Ex-COG Member Tells Story Of Racism In The Church

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This is an excerpt of the main story:

Former racist emerges from the dark Racism wasn't about hate, as one living on the inside of this story as a brainwashed kid.

MONTANA, USA — I was around four years old when my family joined the Worldwide Church of God. It coincided with the Nixon Presidency.

One of my earliest memories is watching a Nixon rally from my dad’s shoulders. The energy of the crowd was supercharged and left a series of posterized moments in my brain. My dad, Bill, was a traveling sales rep for Ralston Purina. He spent long hours on Oklahoma’s flats with a bombastic apocalyptic AM radio preacher as his company. Herbert W. Armstrong was a voice of White Male outrage and certainty, contrasting with uncertainty. 

 

Dark as a child, when he went by another name. 

 

Our identity was racial. This cult is one of several that might be called “British Israelism.” Only the (White) descendants of the British Empire are God’s chosen people and can earn salvation. All other races are not in that club. Everybody else is going to Hell to suffer unimaginable torment. 

Read this fascinating story here:  Former racist emerges from the dark....Racism wasn't about hate, as one living on the inside of this story as a brainwashed kid.

Author's comments:

 

When Dark was still in junior high, the family stopped going to church in Tulsa—an hour car trip each way—but it wasn’t until years later he discovered they had been ex-communicated. He later learned the rift coincided with David Robinson’s tell-all book, “Herbert Armstrong’s Tangled Web,” which caused a schism within the church. Robinson had been the pastor of Dark’s family’s church, and because his family was part of Robinson’s flock, they got lumped in among the unwashed.

Robinson’s book painted Armstrong as a charlatan and narcissist, lining his own pockets with donations and caring almost nothing for his acolytes. It didn’t help that Armstrong’s son and heir-apparent, Garner Ted Armstrong, was accused of not only bucking from his father’s orthodoxies but of sexual adventures outside his marriage. One of Robinson’s most shocking accusations in his book is that Armstrong had a longstanding sexual relationship with his daughter.

PCG on why church members are important

The Philadelphia Church of God has a new article up that regurgitates some stuff Herbert Armstrong wrote decades ago. It is about the "vital" role of members to the church and is from HWA's incredibly boring book, Mystery of the Ages.

Like many things written by church leaders over the decades, it has NOT aged well. It starts right off by making a ludicrous statement:

The individual lay member has his vital part in proclaiming the good news (gospel) to the world. How? Not by going out and himself proclaiming Christ’s message to the neighborhood or to the world. That is done primarily and directly by God’s apostle through radio, television and in print!

There is no better example of Christian values than by the everyday actions of a Christian in his/her everyday life. If they actually believe what they say they believe then they live it and it is apparent to those around them.  It doesn't take some globe-trotting "apostle" who has "prepaid" for his visit with world leaders so he can preach about a "strong hand from someplace." Who needs to hear that kind of crap? That message has had zero impact upon the world while the everyday lives of Christians have made such an impact that Christianity has been an active force for 2,000+ years.

The author, Christ’s apostle [Herbert], can say emphatically that the apostles, evangelists, pastors and elders could not carry on the Work of God without the loyal backing and continual encouragement of the lay members. 

 

Neither can the individual lay member develop and build within him God’s holy, righteous and perfect character without the operations of the apostle, evangelists, pastors and elders. All these various members God has set in His Church are interdependent—mutually dependent on one another. They form a team—an organized spiritual organism—utterly different from any secular and worldly organization!

Christianity, and most religions, all operate as "spiritual organisms". Most are mutually dependant upon the interaction of followers with religious/spiritual leaders. This is not something new that Herbert pulled out of his hat.

Then they get to the real reason the church needs members. Money! 

In general, the whole operation of the Church costs money. Facilities and methods are available to the Church for performance of its commission that did not exist in the first-century world. Without the tithes and generous freewill offerings of lay members, the Church commission could not be performed in today’s world.

Oh, ye of little faith! No church needs an extravagant campus. No church needs a multi-million dollar concert hall. No church needs private jets. No church needs faculty rows and housing for its elite ministers on the cult compounds in Edmond and Wadsworth. No church needs any of that. It doesn't even need its leaders going to speak to leaders of nations in the world. 

Oh, and don't forget, church leaders need the support of the members because of the INTENSE persecution they all suffer.

Without the fervent and prevailing continual prayers of all members, the Work could not be accomplished. Without the continual ENCOURAGEMENT of lay members and those over them locally, those of us operating from headquarters could not bear up under the persecutions, oppositions, trials and frustrations.

Every "persecution" PCG faces and COG's as a whole are because of their own perverse actions. When they run off at the mouth and say dumb things, treat members like crap, and make utterly asinine prophecies, they have no right to claim persecution, opposition, trials, and frustrations. These idiots brought it upon themselves. 

Also in reverse, the lay members need just as urgently the encouragement, teaching, counseling and leadership from headquarters and local pastors.

Oh no, they don't! Considering how awful the leadership is in so many of the COG's and the fact that 99.50% of them actually have no training in real counseling presents to church members things they do NOT need. 

The “loner”—the “individual Christian,” who wants to climb up into the Kingdom some other way than by Christ and His way through His Church—is not being trained in Christ’s manner of training, to rule and reign with Christ in His Kingdom!

While it is true that Christian is a "communal" faith that creates the need for community in order for the faith to grow it is not a training ground for "proper church government" nor for becoming god as Christ is god.

The Kingdom of God will be the God Family—a superbly and highly trained and organized family of God beings. The Church is God’s special school for training those He has selected and called to be trained in His Church—to be kings and priests, to rule and to teach—for their part in that Kingdom. Only those so trained in the Church will be kings and priests in the Kingdom of God.

Pure bunk. Millions of Christians down through the centuries who have never been part of an Armstrongist COG are immediately cast aside by such flippant remarks. If the soon-coming Kingdom of God is going to be comprised of current COG leadership and certain members then the licking flames of the lake of fire would be more compassionate. Can you imagine 1,000 years being ruled over by the Flurry clan and their followers? Or, Dave Pack and his ministers? Or, even Bob Thiel. Nothing could ever be more frightening!

The sad thing is that over the 80 years existence of this version of the Church of God we have had piss-poor leadership, horrendous abuses dished out on members, hundreds of false prophets, heretical teachings, and morally bankrupt leadership. 

Never has the COG NOT been an example of first-century Christianity than it is today. 

See The Vital Role of a Church Member

 

35 Year Anniversary of Herbert Armstrong Death

 

It is hard to believe that it has been 35 years since Herbert died. 

No one, and I mean no one, could have imagined the swirling cesspool 

of splinter groups that have evolved since his death. 

He would be shocked beyond belief at what is the present-day Church of God. 

Psychotic despots and charlatans have brainwashed followers 

into believing their blasphemies. 

The ground is littered with broken marriages, broken families,

 suicides, horrific child abuse, rapists, stalkers, and even murderers. 

Every single one of today's COG leaders are certified liars and false prophets. 

EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM!

Happy New Year From Your Favorite COG False Prophet!

 

Rod Meredith, William Dankenbring, John Rittenbaugh, Gerald Waterhouse

Garner Ted Armstrong, James Malm, Bob Thiel, Gerald Weston

Gerald Flurry, Herbert Armstrong, Ron Weinland, Dave Pack

Sourcing Herbert Armstrong

As mentioned by others, various aspects of this teaching (British Israelism) were not unique to J.H. Allen, or to HWA, but if you specifically compare Allen's book with HWA's you will find some undeniable similarities in specific phrases, etc. between the books. For example, HWA used the term "Race, not Grace" in chapter IV of his book, while Allen used a similar term to title chapter II of his book. HWA also used an analogy mentioning "Californians" in chapter VI of his book... "Jews are Israelites, just as Californians are Americans. But MOST Israelites are not Jews, just as most Americans are not Californians." Allen's book states..." But the great bulk of Israelites are not the Jews, just as the great bulk of Americans are not Californians, and yet all Californians are Americans;..." chapter V. 

All this to say that many of the "truths" attributed to HWA which the COGs claim were "restored" by him were actually taught previously by others, fifteen to fifty years or more before he ever came on the scene in any public way. Not all of these men were necessarily Sabbath keepers, but some were, and some had ties to the Millerite movement in the 1800s. Their books, articles, etc. were circulated and would have probably been available in libraries with religious sections. For example, Russell's books entitled Studies in the Scriptures printed around twenty million copies in various languages and were distributed all over the world, according to Wikipedia. You can still find them in print available on Amazon. 

If we in the COGs claim to uphold "truth" then we also have to be willing to uphold "truth" even when we find it doesn't fit the narrative we have been told, and many among us still believe. I am not speaking here of the legitimacy or not of some of these specific doctrines, which people who come to this blog will hold different opinions on, and would involve a much longer conversation. But, we have been taught a certain narrative of our own church history and its founder that isn't completely accurate when one delves into the actual facts of the matter, and we become hypocrites if we continue to promote a false narrative to those who come after us, when the facts are there for anyone to see and research for themselves.

For those interested in doing some follow up on Charles Taze Russell, you can find some of his writings here... http://onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu/webbin/book/lookupname?key=Russell%2C%20C%2E%20T%2E%20%28Charles%20Taze%29%2C%201852%2D1916

A direct link to the Journal article as mentioned in the above comment is here...http://www.thejournal.org/issues/issue202/jx013118.pdf

In the above article, a man by the name of George Storrs is also mentioned as being a mentor of Russell, and a volume of his Six Sermons can be found here... http://watchtowerdocuments.org/documents/1856_Six_Sermons_Storrs.pdf

As others have mentioned, G.G. Rupert was a proponent of keeping the Biblical holy days. Some of his writings can be found here... http://www.friendsofsabbath.org/ABC/GG%20Rupert/ggrupert.htm

An online version of Judah's Scepter and Joseph's Birthright can be found here...https://originofnations.org/books,%20papers/JUDAH'S%20SCEPTRE%20AND%20JOSEPH'S%20BIRTHRIGHT%20(J%20H%20Allen).pdf

Or here...http://www.christianchurchesofgod.com/books/jhallen/start.html


by Concerned Sister 

Philadelphia Church of God Thinks Germans Are Arming Themselves To Take Over The World

 

The fear-mongering in the cult compound in Edmond, Oklahoma continues on with one dreary doomsday scenario after another. This time it is the tired and worn out scenario that Herbert Armstrong started right after WWII when he lied that Hitler was alive and living in South America. 

Various doomsday false prophets of Armstrongism have loved this story and promote it at every opportunity that they have. The only ones who even slightly believe this is church members 60 years old and up, and even then most of them know it is a pile of nonsense. Well, most do, except for the Philadelphia Church of God crowd. PCG like Dave Pack and Bob Thiel needs to have a boogeyman that they can count on to fulfill their darkest dreams and desires. They need and want to see humanity suffer in order to make themselves es look good in the eyes of the few hundred followers they each have.

Josue Michels of the Philadlephia Trumpet has this headliner up: German Weapons Manufacturer’s Nazi Past Exposed - The same man who led one of Hitler’s concentration camps led Germany’s weapons industry after World War II 

The weapons from German arms manufacturer Heckler & Koch are well known for their deadly precision. Their rifles and other small arms are used in advanced militaries of countries such as the United States and Great Britain. The Bundeswehr and German police units have been using Heckler & Koch weapons for decades. Even now, the company is hoping to obtain a coveted order of around 120,000 new assault rifles, valued at €250 million (us$295.8 million), for Germany’s troops.

MilitaryTimes.com noted, “For decades, German arms giant Heckler & Koch has served as the gold standard for military and civilian weapons manufacturing—building revolutionary and, oftentimes, game-changing rifles, machine guns, grenade launchers, submachine guns and pistols for a variety of customers including special operations forces, conventional infantry units and law enforcement agencies.” But “the gold standard for military and civilian weapons manufacturing” has a tainted history, to say the least.

Heckler served in the arms industry as Hitler was rising in the 1930s. In 1936, Heckler became an authorized representative at German metal manufacture Hugo Schneider AG (hasag). hasag was soon recognized as an “NS model company.” Heckler eventually became head of a plant in Taucha, Saxony. The reports reveal that he used forced labor from concentration camps as the workforce for his plant. “More than 1,000 Jewish women as well as Sinti and Roma from the Auschwitz and Buchenwald concentration camps were deported here to assemble bazookas in Heckler’s factory,” Bildnoted. “The forced laborers lived in wooden barracks behind barbed wire” (Trumpet translation throughout).

Many of these forced laborers got sick or died. An SS document from Oct. 13, 1944, shows that 500 Jews were deported from Auschwitz to Taucha. 

It is no coincidence that PCG is reporting this. The myth that Americans would be rounded up by invading Germans and placed in concentration camps has been a wet dream they have all wanted to see. So anything they can find to support this int her eyes, they will.

Eighty percent of the approximately 15,000 officers who laid the foundation of the German Army in 1955 fought under Adolf Hitler just a few years previous. 

This is not a coincidence. The German Army and its industry were formed with the intention of resurrecting the Nazi empire. With every generation, these ideas and intentions have been passed on. Recent investigations have shown that a shockingly high number of right-wing extremists are spread throughout the Army.

In May 1945, Herbert W. Armstrong told his radio audience: “From the very start of World War ii, [the Germans] have considered the possibility of losing this second round, as they did the first—and they have carefully, methodically planned, in such eventuality, the third round—World War iii!” He wrote in the September 1948 Plain Truthnewsmagazine:

Even before the end of [World War ii], I revealed to you the Nazi plans for a Nazi underground movement, to go underground as a secret organization the very moment they lost the war—to lay low a few years during Allied and Russian military occupation, then to come forth when least expected, restore Germany to power, and go on to finally accomplish their aims in a World War iii.

Mr. Armstrong’s warning was proved true in 1996, but few paid attention. 

You must remember, this is the Philadelphia Church of God and they and Herbert Armstrong have NEVER lied or told a false prophecy! Not once! Ever!

So strap on your jackboots and start marching or be prepared to end up in a camp somewhere or see your children shipped off to be slaves to the Europeans. 

Josue Michels says the following:

The Bible prophesied that Germany’s Nazi empire would go “underground” and return. Revelation 17:8 says, “The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder … when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is.” Mr. Flurry explains: “The word translated ‘bottomless pit,’ or abyss, in verse 8 actually means underground. That’s where the Nazis have been since before the end of World War ii.”

The God behind these Bible prophecies has led Mr. Armstrong and Mr. Flurry to closely watch Germany. More and more evidence is surfacing, proving that Nazi leaders did indeed plan the “third round.” But few are heeding the message.

Even Bild believes the only conclusion to be drawn is that Heckler & Koch should suffer some consequences from the revelations. But the story is so much deeper than one company or even one country. Through His prophecies, God pleads with the whole world to repent. Sadly it will take “great tribulation” before mankind finally heeds His message (Matthew 24:21-22).

These prophecies should give mankind hope—not in men but in God’s promises to soon intervene and bring an end to mankind’s evil. Germany, for its part, hasn’t repented of its past and will soon commit a far greater crime: World War III.

COG Myths Concerning Our Ties To Seventh-Day Baptists in Rhode Island

 

The Painful Truth has a new article up today on the falsified links that the church has tried to use to tie the church to the Seventh-Day Baptists of Newport, Rhode Island.

It includes the letter from William Voyce of the Church of God, 7th Day refuted the many myths and outright lies that Herbert Armstrong and others promulgated.

William T. Voyce’s June 3, 1985 letter to the Worldwide Church of God is a veritable research paper with a “point-by-point refutation of their interpretation of American Sabbath history.” Mr. Voyce is a member of the Church of God, 7th Day and wrote the 7-page letter to the WCG after reading their article “The Church They Couldn’t Destroy.” Mr. Voyce has not received a WCG reply to his letter, the subject of which he feels is so important that “if the truth about this matter were more widely known, a good share of the Worldwide Church’s membership would never have joined in the first place.”

The article also includes research by Bruce Renhen on the same subject:

I was not alone in my discoveries concerning the Worldwide Church of God’s falsified link to the Seventh Day Baptist church of Newport, Rhode Island. As early as 1968, William T. Voyce of Des Moines, Iowa had corresponded with both the Seventh Day Baptist Historical Society (located then in Plainfield, New Jersey) and the Worldwide Church of God editorial staff in Pasadena.

Miss Evalois St. John of the Historical Society provided several photocopies to Voyce of original church documents dating back to the seventeenth through nineteenth centuries proving that A. N. Dugger (and later Herbert Armstrong) had counterfeited and altered the reading of their original documents. Miss St. John informed Mr. Voyce in her June 1968 letter to him:

A great disservice was done to both Seventh Day Baptists and Seventh Day Adventists by an Elder A. N. Dugger who now resides in Jerusalem. As you must know he was formerly a member of the denomination known as The Church of God (Adventist), with headquarters in Stanberry, Mo. In fact the U. S. Census of Religious Bodies 1926 carries the history/doctrine of this order which a footnote states was revised and approved by Elder A. N. Dugger, of the Church of God Publishing House. In 1934 (or 1933) Mr. Dugger separated from this group – Church of God (Adventist) – and established a new order – The Church of God (Seventh Day) – with headquarters at Salem W. Va. In the U.S. Census of Religious Bodies of 1936, one finds a history of this new order prepared – as the government states by Mr. Dugger. For the history of this group he deliberately “lifted” the history of the Seventh Day Baptists, added some Seventh Day Adventist history, and called it the History of the Church of God (Seventh Day). Because this pamphlet is put out by the U.S. Government – through its census Bureau – researchers and students of Church history have accepted his facts as true. One finds more of this “lifted” history in the book History of the True Church by A.N. Dugger and C.O. Dodd, published in 1936….

Check out the full article here:

Worldwide Church of God’s falsified link to the Seventh Day Baptist church of Newport, Rhode Island

 

BLM on the steps of the House of God

Herbert Armstrong is rolling in his grave right now.  Who would have ever imagined there would be Black Lives Matter events happening on the steps of his House to God?  One has to wonder what Armstrong's reaction would be to the current situation going on in the United States.  Of course, we know he would immediately blame Satan and then nonCOG members for not following the commands of his god. Because people are such degenerate sinners, God has to punish them.  We have let the gentiles take over. That's the well-worn mantra of the church leadership over the decades.

Anyway, the current owners of the auditorium, Harvest Rock Church, are calling for daily prayer meetings on the steps of the auditorium to address racism in our culture.

For eight days beginning on June 4, one for each minute of George Floyd ’s tragic death, Harvest Rock Church invited their diverse community and that of the city of Los Angeles to hold a one hour prayer at the steps of the Ambassador Auditorium in Pasadena, California at 12 PM PST each day. “As a faith community commissioned with the call of reconciliation, let us lead in doing this with one another in order that we can pray and love our city better,” described Pastor Gwen Gibbons.

The prayer meetings called for peaceful universal unity through the body of Jesus Christ in response to the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis, Minnesota who has become a symbol for racial injustice and police brutality. Members of the church’s community from diverse backgrounds have gathered daily on the steps of the church. Partakers opened up as they shared emotional stories of pain and suffering caused by racism and racial injustice. “Unity has been the foundation to every revival,” says Pastor Ché Ahn , senior pastor and founder of Harvest Rock Church. “We want to renounce racism, discrimination, and any form of prejudice,” the pastor added.

See the story here:

HARVEST ROCK CHURCH CALLS FOR DAILY PRAYER MEETINGS IN RESPONSE TO GLOBAL ANTI-RACISM MOVEMENT

The Stone of Herbert Cries Out For Mystery of the Ages..."the second-greatest book on Earth, second only to the Bible"

Gerald Flurry says:

Mystery of the Ages is the synopsis of the entire Bible—the Old and New Testaments. It is the only book on Earth that explains the Bible. It has the answer to the stone’s cry. Mr. Armstrong believed Mystery of the Ages was the second-greatest book on Earth, second only to the Bible. We have the same belief.

Look again at Habakkuk 2:11: “For the stone shall cry out of the wall, and the beam out of the timber shall answer it.” Habakkuk 2:11 is the single greatest new revelation that God has given the Philadelphia Church of God so far!

God is honoring His Church in a wonderful, wonderful way!

We heard the cry of the stone—Jesus Christ made sure of that. We knew we wanted Mr. Armstrong’s prayer rock, a symbol of how Mr. Armstrong built the greatest work ever on Earth! He built it on prayer, going to God continually. He had a prayer rock, which is the focal point of all this symbolism. And now, God has shown us that this rock symbolizes King David’s new throne. 

Did you know that Herbert Armstrognandhsi rock made possible and paved the way for Jesus to return again!  Without HWA Jesus would still be stuck in the third heaven.

This stone is tied to the man who wrote Mystery of the Ages. God is putting a dramatic spotlight on the man who prepared the way for the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. God is honoring this man and telling us to follow his example. There is no stone on Earth like the prayer rock used by God’s end-time type of Elijah. He prepared the way for the Second Coming, and we are here to raise up the ruins.

The Story of Bruce and the Worldwide Church of God/Armstrongism

Douglas has a poignant post on DNA Refutes British Israelism about a former WCG member who experienced first hand the "brotherly love" of the ministry and members after years of dedicated service.  It is appalling and utterly disgusting what the church and the members did to this guy. You can read the entire article here:  Cult Life: Bruce

Bruce felt the world was screwed up, and coupled with his being highly religious, he went on a quest to both find a religion and to satisfy his desire to prove the world at large wrong. He tried some rather fringe cultic types of Christian congregational churches with political leanings, but it wasn't until he listened to the World Tomorrow on Radio that he connected with his new religious reality.

Ambassador College, the Radio Church of God, The Plain Truth and Herbert Armstrong had an answer for everything in a neat package, and in 1962, he took the plunge. He had significant savings he had stored up over the years -- enough that he could afford to do what he wanted for several years without having to work because he was industrious, prudent with his money and frugal.

This was perfect for this particular British Israelism Cult: A man with money they could rip off.
Bruce impressed the college entrance personnel and started at Ambassador College in 1962. A year later, Garner Ted Armstrong told him that Bruce should seek to serve the work elsewhere: His technical interests were getting in the way of his path to becoming the smarmy picture perfect plastic minister material they were looking for.

Bruce left and worked "out in the world". He settled into a church area in the Pacific Northwest and found a job making plenty of money from repairing cameras -- a result of just one of his technical hobbies of photography, building telescopes from scratch for astronomy, rock collecting and polishing, building electronics including high end amplifiers and phonographs replete with speakers. Everything he did was quality.

Bruce was generous, and besides "loaning" tens of thousands of dollars to the Radio Church of God at another crisis brought on by the profligate spending of the cult leader, he also gave people stuff. He gave them jewelry he had made, polished rocks (some with more than sentimental value), loaned people high fidelity collections -- he gave freely and generously. He also loaned over 6,000 quality 35mm slides he had taken over the years to Ambassador College and many of them were used for the front cover of The Plain Truth and The Good News.

Due to unfortunate circumstances, Bruce was temporarily unemployed. Though he was a bachelor, he had a nice apartment with several bedrooms. A family in the cult had a husband and father who was also out of work and needed a place for a family of five to stay, so Bruce, not wanting to......

 read the rest of the article at the link above.

Why Is The COG Blinded To It's Own False Prophets?

Prophet Thiel has up a post mocking the followers of Harold Camping again.  Camping has predicted again, the the end is coming on October 21st of this year.  We all got to witness the failure of his previous announcement earlier this year.  We saw the lives destroyed by it.  Thiel is at least right that we will see him fail again on October 21.

Thiel rightly points out the obvious failures and how we should not support such false prophets:

But Jesus cannot return on October 21, 2011 and it was not God who led Harold Camping to that false May 21, 2011 date.

This will be at least the third time that Harold Camping will be proven wrong.   Back in May 2011, both the Washington Post and MSNBC linked to my article Harold Camping’s Teachings About the End of the World Do Not Agree with the Bible to provide documented biblical reasons for his errors.  Of course, he is likely to get less publicity this month than he did last May.

Basically, because he seemingly prefers his own imaginations to the truth of the Bible, Harold Camping seems to me to load one misleading calculation onto other misleading information to get to the wrong answer. He should not be listened to by those that actually believe the Bible.

How conveniently Thiel ignores the hundreds of failed false prophecies that Herbert Armstrong, Rod Meredith, Herman Hoeh, Dean Blackwell, Gerald Waterhouse and others have uttered in the past.  These do not even include the mind numbingly STUPID current predictions by Weinland, Pack and Steven's!

Thiel continues:

The iniquity of false prophets such as Harold Camping and others (like some with the Mayan 2012 date) will turn various people off about prophecy (Ronald Weinland also comes to mind). More will feel comfortable being scoffers (Harold Camping has caused atheists to rejoice and mock). And this rise of scoffers who will not believe in prophecy is also foretold in the Bible by the Apostle Peter:

So what about  the iniquities of false prophet Rod Meredith which have turned people off and destroyed lives?  People mock Meredith today because of his lies.  If Thiel really took his Bible seriously and did as his scriptures tell him, then he would reject Rod Meredith for the false prophet he is.  Scriptures states that if a man utters even ONE false prophecy then he is a liar and not to be followed.  So why is Thiel still following a liar?

For a great list of over 209 documented failed prophecies of Armstrongism check this out: The Most Comprehensive Listing of Herbert Armstrong's 52 year record of False Prophesies ever made.

or this:  End of the world prophecies 26 failed predictions between 1921 and 1990 CE

or this:  False Prophecy - Enough Is Enough

or this:  A History of Failed Prophecies and Doomsdays

or this:  Did Herbert Armstrong Set Dates?

or this:  WAS HERBERT W. ARMSTRONG REALLY AN APOSTLE?

or this:  The Danger of False Prophets How to recognize a false prophet.

Why HWA Needed His Ego Stroked

I don't remember where I got this.  I have had it for a while in a file.  It explains a lot on how Herbert worked and why he did what he did.

Herbert was raised a Quaker by a very strict and dominating father, which had a profound effect on his life.  Eager to get away from a bullying and brutal father he left school after the eighth grade and tried to make his own way in the world.

Having been told that he would amount to nothing and often beaten and verbally abused he developed a deep personal sense of inferiority which manifested itself in an imperative need to be a success and prove his father wrong.

This inferiority complex had a much greater down side, making him suseptible to flatterer’s.  Herbert loved to be flattered, especially by men he looked up to, or regarded as successful.  This proved to be his undoing in his later life as Satan always attacks us on our most vulnerable weaknesses.

At the same time his father’s bullying attitude was reproduced in Herbert; first because that was his primary influence, and second because he was determined to always take a dominant position and to never be bullied himself again.

This dominant personality trait seems to have run in the family because his cousin and wife Loma was no slouch herself.  She was known for keeping her husband in line, sometimes even shouting from the pews during services “Don’t you dare talk to God’s people like that”.  Their marriage was presented as perfect as they could to the brethren; when much of the time it was a perfect storm.  Loma worked hard at  protecting him from his tendency to succumb to flatteries and from his more extreme domination tendencies; which efforts were often resented by her husband.

HWA Spanked Meredith With 'Love' Letter

It is always fun to revisit HWA's letter to Rod Meredith written in 1980 accusing him of power hungry greed.  How many members lives has this sad little man destroyed over the decades?  How many ministers lives has he ruined?

At least HWA had the sense to see what Meredith was up to.  Herb clipped his wings and Meredith never grew them back.  He turned into a bitter little man he found fun in denigrating women from the pulpit and snarling at gays.

Tkach saw through Meredith's deceit and further clipped his wings.

The only thing left to do was jump ship and start his own splinter cult.  Which he did, then he ruined it and took their money leaving them bankrupt.  Now he is safely camped in Charlotte taking in his money and enjoying his prestige and power.

WORLDWIDE CHURCH OF GOD WORLD HEADQUARTERS
PASADENA, CALIFORNIA 91123

HERBERT W. ARMSTRONG                                 Tucson, March 14, 1980
President and Pastor

Dear Rod:

Your letters of February 1 and March 7 show, I am sorry to say, that either you still cannot understand WHY the living Head of God's Church, Jesus Christ, had you sent to Hawaii, or you are unwilling to see or admit — and I prefer to believe the former.

There is no point in telling you this letter is written in LOVE for YOU — for you ought to know that without my saying it. But out of love for you, and DESIRE to see you back as PART OF GOD'S TEAM, working in full co-operation and right attitude with the rest o[f] us; I shall take time and space to make it clear once for all this time.

I have tried to hold the mirror up for you to see yourself as others see you. But still you don't see in that mirror the same YOU that others see-or are unwilling — I hope not the latter. But now I must be SURE! I shall speak plainly, candidly. If this letter hurts, I quote from a letter the Apostle Paul sent to brethren at Corinth: "For though I made you angry with a letter, I do not repent... for I perceive that the same epistle hath made you sorry, though it were but for a season. Now I rejoice, not that ye were made sorry, but that ye sorrowed to repentance, for ye were made sorry after a godly manner, that ye might receive damage by us in nothing.
"For godly sorry worketh repentance to salvation ... but the sorrow of the world worketh death." (II Cor. 7:8-10).


Now I'm going to come with plainness of speech as Paul said — in I Corinthians 2.

To overseas audiences, and to Kings, Emperors, Presidents and Prime Ministers, I simmer down the WAY OF GOD and the WAY OF THE WORLD in two very small words — "GET" and "GIVE." This world is geared to the way of "GET." That is the way of VANITY, SELF-centeredness, coveting, lust and greed, jealousy and envy, rebellion against authority, competition which leads to strife, violence and war. The way of "GIVE" is OUT-flowing LOVE, harmonious co-operation, serving, helping, sharing, giving.

In spiritual PRINCIPLE, the latter is the way of God's Law, the Ten Commandments-the former the way of Satan. I tell them that ALL the Unsolvable problems, troubles and evils in the world are caused by the fact the world lives by the "GET" principle.

Rod, WHY have so many who have worked [with you] said that you rub the fur the [w]rong way? You are DOCTRINALLY correct., But in II Corinthians Paul says we are not to live by the strict letter of the Law, but by the SPIRIT or obvious INTENT — the basic PRINCIPLE of it (II Cor. 3:6). You are a model of doctrinal correctness according to the LETTER — the strictness of the letter — but you do overlook the SPIRIT from the heart. You won the mile in a state high-school meet, You had know[n,] as Satan injects into us all from childhood, the spirit of competition. You b[e]came a COMPETITOR. In conversion you learned and accepted the strictness of the letter of God's Commandments. You wrote a good booklet on the Ten Commandments. But now I hold the mirror up for you to see in yourself what SO MANY who know you well see in you — the SPIRIT of COMPETITION is still there!

You are not going to like this, Rod. Members of your family will resent it. But I am the chosen apostle of Jesus Christ and in His name, I have to say these things to you, for I want to have you with us IN GOD'S KINGDOM — and there will be no contentions — no spirit of competition there! No one is going to be there who strives for himself to take over the CHIEF SEAT!

Jesus Christ through me elevated you to the chief seat (which you had come to me suggestin[g] over the ministry of God's Church in what we then called CAD, you were a harsh task-master over the ministers. You, yourself, find it difficult and perhaps impossible to TAKE what you dished out. Dozens of ministers would testify to that. You rubbed the fur the wrong way! That has been your life-style!

In a sense, though I approved it at the time, you came to me [(]when Raymond Cole was trying to administer CAD from Eugene,[)] to jerk the rug out from under Raymond-and he feels that to this day. I knew, as did you, that CAD could not be handled from Eugene, and I approved your suggestion and put you in the driver's seat over the ministers of the Church when it was not yet so big.

When you were made second Vice President, it became a standing joke among leaders at Pasadena, the saying, "Well, after all, I am the second Vice President."

Jesus said, "And whosoever of you will be chiefest, shall be servant of all. For even th[e] Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister" (Mark 10:44-45). Jesus said further, "Beware of the scribes which wear long robes, ...and [love] the highest seats in the synagogue, and the chief rooms (offices-ranks-positions), at feasts" (Luke 20:46). Rod, am I qualified to call to your attention, these things? I came into the ministry more than fifty years ago, back in Oregon. I was never a member of the Church of God, Seventh Day, headquartered at Stanberry, Missouri. The church of Dugger and Dodd at Salem, W. Virginia, was an off-shoot, and, like Ted's present "church". Ray Cole's, and other's, NOT the true Church of God. However, I never became a member of the Salem offshoot. Half of the Oregon brethren (while all were in Stanberry) had incorporated as a separate church, "The Oregon Conference." I was ordained by them. Twice I was paid by them-about four months at $20 a week, and 15 mon[n]ths later, from February to July, 1933, at $3 per week.

But I did CO-OPERATE with the Stanberry people, from 1927 until ordained by the Oregon Conference, June, 1931-without salary, I co-operated with the Salem people after the start of the present Worldwide Church Of God (then called the Radio Church of God), and WITHOUT RECEIVING FROM THEM A PENNY OF FINANCIAL SUPPORT in any way, from 1934 (after both the World [T]omorrow radio program was going, and The PLAIN TRUTH was being published) until August, 1937. And after that, while building the present Church of God, Philadelphia era, I co-operated at my own expense with the Stanberry (Sardis era) people until October, 1945.

I DID NOT, as Ted claims (he was 5 years old when I ceased the co-operation with them because of the pressure of the Work in the present Church of God). I did not leave them to start something of my own. I continued working with them-GIVING, not getting-at my own exp[e]nse co-operating — GIVING — as long as my time allowed.

But the point I want to make is this: I SERVED — I HELPED — I co-operated. And I did not have or seek any high position. I always considered myself, just as the Sardis ministers did, that I was the LEAST of the ministers-the TAIL-ENDER!

When I conducted the campaign in the Firbute school house (36 seats) in 1933, I stopped receiving even the $3 per week salary from the Oregon Conference.

As the tail-end LEAST of the ministers, Christ started me in that little 36-seat school house, I constantly suffered persecution-first from Stanberry ministers, then again from Salem, W. Va.-ministers, then again from Stanberry. The 19 members we had from that Firbutte campaign was the START of the present Worldwide Church of God. The brethren at the start were my own converts-my own children in the Lord. NEVER in all my ministerial experience, I once sought a higher position.

Jesus Christ gave me the Pastor position at the start. The Church grew, as I held other campaigns in Eugen[e] and in Alvadore. Finally I appointed and ordained two other elders, one a preaching elder and one a local elder, at Eugene, beside two deacons. In those early years of this, our present Church, I served as pastor of a Stanberry church near Jefferson, Oregon. There I appoin[t]ed and ordained two elders, and two deacons — for THEIR church. All the time I "GAVE" — I did not "GET." Before that I had learned how Paul says, in II Corinthians 3:6, that we must obey the SPIRIT or obvious INTENT of the Law, not the letter. I had dedicated my life to "GIVE" and not to "GET." As the Work grew, Christ used me in founding Ambassador College. After their graduation I ordained m[y] son Dick, Raymond Cole, Herman Hoeh, Raymon[d] Mc Nair and his brother. From there you know the history, Your uncle and yourself came along about next, then others. I ne[v]er sought or moved up to a higher rank or office. Jesus Christ raised up the Church through me. I came to the position I hold as the simple result of what the living Head of this Church raised up through me.
But others have sought higher Position. There has been, it seems, NO END of worldly POLITICS at Pasadena Headquarters. As Christ blessed and prospered God's Church and Work, and we came to have better than $100,000,000 of net worth, and a near $80 million a year income, there devel[o]ped a mad scramble for ever higher and higher rank. Sure, I made some mistakes. I naively TRUSTED men like Al Portune, David Antion, my own son, Wayne Cole, many others no longer with us. But now, f[o]r the first time since about 1967, there is HARMONY and a spirit of Co-oper[a]tion at Pasadena. AND I AM DETERMINED TO KEEP IT THAT WAY!

Now back to you.

You have demonstrated, as seen clearly by many others, a spirit of rank-consciousness. In plain language that is coveting higher authority. I do not think you have coveted more money. I do not think more money is what Ted, Al Portune, Dave Antion, Ray Cole, Wayne or others really coveted. They coveted POWER — more authority — like a 15-year old boy coveting the POWER of a steering wheel and a throttle. We have gone through a House CLEANING. We now have PEACE and CO-OPERATION at Pasadena. And eight to ten others on the executive level there have voiced to me their fears and convictions that if you now come back to Pasadena, that PEACE, and HARMONY, and CO-OPERATION will be turned once again into constant contention, irritation, and HARM TO GOD'S WORK! I do not like to tell you this. I haven't mentioned this to all, but to those I mentioned your return, that is the unanimous feeling.

If I have you come back as Dean of the Faculty, several say you would delegate most or the real duties of the Dean, and devote yourself to trying to make yourself the LEADER and boss of the College, and even of the Chur[ch.] You have — and all are aware of it — been possessed with the idea that I will not live much longer, and that YOU are the "FIRST among equals" to take my place.

Rod, in frankest candor, JESUS CHRIST will NEVER put any one at the head of His Work on earth who is competitive, covetous of power and status, and [self-righteous]. In brutal frankness, you lack the charisma to lead God's work You do not attract-as I said before, you REP[EL-] people. You are a harsh taskmaster over those under you. THAT IS YOUR RECORD!

When I wr[o]te you [<uncertain>] that a change of ATTITUDE is needed, perhaps I have at last made myself clear.

You have said that you only said a few statements you probably should not have made, but you didn't think you had said enough to warrant this six months' leave of absence. Rod, I'm very well aware of the amount of words you said against Christ's chosen apostle. But Jesus said, "of the abundance of the heart (attitude) the mouth speaketh." What you did say, affirmed to me by two witnesses, was sufficient, coupled with many other things, to show me the [a]ttitude back of those words. You try to c[o]nvince me of how glowingly and how numerous were the times you have shown loyalty by the things you have said "hundreds" or "thousands of times". But in this regard your attitude reflected [<uncertain>] OMISSION rather than the sparse and sparing things you did say. Ted was leading a conspiracy to destroy my credibility before the ministers and the brethren by saying nothing about me — as if the human leader did not exist — and blowing himself up. Radio and TV programs went under his name-no longer The World [T}omorrow. He even started correspondence under HIS OWN [Letter head] NAME, rather than that of the Church or College. Now I do not want any of our ministers flattering me, or trying to see how often they can mention my name.

But neither do I want it deliberately AVOIDED in both speaking and writing, as if I did not exist. Jesus Christ — NOT MAN — has made me the human leader under Christ. A leader cannot be a leader if all under him IGNORE his very existence. I never did want anyone to go out of his way deliberately to mention me — as you profess to have done. That is not what I mean. But I do not want the other extreme, caused by a competitive feeling, and deliberate non-mention.

Now another thing you cover in your letters. You imply that in what few things you did say, you were FOLLOWING MY ORDERS. Rod, that is hypocrisy. It is not a matter that I CHANGED MY MIND. Let me tell you how it [ac]tually was. When I told you and Raymond, and perhaps another or two, that IF I were no longer among the living, I wanted you to be su[re] Ted did not slip in and take over. At that time, I had heard SO MUCH talk about my dying right away, perhaps started by Ted, that for a while I was overly conscious of it.

It is not that later I changed my mind. But as time went on I began to realize very deeply that God has not prepared ANYONE to take my place. You, Rod, could never take it. I know that is 100% contrary to your own estimate of yourse[l]f. You have a WILL to lead, but not the qualifications. I came to realize that God raise[d] me [from the dead-f]rom total heart failure-in August, 1977, FOR A PURPOSE.
I have felt like the Apostle Paul, when he said earlier in life it would be more profitable for him to depart this life — and in the next split-second of consciousness, be with Christ in the resurrection, but it was more needful that he stay.

I did not CHANGE my mind. I did come to realize, as God caused me to realize, that He had raised me up as His instrument to raise up His present Church and Work — and that Work is not finished. So after my heart had completely stopped, my breath — no pulse — no blood-pressure — by mouth-to-mouth resuscitation I was br[o]ught back. I have not said I now believe God will keep me alive until Christ comes. I have said and I say now again, I do believe He will keep me alive AS LONG AS HE NEEDS ME!
You have taken the attitude that "some one GOT [you]." No one did but your own self.

I have tried here to make clear what I mean by a CHANGE OF ATTITUDE. I sincerely hope you "get the message" this time. Self-pity is not your need. A change of ATTITUDE from "GET" to "GIVE" is! If this letter does not get through to you, I shall not try again. So far you have not admitted a wrong attitude. Your RIGHTEOUSNESS you have maintained! But it has been only so much "filthy rags" to GOD! God said-rather, Christ to His disciples, that he who would seek the top seat should be the SERVANT of all. We should

So far, four months or more of your leave of absence has profited you NOTHING! Rod, in a candor, HAVE YOU EVER REALY REPENTED? To repent means much more than being sorry, or remorseful. It means a CHANGE OF HEART — a CHANGE OF ATTITUDE — a CHANGE FROM "GET" TO "GIVE." From competition, vanity, coveting power and position, to harmonious co-operation. BELIEVE ME, there is PEACE, and HARMONY at Pasadena now. Our men there do not want it disturbed. I have held up the mirror with BRUTAL frankness-in LOVE not only for you but also for GOD'S WORK! The Work is getting along wonderfully well now-without you. It can go on growing and pleasing Jesus Chris[t] an[d] prospering under His blessing WITHOUT YOU. I have written you are not coming back until I am CONVINCED BY THE FRUITS of a real REPENTANCE, and CHANGE OF ATTITUDE. I hope at last I have MADE IT PLAIN.

In deep LOVE as a father to a son,

In Jesus' name.

Aaron Dean on GTA and HWA's Relationship

RE: [elijahforum] GTA on YouTube

While I would agree a lot of people heard GTA as 1st contact, it was the writings of HWA that convincted them.

I cannot agree that "others had a vested interest in keeping them apart".  From 1980 to 86, I answered the phone when Ted called, and I would ALWAYS tell HWA that Ted was calling, and he always called the home, not the office.  Always his statement was (and GTA heard it as I held the phone up and would ask if he heard his father.) "He knows what he has to do". All GTA had to do was write a simple letter to his father so he would know it would not be a shouting match if he did talk to him, and GTA would not do that.  It served GTA's purpose better to say he was being kept away by others. After every call was an interview within a day or two where GTA would say "I was cut off from speaking to my father", or "I tried yesterday to call and my father won't speak to me."  It was frustrating for me cause I would ask why don't you write the letter.

Stan Rader would have had an interest in keeping them apart, but that doesn't explain 1980 to his death in 1986 when Stan was gone. (Actually SRR had an interest in keeping HWA away from Pasadena in the 70's, not just away from GTA. But GTA had an interest in keeping HWA away from Pasadena as well - because the college was falling apart.) GTA used the estrangement for PR with the press, and with his church. (When meeting with CGI - they told me they were in the room when GTA made the calls, and only would say "See, cut off again". They were never told what HWA or I said, or that GTA had actually heard his father's voice.

I talked to GTA at HWA's funeral, and he admitted that I had never cut him off. I had always liked GTA since I knew him from the time I was 4 years old. I even flew with him when his father had the heart attack and GTA used the G-II.  I bear no ill toward him, but that part of the statement below is inaccurate.

Aaron

He was never convicted of a crime.
However, there were those inside and outside the church who were criminals and had a vested interest in making sure that Garner Ted and his father were kept apart permanently and that Garner Ted's reputation was destroyed in order to take down the Church of God.

Mystery of the Ages 1919 Version

Michael Maynard sent this to me the other day.  Is this another book that influenced HWA during the 1930's?  Did HWA copy part of the title of this book for his own version of Mystery of the Ages.  More things to consider.  More things to disturb the Armstrongites.

Is there ANYTHING original in Armstrongism that has not been plagiarized from another person?????

THE MYSTERY OF THE AGES REVEALED, 1919 - ANOTHER ONE? AFRAID SO.

I STUMBLED ACROSS THIS OUT OF PRINT GEM while doing research for my upcoming book which discusses many sources of the doctrines that false prophet Herbert W. Armstrong taught in the World Wide Church of God that do not agree with new covenant theology.

Many of the sources that are well known in x-WCG circles and have been written about by others I have reviewed. But this one I had never heard of. If this book influenced his teachings it is difficult to know for certain. If he read it, it may have influenced him in his British Israelite theories to some degree in an obtuse and unusual way.  Larsen claims the western United States was actually the promised land and was inhabited by ancient Israel after the exodus. This book with a familiar title was possibly in the public libraries in the 1930's when Herbert was doing his research on religion.

 

The authors middle initial was incorrect on this cover, it is "B" not "A." On his photo it is correct. Very little is known about this author. The preface to the book written by Larsen  himself is dated April 1919 in Portland, Oregon. Some of his books can be purchased on line but none that I could find had the same title. It seems like Larsen may have been Mormon, or heavily influenced by their teachings. While I did not see where he actually says so in the book he makes reference to many Mormon teachings and the book of Moroni, the last of the books of Mormon.

 

This book may explain why HWA ended up in the Willamette Valley in Oregon and later Los Angeles.  Larsen claimed Los Angeles would the the heart of missionary work in America in the 1920's and that the tribe of Judah would inhabit the southern California area.

 

Larsen's book is full of failed prophecies and absurdities. But GOOD NEWS, the invasion of America by Germany will not occur until the year 4000 so he claims on page 154. So Larsen has not failed on that one...yet. Herbert's failed in 1972, then 1975....thankfully I add.

 

Did HWA read Ludwig B. Larsen's book written in 1919 

before writing his own Mystery of the Ages in 1985? 

Maybe. 

The Entire Earth Will Now Be Destroyed on October 21st, 2011

Failed prophet Harold Camping now says that the earth will be totally destroyed on October 21st, 2011.  What really happened on May 21st was an 'invisible spiritual judgement day'.

His new theory is that God decided to spare humanity horrible pain and death through five months of tribulation and now will instead, just kill everyone in one swift move on October 21st.  One minute you will be here, the next you will be fried to a crisp.  Of course, he and 3% of the world's population will be in heaven playing harps on a fluffy white cloud.

This entire episode with Camping should be a reminder to Armstrongites of the same lies that came down from Herbert Armstrong and Rod Meredith in the late 1960's when they predicted that the end times would start in the 1972 and the millennium would start in 1975.  It should also remind Armstrongites that they are all a product of the failed prophecies of William Miller who told the same lie in the 1844.

Armstrongism is currently filled with numerous liars and false prophets.  Rod Meredith, Gerald Flurry, Dave Pack, Ron Weinland, and numerous others.  When will people stop listening to these liars?

Herbert Armstrong and L Ron Hubbard

In Memoriam: Two Con Men, Herbert W. Armstrong and L. Ron Hubbard

Armstrong and Hubbard

Twenty-five years ago this week, the two greatest con men of the 20^th century both died, within the space of eight days of each other. The creativity and sheer chutzpah of Herbert W. Armstrong and L. Ron Hubbard are worth remembering, and in some ways even treasuring as a species of human achievement, with the same sort of awe one reserves for the destructive power of a tsunami. Though both men were failures in the business world, when they turned to religion they discovered a sucker market of breathtaking scope.

Herbert W. Armstrong, born in 1892, worked at several jobs in the world of commercial advertising, failing at each. In the 1920s, he decided that religion was an easier racket, and fought to take control of a small congregation in Oregon. He failed at that, too, but on his way out the door managed to take the mailing list with him.

In 1935 Armstrong launched Plain Truth magazine, initially in mimeographed form; at about the same time he began regular radio broadcasts. To distinguish himself from the evangelical pack, Armstrong specialized in prophecy. He got lucky when an early prophecy, that Mussolini would conquer Ethiopia, actually came to pass. That a mechanized army would defeat spear-carrying tribesmen may seem to be not going too far out on a limb, but Armstrong hyped it into something special.

More prophecies followed, as Armstrong discovered that his audiences ate them up: Italy would conquer Palestine; then Russia would attack Palestine; then Britain would fall to the Germans; then German armies would appear on American shores. The accuracy rate began to deteriorate, but in wartime America where censorship kept the news bland and upbeat, Armstrong’s juicy predictions built his following.

The end of the German threat in 1945 would have dealt a lesser man a serious blow. Armstrong responded by assuring his readers and listeners – for decades on end – that Hitler was still alive, and ready to strike again any minute now.

There is much more to the article at Secular News Daily

One interesting tidbit I learned recently was that L Ron Hubbard was a distant relative of Elbert Hubbard who HWA idolized as a great thinker.

Divorce and Remarriage

Of all the teachings of Herbert Armstrong that he taught, the most vile was the Divorce and Remarriage doctrine.  Hundreds of families were destroyed by this asinine teaching.  Rod Meredith had his hand in destroying countless marriages too.  He forced apart long time married couples in the Dayton area who had been previously married.  Meredith was as sick as Armstrongism when it came to enforcement.  Of course that all changed when Herb decided he wanted to marry his secretary.  Suddenly it was ok for couple to remain married.  Some tied to go back to their previous spouses, but too many years had passed.

There is a thread on Facebook about people who's families were destroyed by Armstrong and Meredith.  Two are quoted below.

My Story: In 1968 when I was 4yrs old, and my sister was 9mos old. A pastor from our local WCG congregation came and told my parents that because my father had divorced his 1st wife, and later married our mother. Their marriage was not valid according to God, and therefore was not accepted, and honored by God. He told my father to move out immediately because he was living in sin. My dad did, and because they told him not to have contact with us, he moved about 500 miles away. My sister and I never got to bond with our dad. Because my dads' income was what we lived on, we fell into a terrible poverty. Mom tried to hold down the fort working 2 menial jobs, and trying to pay 3 tithes, there wasn't enough to sustain us, and we had to go on welfare. Then 4yrs later in 1972, while we were at church, the pastor walks up out of the blue, and tells my mother that the D&R doctrine had been amended, and that she was free to reconcile with her husband. My mom looked at him and said "you've got to be joking". Later she said she'd wanted to slap that pastor. I was later able to spend a little time with my dad, but the damage had been done, and we never bonded, and years would go by without us seeing, or talking to him. He is alive today, and I've forgiven him, but i haven't seen or spoken to him in 9 years.

___________

My parents had a different problem. My dad was in the Church, but my mom wasn't, she hated it and hated that my dad sent them so much money. It destroyed their marriage (I have to admit it might have fell apart anyway who knows). My mom tried to get a divorce, but back then (1960's) it was really hard to get divorced. My dad wouldn't allow her to get a divorce. She had no means of support being a stay at home mom and didn't want to leave her children. My dad could not divorce her because he knew he could never remarry and find a new partner. They lived together for years without speaking, the children had to relay messages, plus my dad became abusive towards my mother and she fought back. The police were constantly called to our house. Eventually they threatened to take the children away, so my mother stopped fighting, and became an alcoholic instead, and then a drug addict, and then became mentally ill. Eventually they threw my dad out of the church and after studying the Bible himself he decided that the D and R rules were wrong, and he went and made up for lost time having many girlfriends. My mom got put in a mental hospital and never regained her sanity.

Andie Redwine: What Happens on May 22?

Andie Redwine reflects on "The Day After May 21" and her experience with the same kind of lies when Herbert Armstrong made a similar prediction.;

Forgive my cynicism, but I’ve been through this before.

I grew up in a church where I was scared to death of Jesus coming back at any moment. Luckily, members of my church were going to be whisked away on the wings of angels to a place of safety while the rest of the world wished that they had heeded the voice of Herbert Armstrong, my cult leader.

I was always afraid that I wasn’t going to be among the faithful. And at six years old, this can be a pretty paralyzing fear.

The people involved in my church weren’t monsters. They weren’t unkind. They weren’t unintelligent. They had just been duped by a false prophet who used fear and mind control techniques to recruit and sustain a large money-making operation. In the name of God, Herbert took well-intentioned seekers of Christ and turned them into devoted followers. Followers of Herbert.

 This was before the Internet, but Herbert’s game before religion had been advertising. He created a magazine called The Plain Truth, he had a television show, and he was a prolific author (although a great deal of his work was allegedly plagiarized). And because this was before the Internet, there was very little ability to fact check any of Herbert’s ideas or background. 

And he was convincing as hell. In its heyday, Herbert’s Worldwide Church of God centered in Pasadena, California had congregations all over the world. New York. Sydney. Brussels. Bangkok. Amman. Chicago. Philadelphia. London. Paris. He was a go-getter.

Herbert was also an end-times prophet. Growing up under the threat of nuclear war, Herbert offered people a way to escape the coming apocalypse. His way. God’s way.

One of my earliest memories is of sitting in a rented hall listening to Herbert Armstrong. I thought he was God. His voice would be booming through speakers from a cassette tape, but I would be looking at the podium with an empty microphone and just know that God was speaking to me. Everyone around me gave the podium their undivided attention, and so I did likewise. I figured if the adults were taking notes and flipping through their bibles when this man spoke, he must be God.

Jesus didn’t come back the way Herbert had thought. And it was the fault of the congregation. It’s because we weren’t ready. The church had to get back on the right track. We were off course. Sinners in the hands of an angry Herbert, who could direct his ministers to throw us out of God’s church.

We were terrified of this. All of us. Terrified. It was the fear that Herbert created in us to hook us, and it was the fear that kept us coming back for more. If we left, we’d be obliterated. There would be no hope.

Read the rest of her story here:  What Happens On May 22?

Andie recently released a movie about life in a cult, Paradise Recovered