Exposing the underbelly of Armstrongism in all of its wacky glory! Nothing you read here is made up. What you read here is the up to date face of Herbert W Armstrong's legacy. It's the gritty and dirty behind the scenes look at Armstrongism as you have never seen it before!
With all the new crazy self-appointed Chief Overseers, Apostles, Prophets, Pharisees, legalists, and outright liars leading various Churches of God today, it is important to hold these agents of deception accountable.
Herbert Armstrong's Tangled Web of Corrupt Leaders
Why is there no room in the Churches of God for mystery and wonder?
What we all got stuck with was hundreds and hundreds of books, booklets, pamphlets, and letters from the Personal Correspondance Department that sought to answer every single question imaginable. Instead of relying upon church members to engage their brains and develop a personal theology for themselves, the church treated them like toddlers and spoon-fed them bad baby pablum.
Look at Bob Thiel today with the thousands of topics he thinks he has an answer for and of which hardly any of his 3,000 African members and his 299 Caucasians could care less about. Yet, he thinks his followers are too stupid to think for themselves so he provides his own take on things, not God's, but his.
Gerald Flurry and Dave Pack do the exact same thing. They feed their members putrid baby pablum that is so far off base and so far removed from the Gospel message that their members now are just as brain dead as they are.
Followers of The Way were meant to live in the mystery so that they would always be in awe, so much so that they yearned for more.
Perhaps it's been years or even decades since you left biblical Christianity behind. You may have noticed long ago that there are human handprints all over the Good Book. It may have dawned on you that popular Christian versions of heaven would actually be hellish. You may have figured out that prayer works, if at all, at the margins of statistical significance—that Believers don't avoid illness or live longer than people who pray to other gods or none at all. You may have clued in that Christian morality isn't so hot and that other people have moral values too. (Shocking!) You may have decided that the God of the Bible is a jerk—or worse.
But some habits of thought are hard to break. It is a lot easier to shed the contents of Christian fundamentalism than its psychological structure.
Here are ten mental patterns that trip up many ex-Christians even when we think we've done the work of moving on. None of these are unique to former Christians, but they are reinforced by Bible-belief and Christian culture, which can make them particularly challenging for recovering believers.
All or nothing thinking. In traditional Christian teachings, no sin is too small to send you to hell forever. You're either saved or damned, headed for unthinkable bliss or unthinkable torment, with nothing in between. Jesus saves only because he was perfect. Moderate Christians are "lukewarm."This kind of dichotomous black-and-white thinking seeps into us directly from Bible-believing Christianity and indirectly from cultures that are steeped in Protestantism...
Good guys and bad guys. One consequence of black-white thinking is that we put people into two mental boxes—good guys and bad guys. You are either with us or against us, a patriot or a socialist, an anti-racist or a racist, one of us or one of them. Disagreement becomes synonymous with schism and heresy. When we discover the personal failings of a public figure like Bill Gates, we may move them from one box to the other, good guy to bad guy. Christianity offers no mental model in which people are complicated and imperfect but basically decent—we are just fallen ("utterly depraved" in the words of Calvin) and either washed in the blood or tools of Satan.
Never feeling good enough. Since we are acutely aware of our own failings, it can be hard internally to stay out of the bad-guy box. Some of us toggle between "I'm awesome" and "I suck." Others have a nagging internal critic that tells us nothing we do is ever quite good enough. After all, it isn't perfect, and that's the biblical standard.
Hyperactive guilt detection. Biblical Christianity gives tremendous moral weight to all of this, and the practice of "confessing our sins one to another" turns believers into guilt-muscle body builders. We live in a world of shoulds and should-nots, and in the Protestant ethic, those daily failings are moral failings. A nagging sense of guilt can become baseline normal, with little bursts of extra guilt as we notice one thing or another that we have left undone or goals where we have fallen short.
Sexual hangups. For many former Christians, particularly for women or queer people but also straight guys who like sex, it's impossible to talk about guilt without talking about sex, because sexual sins are the worst of the worst. When it comes to the Bible, getting and giving sexual pleasure are more matters of temptation than of intimacy and delight. Idolatry and murder share the top 10 list with coveting your neighbor's wife. Then there's virgin-madonna-whore trifecta. And don't forget God hates fags.
Living for the future.Sexual intimacy isn't the only kind of pleasure that biblical Christianity devalues; the consecrated life focuses broadly on the future rather than the moment. The small every-day wonders that comprise the center of joy in mindful living are mere distractions for a person who has their eye on the prize of heaven. As former believers grow convinced that each person gets one precious life, those individual moments can become treasures. But the habit of focusing on the future can make it really hard to center in the moment, breathe in, and bask in the ordinary beauties and delights around us.
Bracing for an apocalypse.Even worse than being drawn by the lure of heaven is being braced constantly for some impending apocalypse. We may no longer expect a Rapture or the Mark of the Beast or Jesus riding in on a horse. But the idea of a cataclysmic disruption in history looms large nonetheless. A sense of nuclear doom or pandemic doom or overpopulation doom or underpopulation doom may nudge us to action or be paralyzing. Either way, the experience is very different from being driven by a sense of curiosity and discovery as we face the unknown.
Idealizing leaders. Living in a cloud of anxiety makes us more susceptible to demagogues and authoritarians, people who exude confidence we lack, who convey that they know what's right and true and how to solve problems. They prey on our fears and on our desire to do good and be good. They prey on our sense of ourselves as sinners and tell us how to atone. (Sound familiar?) They prey on dichotomous thinking, reinforcing our sense that people who don't share our worldview must be evil and so must be silenced or defeated.
Desperately seeking simplicity. Biblical Christianity tells a story about us as individuals and about human history that is clear and simple. Multi-dimensional causality? Moral ambiguity? Conflicts with no good side and bad side—just sides? Problems with no right answer? Blurry boundaries between human beings and other sentient species? No thanks! Fiction from Western cultures often mirrors and reinforces older Christian templates and tropes and specific types of oversimplification. And it's all to easy to project these in turn onto the hard-to-parse and hard-to-solve challenges of the real world. We know deep down that things aren't so simple, but it's easy to act as if we live in a world of saints and sinners, elves and orcs.
Intrusive what-ifs.And so we struggle, with new and old interpretations of reality and thought habits competing in our brains. We tell ourselves it's ok; that we're ok. But often nagging doubts persist. What if I'm wrong? Many years ago I told a therapist that I didn't believe in the Christian god anymore, but I didn't talk to anyone about it because I didn't want to take them to hell with me. He laughed and I laughed at myself, but it also felt very real.The journey out is . . . a journey. Along the way people second guess themselves, especially if Bible-belief got inside when they were young. Years after quitting a former smoker may crave a cigarette. That doesn't mean they were wrong to quit. It just means those synaptic connections got hardwired, soldered in place, and some of them are still there.
It is time boys and girls for the weekly Friday Night Love Letter To The Brethren Smackdown!
This week is about LCG members who are looking for loose bricks in the walls of the LCG that they can pull out when they disagree with leaders, misspoken words, poor understanding of sermons, doctrines, or editorial mistakes. LCG members seem to forget that there are NO PERFECT leaders in the LCG. Instead, LCG members need to realize that God is using the present-day imperfect leaders on the same scale he used Moses, Aaron, Samuel, David, Peter, and Paul in the past.
Seriously?
Winnail expects us to believe that today's LCG leadership is on the same level as Biblical leaders of old?
Loose Bricks or Big Picture: Over the years, many have come into contact with the Church and have been excited to learn the Truth. Others have been grateful to reconnect after having been away. Still others who have been part of the Church begin to look for loose bricks. From time to time, some begin to focus on doctrinal teachings or decisions they disagree with, editorial mistakes, misspoken (or misunderstood) words in a sermon, or personal offenses they have seen or experienced. It is easy to forget that no one is perfect and that God has used imperfect people down through the ages to do His Work—Moses, Aaron, Samuel, David, Peter, and Paul. To avoid slipping into this negative trap, we need to stay focused on the big picture. Is there a God? Is the Bible His inspired word? Does God have a Church? Where is it today? Where is the Gospel being powerfully preached? Who has had a more sure word of prophecy? Who is warning the world about sobering events that lie just ahead, before the imminent return of Jesus Christ? Who is preparing a people for the coming Kingdom of God? We need to stay focused on this big picture and not get caught up looking for loose bricks!
Have a profitable Sabbath, Douglas S. Winnail
Notice where Winnail tells us that we need to place our focus:
Is there a God?
Is the Bible His inspired word?
Does God have a church?
Where is that church today?
Where is the Gospel being powerfully preached?
Who has the more sure word of propehcy?
Who is warning the world about sobering events that lie ahead before Christ returns?
Who is preparing a people for the Kingdom of God?
Notice that the focus is entirely upon the physical aspects of who is doing the better job. Nowhere is anyone encouraged to find rest in the words of Jesus. No one is told about the grace and peace that comes from being a follower of The Way. What good is some Mickey Mouse Kingdom that the COG preaches about without Jesus being part of the message?
All any of us witness anymore with the various COG's in a constant pissing battle over who is doing things the best. LCG and Thiel battle over who has the "sure word of prophecy". Each COG claims they are the one true church, above all other COG's. No one is preaching a more powerful message than LCG, Bob Thiel, Gerald Flurry, Ron Weinland, or Dave Pack. People are so sick of this endless pissing contest that most no longer care. Most no longer want to be in the Mickey Mouse Kingdoms they're all promoting.
As Mr. Weston reported last week, both he and his wife have contracted the coronavirus. Be sure to pray fervently for their healing as well as others who became ill at or after the Living Youth Teen Camp. Several have already recovered, but the global danger has not significantly diminished. In the U.S., the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has even recommended that vaccinated individuals wear masks “indoors and in certain parts of the country” (“CDC Changes Guidelines on Indoor Masks,” Wall Street Journal, July 28, 2021, p. A1).” Several headquarters employees are under quarantine and working from home. But the Work is moving ahead powerfully. We just received newly printed copies of Tomorrow’s World magazine, August edition, which posts a circulation of 488,000. We anticipate passing the half-million mark within the next two issues! This afternoon, our television crew will be taping my program “The Dangerous Times of the Gentiles,” offering The Beast of Revelation: Myth, Metaphor or Soon-Coming Reality? The three-and-one-half years leading up to the return of Christ will be very dangerous and ultimately include World War III and Armageddon. Be sure to read Luke the 21st chapter, in which our Lord admonished us to watch and pray always! The TV department is also working on the November Semi-Annual DVD “Taking a Stand: Three Censored Tomorrow’s World Telecasts.”
Weston is apparently not well enough to write this week's update to the brethren.
As for the rest of the above comment by Richard Ames, it is the same old WCG message of doom and gloom that has been preached for decades. Can LCG not come up with something new and original? Perhaps talk about finding peace in the grace of Jesus Christ? If LCG members were encouraged to find that rest and peace with Jesus then they would not be so consumed by who the Beast is and the myths and metaphors of Revelation. Does anyone outside of the COG even care about the "times of the Gentiles"? Those that are at rest with Christ do not need to let this consume their daily lives.
Headquarters is looking forward to the new semester for on-site Living Education students who will be arriving Friday, August 6. They will study a variety of subjects and experience challenging real life adventures in their pursuit of “Recapturing True Values.” We all should strive to be living those biblical values as we overcome day by day.
Just what "true values" are they recapturing? Twenty-some years out of the Worldwide Church of God and they still are seeking those elusive true values. Perhaps if they sought the things Jesus brought to the table instead of worshipping the feet of Moses, those "true values" might actually be found.
Mr. Peter Nathan visited our ministers in western Kenya where churches are not allowed to congregate. He writes, “Most of the congregations have been meeting in small groups in members’ homes to avoid the regulations. The actions of the pastors to care for their flocks has been most commendable.” Mr. Nathan then flew to Accra, Ghana to meet with several groups. Next he will be visiting the Ivory Coast and Togo before returning to the UK. Your prayers for Mr. Nathan’s travels will be appreciated. It’s encouraging to know that God has called or is calling people “out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation” (Revelation 5:9).—Richard Ames
Nearly one in four Americans carries a good luck charm at least occasionally, according to a new survey.
According to a YouGov poll, seven percent of Americans carry a lucky charm every day, four percent said they carry one frequently, and 13 percent said they carry one occasionally. Seventy percent said they don’t carry a charm.
A lucky charm could be a shirt, a pair of shoes, a coin, a bracelet, or a piece of ribbon. In fact, at the World Cup, star Lionel Messi tied a ribbon given to him by a fan around his ankle.
According to Elle magazine, actress Cameron Diaz wears a lucky necklace, as does Lindsay Lohan. Actor Benicio Del Toro is reported to have a lucky ring.
Women are slightly more likely to carry a charm, with 26 percent saying they carry one at least occasionally, compared to 20 percent of men who say they do. 07/13/18
So the above is talking about 80 million Americans.
However, if you include religious icons like crosses, the amount of Americans who carry ‘good luck charms’ is much higher. Plus, various tattoos are considered to be ‘good luck."
Since Prophet Bob hangs out so much in the Old Testament with his heroes Moses and Amos, a moment of pause to consider the idolatrous behavior of Moses as he creates God's talisman in this charming story for the healing of the people, but only for those who look upon it.
And then! On top of that! We find it is a type of Jesus on the cross.
I recall as a kid in Sunday School wondering why God would be so incensed as to send poisonous snakes to "try and tell the Israelites something", as Bob might say. And then, of all things, choose a bronze snake on a stick, breaking his own rules, to point to Jesus? And why would you have to look at it in the desert to be healed of snakebites? Sounds superstitious and talisman-like to me. But that's just me.
We'll leave the Urim and Thummim, all sparkly, talisman-like, and charming with symbolic precious stones for representing each Tribe as YHVH's OT version of "Call me at the office" for another time.
In the Hebrew Bible, the Urim and the Thummim (Hebrew: הָאוּרִים וְהַתֻּמִּים, Modern: ha-Urim veha-TummimTiberian: hāʾÛrîm wəhatTummîm; meaning uncertain, possibly "Lights and Perfections") are elements of the hoshen, the breastplate worn by the High Priest attached to the ephod. They are connected with divination in general, and cleromancy in particular. Most scholars suspect that the phrase refers to a set of two objects used by the high priest to answer a question or reveal the will of God.[1][2]
The Urim and the Thummim first appear in Exodus 28:30, where they are named for inclusion on the breastplate to be worn by Aaron in the holy place. Other books, especially 1 Samuel, describe their use in divination.
