Zambia COGWA Calls Out Kubic For False Allegations

I imagine Kubic is NOT happy about being called a liar!  Remember UCG is now controlled by the worlds most converted men since they kicked out all the reprobates.

From: Kambani Banda [mailto:kbanda@zamnet.zm]
Sent: Friday, October 07, 2011 5:41 PM
To: ‘vic@kubik.org‘ ; ‘bev@kubik.org‘

Subject: Your false Allegations

Dear Mr. Kubik:

It is disappointing that I am being drawn away from necessary preparation for the Day of Atonement and the Feast of Tabernacles to respond to the public message which you have disseminated on the Internet and among God’s people. Based on the level of upset and division you are causing within the Body of Christ, you leave me with little choice but to personally respond to your false claims and set the record straight. This is an open letter, and it may be shared with others. While I would normally try to avoid a public response to false allegations such as these, it is necessary to give an answer to your outrageous charges. 

Let me note at the outset, it is with much regret that I write this letter; however, after the many months of your concerted efforts to drag me through the courts of this world, along with the actions of two of your ministers (one local, and one from the United States) in August, I feel that I must now address the postings and public “prayer requests” that you have spread abroad accusing myself and other members here in Zambia of theft.

Such accusations are patently false, yet you have never once tried to discuss the matter (or complaints) about such with me or the other members you have slandered (as the Scripture would require of you). Rather, you have pursued spreading false accusations, and total mis-information about the alleged “rustling” of cattle in Zambia .

Your public statement, which has been questionably dubbed a “prayer request,” has the effect of making me and unspecified members of my congregations appear to be criminals without conscience. This is slander, and you have violated the ninth commandment (Exodus 20:16) by disseminating this false testimony against your brethren. I implore you to retract your false accusations and issue a public apology for the benefit of those whose reputations have been damaged by your actions. You are also doing a great disservice to your own members by manipulating their emotions with these false statements on the eve of the Feast of Tabernacles

To be clear, nobody in my congregations has stolen any cattle. Not from your fellowship, not from anybody. We have not taken a single animal from your members. Such an action would be a crime, and more importantly, this would be a sin before God. 

If you truly believe this has happened, then you believe that crimes have happened. Cattle rustling is a serious offence in Zambia , an offence for which one can be imprisoned. Since you have already shown yourself more than willing to resort to the legal process by filing lawsuits against a brother, why aren’t you willing to go to the police with these allegations? Why haven’t your informants in Zambia taken this story to law enforcement? 

Let the truth come out, and I challenge you to back up these allegations with strict proof if you are serious. You know Haben and Winter to be faithful members of the church; however, you should understand, that if these men are falsely imprisoned as a result of fabricated and slanderous accusations, there will be a price for you or others to pay based under Zambian law.

While you are personally aware of how the Church of God has operated in Zambia in recent memory, due to your Internet propaganda, perhaps a few reminders are in order. First, the Church of God in Zambia runs a nongovernmental organization, and the nongovernmental organization shepherds assets for the benefit of the brethren. Among the organization’s assets are a few head of oxen. The organization is responsible for caring for these oxen and ensuring that our church brethren get equitable access to the animals. No single individual owns the animals in question; your allegation to the contrary is a false statement. These animals are a community resource, and brethren are allowed to use them on a rotational basis for a limited period of time. While one or more people may have suddenly claimed a baseless personal property interest in some of the oxen, you should know better. 

As you might recall, under the policies of our NGO entity in Zambia , two heifers per family are initially given as a loan to members of our organization, and eventually, these animals may or may not become personal property. You should recall that the heifers become personal property only when a member family repays their loan, and loan repayment is in the form of one calf per heifer. Since each family is given two heifers, each family must then “pay back” two calves. However, unless that condition is satisfied, the loaned animals must be returned.

The facts in this matter make one wonder how you came up with the specific allegation that our members “rustled” seven animals. This is a complete fabrication. 

On the other hand, our organization did recently receive back one overdue ox from an individual who appears to be associated with your church and who has been openly hostile our fellowship. This individual was legally bound to return the animal loaned to him when the loan period expired. There was no mistake about this. With this in mind, we had a responsibility to ask for the return of the ox in an orderly manner, so that it could be loaned to another family. The individual in question was given notice of our desire to have the animal returned. While we sensed that the individual was not happy about being required to return our brethren’s property, this did not deter us from seeking to act in the best interest of the brethren, and according to well-established rules regarding the ox pool’s permitted uses.

Fortunately, two responsible representatives of the local NGO visited this individual and cooperated with him in effecting an orderly, consensual, and peaceful transfer of the asset. No objections were raised, and he seemed to understand why it was that the organization property had to be returned. Contrary to the false statements in your postings and “prayer requests” being circulated, no force was used; no “rustling” occurred; no “thieving” occurred; no hostility ensued; and nothing sensational happened. The only thing wrong with this scenario was that our organization did not receive back its property sooner than it did. On the other hand, forceful or violent confiscation of the animal would have been a sin and likely a crime, even under these circumstances. As a pastor, I would not condone that within my congregations. I have investigated the situation and have interviewed the witnesses. I am more than satisfied that nothing improper occurred here. In sum, this individual has no moral or legal claim to the ox. 

Mr. Kubik, you are probably aware of other provocative and ugly acts committed against us by persons associated with your fellowship in recent months, and you may have noted that we have done our best to turn the other cheek each time, and to not publically address them. In August, a visiting minister (of UCG-AIA) from the United States threw a rock at the door of the home of one of our members residing at the church farm as a caretaker, breaking it in the process. Further, one of your ministers broke into the church property by chiseling the locks thereon and taking with him an energizer used to power the fence.

While we had hoped that you would eventually leave us alone and peacefully separate from us, you don’t seem intent on doing so. In the name of Jesus Christ, I ask you to stop all forms of harassment and slander against our organization and against our brethren. Please leave us in peace. Recently the courts ruled that you, Victor Kubik, have no sufficient legal interest to mount the claim you were purporting to make. As you well know, you were struck out of the legal proceedings you initiated against me in my personal capacity. Yet it seems that you do not recognize the court’s ruling, even though if you were in Zambia, you could well be cited for contempt of court for your public misrepresentation of judicial proceedings (I refer in particular to your internet post on August 19 entitled “Breakthrough on the Verino Property”) in which you categorically stated that the Court had ruled in your favor!

While we believe your recent public efforts to falsely accuse individuals of criminal behavior is slander, and actionable in a court of law, we do not believe the Scriptures allow us to sue a brother in the secular courts. Settling your abuse and our differences aside for a moment, we still consider you a brother and we respectfully ask you to start behaving towards us as a brother. 

While you may not be happy that I chose to dis-associate myself and our relationship from United Church of God, AIA, this is no reason to take a brother to the courts of this world, to refuse to meet with him (myself) privately, to publically misrepresent the outcome of judicial proceedings , and now to publically spread totally false accusations, while preying on the sympathy of uninformed Church members around the world, beseeching them to “pray to protect the Zambian brethren” from evils of cattle rustlers, as if someone’s person or livelihood are in jeopardy. And then as if that is not enough, to cite these “thieves” as members of our current Church fellowship.

On behalf of our brethren in Zambia , I beg you: refrain from any further slander or harassment. And also, please leave my brethren in the Church of God , a Worldwide Association out of this by holding back on any further innuendos regarding their leadership’s alleged involvement in this controversy (they have not been involved in this incident or in the recent litigation that you commenced, as these are local matters). I challenge you to critically examine yourself regarding your recent actions. I hope you are able to do this and keep God’s Feasts with a clear conscience. 

Kambani Banda

Zambia COG Members Stealing Cattle from UCG Members

Here's a first for the Churches of God!  Victor Kubic is reporting that former UCG members who split off to another splinter cult are stealing cattle from current COG members.

The church’s home office was recently advised that some seven head of cattle have been tragically and wrongfully taken from members of United Church of God in remote areas of Zambia. This creates a terrible and completely unnecessary crisis for these members, and prayers from Church members for resolution and protection are urgently requested.

These stolen cattle were for the most part offspring of heifers that were given to these members years ago as part of a LifeNets International program to help United member farmers (and other beneficiaries) rebuild livestock lost to a devastating cattle disease a decade or so ago. This program of gifting heifers to needy people by LifeNets was patterned after the Heifer Project International headquartered in the United States with an office in Lusaka, Zambia. The cattle are the personal property of the individuals to whom they were given, not some other organization or group.

In Zambia, when these heifers become oxen they are not only able to produce calves to rebuild lost cattle and to provide dairy products and manure for fertilizer and fuel, but they are also the “living tractors” for these subsistence farmers to plow their fields. With planting season taking place just after the Feast of Tabernacles, the loss of these oxen will dramatically affect the members’ ability to plant their next crop. For them, this act of thievery could not have come at a worse time.

The unhappy report that we received and verified related that these cattle were forcibly taken away by former friends or acquaintances of these victim-farmers. These former friends now belong to a Church of God fellowship largely comprised of former members and former ministers of the UCG. It is also our understanding from this report that the leader(s) of that fellowship refuse to intervene to stop the theft of these cattle by their members, nor have they condemned the actions that their members are taking.
                                                                                           Victor Kubic

  Looks like the Church of God a Worldwide Association are really practicing Christian principles.

Spanky Reminds You How To Fast

Atonement begins tonight (October 7) and Spanky Meredith wants to make sure you know how to fast.  So for all of you reprobates out there who have conveniently forgotten how, here is how you do it:

1. Before you fast, prepare your body for the shock. Do not eat a great big meal (certainly not one including a big, sweet dessert), or indulge in a pepper steak or some spicy hot Mexican food just before your fast begins. These make you crave water, and all during your fast this will distract you into thinking, “Oh, no, I’m going to die!” For a profitable spiritual fast, you need a clear but humbled mind. So it is best to taper off on food, especially sweets and strong spices. Drink a lot of water the day before, to help begin to cleanse your system.

2. Take steps to ensure your digestive system is as free of poisons as it can be during your fast, so any headaches and other symptoms of hunger will be as mild as possible. Make sure you take proper care of your individual health needs before you fast, so you can obtain the maximum benefit and feel the fewest possible physical distractions when you fast. You may wish to consult your physician if you have a health condition that fasting can affect.

3. Fast regularly enough for your body to adjust itself to the practice. Some people who think they are “about to die” when they fast could actually find fasting much easier if they did it for a day every month or two, if their health allows.

4. After your fast, begin eating again slowly. Do not swallow a huge steak in the first ten minutes. It will actually do you more good if you eat a smaller, lighter meal, or eat a meal spread out over a couple of hours in stages—maybe beginning with a warm, creamy soup. If your fast has lasted for longer than a day, it may be far better—or even necessary—to end it with something very small, like some stewed prunes or maybe a poached or soft-boiled egg.

Chag Sameach

Well it is almost that time again. It is the only thing about WCG that I really miss.  I loved the travel opportunities, but hated the boring worthless sermons.  It's time to take you kids out of school and have to write those absurd excuses that embarrass the hell out of your kids.  It's time to tell the boss you are taking off work during a failed economy. It's time to start volunteering for the Ministerial Dining room so you can watch the ministers drink themselves under the table and gorge on expensive food. It's time to stop the newspapers and mail delivery till you get back.  Get your passport and umbrellas ready.
Or, you can take a trip back in time with Donald/Leroy Neff with some films from Big Sandy.

Imagine If.....

Could you ever picture a COG youth standing up in front of the congregation and being truthful like this? Imagine the hell that would break forth if one ever did! 

Charges of blasphemy would be leveled and the kid would be kicked out and his parents disfellowshipped.

Dreaming in Arabic

With over 2,300 first time visitors each week now I thought I would repost this story about life in Armstrongism

CHAPTER ONE

IN THE BEGINNING

I grew up in the Worldwide Church of God, an organization labeled “cult” by most of mainstream Christianity. At the head of it, was Herbert W. Armstrong, a forceful personality, with a unique interpretation of scripture. I grew up believing that we in the Worldwide Church of God were the only true Christians in the world. My mother told me a story of how when I was a toddler in the stroller and
we were passing by a large old church, I pointed and said “Man's way.”

The Worldwide Church of God took a lot of their beliefs from the Old Testament. Being young, I never really understood why some of the ancient laws were kept and some were discarded. I'm sure there was a reason and I'm sure it made sense to the adults. At least, I hope it did. I've never felt bad for being part of a group that taught Biblically unsound doctrines. I was a child and a child will believe in Santa Claus if you tell them with enough conviction. But I do wonder about the adults and why they were so quick to let someone interpret the Bible for them. My husband, who is eight years older than me, said that it wasn't so much the doctrine that attracted him as much as the emphasis on righteous living. And there was an emphasis on righteous living. But unfortunately most people were not living up to the high standards we taught.

I think another draw for a lot of people was the emphasis on prophecy. I grew up believing that someday, before a great tribulation fell upon the world, we believers would be taken to a place of safety where we would be hidden from the wrath that fell on everyone else. Herbert W. Armstrong had a radio show and a television show called The World Tomorrow where he preached out of Daniel and
Revelation and gave his own unique interpretations. I think there were quite a few people who joined the church to escape the great tribulation.

It was believed that the place of safety was Petra, in Jordan. Mr. Armstrong would travel around the world as an “ambassador for peace” and one of the people he met was King Hussein of Jordan. The church had some sort of outreach to handicapped children in Jordan. Since Petra was in Jordan and Mr.
Armstrong was a “friend” of King Hussein, it was taught that we would all fly to Jordan and stay in Petra for the duration of the tribulation. I have some vague recollection that at some point, soldiers of the world would surround Petra and threaten us all, but that heavenly retribution would strike them down. What was more critical to people was what they would bring to survive the years in Petra. One woman said she was going to bring two suitcases of maxi pads.

As a child, I once packed a small briefcase full of my favourite books and then carried it around with me, even if we went across the city on the subway, because it was said that we could be called to flee at any moment. One of my childhood fears was that I would come home from school and find my mother and younger brothers gone and that I would somehow have to make my way to the airport (by taxi, I suppose) or else I would miss the flight to safety. Contacting my dad at work was not an option. He wasn't a member of the Worldwide Church of God and therefore would have to face the tribulation. When it was preached from the pulpit that during that horrible time the guillotine would probably be restored as a form of punishment I resigned myself to my dad's inevitable fate. You see, my dad knew too much. He had lived with a believing wife and would therefore have to stand up for the truth in the future time of persecution and would be punished for his belated realization that everything the church taught was true.

The Great Tribulation would be followed by the Wonderful World Tomorrow. It would be a time of peace and prosperity on the earth with the members of the Worldwide Church of God in positions of leadership. There would be a resurrection of the righteous and great Biblical men like Daniel and Noah would have important jobs. King David would be the king, but under Moses. The twelve apostles would be under David. Below them would be rulers of smaller bodies of land.

Daniel would be in charge of the Gentile nations because he had had all that experience in King Nebuchadnezzar's court. Paul, the apostle to the Gentiles, would be immediately under Daniel. Noah would be in charge of relocating the races to their designated lands. Joseph would administer the world's food supply. Job would head up a worldwide rebuilding program, something much needed after the devastation of the Great Tribulation. His assistant would be Zerubbabel, a man who had helped to rebuild Jerusalem after the Jewish captivity in Babylon.

The world would be educated in the way's of God. Christ would rule the world from Jerusalem. All animals would be tame and as a child, I heard the question, “Wouldn't you like to have a lion as a pet?” In anticipation of all of this, the Worldwide Church of God had a lion and a lamb with a little child in front as its ubiquitous logo.

When it came to practicing the laws of the Old Testament, we didn't eat pork or any kind of shellfish so pepperoni pizza never passed my lips, nor did lobster or shrimp. We kept all of God's commanded Feast Days. People took the days off work and kids took the days off school to attend church services. Feasts were a social time. The Feast of Tabernacles meant a trip somewhere and a tithe was saved all year to fund it. Church services were held in convention centers and other rented halls or rooms all around the world.

In Toronto, our local Feast of Tabernacles site was Niagara Falls but my parents favored the sites in Florida. Florida had the attraction of Disney World and Busch Gardens and the beach and the plane trip. But it didn't have my friends so I always felt edgy, like I was missing something and that when I got back, my best friend, who had gone to Niagara Falls, would have had a funner time. “Feast flings” were common and many single adults used the time to try to find a mate. (Naturally, we weren't allowed to marry outside the church.) There were lots of officially organized activities as well as countless hotel room parties.

Alcohol was never prohibited by the church so our Feasts were truly festive. I remember one Feast when I was in my early twenties and the first place my best friend and I went to when we got to Niagara Falls was the liquor store. Nothing delicate for us. It was tequila and gin and vermouth and we mixed some pretty mean martinis! I remember one young man commenting on the strength of our cocktails, half-impressed, half-alarmed.

There were also stories of the ministers and their hotel room parties. Lots of drinking, but more along the lines of wine and champagne. They were pretty exclusive, not too much mixing with the regular folks, so they were talked about with a tone of awe. The official teaching was that the ministers had an extra-measure of God's spirit.

There was an even more sordid side to the Feast which it took me til my mid-twenties to become aware of. The worst thing a WCG kid could do was fornicate. I mean, murder under certain circumstances might be understood, but fornication was unforgivable. The Feast, which was supposed to picture God's future millennial kingdom on earth, was often the place most likely for WCG teens and singles to commit the unpardonable sin. Something about new people and hotel rooms and lots of booze and money flowing. It just seemed to happen a lot.

You can read the rest of her book here as a pdf Dreaming in Arabic

Atheism

Here are some comments about atheism that will make you think!

If You REALLY Want to Talk to an Atheist, Read This First

by Born-again Atheist on Wednesday, June 1, 2011 at 11:05pm

This note is dedicated to Christians and theists who wish to argue, debate or discuss religion with Atheists. I am going to help you do that by addressing a few fundamental errors many Christians make in their assumptions about Atheism:

1. "ATHEISM IS JUST ANOTHER KIND OF FAITH." False. "Theism" means belief in at least one god or deity, and the prefix "a-" means "lack of." That's it. All "atheism" means, and has ever meant, is a lack of faith in all gods. To argue to the contrary demonstrates an ignorance of the English language and merely damages one's own credibility.

2. "ATHEISTS ARE 'DARWINISTS' (I.E. EVOLUTIONISTS) AND VICE VERSA." False, on multiple levels. Firstly, "Darwinist" used in this way is merely an insult (like calling a Christian a "Jesus Freak" or "Bible-Thumper.") Secondly, Atheism and Evolution have nothing to do with each other. There are many people who believe in Evolution who also believe in a god, including many Christians. Most Atheists do believe in Evolution, but not because of their atheism. Again, Atheism is merely the lack of a certain kind of belief, and does not imply a belief in anything else. Science, Evolution and Atheism are not all one in the same, and insisting on such things is merely ignorant and insulting.

3. "ALL ATHEISTS ACTUALLY DO HAVE FAITH." True. Yes, I said true! In fact, generally speaking, all people have some kind of "faith," just not necessarily a religious faith. One definition of faith is simply confidence in a person or thing. I have faith that when I sit down, my chair will hold me. This is usually a reasonable faith because it is based on prior experience that can be objectively confirmed (i.e. my chair is holding me as I type this.) Another definition is a general belief in something without evidence for that belief. That is not necessarily religious, either. It is, however, against reason. As anyone can know, not all Atheists are reasonable people, as some merely hate religion out of personal feelings. It is not Atheism but reason that is, by its nature, generally opposed to any belief without evidence (religious or otherwise).

4. "I HAVE PROOF/EVIDENCE THAT MY FAITH IS TRUE." False. If you did have objectively verifiable proof, your belief would no longer be "faith;" rather, it would be a reasonable, evidence-based belief. If you refuse to accept even that fact, then you're functioning on your own personal definitions of words, which only serves to prevent others from understanding you.

5. "ATHEISTS JUST DON'T WANT TO ACCEPT ANY EVIDENCE OF GOD." Maybe. Again, Atheism is merely the lack of religious faith. It is reason that is against forming beliefs solely on faith (religious or otherwise.) If you believe you have actual evidence of a god's existence, most reasonable people will be skeptical, but should want to hear you out. The problem is that you probably don't. Most people who claim to have evidence of a god don't know what "evidence" means. It is not a challenge to Evolution or any other beliefs, because even if you proved all other beliefs wrong, you still haven't even addressed your own belief, let alone proven it correct. This is why reasonable people insist that you "stay on-point." Anecdotes of personal experiences are also not evidence. Even if your story is 100% true, if there's nothing for you to hold in your hand and show for it, then there's no way for anyone else to evaluate the validity of it. No matter how convincing it may feel, a story is not evidence that another story is true. This is also why going back to Scripture to "prove" its validity is also not evidence. Can I prove Odin is real just by using logical-sounding rhetoric to make his story sound reasonable? Or Paul Bunyan? Or even people that did exist, like Abraham Lincoln? Citing a book, telling stories, or quoting other people isn't evidence of anything.

6. "ATHEISTS ACCUSE ME OF BEING IGNORANT/UNREASONABLE OUT OF PREJUDICE." Maybe. All people are given to stereotyping. We're all human and fallible. But these words are not always prejorative (meant to insult). "Ignorant" merely means "without knowledge." We are all ignorant of most things. A reasonable person will agree to that fact. Part of the problem with "reasonable" is that "reason" has many definitions. In the context of a debate on religion, the commonly accepted understanding is that "reason" means forming beliefs based on objective evidence. Claiming that having a religious faith makes one "unreasonable" in the sense that "smart people can't believe in a god" is prejorative, and easy to confuse with simply stating that a religious faith is "beyond reason," that is to say, not based on objective evidence. It's always easy to assume one knows what another person is saying without really listening to him or her, and we are all susceptible to this human flaw. But "assume" makes an "ass" out of both "u" and "me." You can be "reasonable" in all other ways and still maintain a personal faith in your god, which is your human right; and unless you are acting in an unreasonable manner, no one has any standing to claim otherwise. Stand on that fact when dealing with reasonable people, because they should at least be open to it as a possibility, lest they forfeit any right to call themselves "reasonable."

I hope this is of help to anyone who reads it. Some things need to be agreed upon and set aside in this, arguably the most important, debate. If we cannot agree on any of these foundational concepts, then what hope have we for agreeing on anything at all?