Here's what the world thinks of us

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This is lengthy but interesting.  This came from charisma magazine.  There
sure is a lot of trinitarians who really don't like us oneness people...

bro aaron

> There are 17 million of them in the world, but Oneness Pentecostals are
not
> even considered Christians by some in the church. Who are these people,
and
> why have they been labeled heretics for more than 80 years? 
> 
> By: J. Lee Grady
> 
> 
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
> 
> 
> If you love vibrant worship, the place to be on a Sunday night in
> Alexandria, Louisiana, is Anthony Mangun's church, The Pentecostals of
> Alexandria. These people know how to praise the Lord the old-fashioned
way.
> 
> The volume is loud, the atmosphere is electric, and everyone is excited
> when they enter the 2,700-seat sanctuary--one of the largest in central
> Louisiana. Although the congregation is mostly white, their singing has a
> distinctive black gospel sound. Choir members wearing bright teal and
black
> robes sway side to side while an organist and a drummer pump the audience
> with an infectious beat.
> 
> People in the crowd stand and shout as they sing "Send It on Down." Later
> in the service, Mangun preaches an emotion-packed message on his favorite
> topic, the baptism in the Holy Spirit. Eloquent yet folksy, his pulpit
> manner reflects the style he inherited from the itinerant camp-meeting
> preachers who organized the United Pentecostal Church in rural American
> communities years ago.
> 
> Congregants jam the altar after the sermon. They kneel, some weeping,
while
> others gather around and lay hands on those who want a touch from God.
> 
> Because of the upbeat praise, the hand-clapping, the shouting, the fiery
> preaching and the ever-present practice of speaking in tongues, a casual
> observer might assume these people are typical Pentecostals. Much of what
> they believe and how they worship resembles the style of the Assemblies
of
> God or other classical Pentecostal denominations.
> 
> But regardless of the similarities, these folks are a world apart from
> other Pentecostals. They have lived in a parallel universe for more than
80
> years, separated from their brethren by a nasty doctrinal feud that split
> families and churches and spawned decades of hateful name-calling.
> 
> Labeled heretics in 1916, these people have lived in isolation ever
since.
> In many cases they hurled cruel insults back at their accusers, often
> condemning people to hell for not agreeing with their view of Scripture. 
> 
> Yet today, some younger leaders in this movement are wondering if there
is
> any chance this lingering feud might end. Tired of being treated like the
> weird cousins in a dysfunctional family and aware that they are at least
> partly responsible for creating one of the most monstrous divisions in
> modern Christianity, they quietly are hoping to lead their movement into
> the mainstream church.
> 
> 
> 
> A House Divided
> 
> They are called "Oneness" Pentecostals, and they have worn that label as
a
> badge of honor for decades, priding themselves as distinct from all other
> churches. Sometimes called "Jesus only" Pentecostals by their critics
(they
> object to that label themselves), Oneness believers were ousted from the
> Assemblies of God for refusing to adopt the term "Trinity" to describe
the
> Godhead. 
> 
> Although they acknowledge that God manifests Himself as Father, Son and
> Holy Spirit, the founders of Oneness Pentecostalism objected so adamantly
> to trinitarian language that they decided to build a distinct Christian
> movement emphasizing the unity or "oneness" of God. To split doctrinal
> hairs even further, they insisted that new converts be baptized "in the
> name of Jesus," not according to the trinitarian formula.
> 
> Today there are an estimated 17 million Oneness Pentecostals worldwide.
In
> the United States, there are some 2.1 million of them divided into
numerous
> denominations and splinter groups that all trace their roots to the Azusa
> Street Revival of 1906. The largest Oneness organization, the United
> Pentecostal Church (UPC), has grown to 700,000 in this country; several
> black and Hispanic Oneness groups, often called "apostolic" churches, are
> also experiencing growth in the 1990s.
> 
> Though Oneness Pentecostals believe in the deity of Christ and the
> authority of Scripture (see related article on page 66), their rejection
of
> trinitarian terminology and their rigid position on baptism have put them
> in an awkward position: They are too orthodox to be compared with Mormons
> or Jehovah's Witnesses, yet they are too sectarian to mix with other
> evangelicals.
> 
> So no one really knows what to do with them. 
> 
> Some theologians have branded them a cult not only because of their
> doctrinal quirks but also because of their radical isolationism. And
> trinitarian Pentecostals are waiting for Oneness leaders to publicly
admit
> that their position on the Godhead is heretical.
> 
> Gregory A. Boyd, a professor at Bethel College in Minnesota, wrote a
> stinging critique of Oneness doctrine in 1992, Oneness Pentecostals and
the
> Trinity. He says Oneness theology is nothing more than recrafted
> modalism--an ancient heresy that implied the distinctions between the
> Father, Son and Holy Spirit are illusions.
> 
> "If you deny the eternality of the three personal ways God is God, you
> undermine the very essence of Christianity," states Boyd, who spent
several
> years in the UPC before abandoning it to become a charismatic Baptist.
> 
> Stalwart leaders in the UPC say they don't understand what the fuss is
all
> about. Respected UPC leader T.F. Tenney, 63, a denominational
> superintendent in Louisiana, insists Oneness doctrine does not contradict
> the Bible.
> 
> "You can't call us 'Jesus only,' as some have. We do not deny the Father,
> the Son or the Holy Spirit," Tenney told Charisma. "We believe Jesus
Christ
> is wholly, fully, absolutely and completely God. But no one is going to
put
> us in the position of saying there are three Gods."
> 
> The argument over whether God is three-in-one or one-in-three is a moot
> point for the average layman, who tends to view the doctrine of the
Trinity
> as an unexplainable mystery. People who have had negative encounters with
> Oneness Pentecostals usually complain about:
> 
> * Legalism. Oneness groups insist people who are not baptized "in Jesus'
> name" are not saved--thus implying that the gift of God's grace can be
> forfeited on a technicality. People who have left the UPC say this
teaching
> about baptism caused them to believe their admittance into heaven would
be
> determined by their own performance rather than by simple faith in
Christ's
> atonement.
> 
> * Elitism. Although attitudes are changing, mean-spirited hard-liners in
> many Oneness churches believe they have a corner on the truth because of
> their supposedly superior doctrines and strict holiness standards.
> 
> * Judgmentalism. In hard-line UPC churches, believers are taught that
other
> Christians are hell-bound because they watch television or wear jewelry.
> 
> The UPC's official holiness code, which offers a long list of dos and
> don'ts for its membership, has been a stumbling block for many of its
> pastors. While the organization is growing (a record number of ministers
> were ordained in 1996), a steady stream of pastors are leaving through
the
> back door because they can't stomach what they consider to be hypocrisy.
> 
> "Many UPC pastors preach against television, but they have TVs at their
> homes on the lake. I can't live like that," says Tommy Tenney, 41, a UPC
> evangelist whose exit in 1992 was difficult because his father is so
> prominent in the denomination. The younger Tenney says that when he left
> the UPC, his eyes were opened to "how big the body of Christ really is."
> 
> Prominent leaders have broken ranks with the UPC over the years,
including
> charismatic pastors Charles Green of Word of Faith Christian Fellowship
in
> New Orleans and L.H. Hardwick of Christ Church in Nashville, Tenn. Last
> year, UPC pastor C.G. "Jabo" Green of Houston was elected to lead a
network
> of dissident UPC leaders who wanted more grace and less sectarianism. The
> organization represents 430 U.S. ministers.
> 
> Green, 57, says even though most pastors in his network affirm the
Oneness
> position on the Godhead, they don't require new members to be rebaptized
in
> Jesus' name or expect compliance to a set of holiness standards. And they
> don't teach that other Christians aren't saved.
> 
> "I have no stones to throw at the UPC," Green says. "But I can't go along
> with the narrow-minded idea that everyone has to believe exactly like us
to
> be saved."
> 
> 
> 
> Changing Attitudes
> 
> Though Green decided that the only way to change the UPC was to vote with
> his feet, a larger number of progressive pastors--some of whom did not
want
> their names used in this article--have decided to work quietly for reform
> from within. While they remain intensely loyal to their church, they
> desperately want to steer the UPC out of the murky backwater where it has
> been mired for decades.
> 
> One pastor says he wept recently when he realized how judgmental his
> denomination had acted toward other Christians. He now fears the UPC will
> forfeit God's blessing because of denominational pride.
> 
> "I was taught in the UPC that we were the body of Christ--that we had the
> whole gospel and everyone else just had a part," says the pastor, who
asked
> to remain anonymous. "No one actually came out and said that other
> Christians aren't going to heaven, but that attitude was implied."
> 
> Michael Williams, a successful UPC pastor in Orlando, Florida, says not
> everyone in his denomination is so rigid. "People have looked at our
horror
> stories and tried to make us all look bad," says Williams. "But you can't
> paint us with a broad brush. We are not a monolithic movement." 
> 
> Many UPC leaders--even some at the denomination's headquarters in
> Hazelwood, Missouri--say they see reformation coming. But they expect a
> gradual changing of the guard as older, more hard-line leaders relinquish
> control.
> 
> "There are some zealots in our church," admits Jack Cunningham, 39,
> director of home missions for the group. "But our leaders do not think
they
> are the only people who are saved. We are just a fingernail on the little
> finger of the body of Christ." continued
> 
> That refreshing viewpoint is shared by Anthony Mangun, whose church in
> Alexandria, Louisiana, is considered one of the most progressive in the
> denomination. By encouraging pastors to develop an attitude of acceptance
> toward other Christians, Mangun is leading the effort to take the UPC
into
> the 21st century.
> 
> In February he gathered more than 1,500 UPC leaders at his church to hear
> John Maxwell, an evangelical who specializes in leadership training. Ten
> years ago it would have been unheard of to see someone like Maxwell at a
> UPC event.
> 
> Maxwell finds UPC leaders to be "more open and more hungry for God all
the
> time." Rather than trying to "fix" the UPC theologically, he says he
simply
> embraces them as Christians and offers his seminars to help them grow in
> Christ, adding: "I don't draw lines. I have a great appreciation for the
> hearts of these people."
> 
> 
> 
> Can We Repair the Breach?
> 
> Maxwell's eagerness to build relationships with Oneness Pentecostals is
not
> shared by top executives in the Assemblies of God (AG). No one at AG
> headquarters seems interested in building a bridge--even midway.
> 
> AG official George Wood said his denomination's policy on Oneness
> Pentecostals would discourage any reconciliation effort. "The Godhead
issue
> is what stands in the way. It would be difficult to dialogue with them
> unless they rethink that position," Wood explains.
> 
> The UPC's top official, Nathaniel Urshan, 76, says the AG snubbed him
when
> he tried to initiate dialogue in the 1960s and 1980s. "We are really not
as
> far apart as many people think," Urshan says. "But [the AG] says we don't
> believe in the Father and the Holy Ghost--which is not true."
> 
> The AG does not encourage its members to label the UPC or other Oneness
> groups as cults, nor have AG pastors been directed to shun Oneness
> believers, Wood says. But many AG leaders treat Oneness Pentecostals as
an
> invisible fringe group they wish would fade away.
> 
> Such treatment seems odd in light of the influence Oneness Pentecostals
> have had on the mainstream church particularly through music. Many of the
> most popular praise anthems sung in charismatic and evangelical churches
> today were composed by Oneness believers.
> 
> Dottie Rambo, who was raised in a Oneness church, wrote "Behold the Lamb"
> and other stirring songs. Joel Hemphill, a Southern gospel artist, wrote
> "He's Still Working on Me." Lanny Wolfe, affiliated with an independent
> Oneness church, wrote "Greater Is He That Is in Me."
> 
> More recently, UPC songwriter Geron Davis wrote "Holy Ground" and "In the
> Presence of Jehovah"--worship choruses that have broad popular appeal.
The
> contemporary Christian recording group Phillips, Craig and Dean is
composed
> of three Oneness ministers. And the song "Mercy Seat," which is sung
> nightly at the Brownsville Assembly of God revival in Pensacola, Florida,
> was penned by UPC worship leader Mark Carouthers.
> 
> "Our music is heart music. It's emotional," says Dan Davis, a UPC music
> director from Louisiana who laughs when he points out that even rock
legend
> Elvis Presley attended a Oneness Pentecostal church in his early years.
> 
> If Oneness Pentecostals are heretics, should we stop singing their songs?
> Observers say it would be absurd to come to such a conclusion. And, they
> add, it is becoming increasingly difficult to know who is Oneness and who
> isn't.
> 
> Because of recent upheaval in the UPC, many pastors have left to
establish
> prominent independent Oneness churches. And many popular preachers in the
> black charismatic community--most notably T.D. Jakes of Dallas--have
> Oneness roots. 
> 
> All this begs the question: Are we entering an era when the historic
> dividing line between Oneness and trinitarian Pentecostals will become so
> blurred that it is irrelevant? And will apologies soon be offered from
both
> sides of this debate? 
> 
> Theologian Mel Roebeck hopes so. 
> 
> "We've been calling each other names since 1916," says the Fuller
> Theological Seminary professor who carries AG credentials. "It may take
> years, but we need to start arguing out our differences."
> 
> What would it take to bring reconciliation? If Oneness Pentecostals would
> acknowledge that their trinitarian rivals are indeed Christians, and if
> trinitarians could admit the same about Oneness believers, then we could
> make significant strides in healing this division. And Roebeck thinks the
> Godhead dilemma could be resolved if both sides would sign the Lausanne
> Covenant, a statement of evangelical faith that affirms belief in the
> Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
> 
> If that doesn't happen, and if leaders on both sides remain unwilling to
> change, then the Pentecostal movement will remain a house divided against
> itself. 
> 
> 
> 
> President Clinton's Pentecostal Connection
> 
> 
> 
> Anthony Mangun hasn't offered any campaign contributions, but he calls
Bill
> Clinton a friend.
> 
> 
> 
> Bill Clinton's friends may come and go depending on the latest White
House
> scandal. But regardless of the Whitewater investigation or the current
> uproar in Washington over campaign fund raising, the president knows he
can
> always count on Anthony Mangun, a Oneness Pentecostal pastor who has
> offered the president unconditional friendship for 21 years.
> 
> The two men met in Arkansas when then-governor Clinton began paying
annual
> visits to a Pentecostal camp meeting near Little Rock. Clinton went there
> to win votes, but he responded genuinely to the spirited music and
> preaching that always characterize United Pentecostal Church (UPC)
> gatherings.
> 
> According to Mangun, Clinton has had a soft spot for Pentecostals ever
> since.
> 
> "He loves our music. He loves connecting with Spirit-filled people," says
> Mangun, 47, now pastor of one of the largest UPC churches in the country,
> The Pentecostals of Alexandria in Alexandria, Louisiana.
> 
> Clinton's fondness for UPC music surfaced during his 1992 presidential
> campaign, when a reporter asked the saxophone-playing candidate about
> musical influences in his life. Clinton told Rolling Stone magazine: "I
> have a lot of friends in Pentecostal services, and a lot of their church
> music is some of the most awesome music I've ever heard. You just gasp
when
> you hear it."
> 
> Clinton likes Mangun's music so much, in fact, that he asked his church's
> choir to perform at Inauguration Day events in 1993 and 1997. This year
> they sang "Lift Up Holy Hands" and "He's Faithful," led by Mangun's wife,
> Mickey, a popular UPC soloist.
> 
> Since Clinton's election, the Mangun family has visited the White House;
> Mangun has jogged and played golf with Bill; and his wife has had chances
> to chat with Hillary about the challenges of raising a teen-ager. Unlike
> some of Clinton's wealthy Asian visitors, the Manguns didn't pay a dime
to
> the Democratic Party in exchange for their White House sleep-over. But
> Mangun has resolved to offer spiritual support even though he disagrees
> with some of Clinton's policies.
> 
> "The book of Romans says we are to support our leaders in prayer," the
> pastor told Charisma. "I feel I must stand with Bill Clinton and show
love
> to him personally. If you are going to bash him, then stick with the
> issues--don't attack the individual."
> 
> Mangun has challenged Clinton on at least one occasion--when he urged him
> to reconsider his 1996 decision to allow partial-birth abortions. But the
> Louisiana preacher--with his boyish charm and Louisiana drawl--offers the
> president spiritual encouragement regularly. He won't divulge details
about
> such conversations, but he says Clinton is a more spiritual man than most
> Christians imagine.
> 
> One evening in 1993, for example, the Manguns and the Clintons prayed and
> worshiped together around a White House piano. "Bill listens to our music
> tapes, and he asked Mickey to play some of our deep, worshipful songs,"
> Mangun said. "I've seen him get very emotional."
> 
> Mangun thinks Clinton's interest in spiritual things began in the
Arkansas
> camp-meeting days, when Clinton was known to spend long hours conversing
> with Robert Baehr, a UPC preacher. When Clinton was voted out as governor
> in 1980, UPC ministers, including Mickey's father, James Lumpkin,
"reached
> out to him when other people in Little Rock would deliberately cross the
> street to avoid him," Mangun says.
> 
> Apparently Clinton doesn't forget a kindness. When he defeated George
Bush
> in 1992, he invited the Manguns to Little Rock for a victory celebration.
> 
> And Clinton has made more than one stop at Mangun's church to catch a
> performance of The Messiah, an elaborate Easter pageant performed each
year
> to sell-out crowds. Clinton and several White House staffers, including
> former Chief of Staff Leon Panetta, flew to Alexandria on Air Force One
for
> a private performance in 1996.
> 
> Mangun says Clinton wept during the musical drama, which depicts the
> crucifixion and resurrection of Christ and includes a cast of 500 people
> and live animals. After the performance, UPC minister T.F. Tenney laid
> hands on the president and prayed for him.
> 
> Some ministers in central Louisiana have criticized Mangun for his
> chumminess with a president who favors abortion rights. But Mangun
believes
> Clinton could use a friend who won't turn and run when the political
favors
> run out.
> 
> "I didn't tell my congregation to vote for Bill Clinton. I didn't
campaign
> for him. He knows I'm a conservative pastor," Mangun says. "But he also
> knows I'm a good friend."
> 
> A good friend who has the Holy Ghost. That might be the best friend any
> president could have. --J. Lee Grady 
> 
> 
> 
> What Oneness Pentecostals Believe...
> 
> ...about the deity of Christ:
> 
> Oneness Pentecostals believe that Jesus Christ was born of the Virgin
Mary,
> that He came to earth as God incarnate, and that He died on the cross and
> rose from the dead to purchase redemption for all mankind.
> 
> 
> 
> ....about the Bible:
> 
> Like all evangelical Christians, Oneness Pentecostals believe the Bible
is
> the supreme authority in the life of the believer and that the Old and
New
> Testaments are the infallible and inerrant revelation of God's will to
man.
> 
> 
> 
> ....about the Trinity:
> 
> Often quoting Deuteronomy 6:4, "Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the
Lord
> is one (NKJV)," Oneness Pentecostals emphasize the "oneness" or unity of
> God. Although they acknowledge the Father, Son and Holy Spirit as three
> manifestations of God, they object to the term Trinity because: (1) it is
> not in the Bible; and (2) it can be misunderstood to suggest that God is
> actually three separate beings.
> 
> Since 1916, Oneness and trinitarian Pentecostals have been at odds over
the
> doctrine of the Godhead. Tragically, some Oneness believers have argued
so
> stridently against trinitarian terminology they have suggested that other
> Christians who don't share their views aren't genuinely saved. Likewise,
> trinitarian Pentecostals have shunned Oneness believers and labeled them
> heretics.
> 
> 
> 
> ....about water baptism:
> 
> Oneness Pentecostals insist that new converts be baptized "in the name of
> Jesus," the formula used by the apostles in the book of Acts (see Acts
> 2:38; 8:16; 10:48; 19:5). They vehemently reject the trinitarian
baptismal
> formula of Matthew 28:19 ("baptizing them in the name of the Father and
of
> the Son and of the Holy Spirit"), arguing that Jesus is the name of the
> Father, Son and Holy Spirit. This is why Oneness Pentecostals are often
> labeled "Jesus only."
> 
> Although some trinitarian Pentecostals are comfortable using the "Jesus'
> name" formula, Oneness Pentecostals would never baptize using the
> trinitarian model. They insist on rebaptism when counseling those who
have
> been baptized in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
> 
> In fact, the most rigid Oneness Pentecostals teach that baptism in Jesus'
> name is a prerequisite for salvation--thus encouraging a flawed theology
of
> salvation by works rather than grace. It is on this issue, theologians
say,
> that Oneness Pentecostals have drifted dangerously toward spiritual
elitism
> and heresy.
> 
> 
> 
> ....about personal holiness:
> 
> At the beginning of this century all Pentecostals developed strict
> standards of dress and conduct to separate themselves from the world. As
> times changed most trinitarian Pentecostals relaxed their codes of
> appearance and behavior.
> 
> However, because Oneness Pentecostals have been so isolated from other
> denominations, they still, in the 1990s, adhere to strict holiness
> standards. Members of the United Pentecostal Church, for example, are
urged
> not to watch television or go to movie theaters or sports events, and
women
> are instructed not to wear makeup, jewelry, pants or short hairstyles.
> 
> 
> 
> ....about other Christians:
> 
> Today some Oneness Pentecostals have encouraged an open attitude toward
> other Christians in an effort to break from the isolation and elitism of
> the past. 
> 
> However, because Oneness Pentecostals have zealously insisted that the
> infilling of the Holy Spirit must be accompanied by speaking in tongues,
> some have gone so far as to teach that Christians who don't speak in
> tongues aren't saved. This kind of spiritual pride has prevented Oneness
> groups from building healthy relationships with other Christian
> denominations. 
> 
> 
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
> About the Author: J. Lee Grady is executive editor of Charisma. He
welcomes
> feedback on how the Oneness issue can be resolved. Send e-mail to
> grady@strang.com.
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
> E-mail us: Send us your comments, feedback or a letter to the editor.
> 
> 
> © 1996 Strang Communications
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
>