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	Update Newsletters

Update Newsletters
October 26, 2011

1. Activist Feedback

2. Comments on Last Week’s Essay

3. Essay: Are We Justified by Faith?

4. This Week’s Essay from Rev. Frank and Mary Hoffman

1. Activist Feedback

Deanne, who leafleted at Women of Faith in Denver, writes:

I have good news and bad news. The good news is Friday night I was able to leave work early to get to the Women of Faith conference as women were leaving. I didn't get any help. I went right up to the doors and handed out 400 myself! The bad news is Saturday I did get help but we were asked about 10 minutes into it to move to the other side of the road because we were on their property. The other side was very slow :( All total, we handed out probably around 750 leaflets. Better than nothing. The women were atrociously awful. I was shocked. They were horrible. Makes me sick. If they are that rude to us after their Christian conference, I can't imagine what they are like on a daily basis. We had people throw leaflets back at us, yell that of course Jesus would eat meat, throw them on the ground, come back to have debates about how God gave us animals to eat, etc. It was really sad. Oh well, there were some who were very receptive and the rest just took them, a lot laughed at the cover, whatever.

Thanks!!

Upcoming Outreach Opportunities

10/30 PA Philadelphia David Crowder Bands Last Tour

11/1 NC Charlotte David Crowder Bands Last Tour

11/3 SC Greenville David Crowder Bands Last Tour

11/3 CO Denver HUGE Newsboys Winter Jam Concerts Series

11/3-5 OH Cleveland Joyce Meyers Ministries Conference

11/4 NM Albuquerque HUGE Newsboys Winter Jam Concerts Series

11/4 VA Lynchburg David Crowder Bands Last Tour

11/4 LA Monroe Gaither Homecoming 2011 Tour

11/4 FL Vero Beach Leeland Christian Rock Concert

11/4-5 NY Rochester Women Of Faith Conference

11/4-5 MO Kansas City Women Of Faith Conference

11/4-5 IL Rockford Extraordinary Women Conference

11/4-5 MN Rochester Hearts @ Home Mom Revolution Conference

11/5 AZ Phoenix HUGE Winter Jam Newsboys, Kutless, NewSong

11/5 GA Atlanta The David Crowder Bands Last Tour

11/6 FL Palmetto The David Crowder Bands Last Tour

11/6 NV Las Vegas HUGE! Winter Jam Newsboys, Kutless, NewSong

11/6 AL Dothan Sounds of Hope Tour Leeland

11/10 ID Boise HUGE! Winter Jam Newsboys, Kutless, NewSong

11/10 AL Mobile The David Crowder Bands Last Tour

11/11 FL Orlando The David Crowder Bands Last Tour

11/11 OR Portland HUGE! Winter Jam Newsboys, Kutless, NewSong

11/11 OH Mt Vernon Leeland Sounds of Hope Tour

11/11-12 CT Hartford Women Of Faith Conference

11/11-12 OK Oklahoma City Women Of Faith Conference

11/12 WA Tacoma HUGE! Winter Jam Newsboys, Kutless, NewSong

11/12 FL Panama City David Crowder Bands Last Tour

11/13 MS Jackson David Crowder Bands Last Tour

11/18 CA Sacramento HUGE! Winter Jam Newsboys, Kutless, New Song

11/18 MD Ocean City Leeland Sounds of Hope Tour

11/18-20 GA Atlanta National Youth Workers Convention

11/19 CA Fresno HUGE! Winter Jam Newsboys, Kutless, New Song

International Events:

10/28-29 Germany, BW Balingen Rock Without Limits

11/20 Canada, Ontario Parkway HUGE! Winter Jam Newsboys, Kutless, New Song

2. Comments on Last Week’s Essay

The bible does tell us that God draws ALL people to Himself, the problem being that not ALL people will accept Him. Many will turn away.

We must remember that God does love us all but we don't all love Him back.

When someone refuses God's love, because of His justice, not all will be saved.

This does not mean that we have the right to judge anyone, but we must make decisions all our lives as to how we will live and the good example we will set so that hopefully we join in Christ's ministry of drawing all to the One Eternal God!

On the question of justification and Catholicism, we are not 'saved' because of Baptism and good works.

We are saved by God's mercy and love. One must live a good life (following the Ten Commandments) which is a struggle for our human nature, and put our faith in the Triune God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit,

T. McKinley

All due respect, saying that Catholics believe that Baptism and a life of good works leads one to believe that Catholics believe that we can work our way to heaven. This is not Catholic doctrine. Catholics believe in salvation by grace through faith, and that faith is not a faith void of good works. Catholics do not believe in salvation through works... Thanks...

Craig Cowley

3. Essay: Are We Justified by Faith?

The notion of “justification by faith” grew out of the recognition that all people sin and therefore cannot be fully acceptable to God. Therefore, a person’s actions, alone, cannot earn that person everlasting life with God. There are biblical passages that support the theory that people can be justified by having faith in Christ as their redeemer and savior, but these passages are open to different interpretations. For example, Rev. Paul Nuechterlein has argued that the authentic Pauline epistles talk about the importance of “faith of Christ” rather than “faith in Christ,” contrary to the way that many English translations put it (http://girardianlectionary.net/core_convictions.htm).

I think that popular notions of “faith in Christ” are problematic, but a modified version of this theory can address many of my concerns. Many Christians hold that the only those who profess faith in Christ are justified. A first difficulty is that those who are born into Christian families have a far greater chance of being saved than those who are born into non-Christian households, and this strikes me as very unfair. A common retort is that God’s ways are not our ways, and what seems unfair to us is righteous according to God. However, such a response can be used to defend any kind of injustice, and at the least should give one pause about the merit of a theory. Alternatively, some have argued that faith is a gift from God rather than something we choose to have. This theory doesn’t eliminate the fairness problem, and I don’t find compelling evidence to support it.

A second problem is that some people have difficulty having faith in Christ. For example, there are people who, after evaluating the evidence, don’t find the doctrine of faith in Christ reasonable. My image of a loving and compassionate God does not accord with a theology in which God expects people to have faith in something that they can’t bring themselves to believe. Many nonbelievers are people who have suffered greatly and cannot have faith in a God who seems to endorse such suffering. It’s much easier to have faith in a loving God if one has had a relatively benign existence.

I suggest a notion of faith that involves works. It is difficult to ascertain what our purpose is in our brief moment in history on this small planet in a vast universe. It takes great faith to believe that our actions matter at all, and even greater faith that our actions matter to the creator of the universe. Those who have such faith can gain a sense of connection to God and a sense of direction and meaning in their lives, which can save them from the prospect of despair. I think a narcissistic existence, which among other things countenances harm to animals to satisfy human desires, undermines this sense of connection to the divine.

I’m not sure how faith relates to eternal existence with God, and I don’t think we have much empirical evidence from which to draw conclusions. Perhaps someday I’ll find out.

Stephen R. Kaufman, M.D.

4. This Week’s Essay from Rev. Frank and Mary Hoffman

The Immorality of Eating Meat
http://www.all-creatures.org/sermons98/s20111023.html

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