Out of the 90% of $4.5 million, the Weinlands alone, spent at least 80% of that money.

The God Discussion blog has an article up about the Weinlands escapades.

Jesus fails to save 'God's Final Witness' from jury's guilty verdict for tax evasion 

One of the jurors remarked,

Out of the 90% of $4.5 million, the Weinlands alone, spent at least 80% of that money. We are talking Lasik eye surgery, Insight cable bills, utility bills, car insurance, global & domestic shopping sprees for clothing, art, & jewelry, homes, on and on….basically everything and then some. In a nutshell these scumbags paid any and all exspenses down to groceries and morning coffee out of these church donations! The so called “church money” equals Ron and families money.
What a brazen piece of garbage. These people are sociopaths. I feel for those of you who were ever entangled with this freak! There is nothing at all Godly about this man. That is putting it lightly.

The jury foreman's opinions were not expressed quite as strongly, but he said that the courtroom experience and verdict was draining, adding that the jury carefully deliberated the evidence. He noted:

I do admit that while none of the witnesses from the church appeared to be violent people, the thought has crossed my mind that if any members of the church were to go off the deep-end, it wouldn’t be much of a stretch for them to decide that we are the “enemy” and to seek vengeance, which is why I advised the other jurors to make sure to keep our actual names hidden online and in the media.

Ron Weinland: "...was hand-selecting the “leadership” of the church based on how completely gullible and easily manipulated they were."

Juror 215 has posted another tidbit on Mike's blog.  I am still in amazement at the things that Weinland did.    Corruption is nothing new in the leadership of the Churches of God. It has been going on for so long that most are really good at covering their tracks.  But not so in Weinland's case.  He comes across as an incredibly stupid little man.  Apparently, according to this juror, he surrounded himself will a bunch of bumbling idiots. These morons are the ones preaching to the flock every week too.  How sick is that!

Juror#215 says:

June 22, 2012 at 08:18

Trial tidbit of the day:

Johnny Harrell – Co-conspirator or Clueless?

I believe that there has been some discussion here regarding Johnny Harrell, Mr Weinland’s ‘Senior Evangelist’ and how much he really knows about the chruch’s scams. Mr Harrell took the stand for the defense, but he really didn’t do anything to help Mr Weinland’s case at all. He came across in his testimony as a bumbling fool. For example…

In an attempt to prove that the Swiss bank account was really church money and not the Weinland’s personal money, Ron and Laura flew Johnny and his wife to Switzerland with them (Mr Harrell testified that he paid for their own expenses for this trip) in order to have Johnny sign a Power of Attorney form there, giving him the rights to the account in the case of the Weinland’s death. I believe that this was in 2004 or 2005. Now, this seems like a plausible defense to establish the $400,000 in the Swiss bank as being church money and not personal, until the prosecution began their cross-examination.

Did Mr Harrell know how much money was in the account? No.

Did Mr Harrell know the account number? No.

Did Mr Harrell REALLY know what the Power of Attorney form was that he had signed? No.

The prosecution had Mr Harrell read some of the content on the PoA form aloud for the court. He stumbled over the words, not seeming to understand the relatively simple legal jargon. The prosecution asked him the meaning of what he had read, and he really didn’t know. Johnny came across as just an especially clueless minion, and it appeared to the jury during our deliberations, that based on the church elders that we had seen in the trial, that Mr Weinland was hand-selecting the “leadership” of the church based on how completely gullible and easily manipulated they were. Mr Weinland needed someone who could access that money in the event of an emergency, but he wanted to make sure that the person he chose had no clue what they were doing.

One particularly telling part of his testimony was when the prosecution was trying to ask him questions about Mrs Weinland, and to give some kind of evidence that she had done SOMETHING in the church, other than being Mr Weinland’s wife, that justified Ron declaring her the Second Witness. Mr Harrell’s response back to the attorney was to turn red in the face, get a wild look in his eye, and start screaming, “READ YOUR BIBLE!” It has apparently never occurred to him that other people in the world might read the bible and come up with an entirely different interpretation of it than what has been forced upon them by Ron all of these years.

It was just sad and pathetic.

Apostle Malm: "There is no sin in warning of possibilities as long as we do not declare such possibilities as facts "

Not all of apostle Malm's followers latch on to his every word.  Some have questioned his "prophetic understanding" which has really ticked him off.  He is also not happy that Prophet Thiel is ragging on him again.

The apostle wants you to know that there is no problem if  his predictions don't come to pass, as long as he does not say, "In the name of the Lord" when he utters his earth shattering prophecies.He can lie all he wants and its OK as long as he doesn't say, "In the name of the Lord" afterwards.

Red highlights mine:

The signs are biblical; as to when these things will come, that is up to God. Whether I am correct in warning of the possibility for this year, will be proved out by events as to being true or false.

There is no sin in warning of possibilities as long as we do not declare such possibilities as facts and do not do so in the “Name of the Lord”. To do that would be presumptious and would make one a falee prophet if they do not happen.

I remind everyone that I have NEVER declared anything in the Name of the Lord and have always clearly published that all the signs had to be present and that any dates I presented were only possibilities and NOT set in stone facts.

I remind everyone that HWA did presumptously declare many such predictions in the “Name of the Lord”: ALL of which failed; and this is what the scripture has to say about what HWA did.
Deu 18:20 But the prophet, which shall presume to speak a word in my name, which I have not commanded him to speak, or that shall speak in the name of other gods, even that prophet shall die. 21 And if thou say in thine heart, How shall we know the word which the Lord hath not spoken? 22 When a prophet speaketh in the name of the Lord, if the thing follow not, nor come to pass, that is the thing which the Lord hath not spoken, but the prophet hath spoken it presumptuously: thou shalt not be afraid of him.

Those who call me false and then blindly follow HWA are double minded; since I NEVER declared anything in the “Name of the Lord” and was always very careful to explain that I was only discussing possibilities.

Bob Thiel is on the attack again although at least he now appears to be admitting that I am not setting dates [saying I am speculating]; instead of lying about me as he has done in the past. James

Apostle Malm: Most of God's Saints Live In North America

Apostle Malm stated today that the two witnesses will start their "witness" here in the North America.  Because -  most of the true saints are North Americans.  Even though apostle Malm is a Canadian, there is strong doubt that the two witnesses will arise from COG members in Canada since there are so few of them any more.  Unless of course the apostle started believing he is one of them. That seems to be the logical progression of Armstrongite prophets.

This has always been one of my pet peeves of Armstrognism, that it believes it's self so significant, set apart, and special that its most important members are Americans.  Most of the ministry in foreign countries were Americans set over train them in the truth.   This is not unique to Armstrongism, as conservative Evangelicals also believe the same malarkey.  Religious Americans view themselves as set apart from the rest of humanity when it comes to following their God. Armstrongites write off most of Europe because it is Catholic.  Any good COGger knows that they are all part of the great whore that will soon help destroy the U.S.

Look at the response of American Christians and COGers towards the Christian being slaughtered in Iraq, Egypt, Central Africa and Indonesia.  They sit in their comfy chairs and click their tongues and do nothing.  They can't be really true believers since they don't live here. Prophet Thiel, the official spokesman for the Living Church of God, makes that abundantly clear when he labels all Christians outside LCG as "so-called" Christians. What self righteous tripe!

Then there are the Hindu's, Muslims, Buddhists, which are considered pagan.  Just look at the spittle that flew from apostle Malm when he went ballistic that Herman Hoeh might have been a closet Buddhist (which he wasn't.)

Thanks to the British Israel malarkey that started being promulgated in the early 1880's by British invaders trying to civilize the world, and then later latched on to by HWA, America became the Chosen Nation.  Set apart with the godliest ministers and believers that humanity has ever seen. The rest of the world be damned!

The two prophets will DIE at Jerusalem! NO where do the scriptures state or even imply that they shall spend their entire ministry in Jerusalem!

They will probably start in North America [because most of the saints are there] and begin warning the faithful and the world; and they will have the power to take the faithful to the prepared place and then continue on to Jerusalem or wherever else; and continue warning the world and preaching the Gospel from wherever they are at.