M-2 PEOPLE-FILES
- Andrew Manis - Cecil Maranville - Amanda Marcotte - Keith Markham - Mike Marlar - Todd Marrah - George Marsden - Chris Martin - Dave Martin - Lerone Martin - Lia Martin - Ricardo Martinez - Steven R Martins - Martin E Marty -
==Andrew manis======
Andrew M. Manis is emeritus professor of history at Middle Georgia State University and author of A Fire You Can’t Put Out: The Civil Rights Life of Birmingham’s Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth. He is currently working with Mark V. Puroshotham, producer and director of Mercy Pictures, on a documentary based on the book.
Andrew Manis Files
Numerous conservative pastors and commentators have declared to their flocks that true Christians must vote Republican if they are faithful. Chief among those is Al Mohler, president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, who told a conservative political action group this fall that to vote for Democrats makes them “unfaithful to God.”
But what if he’s got it backward? What if voting for today’s iteration of the Republican Party — driven by the business of white supremacy more than actual business interests — makes one “unfaithful to God”? I read a Facebook post from one of my college friends indicating he would vote for Trump because “he was the only one who will protect us Christians.” Republicans must not have heard the news that religious belief, practice and institutions have thrived in the U.S. because they did not enjoy the favor of the government.
Instead, the churches had to work to spread the gospel and strengthen church life in America. Contrast the health of religion in America, where there has been no officially favored religion (even if, historically, most Americans have been Christians), with religion in most European countries where state churches once abounded but are now virtually empty. -Andrew Manis; Baptist News Global; Should ‘real’ Christians really vote Republican today? 11.3.22
But what if he’s got it backward? What if voting for today’s iteration of the Republican Party — driven by the business of white supremacy more than actual business interests — makes one “unfaithful to God”? I read a Facebook post from one of my college friends indicating he would vote for Trump because “he was the only one who will protect us Christians.” Republicans must not have heard the news that religious belief, practice and institutions have thrived in the U.S. because they did not enjoy the favor of the government.
Instead, the churches had to work to spread the gospel and strengthen church life in America. Contrast the health of religion in America, where there has been no officially favored religion (even if, historically, most Americans have been Christians), with religion in most European countries where state churches once abounded but are now virtually empty. -Andrew Manis; Baptist News Global; Should ‘real’ Christians really vote Republican today? 11.3.22
==cecil maranville======
Cecil Maranville was a minister of the Church of God, a Worldwide Association and now retired.
Cecil Maranville
“And certain men came down from Judea and taught the brethren, ‘Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.’ Therefore, when Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and dispute with them, they determined that Paul and Barnabas and certain others of them should go up to Jerusalem, to the apostles and elders, about this question” (Acts 15:1-2).
The “certain men” are not identified. They were likely members of the Church of God—perhaps people of influence, given the impact their opinion had. Their contention that salvation depended upon physical circumcision created great controversy among the gentiles! It also stirred controversy anew among some Jewish members who were reminded of God’s covenant sign to Abraham.
In support of male circumcision for all who would come into the Church, some Pharisees who were now members of the Church expressed concern about faithfulness to “the law of Moses” (Acts 15:5).
--Cecil Maranville; Life Hope & Truth; Acts 15: How Was the Law Changed?
The “certain men” are not identified. They were likely members of the Church of God—perhaps people of influence, given the impact their opinion had. Their contention that salvation depended upon physical circumcision created great controversy among the gentiles! It also stirred controversy anew among some Jewish members who were reminded of God’s covenant sign to Abraham.
In support of male circumcision for all who would come into the Church, some Pharisees who were now members of the Church expressed concern about faithfulness to “the law of Moses” (Acts 15:5).
--Cecil Maranville; Life Hope & Truth; Acts 15: How Was the Law Changed?
==amanda marcotte======
How Republicans convinced themselves America was meant to be a "Christian nation"
As a progressive black sheep who has drifted politically from my lily-white Republican family, I have ample opportunity to witness the damage that the MAGA movement has been doing to people I once considered reasonable-if-conservative. Most of it sadly predictable: People who denounced Bill Clinton's gross-but-consensual affair now make excuses for Donald Trump's sexual assaults. There's the willing participation in conspiracy theories they know full well are nonsense. And, of course, when utterly unable to make any sense of their own political "beliefs," the fallback of dumb "let's go Brandon"-type jokes. What has genuinely surprised me, however, is the way a bunch of folks who were previously not very religious have become all about Jesus. Maybe not enough to go to church, mind you, but enough to start littering their social media posts and other communications with Bible verses and the sentimental religious imagery. Not too long ago, many of these folks used to mock the showy piety of the fundamentalist neighbors. I fully blame the MAGA movement, of course. (Amanda Marcotte/Salon 12/13/23) READ MORE>>>>>
As a progressive black sheep who has drifted politically from my lily-white Republican family, I have ample opportunity to witness the damage that the MAGA movement has been doing to people I once considered reasonable-if-conservative. Most of it sadly predictable: People who denounced Bill Clinton's gross-but-consensual affair now make excuses for Donald Trump's sexual assaults. There's the willing participation in conspiracy theories they know full well are nonsense. And, of course, when utterly unable to make any sense of their own political "beliefs," the fallback of dumb "let's go Brandon"-type jokes. What has genuinely surprised me, however, is the way a bunch of folks who were previously not very religious have become all about Jesus. Maybe not enough to go to church, mind you, but enough to start littering their social media posts and other communications with Bible verses and the sentimental religious imagery. Not too long ago, many of these folks used to mock the showy piety of the fundamentalist neighbors. I fully blame the MAGA movement, of course. (Amanda Marcotte/Salon 12/13/23) READ MORE>>>>>
==keith markham======
May 29, 1998: Baptist Press: Utah churches face challenges as part of religious minority
At Mountain View Baptist Church in Layton, Utah, those relationships have been built largely through a wide array of support groups and other programs of interest to the broader community. A Christmas “Walk through Bethlehem” presentation that covers the entire grounds, for instance, has been effective in introducing the church to the community and opening the doors for further contact. The church has found a niche that has allowed it to thrive evangelistically in an area where others have struggled.
“We have not felt any rejection, we have not felt any obstacles that we couldn’t overcome,” said Keith Markham, Mountain View’s pastor. “We have not felt anything except that the Lord is working here and he is letting us work with him.”
At Mountain View Baptist Church in Layton, Utah, those relationships have been built largely through a wide array of support groups and other programs of interest to the broader community. A Christmas “Walk through Bethlehem” presentation that covers the entire grounds, for instance, has been effective in introducing the church to the community and opening the doors for further contact. The church has found a niche that has allowed it to thrive evangelistically in an area where others have struggled.
“We have not felt any rejection, we have not felt any obstacles that we couldn’t overcome,” said Keith Markham, Mountain View’s pastor. “We have not felt anything except that the Lord is working here and he is letting us work with him.”
==mike marlar======
Feb 24, 2023: Christian Chronicle: Addressing church decline one child at a time
NORTH LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Holy Father, we thank thee for this day and all of the blessings of life,” elder Mike Marlar prayed. “We pray for the spiritual growth and development of Miah. As she grows, we pray that you will keep her close to thee, that you will give her the presence and control of your Holy Spirit.”
NORTH LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Holy Father, we thank thee for this day and all of the blessings of life,” elder Mike Marlar prayed. “We pray for the spiritual growth and development of Miah. As she grows, we pray that you will keep her close to thee, that you will give her the presence and control of your Holy Spirit.”
==todd marrah======
'A broken nation': Columbus church leaders call for unity after Trump rally Shooting
Pastors at several Columbus churches, preaching for the first time since the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump that occurred Saturday evening, reflected on the role of faith in U.S. political life and called for prayers for an ailing nation Sunday. Executive pastor Todd Marrah, preaching at the nondenominational Rock City Church in Hilliard, called for God to unite the nation that was "this far away from civil war," he said, using his fingers to mark "about one inch" of distance.
(Columbus Dispatch 7/14/24) READMORE>>>>>
Pastors at several Columbus churches, preaching for the first time since the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump that occurred Saturday evening, reflected on the role of faith in U.S. political life and called for prayers for an ailing nation Sunday. Executive pastor Todd Marrah, preaching at the nondenominational Rock City Church in Hilliard, called for God to unite the nation that was "this far away from civil war," he said, using his fingers to mark "about one inch" of distance.
(Columbus Dispatch 7/14/24) READMORE>>>>>
==george marsden======
“When I look into my heart, and take a view of my wickedness, it looks like an abyss infinitely deeper than hell.”
― George M. Marsden, Jonathan Edwards
― George M. Marsden, Jonathan Edwards
“Jonathan Edwards is sometimes criticized for having too dim a view of human nature, but it may be helpful to be reminded that his grandmother was an incorrigible profligate, his great-aunt committed infanticide, and his great-uncle was an ax-murderer.”
― George M. Marsden, Jonathan Edwards
― George M. Marsden, Jonathan Edwards
“True saints," Edwards observed with typical God-centeredness, are "inexpressibly pleased and delighted with ... the things of God." Hypocrites, by contrast, revel in themselves. "The hypocrite has his mind pleased and delighted, in the first place, with his own privilege, and the happiness which he supposes he has attained, or shall obtain."58”
― George M. Marsden, Jonathan Edwards
― George M. Marsden, Jonathan Edwards
“Why would a perfect being, such as God, need to create any less perfect beings? The answer, said Edwards, is that God is perfectly loving and so wishes to share that love with creatures capable of love. Edwards's starting point was that a loving God stands at the heart of the universe. So for Edwards the universe is most essentially personal; it is the creative expression of a person. Edwards's emphasis on personality at the center of reality presents a sharp contrast to most modern views. Since the Enlightenment many modern thinkers have built their theories on the premise that the universe is essentially impersonal, controlled by natural laws. Edwards challenged that view with a vital alternative: that at the core of reality is a loving God, and that love is the dynamic behind the creation of the universe and everything in it. Starting with a sense of God's love at the center of reality then shapes the way we think of true virtue. At the core of reality is the beauty of the love of God pouring forth, so that the highest good is to return that love to God.”
― George M. Marsden, A Short Life of Jonathan Edwards
― George M. Marsden, A Short Life of Jonathan Edwards
“I find that a Christian view of history is clarified if one considers reality as more or less like the world portrayed in the works of J. R. R. Tolkien. We live in the midst of contests between great and mysterious spiritual forces, which we understand only imperfectly and whose true dimensions we only occasionally glimpse. Yet, frail as we are, we do play a role in this history, on the side either of the powers of light or of the powers of darkness. It is crucially important then, that, by God’s grace, we keep our wits about us and discern the vast difference between the real forces for good and the powers of darkness disguised as angels of light.”
― George M. Marsden, Fundamentalism and American Culture
― George M. Marsden, Fundamentalism and American Culture
“Christians’ trust in God may be mingled or confused with some culturally formed assumptions, ideals, and values. Inevitably it will. The danger is that our culturally defined loves, allegiances, and understandings will overwhelm and take precedence over our faithfulness to God. So the identification of cultural forces, such as those with which this book is concerned, is essentially a constructive enterprise, with the positive purpose of finding the gold among the dross.”
― George M. Marsden, Fundamentalism and American Culture
― George M. Marsden, Fundamentalism and American Culture
“Martin Marty, a young Lutheran scholar, offered further insights into the situation in The New Shape of American Religion, which appeared in 1959. The so-called revival of religion, Marty explained, was largely a revival of “interest in religion.” Unlike earlier American awakenings, this one was not primarily a renewal of Protestantism but “a maturing national religion”
― George M. Marsden, The Twilight of the American Enlightenment: The 1950s and the Crisis of Liberal Belief
― George M. Marsden, The Twilight of the American Enlightenment: The 1950s and the Crisis of Liberal Belief
“Since God works among imperfect human beings in historical settings, “pure” or “perfect” Christianity can seldom if ever exist in this world. God in his grace works through our limitations; for that very reason we should ask for the grace to recognize what those limitations are. So we may—and ought to—carefully identify the cultural forces which affect the current versions of Christianity.”
― George M. Marsden, Fundamentalism and American Culture
― George M. Marsden, Fundamentalism and American Culture
==chris martin======
Mar 9, 2023: Baptist Press: Hawaii Pacific Baptist Convention names interim executive-director
In January, Chris Martin announced he would be departing to accept a position, effective immediately, with the International Mission Board. He had served Hawaii Baptists for 18 years – the last nine as executive director.
In January, Chris Martin announced he would be departing to accept a position, effective immediately, with the International Mission Board. He had served Hawaii Baptists for 18 years – the last nine as executive director.
==dave martin======
April 12, 2023: Bharat Times: Trump and Iowa evangelicals: A bond that is hard to break
The Rev. Dave Martin, a Marshalltown pastor, was an outsider in interviews that suggest Trump’s judicial strategy was intended in 2016 to consolidate support within the skeptic group. “Let’s not forget that many years ago he was for legal abortion,” said Martin, who says he will not support Trump in caucus.
Martin also fiercely criticized Trump’s 2016 campaign statement when he dismissed the need to repent.
The Rev. Dave Martin, a Marshalltown pastor, was an outsider in interviews that suggest Trump’s judicial strategy was intended in 2016 to consolidate support within the skeptic group. “Let’s not forget that many years ago he was for legal abortion,” said Martin, who says he will not support Trump in caucus.
Martin also fiercely criticized Trump’s 2016 campaign statement when he dismissed the need to repent.
==lerone martin======
David A Hollinger
We now have a formidable body of scholarship that establishes the depth and extent of these features of the American evangelical tradition, confirming and expanding on Richard Hofstadter’s legendary analysis in his 1964 book, Anti-intellectualism in American Life. This new body of scholarship is the work of a remarkable generation of young historians who have yet to receive the credit they’re due, so I name some of them here: Darren Dochuk, Matthew Sutton, Anthea Butler, Timothy Gloege, Jesse Curtis, Lerone Martin, J. Russell Hawkins, Stephen Young, Daniel Hummel, Daniel Silliman, and—the only one in this cohort to gain wide media recognition--Kristin Kobes Du Mez, author of the justly famous and marvelously titled, Jesus and John Wayne. Sadly, while the majority of these scholars have written for Religion Dispatches, the conclusions of these bold and creative scholars have been largely ignored in the discussion of religion and politics found in the pages of The Atlantic, The New York Times, The Washington Post, and other media of comparable reach and influence.
--David Hollinger; Religion Dispatches; The Critiques of Evangelical Writers Opposing Christian Nationalism Fail to Recognize Evangelicalism’s Troubling History 6/18/24
--David Hollinger; Religion Dispatches; The Critiques of Evangelical Writers Opposing Christian Nationalism Fail to Recognize Evangelicalism’s Troubling History 6/18/24
==lia martin======
Lia Martin loves to inspire others to lean into the Lord daily. She's a writer, editor, marketer, former Crosswalk.com Faith Editor, and author of Wisdom at Wit's End: Abandoning Supermom Myths in Search of Supernatural Peace. When she's not cultivating words, she loves walking in nature, reading, exploring the latest health trends, and laughing with her two wonderful kids. She blogs at liamartinwriting.com.
Rise up and activate your whole being: “...let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us...” (Hebrews 12:1).
The Book of Hebrews confirms that the authority of Jesus supersedes all other voices, idols, or temptations. The writer is encouraging us, even today, to persevere.
It’s saying that even when we’re down, we are still surrounded by a supernatural cloud of witnesses to God’s majesty that will make the enemy his footstool.
When Satan is messing with your mind, you might find it helps to activate your body. Get up, change your surroundings, go for a walk — or even better — run. Cleanse whatever is clogging up your thoughts with the oxygen of God’s creation.
We are whole beings, and when our minds threaten to paralyze our bodies, it may be time to get fresh air.
--Lia Martin; Christianity.com; How Do We Take Our Thoughts Captive? 2.22.21
The Book of Hebrews confirms that the authority of Jesus supersedes all other voices, idols, or temptations. The writer is encouraging us, even today, to persevere.
It’s saying that even when we’re down, we are still surrounded by a supernatural cloud of witnesses to God’s majesty that will make the enemy his footstool.
When Satan is messing with your mind, you might find it helps to activate your body. Get up, change your surroundings, go for a walk — or even better — run. Cleanse whatever is clogging up your thoughts with the oxygen of God’s creation.
We are whole beings, and when our minds threaten to paralyze our bodies, it may be time to get fresh air.
--Lia Martin; Christianity.com; How Do We Take Our Thoughts Captive? 2.22.21
==ricardo martinez======
Inside the anti-LGBTQ effort to put Christianity back in schools
LGBTQ rights advocates warn that the rhetoric emanating out of some churches, where faith leaders and politicians have baselessly accused LGBTQ people of sexually “grooming” children, could lead to violence. “To watch faith weaponized in that way, I think, is really scary,” said Ricardo Martinez, the CEO of Equality Texas, an LGBTQ advocacy group. “That’s not a faith I recognize. It’s not the empathy, the compassion, the grace that I learned attending my church.”
(Mike Hixenbaugh and Antonia Hylton/NBC News 11/1/23) Read More>>>>>
LGBTQ rights advocates warn that the rhetoric emanating out of some churches, where faith leaders and politicians have baselessly accused LGBTQ people of sexually “grooming” children, could lead to violence. “To watch faith weaponized in that way, I think, is really scary,” said Ricardo Martinez, the CEO of Equality Texas, an LGBTQ advocacy group. “That’s not a faith I recognize. It’s not the empathy, the compassion, the grace that I learned attending my church.”
(Mike Hixenbaugh and Antonia Hylton/NBC News 11/1/23) Read More>>>>>
==steven r martins======
Steven R. Martins is the founding pastor of Sevilla Chapel and founding director of the Cántaro Institute in St. Catharines, Ontario. A second-generation Canadian, Steven is of Ibero-American parentage and has worked in the fields of missional apologetics and church leadership for ten years. He has spoken at numerous conferences, churches, and University student events, from York University, Toronto, to the University of West Indies in Port of Spain, Trinidad, and the national Universities of Costa Rica (UNCR and UNC) and the Evangelical University of El Salvador. He is the chief editor of the Celebration of Faith Series, author of Studies in Biblical Apologetics for a Christian Worldview, and has published several other books and monographs. He has also contributed articles to The Gospel Coalition in Spanish and the Siglo XXI journal of the reformed publishing house Editorial CLIR.
Steven holds a Master’s degree summa cum laude in Theological Studies with a focus on Christian apologetics from Veritas International University (Santa Ana, CA., USA) and a Bachelor of Human Resource Management from York University (Toronto, ON., Canada). Steven has served in the past with the Ezra Institute for Contemporary Christianity (EICC) in the roles of staff apologist, writer and director of ministry development and advancement (DMDA) over the course of four years. Steven presently serves on the executive board for Answers in Genesis Canada, and serves pastorally at Harbour Fellowship Church in St. Catharines.
Steven holds a Master’s degree summa cum laude in Theological Studies with a focus on Christian apologetics from Veritas International University (Santa Ana, CA., USA) and a Bachelor of Human Resource Management from York University (Toronto, ON., Canada). Steven has served in the past with the Ezra Institute for Contemporary Christianity (EICC) in the roles of staff apologist, writer and director of ministry development and advancement (DMDA) over the course of four years. Steven presently serves on the executive board for Answers in Genesis Canada, and serves pastorally at Harbour Fellowship Church in St. Catharines.
Steven R Martins Files
He says “let the waters under the heavens be gathered into one place,” referring to the fact that God had indeed covered the entire earth with water since the beginning. We find this to be an affirmation, not a contradiction, with the creation account. The waters are no different than what we know of today, as the Hebrew “mayim” refers to the basic element of water; they are the oceans of the Pacific and the Atlantic, but not divided, rather initially created as one. It should also be noted, considering the previous commentaries, that the waters being gathered were the waters beneath the heavens. In the previous passage, waters were separated from waters, and the breathable atmosphere was created as a result of God’s creative handiwork. This led many theologians and apologists to derive a protective layering theory. God is being incredibly precise and exact in that the waters He is gathering are not the waters above the expanse, or above the firmament, but the waters below the earthly heavens.
--Steven R Martins: Bible Commentary – Genesis 1:9
--Steven R Martins: Bible Commentary – Genesis 1:9
==Martin E Marty======
Martin Emil Marty (born February 5, 1928) is an American Lutheran religious scholar who has written extensively on religion in the United States.
