This is What the National Council of Churches Wants YOU to Hear on Sunday, 9/11/11 - VANITY

National Council of Churches | 9/7/11 | Piperpilot

[piperpilot]

I am scheduled to be a reader at my church this Sunday on the Tenth anniversary of 9/11. Yesterday, the minister sent me the special 9/11 reading that was prepared by the National Council of Churches for parishioners to hear. While most of it was fine, there are some prayers that are appalling to any right-thinking Christian and deserve to be publicized for their stunning example of moral relativism and anti-Biblical message.

"We stand together in penitence, recognizing that we have not done enough to address the sources of anger, hate, dehumanization, rage and indignation that lead to acts of violence."

"In our sadness, horror and shock we acknowledge that our own fears turned murderous and we have sough revenge, sometimes even against the innocent."

"We confess and regret our own anger and recognize its dangers to our spirits, our health, our community and others."

"In striving for national security and domestic peace we run the risk of confusing might for right and participating in the very behaviors we condemn."

"Guard and guide our country that in our search for security we may not trample the rights of the innocent nor disregard the rule of law. Repentence means to turn away from wrong deeds. Repentence means choosing instead deeds which require moral restraint, and are more beneficial to all persons who suffer."

"We place fresh confidence in international organizations and conversations that bring the diverse gifts of the world to the problems of poverty, injustice, terror and strife."

"We dare to hope for an era yet to come in which the violence, greed, the ambitions of power, and cultural, racial and religious bigotries are but memories of a dim and unenlightened past."

"We pray in the strong name of the Prince of Peace."

[afraidfortherepublic]

Let’s try that again.

And many of the individual congregations of the former Congregational Church, now called the United Church of Christ. I believe the merger happened around 1959-60.

The NCC is the body that pushed the return of Elian Gonzalez to Communist Cuba. Their former Nat. leader handled the negotiations.

[afraidfortherepublic]

Let’s try that again.

And many of the individual congregations of the former Congregational Church, now called the United Church of Christ. I believe the merger happened around 1959-60.

The NCC is the body that pushed the return of Elian Gonzalez to Communist Cuba. Their former Nat. leader handled the negotiations.

[A. Patriot]

Here is a list of member denominations from their website:

African Methodist Episcopal Church

The African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church

Alliance of Baptists

American Baptist Churches in the USA

Apostolic Catholic Church

Diocese of the Armenian Church of America

Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)

Christian Methodist Episcopal Church

Church of the Brethren

Community of Christ

The Coptic Orthodox Church in North America

The Episcopal Church

Evangelical Lutheran Church in America

Friends United Meeting

Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America

Hungarian Reformed Church in America

International Council of Community Churches

Korean Presbyterian Church in America

Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church

Mar Thoma Church

Moravian Church in America Northern Province
and Southern Province

National Baptist Convention of America

National Baptist Convention, U.S.A., Inc.

National Missionary Baptist Convention of America

Orthodox Church in America

Patriarchal Parishes of the Russian Orthodox Church in the USA

Philadelphia Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends

Polish National Catholic Church of America

Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)

Progressive National Baptist Convention, Inc.

Reformed Church in America

Serbian Orthodox Church in the U.S.A. and Canada

[LevinFan]

You pray for your nation’s leaders, even when you disagree with them. You don’t have to blindly follow them, but don’t forget their position. Spend some time reading about David and Sol.

[Dianer0839]

ping..read later

[Ruy Dias de Bivar]

That prayer sounds like ipecac in print!

[chadwimc]

I understand the bible. I know the verses. I can’t do it.

Would you pray for the elected leaders in 1930s Germany?

[Tea Party Hobbit]

Prayers for your discussion with your minister, piperpilot.

[RoadGumby]

FRiend,

Asking for prayer for our leaders is not so we can pray for their comfort, success, blessings, etc.

It is so we can pray that they would turn to Jesus, that they would govern in a Godly way, that the nation would elect Godly representatives, etc.

[Little Ray]

Glad the United Methodists, for all their flaws, are not on it. I’d hate to have embarass my wife by calling it a big steaming pile, gathering my family and walking out.

[patriot08]

The Obama White House is behind a cynical, coldly calculated political effort to erase the meaning of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks from the American psyche and convert Sept. 11 into a day of leftist celebration and statist idolatry.

Our voices need to be heard not only at Town Hall sessions or Tea Party demonstrations but in the very halls of Congress. We have to speak out to stop the desecration of September 11th.

NEVER FORGET

"Every 'moderate' Muslim is a potential terrorist. The belief in Islam is like a tank of gasoline. It looks innocuous, until it meets the fire. For a 'moderate' Muslim to become a murderous jihadist, all it takes is a spark of faith.

It is time to put an end to the charade of “moderate Islam.” There is no such thing as moderate Muslim. Muslims are either jihadists or dormant jihadists – moderate, they are not."

Ali Sini

Ali Sini is head of Faith Freedom International. FFI is a grassroots worldwide movement of ex-Muslims and all those who are concerned about the rise of the Islamic threat.

Faith Freedom International Forums ______________________________________________

NEVER FORGET

Watch 'Remembering 9/11' on the Geographic Channel. Repeating Thursday 3PM CST: 'Inside 9/11: Zero Hour'- EXCELLENT.

Also, on TLC, 'Heros of the 88th Floor', 9PM CST Sat 9/10/11

_______________

Watch this moving video. It is the most viewed of any of the 9/11 videos and is now in the Smithsonian.

Be sure to read (at the site) Anatomy Of The Attack and the moving essay,’That Day’ by Steve Golding, a New Yorker who lived through it.

[good old days]

It looks like you left off the last few from the list:

The Swedenborgian Church
Syrian Orthodox Church of Antioch
Ukrainian Orthodox Church of America
United Church of Christ
The United Methodist Church

[good old days]

Actually the United Methodists are on it. The last few from the website were inadvertently left off.

[A. Patriot]

Thanks, I did. Funny, I was a Congregationalist (United Church of Christ) growing up, then a United Methodist.

I have been a Presbyterian PCA for the last 15 years. None of that liberal junk there.

[lightman]

Yet another reason why I’m relieved to be LCMC (Lutheran Congregations in Mission for Christ).

We’re going to use this Reformation-era Litany on Sunday...the very same prayer that some area Lutheran clergy used on September 11, 2001, as they learned of the collapse of the towers:

THE LITANY

L Lord, have mercy.

R Lord, have mercy.

L Christ, have mercy.

R Christ, have mercy.

L Lord, have mercy.

R Lord, have mercy.

L O Christ, hear us.

R In mercy hear us.

L God, the Father in heaven,

R have mercy on us.

L God, the Son, redeemer of the world,

R have mercy on us.

L God, the Holy Spirit,

R have mercy on us.

L Holy Trinity, one God,

R have mercy on us.

L Be gracious to us.

R Spare us, good Lord.

L Be gracious to us.

R Spare us, good Lord.

L From all sin, from all error, from all evil; from the cunning assaults of the devil; from an unprepared and evil death:

R Good Lord, deliver us.

L From war, bloodshed, and violence; from corrupt and unjust government; from sedition and treason:

R Good Lord, deliver us.

L From epidemic, drought, and famine; from fire and flood, earthquake, lightning and storm; and from everlasting death:

R Good Lord, deliver us.

L By the mystery of your incarnation; by your holy birth:

R Help us, good Lord.

L By your baptism, fasting, and temptation; by your agony and bloody sweat; by your cross and suffering; by your death and burial:

R Help us, good Lord.

L By your resurrection and ascension; by the gift of the Holy Spirit:

R Help us, good Lord.

L In all time of our tribulation; in all time of our prosperity; in the hour of death; and in the day of judgment:

R Save us, good Lord.

L Though unworthy, we implore you

R to hear us, Lord our God.

L To rule and govern your holy catholic Church; to guide all servants of your Church in the love of your Word and in holiness of life; to put an end to all schisms and causes of offense to those who would believe; and to bring into the way of truth all who have gone astray:

R We implore you to hear us, good Lord.

L To beat down Satan under our feet; to send faithful workers into your harvest; to accompany your Word with your Spirit and power; to raise up those who fall and to strengthen those who stand; and to comfort and help the fainthearted and the distressed:

R We implore you to hear us, good Lord.

L To give to all nations justice and peace; to preserve our country from discord and strife; to direct and guard those who have civil authority; and to bless and guide all our people:

R We implore you to hear us, good Lord.

L To behold and help all who are in danger, need, or tribulation; to protect and guide all who travel; to preserve and provide for all women in childbirth; to watch over children and to guide the young; to heal the sick and to strengthen their families and friends; to bring reconciliation to families in discord; to provide for the unemployed and for all in need; to be merciful to all who are imprisoned; to support, comfort, and guide all orphans, widowers, and widows; and to have mercy on all your people:

R We implore you to hear us, good Lord.

L To forgive our enemies, persecutors, and slanderers, and to reconcile us to them; to help us use wisely the fruits and treasures of the earth, the sea, and the air; and graciously to hear our prayers:

R We implore you to hear us, good Lord.

L Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God,

R we implore you to hear us.

L Lamb of God, you take away the sin of the world;

R have mercy on us.

L Lamb of God, you take away the sin of the world;

R have mercy on us.

L Lamb of God, you take away the sin of the world;

R give us peace. Amen

L O Christ, hear us.

R In mercy hear us.

L Lord, have mercy.

R Lord, have mercy.

L Christ, have mercy.

R Christ, have mercy.

L Lord, have mercy.

R Lord, have mercy.

[lightman]

Lutheran (EL C S*A) Ping!

* as of August 19, AD 2009, a liberal protestant SECT, not part of the holy, catholic and apostolic CHURCH.

Be rooted in Christ!

[the OlLine Rebel]

What a bunch of BullShiite.

I would absolutely refuse to read this junk.

Luckily, I am only a traditional “reader”/lector and only have to read Bible passages, not prepared “statements”.

I would refuse to read it, and if they didn’t like it, someone else will have to do the whole job for them.

[Little Ray]

Darn. The pastor better not read it my church.

[BigFinn]

What a bunch of goobly gook. Most of those parishoners are probably asleep in the pews anyway. I’m just surprised they aren’t recommending reading a few surahs out of the Koran on 911. The fact they can’t even say His name is a red flag.

[piperpilot]

Below is my response to the minister. I have not heard any response yet.

I don’t want to be disrespectful, but I have significant concerns with parts of the 9/11 prayers to be read on Sunday and I feel the need to bring those concerns to your attention. I have prayed about this for two days, so it is not something I have taken lightly. While many of the prayers are fine, there are some statements that are stunning examples of moral relativism, and quite frankly, are un-American and un-Biblical, though I will defer to you on the latter. As a result of these passages, I cannot in good conscience participate in the readings on Sunday. Below are the excerpts that I have problems with. They are followed by my comments in italics.

"We stand together in penitence, recognizing that we have not done enough to address the sources of anger, hate, dehumanization, rage and indignation that lead to acts of violence." There is no excuse for evil. It is to be vanquished. I have read through the entire Bible once and am more than halfway through a second reading. Nowhere in the Bible do I see that God’s people should suffer evil when it is in their capacity, with God’s will, to defeat it. Our acknowledging our own propensity to commit or turn a blind eye to such sources and acts of violence in the world in general isn’t bad, but this phrase suggests that we, individually and corporately, are committing hateful, dehumanizing acts of violence by in any way supporting the war on terror and I simply cannot support that.

"In our sadness, horror and shock we acknowledge that our own fears turned murderous and we have sought revenge, sometimes even against the innocent." This is moral relativism. It seeks to blame us for taking action to rid mankind of the scourge of terrorism. Yes, in any war there are innocent people who get hurt and killed and we should grieve for that, but to say in essence that we are just as bad as the terrorists, is beyond offensive to me. September 11th was an attack borne out of evil and evil alone. It was a crime perpetrated against people who were merely going about their daily work. It was a crime against a country that, while not perfect, has been the single most purveyor of good throughout the world. We liberated Europe and Japan from tyranny in World War II. We brought freedom to Russia, Poland and other Eastern European nations following the Cold War, and yes, we gave the people of Iraq and Afghanistan a fighting chance for freedom. We fed the people of Ethiopia and Somalia. We are the first to respond to a humanitarian crisis anywhere in the world, even in places like Iran. Those who attacked us on September 11, 2001 are religious fanatics who hate our way of life because they know that the only way they can cause others to submit to their world view is through violence. The vast majority of these men are not poor, nor are they dehumanized. They are evil. They are as evil as Hitler and the Nazis. They have evil on their hearts, and to equate us with them is appalling.

"We confess and regret our own anger and recognize its dangers to our spirits, our health, our community and others." Again, this is moral relativism and an attempt to rewrite the story of September 11th to blame the victim.

"In striving for national security and domestic peace we run the risk of confusing might for right and participating in the very behaviors we condemn." See my comments above about how America uses power versus how terrorists use power.

"Guard and guide our country that in our search for security we may not trample the rights of the innocent nor disregard the rule of law. Repentance means to turn away from wrong deeds. Repentance means choosing instead deeds which require moral restraint, and are more beneficial to all persons who suffer." The terminology “wrong deeds” suggests again that war on terror is wrong-headed in totality and those who support it in any way are using anything but moral consideration or restraint. This is offensive to me and is the very definition of moral relativism. War and strife happen due to clashing values and I am not afraid to make the judgment that our core values of freedom, tolerance and equality of opportunity stand in stark contrast to the values of submission, violence and dehumanization (particularly of women) espoused by radical Islam. "We place fresh confidence in international organizations and conversations that bring the diverse gifts of the world to the problems of poverty, injustice, terror and strife." Again, trying to explain away evil and blame us for somehow causing religious fanatics to want to kill us. It is an affront to the nearly 3,000 people who died that day to blame poverty, injustice, terror and strife for the evil acts of those who perpetrated the September 11th attacks and those who continue to try to kill us day in and day out. International organizations, such as the United Nations, prove time and time again to be feckless against threats to freedom and too often resemble the defunct League of Nations in their propensity to tolerate evil. "We dare to hope for an era yet to come in which the violence, greed, the ambitions of power, and cultural, racial and religious bigotries are but memories of a dim and unenlightened past." My understanding of the Bible is that this will only occur when Jesus returns to the Earth to bring true justice and peace to God’s people. "We pray in the strong name of the Prince of Peace." I understand that Jesus is often referred to as the Prince of Peace, but it seems to me that failing to refer to Him by name, is bowing to political correctness rather than Biblical truth. [Name Withheld], I was in Washington, DC on September 11, 2001. I was trapped in the city for hours after the attack because the subways were shut down and vehicle traffic was at a standstill. I remember the ashen faces of thousands of people who walked their way out of downtown DC along Connecticut Avenue. I remember the eerie silence that permeated the city in the hours following the attack. Everyone that day knew that a great evil had been perpetrated that day against the American people—and against all freedom-loving people. We cannot ever allow that to be forgotten or perverted. When we, as Christians, tolerate evil, only evil will result. Thus, as I mentioned above, I cannot participate in these prayers on Sunday. In the spirit of your sermon on Sunday, I am bringing this to you privately and I hope you understand why, as a Christian, I cannot abide by these particular prayers.