Giese vs Kubik/Luker Smack Down Round 2

 

Kenneth Giese
December 1, 2010

Since my resignation from employment with the United Church of God on November 4, 2010, various UCG ministers and administrators have expressed their disappointment over my "refusal" to accept the offer of a transfer to the three-church circuit (Mobile, Geneva and Pensacola) currently covered by Harold Rhodes, a long-time pastor and close personal friend of mine. Harold is continuing his recovery from the ravages of a flesh-eating bacterial infection that kept him hospitalized and flat on his back for almost nine months. He has endured the pain of multiple skin grafts over that period of time and is currently continuing his long and arduous recovery.

It has consistently been Harold's hope to return to serve those three congregations following his recovery. Several months ago, Victor Kubik assured Harold that any decision to retire or diminish his role in serving those three congregations would be his to make. In fact, Victor Kubik updated the entire ministry on Harold's condition in the most recent issue of The Ministerial Newsletter and Journal (November 24, 2010).

It should also be noted that Harold was completely unaware of his circuit being offered to me at the conclusion of Mr. Luker's and Mr. Kubik's recent visit to Sacramento (Sabbath, October 30th).

Here are two quotes from an e-mail message I received from Vic Kubik on Friday, November 5th (the day after I resigned from employment with UCG):

"Your characterization that we asked you to move because you didn't support the Council was not really accurate. Why would we ask you to go elsewhere if you were not supportive of us? Rather, the real reason is the continuously divided church after many visits with no end in sight. Our hope was that your taking another assignment, a fresh start to all, would be a solution. We did have the very needy circuit available in Alabama/Florida that has been without a pastor going on a year."

Please consider the following:

My concern over recent COE and administrative decisions and directives was well known to both Messrs. Luker and Kubik. However, I made a concerted effort to share my specific concerns privately with the COE and administration and NOT share them with my congregations. Essentially, I have the same question that Mr. Kubik posed in the above quote: Why would they ask me to go elsewhere if I was not supportive of them in the context of the total loyalty they appear to be demanding?

A "fresh start" was the solution arrived at by previous UCG administrators almost two and one-half years ago. After a year of sending in various pastors and administrators to solve the issues revolving around the previous pastor of the Reno and Sacramento congregations, Ministerial Services asked me to move here to resolve the situation

In my opinion, in the opinion of three out of four of the elders serving these congregations and in the opinion of over one-half of the Sacramento congregation, the conflict here could have been resolved had the current administration chosen to support me as pastor and hold the previous pastor accountable for his misconduct.

During their three-day visit to Sacramento, the current administration managed to accomplish the following: thoroughly discredit the former administration's efforts (of over four years) to resolve the issues present here, permanently divide these two congregations and leave at least one-half of the Sacramento congregation without a shepherd, endorse the inappropriate behavior of the former pastor and make it impossible for me to continue as the pastor of these two congregations.

Please ask yourself what you would have done, given these circumstances. To accept the proposed "transfer" was completely unacceptable as was the administration's handling of this entire situation. I chose to resign.