David Bernard Weighs In on General Board Decision

[TRFrance]

This whole anti-beard thing among some Apostolics is absurd, not to mention simply un-biblical.
1...Jesus had a beard.

The Lord spoke prophetically of Jesus in Isaiah 50, and said:

"I offered my back to those who beat me, my cheeks to those who pulled out my beard; I did not hide my face from mocking and spitting" (Isa 50:6)."

2...Aaron, God's chosen high priest of Israel, also had a beard

"It is like the precious ointment upon the head, that ran down upon the beard, even Aaron's beard: that went down to the skirts of his garments" (Psalm 133:2)


I know that a lot of UPC churches don't allow a man to minster if they have a beard. I guess Jesus and Aaron would be out of luck then. Ain't that something..

The multiple layers of unbiblical rules and traditions are doing nothing to move the Gospel forward; rather, they are only being a hindrance and a distraction.

[ChicagoPastor]

Originally Posted by Alter Ego

Oddly enough, DKB has said that in a different way. But CP, there is no ban so there is no law in the manual against it. It is an unspoken rule.

I might be wrong....I thought that somewhere it said that at least ministers have to be clean shaven? wow...didn't know it was just an unspoken rule....tells you how much I've read my manual lately

I know that on some Camp Applications and District Platform standards they say men have to be clean shaven....

I don't remember the author, but someone wrote a book about why men shouldn't have facial hair....

[CC1]

Originally Posted by ChicagoPastor

I might be wrong....I thought that somewhere it said that at least ministers have to be clean shaven? wow...didn't know it was just an unspoken rule....tells you how much I've read my manual lately

I know that on some Camp Applications and District Platform standards they say men have to be clean shaven....

I don't remember the author, but someone wrote a book about why men shouldn't have facial hair....

Shame on you for not knowing! I think because there was no written prohibition against facial hair is why DB dared to tackle the issue honestly way back when he produced the first edition of his book on so called "Holiness". I remember being shocked that he said there was no scriptural prohibtion against facial hair and went with the hippie culture as why there had been a prohibtion in the UPC.

[scotty]

Originally Posted by TRFrance

The multiple layers of unbiblical rules and traditions are doing nothing to move the Gospel forward; rather, they are only being a hindrance and a distraction.

No distraction or hinderance here..

[TRFrance]

Originally Posted by Ron

Seriously, wearing an earing on a man is fashionable now,but before the devil could wiggle it into main stream, an earing on a man had bad connotations.

Well, women wearing pants is now accepted in western society.. but before it wriggled into the mainstream , pants on a woman had bad connotations.

Women wearing pants no longer has any negative connotations, except in some Pentecostal circles,apparently. Maybe someone needs to send a memo to UPC headquarters.

[scotty]

Originally Posted by TRFrance

Well, women wearing pants is now accepted in western society.. but before it wriggled into the mainstream , pants on a woman had bad connotations.

Women wearing pants no longer has any negative connotations, except in some Pentecostal circles,apparently. Maybe someone needs to send a memo to UPC headquarters.

Guess we could say the same about homosexuality

[CC1]

Originally Posted by TRFrance

Well, women wearing pants is now accepted in western society.. but before it wriggled into the mainstream , pants on a woman had bad connotations.

Women wearing pants no longer has any negative connotations, except in some Pentecostal circles,apparently. Maybe someone needs to send a memo to UPC headquarters.

Exactly. To those who don't believe in cultural relativism in the church I would again like to point out that in Victorian days it was a shame for a woman to show her ankles as they were deemed something to lust after and a temptation to men. By that perspective 99.9% of UPC and OP women are not modest.

To try and say that in 21st century America pants are just mens clothing is ludicrous (and I don't mean the rapper). The seperation of the sex arguement doesnt work either because the cut of men and womens pants are as different as the cut between mens shirts and women's blouses. You will never mistake my wife pants for me. Trust me!

[Jehoram]

Originally Posted by ChicagoPastor

I might be wrong....I thought that somewhere it said that at least ministers have to be clean shaven? wow...didn't know it was just an unspoken rule....tells you how much I've read my manual lately

I know that on some Camp Applications and District Platform standards they say men have to be clean shaven....

I don't remember the author, but someone wrote a book about why men shouldn't have facial hair....

JR Ensey, I believe.

[TRFrance]

Originally Posted by CC1

Shame on you for not knowing! I think because there was no written prohibition against facial hair is why DB dared to tackle the issue honestly way back when he produced the first edition of his book on so called "Holiness". I remember being shocked that he said there was no scriptural prohibtion against facial hair and went with the hippie culture as why there had been a prohibtion in the UPC.

So this is my conclusion then...

lets see... beards on Apostolic men wasn't wrong beard before the 60's hippie movement, but it became wrong after the 60's because hippies had beards. Hmm... ok...

And now, 4 decades later, its still wrong in many UPC churches.... because of a hippie culture of 40 years ago that doesn't exist today in any meaningful way.

Yeah...that makes a lot of sense (not).

Whatever happened to "the whole gospel to the whole world"? When the UPC is known more for its rules and standards, than for having powerful moves of God, something is very wrong.

[CC1]

The first UPC church I visited where I saw facial hair on the men who were saints and even ushers was Bro. Kershaw's church in the Dallas area back around the late 80's or early 90's. I remember being surprised there were ushers with mustaches.

I have been told there are a lot more churches now that allow facial hair on men which makes sense as I can't imagine on what pretext a pastor could tell a new convert who had a mustache or beard for years that they had to shave it. It would strictly be a test of theiir committment since there is no bible or logic for it.