------------------------------------------------------------------
Copyright 1992 by the Christian Research Institute.
------------------------------------------------------------------
COPYRIGHT/REPRODUCTION LIMITATIONS:
This data file is the sole property of the Christian Research
Institute. It may not be altered or edited in any way. It may be
reproduced only in its entirety for circulation as "freeware,"
without charge. All reproductions of this data file must contain
the copyright notice (i.e., "Copyright 1992 by the Christian
Research Institute").
------------------------------------------------------------------
CRI Brochure (This data file constitutes the text of CRI's
introductory brochure.)
Are you
willing to do
for the truth
what the
cults do
for a lie?
"Contend earnestly for the faith once for all delivered to the
saints" (Jude 3)
C R I -- A Practical, International Approach to Equipping the
Saints For the Defense and Proclamation of the Gospel.
In the past two hundred years, an explosion of cults and
counterfeit religious systems has shaken the foundation of true
Christianity. And in the last thirty years, this phenomenon has
accelerated to almost unbelievable proportions. Our Western
world's growing rejection of the Bible has opened the door for
countless alternative teachings to take hold. A hunger for
spiritual reality in our secular culture has led millions to
embrace gods and philosophies once unthinkable. And predictably,
a vast array of false Christs and false prophets have risen to
provide deceptive leadership. These are battling for the minds of
unbelievers and believers alike as never before -- and without
much organized opposition. The Christian Research Institute
(CRI), founded by the late Dr. Walter Martin, is dedicated to
equipping Christians to discern the difference between the truth
of Christianity and the distorted doctrines of false prophets and
teachers. CRI's distinctive mission in the world is to equip
Christians to "make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an
account for the hope that is in you" (1 Pet. 3:15). In an age of
unparalleled apostasy, CRI seeks to teach Christians how to
"contend earnestly for the faith once for all delivered to the
saints" (Jude 3).
From the President
CRI is not a monument to a man. Rather, it is a movement -- a
team effort of people who are dedicated to standing against
deception with the truth of God's Word. The last book Dr. Walter
Martin wrote before going home to be with the Lord was The New Age
Cult. In the preface, he reflected on the 38 years he
crisscrossed America speaking on the cults. He said he sometimes
felt like a frustrated Paul Revere, calling out "the cults are
coming, the cults are coming!" His desire was that God would use
this book to re-echo the warning he gave over three decades ago,
and to inspire Christians to both the proclamation and defense of
the gospel. Dr. Martin is no longer with us. But he has left us
with both a vision and a vehicle for carrying out that vision.
That vehicle is the ministry of CRI. Through the various outreach
divisions highlighted in this brochure, CRI is equipping
Christians to share and defend the gospel in a world mired in the
shifting sands of spiritual deception. Sadly, cultists are often
willing to do more for a lie than many Christians are willing to
do for the truth. Our goal at CRI is to help turn the tide by
equipping God's people with the resources they need to boldly face
these challenges head-on. Many Christians have joined hands
around the globe to assure that this ministry will make an impact
for time and eternity. Indeed, only from the perspective of
eternity will we know what God has accomplished in extending His
kingdom through this one-of-a-kind ministry. -- Hank Hanegraaff,
President, CRI.
A Strong Foundation
Founded in 1960 by Dr. Walter Martin, CRI today is the largest
countercult ministry in the world. The decade of the nineties
will see unprecedented growth as our ministry expands to meet an
ever-increasing need. "CRI's ministry will be more important in
the 1990s and beyond than when I founded it in 1960." -- Dr.
Walter Martin Dr. Walter Martin, CRI's late founder, long ago
recognized that the world has entered a " post-Christian era" -- a
time in which literally millions of people consider the historic
Christian faith to be (at best) merely one of many valid roads to
peace with God. He also believed that the world is on the verge
of an outbreak of organized evil. Because of this, he saw the
need for an organization like CRI that would be a bastion for
orthodoxy. Dr. Martin founded CRI to be an independent,
transdenominational resource center that could communicate
information to needy fields where the Christian church is most
under attack. This dream has become a reality. CRI is today the
oldest and largest apologetics ministry of its kind in the world.
CRI's approach to evangelism -- presenting answers to those misled
by the cults, the occult, and aberrant Christian teachings -- has
been a tragically neglected missions emphasis in our troubled
world. It constitutes a vast, nearly untouched "mission field on
our doorstep." CRI's goal is to help the church "speak the truth
in love" to those who have believed a lie.
Mission Statement
Our goal is to equip the church to "speak the truth in love" to
those who have swallowed the skin of the truth stuffed with a lie.
The Christian Research Institute was founded in obedience to Jude
3: "Contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all
delivered to the saints." All of our activities are motivated by
this fundamental concern to uphold and promote the historic
orthodox Christian faith, through which alone salvation is offered
to humanity. While we are concerned with and involved in the
general defense of the faith (apologetics), our area of research
specialization is limited to elements within the modern religious
scene that compete with, assault, or undermine biblical
Christianity. These include the cults (that is, groups which deny
essential Christian doctrines such as the deity of Christ and the
Trinity); the occult, much of which has become focused in the
contemporary New Age movement; the major world religions; and
aberrant Christian teachings (that is, teachings which compromise
or confuse essential biblical truth). In keeping with CRI's
fundamental purpose, we are engaged in both evangelistic and
educational endeavors. We seek to promote both the proclamation
and the defense of the gospel and the growth of Christians in
sound doctrine and spiritual discernment. In all our endeavors at
CRI, we strive to provide carefully researched, well-reasoned
answers to teachings and concepts that challenge orthodox
Christianity.
Research
God's Word exhorts: "Always be prepared to give an answer to
everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you
have" (1 Peter 3:15). Our research materials are strategically
designed to help Christians understand both what they believe and
why they believe it. Research is the foundation of CRI's
ministry. Every aspect of our work depends on accurate, credible,
and up-to-date information. The Research Division is staffed by a
team of highly skilled, theologically trained researchers. Their
task is to gather, organize, and process current information on
the cults, the occult, world religions, aberrant Christian
movements, and general apologetics. Based on this data, the staff
produces well-reasoned analyses which are then made available to
churches, ministries, schools, media, and the public at large
through CRI's various outreaches. With thousands of cultic groups
flourishing in the world today, the need for primary research in
this area has never been greater. CRI exists to meet this
ever-growing need.
Publications
Our publications cover a broad range of topics and are designed to
help Christians discern truth from error. The printed word will
continue to be one of our primary equipping tools in the 1990s and
beyond. The Christian Research Journal, published quarterly,
contains scholarly yet readable articles with the latest
information on the cults, the occult, non-Christian religions,
aberrant Christian movements, and general apologetics. Analyses
of themes are both rational and biblical. The Journal is a vital
source of information for Christians facing unbiblical teachings
and philosophies in this "post-Christian" age. Articles equip
Christians to better share their faith with the followers of these
teachings. The Christian Research Newsletter, published every
other month, highlights pertinent developments in the world of the
cults -- both in the U.S. and abroad. The Newsletter also
includes testimonies, feature articles by CRI researchers,
questions and answers excerpted from CRI's "Bible Answer Man"
broadcast, a column featuring excerpts from the taped messages of
Dr. Walter Martin, a "From the President" column, and information
on free articles available from CRI. A major focus of CRI's
ministry is education. This educational approach is facilitated
not only by our Journal and Newsletter, but by our vast supply of
pamphlets, books, fact sheets, and position papers. These
materials cover a broad spectrum of topics to help Christians
discern truth from false teaching.
Broadcast Media
There is perhaps no more personal and dramatic way to influence
the lives of people than by communicating to them in the privacy
of their own homes. CRI accomplishes this through radio and video
tapes. If the Research Division is the cornerstone of CRI's
ministry, one could say that "The Bible Answer Man" -- CRI's daily
radio talk show -- is the ministry's mouthpiece to the world.
This popular weekday broadcast is heard from coast to coast in the
United States and Canada. CRI research personnel host the
one-hour program and respond to listeners' questions "on the spot"
with solid, biblically based answers. Well-known Christian
leaders are also regularly featured on the program, addressing a
wide range of relevant topics. Cassettes of these broadcasts are
available on request. The "CRI Perspective" broadcast is another
effective means of providing insights on some of today's most
pressing issues. In this three-minute commentary, CRI president
Hank Hanegraaff answers some of the most common questions asked of
our Research Division. With cultists, occultists, and New Agers
using television to propagate their messages, CRI is rapidly
expanding into this medium as well. We can now produce our own
videos that can be viewed in the homes of believers and
nonbelievers alike.
International Outreach
Though our attention is often focused on the battle here at home,
we must never forget that the major cults are committed to waging
-- and winning -- the war for souls on a global scale. We cannot
afford to do less. The cult and occult problem has mushroomed
into a truly worldwide phenomenon. The devastation wreaked on
millions of lives is a reality we cannot afford to ignore. Not
only are the cults expanding their numbers in foreign lands at an
unprecedented pace, but as millions of immigrants come to North
America, they are bringing and promoting their non-Christian
religions within our own borders. Throughout the world, major
investments of money and manpower are being made by the Mormon
Church, the Jehovah's Witnesses, Reverend Moon's Unification
Church, the Worldwide Church of God, the Mind Sciences, the New
Age movement, Transcendental Meditation, Scientology, and many
others. The major cults and world religions are committed to
waging -- and winning -- the war for peoples' souls on a global
scale. Tragically, most people are ignorant and all but
defenseless in the face of this cult invasion. As Christians of
every tongue and nation face a bewildering variety of cultic and
occultic claims and phenomena, they must be equipped to
effectively defend the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ. The
goal of CRI's International Division is to inoculate and equip
Christian leaders, seminary students, and lay people of all
nations to discern, defend the faith, and evangelize by providing
well-translated, culturally relevant material on these dangerous
teachings.
Correspondence
People write us every day with tough questions. We realize these
questions often pertain to personal, heartfelt issues -- and
that's why we prayerfully consider our response to each one. An
avalanche of letters streams into CRI at a rate of hundreds per
day. Responding to the questions in these letters is a vital
function of the CRI Correspondence Division. Because we realize
that meeting the needs of our constituents is a weighty
responsibility, we prayerfully consider our responses to each and
every question in these letters. We provide free articles and
fact sheets that give more in-depth information on the topic of
concern. Also available are audio-cassettes and other pertinent
materials through CRI's Resource Catalogue. In addition to
answering apologetic questions, there is an evangelistic dimension
to the Correspondence Division. Often, the CRI Correspondence
team will thoughtfully guide the writer of the letter through the
necessary steps to salvation and subsequent spiritual growth -- an
opportunity we welcome. At the current rate, the Correspondence
Division will respond to several hundred thousand letters during
the decade of the nineties. To accomplish this monumental task as
efficiently as possible, CRI utilizes sophisticated computer
technology. Our goal has remained unchanged since Dr. Martin
founded CRI in 1960: to respond to every letter with the truth of
the gospel and in a timely manner.
Seminars
CRI personnel train both Christian professionals and lay people,
providing them with practical tools for the work of ministry.
Seminars are one of our most effective means of equipping
Christians to defend the faith. Through its Seminar Division, CRI
impacts Christians in major metropolitan areas throughout North
America. These seminars provide practical tools to pastors,
seminary students, and lay people so they can become equipped to
internalize God's Word; to understand where the cults, the occult,
and world religions deviate from the truth; and to use those
deviations as opportunities to share the gospel. For more
information on how you can sponsor a CRI seminar, contact the
Seminar Division.
Christian Research Institute
P O Box 500
San Juan Capistrano, CA 92693
(714) 855-4428, ministry office
(714) 855-9926, products/materials
End of document, "CRI Brochure" -- disk version, release 1.1, May
4, 1992 -- R.Poll, CRI.
------------------------------------------------------------------
(C) Copyrighted article Used by Permission
Christian BBS Abba II: 619-487-7746 - Unique, Christian Files
------------------------------------------------------------------
ÉÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ͵ CHRISTIAN BBS ABBA II ÆÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ»
º º
º This file passed through Abba II, where Christians find fellowship, º
º Information and Resources, and where non-christians can find honest, º
º reasonable answers about what (and why) Christians believe. º
º º
º ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ Providing High-Quality, Christian Files ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ º
º º
º þ Up-To-Date Christian News þ Bible Studies & Discussions º
º þ Abba II's Christian Magazine þ Ministry Newsletters º
º þ Active Message Area þ On-Line Christian Directory º
º þ Specializing in Apologetics þ Christian Events Calendar º
º º
ÈÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ͵ Call Abba II at 619-487-7746 ÆÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍͼ