"That's Entertainment!" (White Horse Inn) [2of5]

This is posted with permission of the White Horse Inn. To find out more information about this episode and others visit: http://www.whitehorseinn.org

February 3, 2008 Commentary:
That's Entertainment!

Hello and welcome to another broadcast of the White Horse Inn. Well there's no business like show business. And from the look of things, the church in America agrees. I don't even need to recount examples in order to substantiate that claim. If you have been around a fair number of churches these days you are bound to know what I am talking about. I used to think that American Christianity was just accommodating to the general cultural trend that Neil Postman described in his book, Amusing Ourselves to Death. But after reading a spate of culture histories, have come to realize that the church actually helped create our culture of entertainment. Once upon a time the church was the only show in town, for rich and poor, princes and peasants the spectacle of the Medieval Mass was high drama. In fact the relative difficulty of the Reformation in reaching the lowest classes was probably to some extent at least due to the attachment of the masses to mysterious rituals, processions, morality plays, and similar attractions. Convinced that the Bible should be heard, read, and understood by everybody in their own language the Reformers introduced Europe to wide-scale literacy with an emphasis on an educated ministry for a well instructed laity.

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Our subject is "That's Entertainment: Confusing Church and Theater from Finney to the present."


Oldtruth.com has been dealing with the issues presented in this program for a few years now. You can find a lot of information involving various topics concerning the "seeker"-sensitive movement here:
http://www.oldtruth.com


TeamPyro has been deals alot with the "emergent church" of digressives. You can find information here:
http://teampyro.blogspot.com

Category:

Education

Tags:

• rick
• warren
• newspring
• church
• granger
• robert
• scheuller
• Aimee
• Semple
• McPherson
• pentacostalism
• bill
• hybels
• white
• horse
• inn

[Enoch2]

Finney sounds good to me. What you're criticizing is right, but I don't think Finney is guilty of your accusations. He sounds like a true Christian. Look at his eyes. Use your God-given discernment! Thank you Jesus for discernment. I agree with GospelPilgrim...Lane, your videos are wonderful but this one is off the mark. Don't worry SO much about denominations and theology. Love God, love your neighbour.

[LaneCh]

What do you think the command "Love your neighbor" is? It's theology. The Word theology literally means knowledge of God. If you'd like me to quit reading the revealed Word of God and worrying about getting it right, I stand with the apostles in saying, "You judge if it's right in God's sight for me to please men or God."

[Cmey2k]

don't you have anything better to do than attack other Christians? thank God we have you here to tell us that everyone else but your views are wrong

[LaneCh]

"thank God we have you here to tell us that everyone else but your views are wrong"

I'm glad you're grateful. You're obviously not paying attention to the Bible that's screaming this out. I'm glad I can point it out for you.  Tell me, do you believe that there is a such thing as right and wrong?

[benhuey]

nice 'drive by' video to keep your theological party base excited... good stuff bro. ;-)

[Wargoat6]

The beginning of this video highlights why the church should quit trying to entertain: it does it VERY poorly.

[Mojosbigstick]

Reminds me of a certain service at St Thomas' in Crookes. That was smoke and mirrors, with little doctrinal basis, and ended in scandal. It was fun while it lasted though!

[carteralum]

Worship...sacraments? "You have offered polluted bread upon my alter" You say the the table of the Lord is a burden, and ye have snuffed at it" Give me the Eucharist where Heaven touches earth and we become one flesh with our Lord. The cross is our salvation "not our so called Free Will" This is what "Free Will" will lead to. The God of gimmicks....I was just confirmed in the Anglican Communion....The Bishop annointed me with oil and laid hands on me. Truly the Bible speaks about true worship.

[mariel1225]

btw- thanks for showing that revolting "church service" at the beginning. While I am ever grateful for freedom of religion in America and would not change a thing, this is what happens when you open the doors. To me though it appears more a sin of bad taste than blasphemy, laughable though it is. To each they own, I suppose. I'll take my traditional Anglican/Episcopal rites, thank you. Incense and wine are no more sinful that Slipknot knockoffs telling us to repent.

[boganlewis]

you're kidding me? that first clip was a church service? i'm starting to think the best way to save the church is to burn down all the "christian" bookstores and especially their music sections

[the13thof12]

Thank you for all of this sir. These "churches" are ridiculuous.

[giccsi]

Amen.

[NeoConvert]

Look at his eyes????

I give up.

(okay now I'm back)

[lethalwizdom]

LaneCh, Your videos are a tremendous blessing. You will hear the same continuous words by men who are more concerned about pleasing men than the glory of God. Keep posting truth. for either God builds bridges and brings revival or God causes division and that brings upon revival.