Since Dave Pack started building his most superfantabulous Church of God ever, he constantly talks about how united his members and leadership are. The problem is, like the rest of the Churches of God, Pack is loosing ministers and members every time he opens his mouth.
You know things are bad in Wadsworth when Pack has to fire his own daughter! Now he has alienated not only his boys, but now his daughter!
I just heard from a RCG source that Dave fired his number two man Kevin Denee and his own daughter that's married to Kevin. (It's also being said that they both resigned, so waiting for verification)Kevin was the Director of Operations at Dave Pack's superfantabulous compound in Wadsworth, located between the Giant Eagle and the smog belching freeway.
In March of 2012, Dave Pack promoted Denee to be Dave's right hand man as the Executive Director of the RCG. He was Dave's hand picked leader "born for the job" and "absolutely trained to carry out these duties." That train has obviously crashed and burned! Dave failed to see this coming!
You have or soon will hear more about the following in a sermon to be played in all congregations on March 10. There has been a fairly significant restructuring in the Work at Headquarters. In order to free up my time to carry out my commission further (from the same need for day-to-day, hands-on administrative involvement), Mr. Kevin Denee will now serve under me as the Executive Director ofOperations of the Church and its Work. Mr. William Behrer will remain in the Executive Office and assist him in addition to continuing with 11 departments (for now) still under him. (He recently had 20 departments, we took away 11, but added two more back for now.) Because Mr. James Turck will be returning to Headquarters on April 1 to assist with the ever-increasing Church Administration workload, Mr. Denee will be able to continue as Director of Church Administration without having to spend the same amount of time. Every member of the Advisory Council of Elders agreed that this was the best way to structure Headquarters moving forward, and it will give me more time to fulfill my commission. With no exceptions, they all felt that Mr. Denee was "born to the job." He has been in the office for over nine years, and is absolutely trained and able to carry out these duties. A number of other appointments have been made, with others to occur over the months to come. All of this is in preparation for the Work being able to greatly expand as I will describe momentarily. RCG Member/Co-worker letterKevin Denee's fame has extended far beyond the hyperbole of the RCG. He became the laughing stock of the internet when he said that RCG youth and members should not do blogging.
Here's a truly moronic article from the Restored Church of God Ambassador Youth site. The author, Kevin D. Denee, seems to think it's OK for him to use the Web to express his opinion, but other people -- both children and adults -- should not. Nearly every sentence in this schoolmarmish screed is funny. Restored Church of God says blogging is wrong (excluding their own blog, natch)Kevin wrote:
Let me emphasize that no one — including adults — should have a blog or personal website....
The Internet—and more specifically blogs—has enabled everyone to have a voice on any matter. Now everyone’s thoughts are “published” for all to see. Whether or not it is effective, as soon as something is posted the person has a larger voice. It often makes the blogger feel good or makes him feel as if his opinion counts—when it is mostly mindless blather!
Blogs can be summed up as people talking about almost anything, but really nothing. There is no purpose to much of the contents — no direction. [...] The contents of blogs can often best be described as trash and the expression of shallowness. What is deemed as a higher level of communication is simply a mindless form of entertainment.This is what he said youth and members should be doing instead of blogging:
...
Some questions naturally arise: “Can I have a photo gallery?” For example, maybe you visited an exotic country and want to share your photos with close friends. This can be done, but certain guidelines apply. Of course, there should never be any inappropriate pictures (again, be careful of the appearance of evil); it should be private and password protected, and only shown to family and closest friends. Tis
Take extra care if messaging or “chatting” on the Sabbath. It should be done in moderation, as this is a time to draw close to God. Do not drift into worldly topics. Be aware of a conversation’s direction, and steer it back into Sabbath-appropriate subjects if necessary. You could discuss last week’s sermon, upcoming Holy Days, changes in world events, announcements about growth in the Church, etc. Challenge yourself! During the week, be mindful of things you may want to discuss with your friends (online or at services). Then when the Sabbath arrives you will have a long list of items to discuss. A great underlying principle of appropriate IM subjects is this: “Would I feel comfortable discussing this subject with my parents? What about with God?”
A previous article on this blog about Denee is here:
Dave Pack in land battle at new cult headquarters
Then there are these blog sites that mock him for his blogging comments:
An Open Letter to the Teens in the Restored Church of God
Blogging and Religion
God Hates Blogs, Journals, Spaces and Some Photo Sharing
He married the bosses daughter to get ahead, but to no avail. This is what happens when you try to succeed by using your dikc.
ReplyDeleteKevin Denee did not marry Jennifer Pack simply to maneuver for positions within the Restored Church of God. He married her because he truly loves her. His family already owned a successful business in Canada. Whatever happened between David C. Pack and Kevin and Jennifer Denee is sad. Anytime a family is separated for any reason; we should be disheartened.
DeleteAgreed
DeleteAgreed
DeleteIt looks like I'll need to make more pilgrimages to beautiful Wadsworth, Ohio!!!
ReplyDeleteRonco
Dave put Kevin in a real bad position. He was far too young and inexperienced for that job-----but nobody of experience could work with Dave. And there are many reasons for that!!
ReplyDelete
ReplyDeleteCORRECTED TEXT:
“Every member of the Advisory Council of [Bobble Heads] agreed that this was the best way to structure Headquarters moving forward, and it will give me more time to fulfill my commission. With no exceptions [other than those who did not Bobble their Heads, and had to be fired], they all felt that Mr. Denee was 'born to the job.'"
In the RCG, does “born to the job” mean predestined to be doomed to disaster?
In earlier parts of my career, I worked for small companies, family businesses. In several cases, fathers and sons did not get along, and the sons either quit or were fired. However, in one noteworthy case, the father took the attitude that "I can't fire you, because you are family". He worked with and counselled his sons, his daughters, and his sons in law. Regardless of the circumstances, they were always able to work things out. This really gave me some very needed refreshing new perspective as compared with my lifelong experiences in the WCG, where everything had been done on a "my way or the highway" basis. Further, this powerful Christlike example was provided for my benefit by followers of what WCG had mislabeled as "the whore of Babylon"!
ReplyDeleteToxic cults run the gambit in terms of the ways in which family is treated. In some cases, family members are given exemption, and allowed to indulge in behavior that is forbidden to typical members by doctrine. In other cases, they are expected to be clones, or quickly become personna non grata. Kevin Denee's written communications indicate that he drank the Kool Aid, and had allowed himself to become a clone and parrot of Dave Pack. He had obviously placed himself in the mode of operating in Dave's valence. Perhaps he began thinking for himself at some point, and grew a pair. Who knows. One hopes he and his wife will be better off independent of Dictatorial Dave. Unfortunately, it often requires years to undo the soul warping damage of an ACOG experience. I doubt that they will ever again be able to have a normal family relationship with Dave. That is just the way family matters go in Armstrongism. Family is always secondary to church, authority, and dogma.
BB
They weren't fired. They both resigned.
ReplyDeleteThe old 'you can't fire me, I quit'!
DeleteLike BB said, it's the 'my way or the highway' in the churches. By contrast, in all my workplaces, as a Christian, I continually have to religiously chose my words, and frequently have to 'turn the other cheek' i.e., tolerate crap from others, or risk losing my job. The ministers live in a ivory tower-Disneyland, yet give sermons and counsel, on how to live ones life. What a joke.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if he will start his own church? Most of David Pack's ex-ministers do, or leave the COG all together. After all once you've been with most super-duper COG on Earth....where can you go?
ReplyDeleteIt is hard to believe that this is even true. (What/who is the source of this?) And if it is, it will be a huge blow to RCG. Especially since he (Kevin) was being groomed as one of the "two witnesses", along with Jeff Ambrose. I do know that Kevin usually tried to do the right thing, but of course, under Pack's heavy hand, you must tow the line. You are not allowed to dissent in any case, and must always be a "yes man", or face serious scrutiny (firing). Or at the least, public, (church wide) humiliation from the pulpit.
ReplyDeleteWith Pack changing major doctrine and now claiming to be "Elijah, Joshua, that Prophet, etc.", will more follow. He "Pack" even claims that when the third temple is soon built by carpenter angels; (or to be brought down from Heaven as he claimed in one message) that he(Pack) will be the only one allowed in the "Holy of Holies." His reasoning; "Christ needs someone who will obey Him". Apparently, Dave is the only one on earth now obeying Christ!
Who will build Dave Pack's new house on HQ? Kevin was always in charge of the building projects. Dave is selling his home because the new bank loan and "common" has allowed him the funds to move him and the top ministers to HQ. (ie. I mean to do the "work", since heads of state will visit Pack in his home, he always claimed that he had to show forth a "certain image" to these men.) Kevin was slated to be one of them getting a new home on campus.
ReplyDeleteThe "common" doctrine seems to work great for doing the "work". Have you not heard the Ezekiel warning, and have a subscription to the Real Truth, and seen the latest broadcast on national TV, and been talking about the "Son of man" with your co-workers, and seen the buzz on the internet about RCG? Oh wait, never heard of them, I guess we need to build a huge campus, houses, baseball field, pavilion, etc. before the great work can be done.
"Common to Whom?"
NO ONE works long with or for Dave. That is his history. He also works FOR NO ONE long. That also is his history.
ReplyDeleteSING ALONG TIME!---
ReplyDeleteSing to the tune HOTEL CALIFORNIA, by the Eagles...
Welcome to the Hotel Wadsworth
Such a lovely place (Such a lovely place)
Such a lovely face
They're livin' it up at the Hotel Wadsworth
What a nice surprise (what a nice surprise)
Bring your alibis
Egos on the ceiling,
The pink champagne on ice
And the members said "We are all just prisoners here,... of our own device"
And in Pack master's chambers,
They gathered for the feast
Kevin thought marry a Pack daughter for a wife
But he just couldn't kill the beast
Welcome to the Hotel Wadsworth
Such a lovely place (Such a lovely place)
You can check-out any time you like,
But you can never leave! "
This anti Internet, anti blogging is widespread amongst the churches of God groups. It is usually the older, out of touch power elite who HATE the freedom social networking sites offer brethren.
ReplyDeleteIt is crazily out of touch, and outrageously hypocritical. And no one takes any notice of them, which is a sign of the times.
I'm reading (I kid you not) 'The wise lesbian guide to getting free from crazy-making relationships' by Amber Ault. It's perfectly applicable to these churches. I recommend the book. And no, I'm not one of those. In fact I'm a guy. Wisdom is where ever you find it.
ReplyDeleteI mentioned several small businsses above. The employer who knew how to work with and to mentor to his children did not have to go through an embarrassment that the other two fathers were constantly facing. And, that is the problem of explaining to the customers why their sons were no longer involved in the business. The customers, in both cases, liked the sons. No matter the explanation, somebody was going to come out as the bad guy, the heavy. It made people ask questions that a business owner would not want to be asked.
ReplyDeleteIn Dave's case, his members have watched a number of other key departures. Now he is seen as being someone that his own daughter and son in law could not work with, and whom he considered to be completely expendible. And, if Dave was indeed grooming Kevin to be one of the two witnesses, apparently even the two witnesses are considered expendible to Dave! That should tell his members all they need to know. As Eric Clapton sang in the old blues song "Keys to the Highway", "I'm gonna leave here runnin'. Walkin's much to slow!"
BB
I skimmed the 2012 RCG Member/Co-worker letter and wondered: "What did all of that praying, paying and fasting really do" those contributors? Was God paying attention?
ReplyDeleteAnswer: where is David Pack with his man-made organization today? I think it was fruitless. Well, where's the fruit, good fruit, which can't come from an evil tree?
For example, Dave Pack wrote: "...Mr. Denee will be able to continue as Director of Church Administration without having to spend the same amount of time. Every member of the Advisory Council of Elders agreed that this was the best way to structure Headquarters moving forward, and it will give me more time to fulfill my commission..."
What commission was that? It sounds like another hireling fled Pasadena and left his ministerial credentials behind......only to SELF-credential himSELF so he could do his own thing, and do it better than HWA did. Where is the fruit of that fulfilled commission?????????????
Dave Pack continued to write: "...it is evident that the whole Church seems to be realizing the ongoing imperative to continually dedicate ourselves to local fundraising in order for a "little flock" (Luke 12:32) with "little strength" (Rev. 3:8), as Jesus described His Church, to complete a BIG FINAL WORK! The goal that has been set reflects a high, but reachable, "bar" for the year 2012. We are just a little behind, but it is still in the winter months and we should be able to catch up in the summer months. Thank you for all that has been done thus far..."
Fruit? Where is it? Did Dave Pack "catch up" in the summer months of 2012? How does that compare to June 2016? Everything all paid off yet? What was the budget like? Did Dave Pack, like so many other xcog "former hireling" leaders set up their own budget and then strive to tell God that He had to fulfill their budgets and their goals...almost like God did not exist and they had to do God's work for Him. Fruit today?
John
Con’t
ReplyDeleteOh, and that member "...ongoing imperative to continually dedicate..." themselves to "local fundraising?????????" Where's the fruit of that.
I was "privileged" to attend the 1995 Indianapolis Conference that formed another man-made ASS. called United Association (actually ucgaia). And do you, Dave Pack, know what the re-credential hirelings did when it was mentioned that when all of the independent local congregations (associations) were established there would be no more local fundraisers?
Want to take a guess? They laughed their heads off. Where was United Ass. fruit on that? Independent congregations over time disappeared as their HQ was formed and pressure was on to suck them on in under the one umbrella of HQ...very similar to the former WCG they had fled from. Well, I guess that was some of their fruit...the laughter, but it was short-lived as fund-raisers for some came back into vogue. I could tell many were sick of them fund-raising fruit sales, even though it provided HQ with more monies to properly use or misappropriate or just plain dedicate to themSELVES.
Fruit?
We know we don't wrestle flesh and blood. We know that the principalities are a huge problem in all of these organizations......and they're all blind as to how that all happens. Regardless, it appears that Jesus' words for all of these fleeing/fled/flown...whatever hirelings might be something as follows:
"O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh."
Was Jesus Christ just being arrogant? Was that some type of guile coming out of His mouth? Or, did He know what was IN man?
"And needed not that any should testify of man: for he knew what was in man." John 2:25
Anything new under the sun? Where is the good fruit? Do you just money grows on trees? Don't think about the trees? Just think about the mammon?????
Time will tell...as fleeing hirelings continue to prove Jesus Christ's words:
"The hireling fleeth, because he is an hireling, and careth not for the sheep." John 10:13
John
What will people in RCG do when they find out that Dave is just a carnal "snake oil salesman" duping them out of their life savings with "common", and leaving them mentally destroyed? I do feel for them, because I was there myself, and still care for many there. However, even God expects us to think for ourselves. Remember the Bereans, they were more noble than the rest. They questioned the apostles doctrine to "see if it was so."
ReplyDeleteWhy would God warn of false apostles if there would be none? Even Paul said that they would rise from within. Not the world, but from within the Church. Dave Pack is focused on building an empire for/ to himself. He cares about image more than anything, and what others think of him! He once bragged about how those in Lima, his hometown, were talking about him. What about the great "work" and the spreading of the gospel? He gave a tour of the new campus to one of his ex-girlfriends shortly after completing the Hall of Administration. I wonder if he mentioned the gospel to her as he was bragging about all of his accomplishments?
RCG= religious communism.
ReplyDeleteGreat job Connie; good sense of humor:
ReplyDelete"Welcome to the Hotel Wadsworth
Such a lovely place (Such a lovely place)
You can check-out any time you like,
But you can never leave! "
Unfortunately, it is true!
Pack has been this way for a LONG TIME!
ReplyDeleteCheck out this entry from way back in 1985 from the original Ambassador Report...
"For a number of years now, no WCG minister's name has appeared more often in letters written to the Report complaining of ministerial abuse.
Pack, a burly 6-foot, 5-inch Ambassador College graduate known locally for his authoritarian style, has so incensed some in his flock that a group have circulated an open letter detailing his abuses and have called for his removal. The letter describes Pack's ministerial leadership as a "Reign of Terror." On the cover page, addressed to WCG headquarters leaders, they wrote: "David's power-crazed quest to totally dominate the mind, body, and spirit of church members has not been done in a corner and has been done clearly in view of all to see at headquarters in Pasadena."
On the following 13 pages of their letter the allegations about Pack read like a horror story. The authors contend that Pack constantly intimidates members, uses threats and mind-control methods, is given to extreme emotional outbursts, is highly political, believes in winning at all cost, has disfellowshipped members for trivial faults, prescribes diets while "playing M.D.," insists on being addressed as Mr. Pack, enjoys wearing skimpy, skin-tight shorts to sporting events, has actually worn a wolf costume to church socials, enjoys putting down women, and told one married woman with children, "It would be better for you to shack up one night with a man than wear makeup."
The letter quotes Pack as having said, "Everyone who has challenged me has either died, been seriously injured or has been eliminated from the work." And, "God backs me even if I am wrong." "
I googled COG and this is what I found: http://www.cog.org
ReplyDeleteAll people need to do is stop sending him their money. He'll check up on them, sure, and probably kick some out. But that would be to their benefit, which would leave him no way to finance his absurd reign of terror and abuse -- which, come to think of it, would also be to their benefit.
ReplyDelete8.13AM yes, RCG = communism, except some members are more equal than others, and Pack is the most equal of all.
ReplyDeleteNothing has changed since I opted out back in '75 except world conditions and technological advances that make the religious shell game Herb started ever more hard to carry on. What exists today in all these splinters is a puny shadow to what Ambassador College and WCG once was, yet they all delude themselves and talk about what a great work they are doing. The smoke and mirrors get less and less impressive with the passage of time. Allen C. Dexter
ReplyDeleteWelcome to beautiful downtown Dickwad Ohio, home of the repressive cult the RCG shepherded by the self important all knowing minister Dub Puck (whose last name means hockey in ancient Hebrew).
ReplyDeleteJoin us for mind numbing sermons and fellowship laced with back biting, gossip and fear!
All donations greedily accepted. :)
this article is very inaccurate. might want to do a few more inquiries.
ReplyDeleteDoes anyone know why they left/ got fired? This could shed light on what is happening in RCG!
ReplyDeletePack's daughter Jennifer was the bookkeeper for the church and knows all of the financial issues of the church. Pack has now alienated his entire family.
ReplyDelete