Welcome to the "Liberty Insider." 00:00:22.71\00:00:24.95 This is a program where we discuss 00:00:24.98\00:00:27.85 issues that will be of interest to you 00:00:27.88\00:00:29.80 from a religious liberty perspective, 00:00:29.83\00:00:31.79 there's news, views, analysis. 00:00:31.82\00:00:34.60 And each week I have a guest 00:00:34.63\00:00:36.28 that can help me get to the nitty-gritty 00:00:36.31\00:00:38.90 on some of these very important issues. 00:00:38.93\00:00:41.07 And Ed Cook-- Dr. Ed Cook, 00:00:41.10\00:00:44.81 well-versed on church-state issues. 00:00:44.84\00:00:47.06 I want to bring up something to you. 00:00:47.09\00:00:48.48 You know, there's-- 00:00:48.51\00:00:50.15 there were many and varied religious liberty events. 00:00:50.18\00:00:52.55 You can pick up any newspapers. 00:00:52.58\00:00:54.64 We've sometimes done on this program 00:00:54.67\00:00:56.51 with one of the co-hosts 00:00:56.54\00:00:58.60 that I had long time ago, three times I can remember. 00:00:58.63\00:01:00.77 We opened the day's newspaper and one, two, three, 00:01:00.80\00:01:04.05 I think four times, within the one paper, 00:01:04.08\00:01:06.00 there was something relevant to religious liberty. 00:01:06.03\00:01:08.41 But there's a type of communication 00:01:08.44\00:01:10.07 I get by letter, email, sometimes they phone me up 00:01:10.10\00:01:14.76 and people are stirred to their-- 00:01:14.79\00:01:17.65 to their core over some great injustice within the church 00:01:17.68\00:01:21.84 with their rights are being restricted that, 00:01:21.87\00:01:24.44 that their viewpoint is being shut down. 00:01:24.47\00:01:27.35 And I say, "But, you know, 00:01:27.38\00:01:28.75 this is a religious liberty issue. 00:01:28.78\00:01:30.57 My religious freedom is being restricted." 00:01:30.60\00:01:33.41 And most times I have to tell them, 00:01:33.44\00:01:35.29 "Well, this is not right. 00:01:35.32\00:01:36.69 It doesn't sound fair, 00:01:36.72\00:01:38.15 but it's not a religious liberty question." Correct. 00:01:38.18\00:01:40.13 What do you have to think about that? 00:01:40.16\00:01:41.53 Um, you know, I think that from a Christian perspective, 00:01:41.56\00:01:45.81 obviously we always want to go back and looking at scripture 00:01:45.84\00:01:49.34 and find out what the Bible teaches us on a host of topics. 00:01:49.37\00:01:53.76 And it's very interesting 00:01:53.79\00:01:55.28 that the aspect of freedom of conscience is something 00:01:55.31\00:01:58.31 that the Bible does address. 00:01:58.34\00:02:00.04 It's--the Greek term is syneidesis, 00:02:00.07\00:02:02.03 the term used for conscience 00:02:02.06\00:02:03.68 and it's used numerous times in the New Testament. 00:02:03.71\00:02:06.01 In the Old Testament, the term is not used. 00:02:06.04\00:02:08.33 It's actually in the Hebrew mind. 00:02:08.36\00:02:10.21 They never really referred 00:02:10.24\00:02:11.61 to the conscience of the individual. 00:02:11.64\00:02:13.08 They referred to the heart. 00:02:13.11\00:02:14.48 The heart was the combination of the emotions, 00:02:14.51\00:02:16.97 the intellect, the will, the memory, 00:02:17.00\00:02:19.95 all of that combined referred to as the heart. 00:02:19.98\00:02:21.99 I haven't--I haven't had this stuff told to me 00:02:22.02\00:02:23.90 since I was in college. Thank you. 00:02:23.93\00:02:26.14 In the New Testament-- It's like a flashback. Yeah. 00:02:26.17\00:02:28.88 In the New Testament, 00:02:28.91\00:02:30.28 it comes from a Greek perspective, 00:02:30.31\00:02:31.73 a Greek worldview. 00:02:31.76\00:02:33.26 The Jews through the-- through the diaspora, 00:02:33.29\00:02:35.04 they had integrated into Greek and Roman society 00:02:35.07\00:02:38.07 and maintained their own identity as well. 00:02:38.10\00:02:40.05 But Paul writing from that perspective 00:02:40.08\00:02:42.10 then uses the term syneidesis 00:02:42.13\00:02:44.53 there with a Greek term referring to conscience. 00:02:44.56\00:02:46.61 And the idea that he portrays 00:02:46.64\00:02:48.32 without deciding all of the biblical text in his writings, 00:02:48.35\00:02:51.03 but in essence, what he is talking about 00:02:51.06\00:02:53.08 is that the conscience is, 00:02:53.11\00:02:55.02 you know, in Acts 23:1, he says, 00:02:55.05\00:02:56.80 "I have lived in all good conscience 00:02:56.83\00:02:58.88 before God unto this day." 00:02:58.91\00:03:00.51 So the idea that he helps us understand 00:03:00.54\00:03:02.51 is that our conscience should be in relationship to God first. 00:03:02.54\00:03:05.78 It is something that should help us 00:03:05.81\00:03:07.83 to discern between good and evil, 00:03:07.86\00:03:09.70 and it is something that should help 00:03:09.73\00:03:11.42 mold our actions as far as our daily living. 00:03:11.45\00:03:13.87 Now putting that in the context of religious freedom 00:03:13.90\00:03:16.15 within the church, okay? 00:03:16.18\00:03:17.55 Do you have the right to say 00:03:17.58\00:03:20.05 and do anything and if you're restricted is that 00:03:20.08\00:03:23.34 a true restriction of your freedom 00:03:23.37\00:03:25.05 Christian or civil? Correct. 00:03:25.08\00:03:27.52 Within the civil, within the-- excuse me, 00:03:27.55\00:03:29.26 within the sphere of the church, 00:03:29.29\00:03:31.51 what the New Testament brings out 00:03:31.54\00:03:33.44 is that the moment one case converted 00:03:33.47\00:03:35.80 and transitions into the church becomes a member of the church. 00:03:35.83\00:03:38.82 One is doing that voluntarily. 00:03:38.85\00:03:40.41 It's a response to the Holy Spirit. 00:03:40.44\00:03:42.16 So at that point, one is uniting with those 00:03:42.19\00:03:45.93 that are fellow believers in that capacity. 00:03:45.96\00:03:48.20 At that point, one finds that there is a-- 00:03:48.23\00:03:50.92 if one could use that term, 00:03:50.95\00:03:53.02 there is a limited amount of free exercise 00:03:53.05\00:03:57.26 or free expression of the individual 00:03:57.29\00:03:59.69 because in the Book of Revelation, 00:03:59.72\00:04:01.62 Paul--excuse me, John is talking about the warning. 00:04:01.65\00:04:04.05 He said he is giving to the church 00:04:04.08\00:04:06.35 that they should not have in their midst, 00:04:06.38\00:04:08.23 those that were basically-- 00:04:08.26\00:04:10.61 that symbolic term is referring to those that are of Jezebel. 00:04:10.64\00:04:13.85 You know, the followers of Jezebel 00:04:13.88\00:04:15.25 that lead the children of God astray. 00:04:15.28\00:04:16.92 So-- This is a good point. 00:04:16.95\00:04:18.32 But you're coming at it from a Biblical point of view 00:04:18.35\00:04:20.19 and using the same terminology, 00:04:20.22\00:04:21.73 free association voluntary. Correct. 00:04:21.76\00:04:24.06 And from a legal point of view, that's how it is. 00:04:24.09\00:04:27.11 Your liberties are not being restricted 00:04:27.14\00:04:29.17 because you have freely associated. Correct. 00:04:29.20\00:04:33.11 And if you find it unsatisfactory, 00:04:33.14\00:04:35.70 you can freely live. Correct. 00:04:35.73\00:04:37.31 There's not a compulsion there within-- 00:04:37.34\00:04:39.05 even though there maybe an insistence on a church 00:04:39.08\00:04:45.11 behavior in church organization 00:04:45.14\00:04:47.10 that you're incompatible with. 00:04:47.13\00:04:48.72 But the side of the dark edges, 00:04:48.75\00:04:51.09 you can't be forced into that. Correct. 00:04:51.12\00:04:53.53 And people forget, don't they? 00:04:53.56\00:04:54.93 You know, in my book that I-- what I deal with this Roman-- 00:04:54.96\00:04:58.37 Roman Catholicism hegemony and religious freedom. 00:04:58.40\00:05:02.06 There is a section where I developed 00:05:02.09\00:05:03.60 the idea of conscience 00:05:03.63\00:05:05.00 from a New Testament perspective in great detail. 00:05:05.03\00:05:07.56 But in essence, the summary that we come to 00:05:07.59\00:05:09.69 is that scripture does help us to understand 00:05:09.72\00:05:11.82 that the moment that we unite with-- 00:05:11.85\00:05:13.69 with any Christian body 00:05:13.72\00:05:15.44 whether it's Roman Catholic, Baptist, 00:05:15.47\00:05:17.20 Seventh-day Adventist, Lutheran, etcetera. 00:05:17.23\00:05:19.49 We should have taken the time to study 00:05:19.52\00:05:21.76 their core values and beliefs 00:05:21.79\00:05:23.46 and consent voluntarily to be baptized 00:05:23.49\00:05:26.50 to join that union or that, that association of believers. 00:05:26.53\00:05:29.50 Now having stated that there are times along the way 00:05:29.53\00:05:32.59 as each church body will face the new developments in society. 00:05:32.62\00:05:37.33 How will the church leadership relate to, 00:05:37.36\00:05:40.46 you know, it could be issues of today, 00:05:40.49\00:05:42.35 the homosexuality, abortion, and down the line. 00:05:42.38\00:05:45.81 So the believer that is a member of that body 00:05:45.84\00:05:48.39 needs to take the time to engage in dialogue, 00:05:48.42\00:05:51.56 engage in friendly debate within the church confines, 00:05:51.59\00:05:55.63 and basically be willing to ultimately respect 00:05:55.66\00:05:58.76 the direction of leadership is going to provide it. 00:05:58.79\00:06:01.07 I will say provide it that one can see 00:06:01.10\00:06:03.05 that there is not a clear contradiction of scripture. 00:06:03.08\00:06:06.27 For example, there are some churches today 00:06:06.30\00:06:08.13 that they will advocate homosexual unions. 00:06:08.16\00:06:11.01 Completely contrary to 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 00:06:11.04\00:06:14.27 where Paul condemns that. 00:06:14.30\00:06:15.68 So as long as it's not an outright 00:06:15.71\00:06:18.35 direct contradiction of scripture, 00:06:18.38\00:06:20.55 one would need to recognize 00:06:20.58\00:06:21.95 and respect the authority of the church 00:06:21.98\00:06:24.08 and its leadership. I agree with that. 00:06:24.11\00:06:25.48 Of course, those that see scripture 00:06:25.51\00:06:26.97 differently wouldn't phrase it that way. 00:06:27.00\00:06:30.21 And it's worth remembering, 00:06:30.24\00:06:31.61 little early when you were talking about Paul and his views 00:06:31.64\00:06:34.52 and his understanding of 00:06:34.55\00:06:39.04 integrity of the individual. 00:06:39.07\00:06:40.44 Remember, he tackled Peter front on. Yes. 00:06:40.47\00:06:43.48 Even says that I told him off 00:06:43.51\00:06:45.10 in front of everyone his position was wrong. 00:06:45.13\00:06:47.58 So I don't think you can get from Paul 00:06:47.61\00:06:50.81 in from the New Testament 00:06:50.84\00:06:52.21 that we should be ciphers of whatever system and keep quiet, 00:06:52.24\00:06:55.02 never speak our piece, but as far as having a position 00:06:55.05\00:06:59.49 and we share it with our fellow believers, 00:06:59.52\00:07:02.33 and if they don't accept it, 00:07:02.36\00:07:03.73 then we can't say cry foul. Correct. 00:07:03.76\00:07:06.01 But you-- And certainly I would say that 00:07:06.04\00:07:07.65 one church member should not adopt 00:07:07.68\00:07:10.20 the view of being able to say, 00:07:10.23\00:07:11.93 you know, the recognized leadership-- 00:07:11.96\00:07:13.96 they've adopted this position, 00:07:13.99\00:07:15.72 I'm in disagreement with it 00:07:15.75\00:07:17.15 and therefore my civil rights are being undermined or-- 00:07:17.18\00:07:20.75 that the legal dimension doesn't enter it there. 00:07:20.78\00:07:22.15 It's a false dynamic. Yeah. 00:07:22.18\00:07:23.55 People seem to think so, 00:07:23.58\00:07:24.95 but you gave two keys that seldom taken into account. 00:07:24.98\00:07:29.61 When you're talking about the Christian Church 00:07:29.64\00:07:31.42 which is our dominant model in North America and Australia 00:07:31.45\00:07:36.27 where I'm from in the western world. 00:07:36.30\00:07:40.12 There will be less trouble if people were truly converted 00:07:40.15\00:07:43.51 and you can have whole sermons on that, 00:07:43.54\00:07:45.17 but at the very least that should be 00:07:45.20\00:07:47.49 a wholehearted embrace of the concepts 00:07:47.52\00:07:50.95 and of the emotional commitment to the values 00:07:50.98\00:07:54.56 that are expressed in that church 00:07:54.59\00:07:56.36 in the holy writings. Correct. 00:07:56.39\00:07:58.22 Not enough of that goes on. 00:07:58.25\00:07:59.75 People really have their own agenda, 00:07:59.78\00:08:01.15 their own willful ways. 00:08:01.18\00:08:03.23 Then they should be acknowledged. 00:08:03.26\00:08:04.63 And you mentioned this, an understanding of what 00:08:04.66\00:08:06.28 that church stands for. Exactly. 00:08:06.31\00:08:08.23 You're gonna have a contradiction. 00:08:08.26\00:08:09.73 And I know sometimes this even happens 00:08:09.76\00:08:11.91 in Seventh-day Adventist Church. 00:08:11.94\00:08:13.56 People have a nice social contact with someone. 00:08:13.59\00:08:15.80 They think, "I want to be part of that church." 00:08:15.83\00:08:17.92 And the pastor with good intensions 00:08:17.95\00:08:20.19 but poor forethought baptizes them. 00:08:20.22\00:08:23.20 And then a little bit later in Sabbath School Class, 00:08:23.23\00:08:25.53 they discover this church says, 00:08:25.56\00:08:27.37 it believes this and this and this, 00:08:27.40\00:08:28.77 I don't like that. Exactly. 00:08:28.80\00:08:30.21 And then they object to it 00:08:30.24\00:08:31.61 and they think that their objection 00:08:31.64\00:08:33.01 should carry some weight. 00:08:33.04\00:08:34.41 They've joined a group to believe something 00:08:34.44\00:08:35.81 and they're out of sync with it. Correct. 00:08:35.84\00:08:37.93 And here is another thing I think that add 00:08:37.96\00:08:39.33 another dimension to this that is very important. 00:08:39.36\00:08:42.20 Coming back to what I was talking about regarding 00:08:42.23\00:08:44.18 the Biblical explanation of conscience, syneidesis 00:08:44.21\00:08:47.99 and how Paul as well as John explained it. 00:08:48.02\00:08:51.24 In Revelation Chapter 3, 00:08:51.27\00:08:52.87 John goes through and talks about the aspect. 00:08:52.90\00:08:55.00 He says that those that are of the Nicolaitans, 00:08:55.03\00:08:57.43 you know, you allow them to come, 00:08:57.46\00:08:58.83 in essence perverting the gospel, 00:08:58.86\00:09:01.40 perverting the church, and doctrine 00:09:01.43\00:09:03.17 and teaching and he says, 00:09:03.20\00:09:04.57 "They should not be allowed." 00:09:04.60\00:09:05.97 Now understanding that in the modern context, 00:09:06.00\00:09:09.15 I believe that there are many Christians 00:09:09.18\00:09:11.27 that they adopt a concept of religious freedom 00:09:11.30\00:09:14.89 that basically they associate with civil rights 00:09:14.92\00:09:17.13 and they try to take those civil rights into the church. 00:09:17.16\00:09:19.57 And so what they will do is they will say, 00:09:19.60\00:09:21.22 for example, if I believe that homosexuality is not wrong, 00:09:21.25\00:09:24.67 my church is speaking against it, 00:09:24.70\00:09:26.50 I should have the right to come into my church. 00:09:26.53\00:09:28.58 I should have the right to remain a member of the church 00:09:28.61\00:09:30.68 and I should have the right to say 00:09:30.71\00:09:32.29 that what they're doing is wrong 00:09:32.32\00:09:33.69 and they should actually be more open 00:09:33.72\00:09:35.34 and allow religious freedom to homosexuals 00:09:35.37\00:09:38.73 to join the join the church, etcetera. 00:09:38.76\00:09:40.57 And that's-- That's a new way of expressing it. 00:09:40.60\00:09:42.97 It's a thoroughly misdirected understanding of what-- 00:09:43.00\00:09:45.61 what your personal rights and freedoms entail. Correct. 00:09:45.64\00:09:48.97 And they're applying what-- 00:09:49.00\00:09:50.37 it's the reasonable model outside the church, 00:09:50.40\00:09:51.92 but within the church structure, it's just inappropriate. 00:09:51.95\00:09:54.28 It's not that it's wrong, 00:09:54.31\00:09:55.68 it's just not the venue, is it? Correct. 00:09:55.71\00:09:58.43 And let me add this as well, 00:09:58.46\00:10:00.26 kind of just shifting it a little bit 00:10:00.29\00:10:02.06 from perspectives of other faith groups. 00:10:02.09\00:10:05.11 Roman Catholics for this reason in the document, 00:10:05.14\00:10:07.52 Dignitatis Humanae foresaw some of these developments. 00:10:07.55\00:10:10.37 "The Dignity of Man," which is an underlying document 00:10:10.40\00:10:12.88 for Vatican II's rethinking of religious freedom. Correct. 00:10:12.91\00:10:16.19 And what they did is they recognize 00:10:16.22\00:10:17.93 that the church must retain its identity, 00:10:17.96\00:10:22.26 in essence, its authority in the transcendental sphere 00:10:22.29\00:10:25.25 and not in the civil sphere. 00:10:25.28\00:10:26.81 And so in essence, that's why they're opening 00:10:26.84\00:10:28.41 first three statements of the document. 00:10:28.44\00:10:30.71 And in my book, I outlined this and flush it out a bit more, 00:10:30.74\00:10:33.57 but in essence, the church is saying 00:10:33.60\00:10:35.21 in the first three statements of Dignitatis Humanae, 00:10:35.24\00:10:37.92 we recognize that the Catholic Church 00:10:37.95\00:10:39.95 is still the soul depository of-- 00:10:39.98\00:10:41.65 depository of truth. 00:10:41.68\00:10:43.20 And for that reason, we separate 00:10:43.23\00:10:45.93 the transcendental sphere from the civil sphere. 00:10:45.96\00:10:48.42 In the civil sphere, the church is saying, 00:10:48.45\00:10:50.22 "We recognize the right of the individual as a civil right 00:10:50.25\00:10:54.55 to have immunity from corrosion and to pursue truth 00:10:54.58\00:10:57.50 and finding it to embrace it. 00:10:57.53\00:10:59.31 So in essence, the church is by allowing religious freedom 00:10:59.34\00:11:02.24 in the civil sphere, it is not denying its own self identity. 00:11:02.27\00:11:05.95 And I think that most religious groups 00:11:05.98\00:11:07.73 would need to adopt maybe not the same dynamic, 00:11:07.76\00:11:10.43 but something similar in the sense of saying, 00:11:10.46\00:11:12.53 "We recognize that there are certain civil rights 00:11:12.56\00:11:14.65 that are existing in society, 00:11:14.68\00:11:16.47 but within the church or within the religion Islam, 00:11:16.50\00:11:18.84 etcetera to maintain our identity as a religious body." 00:11:18.87\00:11:21.95 We can't go and simply say, "Our religion means nothing." 00:11:21.98\00:11:25.52 You've outlined it very well. 00:11:25.55\00:11:26.92 And, of course, that's the Roman Catholic doctrine 00:11:26.95\00:11:28.51 which in this regard is reasonable. 00:11:28.54\00:11:30.80 But, you know, we're not-- 00:11:30.83\00:11:32.36 we're not advancing their views wholeheartedly. Sure. 00:11:32.39\00:11:38.32 I'm just sharing-- 00:11:38.35\00:11:39.72 Yeah, that's the lecture. Yeah. 00:11:39.75\00:11:41.12 Now I'll give you the quiz. 00:11:41.15\00:11:42.99 Real world, you could be Solomon. 00:11:43.02\00:11:46.90 This is based on a real world conversation 00:11:46.93\00:11:50.43 that I had with someone they called me up. 00:11:50.46\00:11:53.20 And at their church, we won't say 00:11:53.23\00:11:54.64 what denomination it was. 00:11:54.67\00:11:57.77 You could deduce it. 00:11:57.80\00:11:59.63 They called up and they said that they had, 00:11:59.66\00:12:04.11 had some involvement with a non-church-- 00:12:04.14\00:12:09.56 I've got to mind my words carefully. 00:12:09.59\00:12:10.96 They were involved with a youth program 00:12:10.99\00:12:14.12 that was not organized by that church, 00:12:14.15\00:12:15.90 but was only run, and organized, 00:12:15.93\00:12:19.98 and attended by fellow members of that same church. 00:12:20.01\00:12:24.57 The church pastor said that anybody 00:12:24.60\00:12:27.16 that belonged to that organization 00:12:27.19\00:12:30.16 or had anything to do with it, 00:12:30.19\00:12:32.64 they would remove them from any church office 00:12:32.67\00:12:35.28 and if they persisted from membership in the church-- 00:12:35.31\00:12:40.59 that's a rather strange sort of restriction of religious liberty 00:12:40.62\00:12:45.48 and even hazarding membership in the church for someone 00:12:45.51\00:12:48.80 who doesn't see, and probably it's not out of harmony 00:12:48.83\00:12:51.56 with what the church holds. 00:12:51.59\00:12:53.76 Where does the rights of the individual 00:12:53.79\00:12:57.43 figure versus the church is right 00:12:57.46\00:13:00.57 and where is religious liberty in all of this? 00:13:00.60\00:13:03.45 You know, I think that the central element 00:13:03.48\00:13:07.87 to take into consideration to answer that, 00:13:07.90\00:13:10.13 is that all depends on the church governance, 00:13:10.16\00:13:12.80 how they're structured. 00:13:12.83\00:13:14.20 For example, there were many individuals 00:13:14.23\00:13:16.63 that there was an outcry 00:13:16.66\00:13:18.70 when the theologian Leonardo Boff, 00:13:18.73\00:13:21.90 Catholic in Zellwood, 00:13:21.93\00:13:23.30 that was teaching liberation theology. 00:13:23.33\00:13:25.62 The Catholic Church actually silenced him. 00:13:25.65\00:13:27.86 In essence, what it meant 00:13:27.89\00:13:29.26 is that they've considered his writings 00:13:29.29\00:13:31.33 and his teachings to be 00:13:31.36\00:13:32.73 questionable contrary to their faith. 00:13:32.76\00:13:34.63 And so they-- when they silenced him, 00:13:34.66\00:13:36.67 that meant that he can no longer speak publicly about it. 00:13:36.70\00:13:38.98 He can no longer teach about it. 00:13:39.01\00:13:40.61 He can no longer write about it 00:13:40.64\00:13:42.09 for at least for a period of time 00:13:42.12\00:13:43.49 until the Magisterium had time to review his teaching. 00:13:43.52\00:13:45.78 Now, of course, they really couldn't silence him. 00:13:45.81\00:13:48.66 There would just be the penalty of excommunication 00:13:48.69\00:13:51.18 or separation from the membership, 00:13:51.21\00:13:52.83 but he legally couldn't, really be silenced-- 00:13:52.86\00:13:56.09 I mean, in the literal way, I'll put it that way. 00:13:56.12\00:13:58.05 As long as he respected the authority of the church, 00:13:58.08\00:14:00.72 then he would respect their judgment 00:14:00.75\00:14:02.14 and he would no longer speak or teach on it. Yeah. 00:14:02.17\00:14:04.22 Now what he ended up opting to do in his case 00:14:04.25\00:14:06.21 is he just withdrew from the society. 00:14:06.24\00:14:08.27 He had been in Zellwood, He was drew from there. 00:14:08.30\00:14:10.41 Okay, I can see our time is run by. 00:14:10.44\00:14:12.96 We'll be back after a short break 00:14:12.99\00:14:14.92 to continue this very interesting discussion 00:14:14.95\00:14:17.29 of differences within a church. 00:14:17.32\00:14:19.69