PERSECUTED LEADER SPEAKS OUT
Posted by: prophetic <prophetic@...>
-Extracts by Michael Phillips.
"... It is with great pleasure that I want to present to our beloved
brothers and sisters in the church behind what we have called
the Iron Curtain these last fifty years, a check from money raised
by faithful believers across America.... Ladies and gentlemen," he
went on, "I want you to meet a man I know you are eager to hear
from, a man who carried the standard of the cross bravely, as you
know - imprisoned and tortured, he never gave in to those who
would destroy his faith. And so now, Dieder - Dieder Palacki,
won't you please come, accept this money on behalf of Christians
behind the Iron Curtain everywhere. I have here a check for three
million dollars to give you!"
At the words, sighs and gasps and a few low whistles could be
heard, all of which gave way to a round of applause. He turned,
expecting Palacki to stand, come forward and shake the
outstretched hand that awaited him.
But instead Palacki remained seated where he was, until the
clapping died down. At last he rose, came forward, took the
check, shook MacPatricks hand unaggressively, but still said
nothing. Slightly unnerved, but still not losing his cool,
MacPatrick resumed his own seat with the other dignitaries.
Slowly Palacki make his way toward the podium. He appeared
not even to notice the applauding reception that broke out again,
and in his eyes was not a look of warmth.
Reaching the center of the platform, he did not lift his head to
scan the faces of his listeners. Gradually the clapping died down
and the hall fell silent. Still Palacki stared downward in front of
him, while the delegates waited expectantly.
It was several long moments before he at last spoke. "It has
been a curious past several days," he began, speaking softly.
"I have been listening with great interest to the many discussions
and exhortations, all with the end in view of promoting the
Christian faith in a region of the world where one might conclude
never before had a single soul heard the name Jesus of Nazareth."
"I must admit that when the invitation came to join you, and even
to address this gathering, I found myself seized with a certain
trepidation. As you know, large assemblies of Christians such
as this have not been customary where I come from, and thus
most of my work among Christians has been in small groups of
less than one hundred. Addressing several thousand I found a
very intimidating prospect."
"In the end however, I decided to join you, for we pastors and
Christians from the regions formerly behind the Iron Curtain are
certainly excited about the new possibilities for evangelism in our
nations too."
"But as I listened to more and more talk of money and pamphlets,
of missionaries being sent and books being shipped, of teachers
and pastors coming to help and train us in spreading the gospel,
and of your gospel TV and radio stations and your gospel trains
and gospel trucks full of your Western-style gospel paraphernalia -
your badges and tracts and stickers and music and gaily written
happiness-books with their joy-filled, razzle-dazzle Christianity - a
knot has steadily risen in my stomach."
"Do not forget, I have spent much time in your countries. I have
been in your churches and bookstores. I have witnessed with my
own eyes the trappings of your so-called spiritual prosperity,
which is really no prosperity at all, but a hollow empty shell."
"Something within me wants to shout and say to you all, "Go
home to your contented and wealthy homes and communities
and churches. The Good News of Jesus Christ is alive and
vibrant and is fully capable of carrying itself abroad into the hearts
of hungry men and women without the benefit of your expensive
and lavish commercial efforts on its behalf."
"Why do you think that those of us such as my brothers
Wurmbrand and Duduman and Vins and others have been
risking our lives for all these years? Each of us has been
imprisoned, beaten, tortured, humiliated because of our preaching
of Christ's gospel. Thousands upon thousands of our fellow Poles
and Russians and Slavs and East Germans have laid their lives on
the line for the sake of their faith and in order to share that faith with
others."
"I tell you, my friends, God's church is alive and well in the areas
you represent as lost and in such desperate need. Small, perhaps,
it may be, but it is alive and thriving because in our corners of the
world there is a price to be paid to call yourself a disciple of the
Lord Jesus Christ. A price that cannot be measured, as you seem
to measure all things - by money. No, you who hear my words who
I hope and pray are my brothers and sisters, it costs to believe in
the East. It costs all you have to be a Christian. So there are very
few lukewarm, halfhearted souls among us. To be halfhearted can
cost you your life!"
"For years we have tried to alert you Christians of the West to the
true state of affairs behind the Iron Curtain. We have written, we
have traveled, we have spoken, we have prayed, we have wept."
"How many of you listened to us?"
"My brother and friend Alexandr Solzhenitsyn attempted for a
decade to be heard, as have so many others. We asked for your
prayers, for Bibles, for help in teaching and training our people.
And some help did come, for which we were grateful."
"But the rest of you continued to feed your own mammoth
religious systems, building yet bigger and bigger transmitting
stations and more television stations and publishing more books -
all in the name of proclaiming the gospel."
"But did you ever give of yourselves? Did you come help us? Did
you pray for us? Did you suffer and die and starve with us? How
much did you really care about the people you now so pompously
think you will save for the kingdom?"
"Where have you been all this time? We needed your help and
prayers and support and Bibles when times were hard! We have
been beaten and imprisoned and even killed for the gospel's sake.
Where were you when it counted? We lived our faith behind the
Iron Curtain, and now that it is down, who is to say we even want
you coming with your pompous egoism and self-reliance?.... Do
you truly expect us to share your enthusiasm and welcome you
and your wealthy brand of capitalistic Christianity with open arms?"
"Think again, my friends, those I would still call my brothers and
sisters in spite of your blindness. Pause and consider the egotism
of your presumption and the worldliness of your method."
By now the auditorium was filled with the heaviness of shocked
silence. No one dared move a muscle or so much as shift in his
seat. But Palacki's chastening diatribe was not over yet.
"How dare you well-fed, contented, prosperous Christians of the
West, come here now and think you can throw your money at us
poor unfortunates and suddenly save the world with all the gadgets
and inventions and high-tech wizardry of electronic spirituality! You
with your multi-million-dollar architecturally imposing churches, you
with your computer Bibles and preprogrammed Bible Studies, you
with your posh cars and soft, upholstered pews, your grand libraries
of Christian books, your leather-bound reference Bibles, you who have
all the answers to the world's ills nicely at hand to spout off when
asked."
"Have we Christians of the East been idle all this time? What
would you have us to do, go off quietly somewhere so you can
come in and pat yourselves on the back before your watching
congregations and claim credit for saving all the souls who would
be lost without you?"
"No my shallow brothers and sisters of wealthy, contented
Western evangelicalism! Build a prayer tower or a glass church
somewhere, but think not that your money can save souls. Go
back from whence you came, and spend your evangelistic self-
gratifying mammon elsewhere!"
Suddenly he stopped, stood another two or three seconds gazing
at his listeners with calm countenance, yet flaming eyes. Then,
with decisive motion he ripped the check he was still holding into
several pieces and let it drop to the floor.
Palacki turned and strode off the platform and out of sight, leaving
his hearers gaping in stunned silence.
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[-Source: http://www.handofhelp.com/michael_5.php ]