Actscelerate.com

Giving monks money?

Acts-perienced Poster Posts: 11849 **11/4/16 9:40 pm**

I saw a video from an Internet acquaintence, a westerner, that I've interacted with online for years. He posted a video of his ministry in a certain country that I have only been to for a few days. He does healing ministry, evangelism, and church planting.

He and a coworker posted a video of a testimony about ministering in a monestary of another religion there (think fat statues). The people there, he said, worship the monk. They bow down, kiss his feet, and bring him gifts. He may be the most powerful person in a village.

He and his coworker honored the monk in the village. The monk invited other monks. The cooked for them. They gave the monestary a monetary gift. The monks let them hold a meeting. They spoke about the one true God, called Jesus the "Lord of Compassion", cast demons out of people. He said a lot of people went to a monk who was like a witchdoctor who would put demons in them, so that was a big problem. He told about a few of the healings, the mute healed, and several other things like that.

They baptized three women right there in the monastery. He said there is a house church in the area and the disciple the people, who may go to the monastery for a while and later get out of it as they are ministered to.

I also get a newsletter from a local church planter in another country who has been invited to a Sufee moskue and told them about Jesus. His group uses Arabic names for Biblical figures and religious terminology, so some of the Christians, whose more traditional religious words in their Bibles are more similar to Hinduism or foreign loan words, don't care for their approach.

I was thinking of the monastery scenario. I don't think I could give money to them. Maybe food for individual monks, but money for the monastery? I wouldn't feel right doing it? I'm also wondering if the right approach is to baptize after they are ready to stop the idolatry because God's children should not bow down to idols. Peter said, "repent and be baptized" rather than 'be baptized and repent.'

Any thoughts?
(some mispellings are intentional)
_________________
Link