One of the slickest sleight-of-hand tricks many of the COGs employ is how they date their anniversaries. While most of the major splinter groups started around 1995-1997, they elect to date their existence to the early years of the Worldwide Church of God.
Many of the more aberrant splinter groups like Restored Church of God, Philadelphia Church of God, Church of God Preaching the Kingdom, and the improperly named "continuing" Church of God believe they are holding true to Herbert Armstrong's teaching in spite of the fact the current doctrinal and public face of these churches are light years different than what Herbert Armstrong envisioned or how the Worldwide Church of God acted.
The uncomfortable fact that all of these groups ignore is that if they had pulled this crap of starting separate churches they would have been disfellowshipped and marked from day one. None of these groups can make the excuse that if WCG had not changed doctrines then they would not have split off. The men in charge of each of these groups were already causing problems in the Worldwide Church of God where they were ministers. These people are no heroes and none of them have any legticmacy validating their existence. Their ordinations became invalid the second they walked out the door of the mother church, the Worldwide Church of God. Herbert Armstrong would have ensured that, rather swiftly.
A reader here sent this:
Here's something I noticed lately. The various splinters like to claim to be a continuation of WCG, as evidenced by the anniversary celebrations they have. COGWA, for example, doesn't have a 13 year anniversary in 2023, they have a 70 year anniversary.
This kind of sleight-of-hand is not confined to COGWA. Thier mother church, the UCG does the same thing:
13 comments:
No slight to you except your spelling but it should be "sleight", Mr. Slate.
What are these COGaWA people going to do if when they are resurrected the first thing they see is Jesus, in His long hair, on stage with the Lynyrd Skynyrd band, jamming with them on the Freebird solo, on a classic Gibson Firebird guitar??? That'll be a real social dilemma! Will they applaud in deep appreciation, or turn their noses up in disgust???
U Know Who
"No slight to you except your spelling but it should be "sleight", Mr. Slate."
Thanks. It was correct in the body, but Grammarly does not spell-check article titles.
Grace Communion International does that too. On one hand, they claim they were not really Christians back in the good old days and yet they look back fondly to it and claim they were learning about Jesus way back when. Armstrongism, regardless of its name, is a confusing mess.
Since these groups are all professional bible twisters, it's to be expected that they will lie about their birth date.
I've noticed how their web site Sabbath service congregation photos show them as basically middle aged. With so few new members, that can't be the case.
Getting desperate for posts to bury your Passover mockery big mistake.
How tedius and small minded does this post read ? Reads as if a bullying attitude wrote it.
These congregations most probably can legally claim to have existed all those years because the is a completely different attitude amongst the members than those who rule. Those congregations survive DESPITE not because of those who rule.
Is it just me? Sometimes when I read the comments, I feel like our friend Byker Bob is commenting anonymously. Not that there is anything wrong with that.
Richard
Nah, you can scroll down to previous posts and read it four times a day if you like. Its kind of like (shocker) how a blog works!
The ACOG's aren't the only ones who add years to their age. Some Baptist groups will claim the Baptist religion is the original form of Christianity. However, research done by Baptist researchers and scholars show the Baptist faith originated in England around 1609. Interestingly enough, the sects that these Baptists claim as their spiritual ancestors are the same ones that the WCG also held as their forefathers!
He's actually signed in, admitted this and explained himself, Richard at 9:09. If you are familiar with literary styles, and know the shibboleths they uniquely use, you can surely see that other long term, well known commenters have done this as well. It places the emphasis back on discussion and content, thwarting the attempts of trolls to go after personalities.
If COGWA and UCG people use WCG roots to give them legitimacy, why won't they accept splinter-members, who have the same roots, into their fellowship?
I had one COGWA head say to me that I wasn't allowed at a feast site because their meetings are "private". Private? You mean no guests allowed, even if they have the same roots?
This same COGWA big wig has written and spoken many other dim-witted and deceitful things during other crises in the church.
Why can't he be honest and speak the truth that, "We don't want you here because you said something bad about us, you criticized us unfairly, you said something we disagree with..."?
Doesn't anyone in the church know how to deal with rebukes and reproofs anymore?
When Paul rebuked Peter, did Peter put him out of the church?
How many posts are written by the same author ? Only God knows what goes on. But he knows how lives are being lived.
Anybody reading Exodus 20 or Duet 5 these days?
Commandment 9 (Ex 20:16/Duet 5:20)
Covers a False Witness, giving a false Narrative
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