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Vicar1#

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Vicar1# last won the day on January 13 2017

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  1. Joseph, I came from an ultra conservative denomination, initially known as the old Disciples of Christ or the Restoration Movement. As Joseph Smith moved ahead with the establishment of the Mormon Church there was a somewhat short lived connection between our traditions. It is interesting to note that there are only three denominations indigenous to the U.S.. One was the Mormons, the Restoration Movement, and the Seventh Day Adventists. All three share in their Evangelical/Fundamentalist view of both Scripture and controversial approaches to Christianity. The Restoration Movement was based on Biblicism which took the position that "we speak where the Bible speaks, and are silent where the Bible is silent. They read Scripture literally, and tried initially to convince other denominations to drop their individual creeds and hermeneutics and join them in their "pure" interpretation of Scripture. The problem was that the Bible writers often used metaphors and wrote within the context of their history, culture, and faith. It doesn't take rocket science to see that to restore the church to its initial "pure" beginning would mean worshipping on the sabbath in Jerusalem, not to mention keeping the law of Moses. The explanations offered by my church's teachers was too convoluted and absolute for me to accept. I had to leave. If you are still traveling the road of trying to find a faith or God that makes more sense, You might try reading The First Coming by Thomas Sheehan and The Folly of God: A Theology of the Unconditional by John D. Caputo. These books do a deep exploration into the historical Jesus, and a God beyond the limitations of current Christian theology. May you find fulfilment along your way, Robert Gutleben
  2. Hello Joseph, good to find you on the journey of faith. I am an ex pastor of an Evangelical/Fundamentalist church. When I began questioning church beliefs I soon discovered that I had fallen into church heresy, and was on my way out. Mormonism, to the best of my knowledge, is sister to typical American Evangelical/Fundamentalism, a tough nut to crack. Like my old E/F church, the old southern Church of Christ, to question doctrine is itself a heresy. Since being "disfellowshipped" in 1984 my experience in the wider world of religion and Christian faith has been continually refreshing. I hope your search for faith is as satisfying as mine. Blessings, Robert Gutleben
  3. I am an ex Evangelical/Fundamentalist minister of the Good Samaritan Community Church of Sebastopol. My exit from my old denomination was primarily due to my call for equal standing for both women and those who were divorced and remarried. Fortunately, the ownership of the church property and articles of incorporation were the sole possession of my individual congregation. Thus, after all was said and done, the majority of the congregation voted to keep me as pastor and separate from the denomination. This began a long journey of questioning my faith, taking with people of other faiths, and a very negative view of the right wing EF community. Today my wife and I still meet with a small group of people on Sunday mornings. We still practice the communion and prayer, but we are inclusive and have had people of various religions, atheists, and visitors who just wanted to spend a Sunday morning with us. I am currently involved in a Biblical Prehistory Study Group with people of Muslim, Hindu, Jewish, and Christian faith. At this time in my life I consider myself to be a seeker. The last book I ready was The Folly of God, A Theology of the Unconditional, by John Caputo. Of course, there is more to say, but this seems to be a good start.
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