May - the Free Presbyterian church of Scotland

158
The Free Presbyterian Magazine
Russian Orthodox Chants in Dundee
The Dundee Free Church of Scotland is following its jazz evening, “Heaven
in a Nightclub”, with a choral ensemble from St Petersburg which is to sing
Russian folk songs and chants of the Russian Orthodox Church. Tickets cost
£5. The jazz evening at least claimed to be evangelistic – although we do not
believe that it was a scriptural or legitimate way to evangelise – but the
Russian ensemble is just worldly entertainment; the previous evening they
are due to perform at Brodie Castle. “Though the members of the [ensemble]
represent different musical professions: choir conductors, opera singers,
instrumentalists, music teachers – they are all united by love for choir and
ensemble singing”, says the blurb.
Historically the Russian Orthodox Church is noted for its false doctrine,
similar to Romanism; and in more recent years, it has been courting the governments
in Russia and other former Soviet Union countries and has been
active in opposing Protestantism, for example by obstructing the purchase
of land for church buildings and by representing Protestants as dangerous
extremists. Why the Free Church in Dundee should find possibly-heretical
doctrine, sung in a foreign language by enemies of the gospel, a congenial
way of spending an evening, we leave our readers to conclude for themselves.
“And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the
renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable,
and perfect, will of God” (Rom 12:2).
DWBS
Objections to UK Government Proposals to Redefine Marriage
Many welcomed the Prime Minister’s call in December to the Church of
England to defend the “values and moral code” of the Bible, but they still
take issue with the Government for proposing legislation to redefine marriage
and permit the evil of same-sex marriage. Are the Prime Minister and his
colleagues ignorant of the Bible’s condemnation of the unmentionable sins
which brought the wrath of God on the “cities of the plain” (Gen 19:29) (we
doubt it) or are they ignoring it (it seems so)?
We are bound to make known to the Government our objections to its
proposals. Many of our Scottish readers have communicated to the Scottish
Government their objections to its proposals to redefine marriage, but it is
necessary also to object in one way or another to the UK Government about
its separate proposals – by, for example, signing the online petition at http://
c4m.org.uk as soon as possible.
As the Prime Minister himself said in his December speech: “Bad choices
have too often been defended as just different lifestyles. To be confident in
saying something is wrong is not a sign of weakness, it’s a strength!” Let us