Quote:
Originally Posted by scotty
Not sure if you got your answer or not stmatthew.
This thread has turned into what much of the forum has turned into, an argument over who is right and who is wrong. In 26 pages and over 250 post no one has changed their beliefs. I see a lot of the traditional believers have come out and posted support, yet most have only posted once or twice and have not engaged in the argument.
It is frustrating to say the least to try and stand on the Word of God and have some on here who simply bash you for it as being “holier than thou” and others as you have seen yourself in Pelathais and Sam who try to tell you what your “heritage is”. Most all of it is misunderstandings due to post being made before reading all post on the thread. As you have said, our problem is more so with those whose beliefs are so far off from Apostolic it's a self-righteous doctrine on its own (the “we are all saved in the end” guy).
That is where you lose the traditionalist is when we open a thread of debate within our own belief that gets hijacked by those who wish to argue their doctrine. Maybe it is time to simply straighten up the clutter and put it all in its place. Have an area in the forum where the Apostolic faith can be debated with other faiths. Have another area where the Apostolic beliefs can debate amongst themselves and policed so that it won't be hijacked by those who have no other goal than to discredit our doctrine. Either way someone should decide whether or not the doctrine on the welcome page is to be honored or not.
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I don't intend to insult you Scotty by "telling you what your heritage is..." However, I have often felt insulted by those who have deliberately edited our heritage and removed material that was once required for all prospective ministers.
When I was first considering joining the UPC ministerial fellowship the one issue that caused me to be hesitant was the idea that I would be called upon to "send all other Christians to hell." However unreasonable that may sound to you, that was a real concern for me almost 30 years ago.
The one thing that really settled my mind was the attached page from the Pentecostal Home Study Course - required reading for all UPC ministers. You didn't have to agree with everything in the book, but you had to be aware of it to be able to discuss the issues intelligently.
All of the writings of John Dearing (J.H.D.) were later removed from the book without comment or notice. The book itself was first removed from the required reading materials. This is just one example of how my own heritage has been treated within the UPCI and the Apostolic fellowship in general. One dear friend calls me "blathering" every time I it up. But it is part of the heritage of all Oneness Pentecostals.
From everything I’ve been able to find, the “
Acts 2:38 exclusivism” didn’t really appear on the scene until around the time of the merger. This would lead me to question the statements of many that they are “conservatives” for advocating this position because “conservatives” don’t usually advocate new things. This teaching of exclusivism is really the introduction of something new. It’s not really a “heritage” so much as a novelty. Attempts have been made to create a “heritage” for it (for example Marvin Arnold’s History Outline) but these things all end up being a source of embarrassment. Another example might be a UPC bible college’s booklet several years back that argued “Jesus had no beard.” Why do we feel we have to invent these notions?
I would like to ask you though, Scotty - can you trace your current "3 Stepper" or "Acts 2:38 or hell" persuasion back? How far can you go with this "heritage?" I am genuinely interested and would benefit greatly from anything you might have to share that is older than about 60 years.
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