Tag Archives: CENI

The Future of the Progressive Churches of Christ: Our Attitude Toward the Conservative Leaders, Part 1

I get emails — Dear Jay: For the past year I have been meditating and restudying over long held positions of belief. I have changed my mind about several things, mostly due to abandoning the CENI and “pattern”  hermeneutics which … Continue reading

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Conversation with Robert Prater (but with Rich, really): Clarifying My Position on CENI, from the Comments

I shouldn’t be surprised that there’s a huge communications gap between me, as a progressive, and many conservatives. This is often the nature of spiritual disagreements. Therefore, I’m very grateful for the internet and blogging software because it allows for … Continue reading

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Instrumental Music: The Patristic Evidence and the Regulative Principle, Part 2

How, then, do we explain the absence of instruments in the early church? And it is highly likely that the early church did not use instruments. My own view is that the early church took its form of worship from … Continue reading

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CENI: So In Conclusion … , Part 3

Asking the right questions I’ve come to the conclusion that the hardest thing to do as a Bible student is to ask the right question. You see, God not only tells us the answers, he tells us the questions. But we’ve … Continue reading

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CENI: So In Conclusion … , Part 2

Campbell and the Order of Worship Campbell began a series of lessons on the order of worship, “A Restoration of the Ancient Order of Things No. V,” by arguing that, logically, there must be a required order of worship from … Continue reading

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CENI: So In Conclusion … , Part 1

Readers here and in other forums where this series has been discussed have asked how I could be so Post-modern as to reject the notion of obeying commands … which means I’ve not adequately explained my thinking. First point: I’m … Continue reading

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CENI/Blue Parakeet: Baptism and the Lord’s Supper

Well, I was not expecting to find baptism and communion to be important hermeneutical principles, but as I read Paul’s arguments in particular, I am struck at how many times he refers to baptism or the Lord’s Supper as instructive … Continue reading

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CENI: A Better Way — 1 Corinthians

1 Corinthians is in many ways the opposite of Romans. Romans is high theology written to a church Paul had never visited, while 1 Corinthians deals with one practical, pastoral issue after another. Romans is neat and organized — and … Continue reading

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CENI: A Better Way — Romans

Romans was written by Paul to a church he’d never visited, but Rome was, of course, the capitol and largest city in the Empire.  Paul therefore wrote a lengthy, comprehensive epistle to that congregation, preserving for us a brilliant work … Continue reading

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CENI: A Better Way — The Acts of the Apostles

Let’s try the same thing with Acts. After all, Luke wrote Acts as something of a sequel to his Gospel. Let’s again purge from our minds the notion that Acts is all about baptism. It’s not. Let’s try to take … Continue reading

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