Covenanter Witness Vol. 86 - Rparchives.org

you rise. . . .'"Fathers must always be aware, then, of theirspiritual responsibility. It must come first, among themany things fathers are to teach their children. Whereverthey go, at home, as they walk along with their sons bytheir side, as they go to sleep thankful for God's care overthem, as they rise up to begin a new day, FIRST they mustbe the spiritual leaders in their homes, leading their littleones to love and trust the God who made them, and whosethey are.And then we mothers have to ask, Are we thespiritual examples we should be? Are we encouraging ourhusbands in their spiritual leadership as we ought to? Arewe mothers praying as we ought to for our husbands andfor our children in this regard? I think, now, that you willagree with me that the husband is the moral, intellectual,and spiritual leader in the home. What he does makes orbreaks it. Of course, if he fails, the Lord in His grace andmercy (don't forget that!) may rescue one or moremembers of that family, restore them to a right place inrelationship to Himself and the kingdom that is to come.But what joy must belong to that father who knows he isdoing what the Lord commands and wants; and who,when looking back, can take pride in the knowledge thathe did well in his responsibilities as head of the home,under Christ, his King and Lord."They sat thinking a moment, until Jane said,"Thanks, Helen, I have a lot to think about before ourmeeting next week."The others murmured in agreement before Ruthclosed their study with prayer, asking God to help them tohelp their husbands in fulfilling their tasks as leaders in thehome.Christian Home and SchooNATIONAL PRESBYTERIAN ANDREF OR MED FELL O WSHIPATLANTA—A new conservative organization ofCalvinistic teaching and ruling elders would be preparedto function as a "receiving body" or "holding body" bothfor denominations and congregations if a proposal madehere should ever be implemented in a future realignmentof churches.The National Presbyterian and ReformedFellowship, composed of individual members of some 10Presbyterian and Reformed bodies voted to "explore thelegal and practical implications" of a suggestion that thefellowship itself might become "a pole around whichdisplaced congregations as well as denominations" mightrally for a period.Ultimate objective would be a national churchprofessing the system of doctrine contained in the classicReformed confessions and functioning under apresbyterian form of government. Such a church wouldnot, however, simply be an extension of any existingdenomination, fellowship spokesmen emphasized.While no expectation of an immediate approval ofsuch an idea was voiced by any of the more than 60clergymen and laymen present from eight denominations,they did express an almost unanimous hope for aneventual united conservative witness.The NPRF is the outgrowth of several informalmeetings held since the December 1969 Atlanta rally ofPresbyterian Churchmen United (a Presbyterian USgroup). Present headquarters of the fellowship is inMiami.Those attending the meeting here were members otthe United Presbyterian Church USA, PresbyterianChurch US, Reformed Church in America, ChristianReformed Church, Associate Reformed PresbyterianChurch, Reformed Presbyterian Church EvangelicalSynod, Orthodox Presbyterian Church, and ReformedPresbyterian Church of North America.FORSAKE GODHUMANISM AND DEMONISM FLOURISHWhen God is systematically and officially excludedfrom a society, the result is a dying order in whichhumanism reigns and demonism flourishes unchecked.Dr. Robert A. Cook, a past president of the NationalAssociation of Evangelicals, which embraces some 36,000churches from 69 conservative Protestant denominationsand a service constituency of nearly 9 million, told adinner meeting of the Board of Administration that "whenwe threw prayer and the Bible out of our official life, weopened the door to occult sciences, to radical socialism,and eventually to atheistic humanism as a way of life."The president of the King's College, BriarcliffManor, New York, did not spare the church in hiscriticism of the modern scene: "In this period of the deathof a culture," he said, "education is adrift and the churchis powerless."The only answer, said Dr. Cook, is a generation ofmen who can communicate the living God to theirfellowmen. "A minister is significant only as he communicatesGod," he reminded his largely ministerialaudience.This is not accomplished by the religious formalitiesassociated with official church status, but "through thosepersonal contacts dedicated to making God real in theexperience of others," he said.For such communication, according to the speaker,there must be a right relation with one's fellow man, a lifeof prayer and a willingness to touch and lift others in thepower of God, regardless of cost."The activities of organizations such as the NAE areimportant," said Dr. Cook, "but they will be meaningful tohistorv only as the leaders project the compassion and thepower of God through their lives."This requires of evangelical Christians a priorcommitment to the authority of the Bible and to the Christof the Bible, Dr. Cook said.MAY 26, 1971 9