AI COG: Herbert Armstrong’s 1931 Fundamentals: A Theological Circus of Waffles and Profit: An Exposition of HWA's 1931 Fundamentals of Beliefs

Herbert Armstrong’s 1931 Fundamentals: A Theological Circus of Waffles and Profit

An Exposition of HWA's 1931 Fundamentals of Beliefs

Welcome, dear AICOG readers, to the grand spectacle of Herbert W. Armstrong—self-styled Apostle, Jesus 2.0, and maestro of doctrinal flip-flops. In 1931, Armstrong didn’t just wake up and decide he was special; no, he calculated it. He believed 1931 marked exactly 100 nineteen-year  “time cycles” since 31 AD, when he insisted Jesus founded the Christian Church. (Yes, he was that guy who thought God worked in neat, 19-year cosmic increments—like a divine subscription renewal.) Armed with this revelation and his Fundamentals of Belief, he set out to reboot the “one true church”—and, coincidentally, his bank account. Let’s unpack this circus from a Traditional Christian perspective, with a smirk or two, to expose how Armstrong’s waffling and profiteering turned theology into a punchline.

Herbert Armstrong's 1931 Fundamentals of Belief

The 1931 Fundamentals—ten points of “divine” insight—start with a nod to Christian basics, only to detour into oddball tangents and later morph into whatever kept the tithes rolling. Here we’ll spotlight the absurdity of a man who couldn’t keep his story straight long enough to cash the next tithe check.

1. One God, Three Persons… So Far, So Good?

1. We believe in one God, eternally existing in three persons, Father, Son and Holy Spirit; a personal God of supreme mind, power, knowledge and authority, who created the Heavens and the Earth and all that in them is. 

Armstrong begins with a Trinitarian flourish: one God in three persons—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Sounds Christian, right? Well, hold on to your billfolds. While we in Christianity affirm the Holy Trinity as the eternal, consubstantial mystery revealed through Christ, Armstrong’s later writings reveal he wasn’t so sure. By the 1940s, he’d flirt with a quasi-binitarian polytheism, demoting the Spirit to a vague Jedi Force. Why? Maybe three persons were too many to keep track of when you’re busy counting donations. Christianity doesn’t budge: the Trinity isn’t a suggestion—it’s the bedrock of the faith, confessed in the Nicene Creed since 325 AD. Armstrong’s waffling? A telltale sign of a man making it up as he went.

2. Bible Alone… Until It’s Bible Plus Me

2. We believe the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments are God's revelation and complete expressed will to man inspired in thought and word, and infallible in the original writings; that they are of supreme and final authority in faith and in life, and the source of truth. We believe that all teachings contrary to the Holy Bible are false and spurious. We accept the Bible alone, and not the Bible and something else.

Next, he claims the Scriptures are God’s infallible revelation, the sole authority— sola scriptura with a vengeance. Fair enough, until you notice Armstrong’s fine print: he’s the one interpreting it for you. By the time his Worldwide Church of God (WCG) was raking in millions, the Bible wasn’t enough—you needed his magazines, his prophecies, his radio rants. Christianity, by contrast, pairs Scripture with Holy Tradition, the living voice of the original ancient Church guided by the Spirit. Armstrong’s “Bible alone” was a Trojan horse for “Armstrong alone,” a neat trick to keep the flock dependent and the cash flowing.

3. Jesus: God, Man, and Armstrong’s Ego Mirror

3. We believe Jesus of Nazareth was the Messiah, the Christ, the divine Son of God, come in human flesh, begotten of the Holy Spirit, born of the human Virgin Mary, and that He is true God and true man, existing in and since the beginning with God the Father; and that all things came into being through Him. 

Armstrong’s Christology—Jesus as divine Son, born of the Virgin—starts christian-ish. But here’s the kicker: in 1931, he’s already positioning himself as Christ’s handpicked successor. Jesus (a separate demi-god from the Father God) founded the Church; Armstrong reboots it. Humble, right? Orthodoxy sees Christ as the eternal Head of the Church, not a franchise owner passing the keys to a 20th-century ad man. Armstrong’s later tweaks—like insisting Jesus’ divine role was to rubber-stamp his authority—reek of a guy who saw the Messiah as a business partner.

4. Sin and Death: Original, but Not That Original

4. We believe man was created, originally in the image of God; that he sinned and thereby brought upon himself and all the human family not only mortality and physical death, but that, as a result of Adam's fall through disobedience to God, all are born with a sinful nature. Therefore all, upon reaching moral responsibility, become sinners in thought, word and deed, thus bringing upon themselves the penalty for sin, which is that second and final death in which they perish.

Man’s fall, sinful nature, mortality—Armstrong’s take here echoes standard Christian vocabulary. But wait for the sequel: by the 1940s, he’d add quirks like “soul sleep” and annihilationism, ditching eternal punishment for a more marketable “you just disappear.” Christianity holds to the Fall’s cosmic weight and the hope of resurrection, not Armstrong’s budget-friendly version where the stakes feel lower—and the tithes feel higher.

5. Christ’s Sacrifice: A Legal Loophole?

5. We believe the Lord Jesus Christ, though in all points tempted as we are, lived without sin, and died on the cross as a representative and substitutionary sacrifice; thus making it legally possible for man's sins to be forgiven, and for God to release him from their penalty, since Jesus, whose life was of greater value than the sum-total of all the human family (Because it was He who brought them into being) has thus paid the penalty for all sin in man's stead. 

Armstrong’s atonement theology—Jesus as substitute, paying sin’s penalty—sounds familiar, but he frames it like a cosmic courtroom drama. Jesus’ life, “worth more than all humanity,” settles the debt. Orthodox Christianity sees the Cross as more than a legal fix; it’s the triumph of love over death, a mystery of union with God. Armstrong’s transactional take sets the stage for his later prosperity gospel leanings: obey me, pay me, and God’s got your back.

6. Three Days, Three Nights: Math Over Mystery

6. We believe the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ was raised from the dead after His body reposed three full days and three full nights (72 hours) in the grave; thus making immortality possible for mortal man: (Matt. 12:40) and that He ascended into Heaven where He now sits at the right hand of God as our High Priest and Advocate. 

Here’s where Armstrong gets weirdly fixated: Jesus had to be in the tomb 72 hours (three days, three nights) because… Matthew 12:40 says so? Orthodoxy doesn’t sweat the stopwatch; we proclaim Christ’s death and resurrection as the defeat of Hades, not a timetable to prove. Armstrong’s obsession with literalism—later a cornerstone of his “true church” branding—feels like a gimmick to stand out in the crowded prophet market.

7. Premillennial Return: Jesus, the CEO

7. We believe in the personal, premillennial, imminent return of the Lord Jesus Christ to rule the nations as King of Kings, sit upon the throne of David, and establish the Kingdom of God upon earth forever. 

Christ’s imminent return to rule? Fine, but Armstrong’s version—Jesus on David’s throne, running a literal kingdom—smacks of American apocalypticism. Christianity awaits the Second Coming in glory, not as a political coup. Armstrong’s millennial hype, later tied to failed date-setting (1975, anyone?), was a cash cow: scare the faithful, collect the tithes, repeat.

8. Salvation: Surrender or Bust

8. We believe that all who truly repent, surrender to God in a willing spirit of obedience, accept Jesus Christ as their personal Savior, and His shed blood as the all-sufficient atonement for their sins, in faith believing, are forgiven their sins by an act of divine grace, justified, pardoned from the death penalty, and receive the gift of the Holy Spirit, thus being baptized by the Spirit into the Body of Christ, the true Church of God; that those who have surrendered the old natural "self" and received the Holy Spirit are "born again," given a new nature, and are new creatures in Christ Jesus: that, so long as they continue in a surrendered, yielded, humble spirit of obedience to God and in the faith of Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit continues to abide within them; that the presence of God's Holy Spirit within is the Presence, conditionally during this life, of immortal life. 

Repent, accept Jesus, get the Spirit—standard Christian vocabulary injected in the WCG cult, until Armstrong adds his spin: you’re only “born again” if you’re fully surrendered his way. Traditional Christianity baptizes us into Christ’s Body, a sacramental reality, not a loyalty oath to a radio preacher. Armstrong’s conditional salvation—stay obedient or lose the Spirit—later morphed into a control tactic. Obey the WCG (and its 30%+ tithe), or you’re out.

9. God’s “Benefits”: A Divine Vending Machine

9. We believe God freely bestows certain "benefits" upon His children; that He hears, and literally answers the earnest and believing prayers of those who keep His commandments, according to His expressed will and written promises (1 John 3:22): that He is able and always willing to perform that which He has promised in His Word, including physical healing, providing the way for actual needs, deliverance from trouble, distress, temptations, etc. 

Pray, pay, obey, and God delivers healing, provision, deliverance—Armstrong’s prosperity lite. Christianity prays too, but we don’t treat God like a cosmic ATM. Armstrong’s promise of “literal answers” set up his followers for disappointment—or deeper dependence on him when the miracles didn’t materialize. Show me the money, indeed.

10. Resurrection: Winners Live, Losers Vanish

10. We believe in the bodily resurrection of the just and the unjust: the just to receive the gift of immortality and eternal life in the Kingdom of God ; the unjust to receive the penalty of the second and final death, in which they perish.

Bodily resurrection for the just, annihilation for the unjust—Armstrong’s endgame ditches eternal hell for a cleaner exit. Christianity affirms judgment and the hope of redemption, not a simplistic “perish or prosper.” His later doctrines doubled down on this, tying salvation to WCG membership. Convenient, no?

The Waffle King’s Legacy

Armstrong’s 1931 Fundamentals were a launchpad, not a foundation. Over decades, he’d tweak, twist, and toss them—adding British Israelism, Sabbath laws, and anti-Trinitarian rants—whatever kept the WCG humming and the coffers full. Meanwhile Christianity, rooted in the Apostles and Fathers, doesn’t bend for trends or profit. Armstrong’s church? A doctrinal waffle iron, churning out whatever sold.

So, dear readers, next time someone claims to be the “one true church” reborn, grab your Bible—and your wallet—and run. Herbert Armstrong didn’t debunk Christianity; he debunked himself, one laughable flip-flop at a time.

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Herbert Armstrong’s 1931 Fundamentals © 2025 by Ai-COG is licensed under CC BY-ND 4.0

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