Deeply Fake Prophet Worries and Warns of Deep Fakes

In the first century, the Apostle Paul wrote:

"Now brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, we ask you not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as it from us, as though the Day of Christ had come." (2 Thessalonians 2:1-2)

While we don't know exactly how some had concluded that the Day of Christ had already come and gone or even how some didn't believe Jesus had even come in the flesh (2 John 1:7) when he was just in town, we do know the problem of fake letters aplenty had to be addressed by someone of genuine and recognizable authority, whether it was actually them or someone writing as if they were. 

Let's first consider that 2 Thessalonians, a book that worries about fake letters,  itself is considered by many scholars to be pseudepigraphy, false writing, forged and a deep fake along with several other letters in the NT attributed to both Paul and Peter but not written by them. 

According to the biblical scholar, at least 11 of the 27 New Testament books are forgeries, while only seven of the 13 epistles attributed to Paul were probably written by him.

"Virtually all scholars agree that seven of the Pauline letters are authentic: Romans, 1 and 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Philippians, 1 Thessalonians, and Philemon," says Ehrman.  

"Individuals claiming to be Paul wrote 1 and 2 Timothy, Titus, 2 Thessalonians, Ephesians, and Colossians, he adds.  Contradictory views, discrepancies in the language, and the choice of words among the books attributed to Paul are all evidence of this forgery," the author asserts.

(Note: Along with the fact that Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John were also originally anonymous gospels whose names were affixed decades later and not eyewitnesses or personal accounts of anything...well, deep fakes are as old as writing. No Gospel speaks in the first person. There is no "And then Jesus said to me". The Gospel accounts are not written as first-person narratives, and there are no direct statements in the Gospels suggesting they were written by people at the scene. )

"But why would an author claim to be an Apostle when he wasn't? The answer is pretty obvious, according to the scholar.

In the early centuries of the church, Christians felt under attack from all sides. 'They were in conflict with Jews and pagans over the validity of their religion ... but the hottest debates were with other Christians, as they argued over the right thing to believe and the rights ways to live,' said Ehrman. Thus Christians aiming to authorize views they wanted others to accept wrote in the name of the Apostles, 'fabricating, falsifying and forging documents,' says Ehrman.

'If your name was Jehoshaphat and no one had any idea who you were, you could not very well sign your own name to the book,' explains Ehrman.  'No one would take the Gospel of Jehoshaphat seriously. If you wanted someone to read it, you called yourself Peter. Or Thomas. Or James. In other words, you lied about who you really were,' Ehrman concludes. According to the scholar, the idea that "writing in the name of another" was a common, accepted practice in antiquity is wrong. Forgery was considered just as deceitful, inappropriate and wrong as it is today."  Forgeries in the Bible's New Testament?

So there's that...  Nothing new to see here. 

However, Deeply Fake Prophet Thiel goes on to worry about himself being deeply faked, discredited, or scandalized. However, he does seem deeply faked already.

 

"Yes, computer technology and artificial intelligence can make very convincing fakes. More deep fakes are coming. Some will be used for the purpose of deceit and character assassination. I expect that the time will come when deep fake technology  will be used to make it seem like I, and others in the CCOG say and/or do things, that we did not say or do. Actually, I mentioned that in a recent sermon." Daily Mail: An AI company is using deepfake technology to seamlessly dub your favorite actor’s dialogue; COGwriter: Dangers of ‘deep fakes’

I'm personally not convinced anyone would bother to take the time to deeply fake something about Prophet Thiel mostly known as "Prophet Who?"  

Now to be sure, Deep Fake technology will lead to about as much skepticism about anything we see in the future as can be imagined. Perhaps that's the point.  One can claim what is real is deeply fake or what is deeply fake is real. Depends on the need.  Like 2 Thessalonians warning about fake letters "as from us" when itself is one. In our time,  like a Dave Pack, Gerald Flurry, or Bob Thiel claiming to be what they actually are not and deeply faked even if they fail to recognize it as being so.  

As PCG Gears Up For Its Summer Reeducation Camp Parents Expected to Sign A Waiver That States: "the risk of injury to your child from the activities is significant including permanent disability and death"

 

The Philadelphia Church of God is getting ready to hold their yearly Summer "Educational" Program (SEP...how original) on their cult compound in Edmond Oklahoma. Horror stories circulate widely on Facebook from former attendees who were forced to participate in outdoor activities in high heat and extreme humidity and were ridiculed when they fell ill and many times were denied much-needed medical assistance. 

As you will see below, parents are expected to sign away their children's lives because PCG admits that the "risk of injury is significant including permanent disability and death"! So much for outgoing godly love towards its potential future tithe payers!

PCG is also forcing parents to waive all rights to sue the church if their child is injured to dies AND they will keep that notarized statement on file for 7 years or longer.

Jason Cocomise mailed a letter with 4 PDF documents for those who will be attending Philadelphia Church of God Summer Educational Program aka SEP (formerly called Philadelphia Youth Camp or PYC) to sign. To attend camp it will cost $350 per camper. The documents contain many questions parents must answer and a multitude of rules they agree to follow. Here is some of it:

They must fill in their travel plans to camp and from camp with the airline, flight number, arrival or departure date (to and from Oklahoma City). If they aren’t traveling by airplane to camp, or are coming in early, they must explain their travel arrangements (i.e., who they will be traveling with, who is driving, estimated time of departure, etc.). They must explain the same thing for departure from camp.

There also is a Medical Consent for Rendering of Medical Services that must be signed and notarized.

Then there is a Minor Waiver/Release which says that the risk of injury to your child from the activities is significant including permanent disability and death. When you sign you are saying that you will freely assume all such risks. Signing this paper is to “release and hold harmless the Philadelphia Church of God Summer Educational Program, (goes on to include directors, employees, volunteers, etc.) with respect to any and all injury, disability, death,” etc.

The signed waiver/release “will be kept on file by the SEP for at least 7 years or possibly longer if the participant has been involved in a serious injury.”

The participant and the parent/guardian must also sign the S.E.P. Release and Acknowledgment of S.E.P. Standards which is a covenant not to sue and to release and hold harmless PCG from and against claims or suits, resulting from personal injuries and bodily injuries, etc. The “S.E.P. Standards” at end of this document covers the “high standards of personal conduct. These standards include rules against intoxication or possession of intoxicants, sexual misconduct, use or possession of illegal drugs, stealing, smoking, disorderly conduct, intentional destruction of property, refusal to cooperate with Church or S.E.P. counselors, chaperons or helpers or any conduct or attitudes not in keeping with God’s law and beliefs of the Church. Applicants and chaperons will also be expected to maintain high standards of dress and grooming.”

The rules are endless and much of it is in all caps to make sure you understand. –Oklahoma [name withheld] Exit and Support Network

 

Living Church of God On Attending Church As Country Reopens

As the country reopens and restrictions start dropping on groups gathering togehther, LCG has released some well thought out guidlines for church services, masks, and vaccinations.

 

Dear Brethren, 

 

While COVID-19 rages in parts of the world such as India, it seems to be abating in other nations. New Zealand reports very few cases and here in the United States, Texas reported zero deaths from COVID yesterday for the first time. Nevertheless, one of our members in Texas succumbed to the virus a few days ago and she was in her mid-thirties. We know of others who contracted the disease recently and have had a difficult time with it. 

 

It might be easy to let up entirely if we were only a localized church, but we are an international Church, serving people in many different countries, provinces, territories, and states. (Please read the message from Mr. Paul Shumway below, regarding a visit from the COVID Police in Barbados on Pentecost.) One size does not fit all, and we should not stay locked down where it does not make sense. Sadly, everything about this pandemic has become political in the United States and some other countries, making it nearly impossible to trust any one source. So, what is God’s Church to do? 

 

Attending services in a crowded room with poor ventilation for two or more hours is a high-risk situation for spreading any kind of airborne virus. We also know that we have many members who are vulnerable due to age and underlying conditions. We want them to be safe and feel safe, but we cannot hide out in caves and wear masks until Christ returns. We must get back to some kind of normalcy as there are also risks to isolating ourselves and continually wearing masks for too long. 

 

After consulting with others this past week about the evolving situation, we want to loosen up where we can. For right now, we will continue to require masks while singing, and in fellowship before and after services while inside, but we will not require masks during the speaking portions of services where this is reasonableand allowed by law and the facilities we are using—keeping in mind that the priority is to do what we can to protect the vulnerable among us, particularly in areas where transmission is not low. We were looking forward to this in Charlotte last weekend as the result of a regulation change, but our meeting facility changed our meeting room and some 200 of us were crammed into a smaller room in which social distancing was not possible. It made sense to continue another week with masks for the whole service until this Sabbath, when we will be in our regular, larger room. Many areas are already doing this. We will continue to use social distancing in seating, where possible. 

 

In addition, in areas where there is low to no transmission, where mask mandates are totally lifted, and where we are not putting vulnerable people at risk, we want to go back to our normal practice. This does not mean that one cannot wear a mask or that people should be pressured or shamed to take off their mask. Those who choose to wear a mask are free to do so. Any decision to make a congregation mask-optional for the whole service will be made by the pastor after consulting with his Regional Director or Regional Pastor. Regional Pastors should consult with Church Administration when in doubt. 

 

And please, brethren, let us not judge one another regarding vaccination or non- vaccination, on masking or not masking, or what one congregation does based on its unique circumstances versus another congregation. Whatever we do, let’s show love and outgoing concern for one another. 

 

Sincerely, in Christ’s service, 

Gerald E. Weston