Prejudicial "History"
From Spiritual Sword, Jan. 76, we quote: From about the middle of the 1950s to the middle of the 1960s the main issues with which the Lords church was plagued were those of radical (erroneous) conservatism. Among those issues were such questions as: (1) simultaneous Bible classes, (2) women teachers of classes of women and/or children, (3) individual drinking cups for the fruit of the vine, (4) located preachers, (5) orphan homes, (6) local churches giving benevolent assistance to non-Christians (especially orphan children), (7) one church assisting another church in preaching the gospel.
Church historians are in for a big surprise when they learn that one to four (generally assigned to the later 19th. - early 20th. century) are dated mid-1950s to the mid-1960s issues. Of course to this day one can find issues of the first century; but such statements as above are clearly for one purpose only to prejudice the reader by classing the institutional issues with older problems, likely now to spark a negative reaction. Its an old dishonorable trick.
We can understand how institutional advocates (having a more liberal conception of matters) might charge all they consider to be ultra-conservative as but from the same pattern. Although it is a cheap debate maneuver, we can even understand how in a heated discussion they might throw in an Anti now and then — we try to take these things philosophically. We just expected a little better grasp of the facts by the associate editor of the afore named journal.
Well, we live and learn — that the institutional issue is not nearly as dead as they would have the public believe — that the associate editor has either (a) actually been made to believe the propaganda of the mid 50's to the mid 60s and has never made an independent study of the matters, or (b) is much less objective than better statements would lead us to believe. What a pity!!
Such tactics disgust those who know better, and serve only as sectarian bindery for a party of the less informed — whether dealing with yesterdays or todays issues.