The Truth Project
It is very emotional and contains a lot of biblical truth. But unfortunately it also draws its viewers into Dominionism/Re-constructionism Theology. This agenda is only visible if you know and understand these doctrines, and realize that Mr. Tackett is promoting these things.
You can learn from it and a lot of it is good but the dangers of the doctrine being advanced outweigh the benefit.
Several of the women were brought to tears during some of the sessions. It plays on your emotions and is completely shrouded in secrecy as to their true agenda.
Very well done; a marvelous deception.
It is trickery because they are not honest about what they are doing.
The Truth Project Promotes:
Christian Re-constructionism/Dominionism: (Re-constructionists believe that through the application of God's Laws the earth will be transformed and the Kingdom of God ushered in.
Ecumenism)
Calvinist Dominionism
Covenant/Replacement Theology (The Church replaces Israel)
A-millennialism (The idea that the millennium isn’t a literal time period)
CSM (Contemplative Spiritual Mysticism)
Contemplative Prayer
The Missing Gospel of Salvation
The Participants
Del Tackett:
5 Point Calvinist
Covenant Theology
Works with Coral Ridge Ministries
Former president of the Focus on the Family
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The Truth Project heavily promotes Father Sirico:
Catholic Priest
Gay Activist Priest (Performed the first-ever civil-licensed same-sex marriage.)
President of the Acton Institute
Notable Sirico Quotes:
“Let me assure you that a good portion of what we (Acton Institute) do you never hear about because we do it very discretely and can’t advertise it. But what we are doing is dramatically reshaping the moral eco-system on the critical question of the nature of human liberty, both socially and theologically.” ~Rev. Robert A. Sirico at the 2012 Acton Institute Annual Dinner (Elected Officials present)
“I worked on the editorial committee of the Manhattan Declaration…” (More on the Manhattan Declaration later)
“Man is Co-Creator with God.”~ The Truth Project
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“Another example, and I believe an important one, has to do with one of the most well-known and influential evangelical organizations in America. Robert Siciro is a Protestant turned Catholic Paulist priest, and he is one of the featured speakers in the very popular Truth Project by Focus on the Family. While the Paulist Order is not a Jesuit Order, it has basically the same objective as the Jesuit order with regard to winning souls for the Catholic church. According to one Catholic source , the Paulist order is “A community of priests for giving missions and doing other Apostolic works, especially for making converts to the Catholic faith.” Robert Siciro is President of the Acton Institute, an ecumenical think tank where, incidentally, there are scores of articles by or about those in the Catholic faith, including a number of Jesuits. Now, through the Truth Project, thousands and thousands of evangelical/Protestant Christians have been introduced, by way of proxy, to the Eucharistic Evangelization”.~Roger Oakland Understand The Times.org
http://www.acton.org/about/history-acton-institute
http://www.renewamerica.com/columns/engel/120412
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Basil Penningtion: (The Truth Project Promotes him)
A leading Roman Catholic spiritual writer, speaker, teacher, and director
“Thomas Keating and Basil Pennington have taken their Christianity and blended it with Eastern mysticism through a contemplative method they call centering prayer…Keating and Pennington have both authored a number of influential books on contemplative prayer thus advancing this movement greatly.”~Lighthouse Trails
The Sovereign Sphere’s idea comes from Abraham Kuyper:
“Kuyper's "spheres" theology has been continually hybridized, homogenized and recontextualized over the years. Many of his teachings have formed the basis of the fundamental paradigm shift in how neoevangelicals view the church and the world. This blog characterizes the generic version of these teachings as Dominionism…1) The effect of this "spheres" doctrine on two leaders of two of the most prominent evangelical mission groups has utterly changed the face of modern evangelical missions. It has changed the focus from spreading the Gospel, to changing the culture and society of nations by operating within and upon the "spheres." No matter what the original intent of Kuyper might have been, this is the ultimate conclusion. The biblical Gospel of Salvation has been transformed into the "Gospel of the Kingdom….2) When C. Peter Wagner comes out of the closet openly now as a Dominionist (see previous two posts on this topic), and assigns the men in his apostolic empire to these "spheres," it is time to sit up and take notice. The ultimate application of Kuyperian teachings can be nothing less than despotism in the name of Christ.”~Herescope
(I have a write up on the New Apostolic Reformation and C. Peter Wagner if you are interested.)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K8B1A7oPe-8
Further reading regarding “The Truth Project”
http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/blog/?tag=the-truth-project
http://procinwarn.net/2012/05/01/the-truth-project-twisted-scripture/
http://www.thebereancall.org/content/less-truthful-truth-project
“Focus on the Family has launched a project called "The Truth Project," a DVD small group curriculum to train believers in a "biblical worldview." This quotation above is an example of the psychological use of the term, which gets into the realm of feelings and emotions, i.e. "Transition." This quotation also brings in the political/cultural use of the term.
Using a classic "bait and switch" technique, the article leads believers through a set of questions that disarm them into accepting the "biblical worldview" of Focus on the Family. No one dares answer "no" to any of these questions. But readers are told that their own "personal worldviews" are likely to have been corrupted by the "world" and that therefore they need to "capture and embrace more of God's worldview" (however that is defined by Focus on the Family) so that they can begin to make "right decisions" about their life.
Notice also the evocative technique that utilizes George Barna's polls. Barna plays a pivotal role in helping neoevangelical leaders "create a crisis" with his polling. Once he establishes that there is a "need" then people respond to these "felt needs" by being sucked into the Transformation process. The "solution" to this "crisis" is, of course, more worldview training.
In the days to come, Herescope will examine the roots and the fruits of this "worldview" agenda in more detail. There are many examples of this new emphasis coming from all quarters of Church Transformation and, not surprisingly, most of them are interconnected.”
The Truth:
"Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ. For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily." (Col. 2:7-8)
~Herescope
“A Crisis of Ethics-Doing The Right Thing” and “The Manhattan Declaration”
I personally attended a showing of “Doing The Right Thing” with the same friend who hosted The Truth Project. This is another Program that plays on the emotions of people who concerned about the state of the world and its future. They focus on Human dignity and the right to life, which are certainly noble goals. It’s also a “good idea” to try to have better ethics thereby affecting our world, but when our sole focus is redirected on making this world a better place, in lieu of sharing the gospel, we’re now heading down the path of Dominionism. We’re plainly told that this world will proceed from bad to worse, and then the Lord will come to set up his millennial kingdom.
Participants: Of various fields of study including history, business, ethics, and philosophy
Chuck Colson-
Holds to a modified teaching of Re-constructionism and modern day Dominionism
Host, Eric Metaxas-
Serves on the vestry of Calvary/St. George's Episcopal Church
Brit Hume
Del Tackett
Dr. Robert George-
Catholic
Ben Stien-
Ethics Movie
Jim Grant
Donovan Campbell
Michael Miller-
Catholic
Director of Programs at the Acton Institute
David Miller
Glen Sunshine
Neil Plantinga
Joni Erikson Tada
Alveda King
Eric Pillmore
Doug Devos
Scott Rae
John Stonestreet-
Shared role with the Colson Center/Breakpoint and Summit Ministries
Dr. Ken Swan
Dr. Chris Hook
They include in their 25 min trailer after Chuck Colson says “The Bible says it’s written on our heart” (Though he does not state what IT is. Thus it is assumed that the IT is ethics.) A college student audience member says this, “Perhaps it’s written on the heart however, an increasingly popular view especially in evolutionary biology is that it’s written on the genes.”
Quotes from their program:
“Our Culture is beginning to disintegrate”
“Individually and corporately, the evidence continues to mount of a serious crisis of character. What used to be a nagging suspicion is now revealed daily: something is terribly amiss in our society.
We must get on the playing field and winsomely retake the high moral ground--before it's too late.
The time is right for a bold movement to help rediscover Natural Law and to apply it in their personal and professional lives. Time is of the essence if we are to help turn our culture around and you can be a vital part of it in your spheres of influence.”
~Doing The Right Thing.com [About]
Their plan is to show the program in homes, schools, and churches. (Much like The Truth Project)
People are “studying” this program in Home fellowships. They sell a “Packet”.
“Take it, take it, take it, get people watching.”
“We have people saying: “We need a secular study guide”, so we provide it” –Colson
Colson quotes Pope John Paul: “If we can get people to see there is a better way to live…”
George quotes Saks-Chief Rabbi of London: “…marrying the church with secular society”
“Who’s to say? YOU ARE!...we don’t need the Bible to show it’s unreasonable to sin,”
-Miller
“Truth is conforming the mind to reality….you don’t need Jesus to say….”-Miller
“This whole Dominionist thing would go crazy”-Stonestreet
Michael Miller quotes Peter Drucker (Doing The Right Thing - Ethics Tour - Dallas - Panel Discussion-YouTube @1.27min)
[Peter Drucker: Business and Leadership Network. Writer of Emerging Spirituality; he was formulating ideas that would be integrated into what would become the emerging church fifty years later. “we will create a new philosophy–a fresh way of looking at the world,”; Drucker’s attraction to the mystical did not end with his fascination for Buber and Kierkegaard. In 1990, Drucker established the Leader to Leader Institute, an interspiritual thought forum, which to this day includes Buddhist sympathizers, globalists, evangelicals, and New Age sympathizers.-Lighthouse Trails]
Chuck Colson quotes Fred Niche-Humanist, “Will to power”.
“How do we rebuild virtue? “Doing The Right Thing” brings hope rather than, “The World is going to hell and there’s nothing we can do about it.” –Colson
“Reformation of Virtue”
“A transformation of the will. Help show a better way”
“Eugene Peterson (author of The Message) took what Niche (Humanist) said and sanctified it.”
Quotes were made from C.S. Lewis (who has serious theological problems)
“We need things that Catechize us”
Tackett and George quote “Early Church Fathers,” Augustus, Plato, Ancient Greeks, Aristotle-“we become good by performing good acts and so for wicked.”
“Must we suppose giving witness to Christ is enough..?”
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At the end of their Program they give a plug to another “Project” they have been working on: “The Manhattan Declaration”.
You can read up on that here: More Dominionism/Bait and Switch.
http://www.crossroad.to/articles2/009/discernment/12-manhattan-declaration.htm
Conclusion:
When The Truth Project, Doing The Right Thing series is completed it leads you to believe that we can transform the culture.
As an example my Christian friend who hosted this series fervently went around saying: “We MUST DO something!!” What did she mean? Restoring virtue, dignity, and human worth will always end in hell without the application of, and belief in, the gospel. What we have with these “Projects” and “Programs” is an Ecumenical melting pot of setting the stage for the anti-Christ to take his stand. Sadly of these put us on a road that is unbiblical and goes against 2 Timothy Chapter 3.
2 Timothy 3:1-9 (NASB)
1 But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come.
2 For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy,
3 unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good,
4 treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God,
5 holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power; Avoid such men as these.
6 For among them are those who enter into households and captivate weak women weighed down with sins, led on by various impulses,
7 always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.
8 Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so these men also oppose the truth, men of depraved mind, rejected in regard to the faith.
9 But they will not make further progress; for their folly will be obvious to all, just as Jannes's and Jambres's folly was also.
2 Timothy 3:13 (NASB)
But evil men and impostors will proceed from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived.
Colossians 3:2 (NASB)
Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth.
I submit that they are building Satan’s/The Antichrist’s Kingdom that in the end will wage war with God.
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