Quote:
Originally Posted by CC1
EB, my thread on how my wife has been treated visiting UPC churches, in particular her home church, was to see what people thought about it and I pretty much got the variety of opinion I thought I would with folks like you being snarky and if I recall correctly saying she shouldn't attend even though her family still attends that church and of course always wanted her to go. Plus the latest incident just a few weeks ago wasn't even at a church service. IF you had read you would have seen it was at a funeral at the church.
My point was also to get folks to think about how visitors are treated at their church and yes in particular exUPC ones in UPC churches. My point also being folks should not assume someone has forsaken God because they are no longer old time Pentecost and it is insulting to act like they have. If my wife's church really wanted to "save" her from her current church / beliefs they would have been much better served by acting differently and having a genuine dialogue with her over time.
I also mentioned that there is no angst over this in my household because my wife has always been of the thought of having "been there done that" when it comes to the UPC and she has not believed that way for decades. I will say that in the early years of being ex it was how she was treated that firmed up her disconnection from the UPC.
I, as you pointed out, fly under the radar being clean shaven with short hair so I do enjoy visiting my heritage. I believe the vast majority are sincere, love God, and I enjoy fellowshipping with them. Particularly since I look like them and they aren't trying to drag me to the altar or interrorgate me about my state of happiness!
Of course trying to answer your questions is impossible because you never accept anything I say and always assign some ulterior motive to me.
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Hope you don't mind me butting in here, but I would like to offer some info concerning the thought of apostolic believing if someone leaves old time Pentecost they have walked away from God.
As an apostolic Pentecostal I can tell you we better all feel that way towards people that have walked away from "old time Pentecost" but this is because we are convinced the scriptures are true and immovable. We generally call someone that's walks away from Pentecost a backslider, and that's for a reason. We should never except the notion a person has a relationship with God and is full of his spirit that is in a backsliden state and is deceived by false doctrine. I dont want to be hurtful but I sure hope no Old time pentecostals compromise their message to sympathise with those that have walked away from what we know as truth.
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