Below is an article by Alf McCreary, long-time journalist with the ‘Belfast Telegraph’, though this article by him appeared in the ‘Belfast Newsletter’.
Alf McCreary is an arch-ecumenist who has for many years extolled the modernistic and liberal doctrines which have been gradually introduced to his church, the Presbyterian Church in Ireland, and the two other ecumenical
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denominations, the Church of Ireland and the Methodist Church in Ireland.
Being an advocate of ecumenism, he is an outspoken and bitter critic of all things Biblical and orthodox. That may be seen in the article below.
I give one or two examples of his opposition to the old-time gospel.
First of all.
“The Presbyterian Church in Ireland (PCI), for example, has been becoming much more conservative in recent years, and this is seen in its election of moderators. The current Moderator the Very Reverend Dr Sam Mawhinney announced shortly after his election last year that he did not approve of the ordination of female ministers.
This year’s Moderator-elect the Reverend Richard Murray stated in one of his first interviews that it is “the Lord who decides, and if the Lord wants a woman minister to be moderator next year, then that will happen”.
This has to be one of the least persuasive excuses in the long history of the Presbyterian Church which has never elected a woman moderator, and this is particularly depressing because the PCI was the first major church to ordain a woman minister – the Reverend Ruth Patterson in 1976.
Sadly when she stood twice for the moderatorship she failed to get elected. Sadly and significantly on the second occasion she did not get a single vote from any of the 19 Presbyteries.
Such a total rejection by the church which had ordained her as its first female minister was hurtful to many Presbyterians, and extremely regrettable.”
Two things should be noted in this statement by McCreary.
His obvious annoyance at any sign of ‘conservativeness’ re-emerging in the PCI! Of course, what he considers ‘conservative’ is very far short of orthodox Bible teaching! (more…)