Covenanter Witness Vol. 86 - Rparchives.org

Glimpses of the Religious WorldRev. L. E. Kilpatrick, D. D.1031 E. Glenrosa AvenuePhoenix, Arizona 85014"TO TEST (RACE) CONDITIONS IN THEIR CHUR­CHESThis was the billing for the Reformed EcumenicalSynod Conference in Chicago, March 2-5, on race relations.There were 160 or more registered. I counted 11 ReformedPresbyterians, there were several Orthodox Presbyteriansand a scattering of others, but the majority of the delegateswas of the Christian Reformed Church. The Rev. ClaudeBrown sent a brief paper but was prevented from attendingby illness. Perhaps 10 percent of those attending wereNegroes. (Also, about 1 in 10 of those in attendance wore abeard, while about twice that number wore sideburns or hairlonger than the "straights." Sam Boyle had a field day,sketching and classifying sartorial adornment as "catwhiskers," "Van Gogh," "Surrey Top Fringe," "HighSierra," "Martha Washington" and others. The "saddest,loneliest delegate" was the defoliation victim, thebaldheaded man.) •Reports will no doubt be forthcoming in the Witness.The opening keynote address was by Bill Pannell. Some ofhis illustrations and complaints will not bear carefulscrutiny, yet he threw some barbs that must have gottenthrough to most of us. He said, "I visited a ReformedSeminary in the South. In that town X-rated movies are notpermitted and Playboy magazine may not be sold, yet thechurches are segregated." After pointing to some gains inequality of opportunity for Negroes for which Christianscannot take credit, he said, "We can't go on letting asecular society that is on its way to hell, set our standards forus.Herbert Oliver, author of No Flesh Shall Glory, had acarefully prepared and helpful paper on ' 'Black Identity,'' inwhich he urged ' 'Christian identity,'' but suggested that theagitation for "black identity" which we are observing nowin our country, is an unavoidable reaction to the "whiteidentity" under which blacks have had to live the pastcenturies, and which will right itself.The conference was "action" oriented, which meantdifferent things to different people, the difference extendingall the way from working programs of a social nature in theghetto, to the militancy and violence of the riot. However,this last found little sympathy. The intent was that theconference should be not mere words, but that we should actin accord with right words."KEY 73"This organizing of the churches of the U.S.A. announcedlast June, into an effort "to confront every personin North America more forcefully with the gospel of JesusChrist," would seem to be a most worthy effort. Themovement is loosely organized, and includes officially appointedchurch representatives from the largerdenominations as well as many smaller, the UnitedMethodists, at least three of the largest Lutheran bodies,American and Southern Baptists, Friends, Disciples ofChrist, Pentecostal bodies and others. Dr. Aiken Taylor,editor of the Presbyterian Journal, however, finds thisgigantic evangelistic thrust considerably less than gratifying."Advance publicity calls it not a crusade but a celebration.""The latest thing is to sing, clap and dance around theLord's Supper." He says that "the evangelicals havejumped on this bandwagon more quickly than the others."He thinks many evangelicals are being tempted by seducingspirits to "waver from their firm commitment to Biblicalevangelism in strict obedience to the Lord of the church."We'll hear more of "Key '73." Is it something wemust fall in with because it is "evangelism?""EQUAL TIME"Apparently even the Federal CommunicationsCommission has seen how ridiculous is its so-called"fairness doctrine," that is, the idea that if a radio stationpresents one side of a controversial question, it must providefree, ' 'equal time" for an opponent to answer. At leastit hasdeclined to enforce it in the case of the "anti-smoking announcements.'' Pro-smoking spot announcements are not tobe mandatory. Hopefully, it may conclude that fairness andfreedom do not require that those who pay for time to expressan opinion over the air, also must pay for time for theopposite opinion to be expressed.MAF DEATHSAfter more than 20 years without fatal accidents, theMissionary Aviation Fellowship has recorded four more fatalaccidents since the first which took place in October 1968.The crash of a Cessna 185 owned by the Fellowship hastaken the lives of MAF's manager of technical training, E.W. Hatcher, and a prospective MAF pilot, John Wilson,employed by United Airlines, near Corona, California. Justthree weeks earlier MAF pilot Paul Weir of OverseasMissionary Fellowship along with James Johnson andDennis Mata died in a plane crash in Honduras.MOODY BIBLE INSTITUTE AND THE RACEQUESTIONWhen Newsweek spread its condemnation of MoodyBible Institute before the public for standing against interracialmarriage, Moody President William L. Banksfeltthat Newsweek, being secular and never having anythinggood to say about the Institute anyway, might be excused."They know not what they do." But when The Other Side,see page 34 COVENANTER WITNESS