LCG: They Wrote the Book on Religious Hypocrisy. They're Still Selling it.

They Wrote the Book on Religious Hypocrisy. They're Still Selling it.

Recently, the Living Church of God has, with the force of a snail pushing a sailboat, declared a voluntary fast for their membership to be held maybe on October 20th, or around there, whenever. It was the most apathetic of any ecclesiastical decisions any Church of God could make. But for what reason? Why? And the bigger question is - on what spiritual basis? Do these Churches of God really show God, or who He is? Do they really obey His Commandments? Are they authorized, really, to ask for a church-wide Fast? Will the members who see the wickedness around them really respect the calls to fast of those who don't take their concerns to heart? And if they do fast - will it be in prayer against the leaders who proclaimed it, because they claim to know God, but by their actions deny Him? 

Titus 1:16 - They claim to know God, but by their actions they deny Him. They are detestable, disobedient, and unfit for anything good. 

The word "Hypocrisy". It's defined as the practice of claiming to have moral standards or beliefs to which one's own behavior does not conform. (Google definition). Hypocrisy is one of the very things that has caused many scores of individuals to leave their particular form of Christian faith. It has been observed from all corners of organized Christianity - from the laity clear up to the governing bodies. It's one of the strongest condemned behaviors of Jesus himself. Since the Worldwide Church of God claimed to be the One True Church, you'd expect the hypocritical behaviors of this organization to be reigned in, wouldn't you? 

In the Plain Truth of 1952, a question was asked about the wearing of Jewelry. Of course, the thought was, "is it wrong"? The response is quite clear. 

August 1952 Plain Truth 

No, it was not wrong to wear Jewelry - or wedding rings - the church deemed. Why was it not wrong? Here is the way the Church taught the brethren: 

"The wearing of gold ornaments and pearls in connection with costly array is forbidden by the apostles. Gold and pearls are not sin; for God sanctified the use of Gold in the temple.But their great expense was not becoming to Christian women who were to put their treasures into spiritual traits of character which God views as much greater worth. These two verses contain no prohibition on wearing a moderate amount of relatively inexpensive, but not "Cheap" adornment. A string of inexpensive pearls would not be violating the principle which the apostle lays down. For women to bedrock themselves with cheap objects for vanity is just as wrong as to put one's treasure in expensive jewelry." 

Well isn't this interesting. 

The wearing of gold ornaments and pearls in connection with costly array is forbidden, the church wrote. Though God "sanctified the use of gold in the temple", it was the great expense that was sinful to a woman because the "spiritual traits" are of greater worth than the gold. 

Beautiful, timeless, and humble pastoral counsel, isn't it. I'm sure every woman in the church at the time followed it expressly. It would have been a great example for the church to practice what they preached, wouldn't it. 

What happened? 

It took only around two decades to find out what happened. 

As the Church continually chastised the brethren around the world for the accumulation of wealth - what did they do? They accumulated wealth. Why did they accumulate wealth? For the purchase and use of expensive property. Yet, we know that it went far beyond just expensive property. 

It was Garner Ted Armstrong who - just a couple tens of years later - was flaunting, according to one of our readers here - a thirty thousand dollar watch (in today's monetary value) as if it was a small toy out of a cereal box (remember those days?). I'm pretty sure he thought it was okay because of the extremely expensive furnishings, paintings, and apparel purchased by his father for the college. His mom was photographed in a denominationally-famous large wall art wearing an expensive fur wrap. In fact, GTA was so used to wealth, that in one large, negative missive from the ministerial Bulletin, he was complaining about being trapped in the four walls of "the little condominium" he had to stay in. 

It was Herbert Armstrong who was continually obsessed with the accumulation of wealth. He never was "getting enough", it seemed - discouragement was always on him like a dark, musty cloud from a dingy, ratty basement. His plans were always costly - never inexpensive. 

But it wasn't the large, expensive, gold-leafed, wool-carpeted, extravagant Auditorium that wasn't sinful. It wasn't the million-dollar buildings that was the sin. We all know that the Campus was awarded as one of the most beautiful in the world. What was sinful was the absolute, blatant, carnal, disgusting hypocrisy that rained down from Headquarters like a tropical torrent, that flooded the life out of the members who hardly could have 60 percent of their own money to themselves. 

The very church that told woman to put their treasures in spiritual worth put all their treasures in physical riches. The very church that said that such an accumulation of wealth was violating the apostles' mandate went full steam ahead violating the same mandate's spirit of the law in snatching the finances of their members in the most threatening, abusive ways possible. 

Though women were commanded in the church to be temperate in expense and modest in apparel, (and even strip them of any form of make-up as soul-exterminating), the church was anything but temperate and modest. Time after time, they'd take out loans for expenses beyond their means and thrust the bill on the members with the force and weight of a beach-ball shot out of a cannon. Time after time Herbert would beg, plead - and finally threaten members with eternal damnation for not giving enough. He'd call them slackers or not fully converted. He'd make them feel like a dog's freshly defecated dinner from lunch in so many letters about how they're not "in it" or helping enough. Herbert would lower their standard of living while increasing his, letter after letter, year after year, decade after decade. 

Eventually, Herbert would be living in the lap of luxury with hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of tableware, an auditorium worthy of the greatest kings and queens, a Gulfstream Jet worthy of a Fortune 500 for-profit organization , with his son Garner Ted reaping all the benefits. 

This was hypocrisy. And what did Jesus say about hypocrisy? 

Woe to you, teachers of the Law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside, but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean. In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness. (Matthew 23:27-28)

Luke 20:46 says these "teachers of the law" devour women's houses. Who is it that had no problem taking the homes of the elderly and asking for their wills? Was it not the WCG, the "teachers of the law"? 

Matthew 15 says "these people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me". How accurate this is, when GTA constantly made fun of people who "gave their hearts to the Lord". No, that's pansy pansy, love love talk, he would say. 

2 Timothy 3 condemns those who are "lovers of money". It also condemns the abusive, the conceited, the proud and the brutal. The WCG is well-documented to have been ALL of these things. .

This all from a church that claimed to be the One and Only true Church. This all from a church that claimed to hold the keys to the Kingdom of God - This from a church that claimed to hold the bindings and loosing of ecclesiastical power from heaven. A church that became rich and powerful in the ways and wealth of the world by lording it over the weak, and using the tithe as a way to financial gain and accumulation at the oppression of the poor, the needy, the hungry, and the sick - even denying the sick health care to gain more finances, which in some cases led to death. This is the very definition of wickedness. This is the very definition of injustice. This is the very definition of ungodliness. Yet, in this same church - this was all okay - because they were "the True Church who was keeping the Law - the Sabbath, and the Holy Days" - and called themselves "the Church of God". 

Hypocrites.By their actions we know they didn't know God. By their actions we know that their hearts were on the things of this world. By their actions we know that their minds were on material positions. And by their words we know what their intentions truly were. 

These attitudes continue these days in the organizations that remain from the mother, the old Worldwide Church of God. From Edmond to Wadsworth, the same hypocritical passion for material wealth and the oppression of the people continues. The same spiritual starvation emanates from the leaders who were trained by the worst hypocrites of them all.

And people still go to church to have fellowship with those who scripture clearly says by their actions deny Him. Those ministers who claim they are ministers of Christ, but are detestable, disobedient, and unfit for anything good. 

Yes, I do think that Living Church of God - and the other COG's - need a fast. But not the members.Those who stand behind their lecterns and take the tithes of the people need to fast. The only "fast" that needs to be done by the members is the setting on the level of speed required by their legs on their exit. 

-by SHT, Contributing Writer