Charlottesville Clergy and False Unity – Part 1
READING TIME: 22 MINUTES
The following are the notes to the discussion found at this link (https://www.facebook.com/tammy.cheetham.77/videos/278533765979672/) for anyone who would like to study the subject more in depth.
I want to state from the beginning that these discussions and I say these, because there is so much information we will need two parts to cover it all, but that in these we are not specifically going to discuss the violence which occurred in Charlottesville on August 12. Rather, that the purpose of these discussions is to discuss the false unity that was established by those who sought to address the hate and violence of the alt-right groups who went to Charlottesville.
We will, however, state that racism is a sin and violence is a sin and the only solution for these sins is the only solution for every sin and that is Jesus’ Sacrifice. Our purpose today is to discuss the activities carried out, both before and during the event by “faith” leaders and those who joined in their cause. In the second part we will discuss the reactions to the violence from political and religious representatives and note how everyone is calling for unity.
First, to explain the origin of one of the groups which is called the “Charlottesville Clergy Collective,” (http://www.cvilleclergycollective.org/about.html) we read the following at its website: The Charlottesville Clergy Collective is a group of clergy and interested lay persons who gather regularly to discuss and address the challenge of race relations in the Charlottesville and Albemarle region of Virginia. It was the brainchild of Rev. Dr. Alvin Edwards, Pastor of Mt. Zion First African Baptist Church in Charlottesville. After the tragic shooting at Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina, (in June of 2015), Dr. Edwards wondered if the pastors in Charlottesville knew and trusted each other enough to organize a quick and coordinated response if such an event took place in Charlottesville. He had to admit that the answer was no. (Just to note, an interesting correlation with the incident in Charleston, SC, as far as false unity is concerned, is that Glenn Beck, a Mormon, flew to that city and went to the church. He had invited viewers of his program to meet him and a large group of people showed up, sang, and prayed together). (http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2015/06/19/the-moment-an-msnbc-anchor-broke-down-on-air-as-glenn-beck-showed-up-at-the-charleston-church/)
(And, this gathering together for prayer with those of other religions has become the pattern when a tragedy occurs. People are getting conditioned to unite against a common enemy. Unite to fight a perceived evil, no matter with whom seems to be their calling card. However, unity is not the gospel. You know, we are not promised peace, an easy life, a certain social status, certain freedoms. Rather, we are looking for a city whose builder and maker is God; we are not to attempt to right every wrong in this life. This just isn’t possible because sin is the cause of all problems and humans cannot eradicate sin! Only the Blood of Jesus can do so!
Another example of establishing false unity after a tragedy is from July of 2016 when 5 police officers were shot in Dallas. A prayer vigil was held and the following religious leaders spoke: Rabbi David Stern of Temple Emanu-El in Dallas, Bishop T.D. Jakes of the Potter’s House, Imam Omar Suleiman and Catholic Bishop Kevin Farrell. So everyone present participated in an ecumenical event). (http://www.fox4news.com/news/171849762-story)
The following are sister Tammy’s comments concerning true believers praying with unbelievers or with those of other belief systems: (Much of Jesus’ ministry was about confronting the false teaching of the religious leaders. (Matt. 16:11-12; 23:1-39).
Matthew 24:4-5 – Jesus warned us
And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.
Jesus, as we know never told us to pray with false teachers, but rather reprove them and expose them.
The fight for unity is actually a false premise and actually bringing dissension to those that are truly saved as they are getting misled by falsehood. The Bible repeatedly warned us not to be deceived.
Praying with other religions is not scriptural and the only time we pray with those is when leading one to the Lord by grace through Faith to confess Jesus is Who He says He is on receiving salvation.
Praying WITH anyone that has not the faith in the Jesus of the Bible is not Scriptural unless they are being lead to Christ in repentance and faith. Allowing yourself as a true Believer to join in prayer with unbelievers would communicate your agreement with their faulty understanding of God. Praying WITH and praying FOR are two different things. Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers.
The Bible teaching of separation forbids God's people from fellowshipping with error (Romans 16:17-18; II Corinthians 6:14-18; 11:1-4; Galatians 1:8-9; Ephesians 4:14-15; 5:11; Philippians 3:1-2; Colossians 2:8; II Thessalonians 3:6; I Timothy 1:3; 6:3-5; 6:20-21; II Timothy 2:16-21; 3:5,13; Titus 1:10-14; 3:9-11; II Peter 2:1-3; 3:17; 2 John 7-11; Jude 3; Revelation 2:2,6,14-16,20-23; 18:4).
Jesus taught His people to pray "OUR FATHER", so make sure that you are praying with true believers that have the same Father. The Bible never refers to the lost as His children.
This whole concept of joining with false religions brings disunity to the body and the thing that gets me is the ones being obedient to expose these errors are the ones being shunned in the name of dissension and described as unloving, judgmental Pharisees!
Elijah never joined with false prophets to pray, but rather prayed to the One True God. However, many are even twisting the scriptures and saying we come in the name of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, but they do not have the same God. Not all who claim Abraham as their father do have him because they are not in the faith; they do not have the Holy Spirit. As we see in the last days the enemy is going to have power to call even fire down from heaven and mimic with lying signs and wonders to deceive, but be assured that his gospel will not be that of the Word of God, it will be this false unity we are talking about here, one that will lead to joining with other religions, and when he has finished using them he will put them all down so that he gets the attention and worship of the world. This is why we do not unite with Babylon, the world’s system, at all in any spiritual endeavors. We are simply to preach Jesus and what He has done and allow the Holy Spirit to work as we continue to share His Word).
Another group that I will mention several times and that works with the Charlottesville Clergy Collective is called Congregate C’Ville (https://congregatecville.com). This group was formed only six weeks ago specifically to resist racism at the “Unite the Right” rally.
Its lead organizer is Brittany Caine-Conley who will soon be an ordained minister in the United Church of Christ. Rev. Seth Wispelwey, Directing Minister of Restoration Village Arts (RVA) and an ordained minister with the United Church of Christ, is Consulting Organizer for Congregate C’Ville. At the Restoration Village website we see this statement on the main page: “A Just and Beautiful World through Arts and Theologies.” (Well, that of course means Restoration Village Arts is focused on this life and on what man can do instead of eternity and Jesus Christ).
The following is the press release (https://congregatecville.com/press-release-for-clergy-call) which declares the plans of those who joined together in false unity. They knew in advance the alt-right groups would be in their city on August 12th because these groups had obtained permits to assemble.
The press release reads: “Congregate C’ville has issued a call for 1000 clergy and faith leaders to travel to Charlottesville August 11-13. Local clergy and faith leaders are planning trainings, interfaith services and opportunities for visible prayerful presence throughout the weekend. Together, we can confront the rising threat posed by these white supremacist groups in Charlottesville and across the country.
Dr. Cornel West, Rev. Dr. Traci Blackmon, Lisa Sharon Harper, Dr. Robyn Henderson-Espinoza, Brian McLaren and more have already responded to the call. They and many others are committing to join Congregate’s efforts in Charlottesville to confront the rise of white nationalist political power and refuse to let Charlottesville be used as a platform towards those ends. We will stand in solidarity against the waves of racist, sexist, and homophobic harassment and violence white supremacist ideologies are manifesting nationwide. (Just to mention that telling people all aspects of the LGBTQ movement are sinful will be labeled as homophobic harassment and that anyone standing up for God’s Word will be in the crosshairs of groups such as these. Christians will be hated for standing for the truths in God’s Word).
Continuing with the press release: The Rev. Dr. Traci Blackmon, Executive Minister of Justice and Witness Ministries for the United Church of Christ, says, "I am coming to Charlottesville at the invitation of Congregate because the sin of White Supremacy is a national problem that plagues the soul of our nation."
“We know that God’s love is for all, and that God is urgently concerned with the well-being of the marginalized and oppressed,” said Rev. Seth Wispelwey, Consulting Organizer of Congregate and Directing Minister of Restoration Village Arts. “The virulent racism, xenophobia, Islamophobia, anti-Semitism, and homophobia of the Alt-Right threatens and seeks to degrade the humanity of too many of our human siblings here in Charlottesville and throughout the United States. God is on their side in this, and it is our call as leaders of faith to advocate with and for them.” (We would say that while Christians are not to hate anyone because God’s Word says to love even our enemies, God will never be on the side of sinners. God’s will is that all would hear the gospel and repent. Sad to say, with all the activities we will mention that were undertaken by these “faith” groups, preaching the gospel was not one of them).
And, then, this release ended by stating, “A community interfaith service with music and sharing and preaching from local leaders and Rev. Dr. Blackmon and Dr. West will take place at St. Paul’s Memorial Church near the University of Virginia at 8pm on August 11.”
Now, I want to mention some posts from the Charlottesville Clergy Collective fb page:
August 7th - We gather for an embodied interfaith celebration of community as we prepare for August 12. This Celebration was held at Common Grounds Healing Arts center.
Aug. 7 - We gather in prayerful worship to prepare ourselves for August 12. Prayer and worship gathering at Thomas Jefferson Memorial Unitarian Universalist church on Aug. 9.
And, here is a quote from Rev. Susan Frederick-Gray, president of the Unitarian Universalist Association who attended the interfaith gatherings in Charlottesville. “This is a pivotal moment in our nation. I am here to show up on the side of love. This is a time when violence, fear and radicalized hate have been given permission. It is important for people of conscience to say that love and equity is our future. Faith calls us to see the humanity in one another. The Christian scriptures call us to love our neighbors as ourselves. Jesus says that even our enemies are our neighbors. That is the kind of radical, unconditional love that we are called to live out as people of faith towards one another.” Additionally, here is a tweet she posted the night of the 12th: “They had their guns and shields. We had our songs, our faith, our love. And we had each other.” (http://www.dailyprogress.com/news/local/faith-leaders-gather-on-the-eve-of-hate-driven-unite/article_b1f33600-7f02-11e7-9b3c-7308e1924381.html) (You know, it’s almost as if some of these leaders have gone out of their way to not mention Jesus. Love is mentioned several times, but the true gospel of salvation is not preached. Everything is based on what man will do through human efforts. However, we know that Christians have been commissioned to preach the gospel and that true love will tell the truth. The truth is that people are sinners in desperate need of a Savior. And, just to mention for those who may be unfamiliar with Unitarian Universalists, theirs is a liberal religion that promotes freedom of belief and respect for all people. They welcome and embrace all who share their values and principles regardless of their religious beliefs, sexual orientation, race, age or gender ).
Continuing with the Collective Clergy’s facebook page to show some of the churches involved:
On the 7th there was a post announcing a prayer and worship gathering on the 10th at Westminster Presbyterian Church.
On the same day there was a post announcing prayer and worship at the University Baptist Church on Aug. 8 to prepare for August 12.
Additionally, on the 7th there was a post announcing a Mass Prayer Meeting for Friday the 11th, at 8PM at St. Paul's Memorial Church.
A post on Aug. 8 stated the following: “Mindful breathing, guided meditations, and prayerful dancing and singing at the Embodied Interfaith Service at Common Ground last night!”
And, a post concerning a sunrise service on Aug. 12 with this statement: Thank you to Congregate C'ville and First Baptist Church for organizing the service and bringing in the special guests who helped us prepare for the day ahead.
On the 12th at about 8 am a post showed a large group walked from Jefferson school to downtown Charlottesville. At one point they sang,”He’s got the whole world in His hands, but alternated lines saying, “She’s got the whole world in her hands.”
Then about noon one group was at McGuffey part singing “I feel freedom in the air; there must be a god somewhere.” (I hope the listeners are starting to notice the liberal and social justice attitudes of those involved).
Also, at this park a pastor from Bridgeport, CT, addressed the crowd by saying, “There’s a Sanskrit term that says “Namaste.” Namaste means the divinity in me salutes the divinity in you. And, I say Namaste to you.” The crowd repeated the phrase. (https://www.facebook.com/congregatecville?hc_ref=ARSait8DvNqgH_WxjVlDOCVxjA1GOadVNRfJtzSl_iW26air_ebNpd8zySm7cDMYbIc) (This just underscores our concern about people going to any prayer events because there is no way to know ahead of time what unbiblical beliefs some of the people might hold).
Now, I’m going to share part of an interview (https://www.vox.com/identities/2017/8/14/16140506/congregate-cville-charlottesville-rally-protest-interview) with Congregate C’Ville’s lead organizer Brittany Caine-Conley who I mentioned earlier.
Abbey White: Around how many clergy members showed up on Friday after you put out the call at the end of July? And how many different denominations answered that call?
Brittany Caine-Conley: Several hundred people responded to our call. The majority of people that responded were not from Charlottesville. We had put out our own local call and had been training folks for months. But we had folks from all over the country, as far as Texas, Ohio, and New York — we really had a great representation of folks from many traditions. Not just Christian denominations, but many other faiths. We had Muslim folks with us, Jewish folks, people part of meditation communities. It was a wide array of faith leaders and clergy. (And, due to the fact they hadn’t gathered with any intention of preaching the gospel, it didn’t matter to them that people of different religious systems were present. Since they preach a social justice gospel people from all faiths can rally around their cause).
Abbey White: So much happened on Saturday. If you can, break down what Congregate C’Ville was doing from the start of the day until it ended.
Brittany Caine-Conley: So we started service at 6 am where we were given a message from Dr. Cornel West. From there we had people going out to different locations to serve in different capacities. So we did have a march of several hundred people that went from the Jefferson School to McGuffey Park. McGuffey Park was designated as a safe space where one of our allies had got a permit for the day. (As I mentioned earlier I watched a video of this march and here are some of the signs and T-shirts I saw: love thy neighbor, no exceptions; Charlottesville embraces diversity; several that just said love; and diversity makes us stronger; many T-shirts that said black lives matter; and several that said Quaker).
Caine-Conley continues: Others of us marched from First Baptist Church down to Emancipation Park, where we held a line presence right in front of the armed militia. We sang and we prayed, and we really worked to change the environment and change the narrative to help community members feel safe.
At this point I want to mention an article that describes what Caine-Conley called a “line presence right in front of the armed militia.” The article (https://www.yahoo.com/news/clergy-members-heckled-pray-charlottesville-000048861.html) states that “clergy members were heckled as they prayed at a white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, on August 12. Heather Wilson, a photographer and journalist, captured the moment multi-faith clergy gathered to hold a line of prayer and song at the base of Emancipation Park as people gathered to attend the Unite the Right rally. The article also stated that the clerics are part of Congregate C’ville, a faith-based social activist group.
I watched a video (https://www.facebook.com/SojournersMagazine/videos/10154915035842794/) that showed each of these clerics praying or making statements at this point. I wasn’t able to ascertain the names of all of them:
Lisa Sharon Harper: “That You, Lord, would be among the people today. That You, Lord, would protect the city and give the leaders wisdom.”
Rev. Carlton Smith: “May perfect love cast out all fear.”
Dr. Cornel West: “Let us never be afraid in the face of hatred and let us bear witness to love knowing that justice is what love looks like in public.”
The next person said: “Let freedom ring.”
Brittany Caine-Conley: “God of all of us. Forgive us of the sin of white supremacy. Help us realize the white supremacy in ourselves, in our communities and in our countries. Make everyone know that love wins.”
At this point someone from the crowd called out, “Is this every lesbian clergy member in America?”
And, the, Rev. Seth Wispelwey said: “God, thank You for making me a straight, white man so that I could have the opportunity and responsibility to stand with those who are so dehumanized and made to feel like they don’t belong here in our country of equal rights for all.” (Due to the nature of the question and Wispelwey’s response as a straight man we can assume he means gays should have equal rights. This type of thinking is the result of believing “freedom” should be granted carte blanche to carnal human beings. The concept of freedom without God’s law being written on our hearts means people will live a “let me do my own thing” existence. They will say, “Who are you to judge me?” Which just means leave me alone so I can sin all I want and no one has the right to say otherwise).
Rev. Susan Frederick-Gray: “Spirit of God, help us reject this paradigm of domination and let us remember our common unity as humanity as part of creation. May we be led in love. May our hearts be free of fear and hate. May we learn to love with deep, abiding love for all of humanity. For everyone, everyone, is within side, within the circle of love.” (Of course, being the head of the Unitarian-Universalist Association one would expect her to make such a statement and we also see how such talk is attractive to the sinful heart of man because it gives such false assurance. However, true love speaks the truth about sin).
Continuing with the interview: From there, a group of us had space on some stairs where we wanted a presence as the alt-right folks were coming in. We also had folks throughout the day serving as “care bears,” walking around the park, walking around all of downtown with water, snacks, and sunscreen. We had folks who were stationed at other safe spaces.
At First United Methodist Church, we had folks serving as sort of mental health medics, essentially. We had folks at another church that were ready to respond for any sort of jail support that was needed. We had a bunch of faith leaders and clergy that were sent to hospitals, particularly after the car attack. So we were really trying to disperse folks and send them all across the city to be helpful and be a presence in whatever way made sense for them and their skill sets.
There was also a small group of us that continued to be in the downtown space as conflict continued to arise. We had folks with us that would essentially get information about where the conflict was happening and we’d march there. We’d march there, hold space. We attempted to protect the community from the alt-right and showed up wherever we were needed. (I wanted to share all these statements to specifically show that at no point does this leader say anyone shared the gospel. No church members held signs, passed out tracts, preached the gospel on street corners. This movement is strictly about social justice).
Continuing with the interview, Abbey White asks: At many points, you were close to “Unite the Right” rally participants as well as an armed militia. What impact did their presence have on the group and what impact did you want your presence to have?
Brittany Caine-Conley: Our hashtag was #LoveOverFear. White supremacists were descending on our town and are still here in order to make us fearful, in order to take away our power and our agency. We wanted to say that we’re not afraid. In those moments, you can feel your own fear and anxiety, but that’s why we had trained for so long. People knew how to deal with those feelings and were responding to an almost higher call.
Most of us were there because we felt called by God to put our own bodies on the line, so that marginalized and oppressed people don’t have to continue to be the only ones who receive violence. We take on that violence. So yeah, it was scary, but we wanted to say this is not who we are, and that love wins.
That was one thing that we were continuing to chant, that love has already won here and that we will not — as people of faith, as people of Charlottesville — we will not allow white supremacy to take over who we are. That is largely what we were attempting to do with those spaces, to obviously make a statement to the white supremacists, but also a statement to our city that we are here, we are here with you, we are here to serve you. It was really beautiful to see all the community members that joined in with our songs and in our chants. We really felt that our presence was able to change the narrative and change the dynamic of the space.
I keep telling folks, Jesus was killed by the empire. Jesus endured violence so that more marginalized and oppressed people didn’t have to. And that is our call — that if we are truly to follow Jesus, we need to put our bodies and lives in places where we’re also willing to speak truth to power and to put ourselves in places where we may be killed by the empire. (So, this really shows us the confused thinking of those in this group. Jesus willingly laid down His life according to John 10:18. And, this idea that Jesus endured violence so that marginalized and oppressed people didn’t have to is completely unbiblical. And, that this is somehow our calling also shows how the Bible is being twisted in some of these denominations. Christians have suffered persecution through time and this continues to happen because of an allegiance to Christ. Also, throughout this interview we heard all about the activities of these social activists. It was completely man-centered and prideful. There was nothing about that which Jesus came to do, what He has already done, what He will do in the lives of believers. This is all so sad because these “faith” leaders should have brought the true solution to violence and hate - the need for all to be born again - but this can be compared to people having the antidote to poison, but rather than dispensing it they talk all about themselves and how they’ll put their lives on the line for the person. This makes no sense for those claiming to be Christians, but we know, of course, how the true gospel has been cast to the side in favor of a social justice gospel in so many churches).
Now, I want to mention an article (http://www.christianitytoday.com/women/2017/august/dispatches-from-charlottesville-what-happens-when-neo-nazis.html) in “Christianity Today” by someone who is from Charlottesville. The author writes: “On Friday night, I walked up the stairs of St. Paul’s Memorial Episcopal Church, my home church, across the street from University of Virginia’s majestic Rotunda. On a normal Sunday, St. Paul’s is not quite full, its pews spotted with students, families, and retirement-age folks—all mostly white. But that night, the nave was standing room only, with overflow crowds moved into the side chapel. My Charlottesville neighbors and a smattering of out-of-towners—black, white, brown, young, old, Muslim, Christian, Unitarian, Jewish—stood side by side.
“We came because we were scared, or at least confused. We didn’t know where else to go. We came because we shared a call to social justice and we knew we needed each other. (So, again we see that this was an ecumenical gathering. In addition, no mention of Jesus, but rather of social justice. Coming together under the banner of unity to fight a common enemy and totally lacking the understanding that Christians do not join together with those of other religions).
And, here is a little information from a NBC news affiliate (http://www.nbc29.com/clip/13585607/religious-leaders-prepare-for-the-unite-the-right-rally). The title of the link is “Religious Leaders Prepare for the Unite the Right Rally” and it was posted on August 11. A reporter said the Charlottesville Clergy Collective had invited all religious leaders to St. Paul’s memorial church for a unity service. She also interviewed Rabbi Mordecai Leibling who was in town for the event: “I think that all of our religious teachings tell us we are all connected and that we are all one in love and that it is important to make sure that each of us is treated as if we were created in the image of God.” (But, we would say while we are all created in the image of God and we should show common courtesy and decency, and should love our enemies, we are not all one in love or in anything else. Other religious teachings may say we are, but Christianity does not. Christianity does not say, it’s fine to believe whatever you want, just hold hands sing kumbaya, and everything will be better. It rather says, Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life, and that while we will witness to others, we are not to join up with those from other belief systems).
The following are sister Tammy’s comments concerning Judaism: (Modern Jews believe Jesus of Nazareth did not fulfill messianic prophecies that establish the criteria for the coming of the messiah.
Judaism is another gospel because they deny the person and work of Jesus Christ; they believe in the observance of law as a means to be saved; they say Jesus is burning in hell in hot excrement; they deny grace.
The difference between Christianity and Judaism is the Person of Jesus Christ.
Christianity teaches that Jesus Christ is the fulfilment of the Old Testament prophecies of a coming Messiah / Saviour (Isaiah 7:14; 9:6-7; Micah 5:2). Judaism often recognizes Jesus as a good teacher, and perhaps even a prophet of God.
Christianity teaches that Jesus was God in the flesh (John 1:1,14; Hebrews 1:8).
Christianity teaches that God became a human being in the Person of Jesus Christ so He could lay down His life to pay the price for our sins (Romans 5:8; 2 Corinthians 5:21).
Judaism strongly denies that Jesus was God or that such a sacrifice was necessary).
(As we stated at the beginning we will continue this discussion with part 2 and we will be discussing the reactions to the violence from political and religious representatives and note how everyone is calling for unity).
READING TIME: 22 MINUTES
The following are the notes to the discussion found at this link (https://www.facebook.com/tammy.cheetham.77/videos/278533765979672/) for anyone who would like to study the subject more in depth.
I want to state from the beginning that these discussions and I say these, because there is so much information we will need two parts to cover it all, but that in these we are not specifically going to discuss the violence which occurred in Charlottesville on August 12. Rather, that the purpose of these discussions is to discuss the false unity that was established by those who sought to address the hate and violence of the alt-right groups who went to Charlottesville.
We will, however, state that racism is a sin and violence is a sin and the only solution for these sins is the only solution for every sin and that is Jesus’ Sacrifice. Our purpose today is to discuss the activities carried out, both before and during the event by “faith” leaders and those who joined in their cause. In the second part we will discuss the reactions to the violence from political and religious representatives and note how everyone is calling for unity.
First, to explain the origin of one of the groups which is called the “Charlottesville Clergy Collective,” (http://www.cvilleclergycollective.org/about.html) we read the following at its website: The Charlottesville Clergy Collective is a group of clergy and interested lay persons who gather regularly to discuss and address the challenge of race relations in the Charlottesville and Albemarle region of Virginia. It was the brainchild of Rev. Dr. Alvin Edwards, Pastor of Mt. Zion First African Baptist Church in Charlottesville. After the tragic shooting at Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina, (in June of 2015), Dr. Edwards wondered if the pastors in Charlottesville knew and trusted each other enough to organize a quick and coordinated response if such an event took place in Charlottesville. He had to admit that the answer was no. (Just to note, an interesting correlation with the incident in Charleston, SC, as far as false unity is concerned, is that Glenn Beck, a Mormon, flew to that city and went to the church. He had invited viewers of his program to meet him and a large group of people showed up, sang, and prayed together). (http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2015/06/19/the-moment-an-msnbc-anchor-broke-down-on-air-as-glenn-beck-showed-up-at-the-charleston-church/)
(And, this gathering together for prayer with those of other religions has become the pattern when a tragedy occurs. People are getting conditioned to unite against a common enemy. Unite to fight a perceived evil, no matter with whom seems to be their calling card. However, unity is not the gospel. You know, we are not promised peace, an easy life, a certain social status, certain freedoms. Rather, we are looking for a city whose builder and maker is God; we are not to attempt to right every wrong in this life. This just isn’t possible because sin is the cause of all problems and humans cannot eradicate sin! Only the Blood of Jesus can do so!
Another example of establishing false unity after a tragedy is from July of 2016 when 5 police officers were shot in Dallas. A prayer vigil was held and the following religious leaders spoke: Rabbi David Stern of Temple Emanu-El in Dallas, Bishop T.D. Jakes of the Potter’s House, Imam Omar Suleiman and Catholic Bishop Kevin Farrell. So everyone present participated in an ecumenical event). (http://www.fox4news.com/news/171849762-story)
The following are sister Tammy’s comments concerning true believers praying with unbelievers or with those of other belief systems: (Much of Jesus’ ministry was about confronting the false teaching of the religious leaders. (Matt. 16:11-12; 23:1-39).
Matthew 24:4-5 – Jesus warned us
And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.
Jesus, as we know never told us to pray with false teachers, but rather reprove them and expose them.
The fight for unity is actually a false premise and actually bringing dissension to those that are truly saved as they are getting misled by falsehood. The Bible repeatedly warned us not to be deceived.
Praying with other religions is not scriptural and the only time we pray with those is when leading one to the Lord by grace through Faith to confess Jesus is Who He says He is on receiving salvation.
Praying WITH anyone that has not the faith in the Jesus of the Bible is not Scriptural unless they are being lead to Christ in repentance and faith. Allowing yourself as a true Believer to join in prayer with unbelievers would communicate your agreement with their faulty understanding of God. Praying WITH and praying FOR are two different things. Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers.
The Bible teaching of separation forbids God's people from fellowshipping with error (Romans 16:17-18; II Corinthians 6:14-18; 11:1-4; Galatians 1:8-9; Ephesians 4:14-15; 5:11; Philippians 3:1-2; Colossians 2:8; II Thessalonians 3:6; I Timothy 1:3; 6:3-5; 6:20-21; II Timothy 2:16-21; 3:5,13; Titus 1:10-14; 3:9-11; II Peter 2:1-3; 3:17; 2 John 7-11; Jude 3; Revelation 2:2,6,14-16,20-23; 18:4).
Jesus taught His people to pray "OUR FATHER", so make sure that you are praying with true believers that have the same Father. The Bible never refers to the lost as His children.
This whole concept of joining with false religions brings disunity to the body and the thing that gets me is the ones being obedient to expose these errors are the ones being shunned in the name of dissension and described as unloving, judgmental Pharisees!
Elijah never joined with false prophets to pray, but rather prayed to the One True God. However, many are even twisting the scriptures and saying we come in the name of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, but they do not have the same God. Not all who claim Abraham as their father do have him because they are not in the faith; they do not have the Holy Spirit. As we see in the last days the enemy is going to have power to call even fire down from heaven and mimic with lying signs and wonders to deceive, but be assured that his gospel will not be that of the Word of God, it will be this false unity we are talking about here, one that will lead to joining with other religions, and when he has finished using them he will put them all down so that he gets the attention and worship of the world. This is why we do not unite with Babylon, the world’s system, at all in any spiritual endeavors. We are simply to preach Jesus and what He has done and allow the Holy Spirit to work as we continue to share His Word).
Another group that I will mention several times and that works with the Charlottesville Clergy Collective is called Congregate C’Ville (https://congregatecville.com). This group was formed only six weeks ago specifically to resist racism at the “Unite the Right” rally.
Its lead organizer is Brittany Caine-Conley who will soon be an ordained minister in the United Church of Christ. Rev. Seth Wispelwey, Directing Minister of Restoration Village Arts (RVA) and an ordained minister with the United Church of Christ, is Consulting Organizer for Congregate C’Ville. At the Restoration Village website we see this statement on the main page: “A Just and Beautiful World through Arts and Theologies.” (Well, that of course means Restoration Village Arts is focused on this life and on what man can do instead of eternity and Jesus Christ).
The following is the press release (https://congregatecville.com/press-release-for-clergy-call) which declares the plans of those who joined together in false unity. They knew in advance the alt-right groups would be in their city on August 12th because these groups had obtained permits to assemble.
The press release reads: “Congregate C’ville has issued a call for 1000 clergy and faith leaders to travel to Charlottesville August 11-13. Local clergy and faith leaders are planning trainings, interfaith services and opportunities for visible prayerful presence throughout the weekend. Together, we can confront the rising threat posed by these white supremacist groups in Charlottesville and across the country.
Dr. Cornel West, Rev. Dr. Traci Blackmon, Lisa Sharon Harper, Dr. Robyn Henderson-Espinoza, Brian McLaren and more have already responded to the call. They and many others are committing to join Congregate’s efforts in Charlottesville to confront the rise of white nationalist political power and refuse to let Charlottesville be used as a platform towards those ends. We will stand in solidarity against the waves of racist, sexist, and homophobic harassment and violence white supremacist ideologies are manifesting nationwide. (Just to mention that telling people all aspects of the LGBTQ movement are sinful will be labeled as homophobic harassment and that anyone standing up for God’s Word will be in the crosshairs of groups such as these. Christians will be hated for standing for the truths in God’s Word).
Continuing with the press release: The Rev. Dr. Traci Blackmon, Executive Minister of Justice and Witness Ministries for the United Church of Christ, says, "I am coming to Charlottesville at the invitation of Congregate because the sin of White Supremacy is a national problem that plagues the soul of our nation."
“We know that God’s love is for all, and that God is urgently concerned with the well-being of the marginalized and oppressed,” said Rev. Seth Wispelwey, Consulting Organizer of Congregate and Directing Minister of Restoration Village Arts. “The virulent racism, xenophobia, Islamophobia, anti-Semitism, and homophobia of the Alt-Right threatens and seeks to degrade the humanity of too many of our human siblings here in Charlottesville and throughout the United States. God is on their side in this, and it is our call as leaders of faith to advocate with and for them.” (We would say that while Christians are not to hate anyone because God’s Word says to love even our enemies, God will never be on the side of sinners. God’s will is that all would hear the gospel and repent. Sad to say, with all the activities we will mention that were undertaken by these “faith” groups, preaching the gospel was not one of them).
And, then, this release ended by stating, “A community interfaith service with music and sharing and preaching from local leaders and Rev. Dr. Blackmon and Dr. West will take place at St. Paul’s Memorial Church near the University of Virginia at 8pm on August 11.”
Now, I want to mention some posts from the Charlottesville Clergy Collective fb page:
August 7th - We gather for an embodied interfaith celebration of community as we prepare for August 12. This Celebration was held at Common Grounds Healing Arts center.
Aug. 7 - We gather in prayerful worship to prepare ourselves for August 12. Prayer and worship gathering at Thomas Jefferson Memorial Unitarian Universalist church on Aug. 9.
And, here is a quote from Rev. Susan Frederick-Gray, president of the Unitarian Universalist Association who attended the interfaith gatherings in Charlottesville. “This is a pivotal moment in our nation. I am here to show up on the side of love. This is a time when violence, fear and radicalized hate have been given permission. It is important for people of conscience to say that love and equity is our future. Faith calls us to see the humanity in one another. The Christian scriptures call us to love our neighbors as ourselves. Jesus says that even our enemies are our neighbors. That is the kind of radical, unconditional love that we are called to live out as people of faith towards one another.” Additionally, here is a tweet she posted the night of the 12th: “They had their guns and shields. We had our songs, our faith, our love. And we had each other.” (http://www.dailyprogress.com/news/local/faith-leaders-gather-on-the-eve-of-hate-driven-unite/article_b1f33600-7f02-11e7-9b3c-7308e1924381.html) (You know, it’s almost as if some of these leaders have gone out of their way to not mention Jesus. Love is mentioned several times, but the true gospel of salvation is not preached. Everything is based on what man will do through human efforts. However, we know that Christians have been commissioned to preach the gospel and that true love will tell the truth. The truth is that people are sinners in desperate need of a Savior. And, just to mention for those who may be unfamiliar with Unitarian Universalists, theirs is a liberal religion that promotes freedom of belief and respect for all people. They welcome and embrace all who share their values and principles regardless of their religious beliefs, sexual orientation, race, age or gender ).
Continuing with the Collective Clergy’s facebook page to show some of the churches involved:
On the 7th there was a post announcing a prayer and worship gathering on the 10th at Westminster Presbyterian Church.
On the same day there was a post announcing prayer and worship at the University Baptist Church on Aug. 8 to prepare for August 12.
Additionally, on the 7th there was a post announcing a Mass Prayer Meeting for Friday the 11th, at 8PM at St. Paul's Memorial Church.
A post on Aug. 8 stated the following: “Mindful breathing, guided meditations, and prayerful dancing and singing at the Embodied Interfaith Service at Common Ground last night!”
And, a post concerning a sunrise service on Aug. 12 with this statement: Thank you to Congregate C'ville and First Baptist Church for organizing the service and bringing in the special guests who helped us prepare for the day ahead.
On the 12th at about 8 am a post showed a large group walked from Jefferson school to downtown Charlottesville. At one point they sang,”He’s got the whole world in His hands, but alternated lines saying, “She’s got the whole world in her hands.”
Then about noon one group was at McGuffey part singing “I feel freedom in the air; there must be a god somewhere.” (I hope the listeners are starting to notice the liberal and social justice attitudes of those involved).
Also, at this park a pastor from Bridgeport, CT, addressed the crowd by saying, “There’s a Sanskrit term that says “Namaste.” Namaste means the divinity in me salutes the divinity in you. And, I say Namaste to you.” The crowd repeated the phrase. (https://www.facebook.com/congregatecville?hc_ref=ARSait8DvNqgH_WxjVlDOCVxjA1GOadVNRfJtzSl_iW26air_ebNpd8zySm7cDMYbIc) (This just underscores our concern about people going to any prayer events because there is no way to know ahead of time what unbiblical beliefs some of the people might hold).
Now, I’m going to share part of an interview (https://www.vox.com/identities/2017/8/14/16140506/congregate-cville-charlottesville-rally-protest-interview) with Congregate C’Ville’s lead organizer Brittany Caine-Conley who I mentioned earlier.
Abbey White: Around how many clergy members showed up on Friday after you put out the call at the end of July? And how many different denominations answered that call?
Brittany Caine-Conley: Several hundred people responded to our call. The majority of people that responded were not from Charlottesville. We had put out our own local call and had been training folks for months. But we had folks from all over the country, as far as Texas, Ohio, and New York — we really had a great representation of folks from many traditions. Not just Christian denominations, but many other faiths. We had Muslim folks with us, Jewish folks, people part of meditation communities. It was a wide array of faith leaders and clergy. (And, due to the fact they hadn’t gathered with any intention of preaching the gospel, it didn’t matter to them that people of different religious systems were present. Since they preach a social justice gospel people from all faiths can rally around their cause).
Abbey White: So much happened on Saturday. If you can, break down what Congregate C’Ville was doing from the start of the day until it ended.
Brittany Caine-Conley: So we started service at 6 am where we were given a message from Dr. Cornel West. From there we had people going out to different locations to serve in different capacities. So we did have a march of several hundred people that went from the Jefferson School to McGuffey Park. McGuffey Park was designated as a safe space where one of our allies had got a permit for the day. (As I mentioned earlier I watched a video of this march and here are some of the signs and T-shirts I saw: love thy neighbor, no exceptions; Charlottesville embraces diversity; several that just said love; and diversity makes us stronger; many T-shirts that said black lives matter; and several that said Quaker).
Caine-Conley continues: Others of us marched from First Baptist Church down to Emancipation Park, where we held a line presence right in front of the armed militia. We sang and we prayed, and we really worked to change the environment and change the narrative to help community members feel safe.
At this point I want to mention an article that describes what Caine-Conley called a “line presence right in front of the armed militia.” The article (https://www.yahoo.com/news/clergy-members-heckled-pray-charlottesville-000048861.html) states that “clergy members were heckled as they prayed at a white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, on August 12. Heather Wilson, a photographer and journalist, captured the moment multi-faith clergy gathered to hold a line of prayer and song at the base of Emancipation Park as people gathered to attend the Unite the Right rally. The article also stated that the clerics are part of Congregate C’ville, a faith-based social activist group.
I watched a video (https://www.facebook.com/SojournersMagazine/videos/10154915035842794/) that showed each of these clerics praying or making statements at this point. I wasn’t able to ascertain the names of all of them:
Lisa Sharon Harper: “That You, Lord, would be among the people today. That You, Lord, would protect the city and give the leaders wisdom.”
Rev. Carlton Smith: “May perfect love cast out all fear.”
Dr. Cornel West: “Let us never be afraid in the face of hatred and let us bear witness to love knowing that justice is what love looks like in public.”
The next person said: “Let freedom ring.”
Brittany Caine-Conley: “God of all of us. Forgive us of the sin of white supremacy. Help us realize the white supremacy in ourselves, in our communities and in our countries. Make everyone know that love wins.”
At this point someone from the crowd called out, “Is this every lesbian clergy member in America?”
And, the, Rev. Seth Wispelwey said: “God, thank You for making me a straight, white man so that I could have the opportunity and responsibility to stand with those who are so dehumanized and made to feel like they don’t belong here in our country of equal rights for all.” (Due to the nature of the question and Wispelwey’s response as a straight man we can assume he means gays should have equal rights. This type of thinking is the result of believing “freedom” should be granted carte blanche to carnal human beings. The concept of freedom without God’s law being written on our hearts means people will live a “let me do my own thing” existence. They will say, “Who are you to judge me?” Which just means leave me alone so I can sin all I want and no one has the right to say otherwise).
Rev. Susan Frederick-Gray: “Spirit of God, help us reject this paradigm of domination and let us remember our common unity as humanity as part of creation. May we be led in love. May our hearts be free of fear and hate. May we learn to love with deep, abiding love for all of humanity. For everyone, everyone, is within side, within the circle of love.” (Of course, being the head of the Unitarian-Universalist Association one would expect her to make such a statement and we also see how such talk is attractive to the sinful heart of man because it gives such false assurance. However, true love speaks the truth about sin).
Continuing with the interview: From there, a group of us had space on some stairs where we wanted a presence as the alt-right folks were coming in. We also had folks throughout the day serving as “care bears,” walking around the park, walking around all of downtown with water, snacks, and sunscreen. We had folks who were stationed at other safe spaces.
At First United Methodist Church, we had folks serving as sort of mental health medics, essentially. We had folks at another church that were ready to respond for any sort of jail support that was needed. We had a bunch of faith leaders and clergy that were sent to hospitals, particularly after the car attack. So we were really trying to disperse folks and send them all across the city to be helpful and be a presence in whatever way made sense for them and their skill sets.
There was also a small group of us that continued to be in the downtown space as conflict continued to arise. We had folks with us that would essentially get information about where the conflict was happening and we’d march there. We’d march there, hold space. We attempted to protect the community from the alt-right and showed up wherever we were needed. (I wanted to share all these statements to specifically show that at no point does this leader say anyone shared the gospel. No church members held signs, passed out tracts, preached the gospel on street corners. This movement is strictly about social justice).
Continuing with the interview, Abbey White asks: At many points, you were close to “Unite the Right” rally participants as well as an armed militia. What impact did their presence have on the group and what impact did you want your presence to have?
Brittany Caine-Conley: Our hashtag was #LoveOverFear. White supremacists were descending on our town and are still here in order to make us fearful, in order to take away our power and our agency. We wanted to say that we’re not afraid. In those moments, you can feel your own fear and anxiety, but that’s why we had trained for so long. People knew how to deal with those feelings and were responding to an almost higher call.
Most of us were there because we felt called by God to put our own bodies on the line, so that marginalized and oppressed people don’t have to continue to be the only ones who receive violence. We take on that violence. So yeah, it was scary, but we wanted to say this is not who we are, and that love wins.
That was one thing that we were continuing to chant, that love has already won here and that we will not — as people of faith, as people of Charlottesville — we will not allow white supremacy to take over who we are. That is largely what we were attempting to do with those spaces, to obviously make a statement to the white supremacists, but also a statement to our city that we are here, we are here with you, we are here to serve you. It was really beautiful to see all the community members that joined in with our songs and in our chants. We really felt that our presence was able to change the narrative and change the dynamic of the space.
I keep telling folks, Jesus was killed by the empire. Jesus endured violence so that more marginalized and oppressed people didn’t have to. And that is our call — that if we are truly to follow Jesus, we need to put our bodies and lives in places where we’re also willing to speak truth to power and to put ourselves in places where we may be killed by the empire. (So, this really shows us the confused thinking of those in this group. Jesus willingly laid down His life according to John 10:18. And, this idea that Jesus endured violence so that marginalized and oppressed people didn’t have to is completely unbiblical. And, that this is somehow our calling also shows how the Bible is being twisted in some of these denominations. Christians have suffered persecution through time and this continues to happen because of an allegiance to Christ. Also, throughout this interview we heard all about the activities of these social activists. It was completely man-centered and prideful. There was nothing about that which Jesus came to do, what He has already done, what He will do in the lives of believers. This is all so sad because these “faith” leaders should have brought the true solution to violence and hate - the need for all to be born again - but this can be compared to people having the antidote to poison, but rather than dispensing it they talk all about themselves and how they’ll put their lives on the line for the person. This makes no sense for those claiming to be Christians, but we know, of course, how the true gospel has been cast to the side in favor of a social justice gospel in so many churches).
Now, I want to mention an article (http://www.christianitytoday.com/women/2017/august/dispatches-from-charlottesville-what-happens-when-neo-nazis.html) in “Christianity Today” by someone who is from Charlottesville. The author writes: “On Friday night, I walked up the stairs of St. Paul’s Memorial Episcopal Church, my home church, across the street from University of Virginia’s majestic Rotunda. On a normal Sunday, St. Paul’s is not quite full, its pews spotted with students, families, and retirement-age folks—all mostly white. But that night, the nave was standing room only, with overflow crowds moved into the side chapel. My Charlottesville neighbors and a smattering of out-of-towners—black, white, brown, young, old, Muslim, Christian, Unitarian, Jewish—stood side by side.
“We came because we were scared, or at least confused. We didn’t know where else to go. We came because we shared a call to social justice and we knew we needed each other. (So, again we see that this was an ecumenical gathering. In addition, no mention of Jesus, but rather of social justice. Coming together under the banner of unity to fight a common enemy and totally lacking the understanding that Christians do not join together with those of other religions).
And, here is a little information from a NBC news affiliate (http://www.nbc29.com/clip/13585607/religious-leaders-prepare-for-the-unite-the-right-rally). The title of the link is “Religious Leaders Prepare for the Unite the Right Rally” and it was posted on August 11. A reporter said the Charlottesville Clergy Collective had invited all religious leaders to St. Paul’s memorial church for a unity service. She also interviewed Rabbi Mordecai Leibling who was in town for the event: “I think that all of our religious teachings tell us we are all connected and that we are all one in love and that it is important to make sure that each of us is treated as if we were created in the image of God.” (But, we would say while we are all created in the image of God and we should show common courtesy and decency, and should love our enemies, we are not all one in love or in anything else. Other religious teachings may say we are, but Christianity does not. Christianity does not say, it’s fine to believe whatever you want, just hold hands sing kumbaya, and everything will be better. It rather says, Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life, and that while we will witness to others, we are not to join up with those from other belief systems).
The following are sister Tammy’s comments concerning Judaism: (Modern Jews believe Jesus of Nazareth did not fulfill messianic prophecies that establish the criteria for the coming of the messiah.
Judaism is another gospel because they deny the person and work of Jesus Christ; they believe in the observance of law as a means to be saved; they say Jesus is burning in hell in hot excrement; they deny grace.
The difference between Christianity and Judaism is the Person of Jesus Christ.
Christianity teaches that Jesus Christ is the fulfilment of the Old Testament prophecies of a coming Messiah / Saviour (Isaiah 7:14; 9:6-7; Micah 5:2). Judaism often recognizes Jesus as a good teacher, and perhaps even a prophet of God.
Christianity teaches that Jesus was God in the flesh (John 1:1,14; Hebrews 1:8).
Christianity teaches that God became a human being in the Person of Jesus Christ so He could lay down His life to pay the price for our sins (Romans 5:8; 2 Corinthians 5:21).
Judaism strongly denies that Jesus was God or that such a sacrifice was necessary).
(As we stated at the beginning we will continue this discussion with part 2 and we will be discussing the reactions to the violence from political and religious representatives and note how everyone is calling for unity).