Christy
October 12th, 2007, 05:03 AM
How the church got to where it is today
Part One
1950 - 1985
How Did We Get To Where We Are Today?
In the 1940s and 1950s, a foundation was laid that would, in the decades to follow, shake Church structures to the core. In this article, we'll be looking at the last fifty years and examining the process that brought apostasy to the Church and put it on the road leading toward the New Age Christ. We will begin by looking at the forties.
The Forties
I only want to mention two things about this decade. One is a man and the other is an organization.
40s: DAVID DU PLESSIS. In 1947, the First World Pentecostal Conference was held in Zurich, Switzerland. This conference brought into prominence David Du Plessis, "Mr. Pentecost," who went on to organize three other World Conferences.
Du Plessis participated in the first of six assemblies of the World Council of Churches (Amsterdam, 1948), a council which
1. concluded that men have an obligation to recognize the brotherhood amongst denominations and to recognize all churches alike,
2. introduced the idea of worldwide unity to "claim for Christ the whole world and all aspects of life,"
3... and to bring to light the idea that the Kingdom of God was being established upon the earth.
Du Plessis's involvement in the WCC assembly was not a one time event. In his book and lectures, he went on to promote the WCC's "Week of Prayer for Christian Unity," whose theme was "The Unity of the Local Congregation in the Unity of the Universal Church." The exhortation for the eighth day of prayer went like this:
"As you pray remember that you are a member of the whole Body of Christ and in particular reflect on the need FOR MANIFESTATIONS OF UNITY through Church organizations - denominational boards, church synods, confessional alliances, local and national councils of churches, and especially for the World Council of Churches."
Du Plessis was a watchdog of the pentecostal experience. He said that from 1900-1908, the historic Protestant churches fought the Pentecostal revival and denounced it as from the devil. But by 1950-1958, the climate had changed and the Protestants' attitude had reversed. Du Plessis said that by 1961,
"I beheld the results of the change and can declare the Pentecostal revival within the churches is gathering force and speed."
By 1963, Du Plessis had preached the Pentecostal experience in 45 countries. He was a major player in the ecumenical movement from the pentecostal faction, and became a bridge between Rome and the world of Pentecostalism. In his book, The Spirit Bade me Go, he states his call by God as being
"called to labor for better understanding and closer fellowship between the Pentecostal movements, and to bring the Pentecostal message and blessing into the ranks OF ALL THE CHRISTIAN CHURCHES."
40s: LATTER RAIN In Canada, other seeds were being planted that would eventually affect the future direction of the Church as a whole. George and Earnest Hawtin and George Warnock became early leaders in what would become known as the Latter Rain movement. Latter Rain brought with it the belief that one had to have special knowledge, or "gnosis," to attain the fullness of God. Those who achieved "gnosis" would become the "true seed" who would bring deliverance to the world and establish Christ's Kingdom on earth.
The Fifties
50s: MANIFEST SONS. William Branham brought the Latter Rain movement to the United States and in the process, it took on a new name: the Manifest Sons of God. Manifest Sons' main penetration was in the Assemblies of God, which eventually judged the doctrine to be heretical.
50s: FGBFI. Also in the fifties, Demos Shakarian founded the non-denominational Full Gospel Businessmen's Fellowship International in fifty countries. The Fellowship hosted a World Convention of Pentecostals in Orlando, Florida, "putting aside . . . 'little doctrinal' points." Catholic keynote speaker Father James Bertalucci watered this compromise by saying,
"I want to tell you something, brothers and sisters. When the sleeping giant of Rome comes alive, watch out world. . . . especially in a day and age where we can cooperate and collaborate in winning the world for Jesus Christ."
These statements are examples of the beginnings of ecumenism among the churches. This ecumenism would eventually lead to the setting aside of large portions of doctrine, a move made necessary by such efforts as cooperative world evangelism. Eventually, deeper compromises of doctrine would pave the way for the "new revelations" of the Latter Rain prophets.
The Full Gospel fellowship is only one of many organizations I could mention. The important point here is that it and other groups provided an atmosphere in which walls between members of the denominations could be radically broken down during the next decade.
The Sixties
60s: VATICAN COUNCIL II: A NEW PENTECOST. The sixties brought major breakdowns of doctrine in the hearts of individual Christians. During the ecumenical Vatican Council II (1962-1965), the announcement was made that the Catholic Church had entered a "new era as a World Church." We can now see that the presence at this Council of David Du Plessis and other Protestant observers meant that ecumenism was to play a big part in the world church that the Catholic hierarchy had in mind.
Pope John XXIII had prayed for the Vatican Council in these words: "Renew Thy wonders in this our day as by a new Pentecost," and in 1966, the Pope's prayer was answered. The Charismatic Renewal began in the Catholic Church.
The events of this New Pentecost were described in many books of the time. Father Edward D. O'Conner wrote in his book, The Pentecostal Movement,
"The new Pentecostal fire has likewise leaped from one person to another, and thus has gone across the country."
This was a time when the walls of denominationalism started falling at great speed. According to John MacArthur's The Charismatics,
"In 1960, Pentecostalism spilled over denominational lines when Episcopal rector Dennis Bennet experienced what he believed was the baptism of the Holy Spirit and the gift of tongues. After that, as John Sherrill put it, "THE WALLS CAME TUMBLING DOWN." The Charismatic movement spread into mainline denominations such as Episcopalian, Methodist, Presbyterian, Baptist, and Lutheran."
And in As The Spirit Leads Us, Kevin Ranaghan wrote,
"Through the charismatic renewal, . . . God is healing breaches and wounds in the body of Christ where they have never been able to be healed before. Walls of separation long dividing people . . . ARE BEGINNING NOW by the action of the Spirit TO CRUMBLE; fear, suspicion, ignorance, and hatred are being dissipated in this rigorous and refreshing breeze.
"The newly found areas of relationship between Catholics and Protestants . . . are by no means an insignificant aspect of the renewal we are experiencing. . . . It is no exaggeration to say that the vast majority of Roman Catholics who are receiving the baptism in the Holy Spirit are continually finding mutual love and acceptance with Protestant Pentecostals as brothers and sisters in Christ. In almost every prayer group, and certainly at every day of renewal, conference, or special meeting organized and carried on under the auspices of a Catholic charismatic prayer group, one can find numbers of classical and neo-pentecostal Christians . . . ."
John Cardinal Suenens wrote in his book, A New Pentecost?,
". . . what we see with our eyes can be considered an awakening the like of which has never been seen before in the history of the Church."
Suenens also made this VERY significant statement:
"The drive toward unity among Christians seems irreversible; we may hope that the hour is not far off. The first millennium was, with some exceptions, the era of the undivided Church. The second, from 1054 until now, has seen the Church torn asunder. We are permitted to be confident with hope founded in God and in the progress of theology that the third millennium will see the restoration of full unity and full communion."
This is exactly the situation we find ourselves in today. Through the efforts of David Du Plessis and organizations such as Shakarian's Full Gospel Businessmen's Fellowship (FGBF), and within interdenominational prayer meetings, non-threatening situations were provided in which Catholic charismatics, ecumenicals, and non-denominationalists could fellowship "safely" together. It was within these person-to-person settings that controversial and divisive teachings were laid aside, and negative talk about other denominations receded. Controversial and divisive teachings were replaced with "giving one's testimony" and seeking God's deeper call for the church, meaning unity. Unity was coming about through a common experience. This growth and type of fellowship gradually became strong enough to begin to break down the denominational mindset of individual Christians. "Renewal" experts from various Protestant denominations and the Catholic Church now met to fertilize the roots of ecumenism. Such strategy meetings naturally led to a much deeper seeking of unity, a growth that moved from the personal level to that of Christian organizations.
60s: MANIFEST SONS. Even though William Branham's Manifest Sons of God movement had earlier been rejected, the root had not been destroyed. All during the time that ecumenism was building, the root remained alive, eventually breaking ground in the late sixties in the Home Circuit churches in Colorado. The movement also bore a new name - the Manchild Company. The expectation of the members of the Manchild Company was for the manifestation of the spiritual Manchild of Revelation 12, a group of people who would BE the corporate Christ, God's delegated authority on the earth. They believed that as each church submitted to this authority, God would overthrow the governments of the world and establish His millennial reign.
The growth of this spiritual authority was aided during this time by the Shepherding movement, which lessened loyalty to one's denomination by insisting instead on submission to the charismatic leadership. "Shepherding" placed the "flock" at the mercy of the shepherd. Ecumenism had broken down the boundaries of the denominations, but new boundaries were now set through the rise of what was termed "submission teaching" within the charismatic renewal. The vine sprouting from the roots of the Latter Rain was being trimmed and trained toward the formation of Paul Cain's Joel's Army, the corporate incarnation of Christ who would come "TO the Church BEFORE He came FOR it."
Also sprouting out of the Latter Rain movement during this period were the "prophets" and their "new revelations". These made their entry into the charismatic arena through the newly formed Kansas City Fellowship.
The Seventies
While the sixties birthed a sense of unity in the hearts of individual Christians, the seventies were a time when the non-competitive spirit of co-operation and sharing gathered Christians together into large ecumenical gatherings. The events of this decade further contributed to the breakdown of denominations as independent entities.
During the 1970s, three major events helped bring about a further merging of Catholics, mainline Protestants, charismatics, and pentecostals that prospered the sense of unity:
1. First, Dr. Billy Graham, a big influence on Christians worldwide, received the Catholic International Franciscan Award for "his contribution to true ecumenism."
2. The second event was pentecostal healer Kathryn Kuhlman's audience with Pope Paul. After the meeting, she said, "When I met Pope Paul there was a Oneness." This "oneness" was carried into and through her interdenominational healing services until her death.
3. The third major event was the first international mass rally of Charismatic Catholics and Evangelicals in Pneuma '72, held at Notre Dame University.
These three events caused great cracks in the walls between denominations, and the shoots from the vine began to flower in the aisles of the Protestant churches.
70s: COOPERATIVE EVANGELISM. Suddenly, in the early seventies, a new aspect was added to ecumenism. Meetings were held and agreements were made to institute cooperative evangelism.
In 1973, in what is hailed as David Du Plessis's major accomplishment, evangelicals and Roman Catholic bishops were linked together to form a North American Crusade Of Cooperative Evangelism.
In the same year, Bill Bright promoted a program, "Key 73 Evangelism," in which Roman Catholics, Orthodox, ecumenists, evangelicals and charismatics were brought together.
A year later, the Lausanne Movement for World Evangelism was founded by Billy Graham. Twenty seven hundred evanglicals met in Switzerland to draft a covenant to fulfill the Great Commission by evangelizing the world. Defined as a voluntary network, it sought
"to encourage churches and groups to take the whole Gospel to the whole world through the whole Church and to do so in a spirit of cooperation and sharing, not of competition."
The non-competitive spirit of co-operation and sharing that was formed in individuals in the sixties was now evolving into a corporate manifestation. In 1975, Du Plessis announced that he would not be satisfied with anything less than full ecumenicity in the whole family of nations. Spiritual renewal would be both charismatic and ecumenical, meaning union with the Catholic Church. And then in 1976, Du Plessis received the Pax Christi Award, "the evidence of his high repute in Roman Catholic circles." The message was becoming clear. Much fruit could be brought forth through the union of Rome and denominationalism, and this union was being seriously pursued.
70s: KANSAS CITY CHARISMATIC CONFERENCE. The ecumenical non-competitive "spirit of co-operation and sharing" became evident in July 1977 when an ecumenical rally was held in Kansas City. This was the First International Conference that brought together for the first time Christians from the three traditions in the charismatic renewal. Along with Fathers James Bertalucci and Francis McNutt, 50,000 Christians from many different denominational backgrounds met. Catholic Charismatics, Episcopalians, Pentecostal Holiness, Lutherans, Four Square Gospel, Presbyterians, Mennonites, Assemblies of God, United Methodists, Southern Baptists and others from various renewal service committees were present. David Du Plessis' presentation, "All Together: Charismatic and Ecumenical," captured the essence of the Conference.
Bert Ghezzi, editor of New Covenant magazine, labeled it an historic gathering, and in the October 1977 edition, wrote this in an editorial:
"This conference brought together for the first time Christians from the three traditions in the charismatic renewal - the classical pentecostal, the neo-pentecostal and the Catholic pentecostal. This historic gathering was a first response to a directive word that the Lord spoke at a conference on the Catholic charismatic renewal in 1974. At that time, the Lord expressed his desire to bring the three streams together. . . . a sign of hope for all Christians. . . . The Lord called us all to reach beyond our denominational walls to work and pray agressively for a higher goal - the unification of all Christianity."
70s: POPE JOHN PAUL II. Also during the seventies, Pope John Paul II was elected, and in the first 100 words of his inaugural address, he "recognized his sovereign placement" and declared that the year 2000 would "be a year of a great Jubilee." We will see the importance of this Year of Jubilee later.
70s: A NEW PROTESTANT REFORMATION. In his 1979 book The Emerging Order, New Age author Jeremy Rifkin wrote:
"We are in the early stages of a second Protestant Reformation. . . . While Charismatics are generating a potential liberating impulse, the more mainline evangelical movement is beginning to provide the necessary reformulation of theological doctrine that is essential for the creation of a new covenant vision and worldview. . . . If the charismatic and evangelical strains of the new Christian renewal movement come together and unite a liberating energy with a new covenant vision for society, it is possible that a great religious awakening will take place, one potentially powerful enough to incite a second Protestant reformation. . . . emerging between now and the year A.D. 2000."
Rifkin's predictions began to come true in the next decade.
The Eighties
The eighties were a time of pulling together into a corporate, united body what had been broken down in the previous two decades - the denominations and the individuals in the denominations. Large non-denominational gatherings became commonplace; one such gathering had 700,000 in attendance. Speakers from Catholicism, mainline Protestant denominations and independent churches broke down the walls even more at the Washington For Jesus Rally in Washington, D.C. Pat Robertson, John Meares, Dr. Bill Bright, James Robinson and Jim Bakker shared the microphone with Catholic Fathers Randall and Bertalucci.
Other large gatherings included the "Jesus '81 Rallies" and Billy Graham's International conference, "Amsterdam '83," attended by Pat Robertson, Robert Schuller, Dr. Paul Cho, and Dr. Bill Bright, among others. Charisma magazine reported "a shift in attitude and terminology from the world's leading evangelical," meaning Graham.
80s: COALITION ON REVIVAL. In the Spring of 1984, Reconstructionist Jay Grimstead launched the Coalition on Revival (COR), and its 112-member Steering Committee formed the first draft of COR's 42 Articles On Historic Christian Doctrine. COR would become a major influence in turning the Church's thinking toward establishing the Kingdom of God on earth. The COR documents of the Third Congress stated: "The Coalition on Revival was called into existence as a catalyst to help unify and mobilize leadership in the Body of Christ to cause 'God's will to be done on earth as it is in heaven.'"
COR's 42 Articles were used to form the theological foundation for 17 Worldview Sphere Documents, which stated what COR believed to be basic, Biblical principles which must govern the fields of Law, Government, Economics, Education, Media, the Arts, Science, Medicine and several spheres of ministry such as Evangelism and Discipleship. It's important to mention that Baptism and eschatology were excluded from the 42 Articles. This omission and a non-argumentative stance greatly contributed to a shift for many from a pre-millennial to a post-millennial worldview. The COR Steering Committee Document worried that
"The Church of Jesus Christ has now grown lukewarm and indifferent in pursuing its redemptive priestly ministry and corrective prophetic authority. . . [the Church's] concerns are more with heaven, the future and escaping from this world [meaning by the rapture] at Christ's second coming."
Instead of clarifying our hope as Christ's return alone, COR invited all Christians to help bring the kingdom of God down from heaven through a united effort. True hope in Christ began to shift to a hope that we could establish the kingdom with God's blessing.
The COR Documents summarized 2,000 years of the Church's theology from all different denominations, and COR said that the summaries were enthusiastically accepted by theologians from almost every doctrinal position, denomination and many institutions of higher learning. Founder Jay Grimstead said Catholic and Protestant theologians, churches, colleges, and organizations around the world would use them to create their own statements of faith.
The COR Steering Committee ratified the 42 Articles in Aug 1984. Plenary Speaker Bill Bright of Campus Crusade for Christ spoke on "The Great Commission And Our Global Mission Task."
The overall acceptance of the 42 Articles paved the way for the 1994 North American Protestant Church Council and "hope for a doctrinal unity at a world-level hitherto unimagined." Such a doctrinal unity was now necessary because the denominational churches had been weakened. Not only were the denominations to be torn down and then reassembled into a united Church, but doctrine, too, would suffer the same fate. The doctrine of Christ's second coming would suffer the most, as a new worldview was being set in place and being accepted by large segments of the now unifying Church.
End of Part One
http://users.stargate.net/~ejt/founda1.htm
Part Two
http://users.stargate.net/~ejt/founda2.htm
Part Three
http://users.stargate.net/~ejt/caina.htm
Part Four
http://users.stargate.net/~ejt/corpchr1.htm
Part Five
http://users.stargate.net/~ejt/corpchr2.htm
Part Six
http://users.stargate.net/~ejt/corpchr3.htm
Part Seven
http://users.stargate.net/~ejt/maitreya.htm
Timeline 1
http://users.stargate.net/~ejt/timelin1.htm
Timeline 2
http://users.stargate.net/~ejt/timelin2.htm
Timeline 3
http://users.stargate.net/~ejt/timelin3.htm
**Disclaimer : I have posted this article purely for information/educational purposes only. Further, I do not have knowledge of the beliefs or doctrines of this website or it's administrator, nor do I profess to be furthering their cause, should any of their doctrines/beliefs found to be unscriptural. We are explicitly commanded in the Word of God to test everything - therefore, anyone reading this article should use their common sense and discernment** Thank you.
Part One
1950 - 1985
How Did We Get To Where We Are Today?
In the 1940s and 1950s, a foundation was laid that would, in the decades to follow, shake Church structures to the core. In this article, we'll be looking at the last fifty years and examining the process that brought apostasy to the Church and put it on the road leading toward the New Age Christ. We will begin by looking at the forties.
The Forties
I only want to mention two things about this decade. One is a man and the other is an organization.
40s: DAVID DU PLESSIS. In 1947, the First World Pentecostal Conference was held in Zurich, Switzerland. This conference brought into prominence David Du Plessis, "Mr. Pentecost," who went on to organize three other World Conferences.
Du Plessis participated in the first of six assemblies of the World Council of Churches (Amsterdam, 1948), a council which
1. concluded that men have an obligation to recognize the brotherhood amongst denominations and to recognize all churches alike,
2. introduced the idea of worldwide unity to "claim for Christ the whole world and all aspects of life,"
3... and to bring to light the idea that the Kingdom of God was being established upon the earth.
Du Plessis's involvement in the WCC assembly was not a one time event. In his book and lectures, he went on to promote the WCC's "Week of Prayer for Christian Unity," whose theme was "The Unity of the Local Congregation in the Unity of the Universal Church." The exhortation for the eighth day of prayer went like this:
"As you pray remember that you are a member of the whole Body of Christ and in particular reflect on the need FOR MANIFESTATIONS OF UNITY through Church organizations - denominational boards, church synods, confessional alliances, local and national councils of churches, and especially for the World Council of Churches."
Du Plessis was a watchdog of the pentecostal experience. He said that from 1900-1908, the historic Protestant churches fought the Pentecostal revival and denounced it as from the devil. But by 1950-1958, the climate had changed and the Protestants' attitude had reversed. Du Plessis said that by 1961,
"I beheld the results of the change and can declare the Pentecostal revival within the churches is gathering force and speed."
By 1963, Du Plessis had preached the Pentecostal experience in 45 countries. He was a major player in the ecumenical movement from the pentecostal faction, and became a bridge between Rome and the world of Pentecostalism. In his book, The Spirit Bade me Go, he states his call by God as being
"called to labor for better understanding and closer fellowship between the Pentecostal movements, and to bring the Pentecostal message and blessing into the ranks OF ALL THE CHRISTIAN CHURCHES."
40s: LATTER RAIN In Canada, other seeds were being planted that would eventually affect the future direction of the Church as a whole. George and Earnest Hawtin and George Warnock became early leaders in what would become known as the Latter Rain movement. Latter Rain brought with it the belief that one had to have special knowledge, or "gnosis," to attain the fullness of God. Those who achieved "gnosis" would become the "true seed" who would bring deliverance to the world and establish Christ's Kingdom on earth.
The Fifties
50s: MANIFEST SONS. William Branham brought the Latter Rain movement to the United States and in the process, it took on a new name: the Manifest Sons of God. Manifest Sons' main penetration was in the Assemblies of God, which eventually judged the doctrine to be heretical.
50s: FGBFI. Also in the fifties, Demos Shakarian founded the non-denominational Full Gospel Businessmen's Fellowship International in fifty countries. The Fellowship hosted a World Convention of Pentecostals in Orlando, Florida, "putting aside . . . 'little doctrinal' points." Catholic keynote speaker Father James Bertalucci watered this compromise by saying,
"I want to tell you something, brothers and sisters. When the sleeping giant of Rome comes alive, watch out world. . . . especially in a day and age where we can cooperate and collaborate in winning the world for Jesus Christ."
These statements are examples of the beginnings of ecumenism among the churches. This ecumenism would eventually lead to the setting aside of large portions of doctrine, a move made necessary by such efforts as cooperative world evangelism. Eventually, deeper compromises of doctrine would pave the way for the "new revelations" of the Latter Rain prophets.
The Full Gospel fellowship is only one of many organizations I could mention. The important point here is that it and other groups provided an atmosphere in which walls between members of the denominations could be radically broken down during the next decade.
The Sixties
60s: VATICAN COUNCIL II: A NEW PENTECOST. The sixties brought major breakdowns of doctrine in the hearts of individual Christians. During the ecumenical Vatican Council II (1962-1965), the announcement was made that the Catholic Church had entered a "new era as a World Church." We can now see that the presence at this Council of David Du Plessis and other Protestant observers meant that ecumenism was to play a big part in the world church that the Catholic hierarchy had in mind.
Pope John XXIII had prayed for the Vatican Council in these words: "Renew Thy wonders in this our day as by a new Pentecost," and in 1966, the Pope's prayer was answered. The Charismatic Renewal began in the Catholic Church.
The events of this New Pentecost were described in many books of the time. Father Edward D. O'Conner wrote in his book, The Pentecostal Movement,
"The new Pentecostal fire has likewise leaped from one person to another, and thus has gone across the country."
This was a time when the walls of denominationalism started falling at great speed. According to John MacArthur's The Charismatics,
"In 1960, Pentecostalism spilled over denominational lines when Episcopal rector Dennis Bennet experienced what he believed was the baptism of the Holy Spirit and the gift of tongues. After that, as John Sherrill put it, "THE WALLS CAME TUMBLING DOWN." The Charismatic movement spread into mainline denominations such as Episcopalian, Methodist, Presbyterian, Baptist, and Lutheran."
And in As The Spirit Leads Us, Kevin Ranaghan wrote,
"Through the charismatic renewal, . . . God is healing breaches and wounds in the body of Christ where they have never been able to be healed before. Walls of separation long dividing people . . . ARE BEGINNING NOW by the action of the Spirit TO CRUMBLE; fear, suspicion, ignorance, and hatred are being dissipated in this rigorous and refreshing breeze.
"The newly found areas of relationship between Catholics and Protestants . . . are by no means an insignificant aspect of the renewal we are experiencing. . . . It is no exaggeration to say that the vast majority of Roman Catholics who are receiving the baptism in the Holy Spirit are continually finding mutual love and acceptance with Protestant Pentecostals as brothers and sisters in Christ. In almost every prayer group, and certainly at every day of renewal, conference, or special meeting organized and carried on under the auspices of a Catholic charismatic prayer group, one can find numbers of classical and neo-pentecostal Christians . . . ."
John Cardinal Suenens wrote in his book, A New Pentecost?,
". . . what we see with our eyes can be considered an awakening the like of which has never been seen before in the history of the Church."
Suenens also made this VERY significant statement:
"The drive toward unity among Christians seems irreversible; we may hope that the hour is not far off. The first millennium was, with some exceptions, the era of the undivided Church. The second, from 1054 until now, has seen the Church torn asunder. We are permitted to be confident with hope founded in God and in the progress of theology that the third millennium will see the restoration of full unity and full communion."
This is exactly the situation we find ourselves in today. Through the efforts of David Du Plessis and organizations such as Shakarian's Full Gospel Businessmen's Fellowship (FGBF), and within interdenominational prayer meetings, non-threatening situations were provided in which Catholic charismatics, ecumenicals, and non-denominationalists could fellowship "safely" together. It was within these person-to-person settings that controversial and divisive teachings were laid aside, and negative talk about other denominations receded. Controversial and divisive teachings were replaced with "giving one's testimony" and seeking God's deeper call for the church, meaning unity. Unity was coming about through a common experience. This growth and type of fellowship gradually became strong enough to begin to break down the denominational mindset of individual Christians. "Renewal" experts from various Protestant denominations and the Catholic Church now met to fertilize the roots of ecumenism. Such strategy meetings naturally led to a much deeper seeking of unity, a growth that moved from the personal level to that of Christian organizations.
60s: MANIFEST SONS. Even though William Branham's Manifest Sons of God movement had earlier been rejected, the root had not been destroyed. All during the time that ecumenism was building, the root remained alive, eventually breaking ground in the late sixties in the Home Circuit churches in Colorado. The movement also bore a new name - the Manchild Company. The expectation of the members of the Manchild Company was for the manifestation of the spiritual Manchild of Revelation 12, a group of people who would BE the corporate Christ, God's delegated authority on the earth. They believed that as each church submitted to this authority, God would overthrow the governments of the world and establish His millennial reign.
The growth of this spiritual authority was aided during this time by the Shepherding movement, which lessened loyalty to one's denomination by insisting instead on submission to the charismatic leadership. "Shepherding" placed the "flock" at the mercy of the shepherd. Ecumenism had broken down the boundaries of the denominations, but new boundaries were now set through the rise of what was termed "submission teaching" within the charismatic renewal. The vine sprouting from the roots of the Latter Rain was being trimmed and trained toward the formation of Paul Cain's Joel's Army, the corporate incarnation of Christ who would come "TO the Church BEFORE He came FOR it."
Also sprouting out of the Latter Rain movement during this period were the "prophets" and their "new revelations". These made their entry into the charismatic arena through the newly formed Kansas City Fellowship.
The Seventies
While the sixties birthed a sense of unity in the hearts of individual Christians, the seventies were a time when the non-competitive spirit of co-operation and sharing gathered Christians together into large ecumenical gatherings. The events of this decade further contributed to the breakdown of denominations as independent entities.
During the 1970s, three major events helped bring about a further merging of Catholics, mainline Protestants, charismatics, and pentecostals that prospered the sense of unity:
1. First, Dr. Billy Graham, a big influence on Christians worldwide, received the Catholic International Franciscan Award for "his contribution to true ecumenism."
2. The second event was pentecostal healer Kathryn Kuhlman's audience with Pope Paul. After the meeting, she said, "When I met Pope Paul there was a Oneness." This "oneness" was carried into and through her interdenominational healing services until her death.
3. The third major event was the first international mass rally of Charismatic Catholics and Evangelicals in Pneuma '72, held at Notre Dame University.
These three events caused great cracks in the walls between denominations, and the shoots from the vine began to flower in the aisles of the Protestant churches.
70s: COOPERATIVE EVANGELISM. Suddenly, in the early seventies, a new aspect was added to ecumenism. Meetings were held and agreements were made to institute cooperative evangelism.
In 1973, in what is hailed as David Du Plessis's major accomplishment, evangelicals and Roman Catholic bishops were linked together to form a North American Crusade Of Cooperative Evangelism.
In the same year, Bill Bright promoted a program, "Key 73 Evangelism," in which Roman Catholics, Orthodox, ecumenists, evangelicals and charismatics were brought together.
A year later, the Lausanne Movement for World Evangelism was founded by Billy Graham. Twenty seven hundred evanglicals met in Switzerland to draft a covenant to fulfill the Great Commission by evangelizing the world. Defined as a voluntary network, it sought
"to encourage churches and groups to take the whole Gospel to the whole world through the whole Church and to do so in a spirit of cooperation and sharing, not of competition."
The non-competitive spirit of co-operation and sharing that was formed in individuals in the sixties was now evolving into a corporate manifestation. In 1975, Du Plessis announced that he would not be satisfied with anything less than full ecumenicity in the whole family of nations. Spiritual renewal would be both charismatic and ecumenical, meaning union with the Catholic Church. And then in 1976, Du Plessis received the Pax Christi Award, "the evidence of his high repute in Roman Catholic circles." The message was becoming clear. Much fruit could be brought forth through the union of Rome and denominationalism, and this union was being seriously pursued.
70s: KANSAS CITY CHARISMATIC CONFERENCE. The ecumenical non-competitive "spirit of co-operation and sharing" became evident in July 1977 when an ecumenical rally was held in Kansas City. This was the First International Conference that brought together for the first time Christians from the three traditions in the charismatic renewal. Along with Fathers James Bertalucci and Francis McNutt, 50,000 Christians from many different denominational backgrounds met. Catholic Charismatics, Episcopalians, Pentecostal Holiness, Lutherans, Four Square Gospel, Presbyterians, Mennonites, Assemblies of God, United Methodists, Southern Baptists and others from various renewal service committees were present. David Du Plessis' presentation, "All Together: Charismatic and Ecumenical," captured the essence of the Conference.
Bert Ghezzi, editor of New Covenant magazine, labeled it an historic gathering, and in the October 1977 edition, wrote this in an editorial:
"This conference brought together for the first time Christians from the three traditions in the charismatic renewal - the classical pentecostal, the neo-pentecostal and the Catholic pentecostal. This historic gathering was a first response to a directive word that the Lord spoke at a conference on the Catholic charismatic renewal in 1974. At that time, the Lord expressed his desire to bring the three streams together. . . . a sign of hope for all Christians. . . . The Lord called us all to reach beyond our denominational walls to work and pray agressively for a higher goal - the unification of all Christianity."
70s: POPE JOHN PAUL II. Also during the seventies, Pope John Paul II was elected, and in the first 100 words of his inaugural address, he "recognized his sovereign placement" and declared that the year 2000 would "be a year of a great Jubilee." We will see the importance of this Year of Jubilee later.
70s: A NEW PROTESTANT REFORMATION. In his 1979 book The Emerging Order, New Age author Jeremy Rifkin wrote:
"We are in the early stages of a second Protestant Reformation. . . . While Charismatics are generating a potential liberating impulse, the more mainline evangelical movement is beginning to provide the necessary reformulation of theological doctrine that is essential for the creation of a new covenant vision and worldview. . . . If the charismatic and evangelical strains of the new Christian renewal movement come together and unite a liberating energy with a new covenant vision for society, it is possible that a great religious awakening will take place, one potentially powerful enough to incite a second Protestant reformation. . . . emerging between now and the year A.D. 2000."
Rifkin's predictions began to come true in the next decade.
The Eighties
The eighties were a time of pulling together into a corporate, united body what had been broken down in the previous two decades - the denominations and the individuals in the denominations. Large non-denominational gatherings became commonplace; one such gathering had 700,000 in attendance. Speakers from Catholicism, mainline Protestant denominations and independent churches broke down the walls even more at the Washington For Jesus Rally in Washington, D.C. Pat Robertson, John Meares, Dr. Bill Bright, James Robinson and Jim Bakker shared the microphone with Catholic Fathers Randall and Bertalucci.
Other large gatherings included the "Jesus '81 Rallies" and Billy Graham's International conference, "Amsterdam '83," attended by Pat Robertson, Robert Schuller, Dr. Paul Cho, and Dr. Bill Bright, among others. Charisma magazine reported "a shift in attitude and terminology from the world's leading evangelical," meaning Graham.
80s: COALITION ON REVIVAL. In the Spring of 1984, Reconstructionist Jay Grimstead launched the Coalition on Revival (COR), and its 112-member Steering Committee formed the first draft of COR's 42 Articles On Historic Christian Doctrine. COR would become a major influence in turning the Church's thinking toward establishing the Kingdom of God on earth. The COR documents of the Third Congress stated: "The Coalition on Revival was called into existence as a catalyst to help unify and mobilize leadership in the Body of Christ to cause 'God's will to be done on earth as it is in heaven.'"
COR's 42 Articles were used to form the theological foundation for 17 Worldview Sphere Documents, which stated what COR believed to be basic, Biblical principles which must govern the fields of Law, Government, Economics, Education, Media, the Arts, Science, Medicine and several spheres of ministry such as Evangelism and Discipleship. It's important to mention that Baptism and eschatology were excluded from the 42 Articles. This omission and a non-argumentative stance greatly contributed to a shift for many from a pre-millennial to a post-millennial worldview. The COR Steering Committee Document worried that
"The Church of Jesus Christ has now grown lukewarm and indifferent in pursuing its redemptive priestly ministry and corrective prophetic authority. . . [the Church's] concerns are more with heaven, the future and escaping from this world [meaning by the rapture] at Christ's second coming."
Instead of clarifying our hope as Christ's return alone, COR invited all Christians to help bring the kingdom of God down from heaven through a united effort. True hope in Christ began to shift to a hope that we could establish the kingdom with God's blessing.
The COR Documents summarized 2,000 years of the Church's theology from all different denominations, and COR said that the summaries were enthusiastically accepted by theologians from almost every doctrinal position, denomination and many institutions of higher learning. Founder Jay Grimstead said Catholic and Protestant theologians, churches, colleges, and organizations around the world would use them to create their own statements of faith.
The COR Steering Committee ratified the 42 Articles in Aug 1984. Plenary Speaker Bill Bright of Campus Crusade for Christ spoke on "The Great Commission And Our Global Mission Task."
The overall acceptance of the 42 Articles paved the way for the 1994 North American Protestant Church Council and "hope for a doctrinal unity at a world-level hitherto unimagined." Such a doctrinal unity was now necessary because the denominational churches had been weakened. Not only were the denominations to be torn down and then reassembled into a united Church, but doctrine, too, would suffer the same fate. The doctrine of Christ's second coming would suffer the most, as a new worldview was being set in place and being accepted by large segments of the now unifying Church.
End of Part One
http://users.stargate.net/~ejt/founda1.htm
Part Two
http://users.stargate.net/~ejt/founda2.htm
Part Three
http://users.stargate.net/~ejt/caina.htm
Part Four
http://users.stargate.net/~ejt/corpchr1.htm
Part Five
http://users.stargate.net/~ejt/corpchr2.htm
Part Six
http://users.stargate.net/~ejt/corpchr3.htm
Part Seven
http://users.stargate.net/~ejt/maitreya.htm
Timeline 1
http://users.stargate.net/~ejt/timelin1.htm
Timeline 2
http://users.stargate.net/~ejt/timelin2.htm
Timeline 3
http://users.stargate.net/~ejt/timelin3.htm
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