President Obama Sings "Amazing Grace"

At the memorial held at Emanuel African Methodist Church for the Bible study members murdered by a white supremacist, United States President Barack Obama sang the hymn, "Amazing Grace."

Social Justice and the Church

God (I AM, Jahweh, Elohim, Allah, Deos, Theos, etc) is a God of paradoxes, He is the God of Mercy and the God of Righteous Judgement; the last shall be first; those who ostentatiously pray already have their answer; the King of the Universe appeared to us a a poor man; free will and predestination are both true.

Check your Bible, Jesus always spoke with and dealt only with individuals, never with governments or institutions. In front of Annas, the High priest, He spoke directly to Annas. In front of Pilate, Pilate, He spoke directly only to Pilate (John 18:33-38.) Even when Jesus spoke to large groups, He was speaking to His individual listeners.

Throughout the Bible and the teachings of Jesus is a great concern for the poor. Jesus makes it plain that a failure to help the poor is a failure to obey Him. It’s that simple, but that concern for the poor is a consequence of salvation, it is not the Gospel message.

The Gospel message and the ultimate concern of the Church, is that, through His freely given act of Grace, through His substitutionary death on the Cross, Jesus has defeated the consequences of man’s sin (death) and made it available to every individual on Earth.

The social actions of the Church are a vital function but when they become the primary or only focus, they become what many believe to be a heresy, because they replace the Gospel.
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Concerning the identity of the Church: the Church is not an organization, a denomination, or a “movement.” What constitutes the Church is the totality of all true believers in Christ, indwelled by the Holy Spirit. Not everyone who is a church member is a member of the εκκλεσια, the Church.

Christians

At some time during their lives, the following people have publicly identified themselves as Christian.   Inclusion in this list does not indicate approval or disapproval of the person, their religious beliefs, or their actions.  This is a recurring segment in this blog.

Giambattista (or Giovanni Battista) Pamfili (1574, Italy - 1655) Pamfili served as Pope Innocent X from 1644 to 1655.

Jozsef Mindzenty (1892-1975).  Roman Catholic Cardinal imprisoned in 1948 by Communist authorities.

Ine, King of Wessex  (d. 726) King Ine retired to a Roman Catholic monastery.

Richard Allen (1760, Pa. - 1831) Born as a slave, Allen became a licensed exhorter in the Methodist Epicopal Church and was one of the co-founders of the African Methodist Episcopal Church.

Renita J. Weems Espinosa (b. 1954, Ga.)  African methodist Episcopal Biblical teacher and writer.  The first black woman to have received a Ph.D. (Princeton) in Old Testament studies. 

Christians

At some time during their lives, the following people have publicly identified themselves as Christian.   Inclusion in this list does not indicate approval or disapproval of the person, their religious beliefs, or their actions.  This will be a recurring segment in this blog.

Rudolf Wolters (1903-1983)  German architect, Nazi government official, diarist.  He helped in the rebuilding of West Germany after World War II.  He was raised as a Catholic.

Erik the Red (950-ca. 1003)  This Norwegian navigator left Iceland in 982 and explored Greenland, eventually establishing a colony there.  Tradition says that he became a Christian on his deathbed at the urging of his wife Thjohild.

Absalom Jones:  (1746, Delaware - 1818)  Black clergyman born as a slave.  He taught himself to read using the New Testament and was a co-founder of the African Methodist Episcopal Church.

Alfred Charles Sharpton, Jr.:  (b. 1954)  Pentecostal minister, social activist, writer, radio and television commentator

Frances Octavia Smith:  (1912, Texas - 2001)  aka: Dale Evans.  Writer, singer-songwriter, actress.  Wife of cowboy movie star, Roy Rogers.