[*] John 10, and the other sheep gate

In a rancorous attempt to never get part 7 of the nutter series completed, Dan at TeamPyro has alerted me to this article in the Jerusalem Post, which says, among other things, this:

An evangelical pastor and an Orthodox rabbi, both from Texas, have apparently persuaded leading Baptist preacher Jerry Falwell that Jews can get to heaven without being converted to Christianity.

Televangelist John Hagee and Rabbi Aryeh Scheinberg, whose Cornerstone Church and Rodfei Sholom congregations are based in San Antonio, told The Jerusalem Post that Falwell had adopted Hagee's innovative belief in what Christians refer to as "dual covenant" theology.

This creed, which runs counter to mainstream evangelism, maintains that the Jewish people has a special relationship to God through the revelation at Sinai and therefore does not need "to go through Christ or the Cross" to get to heaven.

Scheinberg said this has been Hagee's position for the 25 years the two have worked together on behalf of Israel and that Falwell had also come to accept it. Falwell sent a representative to the San Antonio launch of Christians United for Israel in early February, as did popular televangelist Pat Robertson.

My first reaction is that partnering with CUFI does not mean that one has signed off on the doctrinal statement, although you'd think a Fundamentalist Baptist like Dr. Falwell would have some probity about separating over doctrine.

However -- all kidding aside -- I have an e-mail in to Dr. Falwell's office to see what he has to say about this. Where's SharperIron when you need them?

UPDATED: Dr. Falwell has issued a statement regarding the report from the Jerusalem Post. I think he explains in no uncertain terms his position on the Gospel and the exclusivity of Jesus Christ. I thank him for his swift and certain response, and for not being ashamed.

It is also worth noting that Dr. Falwell had someone take the time to respond to me personally about my concerns -- even if it was only to link me back to his statement at his web site. Today I was just a guy with an e-mail account who had a complaint, but my concerns were noted and approrpiately dealt with.