The Grace Proclamator
and
Promulgator
"To testify the gospel of the grace of
God." Acts 20:24
**PUBLISHED
AS A MISSION PROJECT OF PILGRIMS HOPE BAPTIST CHURCH**
Vol. XIII,
No. 2 February 1, 1997
THE
PROMISE KEEPERS: SATAN’S LATEST TOOL OF DECEPTION
THE ALLIANCES OF PROMISE
KEEPERS
PART
I
By
Wayne Camp
In the first article I introduced the
readers to Promise Keepers, the "Christianized"
sect of the New Age men’s movement. And, while the
men’s movement is classified as New Age, it truly has its
roots in ancient pagan rites of passage. It also has much that is
derived from the stages of manhood taught in the mystical
religions of the American Indians. These stages of manhood that
are the heart and core of PKs are not found in the word of God.
The word of God is twisted and formed to embrace them but a great
deal of hocus-pocus is necessary to even come close to applying
Scripture to these rites of passage. This latest tool of Satan
that he is using on a grand scale is permeated with the leaven of
paganism, psychobabble, radical Pentecostalism, shamanism, and
ecumenism. True believers in Jesus Christ should abstain from any
association with the movement.
"But," I hear someone protest,
"Promise Keepers does some good!" Remember that Ahab
seduced Jehoshaphat with the same deception. It was good for the
safety of both Israel and Judah to get the border town of
Ramoth-gilead out of the control of enemy. When Jehoshaphat
returned home after that engagement and after the death of Ahab
during the battle, God sent a prophet to him to rebuke him
saying, "Shouldest thou help the ungodly, and love
them that hate the Lord? Therefore is wrath upon thee from the
Lord" (II Chron 19:2). Even in a good cause,
God’s people need to avoid association with evil and those
who are evil.
In this article I want us to take a look
at yet another problem with Promise Keepers—their
alliances. While the people I will discuss are not, to my
knowledge, a part of the PKs movement, they are closely
associated with them in various ways. Promise Keepers are aligned
with such people as Robert Hicks, a psychologist and pastoral
counselor, who is author of a book called The Masculine
Journey: Understanding the Six Stages of Manhood. This
book was published by Promise Keepers, NavPress, and Robert
Hicks.
Another of their alliances is with
pop-psychologist and Nazarene preacher, James Dobson. Dobson is
part of the self-esteem movement that has seduced
many Christians.
As has already been pointed out, the
movement is very closely aligned with the radical and
unscriptural Vineyard branch of Pentecostalism. The Pentecostal
movement is unscriptural in itself, but the Vineyard branch is so
radical that many Pentecostal’s condemn it.
Within the last couple of years
especially, the PK movement has been forging an alliance with
Roman Catholics. Bill McCartney is a former Roman Catholic.
There is also evidence that Promise
Keepers will form some sort of alliance with the Mormon cult. In
fact Mormons have stages of the human journey much like that
advocated by Robert Hicks which is gathered from paganism and the
shamanism of the American Indian.
These alliances alone are enough to make
any true-to-the-Bible Christian question the wisdom of having
anything to do with the PKs movement. In fact, the more I learn
of the movement and its various associations and ramifications,
the more I am convinced it is a very effective tool of deceit
molded to fit Satan’s program of end-time deception.
ROBERT HICKS
"ROBERT HICKS is Professor of
Pastoral Theology at the Seminary of the East, Dresher, PA. He
also serves as President of Life Counseling Services, a
professional center for Christian Counseling located near
Philadelphia. A frequent speaker on men’s issues, Dr. Hicks
is the author of Uneasy Manhood, Returning Home, and
Failure to Scream." (From the Dust Cover of
his book, THE MASCULINE JOURNEY: The Six Stages of Manhood.)
Since THE MASCULINE JOURNEY was published, Hicks
has written at least one more book, MAN OF ALL PASSIONS.
Some who are in sympathy with the PKs are
surprised when you tell them what is in The Masculine
Journey (Hereafter I will usually designate this book
with the initials, TMJ. Editor). In fact, I have
shown certain parts of the book to some who sympathize with the
movement and they are shocked at some of the content.
Some seek to deny that there exists an
alliance between PKs and Robert Hicks. The coalition cannot be
denied. On page 11 Hicks acknowledges the cooperation and
assistance of PKs in the publication of TMJ.
"Thanks goes to NavPress and the Promise Keepers for having
a vision for this project. I greatly appreciate their commitment
to men and the publishing of materials that relate directly to
men’s issues." On page 203 Promise Keepers has its own
statement and advertisement. "Promise Keepers wants to
provide men’s materials (like this book) as well as seminars
and the annual conference to emphasize the godly conviction,
integrity, and action each of us needs."
There you have it. First, Hicks
acknowledges the assistance of PKs in the publication of TMJ,
then PKs acknowledge that they desire to provide men’s
materials such as the book under question. There can be no doubt
there exists an alliance between Hicks and PKs. If you add to
this the fact that 50,000 copies were distributed free at the
1993 PKs rally in Boulder, Colorado, there can be no doubt of the
association of the two. Again, add the fact that after ceasing to
give the book away at their gatherings, they issued a seven page
defense of it. On their Website they still have a brief defense
of the book and blame the readers for any impressions of
impropriety they find in the book.
In his book, Hicks quotes Robert Bly and
Sam Keen favorably. They are New Age writers for the men’s
movement. Robert Bly’s book, Iron John, is
pornographic to say the least. So is Keen’s book, Fire
in the Belly.
He also quotes Charles Darwin. In fact,
just under the title of Chapter Two, Creational
Male—Adam: The Noble Savage, these words from
Charles Darwin appear, "Man with all his noble qualities
still bears in his bodily frame the indelible stamp of his lowly
origin." He does not comment at that time. Hicks follows
this caption from Darwin with a second from Anthony Storr, "Do
Impulses toward sadistic cruelty lurk in the depths of every
human psyche"?
Both these captions are consistent with
Hicks’ idea that Adam was a noble savage. Such
an idea does not come from Scripture. In the second paragraph of
this chapter, Hicks says, "To cite Margaret Mead’s
often-used term for the uncivilized people groups she studied, we
as men (and all humankind) are noble savages."
I now desire to show you some of the
absurd and sometimes blasphemous positions taken by Robert Hicks
in TMJ. Before you read the next few paragraphs,
let me apologize for feeling the necessity of quoting some of the
things I do. If I am to expose the wickedness associated with the
PKs I must show you some of their thinking as expressed in this
book. I have a copy of it before me. I am not taking the word of
another that these things are in TMJ.
On page 49 Hicks boldly declares,
"The Bible simply defines manhood by the phallus (penis),
the very way the doctor did when my son was born. If that were
all he had to say along this line, we might be able to let it
drop there. But, on the same page he has a heading, "The
Phallus as Determiner of Religious Service." Under this
heading he writes, "We are called and addressed by God in
terminology that describes who and what we are—zakar,
phallic males.
"Possessing a penis places unique
requirements upon men before God in how they are to worship Him.
We are called to worship God as phallic kinds of guys, not as
some sort of androgynous, neutered nonmales, or the feminized
males so popular in many feminist-enlightened churches. We are
told by God to worship Him in accordance with what we are,
phallic men."
Of course, it goes without saying, Hicks
gives no Scripture to back up these declarations. Why not?
Because, he cannot!
The outrageous fascination of Hicks with
the phallus continues under the heading, "The Phallus as
the Symbol of Dedication and Connection." Under this
head he writes, "The phallus has always been the symbol of
religious devotion and dedication." His support for this is
one Professor George Elder whom he quotes as saying,
"Phallus, like all great religious symbols, points to a
mysterious divine reality that cannot be apprehended otherwise.
In this case, however, the mystery seems to surround the symbol
itself . . . It is not as a flaccid member that this symbol is
important to religion, but as an erect organ" (Pp. 51-52, TMJ.)
Hicks bemoans the fact that few preachers
give "any clarification to men on how the phallus should be
understood and used. The silence says as much as the overt
messages. The phallus is not a spiritual subject to be discussed
alongside God, the Church, and more ‘spiritual
doctrines’." I read and re-read this to be absolutely
certain I was getting the gist of Hicks’ complaint. It is
obvious from his statement and its context that Hicks’
thinks the phallus and its use are to be preached alongside the
preaching of God, the Church, and other "spiritual"
doctrines. Yes! That is what he is advocating.
In support of this absurd notion that the
understanding and use of the phallus should be a subject preached
alongside of God and other spiritual doctrines, Hicks cites
paganism as proof. He writes, "In most pagan societies,
sexuality was seen as an important aspect of uniting the
spiritual with the physical and with the worship of gods and
goddesses. In many cities, sacred prostitutes ‘served’
at the temples in order to be the meadiatrix between the gods and
humans." He then gives a lengthy quote (over half of a page)
from The Sacred Prostitute: Eternal Aspect of the Feminine,
by Nancy Qualls-Corbett. Of course, Hicks denies that he is
suggesting that Christians should have sacred prostitutes but
only uses this to support his idea that preachers are being
sinfully silent if they do not preach about the understanding and
use of the phallus just as they preach about God, the church, and
other spiritual matters. My advice to Mr. Hicks and Promise
Keepers is from Jeremiah 10:2. "Thus saith the LORD,
Learn not the way of the heathen."
Hicks continues his complaint,
"Current Christianity cannot openly deal with or talk about
the male phallus in its full sexual activity or fantasy." I
have read all the sermons of the New Testament many times. I have
never found any mention of the male phallus in any sermon found
there. Hicks’ complaint is based on his psychobabble not on
Scripture.
After discussing sexual addictions and
other sexual problems men have, Hicks writes, "Our sexual
problems only reveal how desperate we are to express, in some
perverted form, the deep compulsion to worship with our
phallus." He goes on to suggest that if we cannot worship
God in this vulgar manner, the phallus will become an idol which
we worship. He says,
When the phallus is given over to its
full-blown spiritual power without constraint, it becomes an
idol. Therefore, in the sacred Scriptures God makes it clear
that the phallus, though being the symbol of God’s
faithfulness and provision, must be regulated, lest it become
a very mysterious taskmaster.
Totally flabbergasted with that last
statement! Join this writer. Of course, we again have Hicks
asserting that something is taught by God in his word that is not
found there. I challenge any Promise Keepers member or
sympathizer to produce the Scripture where the phallus is the "symbol
of God’s faithfulness and provision."
If it were not that I have been asked to
expose this movement I would cease quoting from this book and its
psychological hogwash right now. Not only have I been asked, but
since I have gotten into it, I feel a strong urgency to continue
the exposure of the PKs movement and those who are aligned with
it and those who lead it. The more I study the more fully I am
convinced the PKs movement is born out of hell and is
Satan’s latest and most effective tool in his deception of
people, possibly some of God’s people.
Hicks’ obsession with the phallus
continues throughout TMJ. On page 181 he writes,
I believe Jesus was phallic with all
the inherent phallic passions we experience as men. But it
was never recorded that Jesus had sexual relations with a
woman. He may have thought about it as the movie The
Last Temptation of Christ portrays, but even in this
movie He did not give in to the temptation and remained true
to His messianic course. If temptation means anything, it
means Christ was tempted in every way as we are. That
would mean not only heterosexual temptation but also
homosexual temptation! I have found this insight to be very
helpful for gay men struggling with their sexuality (P. 181).
Hicks apparently does not believe in the
infallibility of Jesus Christ. He believes that Christ had
thoughts about committing fornication and sodomy. He admits he
never gave in to these thoughts and temptations, but infers he
could have. Since the very thought of foolishness is sin, any
person who entertains thoughts of committing fornication,
adultery, and sodomy is guilty of sin. The suggestion that Christ
actually entertained thoughts of committing these lewd acts is to
say that Christ was a sinner. If that were true, we have no
Saviour. We are of all men most miserable.
It is apparent from the things that I have
quoted from TMJ Robert Hicks has taken many of his
thoughts from paganism, psychology and humanism. He has tried to
Christianize this by claiming that what he is saying is clearly
taught in the Word of God. I found, however, that his strongest
assertions that something was taught in Scripture were always
made when he gave no Scripture for what he claimed. A recent
statement published by PKs still endorses TMJ even
though they no longer distribute it free. In that statement PKs
said they feel that "The Masculine Journey
is a valid resource for men to grow in Christ."
The only way one can grow spiritually from
this book is to grow in the spirit of falsehood. Hicks, though an
ordained Southern Baptist preacher, has been so infected with his
psychobabble thinking that he feels he can palm off his six
stages in the masculine journey as a biblically based study. But,
it will not hold water. It is "Christianized psychoheresy at
its very worst, and I would not have spent my money on his book
except that I wanted to get my information for this article
directly from the source.
HICKS’ CALL FOR THE
CELEBRATION OF SIN
I suppose most readers thought they had
heard everything when they read what I have brought out
concerning Robert Hicks, Promise Keepers, and The Masculine
Journey. But, I am not finished. There is one other thing
that I want to call to your attention.
On page 177 of TMJ Hicks
calls for the celebration of sin. He wrote,
I’m sure many would balk at my
thought of celebrating the experience of sin. I’m not
sure how we could do it. But I do know we need to do it. For
example, we usually give the teenagers in our churches such a
massive dose of condemnation regarding their first
experiences with sin that I sometimes wonder how any of them
ever recover. Maybe we could take a different approach.
Instead of jumping all over them when they have their first
experience with the police, or their first drunk, or their
first experience with sex or drugs, we could look upon this
as a teachable moment and a rite of passage. Is this putting
a benediction on sin? Of course not, but perhaps at this
point the true elders could come forward and confess their
own adolescent sins and congratulate the next generation for
being human. Then they could move on to the all-important
issues of forgiveness and restoration, but this time on
common ground, with the young person as a fellow sinner!
Can you imagine a Southern Baptist
preacher suggesting that we should celebrate the experience of
sin? Can you imagine someone who is supposed to be a Christian
suggesting that we should congratulate the young person who has
committed fornication or gotten drunk because he is simply being
human? That is what Robert Hicks is advocating. And, by their
alliance with him, Promise Keepers agree and support this
psychobabble.
On the next page Hicks writes, "If
ever we needed to initiate the wounded in our midst it is now. We
need to recognize a man’s divorce, or job firing, or major
health problem, or culpability in some legal or sexual
indiscretion, as a wound to which we show deference as a part of
the male journey" (P. 178). The word deference
means "honor, reverence, veneration, acclaim, homage,
esteem, courtesy." Hicks is suggesting that we
should honor, reverence, venerate, esteem, etc. the things he
listed when they happen in a man’s life. Included in these
things we should venerate, reverence, esteem, and pay
homage to are legal and sexual indiscretions. Rather than
looking on them as sin we should reverence them. We should honor
them. We should venerate them. We should esteem them. We should
look on them as rites of passage along the masculine journey. I
ask any PKs member or sympathizer for one scripture, not for two
nor for three, but for one scripture which suggests we should venerate,
reverence, and pay homage to the sexual indiscretions
(such as fornication and adultery) of any person.
It also appears that Hicks is in sympathy
with the Dominion theology that is also becoming popular today.
From statements by PKs leaders they also hold to this idea that
Christians must seize control of the government of the United
States and make it a Christian nations. Pat Robertson, who is
becoming involved with PKs holds to this idea as does Jerry
Falwell. Hicks expresses it this way,
". . . the King of creation has
made us humans to rule as His vice-regents on earth and show
forth what His rule should be like on earth. It is awesome to
think that God is looking to me to reveal what He is like,
but that seems to be the intended meaning of the term image
of God" (P. 33, TMJ).
Hicks is also a proponent of the self-esteem
heresy that is invading the ranks of "Christendom." On
page 37 he writes,
This struggle for dignity (often
wrongly referred to as pride) reveals only who and what I
really am—a creational male. . . In my fight for
self-affirmation, I am revealing the basic fabric of what I
am and how I am made. The work of psychologists and self-help
writers only affirms this reality, whether they realize it or
not. The therapeutic remedies that are designed to recover or
develop self-esteem, and the self-help literature, only
affirm this intrinsic, deeply rooted but unexplained value.
The value of human dignity, and thus self-esteem, is only
explainable by creation and a Creator.
I must leave off exposing the errors of
Robert Hicks. There are others who are aligned with PKs that need
to be considered. Their endorsement of The Masculine
Journey ought to be enough to destroy their credibility
with any Bible believing Christian. They helped publish it. They
gave away 50,000 copies of it at the 1993 Boulder meeting. They
have an endorsement of the book on page 203. They teach its six
stages of manhood. They helped to publish a workbook to go with
it. Though they no longer give it away, they still endorse it. I
downloaded their endorsement of it from their own home page.
You cannot endorse Promise Keepers without
endorsing The Masculine Journey and the
psychobabble of Robert Hicks. They go together.
JAMES DOBSON
Another prophet of psychobabble who is
aligned very closely with PKs is James Dobson of Focus on the
Family fame. Focus on the Family was founded by Dobson in 1977
after the death of his father. Allegedly, "the Lord
told" his dying father that a great ministry would
be fulfilled through his son. Dobson has honorary doctorates from
a number of universities including one Catholic and one Nazarene.
Dobson is a Nazarene. Therefore he denies
the doctrine of total hereditary depravity, the doctrine of
salvation that is wholly of grace and believes in works for
salvation. He denies the preservation and perseverance of the
saints. Is such a man qualified to counsel Christians?
Dobson promotes the PKs movement on his
radio broadcast. His organization has published some of their
books. On his radio broadcasts he has held out great hope that
PKs would stir the coals of revival among men in this country.
The book, Seven Promises of A Promise Keeper, is a
workbook being used by the PKs movement. Dobson is a contributing
author of that book. Another PKs book is WHAT MAKES A MAN?
12 Promises That Will Change Your Life. Dobson is also a
contributing writer to this book. Dobson’s wholehearted
approval of PKs is also an endorsement, spoken or not, of the
junk we have seen in TMJ.
But, Dobson has his own problems, also. He
is part of the self-esteem crowd whose doctrine of self-love
and self-esteem is finding its way into many Baptist
churches, even some Sovereign Grace Baptist Churches. Dobson is
no newcomer to this self-esteem doctrine either. In
his book, Hide or Seek, published in 1974 by Revell
Publishers, Pages 12-13, 20-21, 152, he wrote,
In a real sense, the health of an
entire society depends on the ease with which the individual
members gain personal acceptance. Thus, whenever the
keys to self-esteem are seemingly out of reach for a large
percentage of the people, as in twentieth-century America,
then widespread "mental illness," neuroticism,
hatred, alcoholism, drug abuse, violence, and social disorder
will certainly occur . . . .{Emphasis in the
Original} Personal worth is not something human beings are
free to take or leave. We must have it, and
when it is unattainable, everybody suffers . . . a sizable
proportion of all human activity is devoted to the task of
shielding us from an inner pain of inferiority. I
believe this is to be the most dominant force in life
[Emp. Mine, RWC].
The Word of God is clear that sin is the
most dominant force in human life (Rom. 3:10-23). It is not the
"pain of inferiority," as Dobson claims. There is no
doubt about his position on the gospel of self-esteem. Of his
book, Hide or Seek, he wrote, "The heart of
this book . . . is devoted to a description of ten comprehensive
‘strategies’ for building self-esteem" (P. 21).
Paul wrote, "To me to live is Christ." To
Dobson, to live is to have a high degree of self-esteem!
Consider also,
If I could write a prescription for
the women of the world, I would provide each one of them with
a healthy dose of self-esteem and personal worth . . . I have
no doubt that this is their greatest need. [What
Wives Wish Their Husbands Knew About Women, James
Dobson, p. 35).
Again,
Feelings of self-worth and acceptance
. . . provide the cornerstone of a healthy personality . . .
it is apparent that emotional problems usually originate from
. . . an inability to gain acceptance and respect from peers
. . . I have observed the most powerful influence to emanate
from ego needs [Dr. Dobson Answers Your Questions,
Pp. 168, 191, 435).
In the November, 1988, issue of Focus
on the Family magazine Dobson wrote,
"Feelings of inferiority even
account for outbreak of wars and international hatred . . .
inferiority is the major force behind the rampaging incidence
of rape today . . . How about aggressive violence in American
classrooms? . . . Can it be attributed to the frustration of
low self-esteem? I’m inclined to believe so . . . The
examples are legion. That is why I have contended that social
chaos in all its forms is increased when
citizens feel inadequate and inferior. There are numerous
other causes, of course, but none so powerful
[as low self-esteem. Editor].
That Dobson’s self-esteem psychology
has not changed is evident from another unbelievable statement he
made in the October, 1994, issue of his magazine. He wrote,
". . . some things in life are more important than academic
excellence, and self-esteem is one of them. A child can survive,
if he must, without knowing a noun from a verb, but if he
doesn’t have some measure of self-confidence and personal
respect, he won’t have a chance in life."
Dobson follows the usual line of many
prophets of psychobabble and blames all these things he lists on
the loss of self-esteem. This serves to deliver the
responsibility for these things from the individual to society in
general. This seductive message that centers on self is being
proclaimed by many, including such men as Southern Baptist
Charles Stanley. This message has been so successful for its
chief proponent, Robert Schuller, that others have incorporated
it into their messages in hopes of achieving similar fame.
DOBSON’S
BLASPHEMY: WE SHOULD FORGIVE GOD
Dobson published a book in 1993, called When
God Doesn’t Make Sense. In it he makes the
blasphemous suggestion that we should forgive God. This book was
endorsed by both R. C. Sproul and J. I. Packer. In it he wrote,
There is only one cure for the cancer
of bitterness, that is to forgive the perceived offender.
Once and for all, with God’s help, as strange as it
seems, I am suggesting that some of us need to forgive
God for those heartaches that are charged to His account.
You’ve carried resentment against Him for years. Now its
time to let go of it. Please don’t misunderstand me at
this point. God is in the business of forgiving us, and it
almost sounds blasphemous to suggest that the relationship
could be reversed. He has done no wrong and does not need our
approbation. But the source of bitterness must be admitted
before it can be cleared. There is no better way to get
rid of it than to absolve the Lord of whatever we have
harbored . . . It is the only way you will ever be free . . .
. Corrie Ten Boom forgave an SS guard who shared
responsibility for the deaths of her family members. Surely
we can forgive the King of the Universe Who sent His
only Son to die as an atonement for our sin (Pp. 4-5)
{Emphasis mine, RWC}.
I cannot tell you how utterly nauseated
and repulsed I was when I first read this blasphemy. The
repugnance of Dobson’s suggestion that any man should ever
dare to forgive an absolutely holy God overwhelms me. As I sat
here striking this keyboard I became so incensed again that I
found myself hitting the keys much harder than I should. I had to
get up and walk around for a few minutes. I am writing this while
in Bristol, VA, with Bro. Henry Horton. I just went down stairs
and read it to him and one of his church members. They too were
repulsed by the suggestion that mere man who is lower than a worm
would ever be so presumptuous as to even suggest that we should
forgive God.
If a man has resentment against God for
something he should repent. How can man who is
sinful ever "absolve" God of something
when God is not guilty of anything? How can man clear God of
something when God has done nothing of which he needs clearing?
How can man acquit God of something when God is not on trial?
Dobson says that he knew this idea of a man forgiving God "almost
sounds blasphemous." Mr. Dobson, it does not almost
sound blasphemous; it is UTTERLY BLASPHEMOUS! It is BLATANTLY
BLASPHEMOUS! It is WICKEDLY BLASPHEMOUS! It is a
wicked and blasphemous affront to God’s holy, righteous
character. If you read this and you concur with the thinking of
Dobson, or if you sympathize with Dobson, give me some Scripture
in which we are taught to forgive God! I will be
anticipating your reply.
Dobson, like Robert Hicks, is not above
vulgarity. In his 1978 book, Preparing for Adolescence,
which was apparently targeted at 10-13 year-olds, he graphically
describes the acts and feelings of a man and woman engaged in
sexual intercourse (p. 82). In this same book, (Pp. 86-87) Dobson
condones masturbation and describes the "tingly
feeling" one gets from it. Since masturbation does not cause
disease and cannot produce babies, Dobson suggests that it "is
not much of an issue with God."
Dobson also follows the trend of some
psychologists who believe that everything centers around sex, the
idea that is advanced throughout TMJ. In 1988
Dobson wrote an article for Decision magazine which
is published by Billy Graham. In that article he stated, "We
are sexual creatures, and the physical attraction between males
and females provides the basis for every dimension
of marriage and parenthood" {Emp. Mine, RWC}. I know that
sex has an important place in marriage. But, the suggestion that
it provides the basis for every dimension of
marriage is extremely broad. Moveover, it is absurd.
Dobson is also cozy with Catholicism. I am
in possession of a sizable body of evidence that he frequently
welcomes them on his radio broadcast and considers them as
members of "the family of God" while Catholics
definitely teach salvation by works. He holds an honorary
doctorate from Franciscan University. Scott Hahn, a theology
professor at that Catholic university claims that Dobson said
that he "had never seen a campus where the students take the
Lordship of Jesus Christ so seriously." The November, 1989, Clubhouse
children’s magazine, an organ of Focus on the
Family, had a smiling "Mother" Teresa on the cover. The
lead article in that issue was "Teresa of Calcutta:
Little Woman With a Big Heart." The article was
written in a manner that readers were left with the impression
that Teresa is a true New Testament Christian and that she is
doing a great work for God. The truth is Teresa is pantheistic in
her thinking. She considers Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, and other
religions all to be acceptable ways to God. She also preaches the
false sacerdotal, sacramental, gospel of Rome causing millions to
have hopes of salvation through the mass and Mary.
In 1993,when a Jewish Rabbi and Catholic
Bishop, Richard C. Hanifen, were outraged because Jewish and
Catholic youth were being evangelized at school, they met with 72
national and international "Christian" associations
headquartered in Colorado. There was an agreement that "such
evangelization was improper."(The Berean Call,
November, 1995). In April of 1993, a "Covenant of
Mutual Respect" was drawn up in which the parties
agreed to respect one another’s diverse beliefs and to avoid
"polarization"! James Dobson was one of the
signers of this agreement! This makes him a party to
trying to muzzle students who try to evangelize Catholics and
Jews.
Can you imagine Paul signing an agreement
to refrain from seeking the salvation of his Jewish brethren?
Brethren, my heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that
they might be saved. For I bear them record that they have a zeal
of God, but not according to knowledge. For they being ignorant
of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own
righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the
righteousness of God. For Christ is the end of the law for
righteousness to every one that believeth. (Rom. 10:1-4).
Can you, in your wildest imaginations, conceive of Paul being
willing to cancel all his preaching of the gospel to the Jews?
Dobson has deliberately led his FOTF
organization away from any Scriptural basis. In response to a
correspondent’s question concerning Dobson’s views on
salvation and Christ’s second coming, Dobson responded in
October, 1989, that his ministry had made a deliberate decision
to direct the attention "away from matters of biblical
interpretation and theology, choosing instead to concentrate our
efforts exclusively on family-related topics." He admits, by
this statement, that his organization thinks much more highly of
the psychological wisdom of men than of the wisdom of God
revealed in his word. It is no wonder that he advocated that
folks need to "forgive God" for the
things he has put them through. He does think that God
"serves to help people overcome inferiority and develop
self-esteem and self-acceptance."
Biblical Discernment Ministries has
published a report on the general teachings and activities of
James Dobson on the Internet. In that report they say,
Dobson obviously believes in the
"medical model" (which treats people as victims
rather than sinners) as evidenced by his statements that
everything from pornography and child molesting to love of
one’s own spouse, is or can become, addictive. In fact,
in his 1/23/89 interview with convicted child murderer, Ted
Bundy, the night before Bundy’s execution, Dobson would
not allow Bundy to accept any personal responsibility for his
sin [Emp. Mine, RWC]; according to
Dobson, Bundy’s behavior was due to an uncontrollable
addiction to pornography, which was caused by [Emp.
In Original) an immoral society that permitted his exposure
to it.
Dobson follows the line of all New Age
prophets of psychobabble. Blame your sins and circumstances on
society. In a radio program aired on 1/29/96, the subject was
"Addictive Behaviors." In that program Dobson said,
Gambling is only one addictive
behavior; of course there are many others in addition to
drugs, alcohol—addictions to spending and to shopping,
and addictions to food . . . because of the cultural
environment in which we live, and the list is almost
endless . . . a problem that is gripping humanity . . .
sexual addiction [Emp. Mine, RWC].
I have emphasized a portion of
Dobson’s statement to show, as in his dealing with Ted
Bundy, he blames all the wicked things people do on society, not
sin. Being a New Age psychologist who has Christianized his New
Age psychobabble first, and being a Nazarene second, he will not
admit the extent of the sinfulness of the human nature. Man does
not sin because of his sin nature; he sins because of society. It
is little wonder that, on the eve of his execution, he would not
permit Ted Bundy to take responsibility for any of the crimes he
had committed but insisted Bundy’s crimes were caused
by an immoral society which permitted him to be exposed to
pornography.
This New Age prophet of psychobabble who
blames society for almost every problem men have is, as I have
already shown, closely aligned with Promise Keepers. He
repeatedly mentions this movement with approval on his programs.
His publishing firm has published some of their books. He has
directed his ministry away from the Bible to psychology. When I
am finished with this series of articles on PKs, I anticipate I
will visit Dr. Dobson again for there is much, much more that
those who have been seduced into the use of his materials and who
sympathize with him need to know about him. Among other things,
he holds to theistic evolution and has published
that in his Teachers in Focus.
We have seen that two of the principle
people with whom the PKs organization is aligned are false
prophets of psychobabble. As promised, when this series on PKs is
finished, I want to visit Dr. Dobson again. There is much more
that needs exposing about his unscriptural approach to family
life and life in general.
It may truly be said of Promise Keepers,
"They have built on a foundation that is sand and daubed
their walls with untempered morter."
[This article continued in the
February Issue of The GP&P.]
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