DOUG PAGITT, ROB BELL AND THE SEEDS OF COMPASSION EVENT


A while back in an article entitled “The Emergent Church Is A Form of Paganism” Dr. John MacArthur had this to say about emerging church pastor Doug Pagitt:

Let me just cut to the chase on this one: [Doug] Pagitt is a Universalist. What he was saying is real simple. He was saying when you die your spirit goes to God and judgment means that whatever was not right about you, whatever was bad about you, whatever was substantially lacking about you, gets all resolved. It doesn’t matter whether you’re a Buddhist, a Hindu or a Muslim—doesn’t matter whether you’re a Christian really; we’re all going to end up in this wonderful, warm and fuzzy relationship with God. That’s just classic universalism. (Online source)

Apprising Ministries has also shown you in many pieces e.g. Rob Bell Says “All-ee In Free…Almost” that Rob Bell, a hugely popular icon in the emerging church, is also preaching a form of universalism. And today over at his blog Doug Pagitt, a leading spokesman for the Emergent Church, informs us about the upcoming Seeds of The Global Family oops, Compassion Event:

The event features The Dalai Lama and Desmond Tutu and a bunch of other people.

The event is designed for 10,000 and the tickets are mostly called for.

I am extremely excited about this event. Rob Bell is the only other friend who is part of the portion of the event I am part of, but the other panelists look terrific. (Online source)

Well, here’s who else is going to be at this gathering of apostates and unbelievers along with Pagitt and his friend Rob Bell, who is an “emergent Christian leader” according to the Seeds of Compassion website. Ah, I guess they’ve also mislabeled Bell as Emergent as well.

We’re told that Seeds of Compassion is:

An unprecedented gathering to engage the hearts and minds of our community by highlighting the vision, science, and programs of early social, emotional, and cognitive learning.

Anchored by the deep wisdom of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, this community–focused event will celebrate and explore the relationships, programs and tools that nurture and empower children, families and communities to be compassionate members of society.
(Online source, emphasis theirs)

And what is some of this supposed “deep wisdom” Guru Lama had for the Global Family: Why, the “religion” of the self—“as the Dalai Lama also said, ‘This is my simple religion. There is no need for temples; no need for complicated philosophy. Our own brain, our own heart is our temple; the philosophy is kindness’” (Online source)

Below are the names of those participating in “InterSpiritual Day” April 15, 2008 for “Youth & Spiritual Connection”:

His Holiness the Dalai Lama, a simple Buddhist monk
• Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Episcopal Archbishop of South Africa and Nobel Peace Prize Recipient
• Dr. Ingrid Mattson, President of the Islamic Society of North America
• Rabbi David Rosen, Chairman of the International Jewish Committee on Interreligious Consultations
• Roshi Joan Halifax, Zen Buddhist Master and abbess of Upaya Zen Center
• Rob Bell, emergent Christian leader, writer, and pastor of Mars Hill Bible Church in Grandville, Michigan
• Sister Joan Chittister, Benedictine Catholic nun, writer and teacher
• Pravrajika Vrajaprana, Hindu philosopher, writer, and teacher
• Doug Pagitt, evangelical author, pastor of Solomon’s Porch in Minneapolis, emergent Christian leader
• Episcopal Bishop Steven Charleston, President and Dean of Episcopal Divinity School and a Professor of Theology
• Linda Kavelin-Popov, co-founder of the Virtues Project
• Reverend Samuel Berry McKinney, civil rights leader and pastor emeritus of Mount Zion Baptist Church in Seattle
• Father William Treacy, Interfaith leader, founder of Camp Brotherhood
• Ahmed Tijani Ben Omar, Muslim scholar and spiritual leader
• Guru Singh, Sikh philosopher and spiritual leader
• Steven Shankman, the UNESCO Chair in Transcultural Studies, Interreligious Dialogue and Peace (Online source)

So these are the “other panelists” which emerging church pastor Doug Pagitt thinks “look terrific.” Then under “Why It Matters” we read:

Consider the following 7 easy practices for cultivating compassion in your life.

“I believe compassion to be one of the few things we can practice that will bring immediate and long-term happiness to our lives. I’m not talking about the short-term gratification of pleasures like sex, drugs or gambling (though I’m not knocking them), but something that will bring true and lasting happiness. The kind that sticks.”

– His Holiness the Dalai Lama

Just what might some of these “7 Easy Practices” be? Click on the link and over you go to the website Zen Habits, as in the pagan religion of Zen Buddhism. By the way, these are already listed under the “Why It Matters” section of the Seeds of Compassion website advertising the event featuring “Christian” pastors Doug Pagitt and Rob Bell. They consist of alleged spiritual disciplines such as “Morning Ritual,” “Empathy Practice,” “Commonalities Practice,” “Relief of Suffering Practice,” “Act of Kindness,” “Those Who Mistrust Us Practice,” and “Evening Practice.”

But the question evangelicals who are allowing teachers of this new spirituality and its counterfeit Christianity like Doug Pagitt and his pal Rob Bell into their churches need to be asking is: What would true ministers of the Gospel of Jesus Christ be doing lending their assitance credibility to those leading these children into Hell through sacrifices offered to demons in pagan religions?