Now I know what it feels like to bear the wrath of a heresy hunter. You can read the charges against me here at Emergent No. It all started when I posted a comment at Steve Camp's Blog under the article Resurrection, The Key to Everything.

I stated that the resurrection affirms the cultural mandate. God created human beings in his image and gave them the mandate to order his creation wisely. What was lost at the Fall when Adam sinned and came under the curse of death was regained at the resurrection when Christ was raised bodily from the grave never to die again.

Therefore, as Christians we have a responsibility to engage culture and seek to order it wisely. This is what Christian leaders in the United States are doing by organizing events like Justice Sunday (see Family Research Council)

My comment has stuck in the craw of a certain blogger who has undertaken an examination of my blog and published an "expose" on her blog. She states "I did some research and this is what I've found on who Mike McLaughlin is and what he supports."

Here are two items that I take issue with this expose.

1. My name is Mike McLoughlin. I spell McLoughlin with an "o". She has confused me with another fellow whose name is Michael McLaughlin who spells his name with an "a". He is the lecturer who speaks at workshops on Bernard Lonergan. I have no relationship with this person and I have never spoken at a Lonergan workshops.

I am not a follower of the Jesuits and I do not subscribe to their theology. I simply read a book by Bernard Lonergan and wrote about it here.

In her rush to expose me this blogger forgot to check her facts.

2. Instead of taking me to task on what I actually write on my blog, the expose explores the various links I have on my website looking for the slightest evidence of a liberal view of the Christian faith in these linked websites.

Just because I have a link to a site does not mean that I agree with everything on that site. It's what I say on my site that ought to represent what I believe not what others say on their sites. You can evaluate what I stand for by reading my Core Values.

My first Core Value is "Jesus Christ is the centre and foundation of my life."

There are many more things that could be said about this blogger's treatment of "who I am and what I support" but if you read comments to her post you will get an idea of just what others are thinking about her charges.

So this brings me to the conclusion that this post meets at least four of the criteria set out by Troy Edwards in his article Seven Tactics Of The Heresy Hunters 

Edwards commends the work of apologists who defend the truth of Christianity against heretics. However, he takes to task would be apologists who

□falsely label sincere believers (I am labeled "unbalanced" and "rude" by Surphing at Emergent No);

□take statements out of context ("if you want to get dizzy read his article where he quotes Lonergan about 'insight into insight' blah blah blah");

□tarnish by false association; (the word "emergent" does not even appear in my entire website and yet I am labeled emergent because I use words like "relational" or "missional".)

□and draw false implications from their wrong conclusions. (I am influenced by humanistic thinking; I ought to "go back to the Bible" and "proclaim the truth" etc. )

For more information check out this book Heresy Hunters: Character Assassination in the Church by James R. Spencer

Proverbs 12:17-18  in the RSV states

"He who speaks the truth gives honest evidence, but a false witness utters deceit. There is one whose rash words are like sword thrusts, but the tongue of the wise brings healing.   

The Bible challenges us to "give honest evidence" of the truth of our statements. When it comes to a critical evaluation of who I am and what I support, I find that evidence completely lacking at that post by Surphing at  Emergent No.

CORRECTION: Surphing at Emergent No has acknowledged the error in confusing me with the Michael McLaughlin who promotes lectures on Bernard Lonergan. Thank you. I stand corrected in that I have a Blog Roll under my links that has a category entitled Emergent Church and that there is one link to a fellow who I know personally. Otherwise, I don't promote any particular church in this blog except the Church of Christ in the Workplace.

UPDATE: I have inserted the words "Surphing at" in front of Emergent No to be more specific with who is doing the writing at that blog about me.