It seems as though outsiders (non-members) have been continually coming on the Puritanboard and although they aren't members they are able to view every thread (especially in the theology forums). Many of these people have used this 'privilege' to bring condemnation to the board on particular blogs or used it to incriminate others, etc.

Although it is not my board and I respect the decision of the Admins, I think it would be better if maybe only a few sections of the Puritanboard were open to publick viewing while most others were left to only members.

Maybe suggestions of those forums for Public viewing (for advertising or whatever) would be:

The Information and Welcome Section
Educational Forums
General Forums

Others seem like they could cause more controversy to the outside publick.

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Rev. Andrew J. Barnes
Husband of Dena
Pastor of Tchula Presbyterian Church

Sounds like a great idea to me. A board where disagreements are visible between members promotes a non-unified front and message.

Then again, with 12 posts, my opinion may not be as valued as that of other members of the board

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Vaughan
BTh Student, Sydney Missionary Bible College
Ashfield Presbyterian Church
Sydney, Australia
The Ransomed

With an avatar like that, though, who can disagree??

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Casey Bessette
Westminster OPC • West Suburbs of Chicago • My Blog: Paradise Regained

"It is part of the calling of the ekklesia to learn to know the love of Christ that surpasses all knowledge and also to make known within the world of science 'the manifold wisdom of God' in order that the final end of theology, as of all things, may be that the name of the Lord is glorified. Theology and dogmatics, too, exist for the Lord's sake." — Herman Bavinck, Reformed Dogmatics, vol. 1, p. 46

I don't know. Maybe if folks who are in here remembered their stuff is wide open to the world, they might restrain themselves a little, so as not to heap oprobrium on themselves and the rest of us.

We are just a little slice of Christianity here, friends. We might as well look in the mirror. I'm happy to know people elsewhere are commenting; I'm even more happy knowing that their negativity is publicized here. Since they aren't members, its not as though they can drop a PM to somebody to tell him to "check yourself." Of course, I'd rather we were being praised...

And who knows, maybe the criticism says more about them than us, in certain instances. But sometimes, it will be deserved.

No, we are not going 100% private on this board. That's not why it exists. Its public for a reason. We want browsers and lurkers. Only a handful of fora are private, members only. Go private if you (whomever) want to be ugly.

There's also a reason I put the Burns quote in my signature a loooooooooooong time ago, to try to remind people--including myself--all the time of their witness.

Merry Christmas, ya'll. Peace.

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Rev. Bruce G. Buchanan
ChainOLakes Presbyterian Church, CentralLake, MI


When posting friends, kindly bear those words of earthly wisdom in mind:
Oh, that God the gift would give us
To see ourselves as others see us.
--Robert Burns, 1786 (modernized) ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ Click to get: Board Rules -- Signature Requirements -- Suggestions? --

You mean like this?

__________________
Chris Coldwell, Lakewood Presbyterian Church (PCA), Member
• Naphtali Press: Presbyterian & Reformed Books
• The Confessional Presbyterian Journal
• The Blue Banner Archive

The Regulative Principle: Samuel Miller gives a succinct statement of this principle when he writes that since the Scriptures are the “only infallible rule of faith and practice, no rite or ceremony ought to have a place in the public worship of God, which is not warranted in Scripture, either by direct precept or example, or by good and sufficient inference.”

Click to get: Board Rules -- Signature Requirements -- Suggestions? Joining PB's Politics & Government Forum

This is another person (like Michael Dries) who refuses to give a name. Evidently this person was not a lurker, but an erstwhile member. No real name, no real photo. This isn't a member of the general public who is picking on us, this is a disgruntled ex-member. Going private wouldn't have helped.

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The man who is disposed to think of his sin as a great calamity, rather than as a heinous crime, is not likely either to reverence God or to respect His law. - John Kennedy, 1873
Meg
Blog
Member, Intown Presbyterian Church,PCA, Portland, OR

Click to get: Board Rules -- Signature Requirements -- Suggestions?

Um, Yes like that or like this. I wasn't talking necessarily about our 'quibbles' but more about our theology, where other 'presbyterians' who are not allowed here have problems and blog against such things.

But concerning our 'quibbles' it would be also smart to guard against publicizing that also.

Don't you just love free publicity?

How do you even find a blog like that? Really, the reason I ask is that the blog you cited probably has a normal readership of 1 person like most blogs do.

I really don't mind it if those who disagree with the historic Reformed position blog against us. In fact, everytime they do they make it more likely that those searching for Reformed theology will find this board.

As for people writing bad things because we deserve it - so be it.

__________________
Rich
Northern VA
PCA

WebsiteMaven - Web Hosting Reviews, Guides, and Advice to build and promote your web site.
SoliDeoGloria.com - A Community for Reformed Thought and Discussion

Click to get: Board Rules -- Signature Requirements -- Suggestions?

i grew up in one of these churches, 6 months or so after i became a believer, i went back to that church to ask the sen. pastor why christ wasnt preached....his answer was, that "its'(salvation) is not a popular issue"
i went to the jr. pastor, asked the same Q, his response was "christ is not the only way to heaven" i told my mom this, she told her deacon-ette friend, and the church fired the jr. pastor....this was in the summer of '81
my view is, that youre either reformed, or deformed.

Personally, it is not offensive to me to find that an acknowledged Fed Vis proponent or someone who remains in an apostate setting like the PCUSA, admitting openly that the setting is apostate, is upset w/ us for planting our flag; Gods truth cuts deep, even to bone and marrow........

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Scott Bushey
Husband to Tina, father to Nicole, Danielle and Zoe
Member First Presbyterian Church of Margate PCA

Hmm, I note that at present there are 17 guests who are currently reading the thread on Steve Wilkins' Presbytery Examination and Response.

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Andrew Myers
Husband of Jessica, Father of Jackson, Katie and Samuel
Member, Presbyterian Reformed Church of Northern Virginia
Warrenton, VA USA
Editor, The Matthew Poole Project

"Let your Morning Thoughts, and your last Evening Thoughts, be what shall become of you to all Eternity." -- Matthew Poole

Thats actually pretty scary! The Fed Vis mafia is after us!

I love the "Who's Online" feature! I think we should check it often, it reminds us that we are on a public forum.

I've got no problem with this. I don't read blogs. Simple as that. Do I have to go around navigating to hundreds, thousands, and hundreds of thousands of blogs? Or do I subscribe to one forum board? I prefer the latter. The I-net is unregulated, and any regulation produces ten to a hundred new ways around it. So I like a regulated Board. I might not like the ultra -isms, but that's another quibble.

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JohnV :detective:

John Vandervliet
Ontario, Canada
member of: Canadian Reformed Church
"In coming to understand anything we are rejecting the facts as they are for us in favour of the facts as they are" C.S Lewis, An Experiment in Criticism

Just took a look at it myself. VERY scarey stuff.

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Kevin Guillory
Pastor
Redeemer Christian Congregation
Baltimore, MD

I don't interpret Scripture. Scripture
interprets itself. And in the process ...
Scripture interprets me!

I figure it this way...we shouldn't be afraid to call a spade a spade. Let them read...we occasionally read them (and laugh...sometimes it sounds like 3rd grade..."he booted me, I'm not listing him or recommending him anymore" "me neither because he booted you"). Aiaiaiai!

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JC
URCNA
PA, but homesick for SC

"Who says you can't go back, been all around the world and as a matter of fact. There's only one place left I want to go, who says you can't go home" Bon Jovi

You don't read blogs? Man, you've hurt my feelings!

No Christmas card for you this year, bub.

__________________
Richard T. Zuelch, M.Div
Ruling Elder, OPC (not currently serving)
Westminster Presbyterian Church, CA (OPC)
www.reiterations.wordpress.com
www.foft.wordpress.com

"When I cease to preach salvation by faith in Jesus, put me into a lunatic asylum, for you may be sure that my mind is gone." - Charles Spurgeon (1834-1892)

I agree. Let the visitors, lurkers, etc., read whatever they want (except for the two personal forums for the men and women, of course). This board is a great way to publicize Reformed Christianity on the internet. The fact that there isn't total uniformity of opinion and/or interpretation on various points is a good thing! It shows that we are thinking Christians, not just mindless robots as Christians are so often portrayed in the mainstream media.

The key, as someone has already said, is to remind yourself that whatever you post is out there for all the world, literally, to see. If you wouldn't say it to your grandmother (or your bartender), don't post it.

Yes we should be sensitive to the fact of others lurking here. But on the flip side the people here are who they are and if someone doesn't like what they say it's kind of like TV, they can change the channel. One doesn't have to lurk here. I myself don't agree with everything that's posted here and I'm free to disagree in that case. I don't have to post if I don't want and I don't have to read a post if I don't want. It's one of the good things about the information superhighway, freedom.

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Donald Jacobs
Marysville. WA
Cascade Church (CRCNA)

Cum vero infirmor tunc potens sum.

Well said!

Cheers, thanks

Since I'm chief of sinners here, let me say that I do write with the public in mind. I get frequent posts off list about the things I write and so I am reminded that lots of folk read this board beyond subscribers. When I sin (and I do frequently!) I am quite willing to be confronted with it and to be given an opportunity to repent. I make no pretense to having achieved some extraordinary degree of sanctity.

Presently the FV folk are in a lather about my use of the rope metaphor.

Let me try again to clear up misrepresentations. No, the metaphor doesn't imply anything about the work of the FV/NPP committee - as I know nothing about the workings of the committee.