This article is about growing the number of active members in the Unification Church. It is based on the assumption that church growth has regular causes that can be discerned by examining churches that are growing. The corollary is that church decline also has regular causes that can be discerned by examining churches that are declining in numbers. Fortunately, the process of discovery is not rocket science. The differences between the churches that are dying and are growing are plain as day.
In this paper, I will argue that possession of an evangelical mission and congregational polity is the defining characteristic of most growing churches. I will present a case that when the Unificationist churches possessed this mission and polity, they grew. Although I will not delve into it for want of space, I also believe that the evangelical mission and congregational policy are rooted in the Divine Principle teachings and Founder's aspirations embodied in home church and Tribal Messiahship.
I then will propose that at this stage of its maturation, if the Unification Church adapts the practices of the churches that are growing, and ceases the practices of the churches that are failing, it will grow. I will conclude by responding to five criticisms of my position.
Beginning with the end in mind, the objective is to create people who profess faith in True Parents and want the Blessing, on the foundation of membership in a spiritual community. I believe that the proliferation of communities of Blessed families practicing faith in God, fidelity, sexual purity and universal love, will save the world.
The evangelical mission is based on the Divine Principle words, "…the teachings of the returning Christ can freely and swiftly be conveyed to the hearts of all humankind. This will enable his teachings to bring rapid and profound changes all over the globe." It is the direct practice advocated by the Family Pledge, "to convey the Blessing to our community." It is embodied in Dr. Hak Ja Han Moon's words to the Universal Peace Federation global conference: "Without a clear understanding of the Principle of Creation, and the way in which evil entered and expands in this world, we are very limited in our ability to change the course of history toward a world of universal peace. Therefore, I encourage you to study Divine Principle." Rev. Moon's peace messages similarly taught the Divine Principle and called people to receive the Holy Marriage Blessing sacrament. This is the evangelical mission.
The most important result of congregational polity is congregational ownership. People who are owners know that they are responsible. More often than not, this brings out the best in people. Owners tend to care for what they own. Owners settle down and have children. Ownership has to be both internal and external. Internally, the belief system has to support local ownership—and the Family Pledge and Divine Principle do. Externally, the members have to take real ownership, with its risks and opportunities, and outside authorities must likewise keep their proper position.
This model is in direct contrast with the denominational model of multiple missions and episcopal polity.
The "four areas of focus" of the United Methodists in America begin with "combating the diseases of poverty by improving health globally," followed by "engaging in ministry with the poor." "Creating new places for new people and revitalizing existing congregations" and "developing principled Christian leaders for the church and the world" come next.
The multiplicity of missions taken on by Methodists and Episcopalians is typical of mainstream Protestant churches.
Episcopal polity means that local church congregations are guided by direction from a central authority, be it an anointed person, as in the Catholic form, or an elected committee, as in the Presbyterian form. The central authority controls resources, from which clergy are salaried. The center governs each congregation, whose sole accountability and com¬munication line is to the center. The center has authority over the planning, schedule, strategies, style, properties, and so forth for each congregation.
To understand what is really going on in the episcopal system, you have to realize that it was built for a society in which there is only one church. As Christian society modernized, the church became a department of the state. Membership became coterminous with citizenship. Evangelism was not necessary. Taxation supported the church. People by law had to attend the church assigned them according to their location. This is called the parish system. Only the state-certified clergy could give the message, multiply sacramental objects and officiate liturgical events. It was like agriculture in Russia under Stalin, or the American public schools.
Episcopal polity leads to a church culture that is world affirming, property-centric, and non-conversionist with a strenuously guarded liturgy. Such churches tend to have few young leaders and no innovation. Churches with this polity do not, and I believe cannot, expand in a free society.
Which Churches Are Growing; Which Are Dying?
Historian Paul Johnson refers to the dying churches listed in Table 1, above, as the "Seven Sisters." The seven denominations "as a whole lost between a fifth and a third of their members in the years 1960-90." He cites one study that calculated that the Methodists were losing 1,000 members a week and have been for thirty years.
Gallup categorizes these as "mainline" churches. Between 1973 and 1983, the United Methodist Church was down 8%, the Presbyterian Church USA was down 15%, the Lutheran Church in America was down 3%, the Episcopal Church down 4% and the Christian Church / Disciples of Christ was down 13%.
From 1983 to 2013, the UMC is flat if we include "preparatory members" and down 12% if we count "lay members" and the PCUSA has an astonishing drop of over 30% (from 3.15M to 1.9M). More recently, in the span from 2010 to 2011, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America was down 1.96% (to 4.5 million), the United Methodist Church was down 1% (to 7.8 million), the Presbyterian Church (USA) was down 2.61% (to 2.7 million).
As to the causes of decline, Johnson's comment as a historian is that they declined "chiefly because they forfeited their distinguishing features, or indeed any features." Let's look at the Episcopal Church as an example.
After the Episcopal Church's General Convention of 1994, marked by a bitter dispute over the right of practicing homosexuals to become or remain clergy, one official observer commented: 'The Episcopal Church is an institution in free fall. We have nothing to hold onto, no shared belief, no common assumptions, no bottom line, no accepted definition of what an Episcopalian is or believes.'" A neighbor of mine in upstate New York, a devout lay minister in her local Episcopal Church, believes that the church's stance on homosexuality and abortion will lead God to destroy it. This does not bode well for church growth.
During the day, legislators in the lower chamber, the House of Deputies, and the upper chamber, the House of Bishops, discussed such weighty topics as whether to develop funeral rites for dogs and cats, and whether to ratify resolutions condemning genetically modified foods. Both were approved by a vote, along with a resolution to 'dismantle the effects of the doctrine of discovery,' in effect an apology to Native Americans for exposing them to Christianity.
The writer, Jay Akasie, stated that the denomination had 3 million members in 1970 and today has about 1 million.
On the other hand, between 1973 and 1983, the Southern Baptist Convention increased by 15%, the LDS increased by 40%, the Assemblies of God increased by 71%, Seventh-Day Adventists increased by 34% and Church of the Nazarene increased by 22%. Gallup categorizes these all as "evangelical" churches. Since 1983, the Southern Baptist Convention has increased another 15%, the Assemblies of God has grown by about 30%, and the LDS has roughly doubled in size. In the period from 2010 to 2011, while the Southern Baptist Convention was down 0.42%, to 16.1 million, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons) was up 1.42%, to 6 million, the Assemblies of God was up 0.52%, to 2.9 million, up 0.52%, and the Jehovah's Witnesses was up 4.37%, the largest reported growth (no base number given).
One is led to ask, of course, "What are the differences between these churches?" If we ask thousands of churches about what they do, and then sort it out by answers from dying churches and growing churches, will we see any patterns? Sociologist of religion C. Kirk Hadaway did just that, for the Hartford Seminary's Institute for Religion Research. He found clear differences.
To review a sampling of that information, I present Table 2. It sets forth a number of ways in which dying and rising congregations differ, based upon Hadaway's research.
This information illustrates my thesis, that the crucial characteristics of growing churches, the root of all the growth dynamics, are two in number. First, these churches have an evangelical mission. Second, they have a congregational polity. A sorting of the above characteristics by mission and polity illustrates this (Table 3).
I discern that critical characteristics of growing churches require, or are typical of, an evangelical mission (or "one" mission) and are contrary to or are atypical of churches with multiple missions. I also discern that critical characteristics of growing churches require, or are typical of, a congregational policy, and are contrary to or are atypical of churches with episcopal or Presbyterian polity.
Founding of the church: The Unification Church grew from one spirit-led man starting a local congregation. The church had an evangelical mission and congregational polity. He taught and preached a God-centered biblical vision for world transformation. He prayed incessantly. His mission began with a vision of Jesus; people who joined testified that it was the spirit world that led them to him. He loved and served others to bring them into his church, sleeping and eating little, giving up his family, worrying not about physical needs. That was how it started.
Before , I had prohibited members from carrying out econo-mic activities, in other words, from earning money. If they had made money before that time, it would have created a bad condition. In God's providence of restoration, the principle is to find people first, which is why you cannot touch material goods before finding people. Because of this, we went about finding people even if it meant going through suffering by selling off everything we had; we did not engage in money-making campaigns… I prohibited all financial activities save those involving manual labor where you shed your blood or sweat. Anything where you did not shed blood or sweat, I prohibited. The blood or sweat was like the payment of a price.
Rev. Moon's initial church in Pyongyang, 1946-48, grew rapidly enough in two years to incur hostility from established Christian leaders. After the Korean War, the Unification Church grew from two members in 1951 to 400 members in 1956, a growth rate in the range of 175% per year. He reports having 120 churches in Korea four years later, which indicates that this phenomenal growth rate continued.
Mission field: How did it continue? Rev. Moon sent out disciples to replicate his process.
Unificationism followed the evangelical mission and congregational polity in its mission field, where missionaries had to rely on God and had latitude for the way they organized. They had only one mission, it was evangelical, and they had the freedom to figure out how to succeed. Thus, the church in its early stage, whether in Korea or on the frontiers of the global mission field, was evangelical. Members were fervent in witnessing and teaching, highly reliant on the spirit world, conversionist, radically separated from the world and intensely focused on witnessing and discipleship. It is worth pointing out that this type of church attracts young people.
America: In America, the church grew from 2 missionaries in 1959 to 300 full-time church workers in 1971. That is a growth rate of over 150% per year. Over the next five years the national growth rate was distorted by the importation of 200-300 missionaries from overseas, but we can isolate many localities that were not affected by this. In Durham, New Hampshire, where I was located, a group of 7 grew to 21 full-time members and another 19 home-members in the months of June-August, 1973. Others in that period relate similar growth in their locations. The Oakland center, where I joined, had a fervent evangelical mission and hard-fought congregational polity. A group of 3 grew to about 70 between 1971 and 1973—a growth rate of about 500%.
Europe: The church in Europe grew at a similar rate, 1965-73. Rev. Moon dispatched, some five missionaries to as many countries in 1965—England, Germany, Austria, Italy, France and Holland. By the end of 1972, Austria had about 100 members. The others were likely on a par with that, as each of the six countries sent 20 missionaries to the US, January-February, 1973. Based on this account, the church in these six countries grew at a rate of approximately 80% per year.
The evangelical spirit is exemplified no better than by Rev. Reiner Vincenz, the church planter in France, who fasted for 40 days prior to gaining his first member.
Russia: The mission in Russia was the same in the 90s and early 2000s. The church in St. Petersburg grew from a handful of missionaries in 1991 to a peak of 300-400 attending Sunday service in 1993. The mission was only witnessing; they were only inviting people to and teaching workshops in the Divine Principle. By 2002, they had 1,000 members.
Global result: The church maintained evangelical fervor and congregational polity in its mission field until the early 90s. The overall growth pattern of the Unification Church during this period globally was astounding, and is revealed by its marriage statistics between 1961 and 1992. And one should note that the numbers recorded are not those of the total membership, but rather the number of members who had newly qualified for Blessed marriage. The total number of members had a steeper rate of growth. Since there were very few second generation of marriageable age prior to 1992, this is an indicator of the church's conversion rate.
I include three graphs to illustrate a very important point: the growth rate was sustained even as the scale increased exponentially. In other words, this was more than a charismatic pastor building a mega-church. Many pastors can grow a congregation, and it stops there. Rev. Moon did that, but he didn't stop there. Some pastors can sustain a movement that grows within a particular nation and its diaspora, but it stops there. Rev. Moon did that too, but he didn't stop there. He managed to maintain almost the same growth velocity within scores of diverse cultures, on a global scale. Rev. Moon was not personally involved with most of this growth.
It is worth noting Rodney Stark's findings that the growth rate of Christianity in the sub-apostolic age, prior to its emergence as the state religion of Rome, was 4% per year. He found that this also has been the growth rate of the Latter-Day Saints since their inception. The conclusion: a steady 4% growth rate sustained over centuries puts a faith tradition on a trajectory to world religion status. In its first decades, the Unification Church was far ahead of that.
This indicates that True Parents would have blessed some 772,000 fully dedicated believers of the first generation on Foundation Day. Now, I'm well aware there are lies, damned lies and statistics. I'm also aware that the math as well as sociological variables here are more complex than I'm ready and able to explore. Nonetheless, trends are worth pondering.
As the Unification Church settled its global ministry, Rev. Moon followed the denominational model. This is characterized by centralized authority introducing multiple and diverse missions of an economic, social, cultural and interfaith nature.
Mission diversification: The Unificationist mission expanded from evan¬gelism to business, the arts, media, secular or interfaith education, member-revival and interfaith.
Unification ecumenism began in the late 60s in Korea and mid-70s in the US. The outreach to scholars and scientists began at the same time. The seminary launched in 1975. The newspapers started in 1976 in the US and other countries over the next 15 years. Businesses such as machine tools production, ginseng sales, ship-building, fishing and restaurants, construction companies, hotels, printing and many more started in the late 60s in Korea and multiplied globally beginning in the 70s.
Episcopal polity: Rev. Moon established a parish system in the United States, with each state a parish and, in some cases a city a parish. He installed regional directors in Japan and the United States, and national leaders and continental directors globally. In the late 90s he imported four "national messiahs," one of which had effective governing authority, into each nation, and in 2006 another authority in many nations representing him directly (the boon bong wang).
Concurrent was the waiving of belief or practice requirements to receive the church's core sacrament, the blessing.
After the 1992 Blessing of 30,000 couples, in 1995 we had a marriage blessing of 360,000 couples, signifying a growth rate of nearly 400% per year. We cannot take that number as representing church growth. The US sent less than 100 people to that event, after having sent 1,000 to the 1992 Blessing. Nor can we take as representing church growth the increase reported by the American church from 88 to 6,068 couples in the space of three weeks during the "360 Million Couples Blessing." In 1997 the global church fielded 1,500 couples, in 1998, 800 couples, in 2000, 185 couples, and in every blessing event thereafter, between 200 and 2,000 couples. The 2013 "Foundation Day" blessing included 42 first-generation members from the US. The number of members being blessed diminished to a trickle—and most of those were not converts but the fraction of the biological growth that adhered to church marriage practice. This is a reversal of the trend of the church's first decades.
Rev. Moon never curtailed the evangelical mission, but because economic, social-cultural and interfaith activities are less demanding spiritually, they trumped evangelism and it generally disappeared. In addition, removing authority from local hands eventually resulted in the abdication of local responsibility. At that point, the church stopped growing.
Ocean Church: The mission of Ocean Church combined evangelism with fishing. Fishing led to building boats and commercial retail and wholesale ventures. The evangelical aspect of the Ocean Church vision was, excuse the expression, dead in the water. Rev. Moon envisioned thousands of young Americans finding God and a healthy lifestyle through the ocean. But all the members' energy went into the practical side of the mission, learning to fish, taking care of the boats, and expanding (or surviving) financially.
We have this problem in extremis, because it wasn't just one secular mission; it was many simultaneously. Rev. Moon gave his blood and tears so that the Seminary would convert the professors, ICUS convert scientists, PWPA convert scholars, and similar educational activities convert political leaders, journalists and clergy. But none of these organizations served as vehicles of evangelism. If anything, they suppressed the evangelical fervor of the members engaged in them.
Russia: After the growth in St. Petersburg, the trend turned negative and by 2000 there were less than 200 attending, and in 2011 it is less still. The thousand members in 2002 became 800 by 2012. A Russian member I interviewed cited a court case against the church as a cause, both for public image damage and the forcing of leading missionaries out of the country. She stated that those who departed from active membership were free riders. American missionaries with whom I've spoken added to the analysis. One, the church failed to disciple indigenous leaders and turn ownership over to them. Hence, long before the missionaries left, many talented converts had departed. When the missionaries left, the remaining indigenous members could not fill the leadership vacuum. Also a second wave of Asian leaders arrived requesting obedience as the highest virtue and these leaders, naturally, perhaps, praised the obedient members as superior to the others. It might have rallied their troops but it divided the membership.
Korea: According to Rev. Hyung Jin Moon, the membership in Korea peaked at 16,000 and then declined to 14,000 by 2009. In 1988, the Korean church averaged 20,000 attending church each Sunday. In July, 2012, the Tongil Foundation headquarters reported that under their governance, membership grew from 30,000 to 45,857 within a year or two.
This is a phenomenal growth rate. One would expect that the global church would be awash with testimonies of these thousands of new members flooding in. I have never seen any, at least in English language publications. My conclusion is that this growth, while due the utmost respect, cannot be credited to fresh conversions, but a general improvement of care for existing and lapsed members and more attention to record keeping. When I requested data on the global church demographics from that office, I was told that it is restricted information.
The United States: Growth in the United States was hampered by persecution, to be sure, but continued where good evangelical practices persisted into the late 80s in the San Francisco area and through the 90s and into the 2000s in New York and Chicago. The most persistent growth sector at present is the Latino community. I would point out that the leaders of this community are motivated strongly by evangelism. Further, due to the language barrier, they are effectively congregational in polity. They do not have to deal with properties and they can organize according to the needs of their market.
Reverend Sun Myung Moon has led God's providence with a vision of a God of love beyond human understanding. But in the process, he created two distinct models. One is a church with a congregational polity and evangelical mission. The other is a church with an episcopal polity and multiple missions. I propose that we need to choose between them and should choose the former, a church with a congregational polity and evangelical mission.
I realize that Unificationists have several criticisms of the evangelical congregational model, and I want to address them. But first, I need to address a more fundamental criticism.
First, why choose? We can do both!
The idea that we can unite everything into one is wonderful, but we take it too far. Our unyielding commitment to "both-and" is the Achilles Heel of the Unification Church. We force the move from origin to union without a healthy growing period in which subject and object partners can achieve maturity.
Why can't one organization do evangelism along with all the other missions? It is because economic, social-cultural and interfaith activities are less demanding spiritually than is evangelism. Therefore they trump evangelism and it soon disappears. The fallen world is not a level playing field. You need to incentivize witnessing; you need to create a culture of evangelism if you want people to do evangelism.
I reject the riposte in our church that "no one is stopping you from witnessing." So too, in the mainstream Protestant churches, no one is stopping anyone from witnessing, but their members don't witness. Structure affects culture. People witness in evangelical congregations, not because they are more virtuous, but because the leader and the system promote witnessing and render witnessing effective. Witnessing is not easy. People need to feel it is supremely important. The leadership has to model that personally and build a system around it.
Jim Collins has shown that an effective organization is an organization that does one thing fantastically well. Businesses provide goods and services. Governments fix potholes. Schools teach how to read and write. Churches save people.
Then what about creating God-centered economy, politics, culture and recreation? Isn't that part of the Messiah's core mission? Didn't he have to, therefore, assign church leaders and members to do that stuff? I address that as the second criticism.
Second, an exclusively evangelical mission is contrary to the Unificationist vision of not only restoration of religion but of all aspects of life.
This is in large part a strategic issue. A system of separation of powers, checks and balances, division of labor and specialization simply works better than central planning. This system reduces abuse and increases results. The Divine Principle upholds the analogy of the body, with its division of labor among specialized organs, and rightly criticizes the entanglement of the Renaissance Popes with secular economic and govern¬mental power structures. The church mission is not to govern society, train for technical skills or produce goods and services. The church naturally advocates godly principles and values, enables individuals and families to separate from Satan, and nurtures a responsible citizenry. Rev. Moon did address the leaders of governments, but what he told them was a religious message, to get their personal house in order and then lead their nations based upon godly principles. He did what a pastor is supposed to do.
Secular activities per se have no salvific value. Thus I reject the ethos that because the Messiah has to restore the secular world, our economic, media or political activities can save us. What our first generation swept under the carpet was Rev. Moon's sincere expectation that members would be witnessing and growing the church at the same time they were creating secular institutions. With rare exceptions, we failed to meet his expectations. Evangelism is the most difficult mission, and people always choose the less difficult. That's why the third blessing comes last.
Third, having an evangelical mission is contrary to the Unificationist commitment to interfaith.
The perception is that evangelism denies the interfaith tenet that "I'm okay, you're okay" and therefore undermines Unificationist interfaith outreach. I agree with the first part of that statement, but disagree with the second.
As to the first part, Rev. Moon is clear that "interfaith" means for all religions to accept the True Parents. This is set forth in the Divine Principle "Resurrection" chapter on the unification of religions. Rev. Moon's address to the first Assembly of the World's Religions was entitled, "Dialogue and Alliance." True Parents' interfaith includes dialogue, as in traditional interfaith, but goes beyond that to "alliance." Alliance presupposes a shared vision and cause. We should be out front: the cause is to give the Blessing, authentically, to people of all religions. By authentically, I mean with responsible preparation and implementation of Blessed family life supported by a spiritual community.
But we were not true to that. We focused on dialogue, not alliance, and sought solely to make friends. As a result, have we become a major player in the world's interfaith movement? Is Reverend Moon honored appropriate to his interfaith work? Sadly, the answer is no. The reason boils down to this: we are not one of them, and they know it. They know we believe True Parents are the Messiah, and they know, even though we are in denial of it, that the Messiah is not here to dialogue.
As to the second part, evangelical congregationalism is the key to effective Unificationist interfaith. Our interfaith vision can best be built upon an association of self-governing congregations united by the mission of Blessed marriage. The definition, requirements and standard of Blessing association membership would be the evangelical mission to bring people into and through the marriage Blessing path based on the Peace Messages. That would be the definition of a Blessing ministry, whether carried out by a Unificationist, Baptist, Muslim, Hindu or Buddhist community.
Congregational leaders would receive the Blessing and would be ordained to multiply it in their community by their own methods. They would create Blessing ministries to serve their unique markets. The Unification churches should model it. If we go through the same path that we are asking them to take, and make that path accessible to them, we will move forward with them. We will listen more to them and in return they will listen to us. By listening and partnering, we will gain other benefits. One, we will tap into Muslim and Hindu traditions for arranged marriages, Catholic sacramentalism and Confucian veneration for parents. Two, we will tap into the Jewish and Christian marriage movement and pure love courtship processes. Three, we will hugely expand the population of single men and women eligible for the Blessing. Four, we want billions of people to receive the Blessing, and this will empower millions of pastors to give the Blessing and minister to Blessed families.
How would the association be governed? HSA should anchor a congregational association of independent churches and religious / spiritual communities. Each would be, with us, in a spiritual communion with True Parents. "In spiritual communion with True Parents" means to carry out the Blessing ministry, which is True Parents' core mission. The Blessing ministry is the unifying authority. This starts with us and includes all faiths eventually, because any religion can uplift the Blessing. Ergo the instruction Rev. Moon gave in his final public speech at Unification Theological Seminary, June of 2001. The seminary curriculum, he said, looking at me in the eyes, should focus on two things: world religions and the change of blood lineage.
Implications for Unificationist polity and mission: In the late 1990s, we extended the Blessing beyond our faith community. Was this wrong? No. What was wrong was that we failed to minister to those who could have joined our church (because we were not evangelical) and we did not empower the spiritual leaders of other faith communities to minister the Blessing (because we were not congregational). We failed to consider that other religions could carry out the True Parents' Blessing ministry as congregations distinct from ours. Why? Because we have episcopal presuppositions.
What was the result? In the first thirty years of our church, we restricted the marriage blessing to those who understood, valued, and paid for it. Under those conditions, the numbers receiving the Blessing grew exponentially. After 1992, we moved from Blessing to "pre-blessing" people who did not understand, value, significantly desire, or pay for it. Three things happened. One, the numbers of "pre-blessed" couples reached into the hundreds of millions. Two, the Blessing was evacuated of its meaning for these couples. Three, the assimilation of new members into the church declined and even ceased.
All religions can be vehicles of the Blessing: To minister, on the simplest level, means to guide and enable people to understand, value, and pay for the Blessing, and empower them to do the same for others. Receiving the holy wine walks hand-in-hand with the teaching that we are justified by attending True Parents. So our essential purpose is not just to give holy wine, but also to bring people to attend True Parents.
How is this accomplished in a congregational polity? One way only: by the community carrying the evangelical mission with the Messiah. God will judge us all, but from the human vantage point, the safest, simplest, measurable way to attend True Parents is bring people authentically to the Blessing. This happens only through the organization that designed to receive, and stimulate you to give, that offering. That can be the Unification Church. But here is the key to the unity of the world's religions: any spiritual community can carry out the Blessing mission. This is the key to the unity of the world's religions.
Remove the obstructions: There exists in America a cadre of Christian clergy who accept Divine Principle and True Parents, have received the marriage blessing, teach Divine Principle, have blessed their congregations and remain in their church positions. This is the small spark, and we need to fan the flame.
What is their common characteristic? It is not their theology; it is their polity, which is congregational. These are independent churches. They generally are Bible churches of a Pentecostal and Baptist lineage. They are just like the church the young Rev. Moon created in Pyongyang, Pusan and Seoul. We can become one family of churches with them. To abet this, we need to remove the obstructions between them and us. The main obstruction is that the Unification Church is an episcopal system. Independent churches will never join an episcopal system.
The only way to embrace these churches is to establish Unificationism as a congregational polity and relate as sister churches in associations that are authentically self-governing. Free and independent churches with a strong sense of True Parents' transcendent lordship would very possibly join a congregational association of independent congregations, including Unification churches, whose tie that binds is the Blessing. Our common base for give and take action is the Blessing ministry.
Until human beings are perfected in love, we will have conflicts. Therefore the crucial question is, what sort of polity is most effective at minimizing the potential for conflict and the harm done by it? Unificationism tends to posit that unity comes through increasing oversight, reporting and control. This leads to the concentration of power. I believe that unity comes by reducing oversight, reporting and control, that is, by decentralizing power. The concentration of power—until all people are perfect in love—actually increases the possibility of conflict and schism, and the damage wrought by these.
Episcopal and Presbyterian polity concentrates ownership, and ownership means power. Two problems arise. One, power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. When the corruption of leaders is revealed, it leads to schism. Two, in an environment in which power is centralized, leaders fight over it. This leads to schism. Three, the leaders become elephants who, when fighting, trample the ants—who, if they survive, create schisms. It's bad enough when the ants are individuals and their families, far worse when those ants are corporate boards.
Congregational polity reduces the possibility of schism and its impact when it happens: Episcopal hierarchies by their nature act to preserve their power. As a result, they see any instigator of change as a threat. When Jesus' spiritual practice violated Temple polity, by which the Sanhedrin maintained their power, they attacked. When Luther's passion for salvation undermined papal polity, Rome attacked. When the Anabaptists undermined state church polity, Catholics, Lutherans and Calvinists alike attacked them. Wesley's passion for revival led him to conflict with the Church of England's polity and the Church of England excommunicated him. When Sun Myung Moon established a new church, the persecution he suffered was not over theology; it had to do with power. He was taking away their members.
Organizing the church as congregational will eliminate the possibility of schism because there will be nothing from which to separate. Heresiarchs will not gain control of political or economic power, because the church will not offer political and economic power. To remove the perks of power, we need radical change of polity from episcopal to congregational, driven by the passion for evangelism. Will this result in a few leaders driving off in an unprincipled direction? Yes, most likely. But the benefit of evangelical congregationalism far outweighs this cost.
Congregational polity distributes power: In the speech at the Coronation of God's Kingship, January 13, 2001, Rev. Moon stated that all Blessed parents have the authority to bestow the Blessing upon their children. The church needs to build from that and ordain ministers of the Blessing in a transparent way that combines integrity with liberality. This is an immediate task, for within two or three generations, as the concrete memory of True Parents' life on earth fades and the super-abundance of his teachings is unpacked and disseminated, as it should be, leaders will arise in the name of the ascended True Parents. These people will minister the Blessing in full confidence that it is the will of God and they will present an abundance of Rev. Moon's words to back them up.
Will the Blessing expand in peace? Or will our ideals of true love be discredited by mutual excommunications over orthodoxy, or legality, or lineage? Mutual recrimination by those claiming to represent True Parents will do nothing but justify criticism and rejection of the Blessing itself. Therefore, we need a transparent procedure to ordain clergy, Unificationist and otherwise, to give the Blessing. How do we do this? By identifying that the real power is the experience of salvation by the Messiah, the change of blood lineage, and by responsibly distributing it. This means that the church is responsible to establish an ordination to give the Blessing beyond the family level.
True Father sometimes called God the vertical True Parents and referred to himself and True Mother as the horizontal True Parents. Since God indwells in the local church, the congregational polity is vertical, direct to God. The physical True Parents, or their legates, on the other hand, relate to the local congregation and family through layers of temporal intermediaries—a horizontal relationship. Episcopal polity actually is the horizontal polity.
The rationale for episcopal polity appears in the origins of Catholicism, and is based on belief that the Holy Spirit—the charism—works through substantive vertical relationships. The grace of God proceeds through this love of elder to younger, and this extends across generations, beginning with Jesus giving the keys to Peter. In Christianity it is called the apostolic succession. The highest value is unity with one's father, the priest. The benefit of episcopal polity is its focus on filial piety. This reflects the strongest Principle value, the parent-child relationship.
Let's talk about that for a moment. On the restoration course, Abel and Cain take the positions of parent and child, with the proviso that Cain is a disunited child whom Abel has to love into oneness with him/her. Once they achieve oneness, God can accept both Abel and Cain together.
The Unification Church community, in too many instances, did not take Cain and Abel past the "you're a disunited child!" level of relationship. Neglected was the precept that the pastor and member succeed only together. To understand this fully, we need to view it from the perspective of three generations in a local church—the pastor, the member and the member's guest. The pastor is the grandparent, the member is child to the pastor and parent (Abel) to the guest, and the guest is child to the member (Cain). It devolves to parent-child love. Pastors and members sacrifice and serve their members and guests.
This is the family-model. The vision of the parents is to turn their children into successful parents. The vision of the pastor is to create new pastors (successful Tribal Messiahs). The vision of the members is to create new members. The local church models on the three-generation family. In the church and in the family, three-generational love is truly vertical and is an absolute value. If anyone should practice, "honor your father and mother," it is the followers of True Parents.
But this changes when expanded beyond the three-generation family. Authentic love doesn't come through bureaucracies, bulletins and broadcasts. Remote control is for a TV, not a teenager. Rev. and Mrs. Moon sacrificed intimate family life and extended True Parentship into Kingship through multiple levels for the sake of a global mission, and we understand the suffering this brought upon all parties. That mission is completed and we do not need to turn it into a church system.
There are two churches that are growing with a vertical model. They are the Latter Day Saints and the Jehovah's Witnesses. Now, why should not the Unification Church adopt a vertical model like theirs? This begs further discussion, but is apropos to this essay and I will address it briefly.
First I will briefly describe their model. They strongly promote evangelism. Witnessing is normative for all members. They have a witnessing system and excellent evangelical and educational material provided by the central office, uniform throughout the world. Their worship services are standardized. Local and regional leadership and ministry is voluntary. Advancement in the hierarchy is by appoint¬ment. The Witnesses cover living expenses of full-time church workers unless or until they have children. They are family-friendly and teach a high standard of morality.
What's good about this model is what they share with the churches I have described: the culture of evangelism, excellent evangelical material, lay ownership, all ministry by volunteers, family friendliness and high moral expectations.
What's wrong with it is "it majors in the minors." The LDS and Witnesses are New Testament Christians. They consider themselves restorations of the early church community, from which the rest of Christianity deviated. They differentiate from other Christians not on the core Gospel but on what I would argue to be non-essentials. Thus after 150-200 years they remain separatists. This contradicts the Unificationist vision.
Over what do they separate? For the LDS it is the historical narrative in the book of Mormon, the hagiography surrounding Smith's discovery and translation of it, the sacraments and various revealed spiritual practices. For the Witnesses it is interpretations of particular passages of the Bible held with the conviction that any other interpretations are of the devil. Witnesses are not allowed to set foot on the property of other religions, including Christian churches. In both cases there is no salvation outside their organization.
The Unification Church could easily follow this path, but such would be a betrayal of Rev. Moon's vision. Yes, what I am saying, as one who calls for Unification Church evangelism, is that our message transcends our church. People should join the Unification Church, but one need not join the Unification Church in order to be saved. The salvation we offer is an in-breaking of God on the cosmic scale, comparable to that of Jesus Christ, for which every faith tradition is a preparation and which every faith community can house. The LDS and Witnesses are new wineskins for old wine. The Blessing is new wine and each tradition can create their new wineskin for it.
The Unification Church should not adopt LDS or Witness-style polity because it makes of us a restrictive denomination. We need to infuse the wine of all religions, knowing that the eschaton features the disappearance of all religions, including our own. Adopting an LDS-JW structure would suppress the multi¬plication of the Blessing to other faith communities, because it embeds the sacrament into the ecclesiological structure. We need a liberal ecclesiology to house the Blessing; even no ecclesiology beyond what is implicit in the Blessing itself. And that is what? It is a community of Blessed families with leadership equipped and empowered to minister the Blessing authentically.
If it intends to increase in size, the Unification Church should adopt a congregational polity and evangelical mission. To do so, the church should phase out its episcopal polity and delegate its non-evangelical missions to freestanding businesses or para-church organizations. This is the only way to grow the church. This is the only way to bring harmony of the world's religions. This is the only way to insure the everlasting unity of True Parents' body on earth and in heaven.
 The Divine Principle envisions that Christianity will divide between dying and rising segments, and history is bearing out the truth of this prophecy. See Exposition of the Divine Principle (New York: HSA-UWC, 1996), pp. 4-5, 98-9, 340.
 From Article I, Articles of Incorporation of the Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity, filed September 18, 1961 with the State of California.
 Exposition of the Divine Principle, p. 328.
 A personal aside: I thought my Presbyterian church in California was dead, but I didn't know "dead" until 1978, when I entered an Anglican parish in London. It was on a par with Moscow hotel cuisine, 1990. From those experiences, I easily grasped the effect of the dementors in the Harry Potter saga.
 "Trends continue in church membership growth or decline, reports 2011 Yearbook of American & Canadian Churches" in "News from the National Council of Churches," http://www.ncccusa.org/news/110210yearbook2011.html, accessed May 16, 2013; Scott Thumma, "A Report on the 2010 National Profile of U.S. Nondenominational and Independent Churches," Hartford Institute on Religion Research. http://www.hartfordinstitute.org/cong/nondenominational-churches-national-profile-2010.html, ac-cessed May 16, 2013; "Adventist Church Reports Second Highest Growth Among Denominations in North America," Spectrum (February 17, 2011), http:// spectrummagazine.org/blog/2011/02/17/adventist-church-reports-second-highest-growth-among-denominations-north-america, accessed May 16, 2013.
 Paul Johnson, A History of the American People (New York: Harper Perennial, 1999), p. 116.
 George Gallup, Jr. and Jim Castelli, The People's Religion: American Faith in the 90s (New York: MacMillan, 1989), p. 17.
 Johnson, A History of the American People, pp. 968-69. For current Episcopalian statistics, see http://andromeda.rutgers.edu/~lcrew/ecusa_history.html.
 Jay Akasie, "Lessons in Church Governance: What Ails the Episcopalians," Wall Street Journal, July 12, 2012.
 C. Kirk Hadaway, "Facts on Growth," based on the "Faith Communities Today 2005," and "Facts on Growth," based on the "Faith Communities Today 2010," both based on Hartford Seminary national surveys of 14,301 local churches, synagogues, parishes, temples and mosques. http://fact.hartsem.edu/products/index.html.
 "True Father's Life Story: The Business of Restoration," Today's World, September 2011.
 Sun Myung Moon, As a Peace Loving Global Citizen (2009), p. 138.
 "True Father's Life Story" describes the "enlightenment movement": "members taught practical skills (often reading and writing hangul) to rural residents. Their work, according to church publicity, inspired the Park Chung-hee administration's "Sae Ma-ul" (New Village) movement, which brought scientific improvements to rural Korea and served as a model globally for developing countries.
 Testimony of Rev. Sebastian Heumer, who joined in Austria, January 1972.
 Testimony of Rev. Alexey Saveliev, president of the Russian church, 2012. This growth came on the foundation of decades of underground evangelism.
 There is a modicum of double-counting members with failed blessings getting blessed a second time.
 In general they did not make profits and relied upon church subsidy. The ethos of most of these companies in the US, at least in the beginning stages, was Unificationist-insular. Therefore the church missionary cadre, a God-prepared population for church planting if there ever was one, was directed into non-church careers.
 In February, 2013, Mrs. Moon disestablished the boon bong wang position and called the Korean national messiahs to divest all assets and authority in their mission nation and return to Korea. A short time later she installed Cheon Il Guk Special Envoys to twenty nations.
 Author's personal document, "Dec prebless stats," dated Dec 29, 1997. Note that this was a campaign launched less than two weeks after the Blessing of 40 million couples centering on RFK Stadium, and during Christmas season!
 "There were 42 first Gen at the 2/17/13 Blessing. Five of them were matched to 2nd Gen. Several were re-Blessings." Blessed Family Ministry office, March 15, 2013.
 It's the irony of the cult within the cult, of which the Unification Church has had an abundance. By this I mean sub-groups possessing the mentality that they alone hold the key to God's providence.
 It is not completely reliable as a specific number of tithing members who attend church regularly, but the general trend is accurate.
 See "the hedgehog principle," in Jim Collins, Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap… and Others Don't (New York: HarperBusiness, 2001), pp. 90 ff.
Exposition of the Divine Principle, pp. 146-47, 150-51.
 The "United Federation of Churches" was such an endeavor. Strangely, the Unificationist churches were not part of it.
Exposition of the Divine Principle, p. 151.
 Moon, As a Peace Loving Global Citizen, p. 134 or 132, depending on edition.
 As European civilization became efficient, Rome projected parental power across Europe through multiple vertical levels. This vastly enriched and ultimately corrupted Rome. It was a corruption of the parent-child principle, denying the growing period and keeping the next generation in the position of children. If one is told that one is a child and is treated as a child, one will tend to behave as a child. Children do not care for properties. Children do not have children.
 Exposition of the Divine Principle, p. 233.
 Dr. Sebastian Matcak's remark given in a UTS class when I was a seminarian, that Protestantism dissolves into secularism, is apropos.


text:
Susceptibility
Predictors of agr Dysfunction in Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) Isolates among Patients with MRSA Bloodstream Infections
Jill M. Butterfield, Brian T. Tsuji, Jack Brown, Elizabeth Dodds Ashley, Dwight Hardy, Kristen Brown, Alan Forrest, Thomas P. Lodise
Jill M. Butterfield
Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, Albany, New York
Brian T. Tsuji
University at Buffalo, School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Buffalo, New York
Jack Brown
Elizabeth Dodds Ashley
University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, New York
Dwight Hardy
Kristen Brown
Alan Forrest
Thomas P. Lodise
Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, Albany, New YorkOrdway Research Institute, Albany, New York
For correspondence: Thomas.lodise@acphs.edu
DOI: 10.1128/AAC.00407-11
Despite emerging evidence that dysfunction in the accessory gene regulator (agr) locus is associated with deleterious outcomes among patients treated with vancomycin for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections, factors predictive of agr dysfunction have not been evaluated. This study describes the epidemiology of agr dysfunction, identifies predictors of agr dysfunction in MRSA isolates among those with MRSA bloodstream infections, and describes the relationship between agr dysfunction and other microbiologic phenotypes. A cross-sectional study of patients with MRSA bloodstream infections at two institutions in upstate New York was performed. Clinical data on demographics, comorbidities, disease severity, hospitalization history, and antibiotic history were collected. Microbiologic phenotypes, including agr dysfunction, MIC values by broth microdilution (BMD) and Etest, and vancomycin heteroresistance (hVISA) were tested. Multivariable analyses were performed to identify factors predictive of agr dysfunction. Among 200 patients with an MRSA bloodstream infection, the proportion of strains with agr dysfunction was 31.5%. The distribution of MICs determined by both BMD and Etest were equivalent across agr groups, and there was no association between agr dysfunction and the presence of hVISA. Severity of illness, comorbidities, and hospitalization history were comparable between agr groups. In the multivariate analysis, prior antibiotic exposure was the only factor of variables studied found to be predictive of agr dysfunction. This relationship was predominantly driven by prior beta-lactam and fluoroquinolone administration in the bivariate analysis. Identifying these institution-specific risk factors can be used to develop a process to assess the risk of agr dysfunction and guide empirical antibiotic therapy decisions.
The accessory gene regulator (agr) is a quorum-sensing operon which coordinates the expression of secreted and cell-associated virulence factors, and it controls several metabolic pathways in Staphylococcus aureus in a growth phase-related fashion (7, 30). In vitro studies show that alterations in agr function result in several phenotypic changes in S. aureus, including diminished autolysis (21), attenuated vancomycin activity (20, 22, 29), vancomycin heteroresistance (22), and an increased proclivity for the development of intermediate resistance to vancomycin (7, 22, 29, 30). There is also increasing clinical evidence showing that alterations in agr in S. aureus are a key risk factor for poor outcomes in patients with S. aureus bacteremia (7, 25).
Despite the poor outcomes associated with agr dysfunction, factors predictive of agr dysfunction have not been well described, and scant literature exists describing the relationship between agr dysfunction and other reduced vancomycin susceptibility phenotypes. This study describes the epidemiology of agr dysfunction, determines predictors of agr dysfunction in methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) isolates among those with MRSA bloodstream infections, and describes the relationship between agr dysfunction and other microbiologic phenotypes.
Study design and population.We performed a cross-sectional study of patients with MRSA bloodstream infections at two institutions in upstate New York: Albany Medical Center Hospital (AMCH), a 631-bed tertiary-care academic hospital located in Albany, NY, and Strong Memorial Hospital (SMH), a 765-bed academic medical center located in Rochester, NY. The study included patients at least 18 years of age hospitalized with an MRSA bloodstream infection between 1 January 2007 and 30 June 2009. For those with more than one MRSA bloodstream infection during the study period, only the first episode was considered. For patients with multiple MRSA blood cultures during the study time period, only microbiologic phenotypes of the first isolate were examined. Isolates were shipped to the Laboratory for Antimicrobial Pharmacodynamics at the School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences at the University at Buffalo for processing.
Patient data.Trained reviewers used a structured data collection instrument to collect the following information from patients' medical records: age, sex, weight, height, medical history and comorbidities, health care institution exposure for >72 h within 180 days of hospital admission, receipt of antibiotics in the 30 days prior to the index blood culture collection, length of hospitalization prior to index blood culture, hospital unit at the time of index blood culture collection, creatinine clearance (CLCR) as estimated by the Cockcroft-Gault formula at the time of index blood culture collection (5), illness severity (calculated by using the Acute Physiological and Chronic Health Evaluation [APACHE-II] score) (10), and microbiologic data.
Documentation of the antibiotics used within 30 days of index culture included vancomycin, linezolid, daptomycin, tigecycline, clindamycin, trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, metronidazole, rifampin, and all antibiotics within the classes of tetracyclines, beta-lactams, fluoroquinolones, macrolides, and aminoglycosides. Data regarding prior antibiotic use at outside hospitals or in an outpatient setting were not collected because of the difficulty in recovering accurate data. The APACHE-II score was calculated from the worst physiological score within the first 24 h prior to MRSA blood culture sample collection. For non-intensive care unit (ICU) patients with missing data components, APACHE-II was calculated assuming the normal range for the value (27).
Laboratory methods. (i) Bacterial isolates.All bloodstream isolates were identified as S. aureus by Gram stain and colony morphology, as well as catalase- and coagulase-positive reactions.
(ii) Determination of agr operon function.The function of the agr operon was qualitatively assessed for all MRSA bloodstream isolates as previously described, utilizing delta-hemolysin expression as a marker of agr function (22, 28). Delta-hemolysin expression was determined by using S. aureus RN4420 (obtained from the Network Antimicrobial Resistance in S. aureus [NARSA]) as a reference strain that produces a large zone of beta-hemolysin without the interference of alpha- or delta-hemolysins. Changes in agr function were characterized by delta-hemolysin activity as absent, severely depressed, easily detectable, increased, and exceptionally high. Isolates which were characterized as absent or severely depressed were defined as agr dysfunctional (22, 28).
(iii) Antimicrobial susceptibility testing.The vancomycin MIC was determined by broth microdilution (BMD) in duplicate for all S. aureus isolates by methods outlined by the CLSI guidelines (4). Vancomycin MICs also were determined with the Etest (0.016 to 256 mg/liter) (AB Biodisk, Solna, Sweden) according to the manufacturer's instructions. Isolates for which the drug MICs were ≥2 μg/ml by BMD and ≥1.5 μg/ml by Etest were designated the high-MIC group. Those for which the MICs were ≤1 μg/ml by BMD and Etest were considered to be the low-MIC group.
(iv) hVISA determination.Overnight growth cultures of the clinical isolates, control methicillin-susceptible S. aureus ATCC 29213, standard hVISA strain Mu3, and Mu50 were suspended in saline solution and evaluated for hVISA status. Evaluation with the Etest glycopeptide-resistant detection (GRD) method was completed according to the manufacturer's instructions. A bacterial suspension corresponding to a 0.5 McFarland standard was lawned on a plate of Mueller-Hinton agar with 5% blood (MHB; Becton, Dickinson and Company, Sparks, MD) and on a Mueller-Hinton agar (MHA; Difco) plate. An Etest GRD strip consisting of a double-sided gradient with vancomycin and teicoplanin was applied to the MHB plate, and a standard vancomycin Etest was applied to the MHA plate. The zone of the Etest GRD strip was read (complete inhibition of growth) at 48 h. The test isolate was considered positive for hVISA if the Etest GRD strip was ≥8 mg/liter for either vancomycin or teicoplanin and the standard vancomycin Etest MIC was ≥4 mg/liter (12).
Statistical analysis.For bivariate analyses, categorical variables were compared by the Pearson chi-square or Fisher's exact test, and continuous variables were compared by the Student's t or Mann-Whitney U test. For comparisons involving more than two groups, the Pearson chi-square test was used for categorical variables; for continuous variables, an analysis of variance or the Kruskal-Wallis test was used.
Given the difference in clinical covariates and exposures between community-onset and hospital-onset MRSA bloodstream infections, exposure-response associations were stratified by time to index blood culture collection (<72 versus ≥72 h). Multivariable analyses were performed to identify patients at greatest risk for harboring an isolate with agr dysfunction. All variables associated with agr dysfunction in the bivariate analysis (P < 0.2) were considered for inclusion in the explanatory log-binomial regression model. Log-binomial regression was used, since prevalence ratios (PRs) were estimated; log-binomial regression is better at approximating prevalence than logistic regression (logistic regression estimates odds, not prevalence) (15). Significant interaction terms identified in the analysis stratified by time to index blood culture collection (<72 h versus ≥72 h) also were included at model entry. After all variables were entered in the model, a backward approach was used to delineate the best fitting or most parsimonious model. Interaction terms were evaluated first, and a stepwise approach then was used to derive a parsimonious model. Due to the cross-sectional design of the study, PRs were computed for variables in the final model (15, 26). All potential confounders (variables with P < 0.2 in the bivariate analysis) were put back into the model to assess their impact, and those which changed any of the final model PRs by ≥10% were retained. For all analyses, a P value of <0.05 was considered significant for two-tailed tests. All calculations were computed using SAS, version 9.2 (SAS, Cary, NC), and SPSS, version 12.0.1 (SPSS, Chicago, IL).
During the study period, 200 patients met the eligibility criteria. While sites were generally well matched with regard to clinical covariates, there were slight differences: AMCH observed lower median CLCR values than SMH (49.1 and 65.0 ml/min, respectively; P = 0.024) and had a greater proportion of patients with diabetes mellitus (49.5 and 33.7%, respectively; PR = 1.5; 95% CI = 1.0 to 2.1; P = 0.023), hepatic dysfunction (10.1 and 0%, respectively; P = 0.001), prior antibiotic exposure (48.5 and 30.7%, respectively; PR = 2.0; 95% CI = 1.3 to 3.2; P = 0.003), prior beta-lactam exposure (28.3 and 5.0%, respectively; PR = 5.7; 95% CI = 2.3 to 14.2; P < 0.001), prior fluoroquinolone exposure (18.2 and 5.9%, respectively; PR = 3.1; 95% CI = 1.3 to 7.4; P = 0.008), and mean number of prior antibiotic exposures (0.88 and 0.26, respectively; P < 0.001). The proportion of solid-organ transplants was lower among AMCH than SMH patients (1.0 and 9.9%, respectively; PR = 0.1; 95% CI = 0.0 to 0.8; P = 0.010), as was that for decubitus ulcers (15.2 and 30.7%, respectively; PR = 0.5; 95% CI = 0.3 to 0.9; P = 0.009) and immunosuppressants (12.1 and 25.7%, respectively; PR = 0.5; 95% CI = 0.3 to 0.9; P = 0.014).
The overall proportion of isolates with agr dysfunction was 31.5%; a greater proportion was observed at AMCH than at SMH (39.4 and 23.8%, respectively; PR = 1.7; 95% CI = 1.1 to 2.5; P = 0.02). In the bivariate analysis, the distribution of MICs was similar across agr groups for both testing methods. High MICs (≥2 mg/liter) by BMD were seen for 22 (34.9%) isolates with a dysfunctional agr locus and for 42 (30.7%) of isolates with a functional agr locus (PR = 1.1; 95% CI = 0.7 to 1.7; P = 0.62). Similarly, high MIC values (≥1.5 mg/liter) by Etest were observed for 28 (44.4%) and 48 (35%) of isolates with and without a defect in the agr locus, respectively (PR = 1.3; 95% CI = 0.9 to 1.8; P = 0.21). A total of 13 (6.5%) isolates demonstrated heteroresistance. The distribution of hVISA isolates also was similar in isolates with agr dysfunction versus those without agr dysfunction (4.8 and 7.3%, respectively) (PR = 0.7; 95% CI = 0.2 to 2.3; P = 0.76). No effect modification on the relative scale was observed when stratifying the relationships between agr dysfunction and microbiologic phenotypes by hospital (data not shown).
Table 1 shows the relationship between clinical features and isolates with agr dysfunction in the overall population and stratified by length of stay (LOS) prior to culture collection. Overall, no clinical covariates were associated with agr dysfunction, and the relationships between clinical features and agr dysfunction were consistent between sites (data not shown). In individuals with an LOS of ≥72 h, isolates with agr dysfunction were more common among older patients (mean age, 65.6 years versus 57.7 years; P = 0.04). For LOS of <72 h, isolates with a dysfunctional agr locus were associated with lower mean APACHE II scores than those with a functional agr locus (10.8 versus 14.3; P = 0.01). No effect modification was observed when stratifying the relationships between agr dysfunction and clinical covariates by hospital (data not shown).
Relationship between clinical covariates and agr dysfunctional isolates in the overall population and stratified by LOS
A significant relationship between prior antibiotic exposure and isolates with a dysfunctional agr locus was noted (Table 1). Although prior antibiotic exposure was more pronounced at AMCH, the magnitude of association between isolates with agr dysfunction and prior antibiotic exposure was similar at both sites (no effect modification). When stratified by LOS, the relationship between prior antibiotic exposure within 30 days of culture collection and isolates with agr dysfunction was most pronounced in patients with an LOS of ≥72 h (P = 0.009). This was driven predominantly by prior beta-lactam and fluoroquinolone administration. For those who developed an MRSA bacteremia within 72 h of hospitalization, nonsignificant trends were found between agr dysfunction and prior exposure to antibiotics, particularly beta-lactams. Prior vancomycin exposure was not associated with isolates with agr dysfunction in the overall population or when stratified by LOS.
In the log-binomial regression, prior antibiotic exposure was the only factor retained in the final model (PR = 1.7; 95% CI = 1.2 to 2.4). This indicates that for individuals with a prior antibiotic exposure, the probability of being infected with an agr dysfunctional isolate at culture collection is 1.7 times higher than for those individuals without prior antibiotic exposure. All variables associated with agr functional status among MRSA isolates in the bivariate analysis at P < 0.2 were put back into the model, and none changed the final PR for prior antibiotic exposure by 10% or more.
This study distinguishes itself by being the first to describe covariates that best predict the presence of agr dysfunction among MRSA isolates in patients with MRSA bloodstream infections across two major academic hospitals. It is of greatest clinical interest that a relationship between isolates with agr dysfunction and prior antibiotic exposure was observed in the multivariate analysis. Given the results of the bivariate analysis, it is reasonable to surmise that this observed relationship was largely driven by prior administration of beta-lactams and fluoroquinolones in patients with an LOS of ≥72 h. Overall, patients who received a prior beta-lactam or fluoroquinolone were approximately twice as likely to be infected with a dysfunctional versus functional agr isolate.
Although this study was not designed to assess causality, these findings are biologically plausible. The prior use of fluoroquinolones and beta-lactam agents has been known to cause collateral damage through the selection of antibiotic-resistant populations in MRSA (1, 6, 8, 9, 11, 14, 17, 18, 24, 34). This phenomenon may be due to the counterselection of agr dysfunctional strains (23, 29) and the eradication of agr functional strains. In particular, subinhibitory concentrations of fluoroquinolones have been shown to induce mutational mechanisms in S. aureus that promote survival, the development of resistance, and bacterial tissue adherence and colonization (2, 3, 13, 16, 19). It also has been shown that agr dysfunctional, slow-growing strains that are small colony variants of MRSA display increased resistance to fluoroquinolones and beta-lactam agents (33). Along with recent evidence that suggests that the loss of agr function is associated with increased biofilm production, persistence, and prolonged bacteremia, the potential associations with prior exposure to fluoroquinolones and beta-lactams is of interest and suggests a selective survival advantage for agr dysfunctional strains which may be driven by these agents (31–33).
Contrary to the prevailing thinking, we did not find an association between agr dysfunction and prior exposure to vancomycin or other anti-MRSA antibiotics. Of the 19 patients with a documented prior exposure to vancomycin, only 3 were agr dysfunctional. It has been shown that subinhibitory concentrations of vancomycin select for other resistance phenotypes, including decreased autolysis, hVISA, and VISA. This lack of a relationship may be an artifact of our institutions' empirical dosing strategies; our institutions began targeting trough values of 15 to 20 mg/liter in 2007 (20–22, 30). Alternatively, our findings may be a result of incomplete information on prior exposure outside the hospital setting, particularly among those receiving dialysis or those who developed bacteremia within 72 h of admission. Although we cannot exclude the possibility of a type II error given the sample size, our data suggest there may not be a relationship between agr dysfunction and prior exposure to vancomycin, particularly in a setting where higher trough concentrations are targeted.
While a relationship between agr dysfunction and higher MICs has been presumed, this was not observed in our study. Previous studies also have suggested that defects in the agr locus contribute to hVISA development. However, we did not find an association between these variables. Our findings do not refute the relationship between agr dysfunction and the development of higher-MIC MRSA isolates and hVISA. Rather, our data suggest that there are other things involved in the causal pathway. In addition, we cannot exclude the possibility of a type II error given the sample size. As an example, there was a nonsignificant trend in the association between agr dysfunction and high Etest MICs (PR = 1.3; 95% CI = 0.9 to 1.8; P = 0.21). While the definitive explanations for these findings remain unclear, they underscore the need for additional studies to better describe the mechanisms responsible for the development of higher-MIC isolates and hVISA.
Several limitations of this study should be noted. First, we had incomplete information on antibiotic exposure prior to admission, therefore it is possible that subjects who presented with an MRSA bloodstream infection on admission were misclassified on prior antibiotic exposure. We also did not capture the vancomycin troughs maintained in patients previously exposed to vancomycin. Second, we saw a low proportion of hVISA isolates in our study, which may explain why we did not detect an association between this phenotype and agr dysfunction. Third, we acknowledge that hVISA is a relatively unstable phenotype, which is no exception concerning the clinical isolates that were included in our study. Fourth, the retrospective laboratory analyses employed in this study may have underestimated the prevalence of the hVISA phenotype at our institutions. Fifth, we did not take into account bacterial density in hVISA detection, as we utilized standard inocula of MRSA according to the manufacturer's recommendations. It has been hypothesized that stationary-phase growth, defective autolysis profiles, biofilm production, and the production of thicker cell walls is facilitated by quorum-sensing mechanisms at high bacterial density, which may increase the proportion of the heteroresistant subpopulations which were not directly studied. Sixth, limited sample size also may have played a role in the lack of association found between agr dysfunction and clinical covariates, including comorbidities, critical illness, prior antibiotic exposures, and health care exposure history. Seventh, the source of infection was not delineated in our study. Finally, the influences of the following were not considered: genotype, susceptibility to thrombin-induced platelet microbicidal proteins, and autolytic profile. The presence of different genotypes (e.g., agr group, staphylococcal cassette chromosome mec type, and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis pattern) among our isolates may have confounded the associations (or lack thereof) seen between different covariates and agr dysfunction.
In conclusion, MRSA isolates with agr dysfunction have been described recently as an important clinical factor in outcomes of patients with S. aureus bacteremia (7, 25). Our data support the major role of prior antibiotic exposure as a predictor of agr dysfunctional isolates, particularly prior exposure to beta-lactams or fluoroquinolones. While clinicians presume there is a relationship between agr dysfunction, higher MICs, and hVISA status, we were not able to verify this in our study. Our results do not refute the relationship between agr dysfunction and the development of higher-MIC MRSA isolates and hVISA. Rather, they suggest that there are other things involved in the causal pathway and underscore the importance of rigorous studies specifically designed to pinpoint the mechanisms underlying the relationship between MICs and outcomes.
This publication was made possible by grant number UL1 RR024160 from the National Center for Research Resources (NCRR), a component of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and the NIH Roadmap for Medical Research.
The contents of this publication are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official view of the NCRR or NIH. Information on the NCRR is available at http://www.ncrr.nih.gov/. Information on Reengineering the Clinical Research Enterprise can be obtained from http://nihroadmap.nih.gov/clinicalresearch/overview-translational.asp.
Received 28 March 2011.
Returned for modification 24 May 2011.
Accepted 7 September 2011.
Accepted manuscript posted online 19 September 2011.
Copyright © 2011, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.
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Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy Nov 2011, 55 (12) 5433-5437; DOI: 10.1128/AAC.00407-11
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A shadowy figure stands in the center of the dark gymnasium. A single, white spotlight illuminates senior Jack Mahoney with a large bass drum mallet. The spotlight widens to show senior Tommy Sulentic holding a shiny red drum. 1800 people await hands raised.
Senior Jack Mahoney reacts to the crowd's clap at the first assembly of the year on Aug. 18.
Adapting a native Icelandic chant to Jaguar spirit, seniors Jack Mahoney and Tommy Sulentic perform the chant at the first school assembly on Aug. 18.
A small smile graces Mahoney's face. A new tradition is born.
He pounds the drum again, the smile grows along with the noise. He hits the drum faster and louder as the crowd reacts and reaches a fever pitch. He lets out a "whoop" as the crowd roars around him. Few can imagine the feeling of creating something that, if only for a minute, makes 1800 individuals, one. The new tradition came to fruition from the need to be remembered.
The Drum Chant was introduced before the first football game.
"We just wanted another chant that would set us apart from other schools," said Sulentic.
Although, the "I Believe" chant was a staple at BV West sporting events, it was copied by most of the other Blue Valley schools and other East Kansas League competitors.
"I remember Jack and Tommy running into my room with huge smiles on your faces, you showed me a video of a bunch of people in Iceland doing a war chant saying it would be perfect for football games," teacher Dr. Laura Restivo said.
The week before the first game the pair got permission to do the chant. They held three meetings with assistant principal Bryan Brutto. They needed to confirm that they would be able to bring the drum into the stadium, as well as, the guidelines and expectations for the game.
When asked how he felt the first time the two did the new chant, all Sulentic said was, "Magic." Mahoney nodded.
The drum chant has grown and stabilized into a tradition at assemblies and games that the duo hope will continue for years after they're gone.


On a recent afternoon, waiters shuttled menus, daiquiris, and mahi-mahi sandwiches to sun-tanned guests at the Back Bay Bar & Grill, a poolside restaurant inside the Wyndham Grand Bonnet Creek resort in Orlando.
The area is surrounded by palm trees and a lake filled with koi. But for Harry Chomen, it was just a scenic backdrop for more important matters.
"I have stuff going on at work," he said, scrolling through emails on his phone.
Chomen, a construction manager from Buffalo, New York, had arrived in town just a few hours earlier with his wife and 20-year-old daughter Carly for a weekend vacation. Carly had her head down, too, Snapchatting to a sunshine-deprived audience back home.
"It's snowing right now, so I was rubbing in my friends' faces that I was laying by the pool," she said.
What they didn't see on their table, between the salt shaker and the ketchup, was a sign that read "Phone Free Zone." It's an optional program Wyndham Grand kicked off in October and expects to roll out in all its hotels this year. The premise? Guests put their phones in small gray pouches that remain locked during their meals or leisure activities. Among the enticements to participate in the pilot is a chance to win a five-night stay at the resort.
"It's an opportunity for families to reconnect," said Ted Zerfas, director of food and beverage service for Wyndham Grand Orlando.
He approached to the Chomens about participating in the program for the duration of their lunch, and they agreed to do it. Within minutes, they were eating and talking with each other.
A growing number of hotels and other travel-related companies are trying to persuade vacationers to take a break from their smartphones. Some resorts are offering perks like free snorkeling tours to guests who manage to give up their devices for a few hours. A resort in Puerto Vallarta offers a "detox concierge" to replace phones with board games. Yondr, a company that makes locking phone pouches used in many phone-free zones, said its business has expanded globally to include concerts and office spaces.
Cellphones are competition for an industry whose product is creating experiences for people to enjoy in the here and now, said Art Markman, University of Texas at Austin psychologist.
"You're supposed to get away from everything. And the thing about your cellphone is it connects you back to all the things that you were doing before you were on vacation," he said.
In a 2016 study, Markman found that people who used their phones for more than two hours each day during a vacation were more likely to have trouble remembering their trip versus those who were glued to their phones less. It makes some sense for the travel industry to at least try to get people off devices, even it means fewer instant Instagram posts featuring their businesses.
But asking vacationers to drop their phones doesn't always work out. Rusty Hardley launched his company Off the Grid Tours back in 2013. His idea was to give 10-day cellphone-free sightseeing excursions to breweries in Canada and caves in New Zealand. But he found out quickly that people had to use their phones for so many things.
Our phones are central to who we are and what we do. Even on vacation.
Sandy Higgins from Maryland was vacationing at the Wyndham resort in Orlando, like the Chomens. But unlike them, she said she will never give up her phone.
"I keep my phone with me for emergencies or if the kids have to contact us," she said.
A 2016 study from Common Sense Media found 69 percent of parents and 78 percent of teens check their devices at least hourly. Divorcing ourselves from our phones on vacation? A bridge too far for many.


text:
Province increases funding for energy efficiency
Provincial Minister of Energy, Todd Smith, delivers remarks at Country Cousins in Brunner regarding the natural gas expansion that has come to that community in Perth East. October 3, 2022 (Photo by Ryan Drury)
By Janice MacKay October 4, 2022 3:26pm
The Ontario government is increasing funding for the province's energy-efficiency programs by $342 million.
Minister of Energy Todd Smith said the total investment is now more than $1 billion over the current four-year electricity conservation framework.
He added the funding will support new and expanded programs that will help families and businesses reduce their electricity use so they can save money on their energy bills. He said it will also help meet the province's emerging electricity system needs.
"Our government's success in driving electrification of industry and transportation and strong economic growth is increasing electricity demand, and our government is looking at every option to meet these upcoming needs," said Smith. "By 2025, this expansion of energy-efficiency programs will help deliver enough annual electricity savings to power approximately 130,000 homes every year and reduce costs for consumers by over $650 million."
This funding will support a new voluntary Residential Demand Response Program with an incentive for homes with an existing central air conditioning or heat pump unit and smart thermostat to help lower energy use at peak times and lower bills
"Through this program, families can voluntarily enroll to receive a financial incentive in return for the electricity system operator being able to reduce their cooling load on a select number of summer afternoons helping to drive down peak demand," he said.
Smith added the funding includes enhancements to the Save On Energy Retrofit Program for businesses, institutions and municipalities for custom energy efficiency upgrades.
"What they will do will mean huge benefits. Whether its funding for municipalities to upgrade the chillers at their local rinks or arenas, funding for a hospital to make HVAC or air handling system upgrades, or funding for a local business for building upgrades like new insulation or better windows and doors," he explained.
It will also provide targeted support for greenhouse growers in Southwest Ontario, in addition to enhancements to existing programs that provide support for businesses, municipalities, hospitals and other institutions to reduce their energy use and their energy bill.
The government accepted the Independent Electricity System Operator's (IESO) recommendation to roll out these new and expanded energy-efficiency programs, which are among the fastest and most cost-effective ways of meeting system needs, with the intention that they will be available to eligible electricity customers beginning in Spring 2023. These enhancements are expected to have a particular impact in Southwest Ontario, with regional peak demand savings of 225 megawatts (MW). This will help to alleviate electricity system constraints in the region and foster economic development.
The overall savings from this energy efficiency programming will result in an estimated three million tonnes of greenhouse gas emission reductions over its lifetime – the equivalent to taking approximately 600,000 vehicles off the road for one year.


For centuries, true Christians have walked through a veil of tears because of their grief over a church choked by self-righteousness. Christians who set up Pharisaical standards, and then hold others to them, break relationships and cause division. Because people in this self-righteous spirit are so convinced that they are right, they don't see the damage they cause to the people of God.
Jesus loves his church because it's his body. And self-sacrificing love, explosive joy, and shalom mark the church of Jesus. This shalom is peace that comes from provision. Instead of judging a brother or sister, we are curious. We love and support them, even if it requires us to sacrifice from our own life.
But, if we strike and bite at those in the church, we strike and bite at Jesus. If we judge the church, we judge Jesus. This self-righteousness, unforgiveness, and judgmentalism grieves the Holy Spirit and utterly blocks revival.
Has someone told you to repent of judgments in your heart? Have you responded by hardening your heart, accusing the other person of being judgmental, and breaking fellowship? Such a response will never bring the Holy Spirit. Instead, the Holy Spirit falls when someone finally begins to weep and cry and repent of their own self-righteousness.
Isn't it time to stop talking about revival, and start walking in revival?


Michael B. Jordan continues to make 2018 his year with another emotionally driven and powerful performance in the Creed sequel.
There's something comforting about Creed II, knowing that it's not powered by the story, but the journey of all the characters and that's what has made the Rocky series continually great and relevant.
All the usual beats are here and fans of Rocky will be happy to see the formula remain the same.
Michael B. Jordan returns as Adonis Creed as he attempts to take on Vikto Drago, the son of Ivan Drago, played wonderfully subtle by both Florian Munteanu and Dolph Lundgren. The entire film is carried by the strength of the supporting cast, which includes great performances by Tessa Thompson and Slyvester Stallone (duh, he's been playing Rocky longer than most people have been alive).
As with any Rocky film, the main character struggles not only inside the ring, but with the reality outside of it.
But while boxing is the climax of the film, it's the different tales of fatherhood and being a parent that that works best. It's sacrilege to say boxing is the least important part of the Rocky series, but in this case, it's true. It may not be as strong as the first Creed film, directed by Ryan Coogler, but it still feels like a Rocky film.
Also in theaters this week is Ralph Breaks the Internet, the Wreck-It Ralph sequel.
Wreck-it-Ralph was the perfect mix of heart and nostalgia when it hit theaters. It helped usher in a new era of Disney animated movies, a resurgence that gave the world Frozen, Zootopia and Moana.
Six years later and it feels like Ralph Breaks the Internet is the beginning of a new Disney trend, subpar sequels to great stories.
The movie follows Ralph as he treks across the internet to find a part for his best friend Vanellope's racing game. But things get complicated when Vanellope starts to feel at home on the world wide web, leaving Ralph to question the future of their friendship.
The movie is a fun time at the theater. Kids will enjoy it, adults will appreciate it and people obsessed with internet culture will love it. But other than that, it lacks the heart of the original.
It's so wrapped up in looking cool and referencing things like YouTube stars, Disney princesses and memes, it loses focus of what made Wreck-it-Ralph so good. There are characters that are left by the wayside, so audiences can enjoy a few Marvel and Fortnite jokes.
Like the internet, Ralph Breaks the Internet is entertaining but doesn't have much substance. It's a movie that, unfortunately, became dated the moment it hit theaters.
Hopefully, Frozen 2 can let go of the need to show off and focus on making a movie that makes revisiting these worlds worth it.


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aa1.battery is an eBay seller of Counterfeit (Fake hacked – false capacity memory) Flash USB drives. Registered in Singapore, aa1.battery has been suspended by eBay.
FakeMemorySentinel published:Singapore eBay Flash Memory Sellers thund.light – pokkasupportor – god_wars2012 – pamper_mee – tomily.off – aa1.battery – alsakint – waterson.store – Test Immediately To Verify Advertised Capacity. Please Avoid Fake Memory Products! Fälschung?
July 26th, 2011 – we have 1 eBay listings confirmed fake.
The models sold under the eBay seller aa1.battery confirmed as Counterfeit, recorded with eBayer ID and eBay Item Number – Standard Procedure. Presented as listed at auction. Counterfeit items tied to criminal activity enjoy no protection. If you bought one of these items from aa1.battery, you should test immediately with the software H2testw 1.4 . Do not store any important information until you can confirm you have the advertised capacity (minus formatting overhead).
This entry was posted on July 29, 2011 at 15:17	and is filed under Alert, Fake Flash Singapore, Guilty. Tagged: aa1.battery, Counterfeit Flash Drives, eBay Fake Flash Memory Guides, eBayFakeFlashMemorySeller, Fake USB, Singapore Fake Flash Memory, SOSFakeFlash. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.