Anabaptist North American Missions vs. Church Plants

[JayP]

Josh, I wonder if you perceive my comments as trying to be hurtful or argumentative.
They are not. I have no axe to grind, rather trying to be a part time amateur social historian here.

You mentioned “your group” which I your profile says is Church of God.
If both are true I miss your point. Your church is not a conservative Anabaptist group which was what I was addressing.

Comments on the Catholic Church numbers is also irrelevant. Again, this is not about Catholics being good or bad. It is simply one of many churches that does in fact grow outside its roots. No one joining a Catholic or Lutheran church in Sheboygan feels like they are not accepted or fail to fit in because everyone else in the congregation knows each other’s third cousins.

[JayP]

Earnie, you have misinterpreted my background. I was born into a Catholic family, a typical late baby boomer suburbanite in Southeastern PA. A rather typical American 17:year old driving a used Mustang….the Fore variety not the horse and buggy kind!

I happen to have had a large number, and each different, contacts with various plain folk over all my growing up and young adult years.

My wife and I decided, with three children, to move from the Catholic Church to Eastern, and then after some time back.

Hope that helps.

[Josh]

Josh, I wonder if you perceive my comments as trying to be hurtful or argumentative.
They are not. I have no axe to grind, rather trying to be a part time amateur social historian here.

You mentioned “your group” which I your profile says is Church of God.
If both are true I miss your point. Your church is not a conservative Anabaptist group which was what I was addressing.

My position is that those of us who call each other believers should be part of the church of God and I list that as my affiliation.

My particular group predates the conservative Anabaptist movement but many people consider it “conservative”. Nowadays it qualifies as “plain” too even tho it also never took on that identity.

Comments on the Catholic Church numbers is also irrelevant. Again, this is not about Catholics being good or bad. It is simply one of many churches that does in fact grow outside its roots. No one joining a Catholic or Lutheran church in Sheboygan feels like they are not accepted or fail to fit in because everyone else in the congregation knows each other’s third cousins.

JayP, maybe that’s the in Sheboygan but it simply isn’t true many other places.

Overall the RCC is shedding far more people than it is gaining people of a non Catholic background.

[JayP]

Let’s close on this. You can call your church “plain”, that is anyone’s perrogative, but being plain does not mean you are an historically Anabaptists church. I have no idea if your group is or is not.

Quakers were once clearly plain, but NOT Anabaptists dispute outward similarities.

You miss my point about Catholicism deliberately. Fine, substitute something else. You want to pretend Anabaptists successfully evangelize and grow through converts, God Bless you. We disagree.

[mike]

Let’s close on this. You can call your church “plain”, that is anyone’s perrogative, but being plain does not mean you are an historically Anabaptists church. I have no idea if your group is or is not.

Quakers were once clearly plain, but NOT Anabaptists dispute outward similarities.

You miss my point about Catholicism deliberately. Fine, substitute something else. You want to pretend Anabaptists successfully evangelize and grow through converts, God Bless you. We disagree.

Josh's church is Church of God in Christ, Mennonite, also known as the Holdeman Mennonites.

[Josh]

Let’s close on this. You can call your church “plain”, that is anyone’s perrogative, but being plain does not mean you are an historically Anabaptists church. I have no idea if your group is or is not.

Quakers were once clearly plain, but NOT Anabaptists dispute outward similarities.

You miss my point about Catholicism deliberately. Fine, substitute something else. You want to pretend Anabaptists successfully evangelize and grow through converts, God Bless you. We disagree.

I think that some Anabaptist groups do successfully evangelise and grow through converts, but I prefer not to make it a point of pride about my particular group. Multiple groups do exist that do this.

My church is classified as plain Anabaptist by people who study such things. However, I’m not sure that needs to be the focus either.

[Ernie]

Earnie, you have misinterpreted my background. I was born into a Catholic family, a typical late baby boomer suburbanite in Southeastern PA. A rather typical American 17:year old driving a used Mustang….the Fore variety not the horse and buggy kind!

I happen to have had a large number, and each different, contacts with various plain folk over all my growing up and young adult years.

My wife and I decided, with three children, to move from the Catholic Church to Eastern, and then after some time back.

Hope that helps.

Ok. Thanks. I did not know that first piece. I'm still interested in hearing about your journey into and out of the Eastern church and what made you decide to go back, etc.

[JayP]

No offense Earnie, not something I would share in this setting.

[Ernie]

No offense Earnie, not something I would share in this setting.

I respect that. Are you open to participating in a thread where we ask you about your Catholic faith and practice?

[JayP]

Ask away. Obviously I will answer what I do.
That said, I am happy to discuss things….why I am here.
But i am not here to be an apologist for any group, be it the RCC, Orthodoxy or Eastern, etc.

I cannot imagine I have information or knowledge about Catholicism that cannot b answered better somewhere else, but fire away.