Living Church of God has issued its latest semi-annual/co-worker letter, and surprise—it’s 2026, but the script hasn’t changed since Herbert W. Armstrong was pounding the typewriter in the 1930s. The Middle East is on fire again (Iran, Israel, proxies, exploding pagers—very cinematic), U.S. pride is peaking, and therefore the Great Tribulation is right around the corner. Again.
The letter checks every classic Armstrongist box with impressive efficiency. British Israelism gets its mandatory plug: the United States is Manasseh, Britain et al. are Ephraim, tiny Israel is just Judah, and God is about to “break the pride of your power” (Leviticus 26:19) any minute now. Current events are dutifully slotted into the template: “Peace and safety!” will be declared, then—bam—sudden destruction (1 Thessalonians 5:3). YouTube subscribers are up (yay!), magazine circulation is down (but that’s strategic, of course), and the faithful are reminded they’re special co-workers in “the Work” that will save them from the very doom they’re being sold.
It’s almost comforting in its predictability. For ninety years, Armstrongism has run the same profitable racket: take today’s headlines, slap on Genesis 49 and Daniel 7, warn that human peace efforts are doomed, and pass the collection plate. The 1940s version said Nazi Germany would conquer Britain and the U.S. would lose the war. The 1970s bestseller 1975 in Prophecy! guaranteed nuclear fire before 1975 and Christ’s return right after. When those dates sailed past without so much as a trumpet blast, the response wasn’t “oops”—it was “the big picture is still correct; watch the news!”
And here we are, still watching. Still being told the latest Gaza/Iran flare-up proves everything is on schedule. Still hearing that any actual peace would only be the calm before the real storm. The pattern is so reliable you could set your doomsday clock by it.
Here’s the brutal reality Armstrong’s heirs keep dodging: their entire prophetic system is a self-licking ice cream cone of confirmation bias, where every fresh crisis is hailed as divine proof while decades of spectacular flops are flushed down the memory hole faster than a failed Plain Truth prediction. British Israelism—their foundational fairy tale that magically turns Anglo-Saxons into the lost tribes—has been demolished by DNA, archaeology, and basic history, yet they clutch it like a security blanket that somehow “unlocks” whatever CNN is screaming about this week.
The real miracle isn’t biblical foresight; it’s the psychological grift. Sell anxious folks a starring role as the enlightened remnant, convince them every war and stock dip is validation, and watch the donations and YouTube metrics roll in while the rest of the world shrugs and moves on. After nearly a century of breathless “any day now” that has delivered exactly zero fulfillments, the only prophecy Armstrongism has ever nailed is this one: another urgent co-worker letter will arrive right on schedule, fear freshly repackaged for the latest headlines.
The emperor’s prophetic wardrobe isn’t just threadbare—it’s been stark naked since 1934, and the faithful are still pretending not to notice.
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April 15th, 2026
Dear Brethren and Co-workers with Christ,
The world is watching the Middle East. Events happening halfway around the world are impacting us just about anywhere we live. What will the price be at the pump next week? How will this affect food prices? Will acts of terror be unleashed beyond the Middle East? How long will this last?
We are living in interesting times. The world has changed dramatically since COVID became a household word in 2020. The manner in which the United States pulled out of Afghanistan brought shame to the country and may have encouraged Russia to start a war in Ukraine. The October 7, 2023 terrorist attack by Hamas upon the State of Israel stunned the world, as has the aftermath in Gaza.
The enemies of Israel might have thought twice before poking the lion had they understood what Jacob foretold concerning the Jews in the last days. “And Jacob [Israel] called his sons and said, ‘Gather together, that I may tell you what shall befall you in the last days…. Judah, you are he whom your brothers shall praise; your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies…. Judah is a lion’s whelp; from the prey, my son, you have gone up. He bows down, he lies down as a lion; and as a lion, who shall rouse him?’” (Genesis 49:1, 8–9).
The ferocity with which Judah responded surprised many. Not only did the Israelis devastate Gaza in going after Hamas, but—in a move that would normally be seen only at the movies—they decapitated Hezbollah by assassinating its leaders with exploding personal communication devices. Virtually all senior leadership in Hamas and Hezbollah have been eliminated.
However, sooner or later the head of the snake had to be addressed, and Israel and the United States have been doing that with military precision and power never seen before. Iran has lashed out in response by attacking Israel directly but has not stopped there. It has also unleashed drones and missiles against refineries, airfields, and civilian targets of its Gulf state neighbors: Oman, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, and Bahrain. Even far away Cyprus in the Mediterranean has been targeted. The failed attack on the joint U.S. and U.K. military base on Diego Garcia some 2,000 miles away left no doubt that Iran was working on larger missiles with which to strike targets at greater distances.
Where will this end? Will the U.S. and Israel bring peace to the Middle East? Not according to Bible prophecy. Let us not make the same mistake Iran and its proxies made by not understanding what the Scriptures reveal.
At the end of World War II, the United States was riding high and proud of its military. Even so, all the great powers of the day were beaten up and ready to move on. But when has the U.S. expressed more pride in its power than right now? This should trouble Americans and the rest of the world—for when America stumbles, as it surely will, it will not be for the long-term good of the world. When God said, “I will break the pride of your power” (Leviticus 26:19), it was more than a prophecy for the ancient Jews. The Jews represent only two of twelve Israelite tribes—Judah, where they get their name, and Benjamin. Most people do not know the Bible or history and fail to see—even to ask the question of—who the other tribes are. As explained in our free resource The United States and Great Britain in Prophecy, the most prominent tribe today is that of Joseph and his two sons. Manasseh was Joseph’s older son and is today the United States, while his other son Ephraim fulfills the prophecy of the company of nations: the U.K., Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa (Genesis 48:8–20; 35:11). The tiny modern State of Israel, though central to end-time events, was never destined by God to fulfill the birthright promises given to the sons of Joseph. “Now the sons of Reuben the firstborn of Israel—he was indeed the firstborn, but because he defiled his father’s bed, his birthright was given to the sons of Joseph,the son of Israel… yet Judah prevailed over his brothers, and from him came a ruler, although the birthright was Joseph’s” (1 Chronicles 5:1–2).
Pride in one’s power requires two obvious conditions: power and pride, both of which are currently in abundance in the U.S. and the nation of Israel. Instead of repenting of our individual and national sins, we continue to rely on our own strength. No one knows yet how this current war will turn out, what twists and turns there may yet be, but it will not be a lasting peace. God’s word tells us that there will be a time in the future when it appears that peace has finally been achieved, but when that happens, there is another scripture we will do well to remember.
But concerning the times and the seasons, brethren, you have no need that I should write to you. For you yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night. For when they say, “Peace and safety!” then sudden destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant woman. And they shall not escape. But you, brethren, are not in darkness, so that this Day should overtake you as a thief…. Therefore let us not sleep, as others do, but let us watch and be sober (1 Thessalonians 5:1–4, 6).
We must not be taken off guard as the world will be. Pride goes before a fall, and God will break the pride of our power (Proverbs 16:18; Leviticus 26:19). Any humanly devised peace will not last. Sudden disaster will follow not long afterward. The only source of lasting peace is by way of the Prince of Peace, who will prevent human annihilation (Matthew 24:21–22). Thankfully, Christ’s intervention is just as sure as are the other prophecies referred to in this letter.
The Gospel of the Kingdom of God that Jesus proclaimed for three and a half years prior to His crucifixion included that of world peace under His rule. That rule will include those who fully submit to His will today. Those who do—hopefully you and I—will be resurrected from death, or changed instantly at His return, to be part of that rule. “Then the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people, the saints of the Most High. His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey Him” (Daniel 7:27). Those who overcome now will live and reign with Christ for a thousand years on this earth (Revelation 20:4; 5:8–10).
Meanwhile, we continue to do the Work. We preach that good news as far and wide as we are able, with God’s help. Our YouTube presence continues to grow, adding about 30,000 new subscribers each month in the English language. Our current total is 730,000 in English, 450,000 in Spanish, and 58,600 in French.
Some have noticed that our Tomorrow’s World magazine subscription list has dropped from 600,000 copies down to 374,000. This was deliberate on our part due to rising costs in postage and other factors. One way that we manage the number of subscribers is by sending renewal letters to those who may no longer be interested. Our magazines will always be sent free of charge, but we want to know whether people are still interested. We value a large readership more than a large subscribership.
Dear brethren and co-workers, thank you for your part in this Work of God. The world is realigning geopolitically and gearing up for war, just as foretold regarding the time leading up to the great conflict between mankind and God at the end of this age (Joel 3:9–16). Our staff here in Charlotte and our offices around the world are working diligently to fulfill God’s commission to preach the Gospel to all the world as a witness. We greatly appreciate the Work that you are doing on your knees beseeching God for guidance and with your financial support. God is building a great team with all of us!
Sincerely, in Christ’s service,
Gerald E. Weston
18 comments:
It’s always interesting listening or reading some of the splinters with their views when world events are taking place in regards to prophecy. This group, LCG, has some decent people. But I happened to listen to a little bit of Rod McNair’s recent sermon on “the promise of the Messiah” which is decent. But he got to a point where he says that “prophecy is better understood AFTER it takes place.” And I just laughed at that point, because every prophet or man of God in the bible who spoke of prophecy, spoke BEFORE the events took place (because the Lord or an angel conversed with them). See Armstrongism has a history of not being on time with “what they want in their framework of prophecy.” It’s what God wants and it’s His way on His timing. At least McNair and his brother realize they don’t know everything as of yet, as he mentioned it in that sermon. They are decent men, but they still have HWA’s puzzle pieces in their hands waiting to place on the Armstrong puzzle game.
Cowboy
In Gerald's world, "one out of 50" 2% got 10% every year.
Didn't they boast in the past about how many magazines they had circulating at one point. Now let's reduce.
I can't get over how even the main stream media shrugged off the exploding pagers. Some of those affected were medical people where the lose of fingers would have been catastrophic. And many of the victims would have been robbed of their manhood. In my view, this was a war crime.
Really sad. The same old same old sh*t, regurgitated decade after decade.
BI has been so roundly and solidly rebuffed and debunked and yet here we are.
If they dumped BI, they, lcog; would likely disintegrate before our eyes. That is what happened with the mother church. This most erroneous of doctrines distorts scripture and is a gross misrepresentation and misunderstanding of it. And yes, sigh, I once sincerely believed in the doctrine. There is liberty to be found, but not within these organisations that cling to these theories. Cutting their magazine outreach due to rising costs, and deliberately ha ha, is simply an admission that they don’t have the funds, members now, to support the ‘work’. They are lucky they don’t have a corporate jet and Irish dance group to finance lol.
I know, and in this little write up, Weston doesn't even mention the Trump Admin attacking Iran first. See that's why I can't be in any of these splinter groups anymore or take them serious. BI is the glue that holds their whole theology. I don't agree with their geopolitical standpoint and BI is marinated within it and with how they look at the world. In reading most of this, he sounds mad at Iran, and they are only defending themselves. And by doing so they gotta cut cost, gas prices are gonna hurt those hour long sabbath drives, and their flights for ministers who travel across regions. Weston and others should put their angst towards their own conservative base. He mentioned nothing about how that girls school got bombed that killed over 100 people. That's a war crime.
Finally our country listened to this guy:
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/Vc_NanZ-Jos
They should make a public apology to all past and present members. Something along the line of:
"Brethren, as far as prophecy goes, we don't know our asses from a hole in the ground! The track record of our leaders has proven the words of Jesus Christ that no one knows except the Father. We apologize deeply for conducting a false church and threatening you with the tribulation and Lake of Fire, and assure you that as this is being written, we are disbanding!"
Just don't expect reparations!
Exactly. Christ told his follows that they are not to know the dates in order to guard against terror religion ploys such as Miller's 1844 or Herb's 1975.
Acts 1:6 Then they gathered around him and asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?”
7 He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority.
7:29 And this is the same church organization that had their leading minister RCM, keeping quoting "in the next 5 to 10 years" in sermons and letters. That's setting dates!! Who ya talking to Rod, God tell you that?? I think not.
HWA used to actually sign his member letters which contained false prophecy "In Jesus Name". Kind of makes you wonder. Guesses and makes shit up, and then signs "In Jesus' Name??? Strikes me as kind of blasphemous.
I recall Gerald returning to the church where I had replaced him for a visit. He gave his sermon on British Israelism which seemed a really lame topic, not to mention its complete debunking, to give as a return guest former pastor in a congregation sermon. The pastor selected to replace Gerald ultimately was sent elsewhere where he proceeded to give his 30 plus consecutive sermons on How to Keep the Sabbath. He also told me not to wear sunglasses at a church ball game in Charlotte because "the eye is lamp of the body" so don't cover it. Those churches were messed up!
Never mind if it's a sunny day outside, or you might have sensitive eyes. I can recall GTA wearing sunglasses but.....
Meanwhile Stanley Radar's sunglasses made that many apperances they had their own WCG payroll number and pension deal....
It’s obvious that Gerald Weston doesn’t know how to do a serious analysis of world events given his low media literacy. The kind of “sources” he considers informative and credible really has him looking like a goof. No special insight coming from Weston!
My problem with so many Christians is that they often go to extremes and end up embracing the superstitious aspects of Christianity.
Proper usage of correct sunglasses protects and preserves your eyes, so that they last a lifetime. Although most car windows are factory tinted these days, sunglasses are effective in preventing accidents. They save lives.
In a baseball game? They are essential! Could help you see the ball if it's headed for your face, although you can also block the sun with your glove if you are working on catching a pop fly.
Weston's an A-double crooked letter
Yea 7:25 that sunglasses scenario is how someone uses scripture to lord it over someone, in words or deeds. Not concerned about others interests. It's not love.
As you know plenty of ball players wear sunglasses (Oakley's) to block the sun while playing. But with them it can be anything (sunglasses, makeup, skirts, hats worn backwards)
6:29, how could you have replaced Gerald, when "the pastor selected to replace Gerald ultimately was sent elsewhere where he proceeded to give his 30 plus consecutive sermons on How To Keep The Sabbath"?
Did you ultimately get sent elsewhere? Earlier you said you had replaced him at the church he returned to for a visit. Were you both of the replacements, or are you saying another fella also replaced him?
I'm kinda wondering if he married young chicky-poo Ramona, "in Jesus' name"...
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