Herbert Armstrong's Tangled Web of Corrupt Leaders

Saturday, July 30, 2022

PCG Members Expected To Send In Money To Fund $80,000.00 Jet Rides For Lil'Stevie And The Grandkids

 

In 2017 the Philadelphia Church of God bought a Gulfstream Jet for the use of Gerald Flurry. It was supposed to be used to visit world leaders like Herbert Armstrong did back in the 1970/1980's. Flurry has never had an original thought in his brain and has to constantly find ways to imitate Herbert Armstrong. The main difference between Flurryand HWA and their jets is that he has never used it to visit world leaders. It is only a private luxury service for himself, Lil'Stevie, the grandkids that are into Irish dance, and certain Edmond HQ elite.

One of the reasons to justify the purchase of the jet was it will allow Flurry to travel in isolation instead of on a commercial aircraft where he would have to sit by unconverted heathens of the world, who might be unwashed, have body order, or carry some disease. God's true servants must be kept untainted from the world!

Gareth Fraser, who at the time wrote this was one of the elitist children of the HQ ministry, says:

"One of the birthright blessings that the descendants of Abraham received from God was the means by which to invent air travel. Wilbur and Orville Wright began the progression to today’s high-tech passenger jet airplanes in 1903 with their four short flights at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. Because of this astounding invention, God’s Work was able to soar to new levels of effectiveness during the 20th century. 
 
Jesus Himself prophesied, “And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come” (Matthew 24:14). In the sixth era of the Church, the gospel was preached through Herbert W. Armstrong, and in order to most effectively preach the gospel to the world, God’s apostle was required to utilize this invention. Though he had to battle and overcome a fear of flying at first, Mr. Armstrong went on to fulfill this divinely-inspired commission through traveling around the world by plane." 
 
"For the past 28 years, Mr. Flurry has trumpeted the royal vision of God’s “prophesy again” message. He also has walked by foot, driven by car, and flown around the world by aircraft preaching Christ’s gospel. Recently, the pcg acquired a Gulfstream G-450 to aid in fulfilling the commission—just as Mr. Armstrong did. The gospel is once again going around the world, and this time, the completion of the Church’s commission will lead directly to the event that this gospel is centered around: the return of Jesus Christ and the establishment of the Kingdom of God—the government that will finally bring world peace." How the Gospel Was Taken Around the World 
 

On May 2, 2021, Andrew Locher announced that the PCG had paid off the jet:

“The Gulfstream G450 Jet is now paid off. We own it. God’s church is debt free. We don’t own anything to anybody–except to God. We own everything–Edstone, Edmond, all the equipment, the aircraft, the vehicles. We own God’s revelation, the most valuable gift of all.” More Craziness From PCG's Andrew Locher: "PCG is Debt Free, We Own Everything - Even God's Revelations, The Most Valuable Gift Of All!"

Now that the jet is paid off, the PCG is still expecting members to give to the jet fund. It costs them over $80,000 every time it flies Lil'Stevie back and forth to England and Israel and each time Flurry's grandkids have an Irish Dance completion somewhere in the world.

Exit and Support Network has this up by Andrew Locher from July 22, 2022:

“All over the world, brethren continue to sacrifice at record-setting levels,
“ensuring we have the resources to expand God’s Work.
“The expanded projects in Israel have benefited from this increase. Most recently, the UK-Europe-Africa office sent $54,000 to Israel to promote the excavations, as well as full-time staff and students to excavate and renovate.
“…the Church continues to expand our educational efforts around the world.
“…we have had an increase in both income and expense. Our cost of operation continues to increase now that ministers are able to travel.
“As with family budgets, inflation has resulted in rising costs for the Work …
“We are carefully monitoring the budget,
“but with the excavation and new office in Israel, America Under Attack [booklet], replenishment of literature
“inventory all over the world and other projects, we have much to plan for.“During the upcoming ministerial conference, we will have the 16-year inspection/maintenance performed on the Church’s aircraft.
“If possible, please consider making donations to the aircraft fund (only if you are able)
“to help us prepare for this expensive event.

MinistryWatch had this little tidbit about Flurry's jet:

Regarding the Canadair Challenger CL-600-2B16 jet owned by the Rhema Bible Church in Tulsa, Oklahoma; the Tulsa County appraiser’s office told Trinity Foundation investigators that aircraft are not assessed property taxes in Oklahoma. This would include the Philadelphia Church of God’s Gulfstream G450 in Oklahoma City, which is apparently not assessed property taxes as well. Million Dollar Homes Become Status Symbols of Televangelists and Pastors

Twitter has a feed that focuses on the private jets of ministry leaders, including Gerald Flurry and the PCG:


The Trinity Foundation also monitors Gerald Flurry's jet trips: Calculating the Cost of Ministry-Owned Aircraft Flights


Philadelphia Church of God members are bled dry sending on money to finance the extravagant lifestyles of Gerald, Lil'Stevie, the grandkids, and the PCG elite. None of these people suffer financially as they live in church-owned homes, and have all their repair bills, lawn work, etc paid for by the church. They drive church vehicles and receive huge ministerial allowances that allow for gas and other expenses. They are over in need of anything. Yet, the lower masses of the church are seen only as a cash machine to keep the money flowing in.

 


See: 

Gerald Flurry Follows in HWA's Steps and Buys Gulfstream G450 Jet


Dave Pack and The Tammuz Disaster of 2022


Marc has a new blog entry about Dave Pack's ongoing epic failure rate regarding his Tammuz prophecies.

I keep waiting for Dave to pull a fast one by proclaiming that Tammuz 15 actually happened, but "spiritually". That is the easy out Sabbatarian/Adventis have used for decades. 

Instead of just humbly admitting he was wrong, he doubles down and keeps adding new dates.  Now, as he moves into Av he will set more dates but is looking more to Elul 15. That date, being close to COG Feast of Tabernacles, will be a prime target as date diarrhea hits him big time. 

As the months go by and the years, how long will the members sit there and swallow this crap?


The Tammuz Disaster of 2022. 
 
That is what those inside The Restored Church of God will refer to what happened between June 30th and July 28th of this year. 
 
Staff and visitors to Headquarters will now be instructed, “Never mention the word ‘Tammuz’ to Mr. Pack. That gives him a brain boo-boo and his pouty lip will take hours to go away.”


Insanity Is Doing the Same Thing Over and Over Again 
and Expecting Different Results

This quote is often attributed to Albert Einstein, but according to QuoteInvestigator.com it is from an Alcoholics Anonymous pamphlet printed in 1981. It was altered from the original: “Insanity is repeating the same mistakes and expecting different results.” 
 
Unlike all those unconverted, sinning drunkards who actually are trying to make positive changes in their lives, David C. Pack keeps repeating his mistakes while showing no signs of slowing down or attempting a different strategy. 
 
Dave has opted to embrace the start of the month of Av as a range of dates for the “possible” beginning of one of the kingdoms of God. And the 1335 is mixed in there somewhere. 
 
Only faithless stupid-faces would leave RCG now. When things are so close. Now that the Series is over. And the Mystery of God is fully understood. 
 
In Part 384, Dave speculated (no utterance from God, mind you) it “could” happen from between Av 1 to Av 5. If he had left it there, then we could have called this, “David C. Pack’s Extended Weekend Failure.” 
 
But, his self-doubt broke free from the mental shackles and was running rampant.


Check out the complete article here:  David C. Pack’s Prophetic Boo-Boo

The best part of the article is the list of words Dave needs to drop from his vocabulary. My favorites out of the list are these:

• Nothing has changed except
• I was right, but
• It finally became clear
• You have the complete picture

 

Friday, July 29, 2022

The Disunified COG Will Have 12 Different COG's Gathering In Branson Missouri For The Feast Of Tabernacles

Church of God News has up its annual list of COG's that allow open attendance at their Feast of Tabernacles. The exclusionists, like Living Church of God, Philadelphia Church of God, and Restored Chruch of God do not allow visitors.

Most sites listed have a single COG group meeting in the location, but not Branson Missouri. It has 12 different groups meeting there. Talk about unity in the Church of God! What a sad situation. On top of that, you can see from the list below that they cannot even agree on the dates and number of days they are gathering. There will undoubtedly be some church-hopping within these groups as friends want to meet up, but some of the groups will frown upon it.

Let's see how many of these folks will jump over and visit Bob Thiel's improperly named "continuing" Church of God. If they thought they would be bored out of their minds with some of the speakers at their sites, watching Almost Arrested Bwana Bob bounce around the stage would be a nightmare come true! The lake of fire never looked so good!

At least this time around multiple COG's in the same building is not happening, unless LCG, RCG, and PCG might happen to be there, and if they are, you can be guaranteed that there will be no Feast hopping. The chances of getting a friendly nod or even an uncomfortable greeting will probably not be happening.

 

The red number after the festival dates below is the calendar method.

Please see the Biblical Calendar 2022 for an explanation of the dates.
Many festival sites will be holding a service on the first evening.


Missouri

Branson   Oct.10-17 [2]   Venue : Honeysuckle Inn

Church of God Ministries International   Festival Info   Visitor Info

Branson   Oct.10-17 [2]   Venue : Radisson Hotel

Continuing Church of God   Festival Info   Visitor Info

Branson   Oct.10-17 [2]   Venue : Westgate Branson Woods Resort

Intercontinental Church of God   Festival Info   Visitor Info

Branson  Oct.10-17 [2]   Venue : The Mansion Theater  

United Church of God   Festival Info   Visitor Info

Branson   Oct.10-17 [2]   Venue : Star Theater

Church of God a Worldwide Association   Festival Info   Visitor Info   

Branson   Oct.10-17 [2]   Venue : Stone Castle Hotel

Christian Biblical Church of God   Festival Info   Visitor Info

Branson  Oct.10-17 [2]   Venue : t.b.a. 

H.W.A. Library   Festival Info   Visitor Info

Branson   Oct.10-17 [5]   Venue :  RecPlex

International Congregation of Yahweh   Festival Info   Visitor Info

Cassville   Venue & Visitor Info : Paradise Valley Resort 

Torah Family   Oct.11-18 [5]   Festival Info

Fulton   Venue & Visitor Info : Harmony Hill Youth Camp 

Yahweh’s Assembly in Yahshua   Oct.11-18 [7]   Festival Info

Holt’s Summit   Venue : YRM – dorm rooms, RV and camp site.

Yahweh’s Restoration Ministry   Oct.12-19 [7]   Festival Info   Visitor Info

Steelville   Venue & Visitor Info : Garrison’s River Resort

EliYah   Oct.12-19 [7]   Festival Info


LCG Friday Night Smackdown: LCG Members Are Too Easily Distracted And May Not Be Able To Rule In The Kingdom Of God With Jesus

 


Please brethren, STOP being so easily distracted! You are not going to be able to rule with Jesus in the Kingdom to come unless you stop! Heck, you might not even become a god if you continue down this path.



First Things First: We certainly appear to be living at the end of an age. It is also an age of distractions—where job and personal concerns, television, social media, and having fun all compete for our attention. In the parables of the sower and of the ten virgins, Jesus warned that such a time would come (Matthew 13:18–23; 25:1– 13). The prophet Isaiah also warned that we must “seek the LORD while He may be found” and that we must forsake any evil ways that we may have (Isaiah 55:6–8). In order to develop and maintain a close relationship with God, David made time to pray three times a day—in the morning, at noon, and in the evening (Psalm 55:17). Paul reminded Church members in Corinth of the importance of nourishing the gift of God’s Spirit within us on a daily basis (2 Corinthians 4:16). We do this by making time for regular prayer and Bible study and by taking time to meditate on why we have been called and how we are progressing in our spiritual life (2 Timothy 2:15; Proverbs 4:26–27). Our overall goal should be to develop more of the mind, perspective, and character of Jesus Christ. Are we really doing these things—or are we frequently distracted? As we head toward the climax of this present age, let’s strive to make the most of the time we have (Ephesians 5:15–16) to walk in the footsteps of Jesus as we prepare to rule with Him in the coming Kingdom of God. Let’s put First Things First!
Have a profitable Sabbath, Douglas S. Winnail

LCG: Tithing to Impress God - Even When You Are Financially Struggling


Gerald Weston is delighted to see that some LCG members heeded Richard Ames call last weeek to send in as much money as they could, even though they were suffering financially.

Weston goes on to tell LCG members that it is important to tithe so they can impress God, because if they don't they will suffer the consequences!


Dr. Douglas Winnail should arrive home from a busy trip to the UK by the time you see this. He conducted Tomorrow’s World Presentations in Belfast, Northern Ireland; and London, England; held a regional ministerial conference; and made personal visits with our ministers in the region. A number of us from here in Charlotte returned from a successful two-week Teen Camp in Texas and are catching up on work here at headquarters. Many members and coworkers responded positively to the letter Mr. Richard Ames sent this month, for which we are very grateful. These are challenging times for many, especially those on fixed incomes and even moderate-sized families. We must remember to put God first by tithing faithfully, and claim His promise to provide for us, but offerings may need to be less, due to high inflation. That is where those of us who have a little extra can make up for those who are struggling to take care of essentials: tithing, putting food on the table, buying fuel for their vehicles to get to work. Thank you, brethren, for responding to Mr. Ames’ letter.—Gerald Weston

When you are struggling to put food on your table and buy fuel for your car so you can go to work, tithing is NOT an essential thing to be doing. God is no more pleased by this than the leaders of LCG truly are.

When you are struggling to survive, remember this:




 

Thursday, July 28, 2022

Dave Pack: The RCG Simpleton

 


“The RCG Simpleton”

 

David C. Pack led the paid audience of The Restored Church of God in doing the Hokey Pokey on Tuesday, but he called it, “The Greatest Unending Story! (Part 384).”

 

Today is Tammuz 29 and Dave called an audible. After making Av 1 the “next big deal,” he then shifted things to come off of The Feast of Trumpets instead. Which then shifted the start of the Kingdom of God to Av 15. But now, Elul 15 is the real big deal to pivot from. When you subtract 45 days from Elul 15, you get to tonight at sunset. Yes, we are back to Av 1, folks.

 

I am not skilled enough to make the above explanation any easier. At least I did not take up 79 minutes of your day to do it.

 

Most people will not have read this article until after Dave has already started his next 24 hours of continuous failure. Take a deep breath and enjoy the moment. I am glad I did not remove the countdown from the website.

 

Elul 15 should be easy for everyone to remember because to the heathens, it is September 11, 2022.

 

@ 00:35 If this message had a one-word theme, it would be either “simple” or “simplicity.”

 

Which is it, Dave? He had plenty of time to just pick one and go with it to make the point. Instead, he waffles. So, who is supposed to make that call? Dave presents a one-word theme with options. In his attempt to make something simple, he even complicates that.

 

He must be so used to giving himself “an out” for when the inevitable failure happens, that his autonomic response is to not take a stand.

 

Some may think I nitpick by pointing out the seemingly mundane, but once you see Dave and the enablers with the proper light, you can spot noteworthy trends. Is this trivial? Or is the man broadcasting a consistent pattern of confusion and uncertainty?

 

@ 00:46 Could everything still somehow all be simpler, better, and sooner? Let’s see in this final message.

 

The angle that the picture is "better" than it was before is like saying that sheep shit is better than cow shit. The problem is that both are still shit. In fact, it is more enjoyable to step into either one than listen to another droning message of delusional fraud.

 

“Sooner” than May 15 or May 30 or June 5 or June 15 or June 30 or July 3 or July 14? Those dates are worth repeating every time Dave utters nonsense about “things being sooner than we thought” because it is flat-out, not true.

 

@ 07:03 So, a simple and powerful first kingdom would resolve every question we’ve ever had. All Mystery would be gone. And we would be able to correctly explain “10 evil days” not as starting this so that there's somehow 55 days to the 7-year kingdom but the 10 days close it and everything is 45 days. So on that alone, if we can prove it, it got a whole lot simpler.

 

Dave has discovered prophetic Silly Putty but calls it a kingdom.

 

He combs through parables and the prophets of the Old Testament to manufacture a malleable substance, which he then forces into any scenario he imagines. And it will always make the math work.

 

It is Silly Putty but with different colors to be combined. 45 days. 10 days. 3 ½ days. Even those have some “play” when needed.

 

If the shape is a square, no problem. Cram a “hidden” kingdom in there and suddenly it all works. If the shape is a star, same deal. Wow, it just fits. What a wonderful discovery in the nick of time.

 

Instead of the old ways of pounding a circle inside a triangle with a mallet, Dave now has this pliable amorphous kingdom period that can be shaped any way that is needed.

 

Rest assured, this type of kingdom business is going to have legs. Dave will use it from here on out.

 

@ 13:39 69 weeks of 7 years each, called a shabua, that’s a week, would have all of those 7 years, every single one of them, there’s no gaps, every single one of them would have started at Elul 15. Now, that’s a bombshell. By any stretch, it’s a bombshell. Our question would be, when the 70th week began, just because, you know, two thousand years passed, nearly, when the 70th week began would God change the date? Would the 70th week, which would be The Day of the Lord, change from what occurred for 483 years? That became the question. And it is it is the ultimate question right now. But you can’t get to that if you don’t have the 10 days fixed.

 

If you actually try to pay attention when you read that, ask yourself if you are ready to judge:

 

This message is A) Simple; or B) Simplicity.

 

@19:00 A full moon at The Day of the Lord fits much better than a new moon on Trumpets, were it The Day of the Lord. So, you’re seeing that things are better than we thought. Sooner than we thought.

 

There is that word “better” again. If he just keeps repeating it, perhaps it will manifest as reality. So far, I have been repeating, “Hot wife. Hot wife. Hot wife,” and yet, she has not knocked on my door.

 

It still does not appear that we have ventured into “better” territory. Different is not the same as better. Do you mean, better than proven failures? Better than broken theories? Better than nonsensical babblings?

 

Dave went on with more math, more calendars, and more moons.

 

He must have forgotten that he spent almost ten minutes a few weeks back explaining the “perfect math” proving that Tammuz was the final deal.

 

Perhaps the biblical scholars out there can fact-check this one:

 

@ 19:36 Well, that’s impossible to argue. It’s impossible that I can see to argue with the fact that Christ’s ministry began on Elul 15. And curiously, it looks like He disappeared for about 45 days right before that.

 

Matthew, Mark, and Luke all say, “40 days and 40 nights”—not 45. But when should you take what they say as the gospel truth? Dave conjured “five days of slop” to make his current theory fit. See, prophetic Silly Putty in action.

 

@ 20:12 …then He came back and He said, “My time is fulfilled.” Now, I’m not saying that’s exactly 45 days, but it’s within a day or so.

 

Curiously, sometimes Dave stresses how important exactness is. But other times, when that just will not work for his current line of thinking, it becomes A-OK to be approximate. Much like when the antecedent is all-important except in cases when it means nothing. Add or subtract. Multiply or divide. Do whatever you need to at the time and you are good to go.

 

Dave keeps getting boned by Habakkuk 3:2 and what that means.

 

@ 22:13 I had to admit I had it right a while back. I thought maybe it was Tammuz 1. But it’s still sort of “in the midst of the years.”

 

It takes a truly humble, mature man to admit when he is right.

 

Dave did a little more than just “thought maybe” about Tammuz 1. In Part 378, he pressured the brethren to send in their Common while holding over them the threat of losing their eternal life. That was no soft sell.

 

Thank God for those wicked serpents at the back of the hall who actually RECORD what Dave says.

 

Part 379 – June 25, 2022

@ 07:13 It is not possible, write it in your notes, it is not possible that “the month” the Bible talks about is anything other than the fourth month and Tammuz which is about 96 hours away.

 

Part 379 – June 25, 2022

@ 18:34 I believe that [Tammuz 1] no less certainly than I believe the seventh day is the Sabbath.

 

Is Dave now keeping Sunday? Are Ed and Dr. Viljoen wandering the hall with Sharpies making folks redact their notes?

 

I cannot figure out if this is lying or denial. I try to give him the benefit of the doubt, but I think Dave is cracking and it is becoming harder to hide that.

 

For those interested in revisiting his adamant push for Tammuz 1, read “Cancel Your Thursday Lunch Plans” written on June 26.

 

@ 28:33 But God knew there would be one more message and I could clear all of this up.

 

I knew. Dennis and Gary knew. Brad knew. Everyone else knew, Dave. Just like we all know this is not the last one. If I had any retirement left to place on a bet in Vegas, I would go all in. The days of your long-winded voice are far from over.

 

Dave cleared nothing up. He just reshuffled the deck after the cards were dealt.

 

@ 46:19 All of that becomes easy to understand. It’s an Elul event.

 

But not too long ago, Dave pointed this out.

 

Part 376 – June 13, 2022

@ 8:44 But you know, I’d watched us go from Sebat to Adar to Adar II to Abib to Iyar and then to Sivan.

 

Then to Tammuz. Then to Av. And now we are back to our old friend, Elul. But when you subtract 45 days from Elul 15, you land back on Av 1.

 

You do the Hokey Pokey and you turn yourself around…

 

It is Av 1. It is not Av 1. It is Av 1.

 

This reminds me of all that Elijah business. I am Elijah. I am not Elijah. I may be Elijah in the future. I have already been Elijah. I am not Elijah the Prophet.

 

If only this website was up and running at the time of the Ws. Folks in RCG five years ago remember that debacle. If anyone still has those handouts, I invite you to revisit that “simplicity in Christ” which has not stopped moving to this day. Instead of a W on a projector screen, it is now the Tammuz Cooking Table. How I miss that ugly green volleyball.

 

I wonder if this next point caused any alarm bells to sound off here in Wadsworth when Dave started to mess around with the Passover again. Is he laying the foundation for a future change?

 

@ 1:00:43 And He’ll drink wine again for the first time. Take the symbols. It’s a classic example. Now we know that Christ is gonna take the symbols of the bread and the wine in early September. God doesn’t use Holy Days. We would think I thought that would be around Passover sometime. Nope. Not at all.

 

Did he really say this? Listen for yourself.


Passover Symbols



@ 1:02:59 It has been my experience, and I’ll promise you I pastored more people than any other minister who ever lived, even thought about, it has been my experience that most people we think are God’s people are lying, unbelieving hypocrites.

 

The tone of his voice was uncharacteristically soft and full of humility. If you doubt, take a listen.



I Pastored More People…


Okay, I was just kidding.

 

Dave explains that some folks (maybe me included) get to wait 45 days knowing they will be “burned alive with all the other unbelieving hypocrites who blew off God.”

 

Believe me, if "biblical" things began to happen, even when and how Dave said they would, I would drop to my knees in a heartbeat and plead with God. He would judge whether it was too late for me or not.

 

I tend to not sweat that idea too much right now because Dave keeps throwing plastic darts at a concrete board.

 

@ 1:10:58 Now, maybe we cannot know the day and the hour. If. If we know the day, it’s Thursday night. I’m not sure.

 

@ 1:14:46 So, could it be Thursday night, Friday night, at the end of the Sabbath into Saturday night? Or later? No matter, we wait.

 

Wow. This was spoken with such power and clarity that you cannot deny God is behind this. Except, God is not behind this.

 

He even continued into pondering the possibilities of Av 5 starting at sunset on Monday night or maybe all the way through Trumpets. At this point, why not just let everyone go home and say, “I don’t know folks. Sorry I bothered you.”

 

Okay, I laughed out loud when I heard this next quote:

 

@ 1:18:28 Because everyone who understands how simple things just became realizes there is nothing more for me to teach. The days of my voice have to be over. I have nothing else.

 

AMEN! If only that were true.

 

@ 1:18:48 It got so easy. So simple. It was hard to believe and yet God waited to the end to make it a signal that we had to be near the end. So, all I can tell you is this man “prepares the way” right before the Father and Christ coming when He’s still a messenger of the covenant, he “rushes to call it out,” I don’t know how I’d be rushing if we got a two-week wait. Or a ten-day wait or even a seven-day wait.

 

@ 1:19:18 It’s not gonna go another year. The Mystery’s over. I “give a ration” and then “he watches.” And he seems to pretty much know when it is ‘cause he “tells the house” and they’re “found watching” with “their lights on” as though they know the day. If I know the day, if it’s exact, we have two days to go.

 

If Dave was not all throughout the pages of your Bible when he paraphrases so many verses that apply to himself in a continuous stream, then those comments would appear to be insane.

 

This was delivered on Tuesday, July 26. Tonight at sundown is the beginning of Av 1.

 

Wait for it…

 

@ 1:19:49 The series is over.

 

He said this with dramatic thumps on the table meaning, “for realsies this time.”

 

Is this for real? Let me consult the Magic 8 Ball website.




Marc Cebrian

See: The RCG Simpleton