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XXXVIII - 11(05) “Watchman, what of the night?” "The hour has come, the
hour is striking and striking at you,
BACK DOOR EXIT Page 2 "SPIRITS OF DEVILS" Page 3
A RIVAL TO NOTRE DAME Page 5
Editor's Preface
During the Year, as we noted
the history of the doctrine of the Incarnation as taught by the Adventist
Church, we had to limit comment on other things which were transpiring
including the 58th General Conference Session that was held in St. Louis,
Missouri. It is now past. Several items need comment, but we will limit
ourselves to the topic of the first article of this issue of WWN – the gain and
loss in Church membership. With the emphasis being placed on "back
door" exits, it will be doubtful if a correct assessment will be addressed
or even recognized by the new vice-president charged with the responsibility of
closing the "door." If the Church ceases to be the Church you joined,
and you believe you joined the final "remnant of her seed," what do
you do? Will Finley really address the issue? If he does discern the problem,
will he have the courage to stand up to the hierarchy of which he has now
become a part? The Roman Church is also
seeking to address its own problem of a morally corrupt clergy by the erection
of a new University in Florida. It will be an Ave Maria instead of a Notre Dame
– the same Mary, but with an intensified worship of the "wafer" on
Sunday. The new Pope was involved with Ave Maria as Cardinal Ratzinger; he is
voicing the same agenda as Benedict XVI. Other topics will be reviewed
during 2006. one of which we hope to begin discussing
in the next issue of WWN."
Page 2
Back
Door Exit At the recent General
Conference Session in St. Louis, the Director of Archives and Statistics, Dr.
Bert Haloviak, noted in his report to the Session: For the first time in (their) history, Seventh-day Adventists received into membership more than 5 million new believers within a five year period. During that same period, however, more than 1.4 million left (the) community (GC Bulletin #8, P. 27). He observed that the
"bottom line" for the five years which the session closed "is
that for every 100 accessions, more than 35 others decided to leave." This
is considerably more than the 24 subtracted for every 100 as reported to the
previous session of the General Conference in 2000. To seek to close what is
thought of as "the back door" of the Church, the Session picked one
of their international evangelists who has had no previous administrative
experience and placed him as a vice president of the Church with the assignment
to find the means, to close the door. There is no question but that
the situation has worsened during the past quinquennium. I recall that during
the time I was privileged to work with Fordyce W. Detamore
in his evangelistic crusade in the Globe Theatre at the Fair Park in Dallas,
Texas, he told us in a worker's meeting that he expected a 25% loss in the
total baptisms performed. This was the ratio as reported at the 2000 Session.
It has now advanced to 35%. Jesus referred to the
apostolic calling as bringing "forth fruit," and that that fruit
"should remain" (John 15:16). There are several ways to gather
"fruit." One, "shake" the tree and gather more quickly a
quantity of fruit, but it will be bruised in the fall and must be preserved
promptly. If not, it will quickly spoil. Or one can hand pick the ripened
fruit; it is more time consuming to do so, but the loss is much less. To apply
this figure of speech properly to the problem of "soul-saving"
requires study and serious thought. Even in the apostolic period
of the Christian church, there was attrition of membership. Paul noted that
"Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world" (II Tim.
4:10). He warned the elders of Ephesus that even some of them would depart from
the faith and carry others with them (Acts 20:30). In these notations of
apostasy in Apostolic times, there can he found two basic causes for the
current attrition of church membership. With some the ardor of their
"first love" waned, and they went out "the back door." But
there are others who have gone out the "front door" because of the
direction the "elders" have taken in permitting apostasy from the
truth to prevail. Some have even been escorted out the "front door"
because they have dared to speak up regarding the direction being taken by the
hierarchy. In past decades, a part of
the Church's ministry was Bible workers, not woman "officials." If
the Church is going to make "officials" so as to be like "the
nations" around about it, then the question needs to be asked, "have
these 'officials' made full proof of (their) ministry" by doing "the
work of an evangelist"? (II Tim. 4:5). It was a retired credentialed Bible
worker who brought to my mother and me the truth of the Three Angels' Messages
and then welcomed us into a "home" church, which was hers and her
retired minister husband's personal residence. The group who met there was
called a "company." Even after finishing my
college work and entering the ministry, as a conference evangelist my team
consisted of the song leader, a Bible worker and myself. At the same time,
there was developing the big city evangelistic crusades, into which were
brought young ministers for training. These supplanted the Bible workers, and
the personal contacts and Bible studies which the Bible worker(s) gave those
who attended the meetings disappeared. The emphasis shifted to
"numbers," and the quality of the "fruit" changed. The
"numbers game" and "quality fruit" are not synonymous. The
elevation of women to "position" instead of restoring the service
motif which the Bible
Page 3 worker
represented is not a solution to the "exodus" problem. During this period, when the
Bible worker was a part of the ministerial team, one individual stands out in
my mind as qualified to be an "official," which she never assumed to
be, -- Mary E. Walsh. On an occasion of a visit to Canada by Sister Walsh,
while I was serving as pastor of the First Church in Toronto, I asked her to
speak at the Divine Worship service. She accepted the invitation, and in the
message presented, and the Spirit which accompanied it, I sensed what it must
have been like had I been privileged to hear Ellen G. White speak
from the sacred desk. The exaltation of women to
ministerial positions in the Church will not contribute to the closing of the
back door, but will contribute to the agitation for the ordination of women to
the ministry. All, and I mean All the 1.4 million who have
left the Church during the past five years did not leave the "truth."
Many merely walked out the "front" door into "home
churches." They could no longer take the "Pentecostalism" which
marked the services of the regular church. Nor could they continue to wrestle
with the ideas being promoted through the Sabbath School lesson quarterlies.
Many longed for what they perceived to be a "full course" spiritual
meal at the Sabbath morning worship service, instead of a shallow just
"love Jesus" message. It is true that a number of the "exiting
voices" have had their own "hobby horses" they wished to
present, and they themselves have their "egos" massaged. All in all,
vice president Findley will not have an easy time fulfilling his commission,
and will learn much about church administration. "Spirits
of Devils" The prophetic scriptures
picture the gathering together for the battle of the great day of God Almighty
as energized by "the spirits of devils" under the symbol of
"frogs" coming "out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the
mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet (Rev. 16:13-14).
We have perceived these symbols - the dragon, beast, and false prophet to
represent the religious forces at work to accomplish the designs of the devil.
This interpretation has led to the designations of paganism, papalism, and
apostate Protestantism to the symbols. A new symbolism is added as the
prophetic picture describes the final conflict - "frogs." Frogs are
marked by their tongues by which they catch their prey and its unintelligible
croaking noise in its spring mating season. Another part of the symbolism which
we appear to have missed needs consideration. The symbolic powers involved in
the final conflict - dragon, beast, and false prophet -are set in
"heaven," "sea" and "earth" - when first revealed
to John. The "dragon" is specifically declared to be "that old
serpent, called the Devil and Satan" (Rev. 12:9). Another reference is
very definitive: the text reads - "the dragon, that old serpent, which is
the Devil and Satan" (20:2). The first conflict is revealed as being in
"heaven" - "There was war in heaven" (Rev. 12:7). The final
conflict is in a "place called in the Hebrew tongue – Har-Magedon"
(16:16 ARV). "Har" in Hebrew means, "mountain.' The phase of the
conflict that brought "salvation" (12:10) was settled on a
"mount" outside Jerusalem, Golgotha, "the place of the
skull" (John 16:17). The final phase of the conflict both before and after
the 1,000 years will be settled at the place called in the Hebrew tongue -
Har-Mo'ed - "the mount of the congregation" - Jerusalem, and even as
the first phase - outside the gates of the city (Rev. 20:9). From the symbolic
"heaven" the prophetic picture passes to "sea" and
"earth" (12:12). The "beast" that comes up "out of the
sea" is marked by the prophetic symbolisms of the beasts of Daniel 7 in
reverse order - leopard, bear and lion, and is empowered by the dragon
Page 4 (13:2;
cmp. with Daniel 7). The
designation in history was the papacy. The first protest - the original
Protestantism - arose in the same area in which this "beast arose."
The "false prophet" was to come "up out of the earth"
(13:11). To this differentiation, we have not given sufficient study as the
events of the present unfold before us. No longer using the designation of
"Protestant" they speak of themselves as "Evangelicals" and
are in lockstep with Rome. A part of this evangelical body is Pentecostal.
Their "voice" is Christianity
Today (CT), a publication founded by Billy Graham. It is now edited by one
with previous Seventh-day Adventist connections. In a recent issue of CT
(July, 2005), Jack Hayford was featured as "the
Pentecostal Gold Standard" in a "cover story." A year ago he was
elected president of the Foursquare denomination which
was founded by Aimee Semple McPherson. While seeking
to bring Pentecostals together with other Evangelicals, and involvement in
interdenominational activities, he does all this "without toning down his
Pentecostalism one decibel." The preface of the cover story warrants
careful consideration. It reads: In 1969, a 35-year old Jack Hayford pulled up to a traffic light in front of the First
Baptist Church of Van Nuys. Like any other pastor in Southern California, he
knew of the Baptist congregation. It was growing like a weed, drawing
nationwide publicity under the leadership of Pastor Harold Fickett.
Hayford's church, a few blocks down Parked at the light, Hayford felt a burning sensation on his face, a startling
physical sense of the church's intimidating presence. Through an inner voice
God spoke to him reprovingly: "You could at least begin by looking at the
building." He turned and saw nothing but
a modern brick structure. "What now?" Hayford
asked. "I want you to pray for that church," God said. "What I
am doing there is so great, there is no way the pastoral
staff can keep up with it. Pray for them." As Hayford
began to pray, he felt an overflow of love for Van Nuys Baptist. It seemed to
take no effort. Through the days to come, the same sensation came to him every
time he passed a church - any church. "I felt an overwhelming love for the
church of Jesus Christ. I realized I had them in pigeonholes." A few days later, he
approached a large Catholic church. Having been raised to take strong exception
to Catholic doctrine, he wondered whether he would have the same feelings. He
did, and heard another message from God: "Why would I not be happy with a
place where every morning the testimony of the blood of my Son is raised from
the altar?" "I didn't hear God say
that the Catholics are right about everything," Hayford
says now, remembering the experience that changed his ministry. "For that
matter, I didn't hear him (sic.) saying the Baptists
are right about everything, nor the Foursquare." The message was simply that
people at those churches cared about God. These were sites dedicated to Jesus'
name. And he, Hayford, was supposed to love and pray
for them (p. 25). What conclusions can be drawn
from these experiences of Hayford? Number one - it was not God Who
spoke approvingly about the Catholic mass. He had already spoken through
His Word - "But this Man, after He had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down on the right hand of
God" (Heb. 10:12). Jesus Christ does not come down from that throne and
descend to the Roman altar every time a priest calls Him! It was the
"spirits of devils" who were approving the eucharist of We have observed in recent
issues of WWN the objective of Benedict XVI to bring about the unity of the
Christian Church under Rome. In a homily given at the Mass to close the 24th
Italian National Eucharistic Congress in Bari, Italy, the Pope declared,
"I would like to reaffirm my desire to assume as a fundamental commitment
working with all my might for the re-establishment of the full and visible
unity of all of Christ's Page 5 followers" (L' Osservatore Romano, In the same Homily, Benedict XVI declared: The Eucharist, let us repeat, is the sacrament of unity. Unfortunately, however, Christians are divided, precisely in the sacrament of unity. Sustained by the Eucharist, we must feel all the more aroused to striving with all our strength for that full unity which Christ ardently desired in the Upper Room (ibid.). He closed the homily with these words: Dear Friends who have come to Bari from various parts of Italy to celebrate this Eucharistic Congress, we must rediscover the joy of Christian Sundays. We must proudly rediscover the privilege of sharing in the Eucharist, which is the sacrament of the renewed world. Christ's Resurrection happened on the first day of the week, which in the Scriptures is the day of the world's creation. For this reason Sunday was considered by the early Christian community as the day on which the new world began, the one on which, with Christ's victory over death, the new creation began. As they gathered round the Eucharistic table, the community was taking shape as a new people of God. St. Ignatius of Antioch described Christians as "having attained new hope" and presented them as people "who lived in accordance with Sunday.... Then he closed with these words: It is this that gives rise to our
prayer: that we too, Christians of today, will
rediscover an awareness of the crucial importance of Sunday Celebration and
will know how to draw from participation in the Eucharist the necessary
dynamism for a new commitment to proclaiming to the world Christ "our peace" (Eph. How will this be achieved - the Sunday Mass as the unifying
factor? The prophecy of Revelation 16 gives that answer - "spirits of
devils." A Rival to Notre
Dame The Foundation Library subscribes to The Catholic World Report, a conservative Catholic journal. The
founder of the journal and its publisher, the Ignatius Press, was Joseph Sessio, S.J. who is now Provost of the new university being
erected near Naples, Florida. The seed money for the new Ave Maria University
was given by the multi-millionaire founder of Domino's Pizza, Thomas S.
Monaghan, who is serving as Chancellor of the school. Being on their mailing
list as a subscriber to the World Report,
we received a 32-page report of their progress, which is being used to solicit
more Catholic funds to add to the millions already received. However, there are
some interesting facts revealed in this brochure. The reason for the establishment of Ave Maria University
is what is perceived by the founders to be declension from what are Catholic
norms. In a letter by Monaghan, he wrote that they must rely on conservative
Catholics to keep sending students who might "attend Catholic colleges
that often are, incredible as it may sound, debating whether or not to have
crucifixes in class rooms ... routinely putting young men and women together to
live on the same dorm floor ... teaching blatantly unsound theology that
questions some of the basic teachings of our Faith" (pp. 10, 11). A Franciscan friar, Benedict Groeschel,
who has taught in several Catholic schools of higher education and who has
joined the Board of Directors of Ave Maria University gave as his reason for
withdrawing from the schools, is that "they (have) lost their Catholic
identity." He wrote, "To call a school Catholic and not teach the
Catholic faith is to take the name of the Lord in vain. If you run something
you call Catholic, you must take care that you are not teaching something else
or counter to what the Church teaches" (p. 15). This friar cited that at a
recent conference involving Catholic colleges, a professor of philosophy from one
of the largest universities "gleefully presented himself as an atheist to
those assembled." This state of affairs is unacceptable and it is Ave
Maria University which seeks to reverse the trend in Catholic Page 6 higher education on a large scale, more
or less immediately" (p. 16). In the Chancellor's letter names are given. He wrote,
"We are enormously blessed to have the enthusiastic participation, as
advisors, four of the Holy Father's trusted Cardinals: Schonborn
(Cardinal Archbishop of Vienna, and primary author of the Catechism of the Catholic Church), Pell (Australia), Stafford, and Arinze (Africa)" (p. 10). Further: Ave Maria has several highly respected Catholics in the nation who have welcomed us. Men like Fr. Richard Neuhaus, the brilliant editor and Lutheran convert; Fr. Benedict Groeschel; and Florida's own Governor Jeb Bush, the president's brother, who is a convert to Catholicism. Women who have welcomed our effort include the much-admired activist and writer Phyllis Schafly; Professor Mary Ann Glendon of Harvard, who also serves as a lay advisor to the Holy Father; and my friend, Mother Angelica, who has offered her steadfast support and holy prayers (p. 11). There is a close connection between Ave Maria University
and the new Pope, Benedict XVI. The Provost, Fessio,
of the University took his doctoral work under the direction of Benedict when,
as Cardinal Ratzinger, he was professor of theology at Regensburg, Germany. He
has seen Ratzinger every year for the past thirty-three years. It was Ratzinger
who approached the Jesuit General asking that Fessio
be assigned to Ave Maria University. Fessio reports
that every year for the past three years, Ratzinger has inquired about the
progress at Ave Maria. He wrote that Benedict "has great hope for us"
and stated that when Ratzinger took the name Benedict, he "realized at
once what a powerful symbolic meaning that had for ... Ave Maria
University" (p. 2). He explains: In the Sixth Century the great super power of the ancient world, the Roman Empire, was in terminal decline. It was rotten from within. There was moral corruption, hedonism, hatred of children - abortion and infanticide. And it was besieged from without by barbarians, who while unlettered and uncultured themselves, were far stronger than the effete Romans who had lost all their moral bearings. Benedict was a magistrate in Rome and he didn't try to change the Roman Empire. He fled it. He went into the hills south of Rome and prayed and offered his life to God. Others joined him and the first Benedictine monastery was established. His goal was to pray and to work - ora et labora. And their greatest work - their Opus Dei - was liturgical: to offer fitting praise and worship to the Divine Majesty. From that monastery more were founded, and still more, until by the year 1200 there were over 40,000 Benedictine monasteries throughout Europe. The great classics of Greek and Roman culture were carefully copied and transmitted. Whole generations were educated, churches and cathedrals built. Gothic spires soared to the sky. Benedict has rightly been called the Father of Europe. He is in the origin of that great artefact of history: Christian Europe, Christendom. I knew that Cardinal Ratzinger
took the name Benedict because he would work tirelessly for the
re-Christianization of Then Fessio referred to Benedict
XVI's opening address - "four pages
single-spaced in Latin which he must have penned rapidly because there was
little time between his election and Mass the next morning!" Fessio commented that Benedict "made it crystal clear
that his very first priority was the Holy Eucharist." The pope said:
"I ask everyone to intensify in the coming months love and devotion to the
Eucharistic Jesus and to express in a courageous and clear way the real
presence of the Lord, above all through the solemnity and correctness of the
celebrations" (p. 4). Questions: Will the "Sunday" issue come riding in on the wings of the Sunday Mass? Will it be
seen then whether Fessio's assessment of Page 7 Benedict XVI is correct - "He will do it not by
force?" Postscript: The Brochure from which we have gathered most of the data
for the above article closes with a summation by Fessio,
the Provost. In part it states: "The last few years have been very discouraging both for Holy Mother Church and for this country founded on faith, family and freedom. To recall only the most obvious wounds: priestly sexual abuse and "gay marriage" (which of course, is neither gay nor marriage). In the midst of this surrounding darkness, I am experiencing at first hand the grace-filled beginnings of what could become a spiritual and cultural counter-revolution with a profound impact on both our Church and our country.... "God chose to begin his first spiritual and cultural counter-revolution in a little known village that was sanctified by the presence of a young woman named Mary. From that Mustard Seed grew a world-wide, culture forming, holiness engendering Catholic Church that transformed the failing Roman Empire into Christendom.... "In the Fall
of 2003, a group of Catholics - laymen, priests, and religious sisters took the
first steps to build a new Catholic university in a little known place called "We opened Ave Maria University's interim campus in Naples, Florida, with 101 pioneering students. There were so many blessings in that first year - and second -that even a long letter would not have space enough to recount them all. Here's a sampling: > A nightly, student led, Rosary walk around the campus > Regular adoration of the Blessed Sacrament > Nearly 25% of our young men discerning a priestly vocation > Extended visits by Cardinals Christoph Schonborn and Francis Arinze > Inaugural Annunciation Mass, with the Vatican Choir, at the site of the new campus.... "One of the most respected and authentically Catholic theologians in the United States, Fr. Matthew Lamb, joined Ave Maria in the summer of 2004 to become Dean of the Graduate School of Theology. In only our third year, Ave Maria University has launched under his direction both a doctoral program in theology and the most rigorous Master's program in North America. "Thanks to Thomas Loome, the largest seller of used Catholic books in the world, our graduate theological library has more than twice as many volumes as one of the oldest and most prestigious Catholic graduate schools in the country (which shall remain un-named). "Why is this important? Because we intend to teach the future teachers of theology, preparing them for positions in universities and - more critically - seminaries across the country. Think about the origin of the present crisis in the Church." (pp. 17-19). Page 8 Take Note We are living in the time of the end. The fast fulfilling
signs of the times declare that the coming of Christ is near at hand. The days
in which we live are solemn and important. The Spirit of God is gradually being
withdrawn from the earth. Plagues and judgments are already falling upon the
despisers of the grace of God. The calamities by land and sea, the unsettled
state of society, the alarms of war, are portentous. They forecast approaching
events of the greatest magnitude. The agencies of evil are combining their forces, and
consolidating. They are strengthening for the last great crisis. Great changes
are soon to take place in our world, and the final movements will be rapid
ones. Testimonies for the
Church, Vol. 9,
p. 11
WEBSITE
E-
Originally published by Adventist Laymen's Foundation of Mississippi/Arkansas
Wm. H. Grotheer, Editor
Adventist Laymen's Foundation was chartered in 1971 by Elder Wm. H. Grotheer, then 29 years in the Seventh-day Adventist
ministry, and associates, for the benefit of Seventh-day Adventists who were deeply concerned about the compromises of fundamental
doctrines by the Church leaders in conference with those who had no right to influence them. Elder Grotheer began to publish the monthly "Thought Paper," Watchman, What of the Night? (WWN) in January, 1968, and continued the publication as Editor until the end of 2006. Elder Grotheer died on May 2, 2009.
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