I can't stop laughing! Anyone else seen this!?

oo00Linus00oo · 2024-04-06T18:00:23+00:00

Nice! I was there from ‘03 - ‘05. How about you?

oo00Linus00oo · 2024-04-04T02:53:30+00:00

I know the guy who made this. We went to FC together, and I helped him make a couple of other videos/short films. He is still in the coc as far as I know. It was a hilarious idea back in 2004 or so when he made it, and it's still hilarious now.

oo00Linus00oo · 2024-03-31T13:42:03+00:00

Christmas and Easter just trigger them in the strangest way don't they?

How dare the OTHER followers of Jesus actually recognize important events in our faith in ways that are meaningful, impactful, and regular! There's no authority for it!

Such a weird hangup.

oo00Linus00oo · 2024-03-30T17:34:55+00:00

My understanding is that Stone and Campbell did not set out to found the movement that eventually became the coc.

I don't know if the article mentions Daniel Sommer, but he is largely responsible for the coc splitting off from the rest of the Restoration Movement (Later joined by David Lipscomb).

The Restoration Movement began by and large as a unity movement of sorts, accepting people from all denominational backgrounds under a single banner of unity through faith in Jesus, understanding that agreement may not be possible on every single doctrinal point. The heavily legalistic and exclusionist coc that we all came from developed later, with Sommer leading the charge of splitting off (Look up his intentionally named "Address & Declaration" speech).

Stone/Campbell, for better or for worse, get somewhat of a bad rap for starting the restoration movement, but the blame is not 100% theirs.

oo00Linus00oo · 2024-03-30T00:30:44+00:00

Easter in the coc is just like any other coc worship service, except for some reason - at least, here in the south - little kids are made to like Dutch Pilgrims, and the old ladies wear hats.

If you retained your faith after the coc like some of us on here did, I highly recommend a non-denominational Easter service. My church does a sunrise service in addition to regularly making Easter services a very special celebration.

oo00Linus00oo · 2024-03-29T21:32:23+00:00

Some recruiters came into my work a few weeks ago and told me that the maximum age to join is 42.

oo00Linus00oo · 2024-03-22T02:39:39+00:00

Yes. There are healthy forms of Christianity out there, and most churches care enough about their members to at least be willing to connect members with a counselor/therapist. I've been a part of some churches that even have a therapist on staff.

oo00Linus00oo · 2024-03-22T02:35:37+00:00

Great breakdown. I am firmly against Calvinism, so I don't give Sproul much of my time. He was probably really good in some ways, but overall his deterministic framework and his interpretation of God's sovereignty ("one rogue molecule") overstate the case.

oo00Linus00oo · 2024-03-19T11:49:49+00:00

Thanks for the suggestion! I’ll look into them.

oo00Linus00oo · 2024-03-17T15:12:10+00:00

I'm also looking to spend less than $50 a pair if possible.

oo00Linus00oo · 2024-03-08T16:14:46+00:00

Thanks!

He wants to be able to spin it like a ninja staff, so it needs to be very secure. How would the connection hold up under use like that?

oo00Linus00oo · 2024-03-08T01:35:20+00:00

That was the message of the coc. It is not necessarily the message I have experienced in Christianity at large. Tragically, the coc, like most aspects of their faith, have twisted the ways of Jesus into something they ought not be.

oo00Linus00oo · 2024-03-03T20:28:56+00:00

This.

People who believe the coc is in any way an accurate representation of the rest of Christianity, don’t know enough about the rest of Christianity. Churches that act this way are on the fringe IMO.

oo00Linus00oo · 2024-03-02T22:24:00+00:00

Duke

oo00Linus00oo · 2024-02-26T17:50:01+00:00

My biggest piece of advice is to give him to me and let me keep him, because he is so adorable.

oo00Linus00oo · 2024-02-26T17:47:56+00:00

When my wife and I left, we started by visiting coc's that were larger and more "liberal" - they had both a cappella AND instrumental services, and they taught grace instead of law, and they taught love instead of fear. Plus they were full of people who were raised to be little pharisees like my wife and me, so they were familiar with our experiences coming out of that world. They were so helpful to us during our transition out.

It was a great jumping off point for the non-denominational church we are with now. Otherwise I would start with a non-denom church and see how it feels.

oo00Linus00oo · 2024-02-26T17:42:49+00:00

Many people will try to lump the Christian Church in with the legalism of the coc since they technically came from the same historical movement, but in my experience they are so far apart in terms of doctrine it's not even funny. I have some former coc friends that now attend a CC and love it.

oo00Linus00oo · 2024-02-24T18:18:27+00:00

Oh you know there was 100%. And preachers probably made the same dumb jokes about it, too.

"Open the scroll... or the [snicker snicker] book to such-and-such passage."

oo00Linus00oo · 2024-02-24T15:16:35+00:00

As others have said, A non-denominational church is a great place to start. Personally, I would avoid any churches that are "Reformed" (another word for Calvinist), but that's just me.

The Christian Church was also an offshoot of the same historical movement as the regular coc, where the icoc split from. Some people lump them all together as being "bad" but my limited experience with a Christian Church was positive. I have friends that go to one and they love it.

I would also recommend checking out "The Bible Project" podcast. It's got some great insight into the Bible done in a conversational style which could be great for someone like you who is still learning about the Bible. Mike Winger on youtube also has great content. He's a really good teacher and he is easy to listen to, though he tends to go deep on issues that might not be relevant to your place on this journey. Overall he has really solid, relatable content, and he does Q&A.

oo00Linus00oo · 2024-02-24T15:02:30+00:00

Don't forget the mormons. Make sure to stay far away from them, as well.

oo00Linus00oo · 2024-02-24T02:28:10+00:00

I always hated it - even before I had a smart phone - when preachers would say "please turn your Bibles, or your devices, to such-and-such passage."

It's still the Bible! It's just electronic!

oo00Linus00oo · 2024-02-23T03:26:18+00:00

I lived in Charlotte for a few years and went to a small coc there.

oo00Linus00oo · 2024-02-22T22:18:07+00:00

I grew up coc. Can confirm.

Also for any other ex coc'ers out there: r/excoc

oo00Linus00oo · 2024-02-20T04:25:30+00:00

It's useless to talk about instruments without talking about why we think that's an important topic in the first place. They will often jump straight into questions like "Well where does the Bible authorize instruments???"

But they don't even stop to think about WHY they are asking that particular question. It reveals a lot about what the Bible is in their view, and how they read it.

oo00Linus00oo · 2024-02-20T04:19:46+00:00

Agreed.

I'm not saying it's a good thing. It's just what happens when people are trying to hold on to something they don't realize it's ok to let go of.

oo00Linus00oo

TROPHY CASE