Showing posts with label christadelphian. Show all posts
Showing posts with label christadelphian. Show all posts

Wednesday 5 February 2014

No reconciliation possible between CBM and Duncan Heaster from Carelinks

It is really frustrating to have to admit that in the Christadelphian world it is like everywhere else in this world, that we do find people who are more interested in their own position than in the welfare of others.

For months now, several Belgian brethren and the CBM linkman for Belgium Chris Edwards have tried to come to a reconciliation between Duncan Heaster, Carelinks and CBM (The Christadelphian Bible Mission). We where surprised to find Duncan Heaster under the members of Christadelphians for Unity and as such we did hope he had come to other thoughts and intentions for the Christadelphian Community, wiling them to unite. But we got a wrong impression, he even tries to get more division in the Christadelphian community and succeeded in a certain way. (It will make him laugh at us.)

Like in many denominations the Christadelphians have by the years become victim of different opinions between its members and got different groups of which some did not want to work together with the other. Such division in Christian communities we do consider very bad.


English: cover of the Photodrama of Creation
English: cover of the Photodrama of Creation (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
In Christianity there are even groups who say that they are the right group because they have no division, but mostly we can see that they themselves are also an offshoot of an other denomination. For example you can find the Jehovah Witnesses who always claim to be the only right denomination because they have unity in their ranks. They forget they themselves came from a schism-group in the Biblestudent world. They even claim that their founder was brother Charles Taze Russell (a pupil of our brother Dr. Thomas), though he never founded that organisation. Several people who left the Jehovah Witnesses also formed other denominations, like the Nazarene Friends and many ex-Jehovah Witnesses groups.

Christendom has many many divisions, but it is not different by other religions as the Muslims and Hindu's. also in those religions you can find many different denominations or groups with different believes. as prophesied in the Bible we have come in to the days where those different groups will come to oppose each other and even will go fighting one against the other.

With much regret we do have to say to interested people in the provinces of West and East Flanders, Antwerp and Limburg that we can not offer them a meeting place, because Carelinks does not want to let us know where they have ecclesiae in those places.

For us it is more important that people could come together, gathering in the name of Christ, studying the Bible together. We are not concerned so much if they do belong to this or that group of the Christadelphian community. but it looked like others are really concerned with whom we do want to have contacts. So certain Christadelphians asked us to take away article from this site or not to show others their name on this site - probably they would not like to be associated with us or with people we would like to associate with.

The whole situation escalated and derailed in such a way that the linkman for Belgium in Great-Britain resigned after a harsh reaction of his fellow brethren at the CBM Great-Britain. a new linkman for Belgium has been installed, but I did not have contact with him. I do hope we shall be able to co-operate nicely in the future.

Because our trials to associate with Carelinks several Christadelphians would not co-operate with us and do not like to have news from their ecclesia on our site. Without much news from Christadelphians it is no use that this site will keep its name "Christadelphian World". Therefore I do invite all readers of this site to give me some advice, either to keep its name and to continue trying to build up a community of lovers of Christ willing to live in the "City of Christ" (Christadelphia) or to be brothers and sisters in Christ (Christadelphian); or changing its name to "Christian World" or "The World we live in" or something else?
All suggestions are welcome.

I do agree I became very frustrated to find also in this denomination such a division. When I was a non-trinitarian Baptist I have seen thousands of Baptists having to change form denomination because the Southern Baptist Union became to strong and imposed the trinitarian teaching on all of its members.

I did already change twice of denomination, being born in an Old Conservative Roman Catholic Family, having been an acolyte, though always having questioned the Trinity, having become a Baptist, where I also encountered a very free unbounded spirit where many ideas were allowed to be said. Now once more confronted with people who want to have their person put in the forefront and be taken as the leader, though Jesus should be our leader and not one other human person.

Jesus (Jeshua) should be the cornerstone of the Church and it are his teachings we should follow, not the commandments of a human worldly organisation. Those who want to accept Jesus as their Saviour and would like to accept what this man has done for them, having really died and not having faked his death as a reincarnated god, should join hands and come together.

I do hope those people who want to take Jesus as their lord and cornerstone of their community, living in Belgium (Flanders, Antwerp, Limburg, Wallonia) shall understand our limits and that it is not our fault we can not bring them in contact with other Christadelphian communities which are not linked with the CBM. We just do not have their addresses and Carelinks does not want to have their members to have contact with members of our community.

Also the contact with other Bible Students do not go so smoothly. Also some of them do not want to meet with other members of our community.
With my Lifestyle magazine Stepping Toes I would love to see more serious Bible Students working together and sharing ideas. But also their I am confronted with not many writers willing to write for the magazine or willing to share their ideas. I am thankful to those who do not mind writing on that platform and not mind meeting with other believing people, trying to edify  each-other and helping each other to grow in faith.

I do hope the magazine shall receive some more contributors in due time, but for now I am already pleased some different ideas may be posed together on one platform. I would love to find readers of this site also coming to look at that platform where many ideas may be put together. Please do find Stepping Toes and enjoy the writings over there.

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2014 February 14: (18.08 hours):

For those who commented on this article and can not see their comment, I do apologise. This website was also some time off public, beyond my own wishes. Because a person and his organisation attacking me, a complaint was made about this site being inappropriate. Therefore it got censored. I did also ask Google to reconsider the complaint and hope all reaction will soon be again available to the general public.

Please see also my open reaction about this dangerous situation of censorship: Certain people trying to stem freedom of speech



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Thursday 16 January 2014

Kapalpal Christadelphian School, Vanuatu

Where’s Vanuatu?  These picturesque islands are in the South Pacific, about 1,500 miles from Australia. This beautiful archipelago is not only noteworthy because of its stunning landscape, but also because of the spiritual inroads that have been made to spread the Good News.

The Kapalpal Christadelphian School is located on the island of Tanna  in Vanuatu.
The school opened its doors in 2009 and was begun in support of a brother who was volunteer teaching. The school, originally built to accommodate 70 children, was soon overburdened with 200 students!
A second building was added in 2010 and this year, a junior secondary school has been established. The extra classes for high school have meant that space has again become a major issue.

Thanks to volunteer workers and funding supplied by WCF, this summer a new building was constructed of earth-bags and timber. The students in the high school range in age from 12-20. Such an age range is not unusual in Vanuatu, where non-compulsory education can be interrupted for many reasons. The school follows the curriculum provided by the Vanuatu education department. Since Kapalpal is considered by the authorities to be a 'mission' school, the brethren have the freedom to teach the Good New of the Scriptures.
In the primary school, Sunday School lessons are also taught and a Bible camp is held annually.
The new building is made in good part of earth bags – synthetic bags filled with dirt. The upper half of the building is made of timber and is covered by an iron roof. Because the cost of getting materials to the island is high it was decided to employ local materials—bags of dirt and timber. Not only did this reduce building costs, but it was also a design that the local community could afford and replicate. The bags of earth would also in turn provide better protection from the cold, wind and rain compared to thatch and bamboo. It is anticipated that if built well, the earth bag homes should last much longer than those made of traditional materials. This project was facilitated by a grant of $20,000 from WCF.

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Thursday 19 December 2013

Christadelphian Youth Coalition 2013 Bo City conference

From 19th to 22nd December 2013 the Christadelphian Youth Coalition of the Christadelphian Bible Mission (CBM) is holding their annual conference at their Ecclesia Hall Water Lane in Bo City.

The event wants to bring together youths from various CBM branches in Sierra Leone (Freetown, Kenema, Bo, Blama, Wanjama, Talia etc.), for strengthening the relationship in the Body of Christ and to prepare the mindset of young people to be more focused and committed to the things of God.

In this world of materialism the spiritual is often forgotten. Youngsters are quickly taken by the modern gadgets and the facilities of internet social media and youtube video-clips.

At the conference various youth leaders shall be able to deliver messages of sound doctrine to sway the minds of youths from such worldly activities. In the Christadelphian community it is important to put the mind on the true values of life.

We and the CYC Youths believe that the youngsters are the future of the church. For that reason Stepping Toes is still looking for young people to write on the platform and to help create a magazine where youngsters also could find stuff interesting for them.

This gathering in Bo City shall enable the youngsters to come together to discuss issues of importance that ensures the development of their various Ecclesiae.

Several activities have been lined up to ensure a successful conference. These include:
  • Bible Discussions in the morning and evening,
  • general meetings to discussing and addressing issues of development that unites the Christadelphian Family in Sierra Leone,
  • outdoor preaching, elections of new executives and indoor games.
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The Christadelphians, “Brothers and Sisters in Christ”, are a body of Bible believing people, who aim to live by faith in Jesus Christ, according to the teaching of his followers from the first century AD, finding their instruction in a wholly inspired Bible. Central to Christadelphian belief is that Christ will one day return to the Earth to establish the Kingdom of God and grant eternal life to his people – those who have tried to follow him and God.

The fundamental Christadelphian beliefs are:
The Bible is God’s word and the only message from him. It is without error, except for copying and translation errors. (2 Timothy 3:16, Hebrews 1:1. See also: The Bible, Why I Believe the Bible, and Alleged Biblical Errors.)
There is only one God – the Father. The Holy Spirit is God’s power. (John 17:3, Luke 1:35, Deuteronomy 6:4. See also God, Jesus and the Crucifixion, and The Trinity.)
Jesus is the Son of God, and also the son of a human being, his mother Mary, so making him Son of Man. Jesus was tempted just like us because of this. But Jesus was not just a great man, he was the Son of the Most High God, and was perfect. (Luke 1:30-31, John 3:18.See also God, Jesus and the Crucifixion, and The Trinity)
Man is mortal, having no existence when dead. (Psalm 6:5, Isaiah 38:18, Acts 2:29,34)
By living a sinless life, ending with his sacrificial death by crucifixion, Jesus has opened the way of salvation from death. (Hebrews 4:15, 1 Corinthians 5:7, 1 Corinthians15: 20-23, Galatians 3:27-29)
Belief and baptism are essential steps to salvation. (Mark 16:16. See also Baptism and Salvation.)
God raised Jesus from death. Jesus is currently in Heaven, on God’s right hand. He will one day return. (Acts 10:40, Romans 8:34, Acts 1:11)
When Jesus returns, he will raise his “sleeping” followers from death and grant immortality to the faithful who have tried to live by God’s precepts. (1 Corinthians 15:20-22)
His followers will help him to rule, bringing justice, righteousness and peace to the whole world – the Kingdom of God. (1 Corinthians 15:23-26).
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Find Stepping Toes the internet magazine composed by (more progressive) Christadelphians: Stepping Toes



Being Religious and Spiritual 8 Spiritual, Mystic and not or well religious








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Saturday 9 November 2013

Living on the Edge

Kenneth Gilmore
Kenneth Gilmore0
For those who may have questions about Jonathan Burke's book "Living on the Edge", here's a FAQ list:

1. What is this book about?

Upholding and defending our beliefs and values, and proving they are relevant to the modern world, is very difficult without the kind of evidence evidence which non-religious people will find convincing. This book aims to provide that evidence.

2. Could you give an overview of the book?

The main section headings are 'Living on the edge of certainty', addressing doubts about our beliefs, 'Living on the edge of credibility', addressing the challenge of defending our beliefs and preaching to other religious people and atheists, and 'Living on the edge of society', addressing the challenge of belonging to a Christian community with beliefs and values typically rejected by modern society. See this sample of the contents page.

3. How long is the book?

It's 600 pages long in standard US trade paperback format (6x9 inches), including a 100 page bibliography.

4. Will any of it be controversial?

The book upholds the views of the earliest Christadelphian commentators on issues such as the relationship of science and Scripture, the age of the universe and the earth, whether the flood was local or global, and the authorship of various books of the Bible. That will be controversial for those who disagree with those views, or who are unaware of views held by the earliest Christadelphian expositors. However, I aim to minimize controversy. For example, since evolution is a highly divisive issue the book does not address it at all.

5. How can people purchase the book?

I am aiming to have it printed locally in Taiwan, made available in November 2013, and posted internationally. The purchase price will be US$15 per hardcopy (a free ebook version is included with every hardcopy), and it will be launched on this [2] crowd sourced funding site.

6. Why are you using crowd sourced funding?

Crowd sourced funding involves presenting a project with a budget to the public, and inviting people to pledge funds for the products or services the project offers. Fundraising takes place over a limited time (30 days is typical), at the end of which the project may or may not have raised enough money to cover its budget. No one is charged any money if the project fails to raise its budget. I chose this route since I do not have a publisher for this book, which means I need to pay for the printing myself up front. Crowd sourced funding is a safe way to see if I can raise the capital for an initial minimum print run of 500 copies.

If your question is not answered here, please send me a message through this page.

https://www.facebook.com/notes/living-on-the-edge/frequently-asked-questions/585460368178073

1. https://www.facebook.com/notes/living-on-the-edge/whats-in-the-book/581757188548391
2. http://fuudai.com/

1. What is this book about?

Upholding and defending our beliefs and values, and proving they are ...

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Monday 7 October 2013

Xanga Toe Stepper made silent

'Stepping toes' was originally a Xanga website opened on the 28th of September 2011, but in the Summer 2013 Xanga changed its policy and the Christadelphians had to find a solution for recovering their texts on October 6 of 2013.
Image representing Xanga as depicted in CrunchBase
Image via CrunchBase
The reason why the Christadelphians started a Xanga site was because they were confronted with a lot of wrong sayings on several Xanga sites about serious Bible Students, Jehovah Witnesses and Christadelphians or Brothers in Christ. Because they could not react to certain writings on Xanga, because  to reply the person had to be a member and some writings on the Xanga sites could use some reactions from outside the Christadelphians decided to put on their boots and join the community.

I and and the Christadelphians knew it would not be a place where many writings from our site would be placed on the net. We had our hands full already with other websites and other real life stuff, printing work and distribution of hard copy magazines.

Image representing Skype as depicted in CrunchBase
Image via CrunchBase
In the recent previous years we saw many changes in the bloggers world. Also in the system of communicating with each other many changes came very quickly. I still remember to be one of the earlier messengusers having a @messengeruser.com account which later became the better know @hotmail.com account, which still many use today but also has been changed to @outlook.com accounts, and the messenger gave way to the more succesfull Skype.

The "Stepping toes" site got his name from the Dutch saying “Op de tenen stappen” or “Stepping on the toes” being the figuratively  “to thread on a person’s toes” or making that somebody carries a chip on the shoulder.

At the time we did hope that the visitors on that site would not be to quickly to take offence, but would be brought to think about serious and debatable matters. We knew that the matters which we brought forward on that site were texts which could cause commotion, hence the name.

It is our awareness that people like to hold fast on tradition and want to keep to certainties which are given from one generation onto the other. We know that certain ideas we share, are not favoured by so many. First of all do we love and honour only One God, who we want to address to with His Name. And that Name is one which frightens a lot of people. Once people do hear the Name of that Creator they also often of only one denomination in christianity, forgetting that there are (luckilly) more denominations which use that Sacred Name of God.

People are easily put out when they hear whom we adhere.
But we are also sure that the die is been cast and that we have come in a special time where it is more important to share our love to the whole world, like our Masterteacher Jesus/Jeshua, the Messiah did.

The man we do like to follow on this earth not only wanted that everybody knew his Father, he also proclaimed the Good News of the coming Kingdom of God and wanted that all his followers went out into the world to bring that Evangelion of good Tidings.
You could say that nobody can quarrel with such good news that Jesus of Nazareth brought, but as the world went against him so they were not pleased either with his followers.

At the time of going on the Xanga platform the Christadelphians wrote:
Now we pitch our own tents here also on this Xanga Group we do hope we shall find enough spirits eager to share their ideas and to welk along on the long road to … Tipperary and beyond. happy
Today they have to tell the readers:

From Monday 7 October we shall try to place the previous publicised articles from Xanga on some of our other websites.
Most of the Christadelphian writings you can find at our other web pages, to which we would like to invite you:

Our main site: Belgian Christadelphians
Christadelphian Ecclesia
Brethren in Christ – Broeders in Christus
Christadelphia
Hoop tot Leven | Redding door Christus Jezus
Hope to find you there also.heart

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Wednesday 3 April 2013

Not all christians are followers of a Greco-Roman culture

On Fossilized customs some Messianic Christians take all the Christians to be followers of a Greco-Roman culture of names, terms, and festivals, all adopted intact from Pagan sources, yet adapted or mixed carefully with ideas and people from the Hebrew Scriptures.

 We do agree that the majority of Christendom has gone far away from the teachings of Jeshua or Yahush(u)a, the Nazarene who is know better known as Christ Jesus, and of his Jewish beliefs and the first apostles their beliefs. There are even Christians who do not want to recognise that Jesus was a Jew.

 Though at first the Jesus movement was a restricted Jewish cult. After the death and resurrection of Christ on Pentecost many new Jews entered the community. Later were there discussions about non-Jews wanting to join the community, if they had to become Jews and have to be circumcised or not. The apostles tried to keep to the teachings of their master rabbi Jeshua (Jesus), but soon other teachers mixed the teachings of the 'new hype' with traditional teachings of other groups or philosophies. It became so bad the apostles warned their community to be careful for the false teachers. Like any new movement it had real followers and copycats.

The Natsarim were identified as the original followers of Yahusha or Jeshua at Acts 24:5, and with all those who wanted to join the Christ movement 'The Way', were persecuted, despised, and suppressed by the early Christian "church fathers", who were quite different.

 Soon there were people who did find some interesting things in those teachings, but did not like to loose the popularity of the folks. So to keep it interesting and agreeable for everyone they did not want to go against the attitudes and traditions of the people they did want to win for them. Therefore those teachers mixed together practices and beliefs of other systems and not to go against the men in power took on lots of heathen Roman and Greek teachings. They created a system of syncretism. These heresies began through the teachings of Simon Magus, and eventually became the institution known as Roman Catholicism.
Holy Trinity by Fridolin Leiber (1853–1912)
Holy Trinity by Fridolin Leiber (1853–1912) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)


With Constantine the Holy Trinity was the solution for many teachers to be able to assure their power and to create their own rich empires of a so called Christian belief. The balance of power brought several schisms, like the Eastern Orthodox Catholicism, and later the Reformation in the 16th century further fragmented the movement; but much error remained from the adherence to the early "church fathers" and their writings.

 These "church fathers" persecuted and despised the first followers of Jeshua or Yahusha, the Natsarim or the sect which was called 'The Way'. They considered the Natsarim or real followers of Christ "heretics" because they obeyed the Torah.

Throughout the ages Natsarin continued their teachings and where the witnesses came new members found truth in the Torah teachings.Disciples from the talmidim educated new teachers who continued to go out in the world to proclaim the Good News. More and more people became baptised by the different 'Christian' groups. Though the trinitarians won ground and conquered many regions, small communities tried to keep the proper teachings of the apostles clean.

When bookprinting brought the possibility to bring the Holy Scriptures in the language of the people to many, several Christians their eyes became opened when they saw what was written in those Holy books and what the Church had told them what was in Scriptures. The Church could not hide the truth any more and more people became to see and understand what was really written in the Sacred Books.

All through Europe small communities of people studying the Bible made that many movements came into existence which had their first priority to follow the teachings of the Word of God, the Holy Bible and not any more the teachings of a indoctrinating Church.

Many believers became aware what was the importance of been properly baptised and formed in the tradition of the first century Christians. Anabaptists and Baptists who worshipped only One God tried to get more people to the Word of God by witnessing all over the world. But also the Baptist movement got burdened by the American Baptist Church Unions who wanted the Trinitarian teaching their main belief. In the 80ies and 90ies of the previous century many Baptists did not want to adhere the trinitarian teachings and looked for refuge by other non-trinitarian denominations.

One of the many small groups, may be a very tiny denomination, but that does not mean they are afraid to be lost in oblivion. As brethren and sisters in Christ they keep following the teachings of the Master Rabbi Jeshua, and take the Word of God as the most important teacher of all. For them every answer can be found in the Holy Scripture and it is God who pulls people into His World. Under the guidance of the teachings of Christ and in the faith that God accepted the ransom of this Nazarene man, the Christadelphians love Jesus, love their family and love their neighbours, believing or not believing people, respecting them as part of God His Creation.

Having celebrated the death of Christ, those brethren in Christ want to share with others the Good News of the Kingdom of God and look forward with other people all over the world to the return of the resurrected son of God.

In case you want to know more of those very small communities, which can be found all over the world, and who not want to commit themselves to human traditions, but prefer to live according to the Law of God, you are welcome to contact them in your region, or if you do not know where to find them, you may contact us so that we can bring you in contact with a Christadelphian community nearby.

We advise you to take up the Bible and read the words of it like they come to you, stripped from all the denominational and doctrinal teachings, remembering that God wanted everybody to hear and understand His Word. He did not create a difficult Zigzaw puzzle too difficult for uneducated people to decipher. No Gods Word is simple and can be understood by every one, when they are willing to open their ears and eyes.

Dare to start the quest and find others who are wiling to study the Bible with you.

We are here to help you if you want.
Good luck.


In a Christadelphian community you may perhaps not find loads of people, no mega churches, no exuberant pop-songs or loud sounding modern music and pin-up girls dancing around.
In the small communities you might find loving people who are concerned about others and who are prepared to jump in for somebody else. The good works we do are not installed in media adverts or made known with a loud voice. The actions we undertake do not instantly produce large crowds, but the effect we might hope, shall lasts longer and in the end there will be coming more people. But naturally everything begins small. We are like a mustard seed, which you are able to plant in your own garden.

In our churches you probably would not see many miracles happening. But you might hear particular stories  and also hear about miracles. Miracles done all the time lose their drawing power. Do know that love done all the time increases its drawing power.

We do hope you shall come to find out that the Brethren in Christ, or Christadelphians are people who do love the truth of the Bible and feel blessed by the blessing of God which they want to share with others in love. The Christadelphian community is not concerned about figures, quantity, and  the ego, but about quality and care about others.

Please do find also to read:

  1. Bible Word of God, inspired and infallible
  2. Fear of God reason to return to Holy Scriptures
  3. Christadelphian People
Read also:

Christadelphians or Messianic Christians or Messianic Jews


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