Wednesday, December 4, 2013

Today in Gay History: Often Wrong Herbert Armstrong



I was surprised today to have this link sent to me.  I had to laugh when I got it. Poor Herbert just cannot get a break!

A national gay magazine has an article up about Herbert Armstrong's harangues about gays.  Little did he know that there was a large gay population in the church at that time.  In fact, there still is a lot of gay people in the various COG's, though God only knows WHY, given he fact that so many of the splinter cults are virulently anti-gay!

Armstrong did know that there were some gay employee's, especially his interior decorator that helped design three college campuses and countless faculty homes.  There were gay employees that designed the various church publication.  Some worked in the television studios and helped produce the award winning videos.  The church would have never accomplished many of the things it did without it's gay employees and members, much to the chagrin of many.  To me that is the most delicious part.

LCG and UCG have their gay members and even Flurry has an underground gay group.


Here is the article:  Today in Gay History: Often Wrong Herbert Armstrong


Today in Gay History: Often Wrong Herbert Armstrong

7.31.2013

By Andrew Belonsky

Homophobic holy roller set Evangelical stage, sadly. 
 
The name Herbert W. Armstrong no doubt still sends shivers up some gay spines. Born on this date in 1892, Armstrong was the prototypical American holy roller: he used emerging Western technologies — radio and, later, television — to spread fundamentalist beliefs and false prophecies, including a 1936 prediction that the world was going to end. The world went on, of course, but the nationally-covered forecast made Armstrong a star and gave a huge boost to his burgeoning church, the Worldwide Church of God.

An Evangelical-esque organization founded in 1934 and that boasted about 145,000 members at its peak, the Worldwide Church of God created a template for later Bible thumpers like Pat Robertson and Jim Bakker. More immediately, though, it provided Armstrong a built-in audience for his crusade against the supposed sins of modern life. His arguments are by now familiar: abortion kills babies, an angry God punishes with natural disasters, declining families lead to drug addiction, and, yes, homosexuality is a surefire way to hell.


"Some may believe homosexuality is transmitted by birth. It is not!" he wrote in a 1975 issue of his church's magazine, The Plain Truth. "But once one gives his mind accept it, his mental perspective regarding proper use of sex soon becomes perverted — changed — unnatural." Armstrong's piece, a reaction to early calls for marriage equality, described homosexuality as part and parcel of the "new immorality" of post-World War II America. This theme was becoming increasingly common in his church's discriminatory doctrine.

In 1973, another Plain Truth article asked, "Can Someone be Homosexual and Christian Too?" The answer to this question was of course "no." That same issue also wondered, "Can homosexuality be prevented?" Of course it could be! One of the ways, Armstrong's editorial cronies instructed, was by keeping women in the kitchen. "When both parents work and share household duties, blurring sexual distinctions, children increasingly are more likely to become homosexual." Later, in 1977, 
Armstrong's equally famous son, Garner Ted, declared, "Homosexuality is a grave distortion and perversion."

It's easy to assume Armstrong and company's mid-70s campaign against queers was a reaction to Stonewall and the gay rights movement. And that may be partially true. But mostly it seems that Armstrong was simply trying to find a way to distract from the fact that his church was disintegrating. First of all, the Worldwide Church of God itself had found itself mired in scandal as infighting between Armstrong and rising star son Ted Garner went gone public: Time magazine reported in 1972 that Armstrong said Garner was "in the bonds of Satan." It was only downhill from there as the men publicly jockeyed for leadership over a dwindling flock. Government examination of their assets didn't help either. And to make matters worse: the world kept spinning!

Following that failed 1936 prophecy, Armstrong erroneously claimed the world would end again in 1943, then again in 1972 and, finally, in 1975. (He also claimed in May 1965 that the Pope was going to "resurrect" the secretly alive Adolf Hitler, the anti-Christ, and take over Europe.) So, you know, Armstrong's church didn't have the best record and gays were low-hanging fruit, if you will. The homosexual could distract from Armstrong's bad reputation.

But going after the gays wasn't enough to save anti-gay Armstrong and his church: Garner Ted eventually broke off to create his own brand, Worldwide Church membership dwindled, and though he remained a presence on the right wing scene for a few more years, Armstrong had peaked. He died in 1986, his church aligned itself more firmly with the Evangelical movement and changed names (it's now the Grace Communion International and has about 42,000 adherents), and LGBT Americans are closer to full equality than ever before — yet another thing Armstrong failed to predict.

Tuesday, December 3, 2013

Trying to Find Jesus in the Philadelphia Church of God

Can you help the PCG find JC?


I was looking through the Philadelphia Church of God  today and as usual it was a mishmash of Herbert Armstrong worship, keeping the law and nothing about following Jesus or anything he taught.

Here is  just a sampling of the articles meant to encourage PCG members.

How to Select Toys For Your Children
Includes this strange comment:

"Parents should avoid any toy that promotes hatred, violence or anything else contrary to God’s Ten Commandments. Guns were designed to kill. If you intend to kill, use a gun. If you don’t intend to kill, don’t use a gun—the real thing or an imitation!"

Live Healthy Part III: Heart, Hustle, Muscle: 
Nothing really wrong with this, especially since it did not have to reference HWA as the epitome of fitness.  Article on weight training and cross fitness training.

Parents Save Your Teens From The Technology Tr@p:
Since we all know that Satan owns the airwaves and since technology uses the airwaves, Satan is after your children through technology.  Satan temps people to read dissident literature and web sites to lead them out of the PCG....

As much as our teens may know about technology (usually more than parents do), teenagers are often too young to fully understand its dangers. This is where parents must be involved. Satan the devil is the god of this world (2 Corinthians 4:4), and modern technology offers him access to our young people that hasn’t existed before.

As Herbert W. Armstrong once wrote, “Most parents neglect teaching their children’s minds …. But Satan does not neglect your child’s mind!” (Good News, October/November 1981).

Give Thanks Every Day
When one gives thanks to God they must always remember that life is shitty and filled with trials.

It is hardest to maintain this attitude during our trials, but this is when it’s most important. Trials aren’t pleasant for us, but do you think God enjoys seeing us suffer? God gives us trials and allows them to happen so we can build His character, His faith and His patience. When we thank God for our trials and for the opportunity to build character, we are letting God know that we understand what He is doing. If we do this, we demonstrate that we are growing in the trial. We comfort our Father because we are producing fruits. Thanking God for the trial is one way we can take our minds off our trial and focus on God. This will help us overcome trials and become more positive and joyful. King David was a master at turning trials into opportunities to praise God; study Psalm 27 for an example.

The examples of David and Paul show that God wants us to be thankful for Him and His Family in our daily prayers and continue each day with a thankful attitude in everything.
Him and His Family?  What?  Is Mr. and Mrs. God running around heaven with their created child Jesus and millions of other little godlets?

Will You Give Thanks?
Dennis Leap wants you to make sure you give thanks while you are suffering because of God's anger.  For some reason in PCG, God is always pissed about something.  Maybe God is pissed at tight biker shorts....just say'in.

There is no question Americans are going through tough times. Consider our many national troubles that continue to plague us. Extreme weather disasters such as the September floods in Colorado, the early summer tornado in Moore, Oklahoma, and the violent November wind storms in Illinois and Indiana have taken lives and racked up billions of dollars of damage. noaa‘s November 19 report shows that 32.5 percent of the U.S. is still experiencing moderate to exceptional drought. Our failing economy has had some gains but is still lagging behind since the 2008 meltdown. These continuous problems show God is angry with us. Why? Because of our national sins, which are many.
What Does Thanksgiving Day Mean To You?
After telling the history of Thanksgiving, the author has to start immediately in on the negative side of things.

Think about it: The modern Thanksgiving Day holiday is typically filled with football games and other forms of entertainment, excessive drinking and gluttony. Thousands of people travel the highways, rails and skies in a frenetic clamber to “have a good time.” The entire day is filled with the emphasis on self-gratification. At some time in the 24-hour period, some manage to stop and say “grace” over a meal. But how many express heartfelt thanks to their Creator God?

Let’s face it: Our careless, godless, decadent lifestyle has stripped the value and meaning from Thanksgiving Day. We are, generally, an ungrateful people.
How To Serve God as a Single
Being single in many of the splinter cults of Armstrongism is a depressing thing, particularly in the PCG.  With such a small playing field , there is little hope for many PCG singles. The only two options that remain is to be a professional celibate or eave the stupidity of Gerald Flurry and get a real life.


They have this point for singles to take to heart:

3. Don’t over-romanticize marriage

Singles, Hollywood has bombarded society with lies and deceit on marriage. Study The Missing Dimension in Sex. This is revelation from God! Society is missing this dimension in their understanding—but you have it!

A happy marriage is an intense delight, but must be based on the right foundation. When we are single is the time to build that foundation. Put God first (Matthew 6:33). That lays the foundation.
Be careful that your desire to marry doesn’t become an idol. Just do your part to prepare, doing the Work of God.
Have no fear though!  If you are lonely and depressed and know you will NEVER get married,, immerse yourself deeper into the cult and know that you will get to marry Jesus eventually.

I’ll-never-get-married syndrome
Ultimately we all marry Christ. A God-Bride marries a God! Read Matthew 7:7-11 and Revelation 19:7-9. Seek the faith of Christ and His patience. Allow God to prepare you through your submission to His will!
I-am-so-lonely syndrome
If you feel alone and depressed, immerse yourself further into God’s Work. Seek to give! Being lonely is often just too great a focus on the self: Woe is me. Avoid that problem by getting involved wherever and whenever you can (Matthew 23:11-12).

Absalom, My Son
Dennis Leap writes the story of Absalom.  All of Leap's "hero" articles deal with Old Testament men.  He never has the balls to write anything about Jesus, grace, unconditional forgiveness or anything to do with the New Covenant.

Dennis Leap is back about  Cooking "Chinken" (Chinese Food)  His article is about "proper" child play. Give the racist COG history and the number of "chink" stories I heard growing up, somehow I think there is more to this story than he is admitting.

I could go on and on listing their articles. None ever focus on Jesus. He is only mentioned in passing and that he is usually pissed about something and is coming back to rule with an iron rod.

Its no wonder tat the PCG offers no hope for it's members when they can't even mention the guy they claim to follow.

It's Christmas Time...Er...Winter Festival Time, in The Churches of God As They Celebrate The Power of Satan



It's that time of year when the weather is frosty and nippy.  A holiday spirit is in the air.  Christmas decorations are turning hotels into wonderlands.  Stockings hang around the fireplaces, mulled cider brews in the hospitality areas.

Jumping right into that mix are the various COG's who hold their annual Christmas Family Weekends.

COGWA does it, UCG does it. LCG has smaller versions.

The one I want to highlight today is the Church of God a Worldwide Association.

COGWA is heading off to celebrate being part of the world at Galt House in Louisville, Kentucky.

The Galt House has these wonderful holiday activities planed:

Experience the Magic and Wonder of Christmas at the Galt House Hotel!

Christmas at the Galt House Hotel is so spectacular, it’s featured on the Travel Channel’s Christmas Crazy special. The event is fast becoming an annual tradition for families across the U.S. Located in Louisville, Kentucky, Christmas at the Galt House Hotel will get your family in the holiday spirit!

New for 2013:

Sing ‘n’ Joy International Choral Festival and Competition

Experience the culture and traditions of choirs from across the globe as they show off their talents in this first-of-its-kind in the Americas event.  Learn more.

Ernie the Engineer

Ernie the Engineer is excited to join Christmas at the Galt House Hotel and meet all the Junior Engineers who visit. He knows they’ll just love riding the Peppermint Express Kiddie Train Ride through the Candy Cane Forest.  Learn more.

Ernie the Engineer’s Express Lunch

Ernie the Engineer will host a new Express Lunch that will give Junior Engineers the chance to enjoy and assist in engineering a large model train display. Plus, guests will take part in an interactive lunch and tour KaLightoscope Christmas.  Learn more.

Santa’s Sleigh Experience

Jump in the sleigh and help Santa deliver presents with the magic of a green screen. You’ll get a photo of your family and can download a video of your Santa’s Sleigh Experience.  Located in the Christmas Village. Learn more.

Make a Flake

Learn how to make beautiful snowflakes that feature everything from snowmen to birds to dinosaurs, oh my! Located in the Christmas Village.

Santa Cam

Capture your kids' visit with Santa Claus on video, then download and share this precious moment with family and friends. Located in the RIVUE Tower, 2nd Floor, outside KaLightoscope Christmas.

As COGWA willingly immerses itself in the rituals of Christmas, it hypocritically calls the weekend this:


Here is a COG who claims they had to break away from UCG because they thought UCG had one foot in the world and cared less about God's laws.  Yet, COGWA is sticking both feet into the middle of a huge Christmas party and is acting as if not a single person at the resort will be celebrating Christmas.  As they turn their heads as they walk past the Christmas trees and refuse the holiday treats, they will be focused solely on how much Satan has ruined their lives.

I can guarantee you that many COGWA members take great delight in being in the midst of the holiday cheer.  It makes them feel a little more "normal" to tell friends and coworkers that they spent the weekend at Galt House, which is well know for it's Christmas celebrations.  People will assume they were there for of the Christmas fun and not there celebrating how much power Satan seems to have over them.

So if you are in Galt House over the holidays and see a bunch of self-righteous people with their noses in the air, IGNORING the Christmas cheer all around them, you will know they are setting a righteous example by being separate from the world while begrudgingly having to live in it.