The Hartford Forum
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For a number of years, the congregation of saints meeting at 137 East Maple Street, Hartford, Illinois, has been host to a forum of free men in Christ, drawn from the ranks of Disciples of Christ, Christian Churches, and Churches of Christ. The Hartford congregation has always been non-instrumental, but refuses to allow this to become a test of fellowship. The brethren are wholly unafraid to invite open dialogue on controversial issues, and men are chosen to participate, not because they agree but because they do not.
The 1969 forum will be held on Monday and Tuesday, December 29 and 30, and will consist of five sessions of two hours each. Each session will allow for questioning of the speakers by the audience, and one session will provide for questioning all of the speakers together. Here is a brief resume of the program.
Monday, December 29, 2:00 p.m. "Is The Gift of Tongues Available to Christians Today?" Paul Logue, an elder of Central Church of Christ, St. Louis, Missouri, will represent the position that it is. The opposing view will be presented by Russell Boatman, Dean of Saint Louis Christian College.
Monday, December 29, 7:00 p.m. "Is The Theory of Evolution Incompatible With the Bible?" Divergent views will be offered by Neal Buffaloe, Professor at Arkansas State Teachers College, Conway, Arkansas; and Lynn Gardner, Professor at Central Christian College of the Bible, Moberly, Missouri.
Tuesday, December 30, 9:30 a.m. "Is the use of Instrumental Music in Public Praise Scriptural?" The affirmative view will be presented by Dwaine Dunning, Professor at Platte Valley Bible College, Scottsbluff, Nebraska. James D. Bales, Professor at Harding College, has been invited to present the opposing view.
uesday, December 30, 2:00 p.m. A two-hour session of questions from the audience addressed to all of the speakers as a panel. Hershel Ottwell will preside. Tuesday, December 30, 7:00 p. m. "What Should Be Our Position on Fellowship?" Two facets of the theme will be discussed in complementary presentations by Frank Rester, of Flint, Michigan, and Hoy Ledbetter, of Grand Blanc, Michigan. Both are on the staff of the new journal Integrity.
W. Carl Ketcherside will preside at all sessions except the Tuesday afternoon panel. The ladies of the congregation will serve the evening meal on Monday and Tuesday, and the noon luncheon on Tuesday, without obligation. This is done to make it possible for brethren to remain together for informal chats.
Hartford is convenient to reach. It is just across the Mississippi River and slightly north of St. Louis on Illinois Highway Number 3. It is south of Alton, Illinois, and is but a few miles from Lambert-St. Louis Municipal Airport.
A few private homes of members are available to provide lodging without cost, but there are excellent motels available for those who prefer to arrange their own accommodations. Reservations will be made for you at one of these upon request. Write to Berdell McCann, 118 East Second Street, Hartford, Illinois 62048, or telephone him at (618) 254-6454. Be sure and give full information as to any arrangements you wish to have made, and then honor those arrangements or furnish immediate notification of any change in your plans.