Monday, March 16, 2020

UPDATED: Gerald Weston Finally Makes A Statement...Kind of....


From the fearless leader who has been in the forefront of leading his COG through the coronavirus pandemic. Of course, forget the virus, it is important to let the disillusioned followers know that attendance and income were up around the world. What????

And he STILL cannot make a public decision on whether LCG members should be in church every week.

Greetings from Charlotte,
The Council of Elders meetings began Thursday morning, and regional reports centered on positive trends and challenges we face going forward in a very uncertain world. Attendance and income were up in 2019 in most areas around the world. One challenge that came up from a number of men was how to handle interested Spanish-speaking people here in North America. These are individuals who have limited fluency in English, and many come from a Catholic or Protestant background. We do not currently have resources everywhere we have interested people, to effectively communicate to them the subtle nuances of doctrine. In the days ahead, we will be discussing with our Spanish Department how best to handle this challenge. The coronavirus was obviously a major topic and will be discussed in greater detail regarding how to handle Church services and various programs such as Tomorrow’s World Presentations, social events, and even the Feast, if the problem carries over to that time of year. Regarding Church services, we have advised that if you are not feeling well, please stay home. If you are not comfortable being in a group, you can stay home and listen on line. —Gerald Weston
Weston cannot tell church members to stay home from church but cancels other gatherings.

No BRiC Weekend in Charlotte This Year
Charlotte will not host a BRiC weekend for singles this year on the Memorial Day weekend. This was decided to be the safest course to take, given the uncertainty of how the coronavirus pandemic may play out.
Then he has this to say about the Feast. More impotence.

Feast of Tabernacles
Care Regarding International Travel for the Feast
COVID-19, the coronavirus, has now been declared a global pandemic. One of its greatest dangers is that it is highly contagious, and the general population has no immunity to it. It is a killer to a small percentage of those who contract it, and about a fifth of those who contract it become seriously ill. The rest may have mild, flu-like symptoms, but still spread the illness as they continue to go about their normal activities instead of seeking medical assistance or quarantining themselves. Therefore, this is something to take seriously and, as we know, it is causing disruptions all over the world. We cannot predict what conditions will be like seven or eight months from now for the Feast of Tabernacles. We will keep the Feast, but we may need to cancel or limit travel to some sites. Governments, at any time, may ban group gatherings where they deem necessary. Therefore, please do not make reservations or final travel plans until we see how this is going to shake out. You may even want to consider attending your locally assigned site this year rather than traveling halfway around the world by air. As the scripture counsels us, we should take precautions when we see trouble on the horizon (Proverbs 22:3). 

10 comments:

TLA said...

Love this statement: "to effectively communicate to them the subtle nuances of doctrine".
Let me simplify it for you.
Cow good, pig bad.
Saturday good, Sunday bad.
Earth good, heaven bad.
Resurrection good, immortal soul bad.

Anonymous said...

when I read this on the church web site I was embarrassed for Mr. Weston. What a chickenshit stance he has taken. Your picture is perfect. He needs to grow a pair and make a definitive decision. We will NOT be attending services with others considering how so many refuse proper medical treatment and advice in the church.

Anonymous said...

The "subtle nuances" of language aren't the problem with LCG's Spanish message. The problem is that Mario Hernandez teaches different doctrine when he preaches to Spanish-speaking people. LCG doesn't want to lose its entire Spanish-speaking work, so it has a strange relationship with Hernandez, trying to rein him in while also trying to fan his ego.

Anonymous said...

At least he is taking SOME kind of stand. So far Great Dave, the wonderful leader of the RCG, has not taken ANY stand. The RCG members are still commanded to go to Sabbath services, even in those countries that have told their citizens that group gatherings are no longer allowed..
But RCG members can ignore their government’s commands right? Because Great Dave (or was it God?) will protect them.

Anonymous said...

Weston is indeed a very weak handed man. What did Herbie call men like him? Limp wristed?

Liam Grabarkewitz said...

The Hispanic population has grown very quickly in the USA, and Weston is smart to take note of it. The Church of God Seventh Day in the USA has a large number of its congregations as Spanish language right now.

In fact, the Church of God Seventh Day has more members in Mexico, some 40,000, that all of the Armstrongist successor churches combined!

Anonymous said...

“One challenge that came up from a number of men was how to handle interested Spanish-speaking people here in North America.” Weston does know that Mexico is part of North America right? Asking for a friend. It’s hard to tell with the white-centric viewpoints LCG has.

Anonymous said...

#8:42AM

Finally, finally the great David Pack is coming up with some comforting words for his flock during this corona crisis! Or isn’t he? Is he? You decide for yourself .. This is the full length text of an email that was sent to the RCG members 6 hours ago:


Dear brethren,
 
You all see there’s disaster on the horizon EVERYWHERE and as far as the eye can see. The headlines scream this: “ITALY: Victims over 80 could be ‘left to die’ in drastic measures”—“San Francisco orders residents to stay inside”—“It’s not just toilet paper: People line up to buy guns, ammo over coronavirus concerns.”
 
These are all part of the extreme “labor pains” Mr. Pack has been talking about!!!
 
In addition, the stock market lost another 3,000 points today—the biggest drop since the Black Monday crash of 1987. Many trillions in wealth have been wiped out over the last few days! Yet we are only just seeing the beginning of more economic woes to come. Vast numbers cannot travel and are losing their jobs as the coronavirus continues to bring a terrified planet to its knees.
 
How could we come this far, see all that we are seeing, and somehow think we have much more time. Impossible! 

Mr. Pack is tentatively planning to deliver a 90-minute message on Wednesday of fascinating things still being learned. Tomorrow, we are going to give you a document explaining why we either have a few days left—or three years. You will want to study it!

All the tumultuous events occurring bring to life Christ’s question in Luke 18:8 as never before: “When the Son of man comes, shall He find faith on the earth?”
 
If we stay strong, brethren, we can ensure He finds this faith in all of us!
 
In Christ’s service,
 
The Headquarters Ministry

Anonymous said...

And what will Daves 90 minute sermon on Wednesday be about? Probably teaching his members to borrow money from their friends and relatives, and give the money to him.

Anonymous said...

I’m hearing word from an LCG friend that Gerald finally did the right thing after dragging his feet on this issue and LCG services will be held online. Like COGWA already decided to do. Way to be behind the curve Weston!