Herbert Armstrong's Tangled Web of Corrupt Leaders

Saturday, November 12, 2011

Jesus and John Allen Say $1,000 A Month Gets You In On Plan "B"



God has been busy lately talking to Ron Weinland, Dave Pack and our Costa Rican Prophet, M. John Allen.  Trouble is, the voices Ron and Dave's have been hearing have proven not to be God's.  Now what about  Allen?  Is God speaking to him or are there other voices speaking to him?

Yet once again, we have another prophet that has God telling him all kinds of hidden knowledge.

Many of the new truths God is revealing to my mind on almost a daily basis
now will simply astound you, and I have only begun to teach this
information to you. But, stay tuned as the ride has only begun. However,
the core truths God revealed to His Apostle, Herbert W. Armstrong remain
as a bedrock and foundation for what God is now revealing to His people,
and, as I have learned over the years, whenever I second guess Mr.
Armstrong, it is usually I, not he,that is in error.

Remember that this is the newest COG prophet that is going to ask all of his members to be donating $1,000 a month in order to be a part of his glorious end time work.  Well, things aren't so rosy for the prophet:

As a personal note, I was forced to seek full time employment because of
my extreme financial distress, which, by the way, reminds me of the years
of grinding poverty that Mr. Armstrong experienced at the start of his work.

Looks like he has no one to support his visionary/delusional message.  I was going to call it a ministry, but it is such an idiotic belief system that no minister in their right mind would even be association with it.

But just so you know, Satan had his hand in this job situation.  Satan is attempting to destroy the start of a might work (again).

Once again, I was wrongfully terminated abruptly yesterday, and, as you
can imagine, working a full time job leaves minimal time left for the deep
prayer, meditation, and study that is needed at this point.

But was it Satan or the dumb sheep?  Once again we get to see a Prophet of Armstrongism blaming the members for his hardships. You fools that refuse to mail in $1,000.00 a month are the cause of this man's hardship now.  He has to get off his lazy ass and get a job!

Yet, brethren, because the majority of you are NOT obeying God's financial laws on tithing, and the fact that many of you are so spiritually blind [as Revelation 3 states in the letter to Laodicea], most of you seem to be so blind spiritually that you couldn't tell where Yahweh is really working if it bit you in the nose.

Shame on you all!

He continues on in a typical COG pattern. Blame, shame and attack.

I am issuing a final warning to those of you who smugly and ignorantly
consider yourselves to be "rich and in need of nothing," that, as it says
in Rev. 3, you had better hurry up and apply God's eye salve to your eyes
lest you be cast into the Tribulation along with this world's people.
I am very concerned about where the vast majority of you are headed, but,
there is only so much I or Jesus Christ can do to wake you up. And, while
some of you seem to be entertained by the messages God is bringing you
through me, you don't seem to be motivated to take action on these issues
and help hold up my hands as is your duty given to you by God Himself.

After the above ranting you would think that would be enough to wake up the sleeping brethren.  However, he hilariously continues on:


And, in order to do that, I can't be fooling around with full time jobs
and other worldly distractions, yet, I've got bills to pay just like the
rest of you. However, how can I move this Work forward to where it needs
to be if I don't even have enough money to buy food and have shelter for
myself, let alone have the resources that I need to move things to the
next level where they belong?

Sad to say, in this world, things operate on money, and when you don't
have enough money coming in to meet your daily personal expenses, it is
not possible to expand the Work under those circumstances.

I AM NOT GOING TO KEEP BEATING A DEAD HORSE

Simply put, I have reached the end of my rope financially. YOU, if you
are not following God's financial instructions, have to share in the blame
for this situation, and, frankly, just like Jesus Christ, my impulse is to
just VOMIT YOU LAODICEANS OUT OF MY MOUTH IN TOTAL DISGUST.

Vomit us out of his mouth?????????????????????

You Laodiceans are BLIND, SPIRITUALLY, YET YOU ARE IN A HAUGHTY ATTITUDE, THINKING YOU ARE RICH SPIRITUALLY, WHEN YOU ARE ACTUALLY BLIND AND PITIFUL.

YOUR SAVIOR IS GOING TO VOMIT YOU OUT OF HIS MOUTH UNLESS YOU REPENT, AND, FRANKLY, I AM SO FED UP WITH YOUR ATTITUDE THAT I AM AT THE POINT OF TURNING MY BACK ON YOU, AS CHRIST IS ALSO ABOUT TO DO! YOU HAVE BEEN
WARNED, YET YOU STILL ARE NOT LISTENING, SO YOU ARE ON THE VERGE OF GETTING THE "OR ELSE" JUST LIKE THE SINFUL AND WICKED NATIONS YOU LIVE IN.

Yes, all CAPS makes us stand up and pay attention.  Yes sirree!  I have that check book out right now!  I just love being shouted at.

All of you stupid idiots have only yourselves to blame.  Because of your unfaithfulness Prophet Allen is going to "refound" a new church and dump all you  loser along side the road.

I am getting ready, therefore, to REFOUND THIS WORK WITH NEW PEOPLE AND ALLOW YOU LAODICEANS TO SUFFER WHATEVER FAITS YOU HAVE BROUGHT ON YOURSELVES.
God CANNOT ALLOW THIS TO CONTINUE. In fact, He has instructed me to GIVE YOU THIS ONE FINAL WARNING:

THOSE WHO REFUSE TO CONTRIBUTE TO GOD'S
WORK SHOULD BE CUT OFF FROM THE SPIRITUAL FOOD THEY NEED TO SURVIVE THE TOUGH TIMES AHEAD. IF THEY ARE NOT WILLING TO CONTRIBUTE TO HIS WORK, THEN NEITHER SHOULD THEY DERIVE ANY BENEFITS FROM HIS WORK!

GOD HAS THEREFORE LED ME TO MAKE THE FOLLOWING SERIOUS DECISION, BECAUSE THIS WORK MUST GROW AND PROSPER NOW, BUT IF WE ARE CASTING OUR PEARLS BEFORE SWINE WE WILL CONTINUE TO SPIN OUR WHEELS LIKE WE HAVE DONE FOR YEARS NOW. THIS IS GOING TO CHANGE, AND IT IS GOING TO CHANGE RIGHT NOW!

So what is going to happen to all of you loser who STILL refuse to give him money?

AND, FRANKLY, IF YOU ARE TOO BLIND TO SEE WHAT YOU NEED TO DO, THEN HE WILL RELUCTANTLY INSTITUTE PLAN B IN YOUR LIFE, WHICH IS TO WAKE YOU UP IN THE CONCENTRATION CAMPS AND TORTURE CHAMBERS OF THE TRIBULATION, WHICH, BY THE WAY, THIS EVIL GOVERNMENT OF OURS HAS BEEN RAPIDLY BUILDING AND PREPARING FOR AT LEAST A DECADE NOW.
So what is plan "B"?  This plan is so mind numbingly fierce that you will be shaking in your shoes at its awesomeness!

Plan "B" is this:

God is now poised to institute His OWN PLAN B, WHICH, SINCE THOSE ORIGINALLY INVITED TO THE WEDDING FEAST ARE TOO IGNORANT AND TOO BLIND TO SEE THE VALUE OF ATTENDING, HE WILL SEND HIS ANGELS OUT INTO THE WORLD IN ONE FRANTIC END TIME PUSH TO BRING AS MANY NEW PEOPLE WHO WILL LISTEN INTO HIS CHURCH AS IS POSSIBLE! HE ABSOLUTELY WILL HAVE A "BRIDE WHO HAS MADE HERSELF READY," BUT, THE BIBLE PREDICTS THAT MOST OF YOU JUST WON'T BE THERE!

THEREFORE, SOMETIME THIS COMING WEEK, UNLESS I GET A POSITIVE RESPONSE FROM YOU, I AM GOING TO INSTITUTE GOD'S PLAN B, AND YOU WILL BE SHUT OUT UNTIL OR UNLESS YOU REPENT.

What I mean by this is that if I don't receive word that pledges of at least $1000.00/mo. have been made, I have no choice but to make IMMEDIATE AND DRASTIC CHANGES TO HOW THIS WORK IS CONDUCTED.

Effective, then, later this week, I AM GOING TO HIT THE KILL SWITCH ON THE PRESENT RESTORATION WEBSITE AND BEGIN TO WORK ON CREATING A NEW SITE ON OUR PLAINBIBLETRUTH.COM, DOMAIN.

What????????????  Shutting down a damn web site is going to be God's Plan "B"????????????

Brethren!  Valuable God given revelations will be lost if this web site is shut down!  It will be YOUR fault if this valuable information is lost!  Wake up you morons!

Now don;t go and blame Allen for this horrendous situation. It is Jesus' fault!  It is his decision to shut down the blog!

As step #1, then, I'm going to change the current front page so that none of the links to our material are there anymore. Instead, I will put up a notice that THE SITE HAS BEEN CLOSED DOWN.

Step 2 will be to construct the new site, with an outer, public, area for the world and the preaching of the Gospel to it, and a MEMBER'S ONLY AREA THAT REQUIRES YOUR PASSWORD TO ACCESS IT.

And, ONLY TITHE PAYING MEMBERS TO THIS WORK WILL GET SUCH A PASSWORD, UNLESS YOU COMMUNICATE WITH ME ABOUT A HARDSHIP SITUATION.

GOD IS SLAMMING THE DOOR RIGHT NOW IN THE FACES OF LAODICEA! YOU HAVE BROUGHT THIS UPON YOURSELVES AND THERE IS NO ONE TO BLAME BUT YOU.

THIS DECISION IS MADE BY JESUS CHRIST HIMSELF, IN HOPES THAT EVEN AT THIS LATE HOUR, YOU WILL REPENT AND BE SAVED SO THAT THIS WORK CAN GROW AND PROSPER.
So, Laodicea, we have reached the end and the parting of ways unless you
repent of your selfishness, blindness, and wickedness. If I do not have the pledges by early this week, THE EXISTING SITE WILL BE SHUT DOWN WITHOUT ANY FURTHER NOTICE.

And, in case you're wondering, step 1 of the shutdown means the links to the material on the site will be removed. And, step 2 will come sometime next month, WHICH WILL BE THE PERMANENT DELETION OF ALL MATERIAL ON THAT SITE TO MAKE ROOM FOR OUR NEW SITE!

And the majority of the more meaty material will only be accessible from the new member's area going forward, BECAUSE IF YOU WILL NOT WORK BESIDE ME IN THE VINEYARD, NEITHER SHALL YOU EAT SPIRITUALLY.

The ONLY WAY to avert this is if I see AT LEAST $1000.00/ MO. IN PLEDGES. And, again, YOU NEED TO INFORM ME THAT THE PLEDGE IS ON THE WAY AND THE AMOUNT THROUGH A HELPDESK TICKET.

And, for those who HAVE BEEN LOYAL OVER THE YEARS, I SAY "THANK YOU," AND YOU WILL RECEIVE YOUR PASSWORD FOR THE NEW SITE AUTOMATICALLY.
You have received YOUR FINAL WARNING! WAKE UP BEFORE IT'S TOO LATE, BECAUSE ONCE YOU ARE ROUNDED UP AND PLACED IN THAT CONCENTRATION CAMP, THE ONLY THING YOU CAN LOOK FORWARD TO IS DEATH IN A TORTURE CHAMBER, BECAUSE YOU HAVE PROVEN YOU WON'T REPENT IN ANY OTHER WAY!

As God says in Deut. 28: "I set before you this day life, and death, blessing, and cursing: THEREFORE CHOOSE LIFE."

While you all may be a bunch of inconsiderate, worthless slime balls who will not help the Prophet, he wants you to now he loves you:

With deep love, in Jesus' Name,

M. John Allen

The Church of God, the Gift That Keeps On Giving........
 


Wienerdudes Big Mouth Is What Got Him Into Trouble



If Wienerdude had kept his mouth shut about his Swiss bank accounts then he might not be in the trouble he is.  Cincinnati.com has an article discussing how he bragged to his church members that he was heading off to Switzerland to set up a Swiss bank account.  He told them he was  depositing $200,000 USD.

To show what a moron he  really is he bragged about how great his dividends were in just five months after depositing it. He claims to have made $25,000 - $30,000 in interest.

"We've already made around 25, 30 thousand dollars in a few months time, just by putting that money over there," he said. "Astounding. Astounding. We'd put a lot more in, but that's what it's all about. Not just helping us to prepare for things in the future that ought to shock you that this dollar is going down the tubes."

In confusing wording in the article they discuss how Wienerdudes daughter had been served papers in 2009 in one of the original criminal investigates.  Then it jumps into her being served again this past Monday.  Wienederdudes daughter is his accountant.

Also being served are all the banks Wienerdude has come into contact with:

According to court records, prosecutors were also attempting to summon officials from the banks of Fifth Third, PNC, JP Morgan Chase, Wachovia Securities, National City, Charter One, American Express, Huntington and Citibank.

Read the entire article here: Minister spoke of Swiss accounts

Dennis On: "It is Appointed Unto All Men Once to Die...."




It is Appointed Unto All Men Once to Die....
 
Dennis Diehl - EzineArticles Expert AuthorOne of the hallmark traits of the COGs is that somehow "we" are unique to the history of humans dying.  When I was a pastor, I taught the "we who are alive and remain," concept.  It was very nice knowing that of all the times in history where humans have come and gone by dying, I was NOT going to have to experience that.  Of course, that was bullshit.
 
EVERY COG minister teaches and inspires by telling the faithful that they are unique in the history of mankind and will not have to die.  We live in "awesome" times.  We are the special, the chosen  those who will not have to die as billions have before us.  We will be changed, and "in the moment, a twinkling of an eye," shall be changed. 
 
Of course, Paul was very very wrong.  The Apostle Paul, 2000 years ago, 2000 YEARS!, was wrong.  He finally had to give in to , "I have fought a good fight..." etc, but he was toast.  He had told others to think "time was short," but had to finally admit it wasn't. 
 
Much of the motivation behind the COG "time is short," is the absolute fear of death.  Everyone dies.  If you agree to show up, you agree to leave.  I would love to think that somehow I was living in a time and in touch in such a way as to never die.  I'd love to think that , "we shall not all die, but we all shall change, in a moment, in a twinking of the eye.."  but, alas, we do all die.
 
The idea that humans  can know the future is terribly flawed.  Prophecy makes us feel as if we are special and not subject to the common fate of all those before us.  The COG guru's teach as if they will not die and will live over into some kind of amazing change not common to men.  But they are wrong. 
 
Roderick C Meredith will die before Jesus returns.  David C Pack, will die before Jesus return.  Gerald Flurry will die before Jesus returns.  Joseph Tkach will die before Jesus returns.  Ron Weinland will die before Jesus returns.  We ALL will die as it is the nature of agreeing to show up! 
 
In hindsite, I realize I wanted to be special.  I wanted to be excluded from the common experience of all human beings before me.  I wanted to feel special as to being called of God.  I wanted to feel that I was among those that would not die but would be "changed."   The reality is that no one is special and that all of us will die.
 
How motivational is the idea that "you won't die as others,"  But it is a lie.  The Apostle Paul spent a few years thinking he was special in this regard.  He said, "we who are alive shall be changed," yet ultimately had to admit he was wrong.  He finally had to admit he had fought a good fight, finished his course and was going to die. 
 
Dying sucks.  But it is what ALL humans experience.  There is no way out of this biological demise.  Cells can only replicate so many times and old age is a function of the failure of cells to do this efficiently.  All life form get about the the same number or breaths.  A mouse lives about 3 years and breathes about the same number of times as a human does in 70 years.  An elephant that live 125 years breathes about the same number of times as a human at 70 years.  Life and cells last only so long.
 
So give up the idea that some COG minister can get you out of this experience.  Dying is good for our soul.  We are not, then we are, then we are not.  That's how it works.  Fighting it is futile.  Thinking that some church or religious view can free us from this reality is vain. 
 
Jesus died.  The Apostles died.  The Apostle Paul, who thought he'd not die, died. All gurus died.  HWA died.  GTA died.  Gerald Waterhouse died. Raymond McNair died.  All will die is just how it is. 
 
Learn to live now as now is all you have.  Don't give in to the "just around the corner," or "soon" types.  Reject them. Live your life in the now. Enjoy and learn as you go. 
 
The whole idea that those in the COG "know" how it all will be are wrong.  They are afraid of dying just like everyone before them and misuse the Bible to get them off the hook. 
 
NO ONE gets off the hook.  Live in the now.  Forget the past and do not speculate into the future for you will probably be wrong. 
 
Amen.
 
Dennis C. Diehl
DenniscDiehl@aol.com
 

Friday, November 11, 2011

COG Splinter Cult Leader Hates Abraham Lincoln



Several years ago when the alt.wcg-newsgroup was functioning there was a group of people who jumped on it proclaiming that a new  leader for the Churches of God had emerged. His name was Neville Stevens and his new Church was Zion Ministries.  Stevens was a former COG member who went off the deep end. Despite that, he had a small group (less than 20) people who clung to every word he said.  If you thought the worship of HWA was bad, worship of Stevens and his words was even worse.



Neville in all his glory

Stevens had his followers wrapped up with the idea that they would be the instruments of God that would help usher in the tribulation.  They would be used as bearers of swords that would kill all who opposed Neville and the COG.  Many of them bragged about carrying swords to kill those who opposed the COG.

They would threaten and bully anyone who disagreed with them. They would have all kinds of names they would call people. They were and still are nasty people.  Yet through that nastiness they thought they were the most perfect COG members and Christians who ever walked the face of the earth.

Steven's writes are incredibly long and incredibly boring.  If you ever had any contact with Tony Almo's nutjob cult and the flyer's they placed on car windows you will quickly see the same writing style from Stevens.

Looking through one of his latest entries today, I saw the following from him about Abraham Lincoln.

A prime example would be the United States of America, though it wasn’t called a civil war, but the War of Independence.  It began as a challenge to the ruling body – which was the English Crown.  This war, believe it or not, was a fulfillment of Bible Prophecy.  What emerged was a nation which became the best that human beings could devise.  It was a Christian nation and it was established on a system of law and order, with clearly defined parameters so that everyone knew what the law required of them, along with suitable penalties for anyone who failed to comply.  The presiding government, including the President himself, would be appointed by the people and for the people, and they could easily be thrown out of office according to the will of the people.  The checks and balances were complete, and the nation prospered – at least until the other war, the Civil War of 1860.  This was the most insane period of America’s history.  And it all began when one man wanted absolute power over the states, and the maniac went to war against his own people!  But some form of justice prevailed in the end.  Thank you, John Wilkes Booth!  Well done!  God considers those who kill their own people to be satanic: Isa 14:19-20 “Like a corpse trampled underfoot, 20 you (Satan) will not join them in burial, for you have destroyed your land and killed your people.  The offspring of the wicked [one], (that is Satan) will never be mentioned again.”  I prefer not to mention Abraham Lincoln either!  By a bizarre coincidence, Lincoln’s body was not buried either, but later dumped in some sort of mausoleum, and covered with scrap wood, from where it was stolen – though later recovered.  Finally, years later, they put it in a hole and covered it with a concrete slab in a new mausoleum (the old one had started to collapse).  I don’t know of any other President whose body was subjected to so much bizarre humiliation and interment disruption!  It seems to be telling us something!  You may have your own opinion, but personally, I don’t like the man!  I can think of no good reason why God would’ve either.  The deaths of 620,000 Americans, plus an undetermined number of seriously wounded, should be enough to condemn any man who wages war against his own people.

So why is he pissed at Lincoln.  Part of Stevens problem is his clinging to the British Israelism baloney.  Blacks were less than and inferior beings compared to the British Israelite peoples.  So any man who went to war to stop slavery is despicable in their eyes, just as many in Armstrongism still think to this day.



Stevens then goes on to tell why the US is in such bad shape.....we refused to obey King George!

What proved to be unique about the American system of government is the absence of a royal or kingly line.  After getting rid of King George III, they didn’t want another king.  This too, turned out to be prophetic:  Hos 3:4-5 “For the Israelites will live many days without king or prince, without sacrifice (there’s no religious sacrifices conducted in America) or sacred stones (As a matter of fact, they don’t worship ‘The Rock’ either), without ephod (Levitical priestly robes) or idol 

Then after a long tirade he gets into the meat of his message.  His followers and the TRUE followers of God will be lifting up swords to kill all heretics and blasphemers:


On top of this, the Order of Aaron takes a new role.  They must now be warrior priests in the Order of Melchizedek.  This is the New Order that is spoken of.  Elijah and the Levite Brotherhood are of this caliber, and they are prepared to fight for God’s Kingdom.  The enemy is already at work fighting to take the Kingdom by trying to expel the Jewish Israelis.  Does any rational person believe that God won’t order retaliation when the Kingdom of God is imminent?  With formidable odds against His servants the imbalance will be redressed.  Just to remind the reader of what this means, God has made it very clear: Zech 12:8-9 “On that day the LORD will shield those who live in Jerusalem, so that the feeblest among them will be like David (Wasn’t David a mighty warrior?), and the house of David will be like God, like the Angel of the LORD going before them. 9 On that day I will set out to destroy all the nations that attack Jerusalem.”  Don’t expect to see the Sons of Jerusalem walking around in prayer shawls and praying on street corners.  Or holding prayer meetings in the public places and calling on the Muslims to repent!  It will be far too late for any of that sort of thing, and the Sons of Jerusalem will be preoccupied elsewhere clearing the borders!

Of all the crackpot splinter cults of Armstrongism this one has the potential to cause harm to others outside the cult.  They despise Muslims and claim to be ready to go to any length to kick them out of Jerusalem and Israel.

Thursday, November 10, 2011

COG False Prophet Indicted On Tax Evasion Charges



It's another fun day in Paradise!  Another corrupt, lying false prophet of Armstrongism has been charged with another crime.

It is none other than our illustrious Wienerdude himself!

Ron Weinland has been indicted with federal charges for tax evasion for failing to report over $356,000 in income.  He is accused of using the money on himself instead of his "church."

Cincinnati.com is reporting:
Ronald Weinland, 62, of Union evaded $357,065 in taxes from 2004 through 2008, according to a federal indictment.


The minister understated his income, used church money for personal expenses and tried to hide the existence of a Swiss bank account., said a spokesman for Kerry B. Harvey, the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky. Weinland also allegedly failed to report any interest made on that Swiss account as income.

Weinerdude Weinalnd's splinter cult is a harlot daughter of The Living Church of God.  Weinerdude also thinks he is a prophet capable of predicting the end times (just like Harold Camping).  So far every word that has come out of his mouth has been a lie.

Long ago he declared himself one of the two witnesses. But because he as so few followers he needed another sidekick to be the other 'witness", so he appointed his wife.  So together he and the Mrs. make up the Two Witnesses who will be sent out as a warning to the world and then murdered in the streets of Jerusalem only to be resurrected in 3 1/2 days.

Sadly this FOOL is only one in a long line of liars and frauds that make up the so called "ministry" of Armstrongism.  The corrupt nature of Weinland is also carried over into the corrupt leaders of the various harlot daughters of the Worldwide Church of God.  It is only a matter of time fore these other fools make the headlines.

More on the story here:  Boone Co. Minister Indicted On Tax Charges

Local Minister Idicated On Tax Evasion

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

REAL Men Only Wear White Shirts To Church



Some of the legalistic stupidity that occupy the conservative Armstrongites is simply mind boggling.  This was sent to me by a person on a Yahoo forum.

Can you imagine having to live on this person's world in the World Tomorrow?  Oy! His world is going to be filed with so many signs, rules and regulations that life will be a living hell!  People will probably throw themselves into the lake of fire just to end the misery!



There are some who had brought out about that in regards to skirt length, hair length, ect.. Common sense should prevail. I wonder how many of you remember how that Mr. Armstrong had instructed his ministers that they must wear white shirts with full length sleeves instead of colored shirts. It is my opinion that all men should come before God in white shirts for proper dress, though that is my personal opinion. You see salesmen all week long in colored dress shirts, but on the Sabbath, should be white, (just my personal opinion)!!  Of course today it`s the women who are the salesmen with their pants suits, which is even now being permitted for women`s Sabbath wear!!!!



The COG fashion police are letting their standards down. Herb also wanted to see men in french cuff shirts with red ties.  Red power ties let everyone, women and weaker men know who is in charge.  Weak sissy men wear colored shirts - probably pink or yellow and probably never graduated from Spokesmen Club.

He also seems to forget that Spanky Meredith said that real men wear white socks with their dark suits.  Black socks for dark suits were created by homosexuals to feminize men.

Spanky Meredith thinks he is  the worlds greatest authority on effeminate men and fashion. 

So when you REAL men attempt to wear a pink shirt to church this is the reason why you have been feminized:

May God help you to realize that this problem of effeminate men is not concerned just with weak, "queer" characters in some other part of your town or city. It is a thing affecting MILLIONS of American men of all ages and backgrounds! Our very SURVIVAL as a nation is directly affected by this vital problem! As the above report so vividly points out, the American man is just plain WEAK!

And the sickening TRUTH is that these soft, MARSHMALLOW-like men very easily turn to HOMOSEXUALITY and become "queers" in every sense of the word. They are neither MEN nor WOMEN— they are a wretched, PERVERTED "it"!

That's why they are "softies." They are completely UNLIKE the pioneer men of yesteryear who were constantly walking, chopping down trees, plowing behind a team of horses, working and DRIVING their way through the wilderness and over obstacles! Unless, alas, they are already too old or have heart trouble or some similar condition, American men need to exercise vigorously and really SWEAT. They need to feel their blood stirred up and get the male hormones stirring in their system! They need to feel a firmness and hardness in their muscles, an agility and coordination in their body as a whole and a sense of ENDURANCE when the going gets rough. Even physically, they need to feel what it is like to be a MAN!

Satan is a "QUEER!" Your Bible speaks of him in this manner: "And the great dragon was cast out, chat old serpent, called the devil and Satan, which DECEIVETH THE WHOLE WORLD: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him" (Rev. 12:9).

Why do we find the "leaders" in men's clothing styles trying to palm off on British and American males little "pink" shirts and socks and ties to wear, nylon under pants like females wear, and cute little bows and buttons and other childlike contrivances on their suits and sports outfits? Why? 

Sometimes reading his writing is like reading a porn novel!  "Blood stirred up, firmness, hardness, DRIVING, plowing, sweat and more  sweat."

What a stupid, stupid little man!

Prophet Wienerdude Declares "In 2 Months Endtimes Begins"





Forget about disgraced Congressman Wiener.  We have our own COG Wienerdude!  That is none other that Ronnie Weinland the failed prophet of Armstrongism.

Wienerdude has published a long missal to his acolytes declaring how magnificent he is as a prophet and how everything he has declared has come to pass (even though every single things has failed so far.)

Weinerdude says:

In two short months, the world will be thrust into the seventh and final phase of this end-time. This period will be marked by well over fifty percent of all Bible prophecy being fulfilled.
 God first revealed to His two end-time witnesses, His final two prophets that His Son would return to this earth in a second-coming as King of kings on May 27, 2012. That revelation gave way to numerous other revelations concerning end-time prophetic events. But anyone who hears of this, in the world or in the Church that was scattered, considers this to be absurd, presumptuous, arrogant, and filled with self- aggrandizement. Such was also true concerning the world’s behavior toward Jesus Christ at his first coming.
So God is speaking directly to Mr. & Mrs. Wienerdude?  How incredibly stupid can two people be?  Even worse, how incredibly stupid can those people who believe this filth can be!

The Apostle Says: Stop Sending Money To Your Sinful COG HQ!



Poor Herb just cannot get a break anymore.  Dissidents have picked at him for years. Ministers and members have rebelled.  Now the latest Apostle is claiming Herb started watering down the gospel and doctrines starting in the late 1960's.  Of course there is the proverbial bogey man that caused it - Stan Rader.  Rader caused HWA to slip further down that slippery slope into grievous sin.

The Apostle writes today:

You should also know that there was very little real difference between GTA and his father, Ted’s ouster was a political maneuver arranged by Stan Rader and come over Ted’s sexual problems rather than doctrine.  You should also know that the major COG Groups today only pay lip service to HWA and have actually made many changes to his positions.   In fact they SHOULD be willing  to grow and change and should have never paid lip service to him in the first place.  Instead they have paid lip service to him as if he were a god while continuing on the path of more and more doctrinal laxity and lukewarmness.

HWA was always all about the money and always ran the church as a business, and his way of dealing with the financial crisis was not to cut back on his friend Rader, but to loosen the baptismal requirements that he had been using before about 1969.  After that time a gradual loosening came about as first one thing and later another went by the wayside.  The fundamental requirement had always been loyalty to HWA so they were just loosening the degree of doctrinal understanding that they required.

That is to say, if they agreed with whatever HWA said than they were acceptable.  Herbert himself watered down doctrine greatly after the late 60 including such things as buying food and drink on Sabbath, traveling on Sabbath, attending pagan religious activities like christmas was allowed by him, he changed from one extreme to the other on D & R allowed birthdays etc etc.

In fact the Tkach changes were only the natural end result of HWAs process of becoming personally lukewarm for doctrine and zealous for numbers and money; into what the COG Groups now teach.
The Apostle is trying to warn the COG's that they are grievous sinners because they eat out on Saturdays, might watch some TV or go to the park.  Gone are the days of having to dress up in "sabbath wear" while at home whenever the broadcast came on.  Gone are the days eating cold leftovers on Saturdays when you got home from an incredibly long and boring church service. Gone are the days of having to eat dried beef sandwiches on stone ground whole wheat bread and carob cookies while during home on the long 150 mile trip.  Of course having to drive over 300 miles for church services was not considered a sin for some reason.

Today all the major groups pay lip service to the Sabbath as they routinely pollute it, by buying in restaurants, going on extensive travel and fudging on the Sabbath  and Holy Days

Disgusting sinners!  Vile reprobates!  You deserve to be thrown in the lake of fire! Filthy commandment breakers!

So how does the Apostle plan on stopping this grievous abuse of the sabbath?  He wants members to stop sending in money to these organizations.

These people are about M O N E Y and are lax on doctrine.  As long as people pay or contribute in other ways they will tolerate a great deal.  Stop contributing, or make waves so that others may be influenced and watch how quickly they act. 

While he doesn't say it, you can bet he wants that money sent to him so he can perform his mighty work of warning to the church!

All of this is enough to make me go out and buy a McRib on Saturday.  Might as well kill two birds with one stone......maybe that's three considering that money is going to a pagan business when it should have been sent to a True Church.

Does Gold Hoard Prove HWA Was Right!





Have you ever read a National Geographic article, looked at it's pictures and immediately found that it supported your understanding of Herbert Armstrong's teachings?  Most of us no longer do that, but there are still splinter cults of Armstrongism that look to these kinds of stories to legitimize their teachings.

The National Geographic has an article up about a hoard of gold and jewels that were discovered in a farmers field in Straffordshire England.  You can read the article here:  The Strattforshire Gold Hoard and see the fascinating pictures here:  Strattforshire Gold Hoard pictures

One day, or perhaps one night, in the late seventh century an unknown party traveled along an old Roman road that cut across an uninhabited heath fringed by forest in the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Mercia. Possibly they were soldiers, or then again maybe thieves—the remote area would remain notorious for highwaymen for centuries—but at any rate they were not casual travelers. Stepping off the road near the rise of a small ridge, they dug a pit and buried a stash of treasure in the ground.

For 1,300 years the treasure lay undisturbed, and eventually the landscape evolved from forest clearing to grazing pasture to working field. Then treasure hunters equipped with metal detectors—ubiquitous in Britain—began to call on farmer Fred Johnson, asking permission to walk the field. "I told one I'd lost a wrench and asked him to find that," Johnson says. Instead, on July 5, 2009, Terry Herbert came to the farmhouse door and announced to Johnson that he had found Anglo-Saxon treasure.
I guess when an Armstrongite sees the words. "Anglo-Saxon, he immediately thinks of HWA and his British Israelism myth that he plagiarized from "Judah's Scepter Joseph's Birthright", by JH Allen.  This book and Dugger and Dodd's, "The History of the True Religion" were important WCG "historical" documents when I came to Pasadena.

The History of the True Religion was used to legitimize HWA's standing as an ordained minister who was supposedly in direct lineage from a long line of "true ministers" from the time of the Apostles.  JH Allen's book was used to legitimize the existence of the Church.  But it had a more insidious history in the church though.

During HWA's six month bible study in a public library, he was exposed to the books popular from the mid-1880's to the 1930"s.  This was also the time period in which the British Empire was winding down in it's colonial conquests.  British and American libraries were filled with a myriad of books describing those conquests and some even trying to prove them by Scripture.  There were scores of British Israelism books in print and there was even a British Israel Society in existence during HWA's study phase.  Many of the books tried to prove the existence of the British Empire as directly inspired by God through the lineage of Joseph and the wanderings of the 12 tribes.

Numerous books were also in print at this time on Pyramidology and how the Great Pyramid of Giza was reportedly built by Joseph as study in future prophecy.  The Ambassador College library in Pasadena was filled with these books on pyramidology. Some even had HWA's had writing in the margins.

These books and more were all in public libraries that HWA used when he was doing his equivalent study of a semester of school. It also goes to show that HWA did NOT originate British Israelism.  He just copied all he could from other people and claimed it as his own.  It quickly mushroomed as a proof of the Bible and that God was working through him.

The trouble with all of this was that hundreds of books had already been printed refuting British Israelism.  This caused Meredith, Hoeh, and others to have a knee jerk reaction and to double their efforts in legitimizing the half balked theory.

We have all see the result s of that theory in Armstrongism. It was and still is used to legitimize racism in the church and in society around them.  It is used to claim that God hates intermarriage and will separate all races from each other in the kingdom. I guess that scripture of there being neither Jew nor gentile, male or female does nto apply to this, but I digress.

Anyway, back to the present day and the National Geographic story. The COG splinter cult  The Knock is all hyper that the article PROVES beyond a shadow of doubt that:

Saxon Gold Treasure found in Central England – of Sythian Origin – Evidence of the Lost House of Israel!


Say what?  No where in the National Geographic article does it say any such thing!  Armstrongism once again is jumping to conclusions to make the story fit the mold they want it to.  Usually though, they are just deliberately lie knowing that the uneducated COG members are usually too lazy to do any in depth research into the story. Far too many COG members are willing to let others tell them what to believe.

So yet again, we see items from history being slipped into COG history as legitimate proof of HWA's claims.  It didn't work back then and still does not today.

Greed



When you weed through the useless babble from Prophet Malm on law keeping and new moons, you come across little interesting tidbits of information.  Today he added more fuel to the fire on a subject we have known all along. 

You would think a church that claims to have all restored knowledge that had been lost for over 1,900 years would be talking about that disruptive Jesus that upset religion and societal norms on it's head. 

That has never been the focus of Armstrongism,  Instead it has always revolved around one topic in particular.  It was talked about continually in all the years I was part of it.  Feast sites competed with each other for it.  Ministers pounded the pulpit about it.  Herbert used it a lot. 

It has always been about the money.

In approximately 1980 HWA said that the vast majority in the WCG were not converted and that he prayed thast at least one half would make it. When I queried an elder on this, he said that since the early 70s they had knowingly relaxed their baptism requirements and  baptized people because of their opinion of “Mr Armstrong” instead of their actual understanding of doctrine. If people were willing to accept their authority that was all that mattered. I asked him why? The reply was that they needed the support [numbers and tithes] and also hoped that somehow some good would come of it. This is not just a matter of Satan sowing tares; it is a matter of HELPING Satan to sow more and more tares in the organizations in exchange for MONEY until the majority are tares.

It is this prostituting of the organizations for money which resulted in talented tares rising to the top and taking over the WCG; transforming it into the Grace Communion International.  Then a few thousand left with Rod Meredith or Gerald Flurry and later others left to form UCG.  The vast majority stayed in WCG and apostatized: WHY?  Because they were never really converted to begin with!

The same thing has been repeated in these new groups!  They maintain their lax standards not realizing that the true Church of God is the faithful Ekklesia and not corporate organizations. Desiring numbers which translates into  MONETARY WEALTH, they lusted after those numbers and the wealth  that WCG had had in its hay day; bringing in many who were only superficial in their zeal for God, because they were very zealous for the organization and or its leaders.

Today the COG Groups are all about personal and organizational pride and wealth in numbers and funds.  They are about zeal for the organization, its numbers, money and leaders; instead of about zeal for our God and his law.

"Narcissistic Tyrant" Spits and Yells at COG Elder and Wife



Dr. Bob has a little blurb on his "News of those once affiliated with the Global Church of God" page about a minister from Dave Pack's cult who was berated for over two hours for calling out Pack on his claim of being a High Priest like Jesus.

Then like the old WCG, Pack disciplines the man and his wife and then threatens all kinds of legal action.

If these splinter cult leaders were truly doing God's Work then they would not need to worry about complainers, dissidents, blogs, web sites, etc.  But since they know they are morally bankrupt they have to resort to all kinds of scare tactics, threats and intimidation.


I appreciate you sending this News. I'm a former minister of the RCG who was disfellowshipped and fired in June for accusations about Zec 3 and being accused of calling David Pack's counsel of elders "filthy rags" - Joshua's filthy garments - and I also disagreed with his claim to be a High Priest an office held by Jesus Christ. My wife and I were harangued for two hours by this vain narcissistic tyrant who cares little for those of age and whether or not he destroys their lives, and I have evidence that he has done the same to many others...My wife also work at RCG headquarters as a volunteer for over 15 months without even a thank you.

I hold no animosity toward David Pack or any of his ministry, I came to see that the work he is doing is about vaunting himself as well as coning his members with clever sermons, into disposing their assets in favor of RCG so he can build an empire. He claims an apostleship which is false he claims to follow Mr. Armstrong, but simply took his literature embellished it with his own thoughts and ideas and palmed it off as truth. Mr. Pack is a clever man who knows his Bible well, he has used this wisdom, to do a work that on first appearance looks like the real thing, but over time one wakes up to the realization of what Paul warned about in II Cor11:13 that it is simply a work of the flesh he he will bear the consequences of his actions.

My hope for him is that God will show him exactly what he is, what he has done and what he is doing, so he to may have the opportunity of facing Christ in the not to distant future and enter into the kingdom of God. I can send you all the correspondence I have emails, back and forth, an agreement they wanted me to sign as well as a letter from RCG attorney to substantiate what I have told you, of course you understand once you post what I send, you will receive an email from Jeffery Ambrose denying, or justifying my disfellowship and firing from RCG...

Church Porn Publishing



Prophet Thiel is excited that the Catholic Church has been exposed as owning a book publishing company which had a side adventure in publishing porn.


COGwriter
The Vatican has a new scandal to deal with:
Germany’s biggest Catholic-owned publishing house has been rocked by disclosures that it has been selling thousands of pornographic novels…with the full assent of the country’s leading bishops.
The revelations made in the publishing-industry newsletter Buchreport concern Weltbild, a company with an annual NZ$3bn turnover and 6,400 employees. It is Germany’s largest bookseller after Amazon and wholly owned by the Catholic Church.
Buchreport revealed that Weltbild’s massive assortment of titles available to customers online includes some 2,500 “erotic” books…

How convenient for Prophet Thiel to forget to mention that his own mother Church, The Worldwide Church of God also  owned a publishing company (Everest House) that published books on sex, witchcraft, gay relationships, and Quest Magazine.  Quest was supposed to be HWA's gateway into governments around the world as a magazine devoted to the best in the human potential of humanity.  Stories with nudity, porn, witchcraft and all kinds of others things anathema to the WCG were included in the magazine.



Thiel goes on to write:

Harlots do things of a sexual nature for money and sadly this is what it looks like happened in Germany by officials of the Catholic Church (cf. Revelation 17:4-5).

I would be a little careful about calling the Catholic Church a harlot considering the track record of COG officials who were/are sleeping their way around the church, swapping wives, having gay orgies, taking drugs, were/are alcoholics and myriads of other things.  His own apostle was seen coming out of the Le Sexx Shoppe in old Pasadena at one time. So all the corruption of the Catholic church is no worse than the corruption in Armstrongism.

So if I were Prophet Thiel I would not be too quick to dump damnation on the Catholic Church because his own mother church (and current church) is no better.


COG's Have A Bad Attitude Problem: They Are Ignoring the End Time Prophet


COGers turning their backs on The Prophet

Prophet Malm has been on a roll since the Feast setting up his scenario on how an upcoming Arab/Israeli war which will draw in  the US and European nations that will utterly defeat the Hezbollah and the rest of the Muslim hoards.

He has also been spending a lot of time on the "New Moons" and various legalistic rules and regulations that COG members should be observing on those days.  Prophet Malm's directive for new moons can only be sighted first in the surrounding area of Jerusalem and at that immediate time it is applicable around the world for all COGers.. COG embers are then to have New Moon bible studies, wave palm and tree branches, blow horns and an odd assortment of other things that have no relevance for Christians.

But the Prophet has run into a cement wall and he is not happy.  He says he has taken his message to many of the COG leaders and they ignored him.

I stood up to try and present a warning and wake up call for the brethren in 2007, never intending to start any organization.  Rather I had hoped that at least some of these groups would be turned to a fuller relationship with God as groups.

It is clear that that is not going to happen; most of the leaders of these groups including most elders [not all] are very deeply entrenched in their traditions and are most comfortable in their ruts; they are also filled with pride and will not believe anything that does not originate from their own leadership.

I remember an instance way back in about 1983/84 when I had discussed a matter with an elder and he actually said: “I never looked at this in that way before, you are quite right; but if it was important it would have come from Mr. Armstrong.”  Of course that threw a wet blanket on any zeal for real study and thought;  I an happy to say that it did not discourage my studies although it did disillusion me as to the attitude of the elders.

That attitude is rampant today; there is so much arrogant pride that no one will take an honest interest in anything not originated by their group and leaders.  That will be their downfall and they will not heed any warning until they are forced to do so when their fears come upon them to humble them.

Those stupid, blinded ministers are ignoring his prophetic message!  He and he alone has the final word on how the end times is going to go down.

Because the ministers are ignoring him (as they should) he is attempting to take his message to the people of the COG's. Sadly he is failing miserably with them too:

Right now there are a few hundred folks spread around the world studying and receiving the truth with joy.

There are another thousand or more who are sitting on the fence to see how things turn out.  Quite frankly they are gun shy over all the false teachers and deceitful leaders in all of these groups including folks like Ron Weinland.  These people are following the advice of Gamaliel and taking a wait and see attitude; at the same time many of them have studied intensively through the sites.  They are just not ready to leave their friends etc for an unknown until they see the fruits clearly.

Maybe the reason they are not moving to join you is that they are sick of the constant divisions, backstabbing and lying that goes on  in the COG's. Maybe they are right to see what develops with the fruit of your ministry.  All we need is another Herbert Armstrong disastrous 1972 prophecy where people sell their homes, quit work, stop medical care, etc as they wait to be taken to Petra for 3 1/2 years of bliss.

But just like HWA, the Prophet gets around talking full responsibility for his words in the lives of others.  Herb always said, 'Don't believe me, believe your Bible."  The Prophet Malm has more than one little catch phrase though.  This is that he says in order to take blame from his shoulders in case some COGders are idiots and do something foolish. (we all know THAT would never happen......Ha.)

I do NOT want anyone to be able to say that I deceived them into anything.  It is very important that you be convinced in your own minds as to what you should do.

1)   I have been warning of this conflict in considerable detail since early 2007.

2)   I have presented  doctrine that is solidly based on God’s commandments.

3)   I have said that I am NOT trying to set up any corporate church; and that is the truth.  I have no intention of doing so.

4)   I believe that some will be under pressure to leave their groups early and may have to stand alone or with small groups of family and friends for a short time.

5)   In the near future each person will see the full fruits of these groups as well as myself and when the abomination is set up, it will be decision time.

6)   After the abomination is set up in Rome; God’s two prophets will be empowered and they will tell everyone what to do.  It will then be decision time.  Some will believe the warning having seen the fruits of this effort; while many will refuse the warning and will stay.  That will be the final dividing of the pillars from the Lax and Lukewarm.

So all of this is really a preparation for the potential setting up of the Abomination of Desolation right before the Feast of 2012.  The Prophet is hoping that some courageous minister/s will set up an independent Feast site.  Then the Prophet will step in and proclaim his message.

Remember when Spanky Meredith did such a thing? While he was being defended for a slander case by Leona McNair, he had his minions working behind the scenes to set up a new Church which he stepped into after WCG got stuck paying a huge settlement for Meredith's lying mouth.  But Meredith was a slick cookie in all of this.  By having them set this church corporation up he could then just slide in as if he had nothing to do with it, other than being asked by the members to take over.

I am sincerely hoping that some elders will take a stand and that they will be able to put on a Feast for God’s faithful who come out early.

I also understand that if this war and all these things happen; followed by the setting up of the abomination right before the Feast; that it will be a matter of intense conversation during the Feast and very many will be making up their minds at that time.  The two prophets should be set up after the Feast, if 2012 is to be the year. Many people will then be ready to recognize God’s true two prophets by their scriptural description and by their sound doctrine and fruits.
Then the Prophet gets to utter another favorite COG catch Phrase that is a loaded comment.  Because the Prophet has been doing a mighty work he pictures himself as a John the Baptist who is preparing the way for the Two Witnesses.  Once they come on to the scene the Prophet will step aside and relinquish all prophetic utterances.  So we get to hear once again about "Passing the Baton."  How many times has that damn thing been passed over the last 25 years?  We are hitting close to 600 some splinter cults now of Armstrongism.  All claiming to be the best resurrection of the mother church as possible.

The Prophet's mission boils down to this;

My mission to to wake as many up as possible, to turn as many as possible to a deep study of God’s word.  To turn as many as possible away from idolizing other men and organizations and stir up a zeal for truth and the removal of error.  My mission is to begin to restore what has been lost through the ages and to reveal new understandings based solidly on God’s word.

So once again we see that God is an impotent idiot that could not keep his Word alive for 1,900 years.  Somewhere along the line God lost it till Herbert found it, then it was lost again and now the Prophet Malm has found it.  Perhaps Malm's God needs to buy a Clapper Key Ring so he can find the lost gospel  the next time around.

Yet, the Apostle would be most grateful for someone to start a Feast site for him.  His message is so vitally important that he needs to get the word out the the lost COGgers. SO get busy folks!  Get your feast research gears running and fine a location that will hold several thousand so that the world's final Elijah, John the Baptist, can come and spread his message of hyper-legalistc law keeping to the lost.

I know what my mission is, and it is not to create a corporate church organization.  It is to call out to ALL such groups and to ALL God’s people and to prepare them for the crisis at the close of the age.

I want everyone to understand that if I get involved in setting up Feast sites or organizing groups; it will be a distraction from my work.

The absolute decision time will be after the full fruits of my effort and the various groups become clear and the abomination is set up.

In the meantime if some come out or are forced out of their groups early; I advise them to spend serious time in prayer and study rather than jumping from one organization to another.

If there are those who want to organize a Feast site and run it themselves, I would be most happy to hear from them.



Sunday, November 6, 2011

Dennis On: How Truth Wins Out






All truth passes through three stages.
First, it is ridiculed.
Second, it is violently opposed.
Third, it is accepted as being self-evident.
Arthur Schopenhauer, German philosopher (1788 – 1860)
"A new scientific truth does not triumph by convincing its opponents 
and making them see the light, 
but rather because its opponents eventually die"
Max Planck


Dennis Diehl - EzineArticles Expert AuthorThe differences between being a believer, a religious person, a Bible reader etc and a spiritual person are numerous.


Religion tends to be what others pour into one's head from the outside outlining how that person should be, behave, support and show up an external organization or like minded group of people.  Religion requires membership and compliance to the thoughts and teachings of others.  A religion tends to tell you where to be on various days, which days are more important than other days, how much of your resources to give and to whom.  You show support by belonging.  In the COGs  you kept the Sabbath on Saturday, you ate or didn't eat certain things because an outside source said so.  This source may be a book that is claimed to be handwritten and inspired perfectly by a Deity, or the leadership who has had this source poured into them to pass on to the membership. 


When you are having a religious experience, you find yourself sitting a lot and listening to others who know.  How many hours did I sit and just listen to others tell me how it all is, as if they know. How many words did I speak trying to convince and inspire as if I knew!


The dog is the animal of religion.  It gets trained to sit when told to sit, to roll over when needed, to come and go when instructed to and to speak only when asked to speak.  A dog can be your best friend or your worst enemy depending on how you treat it.  It can be beaten into submission and had such fear put into it, that it can barely function on its own without permission.  It obeys out of fear or reward.  A kindly tone of voice will melt the dog's will and it will sit anxiously at your feet awaiting the tiniest bit of your attention.  The smallest of treats will get huge results from the dog. Dog's are religious and follow as instructed and trained to.


Spirituality, on the other hand is an inside job.  Religious organizations or individuals can rarely abide a spiritual person.  They don't go along for the ride unless they choose to.  They give out of a genuine belief and desire to do so.  They easily withhold their material and personal support when they personally feel it is neither appreciated nor properly used in support of the spiritual hope that lies in their soul. 


Those who experience the "from the inside out" spirituality don't give in to religious intimidation for non-compliance.  You can't disfellowship them, because they will leave at the drop of the religious hat.  Hell does not concern them and their concept of a Deity is not so much the angry God, but the benevolent one that includes all people.  There are no "chosen people" or "called out people" or "one true people," to the Spiritual person.  They understand that life is a journey and that we are all on the path, just not all on the same part of the path. 


They don't hold anyone as better than anyone else.  They don't hold the opinions of the religious as any better as those who claim to know than their own beliefs and opinions about such matters.  A spiritual person is very good at saying,  "I'll take that under advisement."  


A spiritual person allows for the fact that everyone filters their world differently and that is totally allowed.  A spiritual person knows the folly and impossibility of  "all speaking the same thing," or all "being of one compliant mind."  Spirituality is journey and not some destination that is "just around the corner," "coming soon," "no more than 3-5," or "truly brethren, time is short."  


Spirituality is a practice in the moment.  It does not abide in the unchangeable past or the unknowable future. 


"Of every teacher I have ever had, they have all been cats."


It's almost difficult to believe that the Apostle Paul actually wrote the following...but it does reflect an awakening of sorts and an understanding between mere religious beliefs and a true spirituality inside the person.




1 Corinthians 13


 1 If I speak in the tongues[a] of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. 3 If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast,[b] but do not have love, I gain nothing. 
 
 4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 
 
 8 Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. 9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part, 10 but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears. 11 When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me. 12 For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. 
 
 13 And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. 
...after all his cursing of those that opposed him, bragging about how amazing he was, having us all believe he'd been to the third heaven but could not reveal the contents of the trip to anyone ever, went back forth between being the best pencil in the whole box to being the least worthy one, knowing time was short so give everything up and generally making an obnoxious ass out of himself in claiming to know it all.  

But if he did, I'd say for this brief moment in time, he had crossed over from being religious to having a spiritual experience.  

Suddenly, being a glib and polished speaker was meaningless to him.  Believing he just knew when his Jesus was returning, for sure in his lifetime seems to have been given up and discarded.  Being at odds with everyone had gotten old and perhaps we are all one after all had replaced the specialness he attributed to own birth and calling.   In short, whoever wrote, and it is a possible insert, understood the difference between true spirituality and mere religious belief.


I have always been taken back if not just amazed at the kind of mind it must take and be to sit in the average WCG splinter or sliver still allowing the one true man to tell them how it all is.  What kind of a mind "sends it all in," when told to or cuts themselves off from family because they are told to by both a book and a book reader?  Who still sits and listens to how the future will for sure unfold for them if they just abide in the religious mindset of the organization, without realizing that it has never worked out for anyone before them who said the same.  What kind of man thinks his remaining alive is a sure bet because he is so special and so badly needed by the group?  It has never been that way in the past, so  how now?

That is all religious talk and contains precious little personal spirituality, which would recoil from it in the first place.

You can't herd cats, they are too spiritual, but you can train a dog to roll over, fetch and speak out of the need for reward or the threat of some fearful punishment.  

How will the world of mere religion and Bible readers ever change from being chosen to just being part of the journey along with everyone else?


"All truth passes through three stages. 
First, it is ridiculed. 
Second, it is violently opposed. 
Third, it is accepted as being self-evident."
Arthur Schopenhauer, German philosopher (1788 – 1860)
"A new scientific truth does not triumph by convincing its opponents 
and making them see the light, 
but rather because its opponents eventually die"
Max Planck


Dennis C. Diehl
DenniscDiehl@aol.com