UCG: Its All Fluffy Cotton Candy Except in Canada Where Another Church Has Split Off

When you read the United Church of God web site and the members updates you will never see a more unified Church of God in existence.

We value the current period of peace in the Church and need to constantly remind ourselves it is only in this environment we can have of the growth and forward movement we all desire   United News May/June

Viktor Kubik wrote May 5: “Several of our home office ministers visited local congregations. We have received several reports about how encouraging this has been to the brethren as well as our pastors. We had cut back on these visits because of cost, but realize that they are valuable for the Church, just as were the apostle Paul’s visits in his time to ‘see how the brethren are doing’. Church of God News

The cotton candy is all fluffy and sweet, except in Canada were Bob Berendt's North Battleford, Saskatchewan congregation that he is over, ruptured in a split with 1/3 of the congregations leaving with lay pastor Boyd Yahn.   While the North Battleford congregation is not large, its just the tip of the iceberg on the discontent that so many in Canada feel with Bob Berendt and the UCG hierarchy.

Berendt stirred a up a stink a few weeks ago when he said that that Moses made a few marks on the clay tablets and that much of Jewish history was oral tradition.  This has sent the diehard legalists in to a frenzy.  How dare he say that much of the Bible we have was oral tradition that was passed down over the centuries.  According to the legalists God spoke every single word in the Bible that we have today and to say otherwise casts a dark shadow upon the laws they bow down to and worship.  It is a well documented fact that most of the stories that were had written in the scriptures were of oral tradition.   Berendt sermon link.

The legalists who worship the law and the tablets get pushed over the edge by this.  The law trumps everything.  Jesus Christ is so inconvenient to them.

Philadelphia Church of God Causes Another Suicide

Blood is once again on the hands of the Philadelphia Church of God.  The PCG has directly and a hand in another PCG suicide.

How could any parent allow these sick men in PCG to tell them to kick their chid out of the house?

How many more need to die in the PCG before people do anything about it?

The Philadelphia Church of God and the Restored Church of God are nearing the border of another Jonestown and yet church members and leaders of other Churches of God refuse to do anything.  Why won't any of them speak out against Gerald Flurry and the PCG?

They do not because deep down they know they are just as sick, even though the lipstick on their own pig is severely smeared.  As Bereans Did is reporting:

The Letter Kills: PCG Claims Another Life

Unfortunately, we recently learned about a heart-breaking situation that demonstrates why strivings over the law can be so destructive. We take no joy in reporting this situation. Rather, we hope that bringing to light issues and consequences like these can  help prevent future tragedies in the Armstrongist community.

Once upon a time, a kind, loving couple who desired to serve God raised their children diligently in the Worldwide Church of God. In 1995, they left for one of the larger, more moderate splinter groups, and the whole family stayed there for years. Their children grew up. One child stayed in the same group as the parents.  Another decided that the lukewarm splinter they attended was not zealous enough for God's law. He and his wife took their young children with them to the Philadelphia Church of God and cut off all contact with their COG family.

Fast forward several years. It is reported that, in their desire to obey their church leaders, the younger PCG couple kicked one of their children out of the house because he had a girlfriend and wasn't spending enough time reading his Bible. Disfellowshipped from PCG, that child moved in with his COG grandparents, whom he hadn't seen in years. He took his own life during the Days of Unleavened Bread, at the age of 21. Not surprisingly, PCG is telling its membership that the young man was mentally ill. Later reports included details that muddy the picture of whether mental illness or PCG's no-contact policy is to blame for his suicide. Some who knew him say they doubt PCG's story. At the very least, the no-contact policy no doubt exacerbated the pain for someone with few emotional and spiritual supports. 

Letter to a Church of God Minister

Excerpts from a letter to a Church of God Minister:

What many of you in such vaulted, authoritative positions never seem to understand, is that we’re not leaving the Body of Christ, but rather an imperfect, often misguided, confused or arrogant leader or organization, that have become more “hireling types” or now miss or abuse the point of their perceived calling on some or even many levels.

Quite simply, people are desperately looking for someone whose proper servant’s voice and life they recognize, who is a true, well rounded, serving shepherd, as designed and dedicated as Jesus Christ, revealed and showed through his own exemplary life and the subsequent apostle’s example.

What we’ve gotten instead, are many Korah, self-aggrandizing types, who’ve become almost papal like figures that one dares not question anything they say or do, as though God only fully answers their prayers and, anyone who follows them, must recognize they do so, in great trepidation, within God’s full authority.

I never thought I’d see in the aftermath of the demise of WCG such a menagerie of misguided and self-serving individuals, who seem to clamor for so much personal attention, as though they individually are the cream of the crop, and the absolute apple in God’s eyes.

Yet the focus is to continue to blame the members for their indiscretions and lack of faith, and not a self-serving ministry who treat the people like merchandise, usually for their own personal use or benefit.

In essence, we are seeing naked emperors, pseudo apostles, prophets, witnesses, trainer of witnesses or other “look at me” roles, which must have the fawning few who worship their every word or deed.

Select few seem to fulfill the complete “job descriptions” given in Titus and Timothy; instead they seem to see it as a buffet of sorts, picking and choosing what they best like to do, rather than honoring the “complete and God centered calling”, even going above and beyond it, like a profitable servant should.

But even more sad, is most members can’t for the life of them ever see any of you who are in these prominent authoritative roles who demand our total loyalty, compliance or acceptance of all things taught or believed by you, ever coming under someone else’s human control or influence again, in true humility, because each in your own way have become a pious authority unto your selves.

I guess what’s good for the goose (us) isn’t what’s good for the gander, figuratively or physically or especially spiritually speaking. What a mockery of the responsibility, actually required by God!!

We hear many excuses, threats and convoluted reasoning’s why the average Joe Christian should remain faithful to you or men or groups like yours (where you hasten to include or infer God’s presence or his authority given to such an esteemed group when threats of disloyalty are often felt by you).

But I guess a taste of ultimate power (as we are often accused of desiring) is such a strong aphrodisiac, that many excuse your own behavior with misguided, often self righteous objectives and viewpoints.

I have been told numerous times over my XX years in the church, that just being right on a given point MUST always be tempered or proven with an appropriate and right and humble attitude.

Most likely, this letter could very well be a waste of my time writing it, as I’m sure there’ll be a collective collaboration to pick apart my “misguided and misrepresented” points (shared by more people out here than you know) with your more “learned, converted, closely related group”, you rely on for approval.

My question is, must we out here, be the only ones that must have the right attitude in receiving or accepting something from you or do you in your collective mindsets also share in that responsibility, to have the right attitude in giving it or even broaching such a subject, especially when it can cause confusion, doubt or even angst on people’s part?

When even, might something perceived or taught as new or non-salvational, become salvational for someone, becoming a stumbling block or a point of needless confusion and you are held accountable?

The ultimate question is; what do you and men like you really owe to the flock God has seen fit to give (and take) from you?

I’ve often said there are 3 things you hardly ever hear a minister affiliated with the church of God over the year’s state or admit, are “I’m sorry”, “I’m wrong” and “I don’t know”. That mold is certainly still intact.

I know as members we have been taught, almost ad nauseam, that we are the weak of this world and might barely make it to God’s Kingdom if we don’t fall in line behind the authority of God (via the ministry). But I’d have to say, the ministry as a whole, has certainly led the pack, backwards.

But I really do wonder how God perceives today’s “ministry”, who can’t seem to find any common spiritual ground with fellow, “well trained???”, extensively experienced men who should be able to rise above it all; especially with the double portion of help that everyone feels they have, directly given by God…..

Maybe the tares aren’t exactly who we have all thought they might be, but those who have done more of a disservice to God’s calling and accountability, because they merely have lost sight of the goal themselves or they have simply been ordained of men, but never of God.

I truly wonder if any of the various COG group’s leaders understand exactly what God does want and expects, not just from the lowly member, but doubly more from those who relish in authority and supreme governance, who have picked up the mantle of a minister or leader of one of these various, fractious groups, that now make up the church of God today?

And please spare me/us the dire warnings and the “minister is always right” proclamations that so many ministers over the years have used to neutralize the not so enlightened or rebellious member.

Maybe for a change, it’s time to look in the spiritual mirror your selves instead of always imputing motives toward everyone else.

I think I am really starting to understand, why God said in Matthew 24, that his love would wax cold.

Certainly it has to do with all of us disobeying his laws, but since Christ clarified it as the two great commandments (loving God and in essence, loving each other as we would God), we see the results we see today, when we lose that agape focus for all of God’s people.

Unfortunately, with the lack of real, true, humble Godly leadership all these years, with so many people following their leaders missteps or self-serving beliefs and actions, they will unfortunately start acting and reacting exactly as we see today.