Controversy FAQ Interview Question 1

Is Jesus Christ central to the teachings of ACCD Trainings? What do you say to the charge that ACCD is a secular, humanistic, or even a New Age organization masquerading underneath a nominally Christian garb?

Those are two different questions. Let's answer them one at a time.

Is Jesus Christ central to the teachings of ACCD Trainings? Jesus Christ is the foundation of ACCD's whole mission. He is central to the trainings. Jesus Christ is who we look to serve with all that we do. The entire focus of what we're up to is reconciliation with God and with man, and our beliefs are that outside of the mediation of Jesus Christ, such reconciliation is impossible. Therefore, He's the central focus and the necessary and vital element in everything we do.

As to the charge that ACCD is a secular or humanistic or New Age organization in Christian garb, there's a problem with the question in terms of how it's being asked. Mainly, because it's loaded with ambiguous terms, and any answer that's given, without first clarifying the terms, acknowledges and implicitly validates the ambiguity. What does New Age mean? Is the person who's asking the question clear about what they mean by it? Are they clear about what the person being asked means by it? Are the two parties aligned in their understanding? The term "New Age" is often used as a straw man argument to mask other agendas.

The answer to this question is no, with the caveat that the interviewer understands what we understand the phrase "New Age" to mean, which is man setting himself up to be God. Now, we do believe in man's responsibility in responding to God's call to salvation. We invite people to recognize their personal responsibility in life, not in the sense that personal responsibility determines outcomes in life, but rather is a way of responding to the life that God has called us to.

Like a farmer sowing a field, people take responsibility to prepare and maintain the field of their own lives and to take responsibility for their dreams, and they offer those things up to God. A farmer sows and does all he can to prepare the field to contribute to the environment of the field, though God is the author of weather and everything else and, ultimately, the fruit that the farmer gains only comes from God's blessing. But nothing would have been realized if the farmer did not take responsibility to respond to God's laws of sowing and reaping and farming in order to open up the greatest possibility for God to bless him.

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