Liberal v Conservative

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On Tue, 8 Sep 1998 04:25:47 EDT Dunemus@AOL.com writes:

>Somebody please help me.  Define what is liberal and what is
>conservative?  

Conservatives attempt to maintain the status quo, while Liberals attempt
to make change.

On the issue of Churches allowing televisions, you would be considered a
Liberal.  As far as the authority of the Bible is concerned, you are a
Conservative.

>Does owning a TV make one a liberal?  

It COULD be construed as Liberal in some Churches.

>No matter how many other standards and convictions that they 
>may embrace?  

The old "convictions race", eh?  Pity that no one can win.

>I have always considered myself to be rather conservative.  My 
>church is very conservative,  yet most of the people own televisions.  

Yew must be in one a' them CaliFORnee Churches.  <G>

>But I dare say that you won't find most of the saints at my 
>church behaving in ungodly ways.  They make a difference 
>between themselves and the world by their actions and 
>there appearance,  etc.  

Which is where it counts.  Do you know how hard it is for SOME people to
try to go to a Pentecostal Church?  They don't first think about the Love
of God or being saved.  Sometimes they think, "I've gotta give up my TV,
no more movies; I dunno..." thus playing into the hands of Satan.

>But yet,  according to some of the people on this list they are non 
>identifiable as conservative saved people.  This notion disturbs 
>me greatly.  

Perhaps because in conservative circles, labelling someone as "Liberal"
can be demeaning, while the reverse is true among the few liberals
remaining on Earth <G>.

>One thing that I have been noticing lately is this sad form of Apostolic

>"classism."  We label each other and really feel that we are better 
>than our brothers and sisters that don't believe exactly what we
believe. 

Again, that is where standards become stumblingblocks to saints and brick
walls to strangers.

If true DOCTRINE is taught, standards will work themselves out.

>Especially when there is Apostolic programming on television.  
>And that IS common.  Although not generally from the UPC 
>(I wonder why).   

I wonder also, since more and more UPC Churches are allowing televisions.
 

Again, I vote that the UPC start a satellite network (you'd be surprised
how little it would actually take) called JNN for Jesus' Name Network. 
The problem, though, is not the satellite network itself, but the
programming, but I am sure that various Churches have enough video to
really satisfy several hours a day of preaching, etc and the UPC itself
could have various classes, as well as Pentecostal music groups and of
course customized news.  I would just LOVE one time to hear an anchorman
ask for prayer for the victims of some tragedy instead of just reporting
"184 dead...and now the weather..."
   
>     Also,  just one more question.  What do you all do with your 
>radio's? The same thinking that leads us to throw away our TV's  must
also 
>necessarily lead us to throw out our radios.  There is hardly anything
on the 
>radio that is "edifying"  or "spiritually constructive."  Mostly ungodly
music,  
>talk shows,  etc.  But nobody teaches that as a point of contention.  
>That's because tradition  has caused us to focus on TV.  

BINGO.  Whoops, we're not Catholics.

>My original reponse was referring mostly to the fact
>that we need to stop painting ereryone in the world with the same 
>broad brush.

I would go so far as to say that WE aren't even the Painter and have no
authority picking up That Brush.

>There are very few things that are absolutely always true.   In fact 
>the only thing that I know that is absolutely an unmoveable fact 
>is the written Word of God.    

THAT is why I qualify things between "Doctrine" (the unchanging Word of
God) and "Standards" based on the flimsiest of things: traditions of men.

>Therefore,  we need to start adding qualifiers to our statements.
>Words like "sometimes,  frequently,  often,  rarely,  seldom,  few or 
>many" are words that help qualify a statement.  For example the 
>statement,  "Nobody wants to be saved in these days,"  is a false 
>statement.  

One thing I learned EARLY on in debating is that outside of Divine
Activity, you CANNOT defend an absolute.

Jerry Welch

www.geocities.com/Athens/Aegean/2810/

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