Blog - Page 165 of 318 - John H Armstrong

The Ongoing Struggle of Church and State is a Real Threat to Mission

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:19:17-05:00January 29th, 2010|Categories: Missional Church, The Church, The Persecuted Church|

A French court has ruled that the St. Nicholas Cathedral in Nice, built with funding from the Russian Tsar Nicholas II and completed in 1912, just prior to the country's revolution, belongs to the government of Russia and must be handed over. The victory is Russia's latest in a series of battles for church property around the world, which represent attempts by the Russian government and Russian Orthodox Church to reassert control over a widespread diaspora. A Russian émigré group has run St. Nicholas Cathedral under the jurisdiction of the Istanbul-based Orthodox Patriarchate of Constantinople since the 1920s.

If you do not follow such news this may strike you as quite unimportant. It strikes me as both sad and dangerous. By danger I am not reworking the old themes of the cold war, not at all. I am reminding Christians of the danger the church faces when it gets too comfortable with the state. From 1917 until the fall of the U.S.S.R. the church and state were very separated in Russia. In fact, […]

A Day in the Life of John H. Armstrong

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:19:17-05:00January 28th, 2010|Categories: ACT 3, Personal|

Regular readers of this blog might actually wonder what I do from day-to-day. Do I sit in front of a screen and write articles, blogs and books? Well, yes and no. I do a lot of writing for sure. But I do even more work with people. I follow the "rule of thumb" I heard not too long ago from Bishop N. T. Wright who said that if he did blog he would spend one hour with real people for every hour he spent online. I spend far more hours with real people than with virtual realities and blogging. Do not misunderstand, I believe the Internet revolution is not only real but I believe it has the most amazing potential to stir the church unlike anything that has happened since the invention of movable type. I also believe that social sites like Facebook have immense value. I have reconnected with so many friends, and built so many relationships with new friends, that I have become a huge fan of this tool. But again, this all has to […]

When and How Should We Speak Out About the Persecution of Other Christians?

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:19:17-05:00January 27th, 2010|Categories: The Persecuted Church|

The Institute on Religion & Democracy (IRD) recently expressed its dismay (January 14 post) at the World Evangelical Alliance (WEA)’s for having ignored religious persecution in China during its recent visit. Instead, says Faith McDonnell of the IRD, the WEA spoke only of cooperation with the government-registered church while disregarding restrictions by the communist regime on unofficial churches. The vast majority of Chinese Christians, conservatively estimated at 80 million in number, worship in unregistered congregations that meet in homes and other settings.

The IRD post adds that: “In the past week alone, leaders of the Chinese House Church Alliance were detained by the authorities in Hebei province according to China Aid. House churches in both Beijing and Shanghai have also been closed recently by the police. In Shanxi province, authorities demolished the Fushan House Church’s building, giving church leaders long prison sentences. In December, a Ugyhur Christian convert from Islam was sentenced to fifteen years in prison for his faith.”

There is no question, to my mind, that this report from the IRD is accurate. Having served […]

How Meeting Real Christians from Different Traditions Makes a Real Difference

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:19:17-05:00January 26th, 2010|Categories: Missional-Ecumenism, Roman Catholicism|

A regular reader of this blog, who is Roman Catholic in his faith and practice, told me that he was recently at an A.A. men's retreat conducted at a Jesuit-run retreat center. This retreat was specifically geared toward men involved in A.A. but it incorporated the Spiritual exercises of St Ignatius of Loyola. Because of this Catholic connection the retreat included Catholic prayers such as the angelus, the rosary, the daily and Sunday mass, morning prayers, as well as evening eucharistic adoration and benediction. In such settings no one is forced to participate in these spiritual practices that are specifically Catholic but all are invited to participate to whatever degree they choose to do so. What follows is an account by the writer (edited by me) of the letter, a Catholic friend, that was sent to me a few days ago.

“There was a man at the retreat from out-of-state who had traveled some distance to be there. He is a Baptist and, […]

Pope Benedict XVI on Knowing Christ, Witness and Unity

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:19:17-05:00January 25th, 2010|Categories: Missional-Ecumenism|

On January 20 Pope Benedict XVI said, “Being a witness to Christ presupposes knowing him firsthand, not just being told of him by others.” The Pope made this comment during a general audience in Pope Paul VI Hall. He took up the theme of ecumenism, during what is called internationally a Week of Prayer for Christian Unity.

This year's theme for the prayer week is "You are witnesses of these things," taken from the Gospel of Luke. Pope Benedict XVI noted in his homily the following points based upon the biblical text:

If we look at the context of the chapter [of Luke], “these things” means above all the cross and resurrection. The disciples have seen the Lord's crucifixion, they see the Risen One and thus begin to understand all the Scriptures that speak of the mystery of the passion and of the gift of the resurrection. “These things,” therefore, is the mystery of Christ, of the Son of God made man.
[…]

Please Stop the Interpretations of Divine (Secret) Providence

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:19:17-05:00January 24th, 2010|Categories: Biblical Theology, Current Affairs, Hermeneutics|

If there is anything the most elemental study of the Bible, theology and church history will reveal it is the simple, but profound, truth that we have no business trying to explain divine providence in terms of what God is saying or doing in a catastrophe or tragedy. American history is, however, littered with preachers telling us what God was specifically saying to the world, or to some person or group of people, when a particular event took place. The greatest illustration of this problem occurred during the American Civil War. Abraham Lincoln was once asked, "Whose side is God on in the war?" He said he was not concerned with that question but rather with the question of whether or not he, that is Abraham Lincoln, was on God's side. That is the point!

Lincoln, not even a member of a Christian church, understood better than many ministers when to speak about providence, and how, and when to be quiet. But the problem persists. […]

The Blessing of Abraham and the Nations of the Earth

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:19:17-05:00January 23rd, 2010|Categories: Biblical Theology, Missional Church|

The following reflection came to me this week via a post written by my son, Matthew Armstrong. Matt is a passionate church-planter, a faithful evangelist and a young man who teaches me a great deal about faith and obedience, probably much more than even he realizes. When I read this I decided to share it. Enjoy his insights gleaned from a "fresh" reading of Genesis.

On January 1, I started a new Bible reading plan. Actually, it's an old plan that I have done several times, but I had stopped doing it last year. In any case, I have been reading in Genesis about Abraham. It's cool how you can read God's Word many times and continue to see new things in it. It is a rich treasure trove for us as Christ-followers.

What I have been thinking about is how God called Abram, changed his name to Abraham, and blessed him abundantly. He gave him (for the most part) peace with his neighbors, a beautiful and loving wife, two sons (including Isaac, the child of promise), and great wealth. […]

Skye Jethani and Dan Kimball on the Emergent Church

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:19:18-05:00January 22nd, 2010|Categories: Emergent Church|

I attended a dialog on the emergent church Wednesday afternoon at Wheaton College (January 20). Authors Dan Kimball (photo at left) and Skye Jethani (photo at right) made presentations (Dan’s was given the evening before) and answered questions. The event was hosted by Dr. Vince Bacote and the Center for Applied Christian Ethics at Wheaton College. I tried to restrain myself but ended up making several comments at the end of the hour-plus meeting. I likely said more than I should have, given the time constraints. (Time flies when you are thinking, listening, reacting in your mind and wanting to speak while sensing you should say something or maybe you shouldn’t.) I find such events encouraging and just a tad frustrating. The encouraging part is that these two guys were humble, gracious and insightful. I loved listening to them both. The frustrating part is that […]

Catholics Come Home: What Is This TV Ad Campaign All About?

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:19:18-05:00January 21st, 2010|Categories: Roman Catholicism|

A recent television campaign has garnered a great deal of attention and has every appearance of having a significant impact on many people. I refer to the Catholics Come Home ads many of you have no doubt seen. They seem almost ubiquitous of late. This movement, or ministry, was founded by Roman Catholic Tom Petersen. Tom returned to the Catholic Church twelve years ago following a life-changing encounter with Jesus Christ at a men's retreat. Sensing God's call, Tom used his 25 years of experience in the advertising world and applied it faithfully to the task of promoting spiritual renewal among Catholics. This "apostolate" (which is what evangelicals call a parachurch ministry much like ACT 3) is dedicated to reversing the tide of lapsed Catholics, a tide that has grown into a tsunami of late. The ads use the warmest intonation and rely on technologically savvy forms of media, urging Catholics who have fallen away from their church to "come home."

My very […]

What Has Dr. Dobson Done Now?

By John Armstrong|2021-07-02T06:19:21-05:00January 20th, 2010|Categories: American Evangelicalism|

Laurie Goodstein, a religion writer reporting in the New York Times Saturday edition, January 16, tells a rather amazing account of the new ministry of Dr. James Dodson, the internationally well-known founder of Focus on the Family. Her story is both revealing and, to me, troubling. (I draw my information that follows from her account and then make my own responses in what follows.)

Dr. Dobson is, as most readers know, a much respected psychologist who used his experience in counseling and teaching, along with his best-seller status as an author, to build a major Christian ministry in Colorado. Eventually Dr. Dobson adopted an extremely partisan political agenda as the Christian Right developed since 1980. Now, do not misunderstand me here, but Dr. Dobson is entirely free to promote whatever he desires to promote. He is clearly a man of deep personal conviction, for which I honor him. But I am not required to remain silent, by any known […]