Leon Walker Says UCG CoE "...have treated us with disdain, hostility, indifference and abuse."

From: Leon Walker

Date: 12-10-10

On December 9, 2010 the Council of Elders sent out a letter addressed to the members of UCG entitled, “Efforts to Reconcile With the Latin American Ministry.” This document begins with a statement that the Council “continues to seek resolution of the situation in Latin America regarding former ministers and members.” This statement is absolutely untrue. All 15 of the ministers as well as the members in Latin America will confirm that no genuine effort has been made by the president or the Council to seek a resolution of the issues regarding Latin America. On the contrary, we can cite numerous examples of actions by the president and Council that have treated us with disdain, hostility, indifference and abuse.

The document then states that “numerous direct attempts have been made by the Council to meet with ministers and brethren in the region over the past six months.” Once again, this is completely untrue. There haven’t been any attempts, let alone “numerous” ones. And then the document adds, “Some efforts have achieved at least partial success.” Really? We in Latin America have seen no success at all.

Speaking of Mario Seiglie’s visits to Latin America, the document states that “Despite the fact that these ministers continued to receive a salary and support at the time from the United Church of God, an International Association, none of them would meet with Mr. Seiglie.” This statement also is totally untrue. First of all, only two ministers in Latin America received a salary directly from the U.S.—Leon Walker and Larry Roybal. However, their salaries were cut off on July 2. The other ministers received their salaries from their local income. None of them was salaried by the U.S. Even if one considers that their salaries indirectly came from the subsidies sent by the U.S. those subsidies were cut off on July 1. Therefore, none of the ministers was receiving a salary or any kind of support from the United Church of God, an International Association at all when Mario Seiglie was traveling to Latin America.

The document laments the fact that the ministry in Latin America did not wish to speak with Mario Seiglie. However, considering the aggressive and hostile manner that Mario displayed in Chile, as well as previous unpleasant experiences that the ministry have had with Mario it is little wonder that they did not wish to speak with him.

The document then states that “Mr. Walker continues to deny the fact that he has been replaced as director for UCGIA affiliated entities in the Latin American region.” However, the UCG Rules of Association (1-130 and 3-110) state clearly that areas outside of the U.S. will establish and maintain their own legal and administrative structure and they will administer and direct their own affairs. The legal boards and ministry in Latin America only recognize Leon Walker as their regional director—as is their right. Nowhere do the Rules of Association (nor the Constitution or Bylaws) give the president or the Council the authority to impose a legal or administrative structure in Latin America or elsewhere outside the U.S. where national councils/boards exist. Therefore, the supposed removal of Leon Walker as regional director is not recognized by the legal boards in Latin America and that removal, as well as the naming of Denny Luker as regional director, is simply illegal.

The document then states that last August the Council invited Mr. Walker to meet and try and find a basis for reconciliation. There was really no genuine attempt for reconciliation in that meeting. When Mr. Luker telephoned Mr. Walker and asked him to come to Cincinnati he made it perfectly clear that it was not for the purpose of finding a way to restore him as regional director. Initially Mr. Walker questioned why he should go to Cincinnati if there was no positive result to be achieved. Nevertheless, in the interest of cooperation he went in order to answer questions that the Council might have. However, nothing was achieved by the meeting. It was a complete waste of time and actually just a “photo op” so the Council could pretend that positive talks about reconciliation were taking place.

The document also states that it is Mr. Walker’s continued stance that he must be reinstated as regional director over Latin America. That is not true. It is the boards and ministry in Latin America that decides who (including Mr. Walker) is to be the regional director, or even if there is to be a regional director. That is their right and their choice according to UCG’s Rules of Association. Mr. Walker has made this point several times, including before the Council in August. This decision is not Mr. Walker’s—it rests with the boards and ministry.

Reference is then made to Mr. Luker’s letter of November 11 to the Latin American ministers. This letter was an ultimatum, demanding that the ministry choose either to recognize Mr. Luker as their regional director or Leon Walker as their regional director. The ministry did not respond to the letter since they had already made it clear in previous communications that they did not recognize the legality of removing Mr. Walker as regional director and the appointment of Mr. Luker as regional director, which was against their wishes and without consultation with them.

The document then states that phone calls were made to these ministers asking whether they wished to be affiliated with UCGIA or if they desired to support Mr. Walker. The document states that the ministers declared that they wished to be affiliated “with the emerging organization rather than UCGIA.” The ministers did not make such a statement, nor could they do so since an “emerging organization” simply does not exist. This statement is putting words into their mouths, which they did not say. Furthermore, the ministry and members in Latin America did not leave UCG nor have they formed another church organization. It is the Council which has disenfranchised the ministers and members, cutting off financial assistance, expelling ministers, removing all areas from UCG’s websites, etc.

Yet the document begins to conclude, “As demonstrated in this letter, the Council and administration have reached out repeatedly.” The letter demonstrates nothing of the sort. The Council’s efforts simply do not exist and the letter does not demonstrate that they existed.

Then the document states, “During the past six months the Council and the administration provided opportunities to those aligned with Leon Walker to make overtures to the Council and to the administration. Only one chose to do so.” There were rumors that the president and/or Council were going to invite Spanish pastors to come to Cincinnati for discussions. With the exception of one individual (Eduardo Hernandez) no other minister ever received a phone call or email message from the president or chairman of the Council inviting them to come to Cincinnati for discussions. Eduardo Hernandez did go to Cincinnati in September and he was assured that the other pastors would be invited to come after the Feast. However, no such invitation was made. Absolutely no overtures were made by the Council and/or administration to the Spanish ministry.

The document concludes, “We cannot unethically overturn the Church’s governing documents and pretend they don’t exist in order to accommodate other organizations with different leaders under the same name.” What an incredible statement. This is in fact what the president and Council have done—they have unethically violated the church’s government documents (including the Rules of Association) by illegally removing Mr. Walker as regional director and by Mr. Luker illegally taking that position. Mr. Walker and the Latin American ministry have not violated the church’s documents, but the president and the Council have done so.

Once again, the Council has chosen to issue a document that attempts to describe the Council as righteous and just, while Mr. Walker especially and the Latin American ministry are portrayed as unethical and uncompromising. Sadly, the Council once again resorts to declarations that simply are untrue as well as distortions of the facts. Once again, the Council refuses to address the real issues that face the Church.

110 UCG Elders Sign Letter Stating: "...we are left with no other conclusion than that...our differences are irreconcilable."

So far 110 UCG Elders and Ministers have signed an "Open Letter" to Dennis Luker.  There will be others that will sign soon too.  Many honestly do not see any chance of reconciliation and that a major split will be occurring within the next month or so.  Both sides of this issue are filled with greedy, self-serving men who are only out to make a name for themselves.  I have seen them in action and they truly are a sorry lot!  All of them! How many more lives will they need to destroy before church members wake up and leave?

An Open Letter to the President of the United Church of God, Dennis Luker

Dear President Luker,

This open letter is being sent to you as the chief executive officer of the United Church of God (UCG) from current pastors, former pastors and otherwise employed elders in good standing of the General Conference of Elders of the United Church of God, an International Association. We write with deep concern over the conduct of the current administration and the Council of Elders, a concern shared by numerous non salaried elders, many of whom would readily add their names to this letter.

We have supported the governmental system agreed upon in 1995 and this letter is a confirmation of working within that system. Our deepest hope is the complete healing and the effective continuation of the UCG.

The biblically mandated responsibilities of pastors and elders compel us to state our concerns, as do those duties specified in our governing documents, which do not permit us to allow the present situation to continue. As our Constitution states, “God has established the office of elder to provide care and oversight to the congregations. Thus, the General Conference of Elders is responsible to God to ensure that His people are served and their needs attended to” (Article 3.2.2.3). We consider resolving these concerns to be the greatest need God’s people under our care face at this time.

No one doubts that the UCG is in a dire crisis. We believe that the steps necessary to resolve the crisis are in your hands and those of the Council. Over the last year there have been repeated attempts to bring genuine concerns to both you and the Council. We believe that those concerns have not been addressed in a way that is appropriate for the established leadership of the UCG—or any Church of God.

Your letter of November 4, 2010 attacks the ministry in general and contains a number of misleading and false accusations. Among them are attempts to link ministers and members who have sincere disagreements with the administration to a handful of people posting extreme or ungodly views on Internet sites. Less than two decades ago, most of us were accused of being divisive, rebellious and satanic in our previous association, and it deeply grieves us to find ourselves in a similar toxic environment in the UCG.

While there have been some improper comments made on Web sites, none of us have made or encouraged them and we do not condone them. And we will not join you or the Council in condemning ministers or members who respectfully ask questions, challenge wrong behavior or who simply post factual material.

Both Scripture and our historical origins have taught us that Christianity is a matter of individual conscience, conviction and action. Members have rightly been encouraged to think for themselves and that is exactly what many are doing (Philippians 2:12; 1 John 4:1). Those who have spoken out responsibly should not be accused of causing division. Nor should they be charged with unthinkingly following sowers of discord, when their conclusions are often based upon what they have witnessed personally.

At the heart of our immediate concern is a pattern of wrongly equating loyalty to God’s government with submission to human organizational authority and then labeling as disloyal or rebellious any who express concerns over leadership’s decisions and methods. Recent home office documents, letters and recorded sermons have repeatedly contained negative accusations about supposed plots to sabotage our governing documents, to start a new church and that there is a spirit of rebellion in our ministers. This barrage of accusation and inaccuracy is disheartening the members; it is wearing down the church and it is causing increasing frustration among the ministry and the membership.

Unknown to many members, the administration has engaged in punitive action against certain pastors, accusing them of disloyalty to Christ, when what they have done—conscientiously and respectfully—is voice disagreement with doctrinal statements that they deemed unsound. Or, they expressed concern over administrative decisions that these ministers believed to be outside the bounds of our governing documents or Christ-like management. This pattern of punitive behavior does not follow the biblical or organizational standards. Men have been accused of and/or punished for “disloyal behavior” on the word of a single witness or on mere rumor. In contrast, Scripture is explicit: “Do not receive an accusation against an elder except from two or three witnesses” (1 Timothy 5:19). Punishments have been administered at the highest level—suspension followed quickly by decredentialing, instead of our traditional and biblically mandated pastoral attitude of working with someone to address the issues at hand in an effort to resolve them and to retain every minister if at all possible.

This has rapidly accelerated to include several resignations by church pastors who felt they could no longer in good conscience work for the church. Others have been terminated by the administration, greatly increasing an environment of tension and uncertainty for the ministry and the membership.

Undoubtedly, the most damaging administrative action that was taken in plain view of the membership (as opposed to Council actions taken in executive session) was the wholesale removal of the Latin American members and ministers—approximately 10 percent of our entire church! The ensuing stream of paperwork from the home office has not mitigated the alarm or the bewilderment caused by the removal of loyal people from church membership for no justifiable biblical reason and by the severance—without warning—of the financial support that the UCG had promised to some of our poorest members in that part of the world. We should all imagine ourselves in their shoes.

Funding for the Latin American work and ministry was cut off on July 1, 2010. Yet most of the Latin American elders remained members of the GCE until November 30, 2010 when the Council decredentialed them. This adds to what we ministers and many of our lay members can only describe as inconsistent and bizarre.

Lengthy and differing explanations from the home office for these actions have left us unconvinced that the church leadership action was fair, decent, gracious—or even legitimate, whether according to biblical standards or the UCG Rules of Association.

What is seen as a conspicuously offensive error has only been compounded by the administration sending representatives throughout Latin America to convince members and elders to “join United” when they believed they already were part of the UCG. The glaringly obvious conflict of interest in your choice for the primary administrative representative in this matter is evident to thousands of UCG members, and seems to indicate a callous disregard for the clearly expressed objections of the Latin American brethren and ministry.

When 166 pastors and elders appealed to the leadership to bring the Latin American members and ministers back into our fold, the president and chairman of the COE acknowledged receipt of the appeal and said they would get back to the senders soon. That gave hope to the entire church (especially to the UCG in Latin America), only to have their trust dashed when the appeal was answered with a letter—not to the 166 ministers, but rather to the entire church membership. The response falsely accused the signers of being part of a rebellious conspiracy, a political caucus and an attempt to undermine our governing system. In contrast, many ministers and members understood the appeal for what it was: a sincere request for reconciliation with our brothers and sisters in Christ. The fact that no serious attempt at reconciliation has ever been made adds to the disillusionment.

The so-called “white papers” on the doctrines of fasting and Sabbath observance generated great concern about our doctrinal purity and integrity, without which the UCG cannot truly remain part of the Church of God. Valid questions from members and ministers alike have been met with ridicule, unproven and unreasonable assertions that “one or two people” are stirring everyone up and with repeated statements that questions about the papers are not worth answering. This demonstrates that the administration does not perceive the serious doctrinal errors within the papers. It further illustrates a troubling lack of respect for discerning pastors and members who have been dismayed by these papers.

The question currently in the minds of a growing number of elders and members is, “What do we do now?” You have said you are willing to talk. But in reality, the present administration and the Council have rebuffed or ignored specific requests to talk from individual ministers; from all of the 10 U.S. regional pastors at the time (including you, Mr. Luker), as well as several requests from approximately a dozen men, serving in the previous administration as well as on the Council of Elders.

The workable—and what we believe is biblical—pathway to proper functioning as a church has repeatedly been proposed to you and the Council privately and publicly. That is, an open (not executive session) face-to-face meeting between current and past leaders of the organization for the purpose of identifying and removing the obstructions that impede the function of the United Church of God.

Sad to say, every such proposal submitted to the Council has either been significantly altered, ignored or rebuffed, publicly or privately. Even you, Mr. Luker, proposed such a meeting to the Council, only to be denied. On the other hand, the method the administration and Council has chosen to deal with the situations previously mentioned is one of confrontation, seeking to impose control with no attempt to resolve the underlying issues.

If you and the Council deny the viability of meeting to discuss openly the issues that have divided the ministry and the current leadership, then we are left with no other conclusion than that you and the Council of Elders have already decided that our differences are irreconcilable.

Is that your conclusion? If so, what would you have us do?

Respectfully submitted this 4th of December, 2010,

Signed by:

1. Dan Anderson
2. Dave Baker
3. Neil Becker
4. Andre van Belkum
5. James (Bud) Beymer
6. Gary Black
7. Mike Blackwell
8. Dempsey Bruton III
9. Andy Burnett
10. Arnold Burns
11. Todd Carey
12. Jeff Caudle
13. Jim Chapman
14. Tom Clark
15. Martin Cole
16. Dave DeHart
17. Roy Demarest
18. Thomas Diaz
19. Glenn Doig
20. Behrman Doucet
21. Osmonde Douglas
22. Kevin Epps
23. Cory Erickson
24. Don Erickson
25. Dave Evans
26. Eric Evans
27. George Evans
28. Steve Ferenchiak
29. Herchial Fisher
30. John Foster
31. Jim Franks
32. Alonzo Gjesvold
33. Bruce Gore
34. Larry Greider
35. Jim Haeffele
36. Arnold Hampton
37. Mark Hampton
38. Mike Hanisko
39. Charles Haughee
40. Alton Head
41. Don Henson
42. Bernard Hongerloot
43. Doug Horchak
44. Jim Hudson
45. Michael Isaac
46. David Jackson
47. Bill Jahns
48. Bill Johnson
49. David Johnson
50. Doug Johnson
51. Ron Kelley
52. Clyde Kilough
53. Dick King
54. Morgen Kriedemann
55. William Kubon
56. Dennis Kuhns
57. Larry Lambert
58. Ralph Levy
59. Tony Levy
60. Scott Lord
61. Paul Luecke
62. John Lusk
63. Mike Machin
64. Cecil Maranville
65. Kingsley Mather
66. David McCarble
67. Gary McConnaughey
68. Tom McCrady
69. Melton McNeely
70. George Meeker
71. Joel Meeker
72. Chris Moen
73. Dave Myers
74. Larry Neff
75. Leroy Neff
76. David Pavlik
77. John Pentlin
78. Bob Peoples
79. John Perry
80. Frank Pierce
81. Richard Pinelli
82. Maurice Ledet
83. Richard Rand
84. David Register
85. Phillip Sandilands
86. Floyd Satterwhite
87. Greg Sargent
88. John Seiver
89. Tom Seltzer
90. Jim Servidio
91. Donald Shaw
92. David Smith
93. Neville Smith
94. Jim Springer
95. Blaney Sproul
96. Paul Suckling
97. Greg Swartz
98. Britton Taylor
99. Richard Thompson
100. Dave Treybig
101. Ken Treybig
102. John Trotter
103. Art Verschoor
104. Tim Waddle
105. Don Waterhouse
106. Lyle Welty
107. David West
108. Roger West
109. Jack Willoughby
110. Mark Winner

De-Mystifying the Mysteries

In August 1985, Armstrong's final work, Mystery of the Ages, was published. He called it a "synopsis of the Bible in the most plain and understandable language." It was more or less a compendium of theological concepts as articulated by Armstrong. Including the notion that the bible was ‘a coded book’ to which he had been given the key.

In De-Mystifying the Mysteries we will be taking a look at the Herbert W. Armstrong vision of Worldwide Church of God, encompassing from the 1930’s until his death in 1986. De-Mystifying the Mysteries specifically will challenge Armstrong’s doctrines as presented in his last book, Mystery of the Ages, a book he proclaimed to be his life’s work and beliefs.

De-Mystifying the Mysteries will quote Armstrong directly, as well as some of his most trusted ministers and advisors and will refute Armstrong’s doctrines, using scripture and support it with historical documents, scientific documents, and writings from the men whom the Apostles ordained, writings Armstrong claimed were lost through the ages. When applicable, Hebrew documentation will be used as well, in order to show the Hebrew traditions in Old Testament times.

Last but not least, De-Mystifying the Mysteries will take a step back and use a little common sense and logic when compiling all the evidence against the doctrines of Herbert W. Armstrong and his Evangelists in the Worldwide Church of God.