Bridge of Reason

  The proverb reads, ‘ Get wisdom; get insight (understanding NASB) ; do not forget, and do not turn away from the words of my mouth.’ (Prov.4:5 ESV) The words of a father to his son, take pains to gain wisdom and insight, though it cost you dear, you will be rewarded. There W as a T ime… I am reading Richard Milton’s Shattering the Myths of Darwinism. There was a time when I would have simply allowed the book to inform me, uncritically taking aboard his carefully reasoned arguments. Those days are long gone. These days I often find myself asking ‘what don’t I know? What insight, what understanding do I lack that, if I had it , might help me better judge what I am reading?’ This will send me scurrying off to authorities I trust to help me make up what I lack. Our teachers should be as fathers to us, giving us the wisdom and insight the proverb writer urges us to seek. Sure enough, I found a wise and authoritative review of the book on the creation website. You can read it her...

Editor's Note:   We get asked from time to time about our use of the word 'cult.' I understand people's unease and discomfort but there seems no honest alternative. Here is an article, originally published in 2015, that explains how we arrive at the term. I hope you find it helpful. CULT! It seems such a pejorative word and certainly in ministry it is not intended as a compliment. But is it an insult? Is its use an example of disagreeing while being disagreeable? To listen to many there is no excuse for using it, especially when what people see as sensible alternatives are available such as sect, or the more acceptable “new (or alternative) religious movement.” So is “cult” used out of nothing more than spite? Or is there a legitimate  application in ministry terms? History “ Cult” comes from the Latin, cultus , from colore , to cultivate or to worship. Colore is the same root for the Latin cultura, from which we get culture. One of many ways of...

Many years ago a friend and work colleague gave me a copy of Jerald and Sandra Tanner's Mormonism, Shadow or Reality? It is a big, red hardback book which would have proved daunting for most people. But for me it became essential bedtime reading, a treasure trove I still reach for when researching. I had no idea such a book existed. Indeed, here in the UK, I had barely heard of Jerald and Sandra Tanner. In the days before computers and the Internet, information was scarce if you lived remotely from the geographical/cultural centre of the organisation you had left. As a Mormon I had easy enough access to teaching manuals from the church but as a critic I had to send away for materials as I discovered them; and if you don't known what you're looking for how do you find it? There was no Amazon, no browsing the Internet for the latest titles. There were no forums, or discussion groups. When you did find quality material you were in a small minority, becoming the one to whom oth...

In his Theological Word Book of the Bible (an essential on every Bible scholar’s shelf) Alan Richardson points out: ‘The knowledge of God is not reached by abstract speculation as in Gk. philosophy, but in the actual everyday business of living, or social relationships and of current historical events. God is not known by thinking out ideas about him, but by seeking and doing his will as made known to us by prophetic men and by our own consciousness of right and wrong. (cf. John 7:17 , James.1:27, 1 John 4:7 .,f 12)’ He cites in particular Jeremiah 22:15-16 , ”Did not your father eat and drink and do justice and righteousness? Then it was well with him. He judged the cause of the poor and needy; then it was well. Is not this to know me?’ declares the LORD.” The error upon error of the Watchtower Society is mainly the product of their having sought God in books. This arises from the laudable 19th century preoccupation with universal education and the peculiarly American preo...

The latest issue of the Reachout newsletter , carried an article about The Watchtower Memorial Meal.  The article concentrated on the division between the great majority of Jehovah's Witnesses, the Great Crowd, and the Anointed Class, the 144,000, who alone are to partake of the memorial meal. A reader sent in some comments after studying the article and shared some interesting insights into how Jehovah's Witnesses see themselves in the great scheme of things. 'I've just read with interest your article entitled 'The Memorial Meal'  in the latest Reachout Trust newsletter. I was  born into the  Witnesses in 1967 and remained there until about 26 years ago when I  became born again. Most of my family are still in the JW organisation. I just wanted to point out a couple of things from the article. The  'great crowd' are encouraged to see themselves as having just as close  a relationship with the organisation as the 'anointed', the soc...

CULT! It seems such a pejorative word and certainly in ministry it is not intended as a compliment. But is it an insult? Is its use an example of disagreeing while being disagreeable? To listen to many there is no excuse for using it, especially when what people see as sensible alternatives are available such as sect, or the more acceptable “new (or alternative) religious movement.” So is “cult” used out of nothing more than spite? Or is there a legitimate application in ministry terms? History “Cult” comes from the Latin, cultus , from colore , to cultivate or to worship. Colore is the same root for the Latin cultura, from which we get culture. One of many ways of defining culture is, “the behaviours and beliefs characteristic of a particular social, ethnic, or age group.” Culture may be said to denote the system of values within a group, how a society defines itself, identifies what is important to its members and how they view the world. It teaches and evaluates the group’s his...

In ministry the least reliable thing of all is a testimony. I know that sounds a strange thing to say but when people stand up and tell their story you really have little or no control over what they will say, there is often little chance of verifying their back story and, especially if it goes to print, it can be a serious liability. Testimonies can also be heart-warming, encouraging, and inspiring, and I don’t want to discourage them. Its a question of how they are handled, what we make of them, and what weight we give them. Content is a good guide. Twelve Baptisms My wife and I were invited some years ago to a baptism in a local church. It was a pretty exciting occasion, in a charismatic church so plenty of music, ‘alleluias, and arm waving. If I tell you there there twelve baptism candidates that night you will understand all the excitement. We took our seats, but not for long, as the band struck up a hearty chorus and the congregation were on their feet, on their chairs – you ...

Have you noticed that folk involved in cult ministry tend to learn on the job? Not many “qualified” Christians turn their minds too much to the world of the cults, although there are some notable exceptions.  In the main, people in this ministry might be termed by the world, “enthusiasts,” although they would see themselves as faithfully answering the call of God to a difficult ministry that has captured their hearts. We do what we can. We are all familiar with the argument that insists, “don’t touch, don’t engage,” based on an erroneous reading of 2 John 10;  “If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not take him into your house or welcome him. Anyone who welcomes him shares in his wicked work.” Of course, the fact is that anyone who isn’t a born-again believer doesn’t bring correct teaching, and then there are those inside the church whose teaching is questionable. So are these people insisting we separate ourselves entirely from the very ones to whom Jesu...

It hardly seems possible but a year has passed since Doug Harris, the founder, chairman and driving force behind Reachout Trust was called home. We miss him, miss his drive and energy, his genius, humour, and love for the Lord and for the ministry. The trustees have agreed that we can’t simply allow the considerable ministry resource that is Reachout Trust disappear and that it would be good to continue the work as a service to the wider church and a legacy to Doug. Doug’s work took him into television in latter years, as many know, and he has worked successfully for Revelation TV. As a result this blog has lain dormant for some time. It seems good to bring it up-to-date and publish on here periodically, teaching, informing, and encouraging people in the truth. Of course, nothing will be as it was without the man himself, so I hope you will be patient as we work things out, forgive us for not coming up to his exacting and energetic standards. But lets see what can be done in his memo...