READERS' EXCHANGE

 

ATLANTA UNITY MEETING

The program for the Sixth Annual Unity Forum, to be conducted July 1-3 at Atlanta Christian College in Atlanta, Georgia, has been announced by J. Paul Du Bois, minister of the Brookvalley Church of Christ in Atlanta, who is chairman of the forum committee.

David Eubanks, president of Johnson Bible College, will give the key-note address Thursday evening on “The Unity of the Spirit,” which is the theme of the forum. The same evening Charles Holt of Chattanooga speaks on “The Basis of Unity.”

Ervin Waters of Fresno, California will address the forum on “The Odyssey of Division,” and Floyd rose of Toledo, Ohio will speak on “The Hope of Unity Between Black and White,” both on Friday morning.

The Friday afternoon session will feature Thomas Olbricht of Abilene Christian College, speaking on “A Look at Romans 14,” and Ervin Waters on “The Twisted Scriptures.”The Friday evening program has Carl Ketcherside, editor of Mission Messenger, speaking on “The Only Creed for Unity,” and Orval Morgan, professor at Atlanta Christian College, presenting “Love As Fruit of the Spirit.”

The unity forum will be concluded on Saturday morning with Dwain Evans of West Islip, New York speaking on “The Holy Spirit and Unity,” and Andrew Hairston, minister of the Simpson St. Church of Christ in Atlanta, on “The Meaning of Fellowship and Unity in the Spirit.”

Also on Saturday morning will be a sharing session led by Dale Crain, who will report on his communication efforts in interracial seminars, relating this to religious division, which may be seen as a communication problem.

“Examples from the History of Our Pioneers on How to Get Along with Each Other” will be given by Leroy Garrett, editor of Restoration Review, at a dinner meeting scheduled for Friday evening. Other features will include prayers for unity and sharing sessions.

Atlanta Christian College is making dormitory space available free of charge for those who attend. For reservations and for further information write J. Paul Du Bois, Brookvalley Church of Christ, 1146 Sheridan Rd., N. E. Atlanta 30324.

ON BEING LOUSY

We did not subscribe to your lousy booklet, neither do we want it to come to our home. Take our name off your mailing list or we will have a lawyer do it for us. --- California

My dear sister in the Lord:

There is no problem at all in removing your name from our list of subscribers. We do so at the slightest and most gentle hint, for there is no need sending the paper to anyone who does not care for it. Nor would we wish to offend a friend in Jesus in any such way. You certainly will not need the services of a lawyer. Even if we for some reason delayed in responding to your request, you would only need to mark your copy Refused and turn it back to your mailman. He would return it to us and we’d have to pay him a dime for it! That’s cheaper than lawyers these days.

Since you did not subscribe yourself, someone sent in the money for you. We ask our friends to send only the names of those who are open to new ideas and willing to examine new approaches. It is a compliment to you that someone would have thought of you in this light.

I thank you for your criticism. Sometimes when I mail the booklet I too think it is “lousy,” but I cannot always help that due to my limitations. But it is a sincere effort to do something about our terribly divided brotherhood and to encourage more openness and freedom. If you would care to be more specific and name the areas in which we are coming up short, I would be more than grateful and would consider your suggestions carefully. Actually we do not get enough critical letters such as you were kind enough to send. But the more pointed you can be in your criticism the more help you will be to us.

Even though you will not be around to read us anymore, be assured of my love and appreciation for you. I would appreciate your prayers in my behalf, that the Lord will ever direct me into more responsible journalism.

Sincerely in our Lord,

Leroy Garrett

UNITY FACTION

I understand that there is to be a Unity Forum or such like in Atlanta, Georgia the first weekend in July. This interests me for several reasons. I am interested in following you people in the “Unity faction” of the “Restoration movement.” --- Indiana

This comes from one of our preachers in the so-called “anti-Herald of Truth” wing of the brotherhood, a group of brethren I deeply love and am always eager to hear from. But I take exceptions to his reference to our work in behalf of the unity of the Spirit as a faction. We have enough factions already, and none of us should be interested in adding another. If we cannot wage peace instead of war and remove the walls of separation instead of keeping them in constant repair, without creating still another division, I want to know why.

Does not recent history prove that the brother is both wrong and unfair in making such a charge? For more than a decade now our unity efforts have been pressed. Are there any unity cliques? Are there any congregations divided over our unity plea? Are there any unity leaders who endeavor to build a parry around themselves and thus have their own “loyal church”? Is there any plea that those who believe in unity should “Come out from among them” and form themselves into faithful “unity churches”?

To the contrary we have all gone out of our way to see to it that no such impressions are left. All these years we have urged those concerned for unity and fellowship to remain in their congregations and to work for more peace and understanding in a loving and non-divisive way. We ourselves move among all our various groups or factions, honoring all of them as our brothers. We make nothing a test of fellowship that God has not made a condition for being saved, not even the matter of fellowship itself. Brethren can disagree with us, oppose us, and even reject us, but still we love them and accept them as God’s children. We refuse to be brought into anyone of our factions as much as we refuse to start another faction, in which we would draw the line against all who did not go along with us.

In the light of these facts pray tell me how we could possibly fairly and properly be called a “unity faction?”

LIFE OF TRUST

In our February issue we published a piece entitled “An Open Letter to a Rejected Minister,” in which we told of the young Church of Christ minister, who is dedicated to a work among youthful addicts but who was rejected by his elders because he would not openly repudiate Pat Boone. In my letter to him I assured him that “There is absolutely no question but what the Lord will bless you and lead you in the way that shines brighter than you could ever imagine. To trust in him is your victory. He has never let anybody down yet, and he will bear you up, believe me, as if on eagles’ wings. You need not fear what any man or party can do.”

The Lord has vindicated me in encouraging our young brother in this way, as the following excerpt from a recent letter of his will indicate. You understand that he conducts a halfway home for youth in trouble, especially those whose lives are troubled by dope. He is telling about life at this place he calls His House.

Nearly everyday 4 to 20 young hippie type youth have come wanting to know what is going on, and asking who the “He” is of His House. They are also asking about what we mean by the “Jesus trip.” Today there are four people here painting one of the rooms. One is a girl who was a stripper at a Ft. Worth nightclub. She is now off drugs. My wife prayed in tears with her that her husband could somehow get out of jail soon so that she could teach him Jesus. Today we found out that her husband’s prison term has been reduced. Praise the Lord!

The other day we needed paint for the house. I only had 6.00. In a state of frustration I went into a paint store and told the man: “I’m a minister of the Church of Christ working with His House and we need some paint.” On the way to the store I had prayed: “Oh God, if you can multiply loaves and fishes, please multiply my 6.00, because we need paint.” The man replied: “What color do you want. I’ll just donate it to you.” He was an absolute stranger!

Later on we needed a plumber for the house. We prayed, and the next day two plumbers just happened to drop by and offer their services. What can we say except Praise the Lord! Today we got a phone bill of 12.00, which we could not pay. A man walked in off the street and handed me 30.00. He said he was from the Baptist Church. My mouth is still open!

This reads like a page from Dave Wilkerson’s The Cross and the Switchblade, and it demonstrates once more what can happen to one who really trusts God to meet his needs. Oh, how lacking we are in this kind of religion. All these years our people have relied too much on their own resources. God does not do great things through us and for us because we neither expect it nor need it.

It is all right now that I give you this man’s name and address, and it may be that some of our readers would choose to help in his ministry. Ouida and I have resolved to help the work along. We do believe he is deserving, and we have advised him to keep a scrupulous account of all monies received and to acknowledge any and all gifts. Thus far that has not taken much of his time! You may write him if you desire and have him tell you more about his work: Ben B. Boothe, His House, 1424 6th Ave., Ft. Worth Tex. 76104.

(As this goes to press we have word that his house has burned and so the work is relocating. You should for the time being write to Ben in care of Restoration Review.)

MINI-MEETINGS

Recently I have visited Miami and Tulsa, Oklahoma, Phoenix, and Washington, D.C. The Washington trip was also for professional reasons, for I was being interviewed for a government position. But we have decided not to take a government job unless we can be assigned to the regional office in Dallas. My 16 year old Phoebe has issued an ultimation that she wants to graduate from Denton High School, and that’s that.

While in Washington I joined Lee Keesling in a house meeting made up mostly of disenchanted Episcopalians, disenchanted with Episcopalianism that is they were the happiest, noisiest (“Praise God”), most spiritual Episcopalians I’ve ever met. Lee also works for God at his government post, concerned as he is with the cure and prevention of drug addiction. I met interesting, God-conscious people at his office, some of whom were themselves snatched from the hell of addiction. One lady on Lee’s staff runs a halfway house for girls who get caught up in the habit. She boards them, provides motherly care, and even finds jobs for them. So at least some “federal bureaucrats” are doing more than shuffling papers.

In Miami I was the guest of Bob and Betty White, friends of many years. Besides private sessions we had two public services at the Church of Christ where Bob labors. A number came from a distance, and the response to my messages, one being on unity and one on the spiritual life, was positive.

Meetings in Tulsa, in the home of John and Glenna Forbes, brought together some of the most spiritual Church of Christ folk I have met anywhere. We also had a gathering in the community room of a local bank. In Phoenix I was the guest of Sam Meyers, editor of Concerned Christian, who arranged a meeting in a downtown hotel. I enjoyed numerous personal contacts, especially an extended conversation with Dudley Lynch and his family. Dudley, formerly with the Christian Chronicle and Campus Evangelism, is now a feature editor of a Phoenix newspaper. We are urging Dudley to continue using his talents among Churches of Christ, despite discouraging experiences. He is convinced that our people are greatly influenced by right-wing political philosophy, even more than by the Bible.

Future trips will include Kansas City, Corpus Christi, and Lewisville, Ohio.