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Mar 25th, 2025
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Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 26,405 Likes: 38
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Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 26,405 Likes: 38 |
Dear Friends,
Three Cheers for that great Witness of Christ, Dave Brown!!
Alex
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Joined: Dec 2002
Posts: 1,904
Orthodox Catholic Toddler Member
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Orthodox Catholic Toddler Member
Joined: Dec 2002
Posts: 1,904 |
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Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 1,968
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Posts: 1,968 |
Well, thanks...but I'm still a work in progress! Instead of cheers I solicit your prayers.
To JWs the Catholic Church is the ultimate evil Church. (Of course, that opinion is shared by some Protestants, too.) Most JWs who end up in the Catholic Church usually take a side tour through Evangelicalism first. That was my route. I was very active in "cult evangelism"--writing articles about the JWs for various Evangelical publications. At one time I was on staff (volunteer staff, that is) and on the Board of Directors of Alpha and Omega Ministries--which is James White's Apologetics Ministry (he focuses much of his work against the Catholic Church these days.) I handled the "JW Ministry" there. They've since destroyed all the materials I produced while I was there (from '84-'91). I've chided James several times to consider writing materials dealing with Orthodoxy and the Eastern Churches but he hasn't as far as I know. This is what I call the "Eastern blind spot in Protestant apologetics." Rome is the big bogey-man when it comes to Baptismal regeneration, Eucharistic Real Presence, Apostolic Succession, Sacramental Theology, etc. Yet, these are things that are shared with the Eastern Churches as well (with some different theological approaches to be sure.) When one considers this and the great unity of faith on these sort of issues among the Apostolic Churches one cannot but realize that Protestantism is light years away and has no real historical continuity with the early Church (not to deny their love for Christ nor their love of Scripture).
David Ignatius DTBrown@aol.com
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Joined: May 2003
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Junior Member
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Joined: May 2003
Posts: 29 |
From my experience, most Protestants have little knowledge of the Eaastern Churchs. Some think of them as the same as Roman Catholics, some as nothing but a Greek church, or some know nothing at all. I even know Roman Catholics who little or nothing about the Eastern Orthodox/Catholic Churches. It is unfortunate that Eastern Christianity is so little known.
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Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 26,405 Likes: 38
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Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 26,405 Likes: 38 |
Dear Dave, They destroyed all you wrote? And that is because you "went bad" and became a Catholic?  So totalitarianism can exist even among "lovin' believers in the Lord Jesus." Alex
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Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 1,968
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Posts: 1,968 |
It's a bit of a long story...
Short version is this: I hadn't visited their website in years and last year I popped in and saw a few articles I had written back in the late 80's on their website with James White listed as the author. I was a bit perturbed and my godfather posted an article on his site about this. I have never really said much publically about my previous affiliation with them--so this was kind of a first (except for a few posts on a CIN list many long years ago). Turns out that James does not do his own web work and the articles had only been recently posted by some others from that ministry. They had mistakenly assumed that James had written the articles. The upshot was I apologized for assuming that James had known about this and for not contacting him first. James and crew removed every article of mine and also destroyed every thing I had ever produced for them (that was their decision as I had no problems with them using them...just in claiming that others had written them).
It was a real down point in my life. The next day I got an email from Catholic Forum giving me the free website I'd inquired about. So, there are always silver linings...
David Ignatius DTBrown@aol.com
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Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 26,405 Likes: 38
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Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 26,405 Likes: 38 |
Dear Dave, Well, I hope James becomes Catholic one day. "Home, James!" God bless you, and I hope I'll one day see you at my front door!  Alex
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Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 1,968
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Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 1,968 |
For those familiar with JWs and the book by the former member of their Governing Body (an elite group of 10 or so men who control the JW Organization)...
The book is Crisis of Conscience by Raymond Franz. It's an essential expose of the inner workings of the JW Governing Body. He relates how in 1980 there was a major "apostacy" at Witness headquarters and several people were dismissed (some also disfellowshipped) in disagreement over the JW belief that not all Christians share in "one hope." (Ephesians 4:4) Two of the people involved in this purge in 1980 later were part of Alpha and Omega Ministries (they were involved in an Evangelical Church then) operating a Spanish language ministry to JWs entitled: "Ministerios Alfa y Omega." That association later broke down and they went their own way in "JW Ministry." Interestingly, however, I've since found out that one of them (also a former Bethelite--headquarters worker) is now a Deacon in a Catholic parish in the New York City area.
David Ignatius DTBrown@aol.com
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Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 1,968
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Well, I hope James becomes Catholic one day. I do also. He's a very sincere man who loves the Lord deeply and an able debater. I would never try to match wits with him in debate. Maybe one of these days I'll make the pilgrimage to Toronto. Is "Our Lady of Blythwood" ready? David Ignatius DTBrown@aol.com
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