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From: amerige@sbcs.UUCP (Stephen Amerige)
Newsgroups: net.religion.christian
Subject: Re: On the organization of the Church
Message-ID: <160@sbcs.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 21-Feb-85 21:48:12 EST
Article-I.D.: sbcs.160
Posted: Thu Feb 21 21:48:12 1985
Date-Received: Sat, 23-Feb-85 17:07:29 EST
References: <690@topaz.ARPA> <3308@umcp-cs.UUCP>
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Organization: ...!decvax!philabs!sbcs!amerige
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> I'd like to amplify comments made by Chuck Hedrick concerning protestant
> models of The Church.
>...
> The Episcopal Church divides Christendom into three categories:
> 
>       (1)  Obvious heresies, such as the Mormons.  These are not
>            recognized as part of The Church.
>... 
> Charley Wingate    umcp-cs!mangoe

   Although everyone is entitled to an opinion, shouldn't we at least
agree that when it comes to `religion,' very few things are *obvious*?
Don't forget, two thousand years ago the teachings of Jesus were
heresies!

	From my point of view, there are simply different systems of belief.
It seems that the `crime' of heresy is imposed upon both the wicked and
the great--remember Copernicus?  Understandably, the Mormons are a
`threat' to the protestant models of christianity--they claim to
represent God's Church.  But, there are also other churches which claim
divine authority, so it seems to me that (1) might have been better
said as:
		  (1)  Those churches which claim to be `the only divinely
		  authorized and complete church.'  These churches are not part of
		  the fellowship of the protestant church.

Stephen Amerige
...!{philabs, okstate, allegra}!sbcs!amerige