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This past week, USA Today
released an article that clearly substantiates the message that Lighthouse
Trails has been trying to say for years. If anyone doubts the validity
of our warnings, this USA
Today article proves that we have not exaggerated or
misinterpreted the scale and depth of the increasing threat to
traditional Christianity.
Much of this change can be laid at the
feet of the mysticism that has presented itself under the banner of
contemplative or centering prayer via the spiritual formation movement.
What this has done is broken down the barriers that have previously
existed. Some might argue that the article is talking about New Age practices, not
the Christian mystical tradition, which contemplative
advocates say is orthodox and loyal to the Gospel. But as
Anglican mystic Richard Kirby stated so precisely: "[T]he meditation
of advanced occultists is identical with the prayer of advanced
mystics: it is no accident that both traditions use the same word for the
highest reaches of their respective activities: contemplation" (p. 7 The Mission of Mysticism).
The implications of this are that we
indeed are living in a
time of departing, of which II Thessalonians 2 speaks. There is
no turning back. This is a reality that we will be living with from now on.
And it is the responsibility of biblical believers everywhere to
be fully equipped in knowing how to counter this reality so that friends,
loved ones, pastors, professors, and co-workers etc. can be
warned.
This new spirituality completely opposes
the Gospel that we embrace and love and that is the only way of salvation.
As the world moves more into this mystical model, it is vital that those
who comprehend what is taking place have the boldness and courage to speak
the truth and defend the faith.
Now we beseech you, brethren, by the
coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him,
That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor
by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand.
Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except
there come a falling away first. II
Thessalonians 2: 1-3
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New Interactive Lighthouse Trails Publishing Blog
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Lighthouse Trails Publishing now has its own interactive
blog. Up until now, we have posted publishing information on the From the Lighthouse blog along
with articles from Lighthouse Trails Research. Now, there are two blogs and
two websites, with the new publishing blog being interactive (which
means you can leave comments). We hope you will check out the new blog and
subscribe to the RSS Feed so you will be notified when we post something
new. You can do the same with our research blog as well. Click here to visit the new blog.
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How Can Porn be 'Safe" for Kids?
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by Linda Harvey
Mission America
Jaw-Dropping GLSEN
Book Recommendations
Several prominent blogs reported this
week that Obama's "Safe Schools" czar/appointee, Kevin Jennings,
was at the helm of the group GLSEN as it recommended books that are beyond
graphic for school children. These
selections are X-rated homosexual pornography, folks. GLSEN thinks it can
get away with this by putting a mild disclaimer on its site-parents should
review these selections, etc.-but that's no excuse. This group positions
itself as an expert on "safety" for kids. And GLSEN knows most parents
never visit their site. GLSEN regularly bypasses parental involvement in
everything they do, going directly to interact with kids even at the grade
school level.
We'd like to direct readers to the
in-depth report Mission America did back in 2002 about the totally
inappropriate books that almost all remain on the GLSEN list.
To review the original Mission America
coverage of GLSEN's pornographic books, go HERE.
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USA
Today: "More U.S. Christians mix in 'Eastern,' New Age beliefs"
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By Cathy Lynn Grossman, USA TODAY
Going to church this
Sunday? Look around. The chances are that one in five of the people there
find "spiritual energy" in mountains or trees, and one in six
believe in the "evil eye," that certain people can cast curses
with a look - beliefs your Christian pastor doesn't preach.
In a Catholic church? Chances are that
one in five members believe in reincarnation in a way never taught in
catechism class - that you'll be reborn in this world again and again.
Elements of Eastern faiths and New Age
thinking have been widely adopted by 65% of U.S. adults, including many who
call themselves Protestants and Catholics, according to a survey by the Pew
Forum on Religion & Public Life released Wednesday.
Syncretism - mashing up contradictory
beliefs like Catholic rocker Madonna's devotion to a Kabbalah-light version of
Jewish mysticism - appears on the rise.
And,
according to the survey's other major finding, devotion to one clear faith
is fading. Click here to continue reading.
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Mixing Their Religion
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by CrossTalk Blog
USA Today has an interesting piece on the front page of the paper today.
The mixing of religious beliefs or making it up as you go has never been
more popular. The idea of having a spiritual authority for faith is
virtually non-existent anymore, even for Catholics. Like the idea of
reincarnation? Who cares what your Baptist pastor has to say. Curious about
that astrology thing? Get your daily horoscope and then you can head to the
church of your choice, maybe even mixing up Catholic and Protestant
churches every other Sunday just for variety. For the more daring, they
could hit a Buddhist Temple and a Hindu Temple on the same day. It's a mess
out there, but the news report didn't originate with discernment
ministries. It's the front page of USA
Today. Click here for source and to leave
comments.
This USA
Today article has apparently been given two titles by the
magazine. They are the same article though. The two titles are "Mixing Their Religion"
and ""More
U.S. Christians mix in 'Eastern,' New Age beliefs"
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Rick Warren Upcoming Conference, Radicalis - Further Along the
Contemplative Road
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From Christian
Research Network (see also: Contemplative
Mystic Pete Scazzero Promoted By Rick Warren)
Rick Warren
has an upcoming conference at his Saddleback Church in February called
Radicalis that features Perry Noble and Mark Driscoll, in addition to
himself.
In the latest
email promoting this conference, entitled Chat Live with Radicalis Speaker,
Pete Scazzero, Wednesday, December 9 at 11 am pst. Warren writes:
Chat live
with Pete Scazzero, tomorrow, Wednesday, December 9 at 11 am pst (2 pm
est). Pete will be teaching how to develop emotionally healthy leadership
in churches at Radicalis this February.
Pete, along
with his wife, Geri, are co-founders of Emotionally Healthy Spirituality, a
groundbreaking ministry that integrates emotional health and contemplative
spirituality to pastors, leaders and local churches. For more and source, click here.
For extensive documentation regarding Rick
Warren's long-time, ongoing promotion of contemplative/emerging
spirituality, please refer to the following:
A Time of
Departing, chapter 8: "America's Pastor" (free online)
"Saddleback IS a Contemplative Church"
Research pages on Rick Warren and Contemplative
Spirituality
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UK Christians risk rejection and discrimination for
their faith, a study claims
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Courtesy Congdon Ministries
Christians are facing discrimination at
work, and ridicule and rejection at home, according to new research.
By Jonathan
Wynne-Jones, Religious Affairs Correspondent, UK
The first
poll of Britain's churchgoers, carried out for The Sunday Telegraph,
found that thousands of them believe they are being turned down for
promotion because of their faith.
One in five
said that they had faced opposition at work because of their beliefs.
More
than half of them revealed that they had suffered some form of persecution
for being a Christian.
The findings
suggest a growing hostility towards religion in this country, which has
been highlighted by a series of clashes between churchgoers and their
employers. Click here to continue.
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College Thought Police Enforce Global Values
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by Mary Ann Collins
from Kjos Ministries
The University of Delaware has about 7,000
students living on campus. It requires these students "to adopt highly
specific university-approved views on issues ranging from politics to race,
sexuality, sociology, moral philosophy and environmentalism." Students
are "pressured or even required" to make statements that comply
with the school's views.
Being quiet about their beliefs isn't
enough to keep students out of trouble. They are interviewed, one-on-one,
with intrusive questions. If they fail to give politically correct answers,
then a report is written about them, and they are subjected to
"treatment" - compulsory re-education. (This is a state
university, which means that it is supported by taxes. Therefore, people
who would be appalled by such things are required by law to support them
financially.)
The Foundation for Individual Rights in
Education (FIRE) has produced an online video about this brainwashing. In
interviews with students and professors, it shows how the university's
Office of Residence Life used a variety of methods to "coerce students
to change their thoughts, values, attitudes, beliefs, and habits" so
that they would "conform to a highly specified social, environmental,
and political agenda."
One of the university's views is that all
whites of European descent are, by definition, racists. That would include
William Wilberforce, a white Englishman who spent his life working for the
abolition of slavery.[6] Hard to believe? Then read these current
definitions from the "University of Delaware Office of Residence Life
Diversity Facilitation Training (PDF)
"A RACIST: ...all white people....
By this definition, people of color cannot be racists, because as peoples
within the U.S. system, they do not have the power to back up their
prejudices, hostilities, or acts of discrimination." (Page 3)
"REVERSE RACISM: A term created and
used by white people to deny their white privilege. Those in denial use the
term reverse racism to refer to hostile behavior by people of color toward
whites.... In the U.S., there is no such thing as 'reverse racism.'"
(Page 3)
"A NON-RACIST: A non-term. The term
was created by whites to deny responsibility for systemic racism, to
maintain an aura of innocence in the face of racial oppression, and to
shift responsibility for that oppression from whites to people of color
(called "blaming the victim")."(Page 3)
The "racist" label would apply
to James Reeb, a white American man who was beaten to death by
segregationists on March 11, 1965, because he participated in Rev. Dr.
Martin Luther King Jr.'s march for civil rights in Selma, Alabama. Click here to continue reading.
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Washington Times: "Americans carve out their
own religions"
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LTRP
Note: The following article by the Washington Times is based on the survey
done by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life, which is also the basis
of the USA Today
article we are carrying this week. Perspectives from two different secular
media sources.
By Eric Gorski
ASSOCIATED PRESS
When it comes
to religion, many Americans like the mix-and-match, build-your-own
approach.
Large numbers
attend services of traditions other than their own and blend Christianity
with Eastern and New Age beliefs, a survey finds.
The report,
released Wednesday from the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life, also
shows tremendous growth over the past three decades in the number of
Americans who say they have had a religious or mystical experience.
Though the
United States is an overwhelmingly Christian country, significant
minorities say they hold beliefs of the sort found at Buddhist temples or New
Age bookstores. Twenty-four percent of those surveyed overall and 22
percent of Christians say they believe in reincarnation, the idea that
people will be reborn in this world again and again.
As for the
significant numbers who visit more than one place of worship, it's not just
an occasional visit while on vacation or for special events such as
weddings and funerals.
One-third of
Americans say they regularly or occasionally attend religious services at
more than one place. One-quarter say they sometimes attend services of a
faith different from their own. Click here to continue reading.
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Ruling Against Candadian Pastor on Homosexuality Beliefs
Overtuned
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"ECP Centre
celebrates victory for Stephen Boissoin and Canadian liberty"
By Tim Bloedow
The ECP Centre (Equipping Christians for
the Public-square Centre) is very encouraged to see that sanity prevailed
in Alberta's court system with the decision Thursday to overturn the
abusive Human Rights Commission ruling against Stephen Boissoin. We are also
grateful to have played an important part in the case, raising awareness of
the case over the past several years and organizing three successful
fundraising dinners in the spring of this year which helped to bring in
over $25,000 from generous Canadians towards Mr. Boissoin's substantial
legal costs. We continue to receive donations designated to Mr. Boissoin's
legal defense and we are grateful for the Christians who take their faith
seriously enough to be aware of these disturbing cases and who are able to
donate to support fellow-Christians in today's battles.
Those familiar with the case will know
that seven years ago, a "human rights" complaint was filed
against Stephen Boissoin due to his sharp criticism of homosexuality in a
letter to the editor printed in the Red Deer Advocate. In December 2007,
the Alberta Human Rights Commission issued a ruthless decision against Mr.
Boissoin which itself was an expression of hatred against Christianity. The
provincial HRC essentially became a tool for a homosexualist inquisition
whereby Mr. Boissoin was ordered to give a false apology for the substance
of his letter. He was banned from ever criticizing homosexuality again in
public or private communications, and even from the pulpit. The
implications of the decision were stunning in terms of the imposition of
the state over the church and the restrictions on religious liberty. Mr.
Boissoin was also fined $5,000. Click here to continue reading.
Click here to read Stephen's original letter
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The Manhattan Declaration: Aiding the Counter Reformation?
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by Chris Pinto
Adullam Films
Understanding
the information we put forth in A Lamp in the Dark could not be
more relevant to the Church today, especially as it pertains to the Counter
Reformation. The devil's latest deceptive ploy is called The
Manhattan Declaration - so named because of an ecumenical group
that met in Manhattan in 2009.
"We are Orthodox, Catholic, and evangelical Christians
who have united at this hour to reaffirm fundamental truths about justice
and the common good, and to call upon our fellow citizens, believers and
non-believers alike, to join us in defending them."
"The purpose of the declaration is simply to speak with
one voice on the most pressing moral issues of our day .... It is extremely
unfortunate that anyone who claims to follow Christ might attack another
for either signing or not signing it. The focus of Christian criticism
should be on the secular world rather than on each other."
The above counsel could not be more wrong. Throughout
the New Testament, we find Jesus and the apostles contending against false
teaching in the churches - not judging the actions of unbelievers and
compelling Christians to march on the government in protest. The
apostles confronted doctrinal issues, such as requiring circumcision for
salvation (Acts 15:1-2), teaching that there is no resurrection of the dead
(1 Corinthians 15:12), glorifying men in the temple of God (1 Corinthians
3:16-21), professing to know God while rejecting His commands (1John
2:4). Jude clearly compels us to "earnestly contend for the
faith" of Christ, against deceivers who creep their way into the
churches.
The Manhattan Declaration compels us to abandon discernment
and turn aside from our God given mandate to preach the gospel to every
creature. Click
here to continue reading.
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Taize services are gaining in popularity
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LTRP Note: Taize is part of the contemplative prayer
movement. This article is posted, not as an endorsement but rather to
report on the growing popularity of contemplative practices.
By
DAN JOHNSON,
ARGUS-COURIER
Residents
find solace, inspiration in contemplative, mystical tradition A cantor stands
in a sanctuary bathed in candlelight, repeatedly chanting a brief,
devotional line from Psalms or another Biblical Scripture.
Those present
join in the chanting, and as it resonates with the rhythms of their hearts,
they sometimes are inspired to add harmonic improvisations.
The chanting
is one component of Taize services, which now are being offered at St.
John's Episcopal Church of Petaluma on the first Friday of each month, Elim
Lutheran Church in Petaluma one Sunday every month and at the Church of the
Incarnation in Santa Rosa on the fourth Friday of each month.
And as local
residents deal with ever-mounting daily challenges, they have found solace
and inspiration in these mystical services of prayer and chanting that
originated in an ecumenical Christian monastic order in France.Click
here to continue reading.
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Two New Films Portraying the
Courage to Speak the Truth
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The following items
have been added to our online and catalog store. Each item was carefully
chosen and has a vital message.
THE RADICALS -A
TRUE STORY
The
year is 1525. A nun and a priest flee their religious orders as they become
convinced that the Catholic church is not representing true biblical
Christianity. A beautiful love story about the two who eventually marry,
Michael and Margaretha Sattler seek out the true purity of the Gospel.
The Sattlers
join a group called the Anabaptists and risk their lives to defend the true
faith. Rejecting the Catholic tradition of infant baptism, they call for
baptism to once again become, not a mark of citizenship, but a voluntary
decision to follow Christ. As their movement grows, so does the
determination of their enemies to stop them...by any means necessary. Click here for more information or for ordering. See video clip of film.
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FREE SAMPLE CHAPTERS OF LIGHTHOUSE TRAILS BOOKS
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| Click here to access free sample chapters of our books. |
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Publishing News
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THREE
WAYS TO ORDER DIRECTLY FROM LIGHTHOUSE TRAILS PUBLISHING:
2.
Toll Free Order Line: 866/876-3910
Quantity
Discounts: 40% off retail for orders of 10 or more copies, 50% off for
international orders of 10 or more copies
We
ship both retail and wholesale orders within 24 hours of receiving order.
BOOKSTORES
AND OUTLETS for small retail orders: Lighthouse
Trails books are also available to order from most
bookstores (online and walk-in). If your local bookstore isn't carrying one
of our titles, you can ask them to order it for you. While you
may have to wait longer to receive your order, the advantage of ordering
through bookstores is that you will have no shipping charges.
BOOKSTORES MAY
ORDER DIRECTLY FROM LIGHTHOUSE TRAILS OR FROM INGRAM OR SPRINGARBOR.
LIBRARIES MAY
ORDER DIRECTLY FROM LIGHTHOUSE TRAILS OR FROM BAKER & TAYLOR.
SAMPLE
CHAPTERS OF LIGHTHOUSE TRAILS BOOKS:
Lighthouse Trails Publishing
now has sample chapters available online for most of the books we publish.
We believe you will find each of these books to be well-written, carefully
documented, and worthwhile. Click here to read some of
the chapters.
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