Ecumenists close Henry Cooke’s old church, May Street Presbyterian as charismatics take over

Old dead ecumenism in the traditional churches has led to the ringing of many a death knell on old churches and May Street Presbyterian Church is the latest to fall victim to the onward march of ecumenical compromise.

Once the clerical domain of that great Presbyterian figure, Rev Henry Cooke, who led the purging of Arians and Arminians from his denomination, May Street has long been reduced to a husk of a church, hence its closure as of last week.

Sad as it is to see a church go, it is equally sad to see it will now be put to use by some of the leading figures in the charismatic movement in Northern Ireland.

Central Belfast, a church under the auspices of Carnmoney Presbyterian Church, will take over the running of the church.

Readers of ‘Protestant Revival’ will be well aware of Carnmoney Presbyterian Church.

We first highlighted the antics which go on under its roof when we pointed out the foolish, irreverent action of its minister, Rev John Dickinson, who allowed himself to be carried out of the church in a ‘crowd surfing’ manner by the foolish people in attendance.

This action, in fairness to Rev John Dickinson (pictured, below), was prompted and encouraged by that leader of the 24-7 Prayer movement and ardent ecumenist, Pete Greig.

We previously wrote about him helping the Roman Catholic Church to lure more people through its doors and about how he claimed God had told him that He was “quite enjoying” a bunch of young women prayer dancing to the music of ABBA.

And it was his prompting which led to the embarrassing incident in Carnmoney Presbyterian Church, which saw Rev John Dickinson later giving a rather sheepish interview to the Belfast Telegraph indicating he didn’t plan to repeat such a ludicrous activity.

However, Rev John Dickinson was then entirely responsible for his actions when he tweeted his excitement at reading the life story of Vicky Beeching, noted Contemporary Christian Musician and so-called ‘gay Christian’, who describes herself as an ‘LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender) equality campaigner’.

The book he expressed delight at reading is entitled ‘Undivided: Coming Out, Becoming Whole, And Living Free From Shame’, hardly a subtle title.

Regardless, these are the credentials of the minister of the parent church which has taken over the May Street Presbyterian Church building.

The old congregation has left after 190 years of worship on that site and, glorying in ecumenical compromise to the end, had a Romanist priest in attendance to wave them off.

‘Father’ Michael McGinnity of the nearby St Malachy’s Roman Catholic Church, which, a Belfast Telegraph article reporting on the matter says has “long been associated” with May Street Presbyterian Church, did a reading at the meeting.

May Street Presbyterian Church played host to a meeting of the ‘Thy Kingdom Come’ prayer initiative last May, organised by the local leader of the 24-7 Prayer movement, Alain ‘Ecumenical’ Emerson, the glorifier of Jesuit founder Ignatius of Loyola and lead pastor of Emmanuel Church in the Craigavon area.

‘Thy Kingdom Come’ is an ecumenical prayer initiative and has the backing of Rome, who produce prayer guides for those looking to take part in it.

And there it was, devoted to ecumenism to the last, even though departure from God is what closed it.

The church has amalgamated with Fisherwick Presbyterian Church and is the second ecumenical Presbyterian church to close in the past few months. It is following hot on the heels of Fortwilliam and Macrory Presbyterian Church, itself an amalgamation and formerly led by ‘Rev’ Lesley Carroll, a woman who expressed her desire for ecumenism to make progress in Northern Ireland at a Week of Prayer for Christian Unity event in a Roman Catholic chapel in County Tyrone.

She is also the Deputy Chief Commissioner of the (In)Equality Commission which brought the disgraceful legal action against Asher’s bakery.

This clearly demonstrates that ecumenism, which is a departure from God’s Word, leads to destruction, as has befallen Fortwilliam and Macrory and now May Street Presbyterian churches.

Jeremiah 29:17-19 speaks of how the people of Israel were warned about their apostasy yet failed to listen to God’s servants and they were taken into captivity by the Babylonians.

Ulster has had many faithful servants speaking out against ecumenism and other forms of religious betrayal. However, so many have refused to listen and May Street is the latest to reap this sorry harvest.

Those verses say: “Thus saith the Lord of hosts; Behold, I will send upon them the sword, the famine, and the pestilence, and will make them like vile figs, that cannot be eaten, they are so evil. And I will persecute them with the sword, with the famine, and with the pestilence, and will deliver them to be removed to all the kingdoms of the earth, to be a curse, and an astonishment, and an hissing, and a reproach, among all the nations whither I have driven them: Because they have not hearkened to my words, saith the Lord, which I sent unto them by my servants the prophets, rising up early and sending them; but ye would not hear, saith the Lord.”

The service at May Street was called a ‘Dawning Of A New Era’ service, which is something of a fairly euphemistic badge to put upon death.

However, there is an element of accuracy to this as well as it refers to the new era of charismatism taking over as the chief interest of much of professing Christendom.

Just as straightforward ecumenism was de rigueur a number of decades ago, the charismatic movement, which eschews traditional, Biblical theology in favour of creating a venue of entertainment, is now all the rage.

The old dead churches are striving to survive by bringing in the rock bands and turning church into a concert and, in many cases, are currently enjoying a surge in popularity.

And, with Central Belfast, headed up by Rev John Dickinson’s son, David Dickinson (pictured, top), that is exactly what is happening.

David Dickinson also presumably didn’t have an issue with ‘Father’ Michael McGinnity being in attendance at the meeting as he too was there to apparently receive a special baton from May Street’s clerk of session, Arthur Acheson.

This is also a fine allegory for the passing of the baton from old style ecumenism, which has led to the death of so many churches, to the new charismatic ecumenism.

It is no less deadly, but gives the appearance of life as its adherents jump up and down to the latest inane, shallow compilations put together by the revered worship leaders so beloved in such establishments.

Dear reader, please don’t be taken in by this attractive to the senses veneer applied to the same old dead ecumenism which leads so many astray.

Instead, separate yourself from such and dedicate yourself to actually honouring God, rather than claiming to do so while engaging in actions which run contrary to that very claim.

1 Peter 1:15-17, 23: “But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy. And if ye call on the Father, who without respect of persons judgeth according to every man’s work, pass the time of your sojourning here in fear: Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.”

‘Rev’ Liz Hughes latest Presbyterian ‘minister’ to back lesbian ‘Christian’ LGBT campaigner Vicky Beeching

The ‘Thought For The Day’ interlude on BBC Radio Ulster is an opportunity for the airing of fluffy, sentimental, quasi-religious ramblings by fluffy, sentimental, quasi-religious ramblers (which is probably as much as you can expect from such!).

While none at ‘Protestant Revival’ make a habit of listening to it, we were contacted by a reader drawing our attention to the drivel spouted by ‘Rev’ Liz Hughes (pictured, top), the recently retired Presbyterian ‘minister’ who provided the ‘Thought For The Day’ last Tuesday, 31st July. If you are so minded, you will be able to find it on the BBC iPlayer for the next few weeks.

In her soppy soliloquy, ‘Rev’ Liz Hughes becomes the second Presbyterian ‘minister’ of which we are aware who is endorsing the well-known Contemporary Christian Musician Vicky Beeching, who ‘came out’ as a lesbian four years ago.

‘Rev’ Liz Hughes, of course, joins the august company of the crowd-surfer Rev John Dickinson, minister in Carnmoney Presbyterian Church, who repeatedly tweeted his admiration of Vicky Beeching back in June.

Vicky Beeching, a self-avowed “LGBT campaigner” (pictorial evidence from her Twitter page, below), has written a book about her experiences as a “gay Christian”, and ‘Rev’ Liz Hughes was keen to use her moment in the sun to highlight this blasphemous claptrap.

Hundreds of thousands of people listen to BBC Radio Ulster and a supposed ‘minister’ of the gospel, rather than using this opportunity of sharing the gospel message of salvation by faith alone in Christ alone with the masses, decided to give air time to the blasphemous notions of man (or indeed, woman).

Of course, it should be noted that were anyone to actually share the truth of the gospel in their ‘Thought For The Day’ segment, they’d be highly unlikely to be asked to do so again.

In her opening remarks, ‘Rev’ Liz Hughes describes how, when Vicky Beeching was growing up, she had a “feeling that her natural orientation was a source of shame and confusion and embarrassment.”

Firstly, God says there is nothing natural about such an orientation. In fact, the Holy Spirit, moving through Paul, tells us in Romans 1:26-27: “For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature: And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet.”

So the Bible clearly says that this is “against nature” and that homosexual men are guilty of “leaving the natural use of the women”.

It really is clear cut, isn’t it?

Only not so for Vicky Beeching, and by implication, also for ‘Rev’ Liz Hughes.

Speaking in her ‘Thought For The Day’ segment, ‘Rev’ Liz Hughes said: “I found her book a most compelling read, not only because of her honesty with regard to her own personal journey, but also her setting out of a very different theological perspective and a very different understanding of the Bible texts.

“Although she does not share the traditional church viewpoint, she speaks out of a deep respect for the Scriptures.”

How can one whose life is devoted, as an LGBT campaigner, to advocating that which is utterly repugnant to God’s Word “speak out of a deep respect for the Scriptures”?

Vicky Beeching is as those described in Isaiah 29:13. It says: “Wherefore the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men:”

This is a passage Jesus reiterated in Matthew 15:7-9: “Ye hypocrites, well did Esaias prophesy of you, saying, This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me. But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.”

The fact that Vicky Beeching offers a “very different theological perspective and a very different understanding of the Bible texts” is hardly surprising, seeing as she has consciously chosen to reject God’s Word as it plainly is.

One would imagine the text from Romans is one such text for which she would seek to offer “a very different understanding of”, but the message is crystal clear.

And is not the notion of “gay Christians” merely a commandment of men? It is most certainly not a commandment of God.

In fact, homosexuals are to be saved out of their sinful state, not encouraged to wallow in it.

1 Corinthians 6:9-11: “Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.”

“Abusers of themselves with mankind” were saved in the church in Corinth. Did they remain “abusers of themselves with mankind” once they were saved? No, the word “were” is inserted there, as the Holy Ghost says that such vileness was in the past tense for them.

Christians must publicly repudiate sin, such as homosexuality. Christians must ever seek to be more Christ-like, growing in grace, not to be “entangled again with the yoke of bondage” (Galatians 5:1).

‘Rev’ Liz Hughes then refers to a story in the book of how Vicky Beeching and her grandfather, who had been a missionary, could not agree on her decision to ignore God’s Word.

However, it is recounted that Vicky Beeching remembered a quote from the hardly to be much admired Billy Graham, whose shameful compromise with Rome you can get a flavour of by clicking here.

He apparently said: “It is God’s job to judge, the Holy Spirit’s job to convict and my job to love”.

That comment is a very neat encapsulation of the deceptive “Judge not” brigade, who think nobody has a right to say anything is wrong.

This is, of course, a deliberate distortion of God’s message as we are always to use righteous judgment in setting what we see in front of us in the light of God’s Word.

John 7:24 says: “Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment.”

And what of God’s Law and His Judgments?

Psalm 19:7-11: “The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple. The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes. The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring for ever: the judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether. More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold: sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. Moreover by them is thy servant warned: and in keeping of them there is great reward.”

God’s commandments are pure? Is, in the light of God’s Word, homosexuality?

God’s judgments are “true and righteous altogether”.

How do we know God’s judgments and therefore “judge righteous judgment”? By reading His Word and abiding to it. We have clearly demonstrated that homosexuality is contrary to God’s Word, therefore it is right to say it is so and to endorse such vileness is to reject God.

‘Rev’ Liz Hughes says Vicky Beeching and her grandfather agree that he can still love her despite her “lifestyle” and of course that is quite proper. But to love someone does not mean to condone their sinful actions.

How many of us have family members who are unsaved? How many of us have friends who are not saved? There would be very few who do not. Does that mean we hate them or stop loving them? Of course not. But because we love someone doesn’t mean we tolerate their sin.

After all, John 3:16 tells us that “God so loved the world” that he sent Jesus to die on the cross. Does that mean God will admit anyone to heaven who doesn’t believe on Him? Of course not. Nahum 1:3 tells us the Lord “will not at all acquit the wicked”.

In case we think that our family member or friend isn’t “wicked”, we ought to bear in mind that we are all wicked. Jeremiah 17:9 says: “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?” Psalm 14:3 says: “…there is none that doeth good, no, not one”.

Of course, someone reading this who might seek to excuse the comments of ‘Rev’ Liz Hughes might say she is just repeating what is said in Vicky Beeching’s book.

However, she concludes with her own opinion, saying: “I do believe that we all need to listen to each other’s stories, and to learn from those who love Jesus deeply but have in the past felt cruelly excluded from the church family they want to love as well.”

The phrase “cruelly excluded” shows ‘Rev’ Liz Hughes’ position of moving towards LGBT affirmation in the church.

She believes it is cruel to exclude sodomites from full communion and believes it is proper to just ignore fundamental theological differences in the name of unity.

This is blasphemous nonsense.

We are to separate from such works of darkness and “touch not the unclean thing” (2 Corinthians 6:17).

And what of ‘Rev’ Liz Hughes herself?

Well, she has made a career out of rejection of God’s Word. After all, the Bible clearly states she ought not to hold the position she claims.

1 Timothy 2:12 clearly states this: “But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence.”

She was one of the Presbyterian figures who signed an open letter in protest at the Presbyterian Church’s decision to prevent sodomite couples from having children in their care baptised and to limit full communion to heterosexuals.

Indeed, she came perilously close to being named Moderator of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland back in 2014, coming up just one vote short.

This was a source of regret for that old ecumenist, the Belfast Telegraph columnist and religious affairs correspondent, Alf McCreary, of whom you can read more by clicking here.

She was the ‘minister’ of Whitehouse Presbyterian Church in north Belfast for the last 17 years of her career, the church which Alf McCreary attends.

When she retired late last year, he lamented her failure to reach the top rung of the Presbyterian ladder thus: “This would have been an historic choice, but the Church had the opportunity to rectify this when she stood again the next year.

“Sadly, however, the members of the male-dominated Presbyteries did not elect her, much to the regret of many clergy and laity who felt that she was an ideal candidate.

“As well as all of this, the ‘Rev’ Hughes and Whitehouse were in the vanguard of ecumenism and mission in the Newtownabbey area.”

So ‘Rev’ Liz Hughes was at the forefront of compromise with the Papacy, she was in a position as a ‘minister’ which the Bible rejects, she wants full communion for sodomites and endorses the blasphemous notion of a “Christian” LGBT campaigner.

What a frightening combination of facts.

Isaiah 30:1: “Woe to the rebellious children, saith the Lord , that take counsel, but not of me; and that cover with a covering, but not of my spirit, that they may add sin to sin:”

Crowd-surfing Presbyterian minister Rev John Dickinson endorses lesbian ‘Christian’ LGBT campaigner

Isaiah 9:14-18: “Therefore the Lord will cut off from Israel head and tail, branch and rush, in one day. The ancient and honourable, he is the head; and the prophet that teacheth lies, he is the tail. For the leaders of this people cause them to err; and they that are led of them are destroyed. Therefore the Lord shall have no joy in their young men, neither shall have mercy on their fatherless and widows: for every one is an hypocrite and an evildoer, and every mouth speaketh folly. For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still. For wickedness burneth as the fire: it shall devour the briers and thorns, and shall kindle in the thickets of the forest, and they shall mount up like the lifting up of smoke.”

It can truly be said we are living in an age where the leaders of the people cause them to err.

And one such character who is foremost among the deceivers occupying pulpits in our land is Rev John Dickinson, the minister of Carnmoney Presbyterian Church, based in the greater north Belfast area.

This character is one which we featured a number of months ago as he engaged in a pathetic act of disrespect in a church building as he allowed his dupes, many of them young, in his congregation to lift him up as he ‘crowd-surfed’ out of the church.

We specifically mention the fact that a large number of those who attend Carnmoney Presbyterian Church are young as, firstly, it is accurate, and secondly, it ties in neatly with the passage at the beginning of this article.

It says “the Lord shall have no joy in their young men”. The reason God will have no joy in the young men is because they are as bad as the generation before them, and a large part of the responsibility for this lies at the door of “the prophet that teacheth lies”.

And one such propagator of lies is Rev John Dickinson.

He has just this week tweeted his excitement at reading a book written by a well-known so-called ‘gay Christian’ (though the term is of course an oxymoron and, indeed, one which can only be endorsed by morons) called Vicky Beeching.

Vicky Beeching (pictured, below) is a well-known Contemporary Christian Musician, that creature so well-beloved of the modern ecumenist, apostate and easy-believist preacher.

She ‘came out’ as a lesbian four years ago and on her Twitter page biography, she describes herself as an LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender) campaigner. To demonstrate this point beyond contention, see our picture directly below showing her Twitter biography.

These are facts which will be well-known to Rev John Dickinson, given the book is called ‘Undivided: Coming Out, Becoming Whole, And Living Free From Shame’. It’s quite clear what this book is about.

In addition, Google tells us the book was published on 12th June and Rev John Dickinson tells us on his Twitter page he received the copy he’d ordered on 14th June. He was very keen to read this book endorsing the blasphemous notion of open sodomy whilst still claiming to be living a Christ-like life.

In case anyone thinks, or more accurately perhaps, attempts to provide a smokescreen to his real intentions, that Rev John Dickinson might be reading this book as a critical observer, one need only look at his two most recent tweets (at the time of writing).

The older one (pictured, below) sees him ‘tag’ Vicky Beeching in the tweet, and the tweet is then ‘liked’ by Vicky Beeching. This is very much a friendly exchange.

The tweet after that sees Rev John Dickinson provide a link to a ‘Christian’ song performed by Vicky Beeching, along with the comment, “this is stunning”.

What is stunning is how Rev John Dickinson can so brazenly ignore the crystal clear Word of God on the matter of homosexuality.

It is called an “abomination” in Leviticus 18:21.

However, seeing as that is in the Old Testament, the likes of Rev John Dickinson will likely blasphemously try to claim this is no longer relevant, so we will reproduce a passage from the New Testament which clearly shows the level of horror such a sin should be greeted with.

Romans 1:21-27: “Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things. Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves: Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen. For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature: And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet.”

This passage speaks of “vile affections” in relation to women who “change the natural use into that which is against nature”.

Therefore, Vicky Beeching’s lifestyle is “vile” and “against nature”. It is unnatural and repugnant to God, regardless of what Vicky Beeching or Rev John Dickinson try to claim to the contrary.

Rev John Dickinson has a role of spiritual leadership and by accepting and indeed publicising the ungodly lifestyle of Vicky Beeching, he is leading his church’s followers into grave error and, indeed, by endorsing such wickedness, could lead some of the church’s followers into a sodomite relationship.

Our passage at the beginning of this article says that “they that are led” by such characters are “destroyed”. Church-goers are being sent to hell by ministers advocating lies, deceit and error.

What a solemn and despicable thing that is.

The idea of a ‘gay Christian’ is, as we have previously stated, blasphemous and a nonsense.

When someone gets saved, they reject sin and no longer associate themselves with it.

Having already clearly established sodomy is a sin, we are then told in 2 Corinthians 5:17 of how we become a new person when we’re saved.

It says: “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.”

Being a campaigner for what God has called “vile”, an “abomination” and “against nature” is certainly not a sign of being “in Christ”, and nor is helping publicise such an individual, as is the case with Rev John Dickinson.

Reader, please turn away from such rejecters of God’s Word as Rev John Dickinson.

If you know anyone connected with the church or indeed attend it yourself, we would encourage you to ensure he is challenged for his God defying views, and also to separate yourself from such a fellowship.

2 Corinthians 6:17: “Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you.”

POSTSCRIPT: We wrote this article two days prior to publication; since then Rev John Dickinson has tweeted 10 times, quoting the book written by a character who has featured on a number of occasions on this page. That person is Alain Emerson, Lead Pastor of the Emmanuel Church in the Craigavon area, and a man whose habitual and rampant ecumenism we have highlighted. We believe this is very instructive.