UCG's "Compass Check" Youth Magazine - Another Epic Failure In The Works?

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For many years the United Church of God tried to produce a magazine similar to the WCG YOUTH magazine.  Just like the youth of the WCG who never read the YOUTH magazine, the youth of UCG did not care for Vertical Thought either.

Like all of the various splinter groups of the Worldwide Church of God they are failing to draw in and grow with younger folk.  All of the Churches of God are currently dying off as the older WCG related generations die off.

Lecturing  the youth of the church with mindless Armstrongite drivel is not impressing any of them.

They are leaving.

Vertical Thought could not keep them in and Compass Check will not either.

At least with Vertical Thought the name implied one direction, upwards.  The Compass Check has no fixed point.  As one person on a proCOG site said,

Compass Check” does not show any direction, but rather, that one may be off track and has to reorient themselves. A compass has 360 different points, but only one can be correct; whereas, “Vertical..” has but one point – upward and outward from one’s base – a 90* angle from horizontal.

They would be better off (send a stronger message/emphasis) to have retained “Vertical Thought” which only points one way. And abandon the “Compass Check” which could allow 359 different wrong ways vs the one good way. Clarity in vision is better than clouded, diffused, and misdirected vision – even if accidental.

Ouch!  UCG is setting itself up for another epic failure.  Over the last several years since it imploded UCG has one failure after another.  All of the glossy propaganda they spit out every other week is nothing more than a smoke screen.  UCG members are just as disillusioned as those in other COG's.  People are asking WHY they even remain any more.  

The only real hope the youth of United Church of Godr have is to leave when they are of age.  There is a glorious world out there waiting for them to change it.  As long as they remain within the cultish walls of UCG they will never truly be free.

Robert Kuhn Still Willing to Stretch the Boundaries of Thinking

Robert Kuhn was a high ranking WCG member/employee for many years and was highly educated on many aspects of life and religion.  He particularly was well versed in the science of the brain.  The Plain Truth magazine, a Worldwide Church of God  publication ran many articles by Kuhn.

After leaving the beliefs of Armstrongism behind he has led an amazing life exploring the human mind, the cosmos, religion and the search for the meaning of life.  Kuhn's widely popular program is on PBS here in the Untied States, and online.  When you compare the well thought out and deep questions of Kuhn to the amateurish drivel that Dave Pack, Gerald Flurry and Rod Meredith put on on their TV shows, Kuhn's program is light years ahead of them.  The difference between Kuhn and the Armstrongite splinter group leaders is that Kuhn is not afraid to ask questions, allow room for doubt and not find it necessary to have the answers.  Pack, Flurry, Meredith and other COG leaders claim to be the ultimate source of all knowledge.  They have an answer to EVERYTHING!  God is working overtime keeping all of these men's brains filled with the latest revelations. Its no wonder he needs a day of rest.

Closer To Truth explores fundamental issues of universe, brain/mind, religion, meaning and purpose through intimate, candid conversations with leading scientists, philosophers, scholars, theologians and creative thinkers of all kinds. The shows are a rich visual experience, shot entirely on location in high definition with multiple cameras generating rich production values.

Public fascination with questions of Cosmos, Consciousness and particularly of Meaning has grown substantially in recent years. Public debate has been intense, often heated.
Closer To Truth presents to mass audiences these leading-edge ideas in an approachable, rational and balanced manner, and introduces the human personalities behind these ideas. By meeting these change-making characters close-up, the thinkers behind the thoughts, visiting them in their homes, offices, labs, gardens, churches and temples, Closer To Truth humanizes riveting ideas and makes them more accessible and more relevant.

Closer to Truth YouTube channel is here.

Gerald Flurry Reenforces Racist Intermarriage Teachings of Herbert Armstrong

Gerald Flurry is well known for spouting off racist comments, much like his idol Herbert Armstrong.   Now that Gerald Flurry owns the copyright for Mystery of the Ages (after losing a humiliating court battle) he continues to publish and endorse the racist polices of Armstrong.

The following is from a defunct exCOG blog that is still filled with a wealth of information.

Herbert W. Armstrong's views on interracial marriage were not at all a secret. I have found various sermons and written works by Armstrong that express a great deal of racism. The following collection of quotes is intended to illustrate how open Armstrong was about his racist beliefs, and how he enforced his prejudices upon members of the Worldwide Church of God.

"God originally set the bounds of national borders, intending nations to be separated to prevent interracial marriage. [...] Noah was of perfect lineage in his generations. His wife and three sons were of that same white strain."

Mystery of the Ages; H.W. Armstrong; pg. 149

"God intended to prevent racial intermarriages. But man has always wanted to violate God’s laws, intentions and ways. They wanted to become one race or family through intermarriage
of races."

Mystery of the Ages; H.W. Armstrong; pg. 151

Below, I have transcribed pieces of one of Herbert W. Armstrong's shockingly racist sermons. I have included a link the the audio of the entire sermon. He was 90 years old when he spoke these words. I have capitalized certain bits of text to note the volume of Armstrong's voice. Anyone who has heard a sermon by HWA will remember his bouts of screaming, when he was trying to make a point.

Apparently, what had spurred him to write this sermon was a letter, written by one of his followers.

"Today I want to speak on what may possibly be the very next attack that Satan will use against this church [...] interracial marriage."

"It was stated that the blacks in God's Church are dissatisfied with such doctrines that are not in keeping with the current social trend in the world [civil rights movement] that are a part of this nations background. [...] And this letter also says that they are trying to line up a group of blacks to give ME AN ULTIMATUM, that I get on the side of the social trend of this world, or else! I'll tell you what I'll give them, I'LL GIVE THEM THE 'OR ELSE!' (church audience laughs) I WON'T COMPRIMISE ONE MILLIONTH OF AN INCH! And if you will, you can go into the Lake of Fire if you want to. [...] Some are saying that we have to to have racial balance at ambassoders college. [...]"

"Genisis 6:1; And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of
the earth, and daughters were born unto them,
Genisis 6:2; That the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were
fair; and they took them wives of ALL WHICH THEY CHOOSE."
"That's what they want to do today. A black man wants to take a white woman for a wife, THAT'S WHAT HE CHOOSES. [...] Now I don't know any cases where a WHITE MAN wants to marry a black woman, WHY IS THAT? Answer that for me! Why is it only BLACK MEN who want to marry white women?"

This is obviously a twist of scripture. Armstrong is trying to 'prove' his racist beliefs with the Bible. There is no mention in the Genesis 6 that God sent Noah's flood because of interracial marriage; nor is there any evidence that Noah was white. HWA himself declares this, but there is no evidence in the scriptures.

And why should 'the church' question him? He is God's end-time Elijah... GOD TALKS TO HIM (or at least that is what WCG members were told.) Going against Armstrong was like going against God, for members; leaving the church was the worst sin one could commit. Apparently, these are concepts that are found in many cults*.