UCG's Ex-President Rick Shabi Has Died

From a UCG source: 

After the Council of Elders unceremoniously dumped Shabi as our President, things quickly went downhill healthwise for Shabi:

On July 21 this was posted:

Uptodate news on the health of Rick Shabi:

Sent: Monday, July 21, 2025 at 04:45:59 PM CDT

Subject: Prayer Request Update - Rick Shabi

Prayer Request Update - Rick Shabi

From Richard Kennebeck, pastor, Orlando/Jacksonville, FL:

“Brethren, thank you all for your earnest prayers and concern at this time.

Rick remains in a medically induced state of rest and is intubated. This assists his breathing and helps give his body a chance to rest and heal. The doctors feel this is best for his recovery during the next few days. Please continue to pray to our great and merciful Father for Rick’s healing and strengthening of his heart, along with comfort and strength for the family.

It is a slow recovery right now, and we will update you when we can. Until then, we deeply appreciate your fervent prayers.”

UCG's new President, Tim Pebworth said this on July 21:

This letter from the Chairman of United Church of God in regards to the health of former President and current Pastor Rick Shabi, a well beloved disciple of God.

From: "Office of the Chairman" <chairman@ucg.org>

To: "Tim Pebworth" <tim_pebworth@UCG.org>

Sent: Sun, Jul 20, 2025 at 6:49 PM

Subject: Letter from Chairman Pebworth – July 20, 2025

Dear members and families of the Body of Christ,

I am writing to you on behalf of the Council of Elders and President John Elliott (who is currently enroute to Sri Lanka), and asking for your prayers for former Church president, Rick Shabi.

He and his wife, Debbie, have relocated back to their home in Florida. They recently returned from vacation and are being welcomed back to the Jacksonville and Orlando, Florida congregations. However, Mr. Shabi suffered a heart attack following Sabbath services yesterday in Jacksonville. We are grateful to report that Mr. Shabi received timely medical attention at the church hall and was subsequently taken to a local hospital where he is receiving treatment. 

Since information has appeared on several forums in varying degrees, we would encourage members to review official prayer request updates coming out from the home office. Mrs. Shabi is providing those updates for us. 

We respect the Shabi’s family privacy in this matter, and Mr. Elliott will provide additional details as appropriate. Below is the latest update from Mrs. Shabi as communicated by Richard Kennebeck, pastor of the Orlando and Jacksonville congregations.

“Thank you for your continued prayers and concern for Rick. After suffering a major heart attack yesterday, his heart remains very weak, and his kidneys are struggling to keep up. If his condition worsens, he may need to be transferred to another facility for more advanced care. Rick remains confident that God is in control and has full faith in the outcome. He and his family deeply appreciate your prayers, love, and concern.”

As we read in Hebrews 4:16, this is a time when we can confidently come before the throne of God in a time of urgent need. Our God is indeed a God of mercy and healing, and we thank you in advance for your prayers.

Tim Pebworth

Chairman 

Yesterday (August 12) there was this update:

Update on Rick Shabi, former President of United Church of God  

 

Dear Brethren, 

 

Patrick Shabi asked me to send out this updated prayer request (8/12/2025 - 5:50 PM ET):

Dear Brethren, 

 

We once again thank you all for the prayers, cards, support, and concern that have been shown for Rick and our family. Rick was able to recover from the cough that was affecting his breathing; however, other complications have presented themselves since then. As a result, Rick has made the decision to stop further medical treatments and to put the situation into God’s hands, so that His will can be done. We will provide another update once more is known. In the meantime, we ask that you please pray for comfort and strength for Rick and family during this time. 

 

Please continue to pray for Rick and the family as they go through this serious time.

(This can be shared)

In Christ’s service, 

Richard Kennebeck, pastor Orlando and Jacksonville 

Today there was this:

Sad news to report! According to Rick Shabi's son, Rick has passed away, and will be sleeping until the 1st Resurrection. Here is the post from his Son, please pray for his family and friends, Rick was well loved and was a very great person, was a honor to meet him and get to know him!

From Patrick Shabi

Hello everyone,

I had the chance to speak with my dad the last few days regarding things on his mind and things he wanted shared. I’m not sure why that was preempted with another message, but I wanted to share them.

Dear Brethren,

It is with great sorrow that we announce the death of Rick Shabi on August 13, 2025 at the age of 71. He lived what he believed and preached up to the very end, when he made the decision to stop all medical treatment and allow God to do His will.

We once again thank everyone for the cards, the support, and especially the prayers for Rick during this trial. Rick was aware of all the prayers and love that were shown for him and our family and said he was deeply humbled by that. He wanted everyone to know that he wasn’t fearful of death because he knew what awaited him and everyone else through the resurrections. He looks forward to that time, when he can serve under God and also with all of you as kings and priests in God’s Kingdom.

Further announcements will be made in the future. For now, we ask for prayers of comfort and time to mourn him, as he will be truly missed. It is at times like this that certain Bible verses, verses we’ve read or heard time and time again, begin to take on new meaning and importance.

O death, where is your victory?

O death, where is your sting?

We understand that this stings for many of you just as it stings us tremendously. However, like Rick demonstrated before he died, we know that the sting of this death is only temporary. We are assured of that through the hope we have through Jesus Christ’s resurrection and promise of His return. Rick is now at rest and asleep, awaiting this promise, like those that have come before him and those that will come after.

Like all of us, Rick was a stranger and exile on the Earth; however, that is no more. He now awaits his true homeland, that heavenly country in which he so strongly believed and for which he so strongly desired when he was alongside all of us. 

LCG Members Are Now "Pebbles of Purity" Rippling Out To The World Around Them

I'll just leave this here:

Greetings from Charlotte,
When a pebble is thrown into water, concentric waves emanate from the point of entry. I often tell our teens and young adults that they can be pebbles of purity and example in the Church and in the world. This is why we have youth programs—camps, Living Education, and Living 4 Tomorrow—to encourage them to live a life very different from that in the world. I also point out to our young people that, whether for good or bad, they will be examples. Each person who catches the vision can become a good example—not by self-righteously preaching, but by courageously living God’s way of life. Of course, the “pebbles in a pond” analogy applies to all of us. Is this not what Jesus meant when He said, “You are the salt of the earth” and “You are the light of the world” (Matthew 5:13–16)? Do we consider this in how we drive, how we dress, the language we use, how we entertain ourselves, how diligent we are in our employment, and how we treat others in our everyday encounters with them? A lot is happening in our world, and we don’t have time to waste when it comes to allowing Christ to form Himself in us.
—Gerald E. Weston

PCG Forced To Sell Edstone England Campus Due To Dwindling Funds And Poor Health Of Gerald Flurry

 

After dumping millions of dollars into Edstone Hall in Edstone, Warwickshire, England, the financially hit Philadelphia Church of God has left the property, and it is currently for sale. This is a stunning blow to the egos of PCG leadership who imagine themselves as never making a bad decision.

Their path to Edstone Hall took a trip by the old Ambassador Campus in Bricket Wood, where they planned on buying the old estate on the property.

The PCG had hoped to purchase the old Ambassador College Campus in Bricket Wood, Hertfordshire, England. Thankfully, the lessees refused to sell to them, so the PCG had to start looking elsewhere for a new property. 

They were looking at England because of its close proximity to Ireland, where they dreamed they were going to dig up the Hill of Tara and uncover the Ark of the Covenant that Jeremiah supposedly buried there—a myth partially spun by Herman Hoeh and Raymond F. McNair. The idiotic British Israelism myths these two guys dreamed up and sold to the church as "gospel truth" are appalling in their poor scholarship. 

In 2014 they wrote:

Edstone Hall, a 24,000-square-foot mansion in the Warwickshire countryside, contains more than 30 rooms. Built in 1939 in the art deco style, the building has an oak double-door entrance into a stained glass vestibule, stone mullion windows, stone fireplaces, balconies, a 5,500-square-foot Georgian cellar, a Cotswold stone roof and a detached garage. The 22-acre campus sits among the meadows about 4 miles north of Stratford-upon-Avon.

The parkland surrounding the hall includes meadows, pastures and woodland including mature oak and beech trees, as well as walking paths, gardens and a cedar of Lebanon; it also overlooks a large pond. The property also includes planning permissions for a 10,000-square-foot additional building, and an indoor swimming pool and a leisure complex. 

 

“I believe God has long been preparing Edstone for His Church,” Mr. Macdonald said. “Edstone is ideal for the pcg—a perfect combination of majesty and functionality. It’s dignified and impressive, yet practical and sensible.” 

 

Receiving the key to Edstone Hall capped off a two-year quest for a new campus in England. In December 2012, pcg Pastor General Gerald Flurry asked Mr. Macdonald to search the London area for estates that could fulfill the needs of an expanded work in Britain and Europe. Mr. Macdonald soon discovered that the former Ambassador College campus in Bricket Wood was for sale. The college there closed 40 years ago, in 1974. 

 

In March 2013, the Church placed an offer on a portion of the Bricket Wood estate, including its mansion, Hanstead House, and a cottage where Ambassador College founder Herbert W. Armstrong stayed during his visits to the campus. Mr. Flurry announced the offer in July during a sermon at Philadelphia Youth Camp in Edmond. But over the next nine months, the sale decelerated. The owner of the Bricket Wood estate, a London real estate development company, was denied planning permission for its residential neighborhood by the St. Albans Council. This prevented an expedient sale to the pcg.

The local residents were not keen on another American cult moving into their neighborhood. So, the PCG decided to take their money elsewhere...

This April, Evangelist Stephen Flurry and his family flew to Britain, and he and Mr. Macdonald spent several days attempting to reconcile with the developer and the town council. On the final evening of their time together in Britain, the Flurry and Macdonald families gathered to discuss the happenings of the trip. During the course of the evening, Mr. Macdonald searched online to see what the £4.5 million the Church had offered could buy elsewhere, and found several estates of similar grandeur and a lower asking price. 

 

“There was a kind of epiphany,” Mr. Macdonald said. “Why not look elsewhere? we thought. We did a quick Internet search, and within minutes we were oohing and aaahing over at least a dozen other magnificent homes, all of which were less expensive and came with greater acreage and more features.” 

 

Later that week, Mr. Gerald Flurry determined that the door to Bricket Wood was closed and directed Mr. Macdonald to search for other estates. Along with regional office manager David Howard and editorial department writer Richard Palmer, Mr. Macdonald spent two weeks parsing dozens of possibilities and visiting more than 20, the last of which was Edstone on May 5. On May 8, Mr. Flurry and his son flew to England and viewed six estates over the next two days. On May 14, the pcg submitted an offer on the estate in Warwickshire, which was quickly accepted and became official in early June. 

 

Mr. Gerald Flurry announced the offer during a Bible study in Edmond on May 16 at the beginning of the AC graduation weekend. After nearly five months of routine inspections, legal paperwork and negotiations, contracts were exchanged and the sale was formalized on September 24. At the Feast of Tabernacles on October 8, pcg members at 16 sites around the globe learned the location, name and details of the estate in a taped opening night presentation by Mr. Stephen Flurry. 

 

Millions were dumped into renovating it for the students to move into it. A farm was started with sheep and other animals. Large gardens raised the produce that the students ate. It was a symbol of God's kingdom on earth. Plus, it left easy access for Lil' Stevie to fly to Jerusalem, where they ended up buying property to start an office so that when the crap hits the fan, they will be onsite as the two witless witnesses.

The estate ad is here:  £6,000,000 18 bedroom country house for sale

You will notice several portraits of Herbert adorn the walls as a sad reminder of how his empire is dwindling down to nothing.

Brad McDonald has moved into the property to facilitate its sale. Lil' Steve and the rest of the family who were onsite are now back in Edmond, Oklahoma. Flurry has not been well and the PCG is working behind the scenes for his successor, which naturally will be Lil' Stevie. When that happens we will see the PCG implode.