From an LCG source (Meredith letter at the end)
Rod Meredith truly lets his arrogance, superiority complex and ego shine in this memo.
It is of note that many of the people RCM mentions in this letter like Tom Baca, Lara Prejean and the Bryce family no longer work for or even attend LCG.
Although RCM tries to downplay David's job (and it did start out as he describes), new, more important/ higher paying "jobs" with titles were quickly invented for David . Ultimately he ended up with a cushy corner office with a $5000 couch on which he could take his afternoon naps. His office was much nicer than many other HQ's employees who were also serving as full time ministers (and not without causing contention amongst those ministers). David was no where near qualified for the positions he held. Yet his opinion on IT issues and other things was always taken over the opinions of employees that actually knew what they were talking about, creating even more contempt and disharmony as a direct result of David's employment. This ultimately led LCG's Director of IT, Charles Ogwyn, to "resign".
The two ministers (Charles Ogwyn and Davy Crockett) that had the nerve to complain about David's poor work quality were, in true Rod Meredith form, were both gone not long thereafter. You can't complain about the bosses kid and remain unscathed. Especially in a corrupt organization like LCG!
It was common knowledge that RCM only wanted baptized members working at LCG headquarters in an effort to prevent many of the problems he saw in Worldwide as a result of "unconverted" people being given jobs. That is, except in David's case. He wasn't/isn't baptized and has never remotely tried to act like he was converted or making any effort to leave his "worldly ways" behind. He drinks excessively, curses without shame, talks about porn, smokes pot and has a history of cheating on his wife (whom he impregnated before marriage on the couch at a drunken young adult Feast party in a room full of people).
When David came to Charlotte in 2009 to live with his dad and mooch off LCG, it was because his wife kicked him out for drinking, drugs, porn addiction and adultery and he had nowhere else to go. So daddy gave him a place to live and work instead of making him face the consequences that might have actually inspired change in his behavior.
Getting kicked out was nothing new to David though. Gerald Weston once kicked him out of church (in Kansas City) for the same type of behavior (although the subsequent fury of Mr. & Mrs. Meredith - that someone would DARE kick their precious baby out of church - later forced Weston swallow his pride , recant and apologize like a good puppet).
Let's not fail to notice the not-so-veiled threat in RCM's last paragraph, "My thoughts and prayers are with you - as I do not want to lose any of you..." In other words, if you dare to voice disagreement with a decision made by RCM, you are going to get yourself fired. Disagreeing with RCM is like disagreeing with Jesus Christ Himself after all!
I especially like how RCM attempts to define and then negate the rampant nepotism in LCG. All of his children and at least one of his grandchildren have been or are currently on the LCG payroll. Lil Jimmy Meredith makes more money than anyone in LCG except his own greedy daddy WHILE expensing luxury vacations in the name of "looking for Feast sites" (he just loves to serve). His daughters married men who RCM promoted into the full time ministry and then gave them territories like the Caribbean (hey, somebody's got to do it ).
Ego and self will. Abuse of power and delusions of grandeur. Seldom is such a total and complete display of poor character available for all of us to enjoy
-------------------------
EXECUTIVE MEMO
FROM THE OFFICE
OF
TO: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
SUBJECT: DAVID MEREDITH HIRE
To
all directly concerned:
Knowing
that many of you have already heard about this situation I am addressing, I am
sending this to a number of you so we all can be “on the same page.” I pray
that you will see this with an open mind and heart – as it comes from the Presiding Evangelist of God’s Church
and the one whom Christ used to raise up the Church and therefore make possible
your job in the first place.
I
received a personal memo just as I was leaving the office late Friday
afternoon. The writer acknowledged that he knew that I had “given the order
that David Meredith is to be hired.” So he knew that the Presiding Evangelist had already decided on a policy and a decision was made. The
memo concerned my decision to hire my son David into a very basic, low-level
job in the Media Department. I had previously
talked with Mr. Tom Baca, Lara Prejean and others in the department regarding a
genuine need I had heard about for a
few weeks in an area that was needed in a number of areas there. One job
involving a somewhat “grubby” job of cleaning old tapes so they can be reused
and another which Mr. Baca himself proposed was helping him catch up on a
number of filings and office type work that required no special skills. Mr.
Baca sent Mr. Ames a note on this and – at the time - Mr. Ames and I approved
the hiring of David Meredith who is in a real “tough spot” in his life and in
desperate need of a job to even be able to keep himself, his wife and his
little three-year-old daughter together. I felt at the time that this was an act of compassion and
was going to help us fill a need that would have to eventually be taken of
anyway.
Then- all of a sudden- the “static” began! Comments were made
regarding “nepotism,” a
“Public Relations disaster,” and the brethren possibly being upset if
they find we are helping our own children, etc. I am going to take time to
address, in general, these accusations and unkind comments so all of you can
understand the way God has always had His people act, and the way the Work of
God did act under His Apostle, Herbert W. Armstrong.
In ancient times, as you all know, God did work through families, we are told about the
“fathers” – Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. We find as an intrinsic principle in the statutes of God – statutes which we are
preparing to teach, indecently, that ownership of the land was to be carried
down through the sons and daughters of the owner. The older sons were expected
to help carry on the family business, farm or enterprise. All over the earth – as most of you know
– this has been a custom for centuries. But now, with the break down of the
family and the rise of the “corporate structure” type of approach this is often
being denigrated- partly,
of course, because a number of executives have grossly abused this.
Nevertheless the basic principle of God
working through families is well established in scripture without me going
through a whole lecture on this.
In the Worldwide Church of God – under the direct control of God’s
Apostle, Herbert W. Armstrong – it was common practice that we would hire our young
people coming along in the college and often through our families to give them
an opportunity to function, carry on responsibility and hoping that most of
them would finally become converted and part of the Church and the Work
fulltime. All of Mr. Armstrong’s four children were on the family payroll at one
time or another plus his sons-in-law – and later, some of his grandchildren. These
grandsons were not converted at the
time but were given an opportunity.
No one, so far as I know of,
objected to this because of the deep respect they had for the fact that God had
used Mr. Armstrong to raise up the Work and that they were – in a sense – an
extension of the Armstrong family and we knew it was a help to him and an honor
to him to help work in his children and grandchildren and give them these opportunities – along with
hundreds of young people in college, graduates of the college, and others who
had come in to work on the grounds, in Imperial School, in publishing in
television, etc. During those years, a very few disgruntled brethren might have
talked about “nepotism.” And certainly, some of Mr. Armstrong’s children and grandchildren were very carnal as many realized. Yet
some of them did work hard and accomplish for the Work in spite of their lack
of conversion.
Incidentally, “nepotism” is a term derived from a Latin word
“nepos” usually referring to a nephew receiving favoritism by Medieval prelates
who often appointed some of their children or even nephews to be bishops in the Catholic Church even
before they were out of their teen years! The dictionary relates that this term
is used “especially” to appointment to desirable
positions. As I am sure you can gather, I have no interest in appointing my
son David or anyone else to a “desirable” position in opposition to the
principles in God’s Word. His job in the Media building will be perhaps the
lowliest position over there and he will be starting at a very base salary –
far below what most of you are making! So to anyone who properly understands the English
language, the “charge of nepotism” is indeed showing a lack of understanding
about the work itself – plus
a disrespect to the Presiding Evangelist of God’s Church.
As two or three who have
heard about all of this have told me, “There will be no public relations
disaster unless some of these people
who try to criticize try to bring it about!”
Obviously, such a move as that
which would undermine the respect for the office Christ has set me in and would
be causing division in God’s Church and Work – and mentally and emotionally upsetting to
others who were given a negative and completely wrong “spin” on what is
actually being planned. Contrary to
what some have indicated, most of our
loyal members would be happy to see that some of our children are being used in
the Work and that our sons and daughters are indeed being allowed to “fit in”
and help carry on the Work of God as long as it is done in a reasonable manner
and without high salaries, high titles, etc. being involved. Again, the vast
majority of the field ministry will
feel the same way – as we hope that many
of their own sons and daughters may be “part of the Work” as time goes on.
Certainly Jonathan McNair, Rod McNair, Charles Ogwyn and Scott Winnail are all
fine examples of young men in their 30’s and 40’s who have matured and are now
being used in a very fine way – among other relatives of God’s people whom we
have hired through the years.
When the time came, we hired Angie Pyle, Deborah Lyons and others
of our children when they were able to “fit in” and have an opportunity for a
part-time or fulltime job – which we often modified to fit their schedule of
classes, and etc. as you know. When Mr. Charles Bryce came here as Director of the Ministry, I
certainly tried to help him – because of his grave responsibilities and the
service he was then rendering – by allowing the Work to hire his daughter and
his son, Scott, who had a mental handicap and – as Mr. Bryce explained to me
himself – had a situation where he would some times “forget where he was” or
what he should be doing and simply drive around in circles, etc. Yet he was not
a danger, had a good attitude and could accomplish certain things under direct guidance from others.
So, because we honored Mr. Bryce, we all pitched in to help Scott, encourage
him and hope that his family situation could be strengthened by this action –
thus helping Mr. Bryce to concentrate on his job and helping the thousands of
brethren around the world – which Dr. Winnail is now doing so well.
The charge has been brought that there has been a “hiring freeze”
at this time. In actual fact, it has been a very limited hiring freeze – since the decision to have such a freeze
was made in early May and we hired Laura Denny on June 1st and Susan
Corbett on June 22nd and have been in the process of hiring one or
two ministers or elders in the field ministry beside. Therefore, since my son
is being brought in at the very lowest
level, it is certainly not going to “hurt the Work” and is not inconsistent
with what we are already doing.
Brethren, I have put David on notice that he is on “probation” in
the first 90 days with his work for the church – as are all of our employees. I
will be checking regularly with Tom Baca and others in the Media Department to
make sure that he does his job properly, causes no problems, etc. But I am
charging you – as you all profess to
be Christians – to try to give him the same support, the same help and
encouragement that you did these other individuals that I have mentioned and
that the vast majority of us tried to do with those young people – hundreds of them – who were brought along while
still unconverted back in the days of the Worldwide Church at Ambassador
College.
I realize that we are not the Worldwide Church or Ambassador
College. But both of my
sons had expressed a fervent desire
to attend Ambassador College some day. They were deeply hurt when Ambassador closed its doors. They never had
the opportunity to go to Ambassador College or to be surrounded by God’s people
and be a part of God’s Work in that way. They both had to
sacrifice in a number of ways that I will not go into here because of their
father being sent “in disgrace” – so to speak – into a kind of internal exile
in Glendora and having other young people in the Church ask them, “What is
wrong with you father? Why isn’t he preaching anymore? We thought he was and
Evangelist?” Some times they would come home crying and wondering, “What is
wrong with the Church? Why are they treating you this way?” So it hurt them deeply. And I would like to help
them understand that the Church can be helpful and loving!
In the earlier days of this
Work, my son David helped out in the office in San Diego for two or three months with no salary – helping run
errands, handle the mail and personally put the stamped addresses from the
address cards on the envelopes by hand – as we had to do in those days. David
helped in Bill Brazil’s printing work – which was also considered “part of the
work” as Bill was printing all of our booklets and magazines at that time. Bill
liked his work, and told me so a
number of times. So David has been “part of the Work” before most of you were
ever employed. But I want
all of you to know that in the last eight weeks when David has been living in
our home, I have had several long
talks with him and he has responded very well. He has come to realize that he
did a lot of immature – and using his own words – “stupid” things. He is
certainly in the process of repenting about these things, wanting to be more
mature in every way and to serve the Creator God. I sincerely feel that he is
making good progress and now has a right
attitude which I want to continue.
So I ask all of you in Jesus’
name, to join
with me, as Christians, in welcoming
David Meredith into our office, giving him encouragement
and support. I am also
instructing you not to join any
others who might be so inclined to “make an issue” of this and thereby cause
and “public relations” problem. As I said before, this would certainly be divisive and I don’t feel that any of
you really want to do that.
But perhaps, so many years after Mr. Armstrong’s death and the
constant bombardment of the “worldly”
approach to things and the distancing of our entire society from the kind of
family structure we ought to have been learning, we forget how God often operated through a family. God Himself is building a family. And, as long as our
children do not cause and problem and are genuinely trying to grow, to overcome and to help – we should give them every
opportunity that we rightly can,
under the circumstances, to be part of the Work through various part-time jobs
or activities as the Work grows and increases in years to come.
So if you have even part of the respect that all of used to show Mr.
Armstrong, I hope that you would respect the office God has given me by trying
to respond in a positive way to this
employment in a
very base, entry level position in God’s Work at this time. I will appreciate
and pray for your positive response and your prayers for me personally – for this has certainly brought a
certain amount of stress upon me at a time I do not need it. My thoughts and prayers will be with
you – as I do not want to lose any of
you – as long as you remain in a right attitude and are genuinely loyal and supportive to the human leadership Christ has
placed in His Church.
In Christ’s name,
Roderick C. Meredith
