Crucified Christ.

'Christ Crucified before Us

"Who did bewitch you, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was openly set forth crucified?" Jesus was set forth before the Galatians, when Paul preached to them, as openly crucified before their eyes. So vivid was the presentation, that they could actually see Christ crucified. It was not skilful word-painting on the part of Paul, nor imagination on the part of the Galatians, for then it would have been only deception. No; it was an actual fact; Christ was there, crucified, before their eyes, and Paul by the Spirit enabled them to see Him. We know that it was not Paul's skill in making beautiful word pictures that enabled them to fancy that they saw the crucifixion, for elsewhere Paul says that he determined 101 to know nothing but Jesus Christ and Him crucified, and that he purposely and carefully refrained from using the wisdom of words, for fear that he should make the cross of Christ without effect. 1Cor.1:17,18; 2:1-4.

1Co 1:17  For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect. 

1Co 1:18  For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God

1Co 2:1  And I, brethren, when I came to you, came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God. 

1Co 2:2  For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified. 

1Co 2:3  And I was with you in weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling. 

1Co 2:4  And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power:

The experience of the Galatians in this matter was not peculiar to them. The cross of Christ is a present thing. The expression, "Come to the cross," is not an empty form of words, but an invitation that can be literally complied with. Christ is crucified before us, and each blade of grass, each leaf in the forest, reveals the fact. Yea, we have the testimony in our own bodies, in that, although sinful and corruptible, we yet live. Not until one has seen Christ crucified before his eyes, and can see the cross of Christ at every turn, does one know the reality of the Gospel. Let those scoff who will; the fact that a blind man can not see the sun, and denies that it shines, will not deter one who sees it from talking of its glory. Many there are who can testify that it is something more than a figure of speech, when the apostle says that Christ was crucified before the eyes of the Galatians. They have had the experience. God grant that this study of Galatians, before it is finished, may be the means of opening the eyes of many more, so that they may see Christ crucified before their eyes, and know Him crucified in them and for them. 

A Good Beginning

The question, "Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?" admits of but one answer. It was by the hearing of faith. The Spirit is given to those who believe. John 7:39; 102

Joh 7:39  (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.) 

Eph.1:13.

Eph 1:13  In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise

The question also shows that the Galatians had received the Holy Spirit. There is no other way of beginning the Christian life. "No man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost." 1Cor.12:3. In the beginning the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters, begetting life and activity in the creation; for without the Spirit there is no motion--no life. "Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit, saith the Lord of hosts." Zech.4:6. The Spirit of God alone can carry out the perfect will of God, and no works that a man can do can bring Him into the soul, any more than a dead man can manufacture the breath by which he can be made to live and move. Those to whom Paul addressed this Epistle had seen Christ crucified before their eyes, and had accepted Him through the Spirit. Have you also seen and accepted Him? 

Hold Fast the Beginning

"Are ye so foolish? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now perfected in the flesh?" Foolish is but a feeble term for it. The man who has not power to begin a work, has strength to finish it! He who has not strength to put one foot before the other, or even to stand alone, has strength enough in himself to win a race! Impossible. Who has power to beget himself? No one; we come into this world without having begotten ourselves; we are born without strength; and, therefore, all the strength that ever manifests itself in us, comes from another than ourselves. It is all given to us. The new-born babe is the representative of man. "A man is born into the world." All the strength that any man has 103 of himself is found in the infant as it utters its first cry with its first breath. And even that feeble strength is not of itself. Even so in things spiritual. "Of His own will begat He us with the Word of truth." Jam.1:18. We can no more live righteous lives by our own strength than we could beget ourselves. The work that is begun by the Spirit, must be carried to completion by the Spirit. "We are made partakers of Christ, if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast unto the end." Heb.3:14. "He which hath

begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ." Phil.1:6. And He alone can do it. '

The Glad Tidings

By E. J. WAGGONER

(Excerpt-  To be continued)

*******

(WWN- EXCERPT)

1978 Dec -- THE BATTLE OF THE GREAT DAY OF GOD ALMIGHTY -- Part 3 -- The Sixth Plague is the pouring out of the vial of God's wrath upon "the great river Euphrates; and the water thereof was dried up, that the way of the kings of the east might be prepared." (Rev. 16:12) The cause of this plague is that the "spirits of devils" symbolized by frogs had gathered the leadership of the nations of earth to "a place called in the Hebrew tongue - Armageddon." (Rev. 16:13-14, 16) To understand the significance of what this gathering together means, we must first determine the place to which they are gathered by correctly identifying the word - Armageddon in the Hebrew language. Thus we must work back from the English, through the Greek to the Hebrew. The English word Armageddon in the KJV - is merely a transliteration from the Greek. In the ARV, this transliteration is more accurately reflected - Har-Magedon. The Greek is - 'Armagedwn.

The first part of the word - 'Ar - is easily identified. Har is a transliteration of the Hebrew -(Hebrew written) and means "mountain." The second part of the word Magedon - has been popularly identified with Megiddo. But the Bible refers to Megiddo as a "valley" and not a mountain. (Zech. 12:11) And a valley is not a mountain by any stretch of language or imagination. Thus we must turn to a deeper study of the language to determine what mountain is referred to in Rev. 16:16.

In the Hebrew language there are twenty two letters. These are all consonants and are written from right to left. To supply the lack of vowels, since the alphabet contained no vowels, a system of vowel-signs was introduced. However, before the introduction of vowel-signs, certain feeble consonants - Aleph, He, Waw, and Yod - were used to indicate the vowel sounds, and hence were called vowel letters. Therefore, in seeking a word in the Hebrew to equal - Magedon - we must consider only the consonants in the word - Mu (m), Gamma (g), and Delta (d). (The final "n" or Nu (n) is merely a paragogic letter, not unknown in English in such words as "solemn" and "condemn.")

The word in the Old Testament which most clearly meets the requirements of the Greek transliteration - Magedon - is the Hebrew word, Mo'ed (Hebrew written). On the surface there is one problem - the middle consonant, Ayin (Hebrew written). This does not appear to answer to the Greek gamma (g). However, Gesenius states:    "While the Hebrew was a living language, this letter [Ayin], which is peculiar to the Semetic tongues, and extremely difficult for our organs to pronounce, seems to have had ... a two fold pronounciation" - a soft and a hard sound. "The harder Ayin, which the Arabs call Ghain, was a harsh sound uttered from the bottom of the throat, accompanied by a certain whirring or whizzing, so as to resemble the letter r when uttered abruptly with a strong rolling. This the Seventy

p 2 -- have usually represented by the letter g [gamma]" in the Greek translation of the Old Testament. (Gesenius, Hebrew & English Lexicon of the Old Testament, p. 737) This can be illustrated by the familiar name - Gomorrah. In the Hebrew it is - (Hebrew written). In the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Old Testament, it is Gomorra. [G is the capital of g(gamma)] Thus the first letter of Gomorrah in the Hebrew (Hebrew written) is transliterated by the gamma (g) in the Greek. So the Hebrew word - Mo'Ed - would be transliterated into the Greek as Maged(on). The following diagram illustrates the above:

The English -

The Greek -

The Hebrew -

Illustration using "Gomorrah"

The Waw in the Hebrew word is a vowel letter.

The Hebrew word, Mo'id (symbol written), which transliterates into the Greek - Magedon - is used nearly two hundred times in the Old Testament and means - "Congregation." In Isaiah 14:13 it is associated with "Mountain" - "the mount of the congregation." Here God reveals through Isaiah the heart and intention of Lucifer - He would seek to "sit also upon the mount of the congregation in the sides of the north." This refers to "Mt. Zion, on the sides of the north, the city of the great King." (Ps. 48:2) In the book of Revelation it is revealed that the "spirits of the devils" will gather the kings of the earth to the mount of the congregation (HarMagedon) the battle for of the great day of God Almighty. What is to be understood by the symbolism of "frogs" in representing the "spirits of devils"? This we will discuss in the next thought paper.

Two great opposing powers are revealed in the last great battle. On one side stands the Creator of heaven and earth. All on His side bear His signet. They are obedient to His commands. On the other side stands the prince of darkness, with those who have chosen apostacy and rebellion.(Review, May 7, 1901)

p 3 -- Letter from "Watchman What of the Night" to Elder Pierson --

October 26, 1978

Elder R. H. Pierson, President General Conference of the Seventh-day Adventists

Takoma Park, Washington D C 20012

Dear Elder Pierson;

All is not well within the Seventh-day Adventist Church, and thus when there is a sudden change in leadership, whether for health reasons or not, questions arise. One Review(October 19, 1978) reports your trip to the U.S.S.R, and the next Review (October 26, 1978) announces your resignation.

In my twenty-five years of ministerial service in the Church, I observed two things. When a Union Conference hierarchy wished to control the succession in a local conference where the constituency of the conference could not be taken for granted, the change was made between sessions by the Conference Committee so that when the time for the regular session came around a new face was in the presidency. I have also observed - it was in the Indiana Conference - where I served for seven years, and sat on Nominating committees, that a Union President working through the local ministers had plans all laid to unseat the president upon his return from an extended trip out of the conference. These experiences observed first hand, and knowing that all is not well within the hierarchy of the Church causes me to write direct to you asking that the leadership come clean with the laity, and stop playing games which are only deceptive devices to try and keep everything status quo.

The very nature of the article which you wrote concerning your trip to Russia only complicates the picture. You indicated that "the fortunes of the church ebbed and flowed through the decades that followed" its establishment in southern Russia. "For some years the church was banned under the Czarist regime, with the organization dissolved and our churches closed. . . In more recent years many of our churches have been opened, and Seventh-day Adventists have been permitted to worship in their sanctuaries on Sabbath and on other appointed midweek days." (Adventist Review, Oct. 19, 1978, p. 4) Surely you know that the Czarist regime ended in 1917. What about the half century till "recent years"? Did not the Communistic government of Russia ban our churches also? What about the underground church in Russia? What was your objective in covering the communistic atrocities? Were you playing "public relations" with the Russians, or seeking to deceive our people? This kind of a "cover-up" makes one wonder if something else is not also a cover-up- Do you fear an enlightened laity?

p 4 -- Pierson - 2

Then in the October 26, 1978, Adventist Review, there appeared on pages 10 and 11, your appeal presented to the Autumn Council. You took your thoughts from what an Elder and Mrs. Ralph Neall had written describing how a small group of believers evolve from a "sect" into a "church." After outlining the process through four generations - descriptive in every way of our history from 1844 to 1978 - you state:

Brethren and sisters, this must never happen to the Seventh-day Adventist Church! This will not happen to the Seventh-day Adventist Church.

Elder Pierson, it has happened! Only one made totally blind by the disease of Laodiceanism cannot see that it has happened. And the sad truth, which I am sure that you wish to avoid, is that during your years as chief administrator of the church, you have contributed to this picture as outlined by the Nealls.

And it is not that you have not been warned. You placed your imprimatur on the book written by the late Dr. Froom - Movement of Destiny. This book contained deadly heresies contrary to the historic teachings of the Church, besides misrepresentation of the position of Elder E. J. Waggoner, one of the Lord's messengers in 1888. I wrote to you concerning this, and I am sure that others called these things to your attention. What did you do about it? Did you confess to the church that you placed your approbation on apostasy, and have the book withdrawn?

Last year, Dr. B. Beach as an official representative of the Church had a special audience with the late Pope, Paul VI, and presented to him a gold medallion as a symbol of the Church. Did any of the laity read where your voice and pen was raised against this betrayal of sacred trust? You surely are aware that the servant of the Lord wrote:      It is the rejection of Bible truth which makes men approach to infidelity. It is a backsliding church that lessens the distance between itself and the Papacy. (Signs of the Times, Feb. 19, 1894)

Yet you say, this must never happen to the Adventist Church - my brother, it has happened, and during your administration!

Further in your appeal, you counsel the Council in warning that the "omega" is coming. You quote as to what would have happened if the "alpha" had been successful. But the "omega" is here. It has come to full bloom under your administration. Our religion has been changed. A new organization has been established as per briefs smutted in the California litigation involving the Pacific Press. Books of a new order have been written. A system of intellectual philosophy has been introduced. The Sabbath is being mitigated as evidenced in the writings of Bacchiocchi of Andrews University. In other words - the "omega" is here! Isn't it time to come clean with our laity and stop the cover-up?

Yours for Truth, (Signed WWN)

p 5 -- A CONUNDRUM -- In the August, 1978, issue of The Sabbath Sentinel, Mr. Eugene Lincoln, the editor, writes:       Few Christians take note of the seventh day of each week as being unusual and important. It is not unique at first glance - simply a 24-hour day. But it is important because our Creator called it "my holy day" and He put a bit of His holiness in it. It is the One whom we should honor that makes it important.

This is well stated. But the lead article follows, entitled, "Sunday: Holy Day or Holiday!" It is written by none other than Dr. Samuele Bacchiocchi, Associate Professor of Church History and Theology at Andrews University. Observe very closely what he has written. [So far such an open supplanting of the Sabbath of the Lord, and the advocacy of the observance of Sunday, has not as yet appeared in official Seventh-day Adventist publications to the knowledge of this writer.] It reads:       The growing availability of leisure time made possible by the technological achievements of our age has altered not only the cycle of six days of work and one of rest but also traditional religious values such as the sanctification of the Lord's Day. For many Christians God's holy day has become a holiday, a day to seek for personal pleasurerather than for divine presence. This trend has been apparently strengthened by the reduction of the Sabbath day of rest to the hour of worship. Even the latter, in some churches, has been anticipated to Saturday night, in order to accommodate those who intend to spend their Sunday time in uninterrupted recreational or business activities. 

This prevailing trend raises crucial questions: Should Sunday be viewed as the holy day of rest to the Lord or rather as an hour of worship, after which Christians can freely engage in any type of activity? Is the Biblical notion of the 24-hour Sabbath-day dedicated to the service of God and of humanity a relic of a superseded religious superstition, no longer relevant to modern Christians? It is hard to believe that in our materialistic age, when the tyranny of things enslaves our lives, we no longer need a divine institution whose very function is to free us from the world of matter in order to enable us to freely enter into the peace of God for which we were made. The greatest need of our tension-filled and anguished-compressed lives could well be for that Sabbath rest and peace which can restore and renew us physically, mentally, and spiritually. 

Essentially the Christian life finds its fulfillment in a growing relationship with God. That this relationship is enriched especially through the experience of worship and service provided by the Sabbath day is a self-evident truth. This means then that a proper observance of the Lord's day reflects a healthy relationship with God, while a disregard for it bespeaks spiritual decline or even death. If the holy day of rest and worship does play such a vital role in the life of Christians,

p 6 -- then its widespread non-observance must be regarded as a most crucial problem confronting Christianity today. (Italics his; underscoring mine) From this point Bacchiocchi asks - "What can be done to help us solve this problem?" He cites the history of legislation to force proper Sunday observance, and rejects this approach. He suggests by way of question - "Might not more hopeful results be expected from educating our Christian communities to understand the profound meaning and religious experience of Sabbath keeping?" But then he writes this - "presupposes, however, the existence of Biblical and historical theological motivations which provide an adequate rationale to justify Sunday rest and worship." This he denies, and quotes numerous historical references. Then he asks and answers: Is there a way out of this predicament? Our proposal - which may appear radical to some - is to revitalize both the worship and rest content of the Lord's day, by educating our Christian communities to understand and experience the Biblical meaning and obligation of the seventh-day Sabbath . . . . [This is just plain double-talk.] 

Our proposal is not to reproduce sic and simpliciter the rabbinical model of Sabbath keeping which the Lord Himself rejected, but rather to rediscover and restore those permanent values so well expressed by Christ's Sabbath teaching and ministry.

Then Bacchiocchi concludes:       In our cosmic age the Sabbath could well be the fitting expression of a cosmic faith, a faith which embraces and unites creation, redemption, and final restoration; the past, the present, and the future; man, nature and God; this world and the world to come; a faith that recognizes God's dominion over the whole creation and over human life by consecrating to Him a portion of time; a faith that fulfills the believer's true destiny in time and eternity; a faith that would treat the Lord's Day as God's holy day rather than as a holiday. (Italics his; underscoring mine)

There is only one society that teaches that the end justifies the means!

"After the truth has been proclaimed as a witness to all nations, every conceivable power of evil will be set in operation, and minds will be confused by many voices crying, 'Lo, here is Christ; lo He is there. This is the truth, I have a message from God, He has sent me with great light' Then there will be a removing of the landmarks, and an attempt to tear down the pillars of our faith. A more decided effort will be made to exalt the false sabbath, and to cast contempt upon God Himself by supplanting the day He has blessed and sanctified. This false sabbath is to be enforced by an oppressive law." Review & Herald, Dec. 13, 1892 

p 7 -- INTRIGUE ON THE TIBER? -- "Pope John Paul I died at approximately 11:00 p.m., Thursday, September 28 of an heart attack, the Vatican Press Office announced early Friday morning. His reign lasted thirty-three days, the shortest since Leo XI's 26-day reign in 1605." (RNS, Sec. 1, Sept. 29, 1978) The circumstances surrounding the Pope's death caused The Courier Journal, news weekly of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Rochester, N. Y., to publish an editorial critical of the Vatican's failure to order an autopsy. This editorial stated:      Common sense would have dictated such in the light of the stunning aspect of John Paul's death. It would have satisfied a natural curiosity but more importantly would have headed off the even more ugly rumors of possible foul play that have arisen in some circles.(RNS, Oct. 13, 1978, p. 14)

While the editorial placed the blame for the "ugly rumors" on "those who take some kind of odd satisfaction in manufacturing the most scurrilous rumors about the Church and her leaders," calling them "gossip mongers," it did not tell the readers that leading Catholics in Italy and Spain were the sources of the charge of "foul play" in the Pope's death.

Blas Pinar, president of Fuerza Neuva, a staunchly anti-Communist, proFranco Roman Catholic organization in Spain also called for an autopsy "as a way of quieting the growing controversy surrounding the different versions of the Pope's death." ( Spotlight, Oct. 23, 1978, p. 4) Franco Antico, the secretary general of Civilta Christiana, an Italian conservative group, is reported to have considered bringing charges of murder against the Curia, claiming - "We have concrete evidence to back our demands." (Ibid., p. 5) [But neither this suggestion of Pinar or action contemplated by Antico will occur. Pope Paul VI in 1975 decreed that no autopsies could be performed on church dignitaries of the Vatican, and Vatican City itself is an independent state controlled by the Curia.]

There are "different versions" concerning the death of Pope John Paul I which have given rise to the rumors of foul play and intrigue on the Tiber. In its first report, Religious News Service (RNS) stated: (Sept. 29)      The Pope's body was discovered by Father P. John Magee, who entered the papal bedroom at 5:30 Friday morning to find out why Pope John Paul was late for the usual morning service in one of the Vatican chapels. The light in the bedroom was still on and the body of the Pope lay in bed looking, a Vatican press release said, "like a person intent upon reading." In his hand was the 15th century spiritual classic of St. Thomas a Kempis, The Imitation of Christ.

Then on October 2, this same source quoting Vatican Radio filed the following news release:      "After due investigation," Vatican Radio said, "we are in a position to specify that the Pope when he was found dead on the morning of Sept. 29, was holding in his hands some sheets of paper containing

p 8 -- his personal writings," not a copy of the 15th Century spiritual classic of St. Thomas a Kempis.

Following this release, RNS (October 9) quoted ANSA - the Italian News agency which had questioned the official Vatican version that the Pope's body had been found by his secretary, "Irish born Father John Magee." ANSA declared that Sister Vincenza, a nun of Child Mary Institute and an old associate of the pope's since his days as Patriarch of Venice, and who was now one of the papal household nuns, discovered the body. This was based on information "confirmed" in part by the Pope's brother, Eduardo Luciani.

Time (September 11, 1978) featured an article in its "Religion" section, telling "How Pope John Paul I Won." It revealed that on the third ballot, the name of Luciani, Patriarch of Venice, "burst to the fore, falling just short of a majority." Then the article in Time related:       The main resistance came from a bloc of ultraconservatives who favored Siri, a fact that encouraged fence sitters to swing to Luciani. So the fourth and final vote was fast - and was speeded further by the Cardinals' decision to dispense with the ritual declarations that were required during the earlier sessions as each man deposited his ballot in the chalice. As the count went on, no other name but Luciani's was read out. There were a number of blank ballots cast by Curialist and conservative bitter-enders.

Herein is the basis for the suspected "foul play" on the Tiber, and the charge that the Curia was involved. Pope John Paul I, prior to his election, had stood virtually alone among the Roman Catholic hierarchs of Italy in his refusal to reach an accommodation with the Communists which during the reigns of John XXIII and Paul VI had become known as "Ostpolitik." "As a matter of fact, while an archbishop, John Paul I had disbanded a Catholic university group which began espousing the Marxist line." (Spotlight, Oct. 30, 1978, p. 3) Time observes further, Luciani "had never drafted documents from the dry heart of the Vatican" neither had he "served in the Papal diplomatic service."

The reaction of the Communist leaders of Eastern Europe to the election of John Paul II in contrast to their reaction to the election of John Paul I should tell us something. RNS in its "Week in Religion" for November 3, 1978, makes the following interesting summary:      The ascendancy of a Polish prelate - the first in history - to the papacy had an immediate impact on Poland's Communist regime. The top leadership joined rejoicing Polish Catholics in hailing the choice of "a son of the Polish nation" as the new Pope and said it looked forward to improvement of relations with the Vatican. ... 

The Soviet Union, the power behind Poland, took special notice of the new Pope, in contrast to the way it handled the news of the election of his predecessor, Pope John Paul I. Soviet television gave full coverage to the newly-elected Polish Pope's first public appearance. ... When John Paul II's predecessor, John Paul I, was elected, Soviet television confined

p 9 -- itself to a terse announcement. Several newspapers in the Soviet Union also published stories about the selection of John Paul II, again, in contrast to the way they handled the election of John Paul I, either ignoring it or simply mentioning the bare fact. 

Significantly, Soviet Communist Party Chief, Leonid I. Brezhnev, who took no official notice of the election of John Paul I, sent a congratulatory message to John Paul II, expressing wishes "for fruitful activity in the interest of the relaxation of international tensions and of friendship and peace among peoples."

In the next thought paper, we shall discuss John Paul II and "Ostpolitik."

SANDOR PALOTAY UPDATE - A RUN AROUND -- In the October issue of "Watchman, What of the Night?' we published a letter from Elder Eugene F. Durand, assistant to the Editor of the Adventist Review, regarding Sandor Palotay, president of the Council of the Free Churches of Hungary. In the letter we were told that Palotay was no longer a member of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, though at one time he had been a Literature Evangelist. In our reply to Elder Durand, we asked - "What do the records state was the cause for his dismissal from the work and the Church?" In a letter dated, September 21, 1978, he replied - "As to the cause of his dismissal, I would suggest you write to Elder Alf Lohne of the General Conference. We do not have this information, but he might. I would suggest that you also write to him regarding our relationship to the Council of Free Churches and Sandor Palotay."

This we did quoting the above from Elder Durand. On October 31, Elder Lohne replied to our letter as follows:      The information I have on Sandor Palotay is just about the same as you have already received from Elder Durand. 

The Euro-Africa Division, in whose territory the Hungarian Union is located, would be the best source of information regarding our church's relationship to the Council of Free Churches in Hungary.

Is the General Conference unaware of what the Church is doing in Hungary? Does the editorship of the Adventist Review, who still consider the paper as the official organ of the Church, lack the knowledge of what is taking place in the worldwide Church? Perhaps, the answer can be found in part in what Elder Durand stated in his letter of September 21 - "You ask why the Review did not explain the false information carried by the Voice of Prophecy News and the Southern Tidings. It is simply because it is not our job to police other publications. We have our hands full trying to keep the Review accurate." And we must sympathize with the editors in this when every wind of doctrine is blowing through the Church at the present time.

But we still must wonder - what is being covered up, and what does the leadership of the Church not want the laity to know?

p 10 -- SIGNS OF THE TRENDS -- POLISH CATHOLICS GREET BILLY GRAHAM WARSAW (CP) - American evangelist Billy Graham was welcomed yesterday by the Polish Catholic Church, which is opening its doors for the first time to his crusade for Christ. "We are happy that you will preach in several cities in Catholic churches, where the overwhelming majority of listeners will be Catholics," Bishop Wladyslaw Miziolek told Graham at Okecie Airport. Miziloek is chairman of the committee on ecumenism of the Polish Catholic Church.Toronto Star, October 7, 1978

MASONIC LODGES GIVE TO CATHOLIC NUNS -- DUNEDIN, N. Z. (RNS) Masonic Lodges in Otago Province have given $5,000 to aid the Roman Catholic Order of the Little Sisters of the Poor in its campaign to build a hospital and a new home for the nuns. It was not the first donation to a Roman Catholic cause by the lodges here. They have previously given a television set to the sisters' home, made a grant to Catholic Social Services, and helped Roman Catholic children through a school bursary system set up in 1922 to assist the families of World War I soldiers.Religious News Service, Oct. 13, 1978

ANGLICAN, EASTERN ORTHODOX, AND PROTESTANT LEADERS RECEIVED BY JOHN PAUL II VATICAN CITY (RNS) -- Pope John Paul 11 ended a meeting here with over 40 Anglican, Eastern Orthodox, and Protestant church leaders by asking them all to clasp hands in two circles of silent prayer. "This should symbolize the unity we seek," the newly invested Polish Pope told the group.

At this meeting following his investiture, the Pope told the Church leaders to convey to all those they represent "that the Catholic Church's commitment to the ecumenical movement as solemnly expressed by the Second Vatican Council is irreversible.... Your presence here demonstrates in effect our common determination to establish ever closer links among us and to overcome the divisions inherited from the past -- divisions which are, as we have already said, an intolerable scandal and an obstacle to the proclamation of the Good News of the salvation given in Jesus Christ.

The Pope prayed that the "Spirit of Love and of Truth may give us the gift of finding ourselves often and ever closer to one another in profound communion in the mystery of Christ our one Saviour, our one Lord. May the Virgin Mary be for us an example of this submission to the Holy Spirit, who is the most profound Mover of the ecumenical attitude. May our answer be like hers, 'I am the handmaid of the Lord. Let what you have said be done to me."' Religious News Service, Oct. 23, 1978

p 11 -- NOVEMBER DEVOTION SCHEDULE OF ADVENTIST HOSPITAL --BRUNSWICK, ME (ALFNS) Parkview Memorial Hospital is owned & operated by the Northern New England Conference of Seventh-day Adventists. Morning Devotions schedule follows: 

PARKVIEW MEMORIAL HOSPITAL - MORNING DEVOTIONS - NOVEMBER

Ten O'Clock

Wednesday I     Pastor Earl, French, Assembly of God, Brunswick

Thursday     2    Chaplain Odell, Parkview Hospital

Friday         3     Pastor Peter Inchcombe, Glorious Gospel Church, Topsham

Sabbath      4     - 

Sunday       5     Rev. Nellie Lane, retired Baptist minister

Monday       6    Chaplain Odell

Tuesday      7    Chaplain Odell

Wednesday 8    Associate Pastor Paul Guertin, St. John's Roman Catholic Church

Thursday     9    Pastor Joe Beardsley, United Baptist Church, Topsham

Friday         10   Pastor Paul Scherzer, Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Brunswick

Sabbath      11   - 

Sunday       12   Omitted

Monday       13   Chaplain William Hunter, U. S. Navy, retired

Tuesday      14   Chaplain Odell

Wednesday 15   Pastor James Knox, St. Charles Roman Catholic Church, Brunswick

Thursday     16   Chaplain Odell

Friday         17   Pastor Paul Scherzer, Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Brunswick

Sabbath      18   - 

Sunday       19   To Be Announced

Monday       20   Pastor Ehrmann Bennett, Baptist Church, Freeport

Tuesday      21   Pastor Donald Nickerson, St. Paul's Episcopal Church, Brunswick

Wednesday 22   Pastor Gerard Demers, St. John's Roman Catholic Church, Brunswick

Thursday     23   Omitted - Thanksgiving Holiday

Friday         24   Pastor Philip Palmer, United Methodist Church, Brunswick

Sabbath      25   - 

Sunday       26   To Be Announced

Monday       27   Pastor Paul Mitche1l, Second Baptist Church, Bowdoinham

Tuesday      28   Chaplain Odel1

Wednesday 29   Chaplain William B. O'Connor, Brunowick Naval Air station

Thursday     30   Chaplain Odell

p 12 -- ADVENTIST INVOLVEMENT IN GRAHAM'S CRUSADE IN POLAND -- Christianity Today (Nov. 3, 1978, "News" section) told of tensions between the Catholics and Protestants over the Billy Graham meetings in Poland. "A historic attitude of distrust between the two groups" was noted. But as the meetings progressed, Protestant leaders seemed to change their minds. Protestants had interpreted Catholic involvement as "an intrusion and an attempt to dominate." "The Catholic attitude in the past has been 'unfriendly' according to Seventh-day Adventist president Stanislaw Dambrowski, but he said the situation looks better in the light of the Graham visit." The Seventh-day Adventist church has an "observer status" in the Polish Ecumenical Council, one of the sponsors of the Graham Crusade. The article in Christianity Today reported that the church "supported the Graham campaign."

According to Edward Plowman, author of the Christianity Today report, the high point for the evangelistic tour was reached in a meeting held in the modern Catholic Cathedral in Katowice. Before a near capacity crowd, Diocesan bishop Herbert Betnorz welcomed Graham, and called the rally "the greatest ecumenical gathering ever held in the region." Commenting on the meeting itself, Jozef Danch who heads student work in the diocese stated that "what happened at the cathedral tonight was of the Holy Spirit."

Was this "Spirit" truly the Holy Spirit, or was it of the spirits mentioned in Revelation 16:14? The editorial staff of the Adventist Review owes the laity of the church a full disclosure and an unadulterated report of the church's participation in the Billy Graham Crusade in Poland. What contacts and involvements took place between the Adventist leadership in Poland and the Catholics so that the President of the Polish Adventist church could be quoted in Christianity Today as an authority on the improved Catholic-Protestant relationships?

A COMPARISON OF CORRESPONDENCE FROM THE CURIA ON THE SLIGO --

"Dear Brother "A"

"It is Elder Pierson's wish that I reply for him to your letter of June 20. We are always pleased to do our best to answer questions that come to us from different parts of the field.

"First, you inquire concerning a visit by Dr. Beach to Pope Paul. This was not an official visit by the church. The church did not ask him to make this visit, . . .

"Very cordially yours,

(Signed)

F. C. Webster

Assistant to the President

p 13 -- Letter to WWN:

"Now to the questions of your letter of January 18.

1. The Northern Europe-West Africa Division Committee authorized Brother Beach's trip to Rome and it was understood that the visit to the Pope with representatives of the World Confessional Families was a probability....

"Sincerely your brother,

(Signed) W. Duncan Eva

Vice President

Comment:    Perhaps, Elder Webster is correct in the light of Elder Pierson's sworn affidavit in EEOC vs PPPA case before the United States District Court of Northern California. Elder Pierson swore - "I am Robert H. Pierson, an ordained minister of the gospel, and president of the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, which is the Seventh-day Adventist Church, ..." Perhaps the Northern Europe-West Africa Division Committee was acting unilaterally, and not for the Church. Perhaps! --- (1978 Dec)