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Vol. 50, No. 45
SOUTHSIDE ORACLE January 18, 2008
Authentic
Christianity (3)
Have you ever wondered why the Amish people drive buggies and do not use
electricity? The answer is found in their religious history. The Amish are
Anabaptists, one of four strands of the 15th century Protestant
Reformation. They believe that this movement recovered authentic
Christianity, and since, in the 15th and 16th
centuries they used buggies and had no electricity, this represents the
original form of the faith.
The Reformation was a response to the deficiencies of Catholicism. Its
major branches were the Lutheran, Reformed, Anglican, and Anabaptists.
Almost all of the Protestant bodies of our day grew out of one of these
movements. The Reformation brought men back to many basic principles of
early Christianity. Luther taught the priesthood of all believers,
salvation by faith, and reliance on the Bible as the means of determining
the word of God. Calvin and the Reformed element sought to help people
learn about God and how he works. The Anabaptists stressed that pure
Christianity must reflect the pure living of Jesus’ followers. Collectively
these efforts did much to return people to authentic Christianity.
Still, the Protestant Reformation was more a reformation of Catholicism than
an effort to return to the original, though some like the Anabaptists sought
to leap over the centuries to recover first century Christianity. This
brings us to the point of this article – some believe that authentic
Christianity is defined by the Reformation.
In an article about the Evangelical Movement, Roger Olson writes, “Other
evangelical traditionalists emphasize the magisterial Reformation of the 16th
century – Luther, Calvin, and the great Protestant confessions of faith
stemming from their reforming theologies – as the touchstone of doctrinal
truth for authentic evangelicalism.” (Christianity Today,
February 9, 1998.) In other words, if we wish to recover authentic
Christianity, we need to return to the Protestant Reformation.
Many of us are debtors to those who struggled in the Reformation. Who can
rightly deny the importance of the principles discovered by Luther? Yet, we
must remember that in spite of all their efforts, these reformers did not
recover the whole picture. Had they done so Protestantism would not have
had the many faces that it displays today. These great people could not
agree among themselves as to what constitutes genuine Christianity. If we
are to recover the original faith we must look beyond the buggies of the
Amish or the Five Points of Calvinism to find Authentic Christianity.
Our search will direct us next to a time many centuries earlier where
some believe the answers are to be found.
Monroe Hawley
The Bulletin Board
“Partners In the Gospel” is the theme of a seminar led by Wayne Hawley,
elder of the Oakhaven Church in Oshkosh, this Sunday. The two sessions will
be at the 10:00 a.m. Bible school hour and at 1:00 p.m. The seminar will
deal with the relationships between the church leadership and the
congregation and will be based on the book of Phillipians. Plan to attend.
Remember the Blood Drive at the church building this Saturday,
January 19th from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Please come at anytime
between these hours if you can give of your blood. Call the church at (414)
282-8680 for more information.
Bible Bowl - the Tweens (pre-teens) will host a Bible bowl on Sunday,
February 10th from 6:00 – 7:00 p.m. This is a fun,
non-threatening way to have some fun with Bible knowledge. The Bible Bowl
will focus primarily on facts, not applications. Questions will be multiple
choice. Put together a team of four people. Adults can form teams, too. A
sign-up list is on the bulletin board. We will need adult volunteers for
judging. See the Orlovskys or the Giemzas with questions.
ATTENDANCE RECORD
Two years
ago Last year Last week Goal
Bible classes 143
124 140 170
Morning worship 246
214 *218 250
Evening worship 59 50
51 80
Contribution $4501.68 $7861.91
$4969.02 $5200.00
(*) first service, 126, second
service, 92
The Sick - Ann Tevik is in rehab
recovering from a knee replacement at Elmbrook Hospital….Christine Saunders
was in St. Luke’s South Shore Hospital over the weekend taking tests. She
has gone home, pending the results of the tests.
Southside’s annual dinner and auction to benefit
the Wisconsin Christian Youth Camp will be Saturday, February 16th.
If you would like to attend, donate a NEW or Craft item for the auction, or
make a monetary donation, contact Bill or Denise Eppler.
Aline Sturomski is a certified CPR instructor.
She is willing to teach a course of this life saving technique in February
for Southside. If you are interested in participating, see the sign-up
sheet in the hall outside the fellowship area. Indicate which day would
best fit your schedule. Because you will receive a book and be certified at
the end of the course, there is a fee. See information at sign-up sheet.
Calendar of Events
January
19 – Southside Blood Drive, 9:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
January
20 – Partners In the Gospel seminar with Wayne Hawley
January
25-27 - Spirit Fest, Duluth, MN, for youth
February
10 – Tween Bible Bowl 6:00 – 7:00 p.m.
February
16 – Camp auction and dinner for Wisconsin Christian Youth Camp
February
19 – Christian Workers’ Meeting, 9:00 a.m.
February
23 – Southside area-wide men’s breakfast, 9:00 a.m.
March 2
– 50th anniversary of the Southside Church
March 28 - 30 – Southside youth rally
July 11,
12 – 50th anniversary celebration and reunion of Southside Church
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