Wednesday, September 11, 2019

New Book: Grace Communion International - A Giant Step Forward


Grace Communion International (former Worldwide Church of God) has released a new book co-authored by Greg Williams, Rick Schallenberger and Tom Nebel.

It supposedly documents the continuing "miraculous transformation" of the church into a mainstream denomination.  This can be considered Book 3 in a trilogy of books documenting the "transformation" of the church.

Amazon has this to say:


The last significant books written about Grace Communion International were authored by Joseph Tkach and Michael Feazell in 1995. A lot has happened over the past two decades, so this book is an update to anyone who may be looking in and wondering “What has transpired with this group that experienced such an amazing grace awakening? Where are they now?” This book does a pretty fair job of recounting the peaks and valleys of the past twenty years.It is a major transition for me to step into the shoes of President Joseph Tkach. It isn’t just a big step for me personally, it is also a big change for our worldwide fellowship. Who is this new guy? What does he have in mind for the next phase of GCI? This book discloses a lot of my personality, big portions of my journey in GCI, and a glimpse into my leadership style. I am excited to serve in this next chapter because I believe the Lord has good things in store for GCI.


Buy it here for 4.99


If anyone is interested in reading it and doing a review, I will post it, good or bad!



33 comments:

nck said...

I like the "Armstrong style" of introductory philosophical questioning in the book's advertising.

As a matter of fact HWA would for sure have used one of the questions as a title.

"Where are they now?"

(and as a copy byline)... the story of inverted growth of people and organisation.

or

How to become a millionaire while shrinking a business, the story of American business ethics, now told from the religious perspective.

Or to be kind.

20 years further removed from the grandest hijack in religious history, to set a religious system back to the councils of chalcedon and nicea and the 2nd century all together.......in a leap of faith.

Whilst in the process giving way too and alienating and disenfranchising most members to the worst fringe cults ever, lead by leaders not prepared to lead anything healthy unless held in check by the cultic dictatorial bylaws that are still in force in the "reformed" cgi. And selling copyrights to those cults for money too.

Ah well, I hope all are well in cgi.

Nck

Anonymous said...

Wow. Talk about sour!

Anonymous said...

Any real church, with a non-cult system of governance, would have fired Joe Jr. for gross incompetence.

Even among the splinters, Global fired Rod Meredith in order to maintain its principles. United fired David Hulme. Joe Jr., however, was untouchable and is still in the background of GCI.

Anonymous said...

In this new book Tkach's right hand man Williams "tells all"!
- Well, not quite "all" -
..he's not saying what he & Tkach are discreetly paying themselves!
Were their Titheslaves to know, it might induce a Heart Attack!

Anonymous said...

They probably expect readers to look at the silhouetted figure in front and think of it as David.

Knowing the history of GCI, however, I see a child whose yo-yo broke.

TLA said...

I would like to see an accounting of how the Joeys and crew spent their inherited money. Corporation Sole. Legal theft. Madoff is probably jealous.

Anonymous said...

probably as interesting as Transformed By Truth (probably sell as many copies too)

Anonymous said...

GCI is one consequence of the WWCG toxic culture. Yet the splinter leaders refuse to see the connection. To them the solution is more tyranny, more abuse, more suppression of complaints. So they ramp up the toxicity. It's like a leaf out of George Orwell's 1984.

Anonymous said...

Anon 6:39AM, you may want to take a look at some of the contents using Amazon's "Look Inside" feature. It's obvious that Greg has written this as a required text for anyone who wants to advance in leadership in GCI. Maybe we can think of it as the "grace-filled" equivalent of selling Envoy yearbooks to the church membership.

Anonymous said...

What a total of crap from a sick bunch of pathological liars.

Tonto said...

One of the biggest heists ever in the history of man!

Where did the money go? Some $200 million+ of assets sold and the proceeds vanish like a "fart in the wind"!

Balderdash!

Anonymous said...

I hate to say it, but the GCI group is gross and reprehensible to me.

Anonymous said...

Why is there only 1 book review on Amazon - has no one read it, taken interest, or even cares?

Anonymous said...

I have not attempted to keep up with GCI, but I am aware of the congregation where I live. I did not attend their congregational meetings when the wwcog split but I knew many of the members and the minister that generated the split. They have their problems and many members have admitted it was a mess. They bought a Catholic church building and started major changes in worship services that were questionable. Two years ago they had the minister removed and maintained connection with GCI, That minister and a few members started a church congregation that is more musical and slap happy in a rented school room from what I hear and see on their internet ad. We live in a small town, but it is doubtful the congregation is very large. I know the Catholic people who sold the church building and they questioned how they could pay for it. I am not sure but I suspect that it was a wealthy member who is now dead that provided the money. It is difficult for me to see people I know struggling maintain a spiritual connection under these conditions.

Ed said...

Because, as I have stated several times on this blog, I do not believe any church is, "of God". Certainly this includes the GCI. Therefore the changes made away from the "law" to "grace" is pointless because they where made by humans for whatever reason motivated them to do so. This was not some great miracle from God. If there is a God it is clear that he doesn't work through churches but through individuals. Organized religion is nothing but confusion contradicting the scripture that God is not the author of confusion.

Anonymous said...

Dave Pack. I think it was in his original autobiography, stated that when assigned to a new church area, would make a anonymous survey asking members how much prayer and bible study they did. The result was that about half did no prayer or bible study, or a few minutes daily. The other half did about half an hour of each daily. He mentioned that the church split along these lines on HWAs death. I believe he got this right, and is aware that his members are in the no prayer and bible study category. That is, they are vulnerable to predators like himself.

R.L. said...

At least they call themselves a "denomination." Most spinoff groups, like UCG and LCG, refuse to say they are - even though they fit the dictionary definition of one.

Anonymous said...


Anonymous at 2:00 PM said...“I hate to say it, but the GCI group is gross and reprehensible to me.”

Yes, indeed, GCI is gross and reprehensible. I noticed that too.

GrittyMan said...

BARF!!

Anonymous said...

Not forgetting, the GCI members were gross and reprehensible while they attended the original WWCG. Their 'people skills' only work on better natured people. They aren't effective on other reprehensible people. Which is why their congregations keep shrinking. The too many chiefs and not enough Indians thingy.

Anonymous said...

Mentioned on Facebook tonight:

How can they go from worshipping Herbert Armstrong one week and the next to get all happy-clappy while singing boyfriend Jesus songs?

Anonymous said...

These are all great comments. Can we just compile all of them and post a review on Amazon?!

I have no intention of reading the book because I know it will be boring and delusional. GCI prices themselves on having provided great leadership training over the past 24+ years and turning out excellent ministerial teams and pastors. So, obviously they’ve been occupying themselves with busy-work training while continuing to shrink as a denomination.

But, what I would like to know is:

1) Exactly how many splinter groups (to date) have evolved from the original WCG?
2) How many ex-members are now atheists or agnostics because of the way the “miraculous transformation” was handled?
3) How many splinter groups celebrate milestone anniversaries of how many years they’ve been “keeping the faith”? (i.e. for instance, I am aware that GCI, UCG & COGWA have had 50-year celebrations)?

You’d think with a group that claimed “miraculous transformation” and healing from toxic-faith abuse, that they would have used some of their time to research these areas as an attempt to be more honest and authentic about themselves. But no, that will never happen.

Anonymous said...

$4.99? That is as pathetic as Stephen Flurry's book selling for $1.99

Byker Bob said...

Ah, come on! It doesn't matter what they "became". The only important thing is ding ding the witch is dead, the wicked, wicked witch is dead. Armstrongism has been divided, confused, and spewed from the mouth of God, because it was always crap from the very beginning. it was the dstorted ramblings of a pedophile, and not revealed truth from an end times apostle.

BB

nck said...

12:31

BB By your insane and inconsiderate comment (regarding means justifying outcome) you are guilty by association of the destruction in all areas waged by the Tkaches. Moreover you sound like the Chinese commenting on Tibetan religion or Stalin on religion altogether. As a matter of fact EXACTLY the same. Well no the communist Chinese are actually kinder.

Nck

Byker Bob said...

We’ll let the greater “Banned jury” decide between thee and me, nck. I knew I’d incur something or other from HWA’s defacto attorney and the whitewashers.

BB

nck said...

BB

I understand the "banned peers decision" as I do an "Alabama 1916 all white jury" outcome. Surprise me.

Nck

Byker Bob said...

I thought the Tkach corrections were excellent and long overdue, nck. What killed the whole thing in practical application, was that the teachers retained HWA’s managerial style (“God’s Apostle’s” way or the highway). Imagine that! That style is anathema to love and grace.

You can actually make a child hate ice cream based on presentation.

When my parents told me about the changes during a visit, I thought to myself “There are more learned and experienced people who have been teaching these changes for decades, without all the WCG baggage!” One of my siblings went along with the changes, experienced all of the confusion and horrors as they were implimented, became disgusted, and soon found a Bible-based mainstream church minutes away from her home. And, lived happily ever after.

BB

Anonymous said...

Around 1997, five years after I quit the WCG, I was working on a job, building a pulp mill, and one of the others on this job was a former WCG deacon (when I attended), now (1997) Elder in WCG. I knew he had to drive at least an hour to services every week, so I asked him why, the WCG is now teaching exactly what the protestants in your town teach. Why drive an hour when you can just go down the block. His answer was telling, the same WCG arrogance, "The WCG understands the New Covenant better than they do".

This same guy, decades later after his father (who was also a long time Elder in WCG) and mother passed away, joined the local UCG (now COGWA). He's now giving sermonettes, and maybe sermons in COGWA. The last time I spoke with him, (only because we haven't seen each other since, not because of religious differences) while he was in UCG, he said he still believed it ok to eat pork.

Strange folk we all are.

Anonymous said...

My intent isn't to judge anyone with this comment but I find it sad that when most 1st generation people became aware of the WCG, either through the mag. or the tv program, or however, that HWA was no one to them. The WCG "ministry" was nothing to them, the organization was nothing to them. They "proved" the doctrine to themselves first. The sabbath especially. (other things like holy days and clean and unclean probably came later)

Later, over years of indoctrination HWA became God's sole Apostle on earth, the WCG became God's one and only true church, and the ministry became God's one and only ordained group of servants.

When that bubble burst, and the disgust set in, rather than maintaining the original sabbath which they had proven before the cult mindset had grown, they threw it all out. Sad.

If there is a crown to be taken, it's not Dennis personally who is taking it, it's not Tkach who has taken it, it's not these anti-HWA sites that are taking it, it's HWA his arrogant self, the WCG organization cult, and the WCG cultish clergy class, and the splinter groups who are keeping the cult mindset going who are taking it. They are to blame whether one wants to admit it or not.

Kevin McMillen

nck said...

BB

From a change management perspective the "Tkach" changes were insane, irrespective if Jesus had indeed been a "born again Christian" all along.

Armstrongism could have morphed into many alternatives if "the organisation" had not been confronted with "the devil" themselves implementing what had been rejected from the first instant.

One could compare it with an airconditioning manufacturer selling us the evils of climate change.

It is objectional regardless if one likes the stated end thereof. It could only result in disaster.

I doubt they ever attracted a single convert because everything about them is fake. Despite Dennis defence of their puppet on a string leader. They are as fake as a divorced person at fault teaching us on marriage bliss.

Nck

the Ocelot said...

I don't agree with much of their ideas But their change on the healing doctrine was LONG overdue. Telling people not to see doctors and not as HWA said not to expect God to "allow the medicines and drugs and dope to cure you".Many {including many little children) died to which the ministers would console them that they "will see them again in the Millennium"Thank God they got rid of that heartless teaching

nck said...

Hi Ocelot.

I was there for decades. And only realised it had been a problem some 10 years after I left, on stumbling on "blogs."

As a kid I knew HWA saw doctors, I knew about personal nurses and heart attacks, I heard about doctors at AC, at SEP we had a camp doctor. We had regular check ups in school.

When the "changes" came I didn't see it as change. I still believe God is the only one with the power to heal and at times uses people with a degree to execute his will.

I now see with cults "hearking back" to the sixties that former teaching caused great havoc and crime actually.

Still it taught me to also see the crime of the industry. But the overall principle should be personal choice in combination with believing in a Supreme being and of course the principle wcg tenet........ education.

Nck