Imagine how lonely life must be to sit at home in your kitchen and crank out endless long articles about how awful other Church of God groups are because they refuse to listen to the mindless rants of a man who wants to burden down members with more pharisaical laws than the ones they are already keeping. After making a demand earlier this year upon all Church of God members that they MUST keep a seven day Days of Unleavened Bread at a feast site, in which he was totally ignored, he is now lashing out at all of the reprobates in the various COG groups.
The purpose of the Festivals of God has been frustrated by today’s Ekklesia, because they misuse God’s Festivals.
First they refuse to keep the Feast of Unleavened Bread for God’s commanded full seven days, second they keep the Fall Feast of Tabernacles for the seven days but they do so improperly, then they pollute the High Holy Days and weekly Sabbaths, and finally they keep these festivals on dates other than the dates which God has commanded.
These Festivals of God were intended to be occasions when people could gather to hear the priesthood/ministry teach the Word of God, which is what we claim to do today, but do we really?Can you imagine seven days of having to sit there and listen to Chief Pharisee James Malm pontificate on how he thinks the letter of the law should be kept! Ghastly days! The crackling flames of the lake of fire would be a perfect respite!
The Kitchen table actually abhors Malm, because Malm isn't always in line with HWA, which infuriates the HWA-worshipping Kitchens.
ReplyDeleteMalm is just an idiot. Anyone who can read the Bible can tell that HWA himself didn't keep the Biblical Holy Days in the way the Bible instructs that they be kept. Anyone who has read the Bible and history can prove for himself that the actual Jews/Hebrews never kept the Holy Days in the way Malm advises. Why should anyone prefer Malm's unbiblical ideas over HWA's?
In COGdom, 4:52, the strictest is considered the most Godly. People devour this stuff ravenously! What surprises me is that Malm has so few followers!
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Those that devour it tend to be the most miserable people in the church. Always negative and downright nasty at times. Even though they claim to keep all the law you would think it would make them happy for being so perfect, but they aren't. The truly happy people in the church are the ones who live messy lives, know they are blessed and don't worry about making mistakes.
ReplyDeleteHWA had a seductive message, but it was built on deception. He was able to pick at mainstream catholic and protestant observance, which isn't hard to do. The deceptive part comes in via the fact that when you're busy pointing out the flaws of others, people can tend to assume you have fewer, or possibly even no flaws yourself. That's not a safe assumption, and it's clear now to some how they gave up one religious sect, which may have had its flaws, in favor of one that turned to be even worse.
ReplyDeleteSadly, many are still fooled by HWA's gambit after more than 30 years since he preached his last, still thinking that just because he was able to find fault with others that automatically proved he really did have a trove of "truth" divinely revealed to him which had been "lost" for 1900 years. What I always hear these people say is how they checked out what HWA said, and were surprised to find out he was right. They don't mention the part about how they switched their brains off after that, and just assumed that what he told them to do instead was right as well.
James Malm may have his differences with HWA, but he still assumes that HWA was onto something, certainly at the start of his ministry, and that he only started to screw it up later on, much like a latter day Solomon. He's still hoodwinked by HWA's original deception. Malm just assumes you have to roll back HWA's later changes, and then give what's left a bit of a tune-up, and Herb's Your Uncle. Malm still is discombobulated by Herbert's original con.
Basically, HWA taught us to be good pharisees. He taught us to tithe on our mint, anise, and cumin and seek divine approval through a neverending litany of useless rituals that in theory would purify us and demonstrate to god how much we cared about him. Meanwhile we shunned our impure neighbors and were taught to relish the thought of their soon-coming comeuppance. HWA led us only toward that which Jesus is recorded in the gospels condemning.
James Malm just thinks HWA didn't lead us far enough down that condemned road, and finds fault with him for having veered off of it. Malm is here to make those who are discombobulated enough to follow him into twice as much a child of hell as HWA would have. He's here to lead people that much farther down a condemned road.
What's your definition of a messy life Anon 7:28 ?
ReplyDeleteAnon 9:45 wrote that HWA had a seductive message. What was key to his success, besides his advertising background and personality, was the time that he was living in. The Depression, WWII, the cold war all helped him sell his message of The World Tomorrow. Would HWA's gospel be even more popular if he excluded some of the more draconian teachings (D & R, Holy Days, Healing, etc)? But, if you were to design a "seductive message" for today, would it be what HWA taught? I think it would be more like the Prosperity preachers. Capitalism . . . advertising to make us dissatisfied with what we have and a message that sanctifies greed is the gospel for today.
ReplyDeleteAnon 4:12 AM, there are different measures of success. HWA wanted to be adored by important people, and to have access to wealth. Could he have led a low-demand church of 1 million people who weren't required to think he was super-special, and who had lives apart from their allegiance to HWA, yet somehow gave HWA enough money to feel important? Doubtful. HWA made the smart choice to take over the minds and the checkbooks of a hundred thousand dumb sheep (plus co-worker frogs who were more slowly being boiled in Armstrongism), which gave him more than enough money and also let him mix with other successful executives as the leader of a large corporation with slavishly loyal employees.
ReplyDeleteGood comments. It's so easy to attack that which you view as evil and many in the COGs have been taught that the teachings of other Christians outside the COGs are evil. This can all too often lead to negative Christianity. The COG idea is that if someone doesn't adhere to the Law then the Holy Spirit is not working with them. So, any fruits and any praise of these other Christians is believed to be false because the Holy Spirit is not involved. Thus, a true Christian should avoid the practices of these "so called Christians" when in fact many of these practices are necessary to build your faith and joy.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, when COG people then see the faults in the COGs where do they turn? They've too often been "brainwashed" against some very helpful Christian practices, so they often turn to unbelief. This is insidious about the COGs.
It might seem difficult to do, but if anyone is beginning to see the faults of the COGs, I hope you find a good Bible based Christian group just to study and/or praise with. A group like this can very much help you develop your faith so you aren't just left holding an empty bag due to seeing the COGs more clearly. Anyway, the COGs aren't just wrong, but what they told you about other Christians is also wrong and the worst thing the COGs have done.
It is really easy to latch out at others. It appears though that those that do so, heavily discount the scripture that says...
ReplyDeleteMatthew 7:5-
Hypocrite! First get rid of the log in your own eye; then you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friend’s eye.
Working on ones self is a full time job in itself. Whether it be health, financial, mental, spiritual, family, overcoming sins and hangups. There must be a lot of self righteousness amongst these cult leaders, and false self images.
I’ve always said that HWA/WCG/AC were time and date stamped, and began to pass their expiration date in 1975.
ReplyDeleteAny church which wishes to grow and survive in the USA is going to need to tailor their approach not to the WW-II generation and Baby Boomers, or even to Generation X, but to the Millennials. There are so many profound departures and deviations with that generation that businesses are experiencing difficulties in using Millennials as a viable part of the workforce. Large companies have special classes for management on dealing with Millennials, and there are still problems. In a way, I can almost understand why President Trump wants to shut down our southern border, because Mexicans are the perfect solution to the Millennial problem in the workforce.
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I’m an elder millennial BB (born in 80s), ex COG, and the last generation who witnessed WCG as kids.
DeleteThe COG has a major marketing problem. How do you make appealing doctrines like BI that go against genetics?
How do you keep talking about the return of Christ and the end times without addressing living in harmony in the modern world?
Homosexuals are continually railed against but many have co-workers, acquaintances, or dare I say friends who are gay.
Also as a generation who has witnessed graphic design, special effects, and cutting edge technology. Telecasts of all kinds look cheesy, their messages are not exciting and do not hold our attention.
How are two hour services still a thing? Cut that in half lol
What is new and innovative in Armstrongism? Not much at all.
Also, millennials have their issues but in my experience Baby Boomers are the most entitled group as they are receiving the most entitlements currently. As a generation we’re passionate, adaptable, thoughtful, and harder to sell on things.
Especially mass market products like Armstrongism and Applebee’s.
I’ve got many millennial customers and friends, 10:00 AM, and do share similarities with them. No problem getting along. But what I shared about the business community is unfortunately the stereotype that people repeat. I’m probably different from most baby boomers, though, in that I can still walk into a music and video store/head shop, and the guys and gals behind the counter call me “Dude”, or “Brother Man”. People much younger than I get called “sir” or “maam”. But it’s not my fault, The WCG made it so I can never grow up. They deprived me of so many good and cool things during my teenage years, that I’ve spent decades making up for it. It has been fun!
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10AM again with the reply.. So you’re less Lebowski and more “The Dude” lol
DeleteYour youthful spirit is awesome! I’m sure you’ll continue to maintain it. I appreciate your thoughtful and even handed replies on topics BB!
Thanks, 10:00. LOL! Believe it or not, I’ve even got the Dude’s “Abide” T-shirt. Coolest movie ever!
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