CGI: The Death of CGI’s Bronson James

 

The Death of CGI’s Bronson James

Late last week, the Church of God International announced the death of longtime Pastor, Bronson James. In their In Memory of Bronson T. James, they noted that “Bronson, 76, was a long-time servant of God's people. He was one of the pioneers of the Church of God International ministry. He pastored churches, served for decades on the CGI's Ministerial Council and Board of Directors, and was instrumental in the creation and production of the Armor of God television program. He was hired by the CGI in 1988 to manage the Letter Answering Department, and he continued working at the home office, taking on various other responsibilities, until he moved to Detroit, MI, in circa 2002.”

After leaving the Worldwide Church of God, I had the opportunity to meet Pastor James and listen to him speak and sing in 1986. I was immediately impressed with both his sincerity, warmth, independent spirit, and oratorical abilities. Over the years that followed, I became aware of the fact that Bronson was adamantly opposed to the preaching of Anglo-Israelism, and that he had made his opposition to that doctrine very plain to both my father and Bill Watson. Moreover, as one of the few African American ministers in the church at that time, his open opposition to the teaching of Anglo-Israelism was a source of some difficulty and embarrassment for many of the White Anglo-Saxon ministers within CGI. To his credit, Bronson continued to extend the hand of fellowship to his deceived brethren in the ministry, but he steadfastly refused to preach it to his own congregation or endorse it when others chose to preach it to their congregations.

In September of last year, I wrote privately to Bronson expressing my own strong distaste for the teaching of Anglo-Israelism. I said: “I am of the opinion that this belief has been completely discredited by science, history, linguistics, and Scripture. Moreover, I believe that the underlying premise of the teaching has proven to be racist, and that its disqualification necessarily renders any prophetic interpretation which depends on it to be invalid.” And, although we both understood that correspondence to be confidential at the time, I don’t feel the same need to protect that communication that I felt while he was still living. Indeed, I think that it is more important to make very clear that Pastor James did NOT support the teaching of this pernicious doctrine!

It didn’t take Bronson very long to respond to me. He wrote: “Thanks for reaching out to me! To keep my response short and to the point: I'm in agreement with your correct perspective on the issues you presented. I have confronted Bill on his point of view going back 20 years or more. British/Israelism is totally un-Biblical. I don't teach it or allow it taught in the Detroit congregation. I try to respond to a growing number of Believers in the Body of Christ who see the error of that teaching. I eventually see a split materializing in this matter. But those who hold fast to the Truth of the Bible will not be drawn into this untruth. Thank you for expressing your difference even with your own father on this matter. Be strong in the Truth you know!”

Pastor Bronson James was a voice of sanity and reason within CGI, and he will be sorely missed. Nevertheless, I believe it does a disservice to the man and his memory to gloss over or dismiss his determined opposition to the messaging associated with the teaching of Anglo-Israelism. The TRUTH is that Pastor Bronson James believed that British-Israelism was “totally unbiblical” and should NOT be taught from the pulpit!

--Lonnie Hendrix

 

 

LCG Armoring Up Against The Devil

 

If only the Living Church of God talked about Jesus as much as they talk about Satan, the devil, and demons then they would not be in constant fear of evil controlling their lives or influencing them. LCG and many COG members believe they are in a constant spiritual battle to not have their minds taken over by demonic forces.

On Wednesday, Mr. Wallace Smith recorded a telecast entitled “Armor Up Against the Devil,” offering the DVD “The Occult and the Spirit World.” He discusses the spiritual war for our minds and a call to repentance and the encouraging news that Christ will help us to fight against Satan in this battle. Mr. Peter Nathan reports that the U.K. postal strike is impacting the response to the semi-annual offer of the new Germany in Prophecy booklet. We are presently receiving only one-quarter of the expected responses. The strike is also impacting income, although the majority of U.K. income comes online. The Mail Processing Department here in Charlotte mailed out more than 1.6 million pieces last year. I’ll save some exciting news from the Work in the Spanish language for this week’s video update. Teen Camp Texas registration is now open, so be sure to apply early.—Gerald Weston

Christians for millennia have always understood these basic points about Satan and demonic forces which the COG fails to understand.

They unwittingly serve God’s purposes (Judg. 9:23).
They were terrified of Christ and the gospel (Matt. 8:29; Mark 1:24; James 2:19).
They obeyed Christ (Matt. 8:32).
They obeyed the Twelve (Matt. 10:1–8) and the Seventy-Two (Luke 10:17–20).
They cannot separate believers in Christ from the love of God (Rom. 8:38).
They can be restrained by the Holy Spirit (2 Thess. 2:6; 1 John 4:4).
They have been judged already by God (2 Pet. 2:4; Jude 6) and will be again in the future (Rev. 20:10).

SEVEN YEARS LATER: It Did Get Worse. A Lot Worse...

 

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 2016

Dennis Confronts Dave Pack: "If I Ever Go Off Into Strange or Weird Ideas..."

NOTE:  Due to the ongoing melt down of Dave Pack it has been suggested that this post be reposted.

If I Ever Go Off Into Strange or Weird Ideas...

 "I want to make a statement about...me...now, if I became deceived, I will never tell you what I'm going to tell you now...I am telling you  if I go off into strange ideas,  misconduct, rebellion, you name it, don't follow me. I want to tell you that now, because if I start doing that I'm gonna try to get you to follow me! I'm gonna come to you and tell you it doesn't apply, it doesn't mean me, no, no, no, no, no, no, it's OK to follow me because ABCD and XY and Z. Do you understand what I'm saying? Listen to me now, when I tell you don't follow me if I go off into weird ideas, or if I get off into other things that are total absolutely unscriptural conduct, because if I do I'm gonna paint it with a different face and try to get you to follow me. Do you understand what I'm saying brethren? Please remember that, because I promise you that if I become deceived, I'll forget it, and I'll want you to forget it...And  I hope you'll remember it well enough to quote it right back to me...But I'll tell you what, I'm not going anywhere."

David C Pack

December 12, 1998

Actually Dave, I totally understand what you are saying and just did quote it back to you as instructed.  That time you foresaw has arrived and indeed, you are uttering both strange and weird things about yourself.  If I read all the letters sent to you by former employees and members correctly, you also have tendencies to act in unscriptural ways but I am pretty sure you don't see that side of this coin.  What chance is there you will see the trail of tears you have left for decades when you are struggling to figure out just what "filthy rags" you, as the fulfillment of Haggai's Joshua the High Priest might have to remove.  The idea that all you can come up with is that you sinned not leaving the splinters soon enough or not starting your own church soon enough is...well...a strange and weird idea to say the least

So the time has come to tell you that your current ideas about just where you fit in the Biblical scheme of things has come.  It is time to tell you, as instructed, that your ideas about you being foretold in the minor prophet Haggai or Zephaniah is truly a strange and weird idea.  I have to admit, you do follow the A, B, C and X,Y and Z format in explaining this ridiculous concept as you predicted so at least thanks for sticking to the format so we could recognize it and call you out on it as instructed.

First of all, you have been in "rebellion" for as long as I have known you.  Now I understand one man's rebellion is another man's faithfulness, but let's face it...you have never done well working for anyone that told you what to do.  Men such as yourself simply can't take instructions, correction or advice.  I have chatted with a few of your close staff who confirm that you taking advice is not a strong point.  It tends to enrage you.  I recall your sojourn in New York City where you were sent to work under Mr.___________ as your one last chance to get your team player skills together.  I asked Mr. _________ how you were doing working for and with others but not in charge and not having the final say.  He said you were doing fine for now and what you needed to do to get through it, but when you were ever back on your own you'd fall back into all that you have since fallen back into.  Now that man was a Prophet for sure.  He said, "People don't change much."  And this is true. Some get worse.

The idea that you are foretold in the scriptures some 2500 years after the fact is simply weird and strange.  It is also a lie. You are truly the master of making a scripture mean what it never meant.  From declaring that "houses" in Haggai is really splinters to your nutcase idea that all the tithes of the splinters need to flow unto you because it belongs to you is simply insane.  Ok, I mean strange and weird to stick to your terminology and what we had to look out for in you.   You even have the amount calculated I imagine because you know as well as I do that it has never been about the numbers with you , but it really is.  Remember redrawing church boundries so you could have a larger congregation without actually having new folk come along?  I do.  The minister next door only found out when the member showed him the letter telling him he has been switched to your congregation .  Kinda strange and weird even back then.

 

But back to the current strange and weird ideas.  It was kinda neat to see how you explained that HWA knew he was at first a type of Zerubbabel (which means 'born of confusion" btw) and in the next paragraph he knew he was Zerubbabel and not just any type, and finally ended up not knowing who Joshua the High Priest would be.  Funny, I recall it being plainly GTA according the HWA when he was hoping Ted would get rid of his filthy rags and return to his duties in the church.  Gerald Waterhouse was real big on GTA and the filthy rag theory.  So in a very short time, you evolved HWA's thinking back then to match and pave the way for you now.  Strange and weird huh?   The more bad news is that HWA also was never spoken of in any scripture but I know you'd not believe such a thing.  I mean what's the chance that out of billions, it is YOU?  I hesitate to say that since Haggai was never written for much into the future as you think.  Prophets, real or imagined, sane or insane do not write about events outside their perceived lifetimes.  What good would that be?  I could go back to the Book of Lamentations and see my entire experience with WCG foretold and how I would evolve and endeavor to help the brain dead in the COGs wake up a bit but I don't have the energy.  Jeremiah lived a rather melancholy life so it would be stretching his intent I think. 

Loved your phrase,  ""I want to make a statement about...me..."  Making statements about you has never been difficult .  Once you see yourself in the Bible how can it be any different?.  Of the 24 times the Apostle Paul is referred to as an Apostle, he calls himself one 22 of those and Luke, his side kick, the other 2.  Other than that , no one thought so or at least mentioned it.  Kinda like yourself.  Kinda like Gerald Flurry with whom you have much in common.  The taking of title in the WCG slivers is just short of astounding.  Where do you guys come from?

"I wanna talk about me!"

"No other epistle author in the Bible wrote like Paul. This would be true on a number of levels, but one aspect is of particular interest when we are considering how Paul views himself. He had a way of drawing attention to himself with his usage of personal pronouns. When it comes to how often he uses words like, "I", "me", "my", or "mine", the overall rate in his epistles is almost three times that of his next closest rival."

And so it is with yourself.  Please don't take any comparison with the Apostle Paul as a compliment from me.  Or you don't know me very well on this issue.  

Now I am betting you are saying  "...it doesn't apply, it doesn't mean me, no, no, no, no, no, no, it's OK to follow me because ABCD and XY and Z."   But, we're on to you and this is the very circumstance you said could come up and you told us all just how to react. I am doing you the very favor you begged the brethren to watch out for. 

I am just reminding your, so far, brain dead followers that you said it and that you would do everything in your power to convince them you aren't getting into strange and weird ideas.  Well, you are and you have and it's time to pony up as they say.  

You continued to say concerning youself..." Please remember that, because I promise you that if I become deceived, I'll forget it, and I'll want you to forget it..."  

Well...forget it you have and I imagine you really wish we'd all forget it too just as you said.  I have to say, this prophecy of how you would be and act when you got all strange and weird was really right on.  Since you are incapacitated in memory and bound and determined to see yourself as Joshua the High Priest or whatever as spoken of by the Prophet Haggai, it is our job to keep the balance as yours has completely left you.  You can't get upset as you told the brethren to be on the look out for just this kind of deviance from the norm.  And so we do.  

It is not necessary to go through Haggai with you or anyone else to prove that the Bible does not speak of you, you are not any Joshua the really spoken of High Priest and all your detailed analysis of the book is not really what the book was all about.  They don't call it anal--ysis for nothing Dave.  You weave a great yarn, but a yarn it is and it won't take long for it to unwind as did the machinations of the not really the Two Witnesses Ron Weinland or the not really "That Prophet" Gerald Flurry.  Geez...how many times do the WCG leftovers have to learn this lesson?

I drove through Wadsworth this past week and sincerely thought to stop in and have a chat but I was told you'd call the police and I don't have time for that.  I guess you don't want to debate after asking you three times huh?  

At any rate, I thought it was time to quote you back to you as you asked for such a time as this.  Your foresight and insight into how you would behave in such a case of going weird and strange was very well spoken.  I'm proud of you for speaking so plainly before the time of the actual weird and strange beliefs and I am thankful the Internet preserved your prophetic words for so long.  

When you recover your senses, you will thank me.  We can hug and make up because that which was lost will have been found  and your sanity will, like Nebuchadnezzar ,have returned.  I hope it does not take seven years but it is what it is and will be what it will be.  I'm here for ya when your mind comes back. 

In closing, a word about your very last statement.  "But I'm not going anywhere."  I'm a pretty intuitive guy.  I know what people mean between the lines when they write or speak.  "But I'm not going anywhere" is meant to calm the troops after such dramatic statements.  It is actually a subconscious ploy , whether you know it or not, to get to say all this dramatic "don't follow me if I get weird and strange, but of course I will never get weird or strange," so now you can now actually start getting weird and strange and they won't think it is weird or strange.  

After all, you just told them how you would behave and then assured them you'd never actually do that and then you get to do it and they don't get it.  Brilliant!  It's like the tassels and ribbons that warriors used to put on the ends of the spears.  In battle they would wave them around and it was just natural for the human eye to follow the pretty ribbon and tassel as it was waved in their face. Well it was pretty until the actual spear point was shoved into one's chest.  Distractions and disclaimers are the tassels and ribbons on the end of a very dangerous spear.  

Anyway...I just thought I'd quote you back to you for such a time as this in your thinking.  I really don't want to see anyone else get hurt with religion done badly and mental problems being mistaken for spirituality and truth.  Was that harsh?

Warm regards