Expose the IRD

It is time to get the word out. The following announcement has been sent to all United Methodist clergy in the area. I will get it to the Presbyterians and the Episcopalians. If you are near our mountain, I hope to see you next Sunday evening.

First Presbyterian Church of Elizabethton will be showing the film, Renewal or Ruin? on Sunday, April 27th at 7 p.m. The film focuses on the the Institute on Religion and Democracy (IRD) and its attack on mainline churches. Since its beginning in 1982, the IRD has continuously undermined the United Methodist Church and other mainline Protestant denominations by attacking the character of church leaders.

This organization, funded by some of the world's most powerful foundations, seeks to move three denominations, the PCUSA, the United Methodist Church, and the Episcopal Church toward rigid doctrine, silence their social witness and undermine the witness of the church by fueling controversy to its own benefit.

Renewal or Ruin? exposes the IRD's tactics and sources of its funding. In the film, researchers, church leaders and others talk about their findings and experiences with this Washington, DC organization that foments dissension in the body of Christ.

The producer of the film, Holston’s (United Methodist Church) own Rev. Steven D. Martin, will be present to answer questions and talk about why he felt the need to produce this film. From the United Methodist Reporter on April 16, 2007:

Rev. Martin chose to tackle the Washington, D.C.-based IRD after he noticed last summer that a divisive resolution introduced at his Holston Annual Conference meeting had been lifted word-for-word from the IRD's Web site….When he later wrote about his experience on a Web site, he says the IRD staff attempted to intimidate him. He'd heard about those kind of tactics, but hadn't experienced it for himself. Until then. “That's when I decided it was my problem, and it was time to take action,” Mr. Martin said. “hearing about this kind of hardball was an eye-opener. I want people to know about it. If Holston's no longer safe, no place is.”

Please plan to attend this presentation of this eye-opening film. Questions may be directed to Rev. John Shuck at First Presbyterian Church. First Presbyterian Church is located at 119 West F Street, Elizabethton, TN 37643. The film will be screened in Martin Hall, on the ground level.