Paradise Cafe Discussions - A Place For Bible Research And Christian Encouragement

Hello,
I got this PM in my box,
in regards to
http://www.paradisecafediscussions.net/s...p?tid=1138

-------------------------------
Manirus
Many R Us


Posts: 19
Group: Facilitator
Joined: Dec 2006
Status: Offline
re proselytism

Hi PPCM,

This board is a discussion board not a field to be viewed as a harvest ... while we don't mind links to backup a subject you may be discussing ... just posting link and copies from other sites my be view as preaching and we try are hardest not to be preachy to people ...

As you know it is a cafe and we are very open to a sharing but not someone who wants to promote in a preachy way ...

We seek common ground ... and even though we may have a spirited discussions and may not always agree we try to be respectful.

Hope that helps with the back and forth with [the other poster] ... ie [the other poster] is not a facilitator ... if there is a problem the team will contact via pm first if it can be.

Hope you have a great day!


Today 04:14 PM

re proselytism Reply | Forward | Delete

-------------------------------------
Here is my open reply to and before all:

Before Jesus and his Father- What am I being accused of?

Are there rules on this forum ???
like:
A) NO proselytism for Jesus?

Isn't the whole world to be viewed as a field of harvest for Jesus' brotherhood by his true followers?

Are there rules on this forum ???
like:
B) No preaching biblical truth?
Are not all true Christians to preach God's word in truth?

Is this not an open Christian religious forum?

NO wishy washy replies please- I call on the "Forum Team""Facilitators" to only be straight out open on my questions!


If the answer is- NO proselytism for Jesus to A) and- No preaching biblical truth to B)-
If this is a sectarian site- you can ask me not to return and I won't. And as I stated in the thread, if I had known that it was I wouldn't have come in here in the first-place.

But if this is truly a public "cafe" Then you will just have to ban me, for I refuse to abide by what is against God's will, Jesus' commands or the examples the apostles and disciples gave.

For as it is recorded that the disciples "went around preaching the word" (KJV ACTS 8:4 Therefore they that were scattered abroad went every where preaching the word. ) Know that no one then or now who is being led of the Spirit of Christ could help being a preacher of the glad tidings. Every member of the Church (whose names are "enrolled in heaven" -- Hebrews 12:23) in the early times was a preacher. This is known not only because the anointing of the spirit led Jesus to preach and the same spirit in Paul led him to feel "woe is me if I do not preach the Good News" (1 Corinthians 9:16), but wherever the like mind or spirit of Christ may be, it will have a like effect, it will make a preacher of the one in it as surely as it did of those referred to above. Preaching the word in spirit and truth is done for the purpose of bringing people closer to God; which in effect is proselyting.

Sincerely, PPCM_

Hello PPCM.

Are you then assuming that the people on this board do not know Jesus and need to be led to Him?

The people here are already seeking Jesus, but most have seen first hand how dangerous organised religion can be in their lives and how futile theology is without a relationship with God. Unless you assume that everyone here is lost and in need of your teaching, you don't need to try and make disciples for Jesus the way you think is necessary. This is a rare place, where people really do try to respect that maybe, just maybe, different ideas about Jesus are not necessarily wrong. Yes, many of us will be wrong in what we think (including you) but anyone seriously seeking to know Jesus will be corrected by the Spirit.

I know you mean well, that your heart is to preach, and that's beautiful. But rememnber, the most effective preaching is personal testamony as to what Jesus has done in your life. Talk to us PPCM, don't give people a page of theology, good or bad, theology is pretty worthless unless it comes out of a relationship with Jesus. Tell us about Jesus in your life, tell us what he has done, how He has changed you. One powerful testemony of how God opperates here and now can do more for people than a thousand pagesw of theological reasonings.

We try to get to know each other here, to be friendly even if we disagree. Share your thoughts and your experiences of God as we seek His face. If you feel someone's needs teaching, then pray for them, but before you pray for a person, I've always learned to pray for your own heart first. If I hadn't kept bringing my heart to God to be shaped and changed I would still assume that everyone with a theology that matched up to mine was saved, and anyone whose theology didn't, was not.

Please keep sharing and getting to know us, none of us bite. We're all in different places. There are people I feel are sorted and people I feel have a long way to go - but since when were my feelings and opinions gospel.

The gospel is beautiful, that Jesus poured out his blood to reconcile you to God. Talk about that all you want, but page links can be impersonal sometimes because we don't get to know you as a person.

Shalom XXXX

Dear PPCM,

If you don't mind my saying so, this was your best post yet! Why? Not because you are slamming the way the board is run, but because we finally get to hear the real you! We'd love to see more of this straight-from-the-heart stuff. Keep it coming.

Don

Hello friends -
I'm at a loss here to understand what the real problem is about... or if there really is a problem. I think it's being blown out of proportion.
The reason I say that is because I've posted links I've found on the web with little comment - just: "here's something I think you all might find interesting..." I do it all the time! So then someone new joins the board and posts the exact same way and all of a sudden 'it sounds like proselytising'? When we link to other members blog sites, is that promoting them and their ideas or is it just an exchange of ideas offered with the assumption that the reader can take it or leave it? The latter is the way I've always thought of it - if I'm wrong please correct me. There are many posters on this site that I don't neccesarily agree with 100%, but they are free to have their own opinions just like I am. I'm not afraid of them, nor do their words do me any harm at all. Most often they make me re-think my own position and I either readjust my thoughts to include their 'possibilities' or it makes my own stand more solid. I think that's how it should work - take it or leave it. I had posted links to 2 other sites(and I read the guidelines to be sure it was OK) the day 'digging' complained about sister PPCM's post - so I thought oh, no.... I hate that 'oh, no' feeling - lol. I've read that site before(in PPCM's post) and don't find anything objectionable in it's contents - shouldn't that be our first consideration before making a big thing out of something so small?
Sometimes someone else's writings state what we ourselves would write, but much more eloquently and succinctly. We all don't have a gift with words to express our own feelings and thoughts well.(Malkah - :giverose:you are beautiful and what you write is music to my ears, but not everyone has your wonderful gift of expression!)
I've often thought before posting something - 'wow, I couldn't have said it any better' and didn't feel the need to add anything at all. I'm having real fellow-feelings for this sister pi, because I feel she's done just the same as I have done and still do, yet she's being singled out as a 'proselytiser' like that's a dirty word or something - hey, we are ALL Christian proselytisers for God and Christ - or at least we'd better be!
I remember times on e-w when both sis Lee and bro. gogh were chatised by other posters for only posting scriptures without any personal comments, and we rallied behind them and their right to do so. There was absolutely nothing wrong with their posts, yet some decided to pick a nit and become defensive.
Maybe it's because she's new and some feel they don't know her as well as the veteran posters? That's still no reason to jump to the conclusion that she's recruiting people for a movement or something like that. I've never seen even a hint of that in any of her posts, nor ever got that impression. And never, at any time, did I feel I was being 'preached to'. (I'm usually pretty good with first impressions, but this is the net...;))
She has joined the on-line Bible studies on paltalk, and I sure don't want her to feel that she's not wanted and appreciated for her contributions here - or for her to suddenly feel out of place there because of this, here. :hug:(((((We DO want you, and appreciate you sister!))))):friends:

Please, let's all be reasonable and loving about this thing and not let it escalate any further. :heartbeat:

My love to you all -
Willa :peace:

and I agree with Willa--not because I read all the links that are offered by Anyone but because there is a feeling of ''picking on'' someone here--in this case ppcm_I don't understand it --especially in this case --and especially by those who are raising the most intense objections. It takes awhile to make a little spot for oneself on a discussion board--it takes awhile to feel you have a little voice--we need to be patient and kind-we need to be as tolerant to others as they are to us--I really don't get this either. There are many things on this forum to agree with--and to not agree with--it is too bad to take everything so seriously the fun is all gone and we take the joy away from someone else--just a little thought--:wolfsmile:

Okey-dokey.... everyone take a deep breath please. I've checked in on what is going on here and hope that I've got it all straight. Please forgive if I haven't.

It's a shame that this wasn't checked out first before the PM was made public (a no-no). Out of context it does not make any sense and only stirs up contention.

First of all, there is a thread where PPCM is having a "back and forth" with another poster who is "telling her what and what not to do"....counselling her. This came to the attention of Manirus, who is on the admin team.

He thought it could be taken care of by PMing PPCM, explaining why someone might feel like they are being preached to. So this was an effort to calm things down between them. That is why Manirus responded in the PM that "the other party was NOT a facilitator".

Out of context it sounds as though Manirus is telling PPCM that she cannot post links....not so. Links are fine. What is not wanted on the board is where folks do great long "cut and pastes" to religious sites with no personal input of their own.

Thank you Malkah for your encouragement to PPCM to open up to us. I'm removing the other party's name from the quoted PM (the section I changed to red text) to save embarrassment to them. Then I will lock this thread. PM me if you have any questions or comments. Thanks.

With love to all, Rez:giverose:

closed