Pentecostal-like mayhem in Ruckmanland

This video is at Peter Ruckman's church, and is purported to be from the 2015 “Bad Attitude Blowout”. What it manifests is outright foolishness that is a disgrace to the cause of Christ, and makes a mockery of Christianity. Why did Ruckman (if he was there) or any of his church leaders not stand up and say “Enough! This has crossed the line!?” How many more books would have to have been thrown around before someone got hurt? What purpose was served in flinging books around? How many unbelievers were present and subjected to this clownish behavior who may have vowed not to become a Christian if this is what they felt it could lead to? It's almost as if Ruckman was describing the behavior seen in this video that took place in his own church when he wrote:

The last thing the Body of Christ needs on this earth is a horde of hyped-up, fleshly demonstrators who put on a sideshow everytime a crowd gathers inside a building, so someone will think they are “spiritual.” (Ruckman, Peter. Modern Charismatic Revival Doctrines Examined, p. 235)

The clowns tumble in by the score until one begins to wonder if there may not be an elephant, a trapeze artist, a stunt driver, or a juggler hidden somewhere in the outfit. (Ruckman, Peter. Why I am not a Charismatic. 1997, p. 9)

Ruckman died the following year, so this may have been the last “Blowout” he presided over. This lunacy reflects poorly on the legacy he left behind.

In all fairness, the video was edited down to the most dramatic 30 seconds, and what is shown took place during a special meeting, not a regular church service. However, the fact that it was allowed to degenerate to the level seen in the video in Ruckman’s church is unconscionable.

No doubt Ruckmanites will accuse their critics of wanting to impose a dead style of formalism in churches. However, we are not advocating the opposite extreme. We are not saying–for example–that waving a Bible or encouraging good preaching or singing with an “amen” as appropriate would be wrong. Church services do not need to have the solemnness of a funeral. There needs to be a balance, but what is revealed in the video is downright clownish behavior that totally disregards 1 Cor. 14:40: “Let all things be done decently and in order.”

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23 Responses to Pentecostal-like mayhem in Ruckmanland

  1. Nate Beck says:

    Umm, I've been in many church services where there was such joy of the Spirit that people couldn't contain their excitement. From what I see in this video, the books are being thrown at an empty pulpit. Maybe they were throwing NIV's lol

    • Nate Beck says:

      But I do agree with 1 Cor. 14:40 wholeheartedly. And I always thought "Bad Attitude Baptist Blowout" was enforcing the opinion that Baptists are grouchy, negative Christians with no joy. Christians are not supposed to have a bad attitude, but are supposed to be full of the fruits of the Spirit, like joy, peace, long-suffering.

      • Joshua McCartney says:

        I understand they adopted the name as it was what they were labelled by others for their sometimes negative preaching (mostly against Bible correctors), street preaching etc. Just like how Christian's were first called.

    • Vincent Speranza says:

      So what do we do with Jimmy Swaggert’s camp ( ya know the reverend caught with gis hands in the HOOKIE JAR) that had the same kind of Charasmatic Junk going on! Seems like a spirit at work here! Kinda having my doubts it’s not the holy spirit though

  2. Nate Beck says:

    Dear Brother/Webmaster,

    I'm surprised I never thought to ask you this before, but do you believe that Dr. Ruckman was a born again man? I have no doubt myself. Thanks brother.

    • Webmaster says:

      The Bible says that “by their fruits ye shall know them” (Mat. 7:20). What I see is a mixed bag. My focus has been on his writings, and I have not interviewed him or anyone close to him in the process. On one hand, you have a man very rough around the edges who after his profession of faith went on serving God in the midst of many obstacles placed in his path, on the other hand you can see a man consumed by bitterness and pride who alleges he cussed his way through the sinner’s prayer, makes “funny jokes” about the possibility of certain people going to hell, writes about fantasizing how he could drown the faculties of Bible colleges that oppose him by spitting on them just one time, and the list could go on and on, and we haven’t even mentioned his teachings. Was Ruckman a saved man? I have no public opinion. I will leave that up to God.

      At best, you have a man who just wanted to serve God and see souls saved who got caught up in bitterness and pride, at worst you have a man who some say was demon possessed or an agent provocateur. My goal has been to expose the writings and teachings of this man to assist others in reaching their own conclusions, without feeling that they needed to fork out money to Ruckman’s bookstore or spend so much time subjecting themselves to the bitter spirit in his writings in order to get to the crux of what he teaches.

      • Primitive Baptist says:

        I have difficulty calling him regenerate because of his tremendous retention of occultism, such as his thesosis for the note in his Reference Bible on I Corinthians 15.28 called in the occult at-one-ment, extra-planetary trips stolen from EG White, strange doctrines, abortion is not murder… He sounds to me like a theosophist given a free pass rather than a Christian. I rather would like to say all are Christians who profess to be, though the word disallows it toto cælo (Romans 9.6-7; II Cor. 13.5; II Peter 2.1-6). Ruckman reminds me of Simon Magus more than dear Barnabas. At the end of the day, if we did judge him by what he produced, he is found weighed in the proverbial balance & found very wanting of what should be expected of a Christian more than the usual humility we ought to have.

         

        I am terrified of some of the things I have done in my flesh even after profession, yet in repentance have done them no longer. That is altogether void from Ruckman.

      • Fred says:

        Praise the Lord for a soul willing to expose this ungodly behavior! Good show webmaster!

  3. Danny Parnell says:

    I am surprised that you have all this time to sneak around and go after everything about Ruckman. One brother slamming the other. Which is worse man throwing his Bible or man setting in a congregation and making fun of the people. Why don't you go into the Pentecostal Churches of this world and expose them. Maybe you our one of them.

  4. Webmaster says:

    No one on this page so far is making fun of people. However, the behavior demonstrated in this "Bad Attitude Blowout" raises some questions which you completely ignored. You should answer the questions instead of trying to change the subject.

  5. Primitive Baptist Forum says:

    Merely add charis-mania's estatic jabberwocky they vaunt tongues; as a 21 year survivor of the movement, I will put my reputation on the line in saying that is no different than any service in continuationism. Really, that is the early morning crowd, or the crowd before their voodooism fully enraptures then in theosophic embrace in charis-maniac Ruckmanism.

  6. JMC says:

    Not sure why is this being referred to as “Pentecostal-like Mayhem.” As a “Pentecostal”, I can attest that we don’t go around throwing books as portrayed in this video.

    • Particular Baptist says:

      Are you a first-wave variety? Old-time early Pentecostals nowadays still remainig separated from the second-to-third waves don’t act in that way, at least as much, though they historically did.

  7. Shaun Butler says:

    I’ve never seen this in a Pentecostal church. Just wanted to pass that along.
    I will say thank you for this website. I’m having to research both Ruckman and James Cone for a project I’m doing.

    Lord Bless you.

  8. Ex-Charismatic Primitive Baptist says:

    It does not seem some commenters have spent time in a second-to-third wave cont8nuationist. However, there are historic accounts in droves of this disorderly conduct in first-wave churches. In fact, men fell at Azusa Street Mission “like an army slain on the battlefield” records Dr DW Cloud in The Pentecostal-Charismatic Movements: The History & The Error.

  9. Anonymous says:

    I just noticed in this video at about the 10 second mark Gene Kim on the right hand of the screen in a black suit. I saw him again about the 17 second mark running in the front of the auditorium and he appears to be throwing a book of some sorts toward the platform.

    I don’t know if anyone is familiar with Gene Kim. He is one of Ruckman’s followers and a graduate from PBI. He has a church in California somewhere and he has a very strong internet presence. I have watched a few of his videos and he is regurgitating the same heresies and lies as his teacher and mentor Ruckman.

    Kim’s video on the drawing of the Father in John 6 is completely ridiculous and ludicrous. He also preached at Andrew Sluder’s church (another Ruckmanite pastor) and it was most blasphemous and unbiblical to say the least. The wonderful fruits of Ruckmanism continue through his influence.

    • Old Regular Baptist says:

      Sluder has a decent following as well. The Web is where old heresies go to reinvigorate, multiply then die.

  10. T.C. says:

    Been part of it in the past. Not fanaticism but people overjoyed and truly enthusiastic (in God) about their great God and his so great salvation that they have been privileged to know. I miss it. Although I was not the most ready to run the bases or shout or toss a paper back song book I always liked it when things got loose and grown men demonstrated their joy in the Holy Ghost.

  11. John says:

    Dear Webmaster,

    What a fruitless work, you have devoted so much time to. You should at least be as well balanced as the Doc, and include soulwinning, preaching, teaching, and constructive writing in addition to your rebuke. I find it funny that you seem shocked by this; the clip is basically every Sunday at my local NON-Ruckmanite, KJVO, Dispensational, Independent Fundamental Baptist Church. It's a Southern thing you wouldn't understand.

    • Sarah says:

        To John…. Could you please explain a little more about the “Southern Thing” that wouldn’t be understood? I have been listening to Dr Ruckman’s teachings and have learned much! But I as others, have difficulty understanding the running around in churches? Is this a men’s only participation?…women of church participate? I look forward to learning the ..Southern ..aspect of it, for me to have better understanding of it. thanks so much!

  12. Scrivanich K says:

    That looked like a bunch of born again believers that have confidence and assurance. 

  13. tempura magoo says:

    I grew up in Ruckman's church and graduated PBI, so lemme tell you this is par for the course. Every Blowout I went to had at least a few of these screaming-running-throwing-songbooks moments. And some regular Sunday services too. And sometimes after the extended singing service after prayer meeting. People got fired up and someone would start, and that would fire other guys up, and they all just hype each other up. It was definitely encouraged, especially at Blowouts.

    The secret is that a huuuge part of this is for show: gotta show how godly you are by how loud you can shout and how far you can throw the songbook! They will never admit this. There is SO much posturing that goes on, from this to streetpreaching to how many ruckman magnets they can stick on their car. It's all to show off how spiritual they are. Like guys who buy giant pick up trucks for show, not work.

    The other huge part of this is that these people are so dang repressed, man, in every facet of life. This is like the one time it's okay to cut loose.

    The final key is that this usually happens after singing. There's a lot of bad to say about ruckman and that church, I mean a lot that this site hasn't even touched, but honestly song service was pretty dope. I'll give em that. Everybody's full throated singing, there was always a full band – it's basically going to a concert. But Ruckman taught that dancing was evil so what else are you gonna do when the music gets in you?

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