Has your local COG become a social club? Do you play cards, drink, dance and dare to have a little fun? Setting aside the fact that alcoholism is rampant in the COG's, is it really wrong to dance and play cards? According to the person below it seems to be. He sounds more like a Southern Baptist than a COGer.
Apostle Malm (in bold) admits that the COG is over run by alcoholism, especially in the ordained ranks. He then goes on to be ready to ban ballroom dancing at the Feast! No more of this "touchy feely" type of dance. You should be doing a Jewish style of dance where you jump and leap around the room. That is what the new owners of Ambassador Auditorium do, they jump, leap, pogo, and do other ecstatic dancing.
Malm is thinking about setting up a Feast site this coming year. Can you imagine how depressing it will be to attend this downer of a Feast site? He has so many rules and regulations on what people should be doing and not doing on Saturdays, holy days and new moons that people will not be able to breathe without committing a major sin.
What I am telling you is certain (true). The majority of the churches have been converted into social clubs, fellowship and fun, and have pushed aside the spiritual focus. This even has happened with the observance of the Holy Days of God. I had the opportunity to attend here in Guatemala at the Feast of Tabernacles with the United Church of God and nothing new was ever said to us, always the same sermons, the same topics that in the millenium “we will govern over the rest” , as if to instill into our minds that Nicolaitan attitude of dominance over the rest. And, speaking about fun, what do you think about alcoholic beverages? HWA used to teach that one could drink, dance, go to the movies and play cards “in moderation”. Without exception I have seen some excesses mainly at the Feast of Tabernacles.
I am familiar with Ottawa, Victoria and Pentiction Feast sites in Canada. The locals welcome our money and they welcome us leaving. There are always problems with alcohol, fighting [mostly marital and young people shouting at each other], rowdiness and drunk driving. In Pentiction the COG is known as the Church of Booze and the Feast as the Feast of Booze. My grandfather was editor of the Pentiction Herald until he retired and I was well familiar with things there; haven’t been there in the last ten years. The COGs are famous for alcoholism in many of their top elders. Of course this means that biblically they are not qualified as elders. 1 Cor 6:10. Being addicted to anything is to be a slave. The rampant abuse of alcohol by many in the ministry is a very sad matter; even HWA was an alcoholic. The Feasts are a chance to really let our light shine and they have in very many cases given us a black eye. Biblical dancing was never this touchy feely embracing dancing; it was always dancing as an expression of joy closer to the Jewish dancing or a kind of leaping for joy and rejoicing before God. We should be doing that at the Feasts and not the ballroom dancing style. Search for Jewish Religious Dance, Dancing for Joy, Davidic Dance etc.; I am not a fan of Modern Rabbinic Judaism, but this goes back well before the time of Christ to David and earlier. This is too energetic for Sabbath but excellent for the middle Feast days.