VCY's Americanism - Heresy in Plain Sight

This arrived in my inbox the other day. See additional comments below.....

America 250 in Philadelphia!

October 13-16

Join us on a VCY / Stories in Stones Christian Heritage tour of historic Philadelphia. You will see the sites of the Miracle at Philadelphia in Carpenters Hall when the Declaration of Independence was developed, drafted and debated. Independence Hall where the Constitution was signed. Along the way we will see the Betsy Ross House, The Liberty Bell, Christ Church & the Old Burial Ground, the Ben Franklin Museum, the Revolutionary War Museum and the Philadelphia Society of the Bible.

Our tour will also include the Philadelphia Museum (The Rocky Steps) and one a stop at one of the the famous Philly Steak & Cheese shops. We’ll also head to Lancaster and experience the world-famous Smorgasboards (included in pricing), the Tabernacle experience, and will also include an afternoon presentation at the Sight and Sound Theater in Lancaster for a performance of Joshua!

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Filing a Lawsuit Against Another Christian is Grounds for Church Discipline and Ultimately Excommunication

https://ministrywatch.com/mclean-bible-church-lawsuit-lives-on/

This sort of article both frustrates and baffles me. Everyone claims to follow the Scripture and yet this is a clear (and recurring) instance of indisputable Christian disobedience and the complete setting aside of Scriptural imperatives.

Christians do not use the courts.

But they especially do not sue other Christians.

Trump, Bible Stunts, and Evangelicals Under Judgment

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pr7kiIO0Y0w

American Evangelicals celebrated Trump reading the Bible in one of their latest propaganda efforts - a recording session that was also re-used during the idolatrous event which recently took place on the National Mall. With regard to the latter, mark well all the Christian leaders who participated in that disgrace, as they are false prophets and apostates who teach God's people to worship idols and glorify sin.

Russell Vought, Pete Hegseth, and Redefining Witness

https://wng.org/opinions/clean-words-and-clean-witness-in-the-white-house-1764033683

There are so many astonishing articles being written these days - it's impossible to keep up.

This World Magazine article from back in November 2025 continues to amaze me.

You Shall Know Them By Their Fruits

The death of Chuck Norris (1940-2026) has garnered significant media attention within Right-wing and Evangelical circles. He was a hero to these factions. As they are desperate to have some Hollywood celebrities on their side, any defection from the mainstream to the Right will earn instant support. There are many B and C-list actors and actresses that have boosted their otherwise ailing careers by associating with the Evangelical movement.

Personally I couldn't care less about Norris but a host of Christian leaders praised the man both in life and now in his death. We are told to esteem his witness. So it is fitting for us to consider it.

The False Prophets of Just War Theory

https://breakpoint.org/just-war-in-iran/

Both Stonestreet and his mentor the late Charles Colson provide ample evidence as to why Just War Theory is a malleable self-serving fiction. If the war is launched by a Republican president, they support it and provide (by means of sophistry) a theological and ethical justification.

Bircher-Dispensationalism's Twisted Reading of Providence

https://www.vcy.org/crosstalk/2026/02/16/presidents-politics-prophecy/

Sometimes I can't help myself. Given my background and upbringing in Fundamentalist and Dispensational circles, I do like to 'check in' every once in awhile and see what's being talked about and how the issues are framed.

Obfuscating the Roots of Kinism

https://ironsharpensironradio.com/2026/02/09/february-6-2026-show-with-lowell-ivey-on-kinism-race-realism-the-gospel/

Some might be excused for thinking I do nothing more than read bad articles and listen to egregious podcasts and radio shows. What's the point, someone might ask me?

It gives me no joy I can assure you but I am consistently astonished by what is taking place in the Church today - the bad teaching, the twisted ethics, the flawed reasoning, and the corrupt leadership. I encounter people that just drink this stuff in without stopping and thinking - and realizing that what they're being told doesn't add up, isn't Scriptural (despite the claims), and is ultimately misleading. At that point we have to ask 'why'? What is happening?

The Church of England, Christo-Nationalism, and Two Robinsons

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cy4p42kydx9o

Now that the BBC has put up a paywall, it's hit or miss as to whether or not you'll be able to read this - that is unless you have an account. I don't and as such my BBC reading and website visits has plummeted. I still utilise their podcasts but I wonder how long they will remain available without a subscription? 

This article displays in very clear terms how some forms of revivalism have nothing to do with the gospel or the Holy Spirit but are instead tied to culture war and politics. Now I know men like John Stonestreet will argue this is nevertheless a good thing because it gets these people into churches where they will hear the gospel - that is assuming that they will in fact hear the Scriptures preached. I wouldn't count it - even in many so-called conservative churches.

Recent Dominionist Efforts in the UK

https://christianconcern.com/comment/the-mission-of-god-includes-politics/

Reading the summaries of this conference, I'm left shaking my head - more distractions, more confusion. The New Testament knows nothing of what they're talking about. They are cherry picking a few texts and reading a lot of assumptions into them.

The Sweet Taste of Vomit

https://petehurst.com/wealth-is-not-the-problem/

I was sorry to see (but not terribly surprised) the confused publishers of The Aquila Report endorsed this article by republishing it.

Hurst is a former PCA pastor who still speaks in PCA/OPC circles. He retired from the ministry and decided to get into real estate and get rich. He justifies this by means of Kuyperian argument. He is unapologetic in his celebration of wealth and the 'good life'.

The Netflix Documentary on Dominionism in Brazil

https://pilgrimunderground.blogspot.com/2025/12/the-end-of-road-for-bolsonaro.html

As a follow-up to the recent piece I wrote concerning Bolsonaro, I decided to temporarily subscribe to Netflix - basically so I could watch a couple of documentaries, at which point I'll dump the otherwise worthless subscription. Netflix was helpful back in the day when I could receive all manner of foreign and obscure films via their DVD in the mail service. The rise of other subscription services led to a decline in the Netflix library and over time I found the platform to be of decreasing value. Once every couple of years I'll turn it on for a month, get caught up on some documentaries and then shut it off again.

Palestinians as Mosquitoes

https://www.972mag.com/gaza-human-shield-mosquito/

https://www.democracynow.org/2025/5/29/israeli_soldiers_using_palestinians_human_shields

https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-hamas-war-army-human-shields-80f358dd2c87a1123f26ffada159701c

This story broke wide open back in May and since then I've watched and waited. Would any Christian outlets cover this story? Would any self-described Evangelical 'news hounds' like FLN's Bobby Price dare to report on this?

The answer is no.

The Fallacy of Veteran Veneration by Evangelicals

https://www.evangelical-times.org/are-nonconformists-hypocrites-on-remembrance-sunday/

*You may not be able to read the entire article without a subscription. The Evangelical Times has restricted a lot of its content in recent years.

In the linked article, Mike Judge of Manchester writes:

"Remembrance Sunday is not about endorsing every decision of government, nor about glorifying war. It is about acknowledging sacrifice — the high price paid by those who laid down their lives in the service of others. That principle, of self-giving love, resonates deeply with the gospel we proclaim. “Greater love hath no man than this,” said our Lord, “that a man lay down his life for his friends."

One Nation - Two Masters: The Confusion that is Sacralist-Nationalist Evangelicalism

https://cne.news/article/4851-why-one-nation-can-never-serve-two-masters

We read in Matthew 6.24:

No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.

Not long ago I head Charlie Kirk twist this passage and use it to justify nationalism. You have to serve and love your country or not. You can't have divided loyalty. It was a complete distortion of the passage as it actually precludes the very nationalism Kirk was arguing for. Kirk was advocating a divided loyalty that contradicted the words of Christ.

Liberal and Establishment Offense at the Department of War

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cgr9r4qr0ppo

Last month (September 2025) the Trump administration and Secretary Hegseth changed the name of the Department of Defense to the Department of War. The move upset some as it contradicts their understanding of the military and its role related to American foreign policy. Others saw it as characteristic of the kind of toxic bombast Trump has become known for. Hegseth is keen to promote his 'warrior ethos' - a twisted and heretical form of Crusader Christianity. This is further exemplified by his dressing down of generals and his celebration of aerial assassinations in the Caribbean.

A CREC Theonomist Cheerleading the Secretary of War

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/aug/22/pastor-joshua-haymes-pete-hegseth

As these so-called Christians bring disgrace on the Church and sow confusion as to its testimony, we are forced to navigate these pestilential waters, decrying the errors of the heretics and the misunderstandings of the lost who in some cases criticise things they do not understand.

Exhortations for the Nationalist Youth Wing

https://theaquilareport.com/a-word-to-the-young-men-who-are-called-christian-nationalists/

I was very pleased to read this piece by Tom Hervey. He rightly takes some contemporary Dominionists to task, assailing their postmillennial errors, and their delusions regarding Christendom-so called.

Mohler and the Kirk Memorial: The Revival that Wasn't

https://wng.org/opinions/this-is-like-an-old-time-revival-isnt-it-1758521481

Mohler celebrates the supposed revival taking place in connection to the death of Charlie Kirk. He favourably quotes Trump to that end. An old time revival? What exactly does that mean?

A Troubling Revival of Historic Anti-Semitism - A Story of Proliferation and Permutation

https://forward.com/culture/761623/theobro-antisemitism-nazi-christianity-reformed-podcast/

There is so much that could be said about Mahler, Wilson, and Webbon but in this case I was simply saddened by the fact that some of the legitimate discussions and debates surrounding the Masoretic Text and the Septuagint (LXX) are now likely to be tainted by this absurd and wicked line of discussion.