Philadelphia Church of God Hides Behind Slick New Web Sites

The Philadelphia Church of God has a new website up in an effort to legitimize their standing as a church and its Armstrong Foundation.  Like Herbert Armstrong, Gerald Flurry is embarrassed at many times by his Philadelphia Church of God and its crazy teachings.  In efforts to mask those dangerous and heretical teachings, he places great emphasis on his Armstrong Auditorium Concert Series, his Jerusalem dig with Eliat Mazar and its recent Ophel coin find, and his new website called Watch Jerusalem.  The interesting thing is that this site is copyrighted by Gerald Flurry and not the Philadelphia Church of God.

It is a mixture of wild prophetic speculating and pseudo-news beefed up in a slick new formula.

The same goes for their Key to David's City, masquerading as an educational site through the auspices of Herbert W Armstrong College.

It is these kinds of deceptive tactics that rope innocent searching people into the madness, just like the church did under Herbert Armstrong.  The problem with PCG doing this is that it has developed into a dangerous personality cult with an abusive leader and equally abusive ministers.  Families are being destroyed and lives are literally being lost.  This sickness is not unique to Gerald Flurry's Philadelphia Church of God, it is equally applicable to the Restored Church of God, Living Church of God, Bob Thiel's African cult and James Malm bastardization of whatever it is he thinks he is doing.  United Church of God and Church of God A Worldwide Association, while may appear to be more benign, are just as sick as the more dangerous ones mentioned above.

For a church that claims to be the end time restoration of true 1st century Christianity, it is in such a theological and spiritual quagmire that it is amazing that anyone even finds it beneficial.

Two COG Related Books Make List of Top 100 Books On Escaping From Cults

There is a list up of 100 Must-Read Books about life in cults and oppressive religious sects and two books by former Church of God members have made the list and #1 and #90.

The first book on the list is The World in Flames: A Black Boyhood in a White Supremacist Doomsday Cult by Jerad Walker.

Amazon has this to say about the book:

A memoir of growing up with blind, African-American parents in a segregated cult preaching the imminent end of the world

When The World in Flames begins, in 1970, Jerry Walker is six years old. His consciousness revolves around being a member of a church whose beliefs he finds not only confusing but terrifying. Composed of a hodgepodge of requirements and restrictions (including a prohibition against doctors and hospitals), the underpinning tenet of Herbert W. Armstrong’s Worldwide Church of God was that its members were divinely chosen and all others would soon perish in rivers of flames.

The substantial membership was ruled by fear, intimidation, and threats. Anyone who dared leave the church would endure hardship for the remainder of this life and eternal suffering in the next. The next life, according to Armstrong, would arrive in 1975, three years after the start of the Great Tribulation. Jerry would be eleven years old.

Jerry’s parents were particularly vulnerable to the promise of relief from the world’s hardships. When they joined the church, in 1960, they were living in a two-room apartment in a dangerous Chicago housing project with the first four of their seven children, and, most significantly, they both were blind, having lost their sight to childhood accidents. They took comfort in the belief that they had been chosen for a special afterlife, even if it meant following a religion with a white supremacist ideology and dutifully sending tithes to Armstrong, whose church boasted more than 100,000 members and more than $80 million in annual revenues at its height.

When the prophecy of the 1972 Great Tribulation does not materialize, Jerry is considerably less disappointed than relieved. When the 1975 end-time prophecy also fails, he finally begins to question his faith and imagine the possibility of choosing a destiny of his own.

The second book is Matches in the Gas Tank: Trial by fire in the Armstrong cult by Carla Powers.

Amazon says:

An empowering story of the survival of the spirit, this heart-wrenching memoir recounts a girl's stifled and abusive childhood in the Radio Church of God-a cult founded by alleged prophet Herbert W. Armstrong in Big Sandy, Texas. Rules imposed by Armstrong were arbitrary and unforgiving, covering everything from food preparation and appearance to arranged marriages and earning income for the church. Overcoming a childhood of warped teachings and deprivation, the wrath of narrow-minded, punitive ministers, and a dangerous, alcoholic father, Carla escaped the control of the church and surpassed the legacy of abuse and shame to become a highly successful corporate lawyer.

Gavin Rumney's old site has this about Carla Powers:

Carla Powers was Daddy's princess back in Arkansas in the late 1950s. Then Daddy got religion. That religion, based in the teachings and deprivation of narrow-minded, punitive ministers, tormented her dangerous alcoholic father and her entire family. Growing up, Carla never knew a woman could do anything more than she was asked—or demanded—to do. She definitely never imagined that other worlds would open up to her and she would rise to become a powerful attorney.Matches in the Gas Tank tells the story of life inside the Radio Church of God and the influence of Herbert W. Armstrong, the Church's founder and prophet. Under his influence, Carla's family moved away from relatives and friends to Big Sandy, Texas, an enclave in which everyone lived by strict and unforgiving rules arbitrarily determined by Armstrong. His vision of how to get to the "Kingdom of God" and avoid a sea of flames consisted of unending lists of rules covering everything from food consumption, to financial responsibilities, to sexual behavior. The only way to rise above the poverty level was to become a minister, and the only way to become a minister was to continually police your neighbors for sin. Ministers were allowed to barge in a home any time of the day or night to inspect everything from the cleanliness of a family's kitchen to the contents of their tax returns. 
This is the story of how Carla escaped the control of the church and found a way to deal with the legacy of abuse and shame left to her by her father. As she embraces her difficult childhood, she comes to understand that while those we love have the power to hurt us, they can't destroy us. We can find strength in unexpected places.

Anyone who has had a less-than-perfect family, has struggled with the faith of her fathers or has gone through recovery from abuse, perfectionism, or any cult of personality will connect with the power of redemption in this moving memoir.

The author heads the litigation department of a major multinational energy company (Shell). Before entering the corporate world, she was a trial lawyer in Houston for more than 20 years and an adjunct professor at the University of Houston Law Center.

Dixon Cartwright Hospitalized

This was in last nights mail, it is from the Ambassador Reunion site.  Best wishes for a speedy recovery!

Dixon Cartwright is in the hospital in Tyler. He had another stroke. The last one was about ten years ago and he followed the doctor's orders and lost weight and such.

I e-mailed him a couple of days ago with no response, which was unusual. So, I called him last night and he told me what had happened. He has congestive heart failure and is scheduled for another stent (he has two) or possibly by- pass surgery today. He cannot walk at all. Linda is supposed to bring his laptop to him today.

Please all pray for him and Linda.

XII Legions: Sabbath Keeper Motorcycle Ministry

I was looking for something unrelated to COG things on Google the other day and an article I posted in 2015 popped up about a COG member in New Jersey who was starting up a Christian ministry for motorcycle riders.  It referenced an article in The Journal about a new ministry starting up.

A new Christian motorcycle-riding group, XII Legions Christian Motorcycle Ministry, has started up in New Jersey with the intent to develop chapters in other areas of the country.

The bikers are “looking for other bikers who have an interest in motorcycles, riding and the Word of God, including God’s holy Sabbath day,” Mr. Paparella said. The group is nondenominational and open to all regardless of church affiliation and “wants to promote the gospel of the Kingdom of God on two wheels,” he said. The founders are longtime Church of God members, with past and current fellowships with the former Worldwide Church of God, United Church of God, Church of God (Seventh Day), Beth Israel Messianic Congregation and Church of God Flemington (an affiliate of Church of God Ministries International), as well as several private-residence-based church groups.

I decided to look them up to see if they were still in existance.  They are, and have now taken on a more Sacred Names bent in their ministry.

Centurion Ministries

I still can still picture hoards of Sabbatarian hog riders storming into Wadsworth, Charlotte and Edmond, proclaiming the gospel of the Herbert Armstrong or riding through peaceful neighborhoods on Sunday mornings, revving their bikes in order to disturb the heathen Sunday worshipers.

Just imagine the scene at some future Feast of Tabernacles site as the Charlotte Spankers, Wadsworth Narcissists, Edmond Idolaters, Double Blessed Africans or the Malmite Law Bastardizers clash over which one is the one true Sabbatarian biker group.

I highly doubt any of them will put John 3:16 or Colossians 2:14 on their jackets. Can't have any of that Jesus stuff, just the law.

Like everything else in the Church of God, this is nothing new. There have been Adventist Sabbath Keeper motorcycle groups for many years that attend all the motorcycle gatherings around the country. One of those events is here in California in Hollister.  

The Sabbath Keepers Motorcycle Ministry

and their Facebook Page

The SKMM seems to be doing an actual ministry witnessing for Jesus, unlike any of the COG groups around today. While COG groups wince at mentioning Jesus or even emulating his actions, they much prefer prostrating themselves at the highly revered altar of the law.

Here is what the SKMM do:

Lambert said SKMM is the oldest and largest Adventist motorcycle ministry in the world. The Hollister, Calif., based ministry currently has 19 chapters and nearly 300 members, but the original SKMM members didn’t even own a motorcycle. Their first motorcycle was donated by National Sunday Law author Jan Marcussen.

SKMM members focus on the major biker events that attract hundreds of thousands of bikers annually. They’re all about bringing Jesus to the motorcycle community, using literature, prayer and testimony.

“We pass out a lot of literature during these events,” said Lambert.

The biker events have a combined annual attendance of over 1,000,000, which is more than 300 SKMM members can reach, but they keep at it, and not without results.

While at biker event Reno Street Vibrations, Kevin and Kellye Simpson stopped by SKMM’s booth. Kevin had left the Adventist Church in high school and Kellye had never been Adventist, but her grandmother had taught her Saturday was the Sabbath. Intrigued by the group, the couple took some literature. Later they were baptized into the Ceres Seventh-day Adventist Church, Calif., where they soon began a new SKMM chapter. SKMM’s influence has gone well beyond ex-Adventists, even touching the upper echelons of the Hells Angels and Mongols. 

About six years ago during a biker event in Los Angeles, a biker gang member killed a member of a rival gang while wearing the cut (leather vest) of another gang. In an effort to find the killer, the Hells Angels and Mongols began a shake down of each club in the surrounding area. However, the word was out the SKMM and Christian Motorcycle Association were not to be touched. God was looking out for them.

Can you imagine a COG motorcycle group associating with Hells Angels members, Mongols, or other biker gangs? I can see them now going to Sturges or Hollister and isolating themselves in their own cordoned-off area waiting for their god to send them prospective members, instead of getting off their privileged white asses and hitting the streets and proclaiming the good news they CLAIM to have.

We all know that would never happen.  Church of God organizations cannot even get along with each other so how can a witness of a peaceful kingdom ever be shared?

A Reminder for New COG Lurkers

Anonymous said...

I don't care whether people love me or not. I do not believe that that's the problem in HWAs church splinters. All I care about is people not harming me by respecting my rights. What's in peoples hearts is between them and God, but if people respect my right to life, liberty, my property rights, my right to freedom of expression, my right to choose my own beliefs, my right to be free from abuse, my right to privacy, my right to be left alone etc, I' m satisfied.

Not surprising, rights are taboo in these splinters.

Church Member Bill of Rights

The following are basic human, religious and spiritual rights any person has as a member of any and all religious organizations or church congregations.

You have the right to expect the church to keep your personal contributions private and should be able to expect that any who deal with such things for accounting purposes will do the same.

You have the right to expect that your membership in any church or congregation is not contingent on how much you give or do not give. You should also expect that jobs, positions, opportunities or offices are not given based on the amount anyone gives to the church.

You have the right to say I can only give this even if it is not a tithe of your income gross or net.

You have the right not to be spiritually judged or have your loyalty or sincerity questioned based on what you are able or unable to give financially to the church.

You have the right to ask a Pastor if he checks tithes and offerings for any of the above reasons before giving to a church.

You have the right to say "I'm tired and won't be there, " to any and all activities, plays, fundraisers, studies, seminars, prayer groups, rehearsals, practices and sermons.

You have the right to say "I don't care about that."

You have the right to question the advice, counsel or sermon of any minister, elder, deacon or any other person in authority. 

You have the right to question authority and to still expect to be allowed to attend your church. 

You have the right to question a minister who declares himself one or both of the Two Witnesses of Revelation, a Prophet, the Supreme Watcher of Mankind for God, The Only True Apostle in this Age and any other title or position he can come up with to impress you as to why you need to support him.

You have the right to suggest a pastor get spiritual or psychological help should the need arise. You have the right tell him that the congregation is noticing a trend here.

You have the right to ask why the church believes what it does when the Bible might say otherwise, or why the Bible says something that the church practices that seems scary, weird, inappropriate for this time, out of date or controlling. 

You have the right to notice that ministers often quote scriptures out of context or fail to enforce or address the rest of the story that does not agree with the point they are trying to make.

You have the right to ask all the "how can that be," "how could that happen," "why does it say this here and that there," questions you can come up and expect an intelligent answer. If you are told that you are using human reasoning, ask the pastor what kind of reasoning he uses. If he says "God's," find another church.

You have the right to not want elders, deacons or your friends accompanying the minister on visits to your home to talk to you.

You have the right to discuss or not discuss your life with the minister as you see fit.

You have the right to expect absolute confidentiality and for your story not to show up in the sermon next week, even though "I won't say the name."

You have a right to be called ahead of time when the pastor wants to ask about stopping over.

You have the right, when he calls to say, "I'm tired," "I'm busy," "No, but I appreciate the call," without repercussions.

You have the right to keep a dirty home, grass not mowed perfectly, an older car, red in color and kids that don't say "yes sir, nice to see you sir," in just the right way.

You have the right to watch and read what you wish even if the pastor just got done bashing that particular program, movie or book from the pulpit in his sermon on "Demons in Your Home--Six Ways to Assure Your Eternal Death."

You have the right to ask the pastor not to call on you at work, even if you own the business.

You have the right to say, "I can't afford to take you to lunch." "I can't afford to give you free wood or brick." "I can't afford to fix your house up free," "I can't fix all your teeth," to your pastor should he expect professional courtesies, even if he offers to do your funeral free.

You have a right to expect free use of your church for weddings and funerals.

You have the right to expect these usages are not dependent on you, your parents or children living a sinless life six months prior to the date of the event.

You have the right not to answer questions your pastor may ask you or your children about your sexual practices. If he insists, then insist that you all share together.

You have the right to not let the pastor inform you as to who you can and cannot date or marry.

You have the right to enjoy your sexuality free of church or pastoral approval. Something that is wrong for the pastor is not necessarily wrong for you in how you express yourself to your partner. There is no Bible prohibition against....well you know. And if there were, you'd have the right to disagree with that too.

You have the right to not share which or if you are taking medications of any sort with the pastor.

You have the right to take such medication and not be judged as having a lack of faith or trust in God to heal you.

You have the right to seek professional help without informing your Pastor of the nature of the help and you have the right to not be helped solely by the pastor under threat of repercussions.

You have the right to insist the pastor get professional help should the need arise and the man is causing more harm than good. 

You have the right to remind him that God does not directly speak to him nor express His will only through the mind of the pastor and that makes you uncomfortable if he thinks that is so.

You have the right to be wrong about a many things.

You have the right to believe you are correct about many things without repercussions.

You have the right not to care about everything that others think you must care about to be a good Christian.

You have the right to tell the pastor he is wrong, mistaken or exaggerating.

You have the right to dress as you wish, wear the jewelry you wish and make up you wish or not wish without being labeled a whore or a goody goody.

You have the right to feel that dressing as if it was still 1957 and only watching Disney Movies or How the West Was Won as proof of your pureness is baloney

. You have the right to not be told that the best times for entertainment, movies and TV was when the Pastor was a boy. You have the right to like the food he does not like and to not like the foods he does. 

You have the right to like the schools he doesn't and not like the ones he does.

You have the right not to bear your soul to the ministers wife.

You have the right to like or not like, agree or not agree with the ministers wife.

You have the right to not view the world through the pastor's eyes morally or politically. You have the right to hate the war while he believes the war in Iraq is God's will and thinks it's all in the Bible.

You have the right to expect him to speak clearly where he thinks the Bible speaks for us today and to walk slowly and drink cool water where it doesn't.

You have the right to tell the pastor that that is his opinion and not necessarily the only true opinion on earth.

You have the right for you, your children, your partner and your friends to be themselves.

You have the right to read whatever you wish to read

And too...Since two wrongs don't  make a right, you are allowed to point out one or more than three times where you feel the pastor's sermon or booklet was a bit off the track.  

These are but a few of the rights any member of any Church, congregation or religious organization has. In short, you have the right to not be required to check your brains, your insights, your perspectives and your free will at the door to be welcome and a member of any church.

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