There is more to the story about the UCG member looking for his grandfather, George Warner of Paradise, CA. See this story: A desperate search and an impossible Camp Fire escape: One family's fight to reunite
George was a former employee in Pasadena years ago and wrote a book about his life that was published in 2013. It is a fascinating read on the adventuresome life of George.
He starts off rather quickly in his book describing his days in The Cult: The Worldwide Church of God and Ambassador College.
You can read parts of his story about life in the Worldwide Church of God at this link:
7 comments:
A fascinating read written by someone behind the scenes of the 1960s to 1980s headquarters of the WCG.
Here's a tidbit from page 22 of the book:
Unknown to me at the time, someone had come up with the bright idea of starting the church’s own insurance agency, which would make it possible to hire some graduates and, at the same time, maybe put monies into the church’s coffers. This would require the training of salesmen, and in this regard, a number of texts and training manuals and other materials would have to be purchased. The first I heard of this scheme was the day some natty little fellow walked into my area demanding to know just where in the world his materials were. When I told him I had no idea what he was talking about, he bounced around like a monkey in a cage, calling me everything but a liar. After he left, I called Al Kedding (spelling?) at the campus bookstore to find out if he knew anything about an order for something called courier insurance. Voila! That’s where the little rooster’s order was . . . hiding at the bottom of Al’s “in” basket. Turns out that dapper Don Davis was a deacon—the lowest office in the church hierarchy, and my impression was he expected people to jump when he asked for something. In any event, I called the self-important little dude to tell him where his order was. There was never an apology from him . . . or a thank you. Apologies were rarely forthcoming from errant church officials . . . even lowly deacons.
Page 25 said that money desperately needed by a woman with five kids for a washing machine, was donated to Herbs Auditorium project. I find it hard to believe that this would have Gods approval. No doubt Dave Pack would approve. It seems that there's some truth that he studied at Herbs feet.
Hurrah, that's what I was searching for, what a data! existing here at this website, thanks admin of
this web site.
Fascinating.
The level of incompetence at Headquarters seems ridiculous by this account. HWA calling Paul Royer and did not even know Paul Royer was removed from that department. He then (George) thrust into a position he didn't know how to do with no training whatsoever. A panicky secretary with HWA on the other line wondering what happened to Paul Royer. What a mess! Amazing how it seems many people when they heard HWA on the other end of the line who worked there were suddenly thrown into fear and panic!
Fear and panic. The hallmark of the Worldwide Church of God.
Yeah I love reading history books about members experiences in and with the WCG/HWA. I've got a dreaded case of lurgy and have been in bed reading over the entire chapter "Politics and Religion" having printed it out the other day.
I've found Warner's observations thus quite interesting:
The controversy over Martin’s scholarship found many people questioning Herbert’s strange interpretation of the scriptures pertaining to Pentecost, and some were beginning to question his other unique doctrines. Within a year or so he had a “revelation from God” pointing out that he had been misled by the devil on the subject of Pentecost, and he changed the day to conform with the majority of Christian churches. Mind you, Herbert never admitted that Dr. Martin had been right . . . he just couldn’t forgive him for questioning his authority. Instead of trying to bring back the members who had seen the fallacy in his teaching and “gone off with” Dr. Martin, Herbert just seemed to have condemned them to hell . . . and forgot about them. Unlike Christ, who would leave ninety and nine sheep to save one, Herbert seemed to whistle for the wolf to come and get his strays.
Herbert would never admit that he was wrong about anything, and he always tried to blame somebody or something else for the problems in the church. It seemed to some that he had fallen under the spell of Stan Rader, the brilliant CPA and attorney, who many felt had found the church to be a cash cow to be milked by him and his pal Henry Cornwall.
So the autobiographical book is by George Warner whose wife was named Nancy. But, in the article about the CA fires it discusses a grandson by the name of John whose grandparents were Anne Thomas Sherman and Fay Hubert Sherman. There’s no George mentioned in the article. Am I missing something?
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