stated often that I believe this Pope is a man of unique character and courage. His consistent stand on moral and social issues has provided the world leadership so desperately needed at this hour. Robert Evans is the Cecil B. deMille of this generation. It should be, then, no marvel that Mr. Evans has so perfectly captured the innermost person and principles of John Paul II. When I first watched the ‘Power of Faith,’ I was deeply moved. While the Pope and I have broad doctrinal and theological differences, this man’s commitment to the dignity of human life and his strong opposition to tyranny and bigotry provide a shining light for the people of our generation who need such reinforcement. … I think people from all faiths and walks of life will appreciate this film” (Jerry Falwell, Moral Majority Report, Jan. 1985).
Why would a Baptist leader promote a video about a religious leader who preaches a false gospel and thereby leads multitudes to eternal Hell? The Bible says the pope is thereby under God’s curse (Galatians 1). Did Falwell not fear that someone reading his recommendation of the pope might be encouraged to listen to him and thereby be deceived into following Catholicism? The Bible says we are not even to bid “God speed” to those who deny the doctrine of Christ (2 John 8-11), because those who assist false teachers become partakers of their evil deeds. In praising the pope and recommending his video, Falwell did much more than bid him “God speed.”
Billy Graham, the veritable prince of ecumenism, was the commencement speaker at Falwell’s Liberty University in 1997, and in the October 1995 issue of theNational Liberty Journal Falwell praised Graham for his “long and faithful ministry.” Billy Graham, who accepts degrees from Catholic colleges and says the Catholic gospel is the same as his own; who has turned thousands of converts over to apostate churches; who thinks John Paul II was a great evangelist; who thinks there is special power in infant baptism; who doubts that Hell is a place of literal fiery torment; who invites Catholic bishops onto his platform to bless those who come forward at his invitations; who praises Christ-denying modernists; who has promoted practically every perverted Bible version to appear in the last five decades–Billy Graham has had a faithful ministry? Such a statement was clear evidence of incredible spiritual blindness on the part of Dr. Falwell. (For documentation of Graham’s wretched spiritual compromise see “Billy Graham’s Sad Disobedience” at the Way of Life web site.)
When New York’s Cardinal John O’Connor died on May 3, 2000, Falwell praised him. O’Connor was was one of the most prominent Catholic leaders in America. In his news fax on May 4, Jerry Falwell said:
“The Cardinal and I differed on a few theological and social issues, but my respect for him was unwavering because of his ministerial kindness and unconditional willingness to help those in need. . . . Every pastor in America can learn a great lesson from this man. We should never permit our political or social differences to hamper our God-given instruction to minister to our fellow man. As a minister of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, I cannot expect people to take this message seriously if I am unwilling, as a representative of Christ, to meet them where they are. Change in people’s lives comes after a relationship with Christ begins, so we must be frequently disposed to taking the Gospel to unfriendly environments. Cardinal O’Connor embodied this mandate. I am grateful that John O’Connor — a man of courageous faith — had such a profound influence on the Catholic Church through his fifty-five years of ministry. I pray that another pro-life, pro-family minister can be found to fill his significant and substantial shoes.”
I can understand how Falwell could say he was thankful for Cardinal John O’Connor’s efforts against abortion and homosexual “rights,” but in praising him so profusely and in failing so completely to warn that the cardinal preached a false gospel, Falwell was grossly misleading his listeners and doing them a terrible mis-service. Yes, he did mention in passing that he and O’Connor “differed on a few theological and social issues.” A FEW! Cardinal O’Connor believed that salvation is through the sacraments of Rome, that the pope is the Holy Father and Vicar of Christ, that the Catholic priesthood mediates between God and man, that Mary is the sinless Queen of Heaven, that dead “saints” can answer prayer, that the mass transforms wine and a wafer into the literal body and blood of Jesus Christ, that Christians go to purgatory, etc. Are those simply “a few” theological matters? In truth, they are the difference between Heaven and Hell! Yet Jerry Falwell–addressing his vast listening audience composed of people from all sorts of denominations, including Catholic–left them with the impression that he believed Cardinal O’Connor was a true Christian minister. Furthermore, according to 2 John 9-11, we are not even to bid false teachers like John O’Connor “godspeed.” We are not even to greet them, let alone praise them!
We see just how cozy Falwell became with Roman Catholicism in a scene described by Keith Fournier in his book Evangelical Catholics. Fournier, Dean of Evangelism at Roman Catholic Franciscan University of Steubenville, verified Falwell’s shifting position concerning the Roman Catholic Church. Speaking about a meeting he attended of the “American Congress of Christian Citizens,” Fournier stated:
“In our meeting room were major evangelical leaders I’ve admired for years-Dr. Charles Stanley, Dr. Jerry Falwell, Dr. D. James Kennedy, Pat Robertson, and many others. I found not only a tremendous openness to my presence, but also a growing respect for my church and a thawing in what had been hard ice in the past. Perhaps the comments by Dr. Falwell were most illustrative. He told the whole group not even to consider trying to affect public policy with only a narrow evangelical Protestant church coalition. He said that from its inception any such effort must include Catholics and consultation with great churchmen such as Cardinal Law and Cardinal O’Connor. Clearly not backing off one bit from his self-described ‘narrowness of doctrine,’ Dr. Falwell showed a refreshing openness” (Evangelical Catholics, p. 172).
The root of societal ills is religious or spiritual in nature. The root problem of America’s social ills is the apostasy, compromise, and cowardice in the pulpits and the churches. Roman Catholicism, because of its apostasy from the Word of God and its corruption of the New Testament faith, is at the heart of American’s problem (as is theological modernism and every other anti-scriptural ism). It is foolish in the extreme to think that Romanism could somehow be part of the solution. How can Roman Catholicism, which has never produced true biblical morality even in its own priests, be an effective accomplice in a coalition to bring back morality to America? Wherever Roman Catholicism holds sway over men’s lives (visit Italy or Mexico or Ireland, for example), you will find rampant immorality (adultery, fornication, pornography, child molestation), divorce, annulments, gambling, lascivious dancing, immodest dress, alcoholism, juvenile delinquency, idolatry, occultism, superstition, hypocrisy, agnosticism, and outright atheism. It is with no sense of joy that I say these things, but this is a fact that I have observed with my own eyes. I realize that not every Catholic priest is a moral reprobate, but huge numbers of them are; and I realize that not every Catholic man or woman practices the things I have listed, but large numbers of them do. Roman Catholicism simply does not have the spiritual life and power to produce genuine righteousness. The Devil is the author of false religions like Roman Catholicism (2 Corinthians 11; 1 Timothy 4), and it is a strange sight to see men like Jerry Falwell clamor for unity with false religions for the purpose of defeating the Devil’s works!
And it is a strange sight to see men like Paul Chappell praise him as a hero of the faith.
Falwell endorsed Chuck Colson’s 1992 book, The Body, which urged evangelicals to join forces with Catholics and Charismatics and which looked upon the Catholic Church as a part of the “body of Christ.” Colson said, “…the body of Christ, in all its diversity, is created with Baptist feet, charismatic hands, and Catholic ears–all with their eyes on Jesus” (World, Nov. 14, 1992).
It was reported in 2000 that the coach of Liberty University’s football team was a Roman Catholic (Frontline, May-June 2000, p. 6).
In September 2004 Falwell yoked together with Rick Warren for a second “Super Conference.” Speakers included Ed Young, a former president of the Southern Baptist Convention, Elmer Towns, charismatic Jim Cymbala, and others. It was held at Falwell’s Liberty University. Warren, senior pastor of Saddleback Community Church in southern California, holds the unscriptural “judge not” New Evangelical philosophy and uses “Christian” rock to draw big crowds. In his book The Purpose Driven Life , Warren says, “God warns us over and over not to criticize, compare, or judge each other.” In fact, while God’s Word warns against judging hypocritically or judging by our fallible human traditions it plainly instructs us to judge “all things” by God’s Word, especially doctrine and church practice (Acts 17:11; Ephesians 5:11; 1 Thessalonians5:21). Warren uncritically quotes Catholic universalists such as John of the Cross and Henri Nouwen and Thomas Merton. Jim Cymbala, pastor of the Brooklyn Tabernacle, is a charismatic and is radically ecumenical. The Brooklyn Tabernacle’s statement of faith says, “We believe the baptism of the Holy Spirit is for all believers as a definite endowment of power for service and is subsequent to, and separate from, conversion.” They also say that all “the gifts of the Spirit” are for today.
In November 2004, Falwell announced that he was launching a new version of the Moral Majority called The Faith and Values Coalition (TFVC). The three-fold goal was to lobby for pro-life judges, to seek a federal amendment barring same-sex marriage, and to elect another conservative president in 2008. Falwell’s son Jonathan was executive director and Mathew Staver, founder of the Liberty Counsel, was vice-chairman. Tim LaHaye was the board chairman. That this new venture was set on the same ecumenical platform that characterized the Moral Majority was evident in a fundraising letter that Falwell published in Nov. 16, 2004. He called radical ecumenists and charismatics “courageous and brilliant evangelical mega-leaders.” He listed 18 of these, including Franklin Graham, Pat Robertson, and Rod Parsley. Franklin Graham has said that his father’s ecumenical alliance with the Catholic Church and all other denominations “was one of the smartest things his father ever did” (“Keeping it simple, safe keeps Graham on high,” The Indianapolis Star, Thurs., June 3, 1999, p. H2). Pat Robertson, founder of the 700 Club and Regent University, is an ardent ecumenicist who has long worked with and fellowshipped with Romanists and exemplifies the deep compromise and disobedience that is rampant in evangelical-charismatic circles today. In 1985, Robertson revealed that during 25 years of broadcasting, he has “worked for harmony and reconciliation between Protestants and Catholics” and “refrained from airing major theological differences” (Christian News , July 22, 1985). Rod Parsley, television preacher and pastor of World Harvest church in Columbus, Ohio, is a dangerous false teacher who preaches the unscriptural Word-Faith message. He teaches that believers can have whatsoever they desire by faith and confession with their mouths, promises healing as a part of salvation, etc.
In December 2004, Falwell said he believed America was on the verge of a spiritual awakening (Religion Today , Dec. 1). He wanted to build on this alleged awakening with the newly formed political action group The Faith and Values Coalition. Falwell believed “the church of Jesus Christ is now standing tall” and “if we will press the battle now–in the next four, eight, or twelve years, we can bring this nation back to the faith of our fathers.” He said America has been undergoing “a quiet spiritual awakening” during the past two decades, and points to the popularity of the Left Behindbooks, the rise of CCM, and the increase of those who describe themselves as evangelicals.
From where I sit, the only awakening discernible in America is one built upon spiritual compromise, heresy, and idolatry. CCM is not spiritual revival; it is worldliness. The growth of “evangelicalism” is of no consequence because the definition of evangelical has become meaningless. Today, the term “evangelical” describes a Roman Catholic praying to Mary or a Fuller Seminary president denying verbal inspiration or Wheaton College inviting a cultic Mormon professor to talk about heretical C.S. Lewis or Cornerstone College hosting a rock & roll dance party or someone falling on the floor and calling it a miracle or muttering nonsense and calling it tongues, or even a movie about Jesus based on the visions of a Catholic mystic. Seeing that this type of thing is not on the periphery of evangelicalism but at its very heart, on what biblical authority do we describe today’s evangelicalism as spiritual revival?
Jerry Falwell was the blind leading the blind.
Falwell’s compromise is evident in the changes that have occurred in Liberty University. It was originally established as Liberty Baptist College with the emphasis of training Christian workers, but in the quest to achieve certification and respectability and approval by the Southern Baptist Convention it has changed dramatically. Today the student application at Liberty University does not require a testimony of the new birth. There is no compulsory church attendance. There is no doctrinal statement that teachers must sign. Intramural sports is promoted as fervently as at secular institutions.
The following warning was given many years ago by former Baptist Bible Fellowship International (BBFI) president Victor Sears:
“Dr. Falwell is not basically a fundamental Baptist. . . . [but] is a New Evangelical in the same compromising vein as Dr. Billy Graham. If we keep following the road paved by Falwellism, we of the (BBF) will lose our identity completely as old-fashioned, Bible-believing separatists” (Calvary Contender, June 15, 1987).
Sadly, most Baptist Bible Fellowship churches have followed the road paved by Falwell and have adopted the soft, non-separatist, contemporary approach and are well down the “emerging” path of error.
We agree with what Jerry Huffman of the Calvary Contender wrote in September 2003:
“Spurgeon preached separation from error and compromise. He said: ‘That I might not stultify my testimony I have cut myself clear of those who err from the faith, and even from those who associate with them.’ We do great harm to the cause of Christ by appearing to condone the disobedience of those unequally yoked with unbelievers.”
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