pmd@asr1.att.com (Paul M Dubuc) (10/22/89)
(Darren F. Provine) writes: }While discussing the doctrines of the Roman Catholic Church, someone }of my aquaintance produced some tracts written by a man named Keith }Green, titled `The Catholic Chronicles'. } ... Keith Green was a somewhat popular and controversial Gospel singer and evangelist in the late 70's early 80's. He died in a plane crash about 6 or 7 years ago. He was a pretty radical Funamentalist not only in doctrine but also in practice. He was the central figure in the founding of a small revivalist community in Texas called the "Last Days Ministries". They demanded quite a committment to their faith both from themselves and others and had a very strong concern for world missions (through their association with Youth With A Mission (YWAM) and and evangelistic missions for the poor (particularly in Mexico). Although I disagree with much of what they taught and the way they taught it, I can't help but admire the consistency with which they stood up for what they belived in and tried to live out their beliefs in face of much personal sacrifice. The tracts that Darren refers to are about 9 or 10 years old. I remember reading them when they were first printed. They were very caustic, causing a lot of controversy. I think Darren's criticism is accurate. The problem is that many of the things Green wrote struck a familiar chord with some nominal Catholics and many ex-Catholics who were disillusioned with what they percieved to be spiritual impotentcy and doctrinal errors in the Catholic Church. Many of the things mentioned in the tracts I remembered as things that I was taught in a Catholic school (grades 1 - 4) and growing up Catholic, but no longer believe to be true. Green used sources that were outdated or of questionable authority, perhaps. But I think an even bigger problem with the tracts was his failure to consider the dynamics that were going on in the Catholic Church at the time (there had been significant renewal) and the way most Catholics actually practice their faith. Green was heavily into Fundamentalist doctrine. What I think he failed to realize is that doctrine does not carry the same emphasis for the average Catholic as it did for him. In my experience, the doctrines of the Church were only of peripheral, not central, influence to Catholics. The doctrines affected how the mass was said, how the clergy lived their lives, and what children were taught in religious education. But there are cultural influences as well. Being Catholic was a cultural experience for me at least. What I think makes it for most Catholics is the sense of belonging to a Church that is bigger than themselves and which provides more of a sense of shared culture and tradition than Protestantism has ever been able to match. Though I left the Catholic church when I was eighteen, I still have a respect for it and much of what it stands for. It is not the Antichrist that Green made it out to be. There is spiritual deadness and complacency in all branches of Christ's Body. There is also vitality and christian love and service. Though the differences that I have with the Catholic Chruch will probably keep me separated formally from its communion, I can't disagree more with Green's apparent conclusion that to be a Roman Catholic is not to be a Christian. Before Keith Green died, he expressed regret at the tone and some of the content of his controversial writings (The Catholic Chronicles in particular). Some time after his death Last Days stopped printing The Catholic Chronicles, realizing that they weren't done in a spirit of christian love and truth and saying that Keith probably would have wanted them pulled. I do not know the extent to which the views of Last Days on the Catholic Church have changed. But I thought this move on their part did show some maturing and the ability to admit to (and learn from) past mistakes. I'm sure that they regret the fact that many of those tracts are still in circulation and being used by some to discredit the Catholic Church. -- Paul Dubuc | "Happy is the one who is not scandalized by me." att!asr1!pmd | Jesus Christ (Matt. 11:6) | |
cw1u+@andrew.cmu.edu (Chi-Tai (Frank) Wu) (10/25/89)
Since we're on the topic of Keith Green, I'd like to recommend you netters to his music. Maybe God's hands were not directly involved in producing the "Catholic Chronicles", but I believe that God's hands are definitely still in his music moving Christians to a deeper relationship with Jesus. In fact, I personally think that there's has not yet been a powerful Christian musician like him in the past 10 years. Songs like, "Create in Me a Clean Heart", "Make My Life a Prayer to You", "The Prodigal Son", have really affected my life and brought me into a closer relationship with Christ. Though I do not espouse some of the ideas that he stood for -- by being a Calvinist for example, I still heartily recommend you people to his music. fa lan ke - Jesus rose from the dead - and you, you can't even get out of bed. a wake-up song by Keith Green