Herbert Armstrong's Tangled Web of Corrupt Leaders

Saturday, June 20, 2020

Vic Kubik: Whitewashing racism in the COG from the past and on todays troubles



Here is what Vik Kubik has to say:
The Church of God community is no stranger to racial issues. I personally witnessed church racial segregation at the 1966 Feast of Tabernacles in Big Sandy, Texas. I had recently traveled through the Soviet Union for six weeks as a translator and photographer with Herman Hoeh, managing editor of the Plain Truth magazine. Dr. Hoeh invited me to make a few remarks about the significance of the trip to about 12,000 members and families attending there.
As I looked over the crowd, I was taken aback. A very large group of black families was segregated together. In a now-obvious reflection of cultural trends of the times, the church misunderstood certain Bible verses and here was the result. The application of this misunderstanding physically segregated church members by race, which was, of course, not right.
Thankfully, that policy based on societal expectations and biblical misunderstanding ended, and our understanding improved. Unfortunately, remnants remained, particularly in pockets around the world. As people join the Body of Christ, wrong cultural attitudes need to be abandoned. We have made progress—more is needed.
But even back then, as we believe now, we understood that all people have access to the incredible human potential—the capacity to become a literal child of God (1 John 3:2) and live in glory for all eternity as a member of the God family. What is most important is that we fully understand how God views us and then rise to that standard.
I find it interesting that the church, even during the "enlightened" times Kubik refers to above, regularly called those that were not white, gentiles. That was especially evident with Mayor Tom Bradley was elected mayor of Los Angeles. The gentle black man was ruling over people. Kubik's co-workers in Pasadena in some of his fellow ministers said this.
What is God’s view of us now as literal children? “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave [bondservant] nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:28, English Standard Version).
Jesus Christ, whose incomprehensible sacrifice cleared the way for all to be reconciled to God, is the gateway to the true end of this current conflict.
In these times of upheaval, it is critical to remember that when God created all things through Jesus Christ (Hebrews 1:2Colossians 1:16), marvelous diversity was the result. Whether Asian, African, Caucasian, Latin or other background, God pronounced all of it good. Concerning the Kingdom of God—the ultimate goal and objective of every disciple of Jesus Christ—God makes no differentiation to imply that one race is superior to any other. All are equal before Him. His goal, His desire, is that we all become one in Christ.
So, how do we respond to a call for change?
Let's start by putting a black man in charge of United Church of God! Have coordinators of foreign regions of the church regions men of color who are actually from those regions, not some white lackey from Cincinnati sent out into the field. 
First, we must remember that when Jesus came the first time, many thought (or wanted) Jesus to be a political deliverer to put Israel in place as a global-dominating world power. Even moments before a resurrected Jesus ascended to His Father, the apostles were still wondering about that possibility: “Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” (Acts 1:6).
Despite living on this earth armed with all authority (John 17:2Matthew 28:18), Jesus never incited political rebellion against Roman authorities or government leaders, despite having numerous opportunities.
And yet, Kubik and his small cabal of ministers in Pasadena incited rebellion against the mother church, while still on their payroll, to take as many members,, ministers and as much money as he could to start. new church. Kubik and his bro's were in a constant of rebellion against authority.
Second, we should note that the spiritual instructions and commands that Jesus gave apply to all people. The Beatitudes are color-blind. This includes the statement: “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God” (Matthew 5:9). Jesus—who is our coming King—left instructions with authority. Even the apostles recognized that salvation was available to all and that all held responsibilities for obedience (Acts 15).
Third, true freedom is only available through Jesus Christ. “I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave of sin. A slave is not a permanent member of the family, but a son is part of the family forever. So if the Son sets you free, you are truly free” (John 8:34-36, New Living Translation).
If this is true, then why does UCG and Kubik place the emphasis upon submission to the law? 
In this time of upheaval, we should all be active and careful listeners, whatever our background. Decades worth of hidden hurt and fear now lie open to all. Healing must take place, but the task will be challenging.
Paul tells us to be imitators of God and live a life of love. In this time, that means we are to be intolerant of racial slurs. We understand and appreciate that all people will have the opportunity to achieve their incredible human potential, and we treat them like it. Where there is strife, we sow peace as peacemakers. Our thoughts, speech, and behavior should be free of coarse speech, including online comments. As Paul directs us: “Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving” (Ephesians 5:4ESV).
 "Where there is strife, we sow peace as peacemakers."  What an absolute hypocritical joke for Kubik to say this!  Where was the peacemaking when his own church ruptured and 3/4's of it left to form COGWA?  Where has there ever been peacmaking making in the Church of God movement between the 500+ splinter groups out there now all proclaiming themselves the true modern-day representation of 1st-century Christianity?
In the immediate days ahead, what is our response? God wants to see “all the members care for each other. If one part suffers, all the parts suffer with it, and if one part is honored, all the parts are glad. All of you together are Christ’s body, and each of you is a part of it” (1 Corinthians 12:21-27NLT).
What is our part in change? Consider this: are we praying that more should receive access to the precious truth we hold, and that more people from all walks of life will be called and join our fellowship? Are we conducting ourselves in such a fashion that people can openly see Jesus Christ in us? We are promised a better life, now and in the world to come. Can those outside catch a glimpse of the coming Kingdom of God in our lives today?
When has the leadership of the Church of God - ANY COG - ever conducted themselves in a fashion that humanity could see Jesus in them? They cannot even talk about the dude that much let alone exemplify the guy in their lives. 
Here’s our part: instead of engaging in contentious protest, “Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone” (Romans 12:18NLT). Answer the call for change: “Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think” (Romans 12:2NLT).

27 comments:

  1. Vic's running low on whitewash; someone fetch him another pail!

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  2. June 20, 2020 at 10:57 AM
    The acog's should buy he whitewash company. They need it.

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  3. I honestly do not know how any UCG member could ever trust Kubik about anything. The man has been a liar since his days in WCG and continued on with his apostasy in forming UCG.

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  4. 1975
    Hernan Hoeh sermoned to 300 black south africans at the Feast.

    "Why do WE gentiles (hoeh was german) keep the law while we were never under any Mosaic covenant with God?"

    "Why do we gentiles keep the Feast?

    Nck

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  5. "Thankfully, that policy based on societal expectations and biblical misunderstanding ended . . ."

    According to Herman Hoeh, after he was a member of GCI, the policy was based only on societal expectations. There was no theological or exegetical underpinning for the policy. I have the letters he wrote to me asserting this. So the WCG never had a misunderstanding about race, in fact, the WCG never even looked to the Bible for guidance on the issue. Hoeh sent me several newspaper articles meant to inform me how society saw race relations back in those days. And this societal behavior was the guiding light, apparently, for the WCG. In other words, Black WCG members were blithely thrown under the bus to keep society at bay..

    This is an odd appraisal and I always felt that Hoeh thought that there might be a potential for a law suit but that is my speculation.

    As an usher told me at the Feast in Big Sandy in the early Seventies: "God's Church believes in segregation." The usher had just kicked a Black buddy of mine out of his seat and sent him packing off to a Black section in the tabernacle. If the Church did not believe in segregation and this was just done to get along with mainstream America, as Hoeh maintained, why did WCG leaders let all the little people continue to believe that the racial policy of the WCG was an article of faith?

    Kubik is to be commended for admitting that it was an actual "Biblical misunderstanding."
    I wonder how this is all playing down in East Texas.

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  6. Just check on the current members of UCG's Council of Elders and see that they are all color-blind.

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  7. NEO

    You could only write what you wrote because you never visited overseas churches before 1970.

    It was a purely US racial issue that AS OF TODAY has not been solved as we can all witness as even after the floyd issue black stubborn idiots resisting the police have a chance of BEING SHOT IN THE BACK with 5 bullets by the police.

    That was not a problem overseas, neither in french, german, nigerian, kenyan or new zealand.

    Nck

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  8. Where has there ever been peacmaking making in the Church of God movement between the 500+ splinter groups out there...

    It happened when UCG and "Church of God a Christian Fellowship" merged. Admittedly, it didn't last long - but it happened.

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  9. “With the death of James Malm recently, the winnowing down on which is the true church keeps getting smaller and smaller.”


    Victor Kubik got winnowed out way back in the Worldwide Church of God when he worked as a Tkach goon kicking out members who did not go agree with the Great Apostasy that the Tkaches were doing. Now Victor Kubik has ended up running the disUnited Church of Godlessness to collect a paycheck, and, of course, refused to apologize for what he did to WCG church members in the past. He explained that, “I was just doing my job.”

    People have been warned about Victor Kubik and should not be totally surprised when they find out what additional jobs Satan has for him to do.

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  10. It was my experience while I attended services that the ministers shied away from addressing certain sins. They feared offending their tithe payers. This is like king Saul not following God's instruction to slaughter all the animals, out of fear of the people.

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  11. UCG has many troubles but racisim is not one of them.

    They have an all white Council of Elders not as a result of racisim more a result of Pastoral bitter wars.

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  12. "God" is not in the United Church of God or in any Church of God. These are human institutions started by humans ruled by humans and perpetuated by humans. All religions are human institutions. So is it any surprise that all religions have liars and hypocrites leading them because humans tend to be that way. If you see religions for what they are it should not be of any surprise to see seriously flawed leaders leading them because that is what we tend to be, flawed.

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  13. I suspect that your calls for "diversity" in the COG leadership are rooted in your desire to destroy the organizations, much like the BLM movement is about destroying the USA.

    God chooses the leadership. He will put who He wants in the position He wants, when He wants.

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  14. Back in WCG days everyone pretended to be a good believer. The apostasy had a wonderful way of exposing what everyone was really like. To go back to listening to a godless traitor like Victor Kubik would be a big mistake.

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  15. The "LOGO" for the UCG needs to be changed back to the old WCG logo, (of the millennial setting) with the Lamb and the Lion, but with a little black boy standing in front leading them.

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  16. KUBIK WROTE:---I personally witnessed church racial segregation at the 1966 Feast of Tabernacles in Big Sandy, Texas. ... In a now-obvious reflection of cultural trends of the times, the church misunderstood certain Bible verses and here was the result. The application of this misunderstanding physically segregated church members by race, which was, of course, not right.

    >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

    This statement raises many interesting questions. 1) If the church had misunderstanding at that time, then the open ended question now is just how wrong and on how many topics is it wrong on now? Obviously, the Church is not infallible at all times.

    2) Personally "witnessing" segregation, does not mean that you were AGAINST it at that time. Nor do I see any admission of being sorry for being part of the problem at that time or taking any proactive measures against it , or even voicing any displeasure for it.

    Vic Kubik, as much as anyone in the COGs has been a champion and helper to Africa with his Lifenets operation. Certainly, all of us have grown from all kinds of mistaken thinking we have had in the past. However, the impact of the WCGs racial policies in the past , were much greater than just having "back of the bus" seating at the FOT. It included breaking up relationships, making mixed couples so uncomfortable at Church that they had to leave, having mixed race individuals wanting to marry a white, having to submit photographs to Pasadena for review of "did they favor white or the other race" for approval.

    I knew very well of a gal, who was half Japanese, and half Caucasian, who had to submit photos , especially of the eyes, for determination of race by Pasadena from an outlying area in order to marry a white male. They were to determine if the eyes were not "slanted" enough to be allowable. This was as late as the 1980s!

    Such nonsense harkens back to the "race determination" boards of Nazi Germany!

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    1. Tonto
      Indeed interesting to note that such "race determination" was based not on "mathematical scientific precision" (which in this case would have been 50 percent), but rather, "outward appearances", giving the impression as to a a) need to uphold doctrine, b) open a windoe to allow the relationship, c) not cause offence WITHIN a certain culture based upon "appearance".

      I mean for sure even at AC, people could do the math, but not even the local minister was able to judge "the culture".

      It somewhat reminded me of the most widely distributed book of the WCG.

      Yet never ever was the Stone of Scone mentioned or trips organized to "Scone" to wcg groups assembling in the near vicinity of "Scone" for Feast, YOU, or congregational activities.

      People wouldnt even know the place was related.

      My point.
      Culture is a set of "agreed assumptions", yet people have found ways over the millenia to circumvent tradition or assumptions based on cultural agreement.

      Social Cohesion is after sex the most powerful motivator in human behavior, so I find it funny when people use words like "hypocrites" when nature over culture runs its course.

      Nck

      Delete
  17. 5.09 AM
    "God chooses the leadership."

    Of which church? Dave Packs? Ron Weinlands? Bob Thiels? the Catholic Church, etc.

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  18. "We" Anon 3:50?
    What you describe is Christian Atheists. They are a modern day phenomenon in these recent decades. They are rife throughout Christianity and also within the COG movement.

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  19. Anon 8:12

    I have heard Victor Kubik described in many ways over the decades, calling him a traitor is a new one on me.

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  20. NO2HWA wrote, "Let's start by putting a black man in charge of United Church of God! "

    MY COMMENT - The Grandparent Church of God, Seventh Day is the only COG that has had a black man in charge. From my outside perspective reading many of his articles published in the Bible Advocate, Whaid Rose was solid as CEO serving over multiple terms in COG7D.

    What escapes me as a missed opportunity to advance diversity on the Board of Directors of the United Church of God is not promoting Arnold Hampton. I don't know if Mr. Hampton is still with UCG or if he left the organization and went with COGWA during the split. Arnold Hampton certainly has seniority as a minister since he dates back to my days in attendance as a minister in my local Baltimore, Maryland Worldwide Church of God congregation in the 1970s.

    The last I heard (maybe 10-15 years ago), Arnold Hampton was Pastoring the UCG congregation in Columbia, Maryland in the Baltimore/Washington corridor. Why hasn't he been elevated in the splintered Church?

    Richard

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    1. Arnold Hampton is on the Board of directors in COGWA.

      Delete
  21. 10.36 AM
    All the ministers who outwardly went along with the Tkach changes that they believed were un-biblical, qualify for the label traitor. Would have any of the apostles or Paul done such a thing? No way! A loyal minister would not have taught such changes from the pulpit or put members out of the church who rejected the changes.

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  22. Never Ever Nck ? I would say Scone Palace has been visited since time immorial by WCG members.
    If you have not been pretend crowned on "the seat" then you`re a nobody.

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  23. What does Victor Kubik believe?

    Does VK believe in what HWA taught in the WCG?

    Does VK believe in what the apostate Tkaches taught later in the WCG?

    Does VK believe in what the UCG teaches?

    Do VK's beliefs remain constant while his outward behavior flip-flops with the times?

    Do VK's beliefs flip-flop with the times?

    Does VK believe mainly in collecting a paycheck no matter what it takes?

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    Replies
    1. To know what the organ grinder believes first you have to study what the dancing monkeys say.
      VK is no exception.

      Now can anyone figure out the place VK "dancing monkeys" love to hang out ?

      Delete

  24. The UCG likes to preach that some people are “too thin-skinned” and “too easily offended.”

    What does all this sort of talk really mean in actual practice?

    It simply means that wicked people went to the UCG to do evil. Godless liars went to the UCG to gossip, lie, slander, cause division, and get their victims kicked out. Filthy old stalkers went to the UCG and got their victims kicked out. The ministers and leaders engaged in power struggles and got other ministers fired and kicked out. For sure, people would need to have very thick skin to survive in the UCG. They would have to ignore, and not be offended by, continual satanic abuse. They would somehow have to overlook such things as being lied about, fired, and kicked out.

    So, of course, the UCG likes to preach that some people are “too thin-skinned” and “too easily offended.”

    If the UCG does not stop being so ungodly and offensive, it could easily get even smaller than it has already gotten.

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