phariseeism Archives » Stanton Blog

23 August

The paradigm shift from law to love

By Kevin|2019-04-11T02:08:42-06:00August 23rd, 2013|Uncategorized|72 Comments

I almost corrected her when she said "God never fails" but then I realized that since "God is love" she's actually right on. Out of the mouth of babes! This could be a book-length article, but it won't be. It's just an appetizer; something to whet your appetite before a life-long meal at God's table discovering his love for yourself. I've found the understanding of God's love to be the keystone in the arch spanning God and man, his creation. It's what makes the Bible, God's inspired history of mankind's time on Earth, make sense. Without an understanding of God's love, the Bible--yes, even the Word of God itself--becomes merely a "sounding brass, and a tinkling cymbal." It is a chaotic compilation of laws, commands, [...]

23 August

Rules for prayer

By Kevin|2019-04-11T02:08:40-06:00August 23rd, 2013|Uncategorized|8 Comments

These rules for prayer are the doctrines and commandments of men. They are nowhere found in the Bible, and the attitude they teach is one of constant judging, because you supposedly have to know whether someone else's prayer is being heard by God before you can acknowledge their prayer by bowing your head or closing your eyes. You can't pray for anyone NOT in the church, with some exceptions (if it's a child, or if you're praying for an unbeliever's salvation) No holding hands during prayer (is this a church-wide prohibition, or something individual congregations adhere to?) One must say "in Jesus name," not "in our Savior's name," not "in the name of our Lord," not "in your son's name," etc. If you don't say [...]

7 August

When are rules not rules?

By Kevin|2019-04-11T02:08:19-06:00August 7th, 2013|Uncategorized|141 Comments

It's hard to avoid talking in circles when discussing doctrines with members of the church, simply because words don't mean what we would expect them to mean. Thus, the conversation goes in circles, because the meaning of words keeps shifting. A case in point was a recent conversation about rules. It was denied emphatically that the church had extra-Biblical rules. I asked if church members were allowed to have Facebook accounts. There was a long pause. "There is no rule against it, but it's taught against." So how exactly does that work? Does the word "rule" mean something different to them than to me? If I, as a person of authority in my household, instruct my kids not to have a Facebook account, that's a [...]

1 August

Teaching for doctrines the commandments of men

By Kevin|2019-04-11T02:08:07-06:00August 1st, 2013|Uncategorized|6 Comments

One of the biggest problems with the sect is the extremes they've gone to in "teaching for doctrines the commandments of men" (in good old King James English). There have been no areas of life untouched by the rules and regulations of fallible men in the 40+ years of existence of this sect, from whether you can have a glass of wine with your dinner, to whether you can go on a family vacation, what you can do on that vacation, and who you can enjoy your recreation with. The rules (a.k.a. judgments) of the church have reached all the way into the sacred bedroom of a married couple, regulating such things as sexual positions (face to face), distance apart (6 to 12 inches), how [...]

1 August

Rules on recreation

By Kevin|2019-04-11T02:08:04-06:00August 1st, 2013|Uncategorized|9 Comments

Continuing a series of posts on rules of the church, this list deals with recreation. When I was growing up, it was regularly taught that men's ball games (baseball, football, golf) were ridiculous wastes of time for a Christian. Never mind the fellowship and camaraderie that comes from sports. A group of us at one of my old church families played volleyball once a month and we formed some great bonds with each other during those years that continue to this day. However, like good Pharisees, sports, for the most part, are decreed sinful or otherwise inappropriate for a Christian. One fallacious line of reasoning has always been "Can you imagine <insert preacher's name here> playing basketball?" (Or wearing blue jeans...yes, I've even heard that [...]

1 August

Rules for traveling

By Kevin|2019-04-11T02:08:01-06:00August 1st, 2013|Uncategorized|26 Comments

There is no area of life that is unregulated by the church. There are rules (a.k.a. "judgments") for everything, and when a rule doesn't immediately come to mind, they are encouraged to call a Teacher for "counsel." Once the question makes it through a discussion at a May Meeting, the individual congregations fall into line with this year's latest rules. Here are some of the rules for traveling: You mustn't worship in another congregation unless you are visiting family. If you are traveling for something work related or some other reason you must go back home for worship. You can also worship in another congregation if you are courting someone. You must keep the schedule of the church in the city you are in if [...]

30 July

Rules of attire

By Kevin|2019-04-11T02:08:00-06:00July 30th, 2013|Uncategorized|170 Comments

With this post, I'll begin a series on various rules of men that have been created by this church. Some may have changed here and there over time, and some may not have been enforced equally across all congregations. But every one of these has been verified by former members. Keep in mind that the point here is not to argue the validity of the reasoning behind any of these rules, but to argue that the church composed of fallible humans should not be making rules like these at all. "They worship me in vain; their teachings are merely human rules." Mt 15:19 (NIV) "But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men." Mt 15:19 (KJV) Dresses for women required on [...]

What is legalism?
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What is legalism?

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10 July

What is legalism?

By Kevin|2019-06-17T07:15:51-06:00July 10th, 2013|Uncategorized|29 Comments

Legalism is a term that gets thrown around a lot, and it's generally referring to an approach to the Bible that is law-centric rather than grace- or love-centric. A legalistic theology (or more accurately, hermeneutic), does not necessarily preclude the idea of grace; but generally pushes love and grace to a very minor role in our approach to God, and establishes our compliance with God's laws as the primary means of approaching him. The Pharisees of Jesus' time were a legalistic sect. They measured their own closeness to God by their adherence to the Law, and judged harshly those who did not measure up to their own standards of law-keeping. Of course, the legalist would not describe himself that way. He thinks that his standard [...]

"This needed to be said Kevin, thank you. I believe you are getting to heart of the problem in the church. Instead of a Christian being allowed to exercise their own conscience, the conscience of a few people living in South Carolina and California is forced upon the entire brotherhood." ~Anonymous

"Great blog, Kevin. I'm originally from Stanton (I remember you being a young boy there). I Spent almost twenty years in the church seeing many of the things you speak about but keeping them in the back of my mind, and doubting my own feelings that something wasn't right.

"This constant gossiping was so confusing because it was OK for teachers to talk about people, but no one else to even question actions of a teacher. Being outside of that influence and away from the constant intimidation, it is so much more clear. There was no love or understanding. I'm sure most, except for the leaders, know something is wrong if they would just be honest with themselves. I regret so much putting my children through this more than I regret putting myself through it.

"I'm just glad I left. No need for being bitter toward anyone because it was my choice to be there and stay there. Keep up the good work." ~Loraine Forshee

I have read every word of this blog… I spent many hours/days reading… Feeling so sick inside… I felt so grateful to find this blog." ~Anonymous

"I left the group because I realized that what the group taught and what God teaches were often-not always-vastly different. I had to make a choice; stay out of fear, obligation, because of relationships, or leave so I could continue to follow Christ. I left. You know, one thing I heard A LOT while in the group is that “fallen away ones” are always longing to come back into the group.” At the time I believed it, but I just haven’t found it to be true! If it were, there would be plenty of people flocking back, and it isn’t happening. I have been in contact with quite a few who have left, and not one of us has thoughts about going back. Ever." ~Debby Stevens

"What’s ironic is that we point these things out to them only for them to ignore, dismiss and scoff at the blog both publicly in talks or sermons, and among themselves in secret. For you leaders and members of the SCOC who still read this blog, it’s one thing to dismiss the dissenters, but when you have people in your own ranks parroting the SAME EXACT PROBLEMS we talk about here (some of whom don’t even read the blog yet they see the same things we do), it may be time to consider your ways instead of having “unity” (conformity) meetings trying to ignore it." ~Advocate for Peace

"I too am a current member in 'good standing' in the church. I read the blog and I know of two other current members who also read it. I am sure you're wondering why in the world I would still be attending after reading all of this. Honestly, I am weak and just don't have the courage to leave because of family members who are still involved. Because of the threat of withdrawal for murmuring it's impossible to ask others what they think of the blog posts and videos. I am sure I will leave someday, I'm just not quite ready." ~Anonymous

"I'm currently a member in "good standing" in the church. I read the blog, even though its frowned upon. I can't begin to tell you how closely the comments and personal testimonies align and match what's happening in the church. You read something here, and it opens your eyes to that behavior now. so that when you see it happening, you instantly think about who it happened to here on this blog, and you know the damage it causing." ~Anonymous

"I’m not giving up on God like they believe I’m lost now. I’m so glad I found this blog. It helped open my eyes to what I was a part of for TOO long." ~Not going back

"Someone told me here just recently that, Gary, do you realize what’s happening, under cover? People are coming out and expressing what it is that they feel, their disdain and contempt for what you believe. I’ve got to know how to respond. And I know how I respond. That’s the basis of this lesson. I refuse. I refuse, to the uttermost of my being to dignify the absurdity of the questions and the challenges in which it is that people will present. What I mean by that is that I will not honor, they are not worthy of my consideration. … [M]y whole estimation was to not give it a nickel’s worth of consideration. But I want to give you what it is how I deal with things like this. How I respond. Because I don’t. I don’t." Gary Preman

Truth Defender on Why I care about politics and cultureFrom the first president of Stanford University, David Starr Jordan. “The strength of being morally clean” Link is on my website, as links are not allowed on this one. Amazingly, this same genius wrot…
Truth Defender on Why I care about politics and cultureAlso, added 50 volumes to my cover page on my website. There are nearly 300 books now on the cover page, None of these are in libraries, they are rarely on Amazon , and they are definitely very rarely…
Truth Defender on Why I care about politics and cultureIn 1907 Mr. Bingham was the Police commissioner of New York, and wrote that Jews made up half the criminals in New York. He was fired in 1909. Article is 12 pages, it’s on my website, since this one w…
Truth Defender on Why I care about politics and culture“When I see young unmarried men, I feel sorry for them because there are few women who aren’t full-blown feminists since it’s what they’ve been taught their entire lives. These women will want their h…
Anonymous on Why I care about politics and cultureI have read many books on WW2. The Holocaust lasted eleven months in 1943-1944 and 11.6 million people were killed ; 6.6 million were Jews or suspected to be Jewish, the other 5 million were mainly po…
Anonymous on Why I care about politics and cultureThere is a difference between being wrong and lying. I am often wrong and accept correction quite cheerfully but lying starts with the intent to deceive. I am not bitter but am happy when others corre…
Truth Defender on Why I care about politics and cultureDO WOMEN NEED A VOICE? Wow! I can’t believe how often women talk about *needing* a voice. God doesn’t seem to think women need a voice. He warns men about quarreling and contentious women. He commands…
Truth Defender on Why I care about politics and cultureHow can you comment confidently on Hitler when you’ve already admitted you never read a book on World War 2? Even if you had, you’d still need to do the work of critically examining both sides, as the…
Truth Defender on Why I care about politics and cultureI’m afraid you are mistaken, unfortunately, again, as this happens frequently with you. Due to poor critical thinking skills and poor research, you come to the wrong conclusions, then you emotionally…
Truth Defender on Why I care about politics and cultureWhy women should take their husband’s last name ~ You become one flesh. You are his help meet. You were created for him. He is head over you. You submit to and obey him. You are his wife. He provides…
Truth Defender on Why I care about politics and cultureThat is an interesting viewpoint. However, it’s a specious argument. Specious: Apparently right; superficially fair, just or correct plausible; appearing well at first view; as specious reasoning; a s…
Truth Defender on Why I care about politics and cultureExcellent, thank you for sharing; I'm glad to be learning this before I’m married, as I wouldn’t want to learn it while married to a feminist. That would be hard; I have seen so many marriages and chu…
Anonymous on Why I care about politics and culturePat, the reason most people don't use their real name on this blog is because this blog is monitored by active members of the Stanton sect and they report who is writing. Truth Defender was withdrawn…
Anonymous on Why I care about politics and cultureI'm not sure on this one but mabey truth defender can respond or someone with knowledge on this please
Anonymous on Why I care about politics and cultureI'm also a member of non class church of Christ and non cl Ass is biblical
Anonymous on Why I care about politics and cultureBecause we follow scripture
Truth Defender on Why I care about politics and cultureGreat snakes! Wonder why this has been erased from schools and media?!
Anonymous on Why I care about politics and cultureI read the book many years ago when it was first published and it changed my life. She also wrote All the Way Home. Please check out the books, writings, podcasts and YouTube interviews by Suzanne Ven…
Anonymous on Why I care about politics and cultureIs it possible that Soloman could have suffered from fertility issues? That would be a possible reason he had few children given his many wives. Just a theory... but possible.
Anonymous on Why I care about politics and cultureBrother Hams, please explain your position that non class churches with paid preachers are the best.