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Exposing the Manhattan Declaration The Alteration Declaration © Baptist Vision Alteration - "an event that occurs when something passes from one state or phase to another ." “A dog barks when his master is attacked. I would be a coward if I saw that God’s truth is attacked and yet would remain silent.” -John Calvin The Manhattan Declaration's List of Religious Leaders Signatories could stand as the Who's Who of modern American Evangelicalism. Out of the 178 national leaders who have signed the declaration, several names appear on the list that I admire. A number of others I would not walk across the street to hear with free drinks and pizza. In spite of that, every name is respected and recognizable within the evangelical community, no matter what I think of them. Who am I then to offer criticism and withhold my unrecognizable name from the list of 178 national religious leaders and the growing 289,637 grass-root supporters?
Although men I respect have signed it in good faith, it is with strong conviction that I say that the Manhattan Declaration is another example of what is wrong with the Church in the United States. We have lost our way and until we recover our identity, which is Christ as Prophet, Priest, and King, we will continue to experience the erosion of the home, the Church, and our civil society. This is not a voice of doom but reality. The reality is destruction and the remedy is repentance and a return to Sola Scriptura. I realize my statements are in simplistic terms, so let's take a deeper look into The Alteration Declaration. We have witnessed the alteration of the American Church from the "pillar and ground of the truth" into the bedrock of humanism. These strong words are unfathomable to many people. How can a declaration that upholds life, marriage, and religious liberty be the foundation of humanism? As so many "Christians" state on their Facebook relationship status, "It's complicated." While we will readily rise up in civil disobedience at the abortion mills to save the lives of the innocent, I cannot and will not sign an affirmation that is Biblically incorrect. I will gladly work on the street with a Roman priest or even a Buddhist Monk to save an innocent life, but I will not confess a false gospel or other heretical doctrine. Time and space will not permit an in-depth look into the modern influence of three heresies of Romanism, Unitarianism, and Paganism. All three have been at work in America from its conception. In times that are more modern, we have seen a collusion of all three in a new order of religion in America. Survival has meant accepting this politically correct new age universalism. Whether or not some of these players have truly adopted these views is uncertain. We know in the past that certain enemies of Christ have played the part of a chameleon in their efforts to deceive Christians. Either way, the Papist heresy of the past or the heresy of the present is still heresy. It is only after our enemies gain tolerance that they can receive acceptance. Once they accomplish acceptance within Christianity, we are susceptible to being conquered. Therefore, we cannot allow a foothold by heretics or heresy among Christians. With that said, let me be clear. I do not believe that all or most of the signers of the Manhattan Declaration are wolves in sheep clothing. There are several of these men that I highly respect as I have already said. However, we live in a period of time that has swindled good men with political correctness. In some cases, it has been almost 150 years of reconstruction and in others even longer periods of construction. At any rate, we have not stood fast against the inside assault that has destroyed the foundations of the home, the Church, and the civil government, established by our Forefathers in this new land. The Manhattan Declaration begins by stating, “Christians are heirs of a 2,000-year tradition of proclaiming God’s word, seeking justice in our societies, resisting tyranny, and reaching out with compassion to the poor, oppressed and suffering.” This 2,000 year tradition is exactly what the declaration defies. The declaration does not uphold orthodox Christian doctrine but neo-libertine doctrine and historical heresy. Rightly, Erasmus wrote, “Man's mind is so formed that it is far more susceptible to falsehood than to truth.” Man’s depraved nature is so that not only are we prone to doing wrong but also believing wrong. Fallen man would rather get swindled with lies than liberated with the truth. Most of the time error is easier than truth because it is more acceptable by the larger audience. Truth requires the willingness to stand in small crowds and sometimes all alone. However, the popularity of the topic is not our concern. The Word of God gives a strong warning to those who change God’s absolute truth. “Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!” -Isaiah 5:20 This alteration has occurred and continues in our present age because we will not follow the admonition of Scripture, which plainly states that we are to separate ourselves from all false people and programs. “Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.” -II Corinthians 6:14-18 “And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.” -Ephesians 5:11 Are the doctrines of the Roman and Eastern Orthodox Churches Christian? Not so according to our Protestant doctrine. It was this very premise that produced the Reformation. We must make a decision and choose to stand upon it both now and in the near future. May our decisions be based upon the wisdom of God's Word. Before we get into the specifics of the declaration, we must ask some questions. Was the Reformation a true or false witness? If it was true, which I believe it was, could I surrender the ground we have won during and since the Reformation? Is not the blood of the martyrs worth something? If the Reformation was right and Roman Catholicism was wrong, what has changed that would cause us to reverse the Reformation? Was the Unitarian Movement good or evil? Based on the Word of God, the Unitarian Movement is corrupt and wicked. It is the most destructive movement America has ever experienced because it is the root of all the other destructive movements. If this declaration finds any of its principles or aligns itself with Unitarian thought or fundamentals, can we then join in affirmation? These two questions, with the many sub-questions that follow, must be answered before one can sign the Manhattan Declaration. Because of my answers, I cannot sign the document. Gospel of Costly Grace First, I cannot sign it because of its misrepresentation of the Gospel. If the Reformation returned the Church to Apostolic doctrine, how can I sign a document that misrepresents God’s grace? There is a time for every season under heaven and I do not think it is legitimate that an in-depth presentation of the Gospel accompanies everything we do. It is not always fitting, timely, and in many cases adds to Scripture, which is dangerous and forbidden. “Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the LORD your God which I command you.” -Deuteronomy 4:2 However, whether we are in a situation that fully addresses the Gospel or just reflects it, we must never misrepresent it. Misrepresentation is at the very least the heart of what we do when we affirm creeds containing heresy or that join in affinity with heretics. Joining in doctrinal affinity is not the same as two people being at the same place and rescuing an innocent person from death. “A man that is an heretick after the first and second admonition reject;” -Titus 3:10 “Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them.” -Romans 16:17 “Now we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye withdraw yourselves from every brother that walketh disorderly, and not after the tradition which he received of us.” -2 Thessalonians 3:6 “And if any man obey not our word by this epistle, note that man, and have no company with him, that he may be ashamed.” -2 Thessalonians 3:14 “Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God. He that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son. If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God speed: For he that biddeth him God speed is partaker of his evil deeds.” -2 John 1:9-11 We have made many excuses in this regard but the Scripture is clear on the subject. The problem is that we have lost our Reformed heritage, therefore losing our distinctiveness. We have also fallen prey to not wanting to be like some of the isolated Fundamentalists. While we should not be so foolish to add to the Scriptures dividing over things that are not there, let us not be foolish in taking away from the Scripture either. But the fact remains, how can we walk with Rome when we are not in agreement on the major issues that define heresy? “Can two walk together, except they be agreed?” -Amos 3:3 In the declaration, there is a call to proclaim “the Gospel of costly grace.” Within the context of this statement, it is in reference to human works. This is a Papist statement and void of any Scriptural or Reformed understanding of Grace or works. “Like those who have gone before us in the faith, Christians today are called to proclaim the Gospel of costly grace, to protect the intrinsic dignity of the human person and to stand for the common good. In being true to its own calling, the call to discipleship, the church through service to others can make a profound contribution to the public good.” -Manhattan Declaration To get the whole context you need to read the whole preamble to understand the implications of the gospel of works. The Gospel and grace should never be attached to human works within the framework or understanding of salvation. Works on the part of a believer is the result of his sanctification. The Holy Spirit, through the Gospel, makes him a new creature. The Manhattan Declaration, in the very, adds more confusion to the Church and the unbelieving world. It is not done because of its ignorance, which would still cause me not to sign it, but because of the heretical influence of the Roman Catholic Church. We do works because of the Spirit of God that works in us not for the sake of moral progress. Because we have been imparted faith, repentance, and obedience, we now live for the glory of God and not for ourselves. No longer do we follow the flesh but the Spirit and so we do works of righteousness because it is our new nature. Yet, the followers of the Manhattan’s “costly grace” look within, to the self for the transformation to the divine. These works are not only our nature, an expression of our love for God and man, but also the desire within us to make the kingdoms of this world the Kingdoms of our Lord. Therefore, we work to fulfill the dominion mandate in bringing everything in subjection to Jesus Christ. The declaration wants us to “defend the good of all who bear his image” but there is none who bears His image. Don’t get me wrong, Baptist Vision of Georgia is for defending the unborn, marriage, and our Christian heritage, but we can only do this on the right foundation. God created man
in His image but man fell. Mankind is now under the curse and it is this
curse that is causing all these problems we are attempting to address.
Though we applaud those who are concerned about life, marriage, and our
Christian heritage to sign a document like the Manhattan Declaration,
we believe their efforts are misguided. They are misguided because they
confuse common grace and special grace. This Papist statement sees mankind as being able to save himself by ritual, works, or some other humanistic way. There is an idea seeping through this document misrepresenting the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It sees man in godlike form able to restore himself, and, if anything, needing just a little help from God, Jesus, or the Church. Combine this with the Pagan idea of religion, which is finding the divine from within, and you have the recipe for Sola Self. It is the historic message of the Gospel of God seeking man. This Gospel message is salvation coming from above. The gospel contained in the Roman or Pagan version has salvation coming from below with man as its source. The document states that we are to proclaim the Gospel in its “fullest” form. Yet, the fullest presentation of the Gospel is found in these statements: “It is our duty to proclaim the Gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in its fullness, both in season and out of season.” -Manhattan Declaration “For every sinner, regardless of the sin, is loved by God, who seeks not our destruction but rather the conversion of our hearts. Jesus calls all who wander from the path of virtue to “a more excellent way.” As his disciples we will reach out in love to assist all who hear the call and wish to answer it.” -Manhattan Declaration “We acknowledge that there are those who are disposed towards homosexual and polyamorous conduct and relationships, just as there are those who are disposed towards other forms of immoral conduct. We have compassion for those so disposed; we respect them as human beings possessing profound, inherent, and equal dignity; and we pay tribute to the men and women who strive, often with little assistance, to resist the temptation to yield to desires that they, no less than we, regard as wayward. We stand with them, even when they falter. We, no less than they, are sinners who have fallen short of God’s intention for our lives. We, no less than they, are in constant need of God’s patience, love and forgiveness. We call on the entire Christian community to resist sexual immorality, and at the same time refrain from disdainful condemnation of those who yield to it. Our rejection of sin, though resolute, must never become the rejection of sinners.” -Manhattan Declaration “We act together in obedience to the one true God, the triune God of holiness and love, who has laid total claim on our lives and by that claim calls us with believers in all ages and all nations to seek and defend the good of all who bear his image.” -Manhattan Declaration “...Christians today are called to proclaim the Gospel of costly grace, to protect the intrinsic dignity of the human person and to stand for the common good.” -Manhattan Declaration “...asserting the glory of the image of God in every human being regardless of race, religion, age or class.” -Manhattan Declaration
Roman Catholic Document This influence of Roman Catholicism is actively present throughout the document. The reasons for such are rather obvious. With that said, let me state that I am saying this with all understanding possible. I am a son of the Reformation; subscribe to the Second London Confession; am of Calvinist Baptist heritage; therefore, I understand the catholicity of the Church. However, the apostolic or catholic nature of the Church should not to be confused with Roman Catholicism. The two are completely different. Roman Catholicism is what we Protestants have historically viewed as the apostate church. Although many Reformers originally wanted to restore it back to apostolic doctrine and practice, once it was understood to be hopeless, they separated themselves from what they referred to as the “whore.” "Albeit, like a dissembling hypocrite, and double-faced wretch, you, being thereto compelled by the invincible verity of God's holy word, wrote long ago your book, entitled True Obedience, against that monstrous whore of Babylon, and her falsely usurped power and authority. But now, to your perpetual shame, you return to your vomit, and are become an open arch-Papist again." -John Knox, A Faithful Admonition to the Professors of God's Truth in England, 1554 "The deadly cup of all blasphemy is restored again to their harlot's hand (Rev. 17)." -John Knox, A Faithful Admonition to the Professors of God's Truth in England, 1554 Therefore, wouldn’t playing patty-fingers with Roman Catholicism, at the very least, be on the verge of messing around with a “whore?” “Know ye not that your bodies are the members of Christ? shall I then take the members of Christ, and make them the members of an harlot? God forbid.” -1 Corinthians 6:15 Realizing there is a wide range of issues involved and not wanting to reduce them to an "anything connected to Rome" litmus test, I will delve deeper into the issue. However, one has to truly step away from the Roman Church to be taken seriously in doctrinal purity. The claim of fidelity can be made but associating with hookers loses ones credibility. It doesn’t mean that one is not truly married. However, it is in spite of their associations and not because of them.
Besides the obvious problems this raises concerning the Gospel, George is also a proponent of the Natural Law Theory. To be specific, many call the version he champions, the New Natural Law Theory. This modern Roman Catholic version is being sold to many gullible Protestants. Even though it is said that only some Protestants follow the Natural Law philosophy, I completely disagree. In my opinion, it is the majority view among conservative Protestants in various forms. Although many of my "right-wing" colleagues with probably condemn this declaration and oppose it, they actually hold to this same ideological theory. It is the leaven that is corrupting the conservative and right wing elements politically and theologically. Proponents of this view, in its various forms, pride themselves as being "Jeffersonian." Jeffersonian is a term to make it sound acceptable. It is really pluralism or historically called polytheism when view institutionally. Many different disguises are worn but underneath it all is autonomous man rebelling against God. When the affirmation is made and the veil is lifted, the unsuspecting American Christian really finds Deistic Humanism with its lips puckered. This is explained by George's close ally and Roman Priest, the late Richard John Neuhaus, in The Idea of Moral Progress: "Those permanent truths are sometimes called natural law. In the Declaration of Independence they are called the laws of nature and nature's God. Or they are called the first principles of ethics. First principles are, by definition, always first. Moral analysis cannot go beyond or behind them any more than human consciousness can go beyond or behind human consciousness. Fifty years ago, C. S. Lewis, borrowing from Confucianism, called these first principles the Tao. In The Abolition of Man, he anticipated with great prescience today's debates in biomedical ethics about reproductive technologies, genetic engineering, and eugenic progress. The Tao, Lewis said, draws support from all religious and moral traditions in inculcating certain rules such as: general beneficence toward others, special beneficence toward one's own community, duties to parents and ancestors, duties to children and posterity, the laws of justice, honesty, mercy, and magnanimity. Whether drawn from the Torah, the Sermon on the Mount, Chinese Analects, Cicero, or the Bhagavad Gita, these are the truths that constitute the civilizational circle." Neuhaus goes on to say that Lewis' Tao is useful but too minimal to defeat the barbarians in the cultural war. Neuhaus thought it was going to take more of an acknowledgement of God than just reason to save the day. Yet, notice his conclusion: "The first proponents of the idea of progress, including moral progress, were right to believe that knowledge and progress are inseparable. There can be no progress beyond but only within the civilizational circle of the moral truths into which we were born, by which we are tested, and to which we are duty bound, in the hope of sustaining the circle for those who come after us. The alternative is the willed ignorance of nihilism." The Manhattan Declaration is, in essence, a Roman Catholic doctrine. It is man's moral progress void of regeneration and God's standards. True Christianity believes in a Christian State ruled by God's revealed Law, we do not believe in evolutionary moral progress of man. Many Christians, like me, believe in a Gospel of victory, in which Christ will take dominion over the earth as Lord through His three ordained institutions. Primarily, this will be accomplished through His Church, the "pillar and ground of the truth" (1 Timothy 3:15), which has been commissioned to take the Gospel to every nation and make disciples of them. However, this is not by moral progress but by His power through regeneration and discipleship of His Word (Matthew 28:18-20). Natural Law Theory This natural law theory is not only impossible but also preposterous according to the Scriptures. "The LORD looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, and seek God. They are all gone aside, they are all together become filthy: there is none that doeth good, no, not one." -Psalm 14:2-3 "As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:" -Romans 3:10 “But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.” -Isaiah 64:6 Man was created innocent, but Adam and Eve disobeyed God and sin entered the world. This sin caused the death of man just as God told Adam that the day he ate of the tree of good and evil he would die. Man spiritually died the day he sinned and as a result, we die physically. "For the wages of sin is death..." -Romans 6:23 "Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death." -James 1:15 Speaking to those who have been regenerated by the power of God, Paul describes their condition before their spiritual quickening: "And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins;" -Ephesians 2:1 "And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses;" -Colossians 2:13 Yet, the Papist Natural Law Theorists proclaim: "Only the human person is free to choose which among his or her many impulses to follow. An animal’s freedom is to do what simple instinct impels. A human’s freedom is to discern a higher, more complex, and more demanding rationality in the field of action. A human person is free to become a gentle master of all his or her instincts, so as to choose appropriately among them. He or she is free, in short, to do what a person ought to do." -Michael Novak, Three Precisions: Personal Liberty, Dec 2, 2009 At creation, God made man with the freedom to choose good or evil. Adam was given free choice but chose to disobey God. Since the fall, man is no longer a free agent but bound in chains to sin and death. Sinners can a mockery of free choice, but slaves to sin will always choose sin. Man must be set free by God (regenerated) to be enabled to choose righteousness. There is no real moral progress because man is a sinner. How can man undue his nature? “Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin.” -John 8:34 “He that committeth sin is of the devil...Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin...In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God...” -1 Jo 3:8-10 “For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not...For I delight in the law of God after the inward man: But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.” -Romans 7:18, 22-23 Therefore, man can not make moral progress. Even if he attains any kind of outward reformation it is for corrupt purposes of an evil heart. The Scriptures tell us that the old man (natural man) must be put away because it is corrupt. “That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts;” -Ephesians 4:22 While we believe in establishing a Christian State to be ruled under the authority of Jesus Christ through His revealed Law, only the transforming power of Jesus Christ can change the heart of man. Through civil government we can force compliance through negative Law as well as we should. Baptist Vision of Georgia believes that only real moral progress comes first through regeneration of individuals. Secondly, regenerated individuals will then work to created homes, churches, and civil governments that are ruled by Christ according to His Word. They will seek to enforce God’s standards on the outward behavior of civil society in its institutions. This is real moral progress that begins in the heart. Through the Law we build a stable society and also man sees his need for salvation because of the wickedness of his deeds and heart in not living up to God’s standards. “Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.” -Galatians 3:24 In so doing doing, we can do the works of common grace (Matthew 5:16) but also proclaim the revealed Grace of the Gospel through Jesus Christ in word and power (1 Thessilonians 1:5). However, the Natural Law theorists want to make an end around negative Law (God’s Law) and uphold positive law (the rights of man). Their thinking is that through education man will naturally do what is right. They deny God’s Law for Natural Law, which can be interpreted by man. They also deny common grace for common good, efficatious grace for costly grace, and justification by faith alone for justification in the very nature of the human person. "For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." -Romans 6:23 "For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death." -Romans 8:2 "For when ye were the servants of sin, ye were free from righteousness. What fruit had ye then in those things whereof ye are now ashamed? for the end of those things is death. But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life." -Romans 6:20-22 Man can only persevere in good works after he is made righteous by the efficacious grace of God. "For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure." -Philippians 2:13 The modern Roman Catholic claim is not only Arminian but also humanism disguised as liberty. "But is this not a paradoxical claim? Some people claim to be compelled to follow instinct. They claim to have lost the liberty to persuade their hearts, lost all will to resist, lost all ability to do anything other than what the heart wants. We all know that pull of the heart. But true liberty demands that we open ourselves to other pulls and other persuasions, while listening to the calming voice of wisdom. Experience teaches us, in this way, that human liberty is not constituted by bondage to impulse, even to prolonged and seemingly irresistible impulse. Such bondage describes the liberty of wild animals, but it does not describe the liberty available only to the fully developed human animal—the free person." -Michael Novak, Three Precisions: Personal Liberty, Dec 2, 2009 Novak's Roman’s Road sounds nice to the evangelical ear, but it is not the freedom he envisions it to be. This autonomy is the very license that has enslaved America both culturally, religiously, and politically. "While they promise them liberty, they themselves are the servants of corruption: for of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he brought in bondage." 2 Peter 2:19 "It is not easy, for instance, to learn how to reflect, to gain the inner calm necessary to deliberate, and to find the courage to choose the more difficult path, the more demanding way. To achieve this inner order and (relative) harmony, we need, as it were, bodyguards of the soul: certain firm habits that protect various capabilities of the self." -Michael Novak, Three Precisions: Personal Liberty, Dec 2, 2009
This Natural Law Theory was void of the Gospel when Jefferson attempted to establish it in the American mind and it still is today. The Gospel of natural law is moral progress or salvation by man. Its means of grace is knowledge. This is the liberalism of yesteryear we were fighting. It is the liberalism of Woodrow Wilson that is now passing itself as conservatism. The reason it makes the Gospel void is that it elevates man and lowers God's Word. John the Baptist stated the exact opposite of the Word made flesh. In John 3:30 he proclaimed, "He [Jesus] must increase, but I must decrease." In the very least, the Romanized, Unitarianized, and Paganized version of American Protestantism makes human reason equal with Holy Scripture. "We set forth this declaration in light of the truth that is grounded in Holy Scripture, in natural human reason (which is itself, in our view, the gift of a beneficent God), and in the very nature of the human person." -Manhattan Declaration Of course, in most instances, we give Holy Scripture place in our statements simply because we are supposed to as Protestants. We still remember something about Sola Scriptura even if the final authority for faith and practice is Sola Self. Common Good If anyone should know about the common good, it should be Robert George. As a presidential appointee to the United States Commission on Civil Rights and a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, not only does he understand the common good of the American citizen but the good of all “world citizens.” Earlier we noted that George was a Roman Catholic and associate of the late priest of Rome, Richard John Neuhaus. This is significant because George is well versed in Papist theology. As a member of the drafting committee, his influence and that of others influenced by Rome, is immeasurable. Their influence is not any greater than in the contribution of the “common good” in the document. This blatant ploy of Rome must have the Unholy See very pleased with his illicit juniors. Reformed Christians signed a document we do not understand. A phrase like “the common good” is not part of our vocabulary. However, in this politically correct age, it sounds good. Because feelings are all that matter, we go ahead and sign it, thinking everyone will congratulate us for standing for life, marriage, and “religious” liberty. The problem is the Roman Catholic common goal of the common good is one world socialism. I know it sounds more like something that should be coming from the science fiction series of Lahaye, but let an unsuspecting audience take note. In reference to the “common good,” Pope Benedict in CARITAS IN VERITATE called “to shape the earthly city [community of peoples and nations] in unity and peace” in “prefiguration of the undivided city of God.” “Globalization certainly requires authority, insofar as it poses the problem of a global common good that needs to be pursued.” -Pope Benedict, CARITAS IN VERITATE “...the concept of the family of nations can acquire real teeth.” -Pope Benedict, CARITAS IN VERITATE “...there is urgent need of a true world political authority...” -Pope Benedict, CARITAS IN VERITATE
Their present vehicle is global socialism under the guise of democracy. The ancient foes of Christ are all taking cover under this ruse in their hope to gain a foothold of power. Therefore, we need to get a clear definition of socialism since most people don't understand the term. The simplest definition of it is "they," meaning those who are not us. The "deep thinkers" of our movement define it as those who do not believe in God, Jesus Christ, the Bible, the Constitution, guns, baseball, and apple pie. Sorry, but that perception may be mostly accurate, but it does not define socialism. In fact, our conservative movement is full of socialists who say they believe in God, Jesus Christ, the Bible, and the Constitution, although I am not sure whether they like baseball or not. For sake of argument, I make no distinction between Socialism and Communism. I realize there is a difference, but please understand my point. Socialism is the means to an end, which is Communism. "A stage of society in Marxist theory transitional between capitalism and communism and distinguished by unequal distribution of goods and pay according to work done." - Webster's Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary, under definition of socialism "A political movement advocating a gradual and peaceful transition from capitalism to socialism by democratic means." - Webster's Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary, under definition of social democracy Socialism and Communism are economic but one of the errors of conservatives has been missing the social precepts of the Communist dogma. “Socialism - A theory of society which advocates a more precise, orderly, harmonious arrangement of the social relation of mankind than that which has hitherto prevailed; communism. See communism.” -Webster’s Dictionary, 1900 “Communism - The reorganization of society, or the doctrine that it should be reorganized by regulating property, industry, and the sources of livlihood, and also the domestic relations and social morals of mankind; socialism; especially he doctrine of a community of property, or the negation of individual rights in property.” -Webster’s Dictionary, 1900 [emphasis mine] The 10 Planks of the Communist Manifesto deal with the economic guidelines of socialist transformation. However, one can see the social implications resulting from many of these economic conditions upon society. Published in the Congressional Record in August of 1963 is a list, which is known as the Communist Rules for Revolution. Major debates exist to its authenticity and reliability. They first surfaced in the book, The Naked Communist, written by former FBI agent, Cleon Skoussen, in 1958. Read them and you will see the fulfillment of each rule, which by its own authority will make you a believer in its reliability. Here are a few excerpts concerning the social agenda:
This second wave of the agenda, the first wave began in early 1800's and concluded in the early 1900's, completely annihilated any remaining social order in America. The Rev. R. L. Dabney warned us again at the end of the 19th Century what was happening: "This abolitionist dogma, carried to its legitimate results, is the extreme of communism." Dabney predicted universal suffrage. Still yet, he could not fully see how far down the road universal abolitionism would take us. Speaking of universal suffrage, Dabney said, "It is only the precursor to that fell communism which will assail all restraints of government and all species of property. Time will show." Time has shown Dabney to be correct. Even now Protestants, conservative Evangelicals, and those who carried the banner of the Reformed faith, are signing a document written in the spirit of Evangelicals and Catholics Together. The saddest part is that the Manhattan Declaration is the son of CARITAS IN VERITATE issued by Pope Benedict calling for world government under the banner of "the common good." What they call common good was once called global communism. “Economic activity cannot solve all social problems through the simple application of commercial logic. This needs to be directed towards the pursuit of the common good, for which the political community in particular must also take responsibility. Therefore, it must be borne in mind that grave imbalances are produced when economic action, conceived merely as an engine for wealth creation, is detached from political action, conceived as a means for pursuing justice through redistribution.” -Pope Benedict, CARITAS IN VERITATE “The processes of globalization, suitably understood and directed, open up the unprecedented possibility of large-scale redistribution of wealth on a world-wide scale; if badly directed, however, they can lead to an increase in poverty and inequality, and could even trigger a global crisis.” -Pope Benedict, CARITAS IN VERITATE “The development of peoples depends, above all, on a recognition that the human race is a single family working together in true communion, not simply a group of subjects who happen to live side by side.” -Pope Benedict, CARITAS IN VERITATE "Pope Paul VI noted that “the world is in trouble because of the lack of thinking”. He was making an observation, but also expressing a wish: a new trajectory of thinking is needed in order to arrive at a better understanding of the implications of our being one family; interaction among the peoples of the world calls us to embark upon this new trajectory, so that integration can signify solidarity rather than marginalization." -Pope Benedict, CARITAS IN VERITATE I have highlighted some very disturbing parts of CARITAS IN VERITATE to make certain points. An article all its own is needed to show the absolute proof that the Manhattan Declaration is the son of CARITAS IN VERITATE. One cannot understand Manhattan without reading CARITAS IN VERITATE.
“Papal edicts in the 16th and 17th centuries decried the practice of slavery and first excommunicated anyone involved in the slave trade” -Manhattan Declaration There is no mention of the millions of martyrs executed at the hands of the tyrant of Rome. No mention of the women and children slaughtered by ruthless barbarians in red robes. Women stripped nude and raped before they were tortured and killed in their public execution. No mention of the edicts that sent millions to their death. Estimates range during the 1,200 years of the inquisition, also known as the Dark Ages, that the Roman Catholic Church murdered 50 to 75 million people. Women’s Suffrage Movement "...Christian women stood at the vanguard of the suffrage movement." -Manhattan Declaration Today in our politically correct age, it is popular, for fear of women, to say the Women's Suffrage Movement was a Christian advancement in society. In reality, it was nothing but an earlier rebellion like that of the 1960's before LSD. However, had it existed it would have come in handy at the séances many of the feminists, abolitionists, and Unitarians enjoyed in the mid to late 1800’s. The fact that the overwhelming majority and all the major leaders of these movements were not evangelical or reformed Christians is striking. One such feminist, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, wrote about a time early in her life: "Fear of judgment seized my soul. Visions of the lost haunted my dreams. Mental anguish prostrated my health. Dethronement of my reason was apprehended by my friends." Calvinist
Presbyterianism influenced Stanton early in life. Upon hearing the
revivalist Charles Finney, she was convicted by the Gospel message. After
this encounter, she never had another opportunity to respond to the Gospel
call as she forsook the hearing of historical Christianity. She did write The Women’s Bible to express her rebellion against Biblical Christianity. She wrote in her commentary on Genesis chapter one, “As to woman's subjection, on which both the canon and the civil law delight to dwell, it is important to note that equal dominion is given to woman over every living thing, but not one word is said giving man dominion over woman.” Stanton’s rebellion is not only against men but also against God. In her “bible,” she promotes what was a new but now is an old debunked theory that divides Genesis into two books by two writers. She refers to the alleged books as the “two fables.” Conservatives have known the heart of the feminist movement was rebellion against God’s created order. However, for fear of women they will not profess this was the agenda from the beginning. “Until the feminine is recognized in the Divine Being, and justice is established in the Church by the complete equality of woman with man, the Church cannot be thoroughly Christian.” -Elizabeth Cady Stanton, The Women’s Bible These are not the statements of Gloria Steinem in the 1960’s but from the “Christian” Women’s Suffrage Movement of the late 1800’s. Stanton goes further in recognizing the feminine in the “Divine Being” in her commentary on Genesis chapter 1: “Here is the sacred historian's first account of the advent of woman; a simultaneous creation of both sexes, in the image of God. It is evident from the language that there was consultation in the Godhead, and that the masculine and feminine elements were equally represented...But instead of three male personages, as generally represented, a Heavenly Father, Mother, and Son would seem more rational.” -Elizabeth Cady Stanton, The Women’s Bible This is Susan B. Anthony’s and Amelia Bloomer’s personal friend and associate in the struggle for abolition, temperance, and women’s rights. These women and the many other leaders in the movement were radicals. They were not Biblical Christians. Stanton’s hatred of the Bible was evident and she worked to destroy the public trust women placed in Holy Writ. “The only points in which I differ from all ecclesiastical teaching is that I do not believe that any man ever saw or talked with God, I do not believe that God inspired the Mosaic code, or told the historians what they say he did about woman, for all the religions on the face of the earth degrade her, and so long as woman accepts the position that they assign her, her emancipation is impossible. Whatever the Bible may be made to do in Hebrew or Greek, in plain English it does not exalt and dignify woman. My standpoint for criticism is the revised edition of 1888. 1 will so far honor the revising committee of wise men who have given us the best exegesis they can according to their ability, although Disraeli said the last one before he died, contained 150,000 blunders in the Hebrew, and 7,000 in the Greek.” -Elizabeth Cady Stanton, The Women’s Bible “There are
some general principles in the holy books of all religions that teach love,
charity, liberty, justice and equality for all the human family, there are
many grand and beautiful passages, the golden rule has been echoed and
re-echoed around the world. There are lofty examples of good and true men
and women, all worthy our acceptance and imitation whose lustre cannot be
dimmed by the false se “Paul evidently was not learned in Egyptian lore. He did not recognize the esoteric meaning of the parable of the fall. To him it was a literal fact...” -Elizabeth Cady Stanton, The Women’s Bible Civil Right’s Movement The Civil Right’s Movement is also used in the document as an example of godliness and righteousness. "The great civil rights crusades of the 1950s and 60s were led by Christians claiming the Scriptures and asserting the glory of the image of God in every human being regardless of race, religion, age or class." -Manhattan Declaration However, this shows their confusion on the subject of Common Grace. Writing on the subject of Common Grace, James Montgomery Boice wrote, “God owes us nothing.” But the Civil Right’s doctrine says that God and man owes us everything. This is the socialist dogma not the Christian doctrine of the Crown Rights of Jesus Christ. The leading proponent of the Civil Right’s Movement was Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. King was completely heretical in his worldview and represented the whole of the Civil Right’s Movement. The Civil Right’s Movement was Unitarian: "I have not urged a mechanical fusion of the civil rights and peace movements. There are people who have come to see the moral imperative of equality, but who cannot yet see the moral imperative of world brotherhood. I would like to see the fervor of the civil-rights movement imbued into the peace movement to instill it with greater strength. And I believe everyone has a duty to be in both the civil-rights and peace movements. But for those who presently choose but one, I would hope they will finally come to see the moral roots common to both." -Martin Luther King Jr. The Civil Right’s Movement was Socialist:
The Civil Right’s Movement was Pluralistic: "When we let freedom ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual, 'Free at last! free at last! thank God Almighty, we are free at last!'" -Martin Luther King Jr. Christian State Baptist Vision of Georgia is concerned about the three main topics of the declaration, abortion, marriage, and Christian liberty. However, we do not believe that the views presented in the Manhattan Declaration are consistent or compatible with the Reformed understanding of Scripture. More than not, we believe the declaration is a mixture of Roman Catholic philosophy, Unitarian views on religious and personal liberty, and paganism’s reach toward the divine within the self. When it comes to these three issues, we must first rebuild the foundations in the Church and in the civil economies. The Church has lost its focus in regeneration, revival, and reformation. Most of the time we are trying to pull the horse with the cart, yet, we cannot imagine why we aren’t going anywhere. Needless to say, we aren’t the brightest sheep in the pasture. Civilly, we must repair the foundations of the Home, the Church, and the Civil Government, but it must come because of the Church’s work in regeneration, revival, and reformation. Life When it comes to issues of life or abortion, moder Evangelicals think it is good enough just to oppose it. It is true that saving lives is not a matter of discussion. You just do it. However, documents and strategic discussions have no immediate bearing on the women walking into the abortion clinic. Therefore, we must make sure we are moving in the right direction on these issues. For the woman who is walking toward the clinic we must give her any literature we have to attempt to stop her. We must try to talk with her, pray with her, and warn her. Our goal is to stop her from killing an innocent life. This is also the goal for many who have signed the Manhattan Declaration and my goal in writing against it. No one is questioning the overwhelming motivation of the pro-life community. The question is “how will it be attained?” Marriage On the issue of marriage, we have the same question. The Manhattan Declaration comes in neutrality because the issue of Christ’s Supremacy and Law is not what’s important to influencers behind the scenes. "We further acknowledge that there are sincere people who disagree with us, and with the teaching of the Bible and Christian tradition, on questions of sexual morality and the nature of marriage. Some who enter into same-sex and polyamorous relationships no doubt regard their unions as truly marital." -Manhattan Declaration While sincerity is rewarded as good in those who hate us, they concede the foundation of Sola Scriptura to the liberals. "We acknowledge that there are those who are disposed towards homosexual and polyamorous conduct and relationships, just as there are those who are disposed towards other forms of immoral conduct. We have compassion for those so disposed; we respect them as human beings possessing profound, inherent, and equal dignity; and we pay tribute to the men and women who strive, often with little assistance, to resist the temptation to yield to desires that they, no less than we, regard as wayward. We stand with them, even when they falter. We, no less than they, are sinners who have fallen short of God’s intention for our lives. We, no less than they, are in constant need of God’s patience, love and forgiveness. We call on the entire Christian community to resist sexual immorality, and at the same time refrain from disdainful condemnation of those who yield to it. Our rejection of sin, though resolute, must never become the rejection of sinners. For every sinner, regardless of the sin, is loved by God, who seeks not our destruction but rather the conversion of our hearts. Jesus calls all who wander from the path of virtue to “a more excellent way.” As his disciples we will reach out in love to assist all who hear the call and wish to answer it." -Manhattan Declaration All mankind is disposed or prone to sin. We are born into depravity and hopelessly bound to sin. This does not release us from our responsibility. We must own up to our nature, it belongs to us and we are to blame for our sins. We are disposed not because of disease or genes but because we are sinners. This disposed homosexual conduct is not some random force but is in fact the judgment of God. In verse 24 of Romans chapter 1, God gives them up to uncleanness. In verse 26 God gives them up to vile affections. While arguments can be made about uncleanness, there is no doubt in verses 26-27 that vile affections is homosexuality. Take note it is God that “gives them up.” The passage says “for this cause,” which is according to verse 25, because they “changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever.” The Manhattan Declaration says that “every sinner, regardless of the sin, is loved by God.” The Bible says, “even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind...” By no means am I saying that if you commit an act of sodomy God will turn you over to a reprobate mind. I am saying that many people engaged in the sodomite lifestyle have been turned over to a reprobate mind. It is one of the judgments of God. Homosexuality is a curse not a pleasure. God is not smiling, saying I love you, to a culture He is turning over to a sin He says He hates and a mind He says He has rejected. “For every sinner, regardless of the sin, is loved by God, who seeks not our destruction but rather the conversion of our hearts.” -Manhattan Declaration “Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience.” -Ephesians 5:6 “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;” -Romans 1:18 “What if God, willing to shew his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction: And that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy, which he had afore prepared unto glory,” -Romans 9:22-23 They attempt to make neutral arguments based on natural law, but in the end, they are ineffective because they are humanistic just like our enemies. The truth is no one is neutral and we all have our presuppositions. Who is going to win the public’s confidence is the question. In the end, one side is going to dominate the other. Religious Liberty "The nature of religious liberty is grounded in the character of God Himself, the God who is most fully known in the life and work of Jesus Christ. Determined to follow Jesus faithfully in life and death, the early Christians appealed to the manner in which the Incarnation had taken place: “Did God send Christ, as some suppose, as a tyrant brandishing fear and terror? Not so, but in gentleness and meekness..., for compulsion is no attribute of God” (Epistle to Diognetus 7.3-4). Thus the right to religious freedom has its foundation in the example of Christ Himself and in the very dignity of the human person created in the image of God—a dignity, as our founders proclaimed, inherent in every human, and knowable by all in the exercise of right reason." -Manhattan Declaration A historical anomaly is this phrase “religious liberty.” Most of our Forefathers understood it to mean denominational liberty within Christianity. If they had known there were a couple subversives or that it would degenerate to include those outside of Protestant Christianity there is no doubt in my mind they would have been more unequivocal. “By our form of government, the Christian religion is the established religion; and all sects and denominations of Christians are placed upon the same equal footing, and are equally entitled to protection in their religious liberty.” -Runkel vs. Winemiller, et al. 4 Harris & M’Henry Rep. 429, 450 (Maryland--1799) Nevertheless, at this stage the fact is, on a Scriptural basis the Manhattan Declaration is asking us to affirm pluralism. To do so is to ask me to confess that all religions are of equal value, which is true in Islam and Roman Catholicism as long as they are in control. As the
foundations in America’s old order of Protestantism based upon the Five
Sola’s has been completely eroded, the third wave is now in place to begin
replacing the old foundations with new so that a new order may be built upon
it. This new order will not include evangelicals, conservative Protestants,
and especially us old order defenders of the Reformation. We are being used
to usher in a new religion. Not new in the historical sense, but new in the
prevailing order in America. Many good men have signed the document because of their deep concern that we are headed toward secular barbarianism. My fear is that in signing the document it will guide us toward religious barbarianism. If the Church would stop playing games and become serious about regeneration, revival, and reformation, I believe we could return to the Reformation project started by our Forefathers and reclaim our homes, churches, and civil government under Christ. However, the Manhattan Declaration does not even begin to point us in the right direction. The Manhattan Declaration is not the doctrine of the Holy Scriptures, nor is it the Reformed tradition. To affirm this rebellion against Sola Scriptura is treason against Christ the King. Back to Baptist Vision News Back to News Archives |
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Baptist Vision of Georgia with questions or comments about this web site. Covenant Baptist Church PO Box 35 Barnesville Georgia 30204
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Posted:
11 December 2009
Actually
no one, but one. I am just a small voice crying in the wilderness of
American Christianity. Yet, I am part of a remnant that is "crying aloud"
and lifting up our voices "like a trumpet" (Isaiah 58:1). Individually, we
are not significant, but together we make up regiment of saints that shall
take the Kingdom (Daniel 7:18) by the power of Christ (Matthew 28:18). It
might not be this generation and America, as we understand it, may not have
any part in it. Many Christians fail to understand that God does not base
the present or the future on America. At any rate, the people of God shall
be victorious!
This
isn’t the Gospel, this is socialism.
One
of the authors of the drafting committee for the Manhattan Declaration is
Professor Robert George. He is an accomplished academic, lecturer, author,
and political advisor. George is also a Roman Catholic.
This modern union
of Romanism, Unitarianism, and Paganism has concocted a deadly poison to
destroy American Protestantism. In the end, it is the same old heresy of the
self and Natural Law Theory.
Eschatological
confidence in the Gospel of Jesus Christ does not negate the present
reality. Christ's foes are also at work seeking to take dominion over the
kingdoms of the earth. In 1897, Rev. R. L. Dabney warned, "Communism seeks
to make itself universal."
Slavery
ntiments
and vicious characters bound up in the same volume. The Bible cannot be
accepted or rejected as a whole, its teachings are varied and its lessons
differ widely from each other. In criticising the peccadilloes of Sarah,
Rebecca and Rachel, we would not shadow the virtues of Deborah, Huldah and
Vashti. In criticising the Mosaic code, we would not question the wisdom of
the golden rule and the fifth Commandment.” -Elizabeth Cady Stanton, The
Women’s Bible
"What
I'm saying to you this morning is that Communism forgets that life is
individual. Capitalism forgets that life is social, and the Kingdom of
Brotherhood is found neither in the thesis of Communism nor the antithesis
of capitalism but in a higher synthesis. It is found in a higher synthesis
that combines the truths of both. Now, when I say question the whole
society, it means ultimately coming to see that the problem of racism, the
problem of economic exploitation, and the problem of war are all tied
together. These are the triple evils that are interrelated." -Martin Luther
King Jr.
