Ted Turner Partnering With the Church
Posted by Chris
"Christianity is a religion for losers" ~ Ted Turner
Apparently Ted has changed his tune, or he's at the very least softened a bit as he has gotten older. Last week the media mogul and founder of CNN announced a $200 million partnership with Lutherans & Methodists to fight Malaria in Africa.
I'll leave the typical base-level question Christians typically ask aside ("Does he really care or is this some kind of ploy?"). I don't really care what his motives are. The fact that he is doing what he is doing is incredible in my opinion. I also applaud the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod and the United Methodist Church for being willing to partner with Turner, regardless of his past or present comments or beliefs, in order to make a real difference in the world.
Maybe it is my Southern Baptist upbringing, but I can't say that I have typically seen churches stepping out to make a Kingdom of God impact & influence in this way in the world around them. My church experience growing up was pretty limited to seeing the Body of Christ (locally, at least) caring about the hereafter &, unfortunately, most humanitarian efforts were simply viewed as ends to a means (passing Bibles out alongside water bottles, etc.). I find it hard, as I've gotten older, to ignore the mandate we have as Christians to bring the Kingdom of God to those around us - and this is something that has an expressed 'present' influence that is at least as strong (if not more so) than having the typical 'future' influence we tend to focus all our attention on as the Church. Whether it is the constant calling out by God for us to reach out to our fellow man and help those who are in positions where they have difficulty helping themselves (the widows, orphans, poor, etc.), or it is Jesus praying that "Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven" - Christ is building the Kingdom in the lives of the living, ultimately to have its fulfillment in the hereafter - but we cannot ignore the 'here.'
On a side note, how great would it be to have a Bible reading campaign headlined by the fact that Ted Turner has read it cover to cover twice :-)
Apparently Ted has changed his tune, or he's at the very least softened a bit as he has gotten older. Last week the media mogul and founder of CNN announced a $200 million partnership with Lutherans & Methodists to fight Malaria in Africa.
Turner, 69, said he had only made a few disparaging comments a long time ago and that he is "always developing" his thinking as he grows older.
"I regret anything I said about religion that was negative," he told The Associated Press ahead of a news conference announcing the anti-malaria program.
"Ted Turner, Churches Fight Malaria", Yahoo! News, April 1, 2008
I'll leave the typical base-level question Christians typically ask aside ("Does he really care or is this some kind of ploy?"). I don't really care what his motives are. The fact that he is doing what he is doing is incredible in my opinion. I also applaud the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod and the United Methodist Church for being willing to partner with Turner, regardless of his past or present comments or beliefs, in order to make a real difference in the world.
Maybe it is my Southern Baptist upbringing, but I can't say that I have typically seen churches stepping out to make a Kingdom of God impact & influence in this way in the world around them. My church experience growing up was pretty limited to seeing the Body of Christ (locally, at least) caring about the hereafter &, unfortunately, most humanitarian efforts were simply viewed as ends to a means (passing Bibles out alongside water bottles, etc.). I find it hard, as I've gotten older, to ignore the mandate we have as Christians to bring the Kingdom of God to those around us - and this is something that has an expressed 'present' influence that is at least as strong (if not more so) than having the typical 'future' influence we tend to focus all our attention on as the Church. Whether it is the constant calling out by God for us to reach out to our fellow man and help those who are in positions where they have difficulty helping themselves (the widows, orphans, poor, etc.), or it is Jesus praying that "Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven" - Christ is building the Kingdom in the lives of the living, ultimately to have its fulfillment in the hereafter - but we cannot ignore the 'here.'
On a side note, how great would it be to have a Bible reading campaign headlined by the fact that Ted Turner has read it cover to cover twice :-)
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