Wesleyan Deal breakers
My friend Matt's recent blog post has me thinking: What constitutes a deal breaker for The Wesleyan Church?
Matt mentions his belief that lay people could baptize or serve communion. The Wesleyan Church allows only ordained clergy to do these things. Matt does not think this is a problem. This is an important issue because it reflects the Hochschild/Wheaton and the Enns/Westminster Theological Seminary affairs. Hochschild said he could affirm Wheaton's statement of faith even after converting to Catholocism; Enns published a book that the Board at WTS is deciding whether or not falls outside the bounds of Westminster Confession of Faith. The institutions have the ability to say who agrees with them enough to be one of them.
Matt doesn't think the sacraments would break the commitment he has to The Wesleyan Church and that The Wesleyan Church has to him. What issues in The Wesleyan Church would be deal breakers?
Matt mentions his belief that lay people could baptize or serve communion. The Wesleyan Church allows only ordained clergy to do these things. Matt does not think this is a problem. This is an important issue because it reflects the Hochschild/Wheaton and the Enns/Westminster Theological Seminary affairs. Hochschild said he could affirm Wheaton's statement of faith even after converting to Catholocism; Enns published a book that the Board at WTS is deciding whether or not falls outside the bounds of Westminster Confession of Faith. The institutions have the ability to say who agrees with them enough to be one of them.
Matt doesn't think the sacraments would break the commitment he has to The Wesleyan Church and that The Wesleyan Church has to him. What issues in The Wesleyan Church would be deal breakers?
posted by Aaron Perry at
4:13 PM
10 Comments:
Hey AP :) (no problem with you posting this, of course)...
One comment I would make is that the reverse would not work. What I mean is...if I believed ONLY the clergy should officiate the sacraments and the wesleyan church said anyone could, I'd prolly have more of a problem with that.
The wesleyans are basically taking the 'better safe than sorry' approach to sacraments (similar to alcohol). It's not WRONG to drink alcohol, but there may be wisdom is abstaining for various reasons.
A deal breaker, for me, would be if the Wesleyan Church was allowing something I thought was repulsive to God. Not allowing something that God allows is just weak faith, not a deal breaker.
Of course, I cannot speak for the Wesleyan church. I'd speculate that their 'deal breakers' would be extreme calvinism, atheism, or refusal to preach on financial stewardship!
Don't want anything repulsive to God, like extreme Calvinism!
I bet Jesus is building your mansion between Lorraine Boettner's and R.C. Sproul's!
Crusty.
I hear they frown on pastors who drink.
I gotta say, I think Double Predestination is something God does not like. Of course, I'm sure there are people, better Christians than me, who think universal atonement is something God does not like either.
I found out that being a femmanist is a deal breaker in many Wesleyan Churches.
we resently had several people deside that they would not become members becasue of the drinking thing. it almost was for me.
To me it's an integrity thing. It's fine if you're able to support/teach something you don't fully agree with, but then what do you do if asked your honest opinion?
I left the Wesleyan Church a year ago - not for any crisis in faith or change in belief, but because there are some things that I do disagree with, and my integrity was better served by admitting that and stepping away.
If I have quietly believed in universal atonement for oh, say almost four years now, does that make me un-wesleyan? Good thing I never feel free to say what I believe amongst Wesleyans....that could really get me into trouble.
Steph, I admire your continuity between belief and act.
Sorry, Jo, I should clarify. By universal atonement, I meant unlimited atonement, not, necessarily, universalism or universal reconciliation.
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