Antiochian Orthodox Leave NCC

[kharaku]

Breaking News: Orthodox Leave NCC

Dearborn, Michigan. July 28, 2005.This afternoon the General Convention of the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America voted overwhelmingly to leave the National Council of Churches of Christ. The General Convention is holding its annual meeting this week in Dearborn, Michigan.

The action was not a temporary ^?suspension^? of membership, but a formal withdrawal from the NCC. The clergy unanimously approved the withdrawal, followed by a unanimous vote of the lay delegates supporting the move. An announcement of the final vote was met with thunderous applause by the Convention.

Reasons given for the withdrawal include the general liberalism of the NCC, whose General Secretary, Bob Edgar, withdrew his signature from a statement defining marriage as being between a man and a woman.

Metropolitan PHILIP, head of the Antiochian Orthodox Archdiocese, was reportedly outspoken in calling for the church to withdraw from the NCC, stating that the relationship had proven fruitless.

The National Council of the Churches of Christ has listed on its website "36 member communions and denominations." It now has 35.

[kharaku]

It is really awefull that any Orthodox church would align itself with heretics who consider gay marriage to be an allowable policy either politicaly or within a church. There is a line between faithful worship and heresy and the Antiochian church should be commended for staying on the right side of that line.

[kcvl]

Reasons given for the withdrawal include the general liberalism of the NCC

Are there any churches left in NCC that aren't pure communists?

[kharaku]

For reference from their site:

African Methodist Episcopal Church
The African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church
Alliance of Baptists
American Baptist Churches in the USA
The Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America
Diocese of the Armenian Church of America
Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)
Christian Methodist Episcopal Church
Church of the Brethren
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
The Swedenborgian Church
Syrian Orthodox Church of Antioch
Ukrainian Orthodox Church of America
United Church of Christ
The United Methodist Church

[kcvl]

Some of those are hostages of the NCC not willing 'members'.

[kharaku]

How so? I'm not exactly clear on the NCC though I'd say if they're for gay marriage what's to need to know?

[kcvl]

When the NCC turned the member churches into their political money pot and liberal extremist kooks took over. Back when they changed the name of the churches to "UNITED" this and that. If the church tries to pull out of the NCC they take over the church property. I call that extortion and holding churches hostage to their political agenda.

[WOSG]

Basically, this overtly Liberal group hides behind its name so it can promote a leftwing agenda under the banner of Christianity ...

http://www.ncccusa.org/

http://www.ncccusa.org/members/index.html

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[kharaku]

How does ne urge their church withdraw?

[WOSG]

I sent this to the Polish National Catholic Church ...

http://www.pncc.org/contact.htm

---

Dear Sir or Madam,

I am a Catholic in Texas, and found your history quite interesting.

It says that in 1976: "Intercommunion suspended with the Episcopal Church over issue of latter's ordaining women." It seems that you are a traditional, orthodox, Christian church.

Yet you are a member with the NCC, the left-wing organization the "National Council of Churches", that far from preaching Orthodox Christianity, has simply become an organization hijacked by Liberal political activists with barely and hint that they are really Christian.

One example:
http://www.ncccusa.org/98ga/schools.html
They insist on opposing any form of school choice or vouchers.

They have also decided to oppose drilling in ANWR, oppose the war in Iraq, oppose Republicans on judicial nominations, and chose to highlight comments of Jesse Jackson on their front page.


http://www.ncccusa.org/news/071105JesseJackson.html

Yet they support gay marriage. they have nothing to say about life issues, it seems, that an abortionist would mind. Yet what do they consider 'moral' issues?

A recent article says that "The Rev. Dr. Bob Edgar, NCC General Secretary (shown here, at left), encouraged rally participants to remind their representatives in Congress that “this budget is immoral and does not reflect the values we hold as people of faith." "
This is a $2.4 trillion Federal budget; it must have both good and bad in it, but to call a Congressional spending bill 'immoral' is to dilute the meaning of the word! They've also called Bush's clean air policies 'immoral'.

Now I want to show you, in full, their statement about a terrorist attack:

"The All Our Children consortium grieves the loss of the lives of children today in Iraq.

We have witnessed the extended suffering of the children of Iraq--their lack of medical care, their lack of fresh food, their surplus of worry.

Today's explosions that engulfed mini-buses of children on their way to school in Basra shows pointedly that those trying to embark on a normal day, trying in the midst of chaos, trying perhaps at the behest of parents who sought to give their children childhood, remain exposed, defenseless, vulnerable, and at risk in the face of the violence that continues to engulf their country.

We mourn them. All children are our children. "

Consider this closely: They would call a bill out of Congress "immoral" but couldn't bring themselves to call a terrorist attack that killed dozens of children "immoral". Their statement, rather, was one that simply lamented the situation in Iraq in general.

It is fairly obvious that this is a left-wing political advocacy group. Perhaps you share all these views. Perhaps not.

In either case, it seems a traditional Christian church, would
avoid associating itself with such an overtly political organization that uses its name to hide its true mission and goal of political advocacy. Especially given that many of their
political missions and political allies are hostile to traditional values and indifferent
at best to Christian perspectives.

Hence my question: Why are you part of NCC?
Would you consider leaving them as Antiochian Orthodox Archdiocese has done?

[kcvl]

Great letter!

[WOSG]

I picked a church, went to a website, and posted a comment.

Start here:
http://www.ncccusa.org/members/index.html

... and click ...

Now, one church "Alliance of Baptists" was clearly a "Liberal" church, So I go after the 'orthodox' churches.

http://www.goarch.org/

Greek Orthodox. Do they look like they support William Sloan Coffin and Jesse Jackson politics?

And PNCC:

http://www.pncc.org/index.htm

[kcvl]

How does one urge their church withdraw?

Fat chance unless you want them to confiscate the church's property. It's a catch 22 situation.

[The_Reader_David]

A good move, and I'm glad to hear it was unanimous at both the clerical and lay levels. (Funny thing about us Orthodox: we'll have knock down drag out fights about building funds, calendars, beards or whether beer is allowed during fasts, but when something really important comes up, the votes are unanimous.)

Now perhaps the ROCOR types will pipe down about us Antiochians being 'modernists' and 'ecumenists'.

[kharaku]

Theres still something or other about the antiochians supposedly being in communion with the Monophysites i think.

[kharaku]

i doubt theyre getting antioch properties

[Siobhan]

I must salute the Antiochians and Metropolitan PHILIP on the great wisdom of this unanimous action.

I pray the other Orthodox Churches and the Polish National Catholic Church will follow suit.

[Graves]

Hooooooooray! This was along time coming and long desired by other Orthodox Christians.

This is not Pretoria but it's a step in the right direction.

[Graves]

"Greek Orthodox. Do they look like they support William Sloan Coffin and Jesse Jackson politics?"

GOC look to Constantinople for direction. For more on this and how to contact the Ecumenical Patriarch, go to http://www.esphigmenou.com/

The Ecumenical Patriarch, by the way, is a member of the World Council of Churches.

[Graves]

FYI kosta,
For reference from [National Council of Churches] site:

African Methodist Episcopal Church
The African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church
Alliance of Baptists
American Baptist Churches in the USA
The Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America
Diocese of the Armenian Church of America
Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)
Christian Methodist Episcopal Church
Church of the Brethren
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
The Swedenborgian Church
Syrian Orthodox Church of Antioch
Ukrainian Orthodox Church of America
United Church of Christ
The United Methodist Church