Brian Orchard: COG's Need To Stop Talking About Jesus So Much!

Who would have ever imagined any Church of God would spend too much time talking about Jesus Christ since none of them have ever made any attempt to do that in the last 80 some years.  Its all about the law and commandment keeping instead of anything about Jesus Christ.

Nevertheless, Brian Orchard is NOT happy that Jesus Christ is talked about.  He feels that the entire focus should be on the "Father."

Mr. Orchard said something that surprised me. He said that in the past the Church of God has focused too much on Christ and not enough on the Father, and that COGFC is trying to put the focus on the Father. It surprised me because I do not think that Mr. Armstrong taught the Church too much emphasis on Christ, rather, when he was alive I thought we were properly focused on the Father. Perhaps Mr. Orchard was speaking of only the past 16 or so years since COGaic formed under Mr. David Hulme. I have not attended that organization enough to know if they were negligent in focusing on the Father. But Mr. Armstrong was not negligent. He focused on the Father, and so did the Church of God when he was alive. I think many or most converted members of the Church of God today in various fellowships put primary focus on the Father, addressing our prayers to the Father for example. Avoiding a Spirit of Hostile Competition / Church of God, a Family Community at Six Months

This quote was taken from a blog posting about a recent sermon that Brain Orchard gave about competition in the Churches of God.  If that's not the pot calling the kettle black I don't know what is!

This is coming from a man who sat in the 360 apartments along with Victor Kubik, Robin Webber and others as they plotted and schemed to cause division in the church by forming a new splinter group.  Then Orchard plotted again and again over the years as he jumped from one group to the next claiming it was superior to all the previous ones.

Now he feels he needs to lecture the rest of the church about that?

From Hare Krishna to Seventh Day Adventist, to Church of God, to Beatnik and Now to Buddha

The convoluted life of Eric King has taken another twist.  After spending a few years in the Hare Krishna movement King suddenly became an Adventist.  That lasted until he ticked off some members and leaders and he jumped to Armstrongism where there was money to be made. Recently however, he made a move into the Beatnik status and his blog disappeared and his COG related web site was taken over by his Beatnik exploits.  Now all of a sudden, that page is gone and he is back on the web site promoting Buddhism.

We teach that one must make the conscious decision to join his or her human spirit with God’s true Spirit of pure love and understanding. To become a true Christian one must be birthed through and in the power of Holy Spirit. In this article I would like to incorporate some of the philosophical insights of Buddhism into our understandings as COGSR members.-

Originally Buddhism was never a “religion” but instead it was a world view, more of a philosophy. When we look at what are called “The Four Noble Truths” of Buddhism we can find some correlations with COGSR & SOCT teachings which are beneficial to our spiritual understandings.

The first “Noble Truth” is the fact that all life faces and experiences SUFFERING.

The second “Noble Truth” of Buddhism is that CRAVING causes all suffering.

The third “Noble Truth” is to find the “cessation of suffering”.

Another interesting teaching in Buddhism is the idea that “self” is an illusion.

Buddha found out some things that helped him deal with getting over all the suffering. These became codified in what is known as the “eightfold path” of Buddhism. I will here give a basic list of these eight findings:

1-Right understanding

2-Right thought

3-Right speech

4-Right action

5-Right livelihood

6-Right effort

7-Rightmindfulness

8-Right concentration

So these are the eight life changes one must develop to experience “enlightenment” according to the Buddhist. These are vague statements without definition. However, if one studies the SOCT teachings along with the COGSR teachings one can discover how the Christian views the definition of this eightfold path. As COGSR students we do not separate the physical from the spiritual. Both the physical practices and the mental practices must be balanced.  

Another interesting teaching in Buddhism is the idea that “self” is an illusion. As Christians we would apply this aspect of Buddhism to what we call the “sinful self”, or “fallen self”. The fallen nature is indeed a trap and a “false self”. I hope to do some more articles regarding the teachings of Buddhism and Christianity. 

King started his exploration of Buddhism about three years ago.  He also decided at that time to stop associating with certain friends and to stop drinking alcohol.

One thing I would like to say here…a most important discovery that has unfolded to me over the past three years in this ministry. I have learned that sometimes we need to cut-ties with certain people in order to continue HEALTHY GROWTH. When I made the decision just about three years ago to be more specific in who I associate with I found that I became more creative in my personal life. I gained much wisdom and understanding. Believe it or not some people hold us back from doing what we really want to do…they may not be conscious of it but somehow we are letting them. To move away from such people can free us up to experience a more joyful life.

While I like to make fun of King, I do understand he is on a spiritual journey.  What is obvious is that he has never found a place to be at peace.  Armstrongism has the great reputation of making its followers feel like they are never quit good enough.  God is always pissed off about something.  Members can never do anything right and always need a more intelligent person to tell them what to believe.  As the months and years go by King will shape shift into another persona, and another, and another.  He obviously wants to enjoy life, but will never find happiness while in the clutches of Armstrongism or legalistic religion.

Its too bad Herman Hoeh is no longer around.  King could take to Hoeh about what it means to be a Buddhist.

Herman Hoeh Closet Buddhist
The Enigma of Herman Hoeh
Herman Hoeh Memorial