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Letters to the Editor - April to June 2006

To send us a Letter to the Editor, click here. (Full instructions are at the bottom of this page.) 

RESPONSE TO JUNE 25 ISSUE

'Stimulating and Encouraging'
(posted 6-30-06)
I appreciate getting the STANDARD by e-mail.

I especially appreciated the hard copy of the June 25 issue. I'm sure some folks will find the articles controversial. For me, the articles were quite stimulating and encouraging. Love for a brother or sister in Christ is far more important than differences of opinion, no matter how strongly held.

May our Lord continue to bless your ministry through the printed page as well as the World Wide Web.
—Ed Simon
Linton, Indiana

I Pray It Happens in My Lifetime
(posted 6-30-06)
I spent more than 40 years in independent Christian churches. The past four years have been with an a cappella church, and I would just love to see us reach across the keyboard and reconcile. I pray it happens in my lifetime. Both sides are filled with love, good scriptural teachings, and correct doctrine.
—Diane Clay
Kalamazoo, Michigan

RESPONSE TO JUNE 11 ISSUE

'It Truly Was Refreshing'
(posted 6-30-06) 
Thanks, Mark Taylor, for your honesty in the June 11 "From The Editor" column. It truly was refreshing to hear you say . . . "to be honest, my daily pressure and constant concern are too often about myself more than those we're serving—my schedule, my reputation, my security (or lack of it)." God help us all to make God, God of our lives and not self!
—C. Larry Stiles
Erlanger (Kentucky) Church of Christ

RESPONSE TO JUNE 4 ISSUE

'Too Many Christians Keep Silent'
(posted 6-7-06)
I read the article, "The Street Preacher" by Don Henderson (June 4). Honestly, I believe too many Christians keep silent. My fiance' and I have a ministry called Rejoicin' Ministries. We go to concerts, sporting events, etc., and plant seeds for the Lord. I have been asked if I am a Jehovah's Witness. This proves that Christians don't share the gospel like they should. My prayer is that pastors will get off the pedestal and go to events and plant seeds. Anybody can be a Christian, but only those who surrender to the Lord are followers. Those who follow the Lord will be persecuted. Jesus’ brothers didn't believe he was the Messiah. Sharing with the lost is the one thing we cannot do in Heaven. Run the race faithfully and think about how spectacular it will be in Heaven. Don't be ashamed or betray the Lord. Remember, we are not here to seek approval from man, but God. Satan knows his time is running out. We don't want to give him any joy . . .
—Gretchen Gentry

Should Have Included Name
(posted 6-5-06)
In the June 4 issue, the article “Have We Lost Our Focus?” has challenging observations, but I am bothered by the author's decision to withhold his/her name. How can I challenge the integrity of others without using my name? There is no opportunity for discussing, disagreement, or dialogue for resolution. I am disappointed by this practice and by publishing such an article in the STANDARD.
—Rick Shonkwiler
Burlington, Kentucky

RESPONSE TO MAY 28 ISSUE

'Of Questionable Relevance'
(posted 6-1-06)
The recent issue of the STANDARD contained a statement in one article (“How Could We Forget?” May 28), attributed to a student at a Christian college, to the effect that God, who has done some seeming crazy and unpredictable things, has nevertheless “never given up on his people.” That’s true, but of questionable relevance.

The outcome of humanity has not been in question from the beginning, to him, at least. This would make it impossible for God to be surprised or to have any reason to give up, though this has not prevented some grieving, of sorts, from Exodus, when he regretted having made man. But Revelation sort of hints of the remnant that will be saved, all of whom are his people, but who do not comprise the whole of those who were or are available. There is no sense in which all of Israel or any other group will be redeemed, except all true Christians.

The appearance of God’s hind side was enough to cause Moses to quake, and turn his hair white overnight. Maybe for this reason, no man has seen him, as he is, at any time. And even while Moses tread holy ground in awe, others were backsliding and reveling. The truth, which I suspect none of us fully consider, is that his presence is just as close presently, minus the visual representation. And for that reason, we consider him as the absentee landlord, one who must make some great trip to be near, to either support or hassle. When did I last consider this nearness and power of the one who judges the quick and the dead? Where is the sort of awe combined with faith, which Moses had for that brief time?

Remember when Elijah was given to see the thousands of others who had been hidden during his fretful hiding? Why are we so childishly in tentativeness about the majesty of God, preferring to live like the one in Gordon Lightfoot’s song about “feeling so good to know when the watchman’s gone?” How badly off is our perspective?
—Bill Hawkins
Joplin, MO

A Wonderful Tribute to 'Unknowns'
(posted 6-1-06)
Wow! I loved Paul William’s “At Peace in His Own Skin” (May 28). It is a wonderful tribute, not only to this unnamed preacher, but also to all the other “unknowns” who serve tirelessly without recognition. For all those who crave the limelight and the accolades of men . . . it is a timely reminder of whom we are here to serve.
—Jerry Langley
Danville, VA

RESPONSE TO MAY 21 ISSUE

Trying to Reconcile
(posted 6-5-06)
I am writing regarding the recent article “Perplexed” by Vince Antonucci. While I was encouraged by the promotion of love and grace, I found myself trying to reconcile the article with the instruction on church discipline that Paul gave the church in 1 Corinthians 5.

Having experienced God’s grace over and over in my life I am always eager to extend it to others. However, I struggle to make sure that I do not become soft on sin—my own or others.
—Name Withheld

Still Not Welcoming Everyone
(posted 6-2-06)
When I began reading Vince Antonucci’s article “Perplexed” (May 21), I was excited to see that he poses the question that has so often puzzled me: “Why do gay people need to ask this question [whether or not they would be welcomed at a church]?” However, it’s clear from the way Antonucci treats homosexuals that they need to ask this question now more than ever.

While Antonucci speaks as if gays and lesbians will be treated as equals at his church, it is clear that this situation is not the case. He tells Annette that homosexuality is a sin just like a whole host of others, referencing 1 Corinthians 6:9-11, and even admits that he is guilty of those sins. However, when he sees a gay couple serving at the “Welcome Table,” he tells them that they cannot do so because “it gave the impression that they represented [his] church.” Note first of all that he does not tell them that they cannot serve because he believes they are living a sinful lifestyle; instead, he tells them that they cannot serve in this role because of how people will perceive the situation. However, it is clear that he is singling them out because of how he perceives their lifestyle to be more sinful than others. If he (and, one would assume, all of his other church members) are equally guilty of sins listed in 1 Corinthians (given that greed is in this list, it’s not hard to argue that many Americans easily fall in to this category), then none of them should be allowed to serve at the “Welcome Table,” either.

The same could be said for the actively gay man who seeks to go on the mission trip. If Antonucci is an abomination, as he claims, in the same way that homosexuals are, then he, too, should not be allowed to go on mission trips. In fact, if he honestly believes that we are all abominations in the same way that Mel White (and the actively gay man who wanted to go on the mission trip) is an abomination, then none of us would be allowed to do much of anything to serve God. Of course, it’s clear that homosexuals do get singled out in Antonucci’s church and almost every other church in America.

Antonucci claims that he is merely “speaking the truth in love” when, in fact, he is using that cliché in the same way that so many others in our churches do: to attack that which they disagree with, while ignoring the multitude of sins that it is inconvenient for us to criticize. Anyone who disagrees with Antonucci obviously disagrees with God himself, as he takes pains to remind Annette and the reader that his is a “Bible-based church,” clearly implying that anyone who disagrees with him must attend a church that is not based on the Bible. Of course, there are many others who think differently about homosexuality who do attempt to follow the Bible; they just interpret it differently. Antonucci’s use of this adjective to describe his church does nothing more than attempt to align God with his arguments rather than the other way around. We always seem to forget that Jesus spoke the truth in love to the religious leaders of his day, criticizing their certainty of how God sees the world, rather than the “sinners” who flocked to Him.

While I’m glad to see CHRISTIAN STANDARD’s attempt to explore this subject, it would have been much more enlightening to hear from a minister who actually does welcome everyone, as Jesus did.
—Kevin Brown
Cleveland, TN