Reformed Presbyterian Minutes of Synod 1954

76 MINUTES OF THE SYNOD OF THE
sive documentation of his charges, which he offered, went unreviewed.
The most vigorous denials of Matthews' charges came from
Methodist Bishop, G. Bromley Oxnam. At his own request, Bishop
Oxnam was granted a hearing before the Committee on Un-
American Activities. The Bishop claimed the hearing as a victory
for himself for it was found that he had never been a member of
the Communist Party. At the same time, his detracters claimed
that the committee's findingssupported what they had been charging
all the time that Bishop Oxnam had a bad record for supporting
many communist front organizations.
Further evidence of the twentieth century apostacy is found
in the amazing belief held by many liberal churchmen that it is
possible to be a Communist-Christian or a Christian Communist.
The contradiction of terms seems not to bother the leaders of the
World Council of Churches. One of the vexing problems in making
arrangements for the second meeting of the WCC (Evanston, Illinois,
Aug. 15-29) has been that of getting permission for so-called
Communist-Christians to enter this country. Security regulations
under the McCarran-Walter Act include denial of visas to any
Communist or Communist-front representative. However, our Secretary
of State, John Foster Dulles, has given "reasonable assurances"
to Bishop C. Bromley Oxnam and Dr. W. A. Visser THooft
that these clergy will be admitted.
Permit us to quote again from Dr. Rehwinkel:
"Such are the conditions in the Church and the world about
us, and the tragedy is that we have grown so accustomed to the
situation that we are no longer disturbed. It is evident that we are
approaching, a time such as existed in the days of Noah. The line
of demarcation between the godly and the ungodly is being wiped
away."
Is Dr. Rehwinkel too pessimistic Certainly the atheist who
lives around the corner from us would think so. Recently, he found
amusement in submitting to the local newspaper a translation from
an Assyrian stone tablet in hieroglyphics dated around 2800 B.C.:
"Our earth is degenerate in these latter days; there are signs
the world is speedily coming to an end; bribery and corrupton are
common. Children no longer obey their parents. Every man wants
to write a book and the end of the world is rapidly approaching."
Our atheist neighbor needs to be reminded of two things. The
Assyrians' premonitions were well founded. Although the end of the
world was not at hand, their end was. God wiped out their civilization
"as with a sponge."
Consider also that corrupt men of our day have in their
hands weapons that stagger the imagination in their destructiveness
and render obsolete the "little bombs" that destroyed Hiroshma
and Nagasaki.
The signs of the times are clear to those who will read them.
We would be wise to heed the warning of Peter when he says: