From: cnews@umr.edu (UMR Usenet News Post)
Newsgroups: soc.religion.christian
Subject: Re: Name It & Claim It
Date: 3 Oct 92 06:09:34 GMT
Organization: University of Missouri - Rolla

In article <Sep.29.02.46.15.1992.3749@athos.rutgers.edu> cmgrawbu@eos.ncsu.edu (CHRISTOPHER M GRAWBURG) writes:
>Can someone please explain to me the concept of Name it and claim it taught
>by Copeland and Fred Price??  All I've ever heard was it was bad.
>Can someone send/post Scriptural references on why it is legit/not legit??
>
>Thanx a lot!!!!!
>Chris
>cmgrawbu@eos.ncsu.edu

The phrases "Name It & Claim It" as described refers to "Positive
Confession" theology as embodied in the claims of Kenneth Copeland, 
Fred Price, Kenneth Hagin, Charles Capps, Robert Tilton, etc.

This theology is derived from Essek William Kenyon (1867-1948) and
usually refers to bringing into existence what we state with our mouth,
since faith is a confession.  The power of the tongue was the key to
his confession theory, which can be traced to his exposure to meta-
physical ideas as expressed in the "New Thought" movement at Emerson 
College of Oratory in Boston.  Emphases of the "New Thought" were
health or healing, abundance or prosperity, wealth and happiness.

Phineas P. Quimby (1802-1866) is regarded as the founder of "New Thought"
philosophy.  He studied spiritism, occultism, hypnosis, and other
aspects of parapsychology.  Quimby was said to have healed Mary Baker
Patterson Eddy, the founder of Christian Science, in 1862.

Kenneth Copeland asserts, "You impart humanity into a child that's
born of you.  Because you are human, you have imparted the nature of
humanity into that born child.  That child wasn't born a whale.  It was
born a human.  Well, now, you don't have a God in you.  You are one."

The origin of this view is derived from the words of the serpent in
Genesis 3:4.  This dangerously raises humans to God's level in a
prideful way.

The "Rhema" doctrine is the primary key to "Positive Confession"
theology.  It is derived from Romans 10:8 "word of faith".  In
classical Greek "rhema" is something stated specificly.  But the
"word of faith" or "Rhema" doctrine take this to mean that whatever
is spoken "in faith" becomes immediately divinely inspired.  "Rhema"
may also refer to a "special word" of "revelation knowledge" of the
"higher knowledge" of God.

Basic scriptures used by Positive Confession adherants are:
Proverbs 6:2 "ensnared by the words of your mouth" is taken to mean
   that you should invest some money in some ministry as a seed of
   faith so that you can receive God's blessings.
Romans 10:8, Romans 4:17 are usually take out of context to mean
   any Christian can have the creative power of God to "call those
   things which be not as though they were."   (But Romans 4:17 is
   supposed to refer to Abraham's faith and 10:8 without verses 7-9
   loses its true meaning.)
3 John 2 is usually taken far beyond a pleasant greeting to mean
   we should not be sick and we should be far from poor.

Items in the post are a synopsis of "Positive Confession Theology"
in _The_Dictionary_of_Pentecostal_and_Charasmatic_Movements_, Burgess
and McGee, editors, Zondervan pub. 1988.

This is information and NOT an endorsement of positive confession, 
word of faith, name-it-and-claim-it, blab-it-and-grab-it, desire-it-
and-acquire-it, believe-it-and-receive-it, etc.  :-)

I claim all the standard disclaimers.  No pun intended.  :-)