@TheIRD

The Institute on Religion & Democracy is a Christian think tank affirming historic church teaching with democracy, human rights & religious freedom for all.

 Washington, D.C.
linktr.ee/TheIRD
Joined August 2009
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Join us Wed, Oct 28, 6pm for dinner & conversation with Dr. Phillip W. Magness, Senior Fellow at Independent Institute & David J. Theroux Chair in Political Economy. The New Whiggery extols classical liberty & its roots in transcendence, celebrating best of Anglo-American political tradition. We are a salon for DC Whiggish minded young professionals. @TheIRD @new_whigs theird.org/events/october-ne…

October New Whiggery Dinner with Phillip Magness - The Institute on Religion and Democracy

Please join us Wednesday, October 28, 6pm for dinner and conversation with Dr. Phillip W. Magness. He is a Senior...

theird.org
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This vote will encourage others to follow. But United Methodist congregations don’t own their property. So exit from denomination means litigation, purchase or negotiation. Easier for big wealthy churches, less so for others.
Tim Lee
@MarineTimLee21h
The second-largest United Methodist Church in America voted overwhelmingly to leave the denomination. Members of Highland Park United Methodist Church in Dallas overwhelmingly voted on Oct. 25-26 to leave The United Methodist Church. Of the 4,775 votes cast, 90.35% voted to “sever all of its ties, affiliations, and connections to The United Methodist Church,” according to a letter sent to Highland Park members on Oct. 26. I predict many more will do the same. umnews.org/en/news/highland-…

Highland Park votes to leave United Methodist Church | UMNews.org

After two days of voting, members of the Dallas congregation overwhelmingly approved a resolution severing ties with The United Methodist Church. More than 90% voted in favor of the move, according...

umnews.org
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An executive at a Mainline Protestant seminary recently laughingly referred to his school as “dying” though it’s wealthy. This evinces the fatalism that plagues the Mainline. There’s no way up. Reversal would entail questioning too many assumptions. 😢
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😵😢
Kingston Booke
@KingstonBookeOct 26
James Fishback is delivering his speech at Liberty University in Lynchburg to a MASSIVE crowd. America First is inevitable.
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The Reformers held that medieval worship relegated ordinary lay worshippers largely as spectators to the ceremonies performed by priests. @RickPlasterer looks at presentations on the reformation of worship in England, Scotland, and Evangelicalism today. juicyecumenism.com/2026/10/2…

Reformed Worship and Its Justification - Part 2

The right worship of God was the final end which the Reformation sought.

juicyecumenism.com
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It would be interesting to know if members George & Laura Bush participated in congregational vote. 👂
@markdtooley
@markdtooley22h
Glad to see they are keeping “Methodist” in church name & cite their “Wesleyan theological tradition.”
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Glad to see they are keeping “Methodist” in church name & cite their “Wesleyan theological tradition.”
@markdtooley
@markdtooley22h
United Methodism’s likely largest church has voted to quit denomination. My background below.
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RT @markdtooley: United Methodism’s likely largest church h has voted to quit denomination. My background below.
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My @theird weekly email: Methodist plunge, Reagan vs Gorbachev, Episcopal losses, Reformed worship, C.S. Lewis and Meryl Streep, & more - mailchi.mp/indefenseofchrist…
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On this 40th anniversary of Reykjavik summit, I really enjoyed chatting with Reagan's arms control director Ken Adelman on his new book "The Brink of War: Inside Reagan-Gorbachev Weekend That Changed the World." @ProvMagazine youtu.be/Eyf3Lvofxn4

The Brink of War: Inside the Reagan-Gorbachev Weekend that Changed the World

Providence Editor-in-Chief Mark Tooley interviews Ken Adelman about...

youtube.com
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The regulative principle of worship moderated in the past century, but continues to be a lodestar in the Calvinist world. @RickPlasterer reports on those who instruct worship be austere, focused particularly on preaching. Must we eschew rich liturgies?juicyecumenism.com/2026/10/2…

Reformed Worship and Its Justification - Part 1

The Regulative Principle ... instructs that Christian worship should involve only those things that the Bible prescribes for public worship, and has historically directed that worship be austere.

juicyecumenism.com
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Speechwriter Sam Rosenman’s recall of FDR’s spirituality.
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Very easy to picture among some theobros & arch Christian Nationalists.
Aaron M. Renn 🇺🇸
@aaron_rennOct 26
I believe we are going to see more and more Protestant churches affirm polygamy. It's actually not a huge step once you adopt the sort of hyper-literal Biblicism that's already the de facto approac in that world. It won't be the mainstream view, but could get traction.
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The Religious Left virtually disappeared because it depended on Mainline Protestantism, which imploded. The Evangelical Left virtually disappeared because it couldn’t stay orthodox on sexuality & ceased being Evangelical.
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“Bapticostalism” describes much of not most of what is today’s non-Catholic USA Christianity.
Derek Rishmawy@DZRishmawyOct 22
Much as I wish it weren’t the case there’s a lot of truth to this. The buzz has been about Catholicism in, but on campus I know as a Presbyterian for most kids the draw is not to Rome, but Bapticostalism. That said, theological diffusion being what it is, those boundaries are…
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Great hymn this morning
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I agree if “Wesleyan” describes broadly free will “Baptists” who are still “once saved, always saved,” & if “charismatic” means raised hands but not speaking in tongues etc. “Evangelical” is a conglomerate of traditions. And as Tocqueville noted nearly 200 years ago, Americans don’t care much about religious dogma.
Dale M. Coulter@DaleMCoulterOct 24
Replying to @DaleMCoulter
6/Final hypothesis: The "typical" American Protestant attends a congregationalist church in polity, is Wesleyan-Arminian in theology, & is Charismatic in terms of worship & spiritual gifts. In this sense, @matthewschmitz is correct re strongest currents.
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"John Piper is an evangelical. Paula White is an evangelical. What do these two have in common? Not much. Both are Protestant church leaders. Neither is a 'liberal.' Yet they inhabit different theological galaxies."
David F. Watson
@dfwatson3Oct 24
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Hypothesis: “Prayer” mtgs between clergy & politicians shouldn’t be photographed, videoed or publicized.
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“The Institute on Religion and Democracy, headed up by my friend Mark Tooley, was established in 1981 to push back against theological liberalism and the influence of communist/socialist ideologies in mainline denominations.” @TheIRD
David F. Watson
@dfwatson3Oct 24
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