Disfellowshipped

[Stan]

This is one of the ugly matters.

I do know from time to time it needs to happen, and this is not about that.

To often I have heard stories of what I consider spiritual abuse, and I do understand that membership is an honour, not a right. BUT why some folks are told how unworthy they are, scum etc etc is not needed. We are to treat them like heathens, and how do we do that? Same as we would others, by reaching out.

I am not talking about folk who harm others, like sexual pedophiles etc, who we MUST block, but others.

Surely folks can have their membership removed without alienating them forever.

[Woody]

Quote:

Surely folks can have their membership removed without alienating them forever.

HOW ? Never seen it work.

Best thing would be to just not have membership. Then we wouldn't be tempted to judge and punish people when they fall short.

Don't get me going. You all know how I feel. This subject has been well hashed out.

As for me ... I would prefer returning to the way it was done in the early church. No Membership. If someone wants to be baptized ... baptize them and don't force them to display a certain walk with Christ that has been predetermined by a group of judging Christians.

[Outta Here]

I am a heathen.

[Gail]

??? I have not heard of such a thing for quite a long while. I thought the emphasis was on reclamation...

:(

[Woody]

I am a heathen.

Me too Aubrey. And many would be clapping their hands and would just jump at the idea of disfellowshipping me.

In my eyes ... we are ALL equal. But membership creates a class system. And it classifies who are the saints and who are the sinners.

Many churches do just fine without membership. The big evangelical nondenominational churches somehow manage.

[lazarus]

Surely folks can have their membership removed without alienating them forever.

Sad to say, sometimes this is not possible.

[John317]

On the subject of disfellowshipping-- if it is done right, it will be a last resort and is done in order to help people perceive clearly the spiritual danger they are in. Before it's done, there should be quite a lot of visitation, conversation and prayer.

It has two main purposes:

Protect the church.

Help the sinner. But even if the sinner is not "helped," it sometimes still must be done.

Just noticed the picture of Malcolm X on your post. Ever see this pic of him by Gordon Parks?

[Woody]

Quote:

Ever see this pic by Gordon Parks?

Who is HE disfellowshipping?

[Dr. Shane]

My mother was disfellowshipped and later rebaptized.

My wife was disfellowshipped and later rebaptized (before I met her).

My sister-in-law was disfellowshipped and later rebaptized.

My wife's aunt was disfellowshipped and has been attending an Adventist church now for a couple years again. We are hoping for rebaptism.

[Woody]

Personally ... I don't believe in re-baptisms ... but then that's another story.

[Dr. Shane]

I was rebaptized too but the church never got around to disfellowshipping me. Depending upon how it was done, disfellowshipping me may have caused me to repent before I did or... perhaps never return. I know when both my mom and my sister-in-law were disfellowshipped the elders came out to their homes, prayed with them, encouraged them to continue to attend church and offered rebaptism if they wanted to change their behavior.

I can speak from experience that rebaptism is an awesome thing. The sinner that has backslidden is publicly accepted back into the fellowship of Christ. I had fallen so far away from the church that my rebaptism definitely meant more to me than my original baptism did.

[John317]

Yes, and one of my sister's was disfellowshipped and was rebaptized. She deserved to be disfellowshipped and knows it. She's a very strong SDA now and is an officer in her local church. (She's also a member of the Forum.) Hi Sis!!

[John317]

Personally ... I don't believe in re-baptisms ... but then that's another story.

Yeah, we know you disagree with Ellen White and SDA practices & doctrines on a number of issues. :-)

[Guest]

I was disfellowshipped once, for living with a woman in open sin. I wasn't attending church at the time but my name was on the books. My dad was on the board at the time, and I found out later that he cried when he had to vote to take my name off the books.

I wasn't bitter. I knew what I was doing was not exceptable to the church.

[rudywoofs (Pam)]

I was rebaptized, but I shouldn't have been - I should have waited a lot longer. I wasn't ready and I'm still not sure about it.

[Dr. Shane]

My sister-in-law was disfellowshipped because she had pre-marital sex and got pregnant. She was a Pathfinder leader and Sabbath School teacher at the time. She repented, did Bible studies with the pastor and was rebaptized before the baby was born. It was very powerful for her to be accepted back into the church while still pregnant.

[John317]

Do you wish that the pastor had studied and prayed with you more before your rebaptism?

I assume you asked to be rebaptized-- or did you feel pressured somehow?

[Dr. Shane]

I was rebaptized, but I shouldn't have been - I should have waited a lot longer. I wasn't ready and I'm still not sure about it.

Well you can take care of that right now. It is not about being deserving. It is about being willing.

[John317]

Quote:

Ever see this pic by Gordon Parks?

Who is HE disfellowshipping?

That reminds me-- some have said that Malcolm X was once SDA but I have never seen any evidence of it. If he ever was, it's very possible he was disfellowshipped because his lifestyle was openly contrary to the SDA church, at least during the time before his conversion to Islam.

[Guest]

Prince was raised in a SDA family.

[John317]

Yes, so I heard. Do you know any more than that? Like how old was he when he stopped being SDA? Was he disfellowshipped, etc.? What are his beliefs now?

[rudywoofs (Pam)]

Prince was raised in a SDA family.

so what? The website stating that about Prince is notorious for being wrong about famous SDA members and SDA connections: http://www.adherents.com/largecom/fam_sda.html

[Jeannieb43]

I was disfellowshipped once, for living with a woman in open sin. I wasn't attending church at the time but my name was on the books. My dad was on the board at the time, and I found out later that he cried when he had to vote to take my name off the books.

I wasn't bitter. I knew what I was doing was not exceptable to the church.

I think we should be very very slow in disfellowshipping a member -- unless after much visitation by the pastor, prayer and Bible study, that member ASKS to be removed from church membership. There are many many people whom I could name who are living together without benefit of marriage. The Social Security and pension laws make it almost necessary for retired people, widows especially, who would lose their pensions if they remarried. I do not feel they are "living in open sin" -- after all, who of us even knows what they do together in private?

I don't fault anyone for making that choice, at least when they are elderly and retired. And far be it from me to vote them out of church membership.

The church is a hospital for sinners -- not a museum for saints.

[Woody]

Originally Posted By: Redwood

Personally ... I don't believe in re-baptisms ... but then that's another story.

Yeah, we know you disagree with Ellen White and SDA practices & doctrines on a number of issues. :-)

I certainly do disagree with Ellen White on occasions. I also disagree with some SDA practices. But I know of NO doctrines of the church that I disagree with. Now that one is a new one to me and I would be happy to acknowledge it if I knew of it. Perhaps you know me better than I know myself.

[Guest]

Originally Posted By: Richard Holbrook

I was disfellowshipped once, for living with a woman in open sin. I wasn't attending church at the time but my name was on the books. My dad was on the board at the time, and I found out later that he cried when he had to vote to take my name off the books.

I wasn't bitter. I knew what I was doing was not exceptable to the church.

I think we should be very very slow in disfellowshipping a member -- unless after much visitation by the pastor, prayer and Bible study, that member ASKS to be removed from church membership. There are many many people whom I could name who are living together without benefit of marriage. The Social Security and pension laws make it almost necessary for retired people, widows especially, who would lose their pensions if they remarried. I do not feel they are "living in open sin" -- after all, who of us even knows what they do together in private?

I don't fault anyone for making that choice, at least when they are elderly and retired. And far be it from me to vote them out of church membership.

The church is a hospital for sinners -- not a museum for saints.

I was only about 21 at the time. Actually the pastor did come to the house 2 or 3 times, and all but begged me to come back to church and stop living in sin. He gave me fair warning.