Apologies if this is posted in the wrong place.

It seems to me that PuritanBoard has the potential to be a great witnessing presence in cyberspace () so I have a proposal. Why not create a level of membership such that the non-reformed are able to join PB and post in a place restricted for them to ask questions about the Reformed faith. So they could post in forum x only but not anywhere else. Now I am not sure if this is technically feasible but if it was what would people think?

I like the idea, but I don't think that the majority will for many reasons. I think of "Rapture Ready", how many of you know that they have a forum those who are no premill can post in? I doubt many of you do as you have to join the site before it is visable, but to join the site you have to agree to their terms which is believing as they do. Now, how much sense does that make?

I think some precieve places that restrict posters as being "afraid" of other opinions, and while I KNOW that isn't the case here I think it could be beneficial to many to have a place to reach out to those who name Christ as Lord yet do not submit to the DoG, but again, I am nearly certain that I am in the minority.

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http://www.myspace.com/aleavelle
"Speak wisdom to a fool and he'll think you have no sense at all"

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Sounds like a cool idea to me.

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~Gloria M.~
Member, Trinity Presbyterian Church, PCA, Southeast Georgia

"Turn my eyes from looking at worthless things; and give me life in your ways." Psalm 119:37

While I think it would sharpen a lot of people (and I am generally favorable to the idea), the demeanor of the board would go sour quick. We already throw heretic bombs--imagine what we would do if we came across a real heretic!

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J. B. Atken
John Knox PCA
Layman, M.A. student at Louisiana College

While I get that point, I think we're harsher on each other than those who don't know or understand theology and doctrine. I think most here would see this as a mission of mercy to those honestly seeking truth.

Moved to "Suggestion Box" Forum

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Josh Hicks, Chloë's Daddy
Member of TRBC. My Blog
The Puritan Pub (Team Blog)
Board Rules -- Signature Requirements -- Suggestions?

These are just my as a Moderator:

While the thought is good, it would be A LOT of work because although there are many well-meaning people who genuinely desire to know and understand better, there's the other portion of those who simply want to annoy, irritate, agitate, etc. It then becomes a matter of casting pearls before swine.

The opening up of the PB to the second group means, you got it, more work and monitoring for the Moderators. We do have a busy time takin' care of business in house.

Folks are able to browse, etc. We also have multiple links to a plethora of personal blogs, etc. of members here on the Puritan Board. There's nothing keeping folks from visiting said blogs and asking questions, leaving comments, etc.

As I noted, I'm not trying to be a pessimist, but these are my thoughts from a Moderator's perspective.

I think there's a good point here. This forum would be really hard to moderate. I fear it would largely be flames from people that just want to drop criticisms of the Reformed faith and the juice wouldn't be worth the squeeze.

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Rich
Okinawa, Japan

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

I understand the sentiment. And I must say that if something like that existed when I was first looking into the DoG, it might have been a quicker journey. But, it would need to be highly moderated or it would turn into a version of a certain nameless board for Baptists that I used to be a part of. Instead of the good old paedo/credo debates we spent most of our time arguing with people who had no idea they were open theists and hated the DoG.

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As another stick in the mud moderator I agree with the nay sayers. The moderators spend a lot of time just moderating the board with the membership as it stands; it doesn't take much imagination to figure a second tier membership would become the tail wagging the dog. Josh is right, the board has public forums that can suffice for those you cannot meet the membership requirements. If we decide we "have" to minister more broadly maybe we can institute an "ask the PuritanBoard blog" to field sufficiently vetted questions? But opening the membership, second tier or whatever, is too problematic to how PB is structured and I suspect unworkable to the strictures of PB's ownership.

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Chris Coldwell
Lakewood Presbyterian Church (PCA), Member
• Naphtali Press: Presbyterian & Reformed Books
• The Confessional Presbyterian, A Journal for Discussion of Presbyterian Doctrine & Practice
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When heresy rises in an evangelical body, it is never frank and open. It always begins by skulking, and assuming a disguise. Its advocates, when together, boast of great improvements, and congratulate one another on having gone greatly beyond the ‘old dead orthodoxy,’ and on having left behind many of its antiquated errors: but when taxed with deviations from the received faith, they complain of the unreasonableness of their accusers, as they ‘differ from it only in words.’ This has been the standing course of errorists ever since the apostolic age. Samuel Miller, Introductory essay, The Articles of the Synod of Dort (1841).

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