Lot's of Barley, But Still No Jesus

There have always been fringe groups in Armstrongism that take things to the extreme.  Whether it be intense law keeping or pretending to be Jews. As more and more COG's seem to be watering down Sabbath keeping (as they should) these fringe groups intrench themselves deeper into legalistic mumbo-jumbo that has no relevance.

With the ongoing dissolution of Armstrongism over the last several decades these fringe groups seek to be more Jewish than most Jews are. Apostle Malm is one of those people and has gathered a small group of equally legalistic devotees that pay the law more diligence than they do Jesus Christ.

Apostle Malm bases many of his beliefs around a small group of COG members in Israel who spend countless hours traveling all around Israel seeking to be the first to see the new moon or to find a miniscule piece of barley that is growing in a field. Thousands of miles are driven. Numerous trails are climbed up hills and mountains to be the first to declare that the new moon festival can be started.

One of these small fringe groups has a web site up where they log their travels around Israel looking for barley grain and new moon sightings.  You can read countless entries in their blog/site with no mention of Jesus anywhere.  Legalistic mumbo-jumbo - yes, Jesus - no.

Like any good Armstrongite they apparently know all there is to know about doing this.  Even the real Jews don't know as much as these people.

Today we visited all the areas around the Old City and the Mount of Olives. We expected to find the barley in the flowering stage, and we were not disappointed. Of course, the barley and oats that were growing adjacent to the walls and very stony surfaces had prematurely died. Often, you can see plants in such areas that have just barely cleared the boot with the head and then the plant dies. Remember, color alone does not determine aviv. Unfortunately, many folks who live in this day and age do not have an awareness of such things and can be misinformed. This is why we have endeavored in the past reports over the years to elaborate on such things. They are all there on the website for anyone who has an interest to view them.

All the biblical aspects of the start of the year have been present during our inspections. The least prepared was the barley itself. However, by Wavesheaf Day, there will be abundant fields ready to harvest by biblical standards. That is one of the most important reasons why, as inspectors, we need to understand the growth and maturing process with its timing for barley. It is not a whimsical thing, but a clearly defined science. In the upcoming summary to this year’s inspections, we are going to put together a very detailed report on the entire process.

We put on 350 km and enjoyed the drive through this beautiful agricultural treasure in Israel. We travel to the same locations to inspect the volunteer barley year after year. It has taken many years of relentless driving to find these locations.

All this time wasted looking for gran and no time used to even examine the smallest aspect of what Jesus was trying to get across.  Apparently law and legalism trumps and continues to reign supreme in Armstrongism.

You can read of thier exploits here:  Abib Report 2012