The Social Gospel Goose Laid Another Golden Egg
The following are excerpts from the Fort Wayne, Indiana, News-Sentinel, an evening newspaper, of July 14, 1966.
"Wendle Scott's protest march is over, and he is packing to get out of a church of Christ school building he was ordered to vacate.
"Scott joined a Fourth of July march of striking Mexican-American farm workers in the Rio Grande Valley to dramatize demands for union recognition and a $1.25 an hour minimum wage for field hands...
"Scott was asked by elders of McAllen's (McAllen, Texas) Harvey Drive church of Christ to quit the march, When he refused he was told to move out of the church-owned building he used for a school to train Mexicans for the ministry.
"An elder of the church, E. L. Crawford, said that because of Scott's participation in the march, 'we (the elders) felt that his influence as a gospel preacher and teacher of students had been ruined.'
...he has been notified by elders of Highland church of Christ in Abilene that he will lose $390 a month that church had contributed to the school's monthly budget of $1,200. (To appear facetious, I thought the Highland church was a receiving church, therefore, "in need". FDC)
...an Irving, Texas, doctor wrote: 'I am unable to imagine a minister of the gospel lowering himself in the 'Martin Luther King style' to demonstrate and thus lower his public image in his community." (It might help that fine doctor to know that most people who worry too much about their image will eventually succumb to the temptation to worship that image. FDC)
The above would indicate that quite a stir boiled up as a result of brother Scott's actions. Naturally, much more was in the article than was reproduced here. An interesting note may be here inserted; certain denominational preachers hailed Scott's efforts at social reform.
But really, why all the storm? Was not brother Scott merely a participant of the social gospel game being played by so many of our brethren today? The only difference between brother Scott, if there is any difference at all, and the others is that brother Scott has taken the game quite seriously.
Where is the birthplace of all such nonsense as the above? Can it not be said that such are the children of the "Christian" colleges? Nearly all the social gospel practitioners received their educations in "our" best colleges.
"Our "Christian" colleges seem to be little more than social gospel hens with a more than adequate ability to lay unwanted, and unneeded, "golden" eggs. Most of the problems in the church today can be attributed to "our" schools. It would seem that brother Scott's schemes are nothing more than eggs laid by Abilene Christian College. (Brother Scott received his schooling there.) Unfortunately for A. C. C., however, they seem to have laid an egg with an obviously bad odor about it.
Isn't it strange how bad eggs inevitably hatch into bad chickens, which, in turn, eventually come home to roost? Oh well, hereditary factors being what they are, what else can one expect?
Social gospel advocates, such as those who spawned the H. O. T. and the seminary operated by brother Scott, shouldn't be appalled at the action of brother Scott at all. After all, if he has abandoned the spiritual work of saving souls; they taught him how. If he has forsaken the word of God as a means by which one determines the work of the church, they showed him the way. Is brother Scott to be condemned while his tutors get off scott free (No pun intended)?
Just what has brother Scott done which is so much worse than what many others are doing? Was it that he copied his work from the denominations? No. After all, nearly every scheme brethren fall upon today is nothing more than outdated and ineffective denominational projects. His chief problem is that his projects are the "spittin' images" of Martin Luther King's projects.
At long last we have discovered the form of denominationalism which must be unscriptural. Martin Luther King's style of denominationalism. Every other form of denominationalism seems to be "okay", but, alas, poor old Doctor King's is out.
Many of us have wondered where the stopping place for churches "on the march" would be. It appears the stopping place has been found. Temporarily, anyway.
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