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"Research Notes" and "International" (columns from the Christian
Research Newsletter, Volume 3: Number 5, 1990) by Ron Rhodes and
Paul Carden.
    The editor of the Christian Research Newsletter is Ron
Rhodes.

-------------

*The _New Revised Standard Version_ of the Bible Eliminates Many
Male-Centered Terms.*

    According to the September 28 _New York Times,_ "a new
translation of the Bible that uses contemporary language and
eliminates many male-centered terms and all the archaic thees and
thous was officially introduced [on September 27] for use in the
nation's major Protestant churches." The sponsors of the new
version say it will eventually replace the _Revised Standard
Version_ which was published in 1952 and has sold over 55 million
copies.

    While the new version makes many changes, there was no
tampering with the masculine idiom for God. "God remains 'Our
Father' and Jesus is 'the Son of Man.' But other masculine
renderings not referring to the deity have been eliminated,
especially where translators felt the intent of the original Hebrew
or Greek was more inclusive."

    The article noted that while the new version has gained broad
acceptance, "objections have been raised at both ends of the
religious spectrum. Fundamentalists have questioned its
innovations, and Christian feminists have complained it does not go
far enough."

    Besides trying to minimize male-centered language, the
translators also tried to be sensitive to issues of race. For
example, where the _Revised Standard Version_ (RSV) says "I am very
dark, but comely" (Song of Solomon 1:5), the _New Revised Standard
Version_ (NRSV) says: "I am black and beautiful."

    The translators have also tried to eliminate terms that have
taken on colloquial meanings since the RSV was published in 1952.
For example, where the RSV says, "I will accept no bull from your
house" (Ps. 50:9), the NRSV says, "I will not accept a bull from
your house." Likewise, where the RSV says, "once I was stoned" (2
Cor. 11:25), the NRSV says, "once I received a stoning."

    The translation committee was headed by Princeton scholar Bruce
M. Metzger and the Bible was produced under the auspices of the
National Council of Churches. Metzger said the aim was to be "as
literal as possible" in adhering to ancient Hebrew and Greek texts,
but also "as free as necessary" in making the meaning clear in
understandable English.

    Most CRI researchers recommend either the _New American
Standard Version_ or the _New International Version._

-------------

*The Boston Church of Christ Attempts to Keep a Low Profile in the
Western United States.*

    The Boston Church of Christ is well known for using
authoritarian methods on its converts. Unlike Boston Church
congregations in other parts of the United States, however, those
established in Los Angeles and Orange County (California) a year
ago have apparently been free of controversy, according to the
August 4 _Los Angeles Times._

    Marty Fuqua, who oversees about 20 congregations planted by the
Boston church in the western United States, admits that the church
has been subject to criticism elsewhere. The article says the
Boston church's practices "emphasize intense teacher-disciple
relations that limit members' personal freedoms."

    The _Times_ cites an article in _Discipleship Magazine_ in
which church member Steve Johnson said that group sessions may
become rough because "personal sins will be exposed, confessed and
dealt with." Some will be "on the hot seat, under the gun, so to
speak." The _Times_ notes the claim of church critics that members
are forced to be totally dependent on the group's approval.

    The mainstream Churches of Christ -- a loose-knit fellowship of
about 13,000 theologically conservative congregations -- has sought
to distance itself from this controversial movement. In 1987 a
Churches of Christ publication called the Boston Church "divisive,
authoritarian, and 'dangerous,'" the _Times_ reports.

-------------

*The Persian Gulf Crisis Stirs Doomsday Predictions of Armageddon.*

    Russell Chandler, in the September 20 _Los Angeles Times,_
reports that "as the threat of a major war in the Persian Gulf has
heated up in recent weeks, so have religious predictions of a fiery
Armageddon and the end of the world." Many see the Middle East
crisis as "the trigger for a bloody series of events that will lead
to the Second Coming of Jesus Christ."

    Billy Graham recently warned that upheavals in the Persian Gulf
could have "major spiritual implications." According to the
article, Graham said that "these events are happening in that part
of the world where history began, and, the Bible says, where
history as we know it, will some day end."

    Graham later said he does not agree with those who say Iraqi
President Saddam Hussein is the Antichrist predicted in Scripture.
In support of his position, he commented that "historians tell us
that people thought Napoleon was the Antichrist, they thought
Mussolini was the Antichrist and they thought Hitler was the
Antichrist."

    The article cites a number of prophecy teachers who relate what
is happening in the Persian Gulf to prophecies in the Bible. While
developments in the Persian Gulf _may_ or _may not_ be related to
Bible prophecy, CRI urges Christians to approach this issue
prudently and nonsensationally.

    An article that may be of interest to _Newsletter_ readers is
in the Fall 1990 CHRISTIAN RESEARCH JOURNAL and is entitled
"Millennial Madness." In this article, Ron Rhodes examines the
folly of putting much credence in doomsday predictions.

-------------

*Reverend Sun Myung Moon Hints that He is the Messiah to the
"Assembly of the World Religions."*

    Reverend Sun Myung Moon, founder and leader of the Unification
Church, indicated to an eclectic gathering of swamis, scholars,
lamas, and imams that he is the new world Messiah. This group was
attending Moon's own "Assembly of the World Religions" -- a lavish,
all-expense-paid conference Moon bankrolled at the San Francisco
Airport Hyatt Regency, according to the August 17 _Orange County
Register._

    At the conference, Moon said humanity must find its "true
parent" and free itself from the grips of Satan. "This person is
the Messiah," the article cites Moon as saying. "To help fulfill
this very purpose I have been called upon by God....I have suffered
persecution and confronted death with only one purpose in mind, so
that I can live with the heart of true parents to love races of all
colors in the world."

    The article notes that "Unification Church doctrine says Jesus
failed in his mission and must be supplanted by a second,
Korean-born Messiah. Longtime church members said Thursday's speech
was Moon's most direct public pronouncement that he sees himself as
that Messiah."

    Moon's message received a mixed reaction from the eclectic
group. "For us, the only Messiah is Jesus Christ," said Reverend
Eugenia Araya, a Lutheran minister from Chile. Other non-Christian
participants gave Moon a more favorable hearing. "We don't accept
Moon as Messiah, but we respect his vision of bringing the world's
religions together," said M. A. Zaki Badawi, principal of the
Moslem College of London.

    The _Register_ reports that "other participants conceded that
the main reason they came to the conference was that they could not
pass up an all-expense-paid trip to San Francisco."

-------------

*Despite a Vatican Ban, Catholic Pilgrims Continue to Flock to
Medjugorje.*

    At this writing, over 11 million pilgrims have visited the
Yugoslav village of Medjugorje, many claiming to have witnessed
supernatural phenomena there. According to the September 28 _New
York Times,_ "the Vatican has warned that church-sponsored
pilgrimages to this mountain village are banned, but that has not
stopped Roman Catholic pilgrims from crowding into Medjugorje,
where the Virgin Mary is said to have been appearing daily to four
young people for the last decade."

    The article notes that Medjugorje has become "Yugoslavia's
hottest tourist attraction, a hard-currency wellspring whose yearly
cash flow even church and government officials are loath to gauge."
Once a poor peasant village, Medjugorje has "taken on the trappings
of a bustling beach town... The streets are jammed with tour buses,
campers, cars and pilgrims."

    A recent letter published by Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger, head of
the Vatican's office on doctrine, warned that the Roman Catholic
church forbids official pilgrimages to Medjugorje. "This ban has
been interpreted to mean that Catholic parishes may not organize
tours and that priests, nuns and lay church workers may not
officially lead pilgrimages here until the Vatican makes a
pronouncement on the apparition's authenticity. Such a
pronouncement may be years off," the _Times_ reports. Some
Catholics have circumvented the ban by "organizing private tours
accompanied by clergymen cast as 'spiritual advisers.'"

-------------

*Contending for the Faith*

    The Christian Research Institute (CRI) was founded in obedience
to Jude 3: "Contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all
delivered to the saints." Because this verse is central to CRI's
mission, and because God desires _all_ Christians to contend for
the faith, it is appropriate that we make some observations about
its meaning.

    In the Greek text, the definite article _the_ preceding the
word "faith" points to the _one and only faith;_ there is no other.
Of course, this excludes the counterfeit "faith" of the cults. "The
faith" refers to a specific _body of faith or belief_ -- that
apostolic teaching and preaching that _was_ and _continues to be_
regulative upon the church. References to this body of truth are
sprinkled throughout the New Testament. Acts 6:7, for example,
indicates that following Pentecost, "the number of the disciples
continued to increase greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the
priests were becoming obedient to _the faith."_ Later, after Paul
had become a believer, Galatians 1:23 reveals that "he who once
persecuted us [believers] is now preaching _the faith."_ Speaking
prophetically, this same Paul wrote that "in latter times some will
fall away from _the faith"_ (1 Tim. 4:1). Clearly, "the faith"
refers to a definitive body of truth.

   Jude 3 tells us that this body of truth was "_once for all_
delivered to the saints." The word translated "once for all"
(Greek: _apax_) refers to something that has been done for all
time, something that _never_ needs repeating. It was a _unique,_
and _final_ event.

    Moreover, the word translated "delivered" is an aorist passive
participle, indicating an act that was _completed in the past_ with
_no continuing element._ There would be no new or complimentary
"faith" or body of truth "delivered" later in new "revelations"
such as _The Book of Mormon._ The delivering of the faith was a
once for all event _of the past._

    What does it mean to "contend earnestly" for this faith? The
Greek word translated "contend" was often used in New Testament
times to refer to competition in athletic contests. The idea behind
the word is that of an intense and vigorous struggle to defeat the
opposition. The English word "agony" comes from the noun form of
this word. Athletes were to push themselves to the point of agony
in their struggle to win the contest. Likewise, believers are to
engage in an intense and vigorous struggle in defending the
Christian faith against doctrinally errant challengers.

    CRI exists to help Christians "contend" for the faith and stand
against the errors of the cults, the occult, and aberrant Christian
movements. The materials available from CRI cover a broad range of
topics and are strategically designed to help Christians discern
truth from error. If you would like a copy of CRI's Resource
Catalogue, please check the appropriate box on the attached order
form/envelope.


-------------


"Jehovah's Witness Outreach a Resounding Success"

    Brazilian Watchtower officials seldom miss an opportunity to
impress their countrymen with dramatic displays of their
"Christian" unity and coordination. This year, however, the
Jehovah's Witnesses (JWs) boldly planned a first: simultaneous
conventions in Sao Paulo's two largest soccer stadiums -- Morumbi
and Pacaembu. Combined attendance was estimated at 150,000 -- a
figure close to half the total number of JWs in the entire country.
Broad media attention was guaranteed.

    But CRI was ready. On August 18 some 200 believers, trained by
CRI personnel, divided between the two stadiums from 10 a.m. to 7
p.m. -- and even after this time, many of them didn't want to go
home!

    The outreach strategy was to conduct a peaceful demonstration
in front of both stadiums, with a twofold message. (1) _To the
public:_ the Watchtower organization is a willfully deceptive,
anti-Christian, authoritarian cult, and the Jehovah's Witnesses are
its victims. (2) _To the Witnesses:_ the Watchtower Society has
betrayed your trust, but Jesus freely offers you eternal life.

    Watchtower leaders who had hoped for a public-relations coup
found themselves with a minor nightmare on their hands. Frightened
convention officials did what little they could to prevent, or at
least neutralize, the outreach. They did this first by attempting
to persuade police to bar demonstrators from the stadium grounds
(they were overruled), and then by sternly warning convention-goers
not to accept "apostate literature" or read the signs and banners
the Christians were carrying.

    Nevertheless, the message got through. At one stadium, JW
officials made the mistake of routing a line of 2,000 baptismal
candidates outside the stadium -- right in front of the smiling
demonstrators, whose 12-foot-wide banners they couldn't resist
reading as they slowly filed past.

    There were also many fruitful one-on-one dialogues with JWs and
their students. One JW decided to abandon the Watchtower
organization before he even left the convention.

    One of the most striking answers to prayer was the
unprecedented media coverage CRI received. CRI researchers and one
former JW were able to forcefully state the case against the
Watchtower before millions of Brazilians through nearly every major
magazine and newspaper, along with national and local radio and
television interviews.

    The effort is still bearing fruit. A few days after the
outreach, a JW named Marcelo accepted an invitation to stop by
CRI's office and watch a videotape of the convention news coverage.
He was stunned to see a Watchtower official lying not once, but
_twice_ on camera. He is now discussing Christian doctrine with CRI
staff, who feel he is not far from the Kingdom of God.

    _Please pray that Marcelo and the thousands of other JWs
touched through this effort would turn their lives to Christ._

-------------

*East Bloc Update*

    Cult activities continue to expand in the East Bloc. Recent
developments in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union include:

    *Mormonism:* Only days after the Supreme Soviet passed
legislation guaranteeing greater religious freedom, Salt Lake City
proudly announced that the Soviet Council of Religious Affairs had
officially registered the Leningrad branch of the Mormon church.
Efforts to obtain recognition of the church go back to June of
1987.

    *Scientology:* A recent promotional piece by this cult boasts
that "with the recent opening of the Eastern Bloc, there are now
active Scientology groups in Hungary, East Germany, Poland and
Bulgaria."

    *Nichiren Shoshu Buddhism:* On July 27 Daisaku Ikeda, president
of Soka Gakkai International, met for the first time with Soviet
leader Mikhail Gorbachev for a "humanistic dialogue." At the same
time, Soka Gakkai leaders fanned out to confer with a variety of
Soviet educational and cultural leaders. Raisa Gorbachev plans to
visit the group's college for women when traveling in Japan next
spring.

    *Hare Krishna:* On August 12 about three dozen devotees danced
and sang through Gorky Park in the sect's first legal celebration
in the Soviet capital, following years of official harassment and
persecution.

    *Werner Erhard,* father of the _est_ training and its latest
incarnation, The Forum, has been hired by Soviet officials to host
a series of management seminars that one Russian dubbed "a
_perestroika [restructuring]_ of our brains." Erhard is said to
have become an "intellectual hero" to dozens of Soviet officials
earlier this year when he went to Moscow to speak to businessmen,
economists, and philosophers.

    The December-February edition of _Maharishi International
University News_ reported that "in just over four months, over
12,000 people have learned the *Transcendental Meditation*
technique in Armenia...and are enjoying the benefits of this
effortless technique for relief from stress and full unfoldment of
human potential."

-------------

*Police Raid Stuns Children of God in Spain*

    On July 8, some 50 members of an elite police unit raided two
communal homes of the Children of God/Heaven's Magic cult near
Barcelona, Spain. The blitz was the culmination of a four-month
undercover and surveillance plan dubbed "Operation Moses."
Twenty-two minors, whose ages ranged from 11 months to 14 years,
were taken into protective custody, and agents reportedly seized a
great quantity of literature and videos -- much of it pornographic.
Ten adult members of the group, locally called "Missionary
Families," were arrested on charges of theft of minors, proselytism
in schools, and illicit associations.

    Spanish publications allege that the sect maintains several
training centers to teach minors "the art of prostitution'which
they will practice when they become adults." The Children of God
were expelled from Spain in 1977.

                                                  -- _Paul Carden_

-------------

End of document, CRN0023A.TXT (original CRI file name),
"Research Notes" and "International"
release A, June 30, 1994
R. Poll, CRI

(A special note of thanks to Bob and Pat Hunter for their help in
the preparation of this ASCII file for BBS circulation.)

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