CNN to Have Special On "Godly Discipline"

[Backwoods Presbyterian]

Just saw a blurb on CNN for a special on one of their nightly shows (Anderson Cooper) will investigate "Godly Discipline". Have no idea what this will entail.

Video: UnGodly discipline investigation – Anderson Cooper 360 - CNN.com Blogs

 

[Kim G]

The first part of this topic was exposing fundamental baptist homes for "rebellious teens" where much abuse occurs. I'm glad the word is finally getting out, and I hope many of these homes are shut down because of it.

 

[Tripel]

If that "home" featured on the video is anything like those women say, it is a shame. I'm all for government staying at a distance, but intervention is certainly needed when children are being abused.

 

[Fly Caster]

It's about THIS PLACE. Allegations have been flying about it for years. Some of them appear to have merit. The worst are horrific.

I knew that the piece was airing last night and watched it (Not a fan of CNN and Anderson Cooper, but because of my Fundamentalist background I was already aware of what has supposedly going on there). Tonight's show looks like a more in-depth report. It will be tragic, alarming and sadly, a reproach on Christ's Church that will be yet another tool in the hands of the enemy to malign truly godly discipline.

 

[Sviata Nich]

I'm glad such an awful place will be exposed, but why can't they ever do a documentary on a good Christ honouring church/group home?

 

[py3ak]

I'm glad such an awful place will be exposed, but why can't they ever do a documentary on a good Christ honouring church/group home?

Non-sensational places don't offer much fodder for a fairly long program; that sort of material is more of a tiny feel-good segment to conclude an evening's news.

Also, in the spirit of the age there is a lot of hatred for the Bible, for Christians, etc. - highlighting success stories, or instances that contradict the prevailing idea that Christians are hypocrites for being judgmental and harsh don't actually line up with the biases (conscious or otherwise) of the chattering classes.

 

[Jack K]

I'm glad such an awful place will be exposed, but why can't they ever do a documentary on a good Christ honouring church/group home?

Because when things go right, that isn't news. That's expected. The unexpected is news.

There are exceptions to this, and nice feature stories on good church programs do pop up occasionally. But I've long contended that we want it to be the rule that abusive churches and such are considered shocking and newsworthy. When reporters start doing stories on good church programs as if that were shocking and newsworthy, then we'll know the church has completely lost the culture's respect.

The typical secular journalist still expects church leaders and church institutions to be morally above reproach and helpful rather than hurtful. Even if such a journalist is cynical about how well the church typically conforms to this or is eager to expose perceived hypocrisy, the journalist still believes churches must be held to a higher standard. This, actually, is a good thing. I hope we never lose it.

 

[Backwoods Presbyterian]

Here is the latest "tweet" by Anderson Cooper on tonight's show.

andersoncooper Anderson Cooper
Tonite a @AC360 special at 8p and 10p. Does the bible say parents should hit kids with a belt or a stick? Are some parents going too far?

 

[Hebrew Student]

Hey Everyone!

I saw this, and I almost feel as though I am beating a dead horse by saying that, as I have dealt with these groups, most of the problem has been with their hermeneutics .

As a lot of atheists are fond of pointing out, we are obligated to obey God in whatever he has said. Atheists and unbelievers, like those on CNN, always ask the question: If God told you to murder me, would you do it? They point to the September 11 terrorist attacks, and point out that these Muslims said that God told them to ram those planes into the WTC.

Now, on the one hand, they are wrong. God *could* never ask anyone to do such a thing, because it would contradict his nature and character. However, they are right in one sense, and that is God defines the limits of our behavior. God tells us things we must do, and things we must never do. Hence, if God has commanded it, we must do it.

That is why the Hermeneutics that we use in interpreting the commands of God in scripture are so important. Also, it is not just the interpretation of those commands, but an understanding of how those commands fit into the broader context of the entirety of scripture that is important as well.

One of my biggest concerns is related to what a friend of mine who studied under D.A. Carson told me. She told me that, in one class, Dr. Carson told them that fundamentalists tend to confuse the idea that the scriptures were written *for* us with the idea that the scriptures are written *to* us. In other words, although the scriptures were certainly meant for us, and are relevant to us, they cannot be interpreted as if they were a letter or a novel written directly to us.

However, when you confuse those two things, you will not do the background research to try to understand the world of the text. You have to assume, given this kind of naive approach, that the world of the text is one and the same as your world, when there are all kinds of differences in language, culture, history, and background. When you do this, you can make your own context and background the standard, and then impose it on the text.

This is especially dangerous, given our context, because there have been, traditionally, many gross abuses of the rod going back to the late ninteenth and early twentieth centuries. These practices, then, are mistakenly seen as Biblical command by those who come from that kind of a context. That is why we should always, not only understand the meaning of the passages speaking about the rod, but also, the way in which these passages fit into the entirety of scripture.

God Bless,
Adam

 

[py3ak]

Adam, I don't disagree with what you say, but the reality we have to be prepared for is that however careful we are, many of God's commands are going to cut contrary to what contemporary society holds to be appropriate. You can distance yourself from many abuses, to be sure, and should; but at some point people are going to conclude that Biblical teaching on a given point is harsh or oppressive or even abusive because its standard is different from their own.

 

[matthew11v25]

In the past CNN has done a few spots on The Pearl Family (based on Michael Pearl's "Train Up a Child"). The Pearls do not seemed phased and even used a switch to whip one of the reporters per his request.

 

[KMK]

Disclaimer: The following is not directed at anyone in particular.

The knowledge of the unbeliever should not be dismissed out of hand. There is such a thing as common grace, even when it comes to child-rearing. In fact, in my experience, the average unbelieving parent knows the difference between spoiling a child and abusing a child. There are, of course, some extremists on both sides, but this shouldn't be a discussion that Christians are afraid to enter into. After all, all mankind has had parents and know what it is like to be child under discipline.

 

[Peairtach]

Hey Everyone!

I saw this, and I almost feel as though I am beating a dead horse by saying that, as I have dealt with these groups, most of the problem has been with their hermeneutics .

As a lot of atheists are fond of pointing out, we are obligated to obey God in whatever he has said. Atheists and unbelievers, like those on CNN, always ask the question: If God told you to murder me, would you do it? They point to the September 11 terrorist attacks, and point out that these Muslims said that God told them to ram those planes into the WTC.

Now, on the one hand, they are wrong. God *could* never ask anyone to do such a thing, because it would contradict his nature and character. However, they are right in one sense, and that is God defines the limits of our behavior. God tells us things we must do, and things we must never do. Hence, if God has commanded it, we must do it.

That is why the Hermeneutics that we use in interpreting the commands of God in scripture are so important. Also, it is not just the interpretation of those commands, but an understanding of how those commands fit into the broader context of the entirety of scripture that is important as well.

One of my biggest concerns is related to what a friend of mine who studied under D.A. Carson told me. She told me that, in one class, Dr. Carson told them that fundamentalists tend to confuse the idea that the scriptures were written *for* us with the idea that the scriptures are written *to* us. In other words, although the scriptures were certainly meant for us, and are relevant to us, they cannot be interpreted as if they were a letter or a novel written directly to us.

However, when you confuse those two things, you will not do the background research to try to understand the world of the text. You have to assume, given this kind of naive approach, that the world of the text is one and the same as your world, when there are all kinds of differences in language, culture, history, and background. When you do this, you can make your own context and background the standard, and then impose it on the text.

This is especially dangerous, given our context, because there have been, traditionally, many gross abuses of the rod going back to the late ninteenth and early twentieth centuries. These practices, then, are mistakenly seen as Biblical command by those who come from that kind of a context. That is why we should always, not only understand the meaning of the passages speaking about the rod, but also, the way in which these passages fit into the entirety of scripture.

God Bless,
Adam

The rod in Proverbs isn't a rod of iron. Probably more of a switch or cane.

But the word "rod" - in modern British English at least - suggests something more substantial, something as substantial as this bloke appears to be hitting his dead horse with I don't know if that is what the word "rod" suggests in American English?

 

[Hebrew Student]

Hey Everyone!

Karen Campbell alerted me to a series of programs called The Lambs of Hephzibah House which has just aired in five parts here, here, here, here, and here.

They have confirmed some things by multiple witnesses, and the whole series is simply disturbing. Also, I found an article by Ron Williams, the head of Hephzibah House [not the guy who wrote the Hebrew Syntax], and to borrow from the words of Alvin Plantinga, I would call this article sophomoric, but that would be an insult to sophomores. It reeks of Pelagianism and logical and exegetical fallacies all over the place. Yet, this is the kind of incompetence to which this girls are subjected every day. I feel sorry for them. Not only are these bad hermeneutics affecting these girls in their physical well being [who in their right mind would hit someone until they bleed with pus?], but it gives those who believe in spanking in a loving manner a bad name. Incompetence like this gives the church a black eye.

God Bless,
Adam