The sign of things to come

[WageSlave]

Couldn't have been the first in the country. That was safely stored in Threaded's workshop.

[Chico]

Not So Wise ... how would you accomodate 30,000 worshippers ever week? In an aircraft hangar?

[hyperD]

Oi Chico!

As you are a fan of blind cut n paste, I thought I'd do the same:

The Feb. 9, 1998, issue of Christianity Today featured a four-page news report on the Alpha Course titled “The Alpha-Brits Are Coming.” The magazine explained the acronym ALPHA:

“A—Anyone interested in finding out more about the Christian faith; L—Learning and Laughter; P—Pasta (eating together gives people the chance to know each other); H—Helping one another (small groups are used for discussion of issues raised during the lectures); A—Ask anything. No question is seen as too simple or too hostile.”

The same article went on to say that not all is well in Alpha land:

“An infectious enthusiasm, entrepreneurial spirit, and a bold plan for growth are all trademarks among Alpha’s top leaders. But not everyone is cheering Alpha onward. Some church leaders have found Alpha teaching too charismatic, too experience-driven, and too negative about traditional churches. Martyn Percy, director of the Lincoln Theological Institute for the Study of Religion and Society of the University of Sheffield, England, has commented about Alpha that it is ‘a package rather than a pilgrimage.’ In a recent essay, he said, ‘It is a confident but narrow expression of Christianity, which stresses the personal experience of the Spirit over the Spirit in the church. ... The Alpha approach has been faulted for pushing an experience-driven approach to evangelism that sidesteps intellectual difficulties.”

There is no doubting that the Alpha program, like many other fads, caught on with the help of slick marketing by David C. Cook Communications and is enjoying worldwide success, at least for now. The previously mentioned Christianity Today advertisement says that a half-million people took the course in 1997 alone.

Let me show you a parallel:-

Name: Amway
Description: Network marketing
From: USA
Target: Gullible yanks & brits
Tools: Videos, tapes, books, meetings
Objectives: Get to weekend meetings to meet leaders. During the presentation, manage negatives by tapes and segregation from others
Symptoms: Avoidance of non- believers, including family, friends and vast amounts of time & money spent

Name: Alpha
Description: Christian branded marketing
From: USA
Target: Gullible yanks & brits
Tools: Videos, tapes, books, meetings
Objectives: Get to weekend meetings to meet leaders. During the presentation, manage negatives by tapes and segregation from others
Symptoms: Avoidance of non- believers, including family, friends and vast amounts of time & money spent

[Lucifer Box]

Couldn't have been the first in the country. That was safely stored in Threaded's workshop.

Blimey, perhaps my mate's dad was Threaded? No, can't have been. He had no time machine and drove a Cortina.

[hattra]

He had no time machine and drove a Cortina.

So what shape did you think a time-machine was then?

[Chico]

hyper -I am sure you can always find anyone to knock anything. What have you got against The Alpha Course? 7 million people worldwide and counting. Instead of knocking something you do not know why dont you find out for yourself? Or are you happy to moan and groan by proxy? Is there more to life than this.com

[Lucifer Box]

So what shape did you think a time-machine was then?

Like a police box, or am I just being naiive?

[WageSlave]

The Alpha website has been blocked by my client. It also blocks art sites. Ironically, I'm sure I could access German porn sites if I tried

[hattra]

Like a police box, or am I just being naiive?

Only if it moves in space as well as time - if it doesn't move in space, then a Cortina was a perfect disguise

[WageSlave]

Only if it moves in space as well as time - if it doesn't move in space, then a Cortina was a perfect disguise

If it was built by Threaded, it would definitely move in space.