To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Calvary Contender April 15 2000
From: bpr-list@philologos.org
Date: Tue, 04 Apr 2000 07:52:01 -0500

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THE CALVARY CONTENDER
VOL. XVII NO. 8 April 15, 2000
NEWS & VIEWS, NOTES & QUOTES, TO WARN & INFORM
Jerry Huffman-Editor----jhuffman2@juno.com
1800 Sparkman Drive
Huntsville, AL 35816

[The Calvary Contender is sent as an informative service to the CNV
subscribers. Please address all questions to Jerry Huffman]

MICHAEL W. SMITH, THE CHARISMATIC-CCM pop/rock superstar Michael W.
Smith has performed at Billy Graham and NRB conferences. Before
success,
his home fellowship for most of 20 years was Belmont Church
(Nashville)
which wore the Church of Christ label before going charismatic (4/00
Charisma). Smith tells about a Full Gospel Business Men's service
that
changed his life: "I went forward because I wanted more of God….[A]
guy
was laying hands on people. People started passing out and getting
slain
in the Spirit….And this guy touched me, and I was out for 15
minutes….Took me forever to get off the floor. And I laughed. I
laughed
for-I laughed all the way home." Besides this "holy laughter," Smith
says many more charismatic experiences have occurred since. (He
doesn't
like the label "charismatic" to describe himself-because of the
negative
baggage.) He relates another time of laughing, hyperventilating,
"rolling on the floor," and says: "Then everybody started laughing
….for
 30 minutes….I really believe that that was God."

PREACHING IS OUT, RADICAL WORSHIP IS IN-In charismatic churches,
"worship leaders" and musicians are displacing pastors and preaching.
Charisma editor Lee Grady (4/1) tells how his friend Mike Bickle
resigned from pastoring a large Kansas City church and started a
worship
and prayer service that has been running 24 hours a day without a
break
since September 1999. He has two dozen full-time musicians and at
least
20 singers and intercessors. Grady says Bickle believes this kind of
continuous worship will soon be the norm and be a key to releasing a
global spiritual revival. Grady says the Bible sanctions exuberant
worship and "calls us to sing, shout, clap, raise our hands, dance,
kneel and lie prostrate on the floor to show our appreciation for
Jesus." Granted, some fundamentalist churches could use a little more
exuberant Spirit-wrought praise and worship (without the rock music),
but read I Cor. 1:17-21, II Tim. 4:2-5, etc., to see the imperative
of
preaching and doctrine.

BABY PARTS FOR SALE-There is a lucrative market for body parts of
aborted babies. By allowing traffickers to take body parts,
abortionists are saved the disposal expenses, and thus make a double
profit-first a fee from the mother to perform the partial-birth
abortion, and then an access fee from the trafficker to collect the
parts (Coral Ridge Min. ltr.). Our president keeps vetoing
Partial-Birth
Abortion Ban bills. The baby parts market makes partial-birth
abortions
more popular than ever.

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS used in the CC is available at our Web site
<http://home.hiwaay.net/~contendr>http://home.hiwaay<http://home.hiwaa
y.net/~contendr>.net/~contendr or send a SASE and a list of most of
these will be mailed to you.

COLLEGE KIDS DRINK TO GET DRUNK-"Students used to drink to have fun,
and
now they drink to get drunk." Despite campaigns against alcohol abuse
at
colleges, heavy drinking has increased-44 percent of undergraduates
are
binge drinkers (3/27 USN&WR). These are 7 times as likely to miss
classes and 10 times as likely to damage property, as are light
drinkers. Alcohol impairs the memory of college students more than
that
of adults. Underage drinking costs $58 billion a year in traffic
accidents, crimes, and treatment. Victimless? Hardly!

INTERNET PORN-Researchers say there are at least 200,000 cybersex
compulsives addicted to E-porn and millions more (many children and
teens) are at risk (3/27 USN&WR). There are currently over one million
easy-to-find pornographic Web sites (3/15 CC). Adult (porn)
entertainment sites are the third largest sector of sales on the
Internet, with between 72,000 and 100,000 sexually explicit sites
available (3/15 FRC Ltr.). Of the 3,900 new Internet sites that go up
daily, at least 85 sell pornography.

UN DISTRIBUTES CONDOMS As a precaution against AIDS, the United
Nations will distribute a condom a day to each of the 16,000 male
peacekeeping troops it sends to Congo and Sierre Leone this year (3/19
H. Times). This decision came after pressure by our UN ambassador and
in
effect acknowledges that UN peacekeepers visit brothels. Walter
Cronkite
recently said "[W]e must strengthen the UN as a first step toward a
world government patterned after our own government with a
legislature,
executive and judiciary, and police…." (2/28 New Amer.). But the
merging
of the U.S. into a world government would mean the abolition of our
Constitution and Bill of Rights.

ISLAM POSES DANGER FOR CHRISTIANS-The U.S. Senate has invited a Muslim
cleric to open its session in prayer. The U.S. military has hired four
Muslim Chaplains. Yet, Christianity is totally banned in Islamic Saudi
Arabia (4/3 CT). Public religious worship by a non-Muslim is a
criminal
offense. Any attempt to convert a Muslim to another faith is subject
to
criminal prosecution. Muslims say Jesus was condemned to the cross but
was not crucified. Of the 2.6 million African-American Muslims, the
Nation of Islam is only about 18-20,000. Its leader, Louis Farrakhan,
recently embraced mainstream Islam.

TEMPLETON PRIZE GOES TO PHYSICIST- Freeman Dyson, a physicist, won the
annual Templeton Prize for Progress in Religion ($940,000). He said,
"[To] me, religion is a way of life, not a belief." He is not a church
member. Other well-known recipients include Mother Teresa, Billy
Graham, Bill Bright, and Chuck Colson.

MOONIES HONOR FALWELL-A special reception on Capitol Hill Feb. 2
honored Korean evangelist Sun Myung Moon and was sponsored by his
Washington Times Foundation, with members of Congress attending. The
event included an "American Century Awards" ceremony. Dr. Jerry
Falwell
was honored with the Foundation's Distinguished Lifetime Achievement
Award for Freedom, Faith and Family and for "overcoming man's
inhumanity
to man." The 3/20 Chr. News article we're quoting from, said: "Falwell
has appeared at three previous Moon gatherings, including one in
Uruguay
in 1995, and he has relied on Moon's largess to bail him out of tight
financial spots. In 1997 a Moon front group called the Women's
Federation for World Peace funneled $3.5 million to a non-Moon group
to
alleviate financial problems at Falwell's Liberty University. In 1996
a
Moon publishing group lent Falwell $400,000 for use at Liberty…." Moon
claims to be the Messiah sent to complete the failed mission of Jesus.
Falwell says he has addressed several groups Moon attended, and said
(3/1/98 CC): "I preach for the Moonies…the Mormons…the
Catholics…the
Jews…."

MERRITT TO BE NOMINATED FOR SBC TOP POST Atlanta-area pastor James
Merritt has agreed to accept the nomination by Jack Graham as
president of the Southern Baptist Convention (3/00 Bapt. Banner). He
will be the first baby-boomer to lead the SBC. Since 1985 his church
(FBC, Snellville) has grown from 2,000 to 11,000 members. His
"Touching
Lives" is broadcast on TBN.

ASBURY FILLS LIBERAL U. METHODIST PULPITS Wilmore, KY is a United
Methodist stronghold, but its fastest growing church is a charismatic
fellowship. The local Asbury Seminary fills more U. Methodist pulpits
than any other school in our nation (4/1 Charisma). U. Methodist
minister Dr. Maxie Dunnam became president of Asbury in 1994 and has
been a member of the Roman Catholic-Methodist International Dialogue
Commission (1/1/96 CC). Asbury is a member of the NAE; the U.
Methodist
Church is a member of the liberal NCC/WCC.

EMMAUS WALK-Emmaus Walk is a 3-day weekend retreat experience. It
emerged from the Roman Catholic Church's Cursillo Movement and is
charismatic and ecumenical in nature (3-4/00 Foundation). It is often
sponsored by the United Methodist or other mainline denomination. The
Emmaus Web site states: "The Emmaus Walk is mainstream in theological
outlook…. It is a common meeting ground for the great diversity of
Christians…who celebrate their unity in Christ and feel they can learn
from one another, be they traditionalists, evangelicals, liberals,
conservatives, activists, charismatics, and especially all those who
seek to follow Christ without regard to labels and camps." An Indiana
clergyman described the experience thusly: "In small table groups, we
listened, took notes, and discussed each theme. What an experience it
was to listen as my fellow pilgrims-U. Methodists, Presbyterians,
Catholics, Lutherans, and Baptists, wrestled with how to apply each
topic to life…."

GREAT COMMISSION GLOBAL ROUNDTABLE That's the name of a new united
network formed by three international evangelical missions
organizations-World Evangelical Fellowship, AD2000 and Beyond, and the
 Lausanne Committee for World Evangelization. Its list of foundational
values include the need for a thorough re-examination of a theology of
the church, and for a more representative platform where all members
of
the Body of Christ are equal partners (e.g., charismatics and
non-charismatics). A March-April Foundation article notes: "This
step…is
yet one further example of the ecumenism that is becoming so prevalent
in the name of evangelism."

NAE ALLOWS JOINT MEMBERSHIP WITH NCC Southern Baptist Seminary
president R. Albert Mohler Jr. in the 3/25 World took the National
Association of Evangelicals to task for "rescuing the National Council
of Churches from irrelevance" by its decision to drop its by-law
prohibiting member denominations from joint membership in the liberal
NCC. The NAE in 1944 considered the NCC (then the Federal Council) a
lost cause and adopted a by-law preventing member bodies from dual
membership. It was argued that the NCC/FCC played word games and
claimed
the name of Christ while denying His deity. Mohler says the NCC since
1950 has been moving steadily to the left. It has taken liberal stands
on moral issues and supported leftist causes, recently serving as an
apologist for Communist Cuba concerning 6-yr-old Elian Gonzalez.
Outgoing NCC gen. sec'y Joan Brown Campbell predicts a new coalition
will emerge, combining liberal Protestants with Catholics,
evangelicals
[including charismatics], and Orthodox Christians. Even Carl Henry
opined that this is the "worst possible time" to elevate the NCC. The
NAE's middle-of-the-road stance veered sharply leftward under former
president Don Argue, and now even more under Kevin Mannoia.

NEW BOOK SAYS WCC INFILTRATED BY KGB-A new book: "National
Protestantism and the Ecumenical Movement: Church Activities During
the
Cold War," by Mikhail Gundyaev, based on KGB files opened in 1992,
 confirms that at the height of the Cold War the World Council of
Churches was "infiltrated" by E. European intelligence agencies and
that
one of its former presidents (Metropolitan Nikodim) was a KGB agent
(3/20 Chr. News). Gundyaev represents the Russian Orthodox Church at
the
WCC's Geneva headquarters. We ran several articles on this before and
after the 1992 KGB files were opened.

SOVIET KGB SPIES INFILTRATED WCC-Tass, the former Soviet news agency,
now reports that agents of the Communist KGB and East German secret
police infiltrated the Conference of European Churches and the World
Council of Churches, and influenced the election of Emilio Castro as
WCC
general secretary in 1984 (4/92 MM). As many as 3,000 church officials
may have acted as informants for the communists. Some Russian Orthodox
priests and leaders used their clerical garb to spy on others to save
their own skins and keep their jobs (3/16/92 Christian News). The WCC
has had communist church and KGB clergy members since 1961, and has
funded Marxist terrorist groups (see 7/1/88 CC). A 1986-1987 FBI
report
said the Soviets use the NCC/WCC for their propaganda purposes, and
that
the Russian Orthodox Church under (communist) government control
coordinated this. The 3/2/92 USN&WR said the ROC was a tool of the
state
under communism, and said "it appears that some Orthodox priests
worked
not simply as collaborators but as actual agents for [the KGB]."
[This
article is a reprint of a 4/15/92 CC article.]

CAMPOLO, PALAU SPOKE FOR SCHULLER-Tony Campolo, in a plenary address
at
the 30th annual "Robert H. Schuller Institute for Successful Church
Leadership," urged attendees to realize that their role as leaders is
to
"declare the kingdom of God" and to "build the kingdom" through
transformation of society (3-4/00 Foundation). He mocked pastors who
teach that society is deteriorating and waxing worse and worse [as
predicted by 2Tim. 3:13]. Bill Hybels and Luis Palau also spoke at
Schuller's meeting. Foundation comments: "Dr. Luis Palau provided an
Evangelical presence that served to answer the critics who would point
out the ecumenical, liberal tenor of the Institute program." Billy
Graham has spoken highly of "possibility thinking" Schuller.

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========
To: bpr-list@philologos.org (BPR Mailing List)
Subject: [BPR] - Earthquakes in Israel
From: bpr-list@philologos.org("Moza")
Date: Tue, 4 Apr 2000 08:58:52 -0400

The Earthquake In Israel's Future

Dateline: 04/03/00

Thousands of Israelis would be killed and hundreds of thousands become
homeless if a earthquake struck in Israel, and there's a good chance that a
major one will occur within the next 50 years.

This is the conclusion of a recent report presented by Israel's Geophysical
Institute which checked the country's preparedness for the eventuality of an
earthquake. The report does not state that an earthquake will strike.
According to the Institute, earthquakes are impossible to predict, but due to
Israel's past history and its location near fault lines, the probability that an
earthquake of at least 6.5 magnitude will occur soon is great.

To prepare for the report, the Geophysical Institute took seismic readings
and checked buildings and infrastructure throughout Israel. Last year's
quakes in Turkey were taken into account along with seismic happenings in
and near Eilat in recent years.

According to the report, there are four areas in Israel susceptible to
earthquakes: Beit Shean, Yagur (near Haifa), the Hula Valley and the Dead
Sea. Estimates of the strength and magnitude of possible earthquakes in
these areas are as follows:

  Beit Shean
  7.1 magnitude
  9,500 fatalities
  
  Yagur
  6.5 magnitude
  5,100 fatalities
  
  Hula Valley
  7.0 magnitude
  8,300 fatalities
  
  Dead Sea
  7.0 magnitude
  8,200 fatalities

Most of the damage would be due to the poor construction of Israeli
buildings. According to Ron Cohen, Israel's Minister of Industry and Trade, all
Israeli construction built until the 60's and even some of the buildings built in
the 70's would not be able to survive an earthquake. Especially vulnerable
would be public housing units, some of which are built up on poles. These
units are home to 700,000 Israelis around the country.

The most serious thing, according to Cohen, is that Israel's Ministry of
Finance does not find it financially viable to take any precautions against
earthquakes.

Binyamin Ben Eliezar, Israel's Minister of Communications and a member of
the committee that received the Geophysical Institute's report, said that the
findings were serious, but noted that modern construction has prepared the
country for the eventuality of a major earthquake. Ben Eliezar promised to
review all the data, and that the government would consider how to prepare
Israel for the possibility of an earthquake.

                                         - Ellis Shuman -

Related sites:

 Geophysical Institute of Israel (http://www.gii.co.il/)
 Founded in 1957 in the prestigious Weizmann Institute of Science, G.I.I.
 is a service company specializing in geophysical surveys for oil
 exploration, water development and site investigation, both locally and
 internationally.

 The Seismology Division of the Geophysical Institute of Israel
  (http://geo1.gii.co.il/seis/index.htm)
 This division of the Institute performs studies and surveys to reduce
 earthquake risk to the State of Israel. In this capacity, the Seismology
 Division initiates R & D projects in many fields of Seismology for better
 understanding the earthquake phenomena in the region and their possible
 consequences. The Seismology Division is the operator of about 100
 seismic monitoring systems throughout Israel.

 Earthquakes felt in Eilat
 (http://www.israelwire.com/New/991005/99100521.html)
 IsraelWire, October 5, 1999.

 Earthquakes and the Bible (http://ldolphin.org/quakes.html)
 Article by Lambert Dolphin. The Promised Land... lies immediately
 adjacent to the African Rift Zone, the deepest known break in the earth's
 crust. A number of important quakes are mentioned in the Bible and many
 Holy Land earthquakes are known from secular history.

 Current Seismicity for the Middle East
 (http://wwwneic.cr.usgs.gov/neis/current/m%5Feast.html)
 From the National Earthquake Information Center.

 Earthquakes and Plate Tectonics
 (http://geography.about.com/education/geography/msub27.htm)
 From About.com's Geography site - a list of earthquake-related
 resources.

via:
http://israeliculture.about.com/culture/israeliculture/library/weekly/aa040300a.htm

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