Exposing the underbelly of Armstrongism in all of its wacky glory! Nothing you read here is made up. What you read here is the up to date face of Herbert W Armstrong's legacy. It's the gritty and dirty behind the scenes look at Armstrongism as you have never seen it before!
With all the new crazy self-appointed Chief Overseers, Apostles, Prophets, Pharisees, legalists, and outright liars leading various Churches of God today, it is important to hold these agents of deception accountable.
Herbert Armstrong's Tangled Web of Corrupt Leaders
"We have come through the vaginal doorway of Life..."
This one popped up on my feed the other day and it is crazier than Bob Thiel's stuff and that's a pretty hard act to follow! I don't know how new they are because they include a letter from 1985 on their site that they sent to Pasadena extolling their virtuous teachings.
When Armstrongism collapsed into a putrid pile of festering splinter groups in the 1990s, with each proclaiming they were the one proper way and had the absolute truth, church members scattered into the four winds. Some of those went with fringe groups with beliefs so far out there that even rational thinking could not comprehend what they believe.
This brings us to ThePlanTruth.World. It is a mishmash of Armstrongism, Aliens, British Israelism, law-keeping, and Messianic Judaism, including its own prophets and Elijah's and people who receive visions.
When you browse other nuttiness, very little actually points to Jesus, but to other creatures they claim to follow to look towards.
Here are a few of the glorious things they have restored, including the true calendar and the "black and white" texts.
David C. Pack of The Restored Church of God is eroding.
Every biblical structure he builds possesses the longevity and lasting impression of a sandcastle upon the shoreline. Time is his biggest adversary. Winds and tides easily dismantle his most-elaborate constructs.
20,000 hours of labor are washed away overnight as if they never existed. Thus is the life of Pester General David C. Pack, who continually makes his prophetic sandcastles without being savvy enough to realize the sand needs to be wet. Dry sand can only make piles. A five-year-old understands this.
He sometimes stomps on his own creation, kicking sand in his face from the day before as if someone else came up with those wacky ideas.
Skip a Part or two, and all you missed was disinformation, conjecture, and supposition presented as stone when it equals the durability of sand.
After Christmas failed, he moved to New Year’s Eve. After that, it seemed as though the flag atop his tower was about to be set with Tevet 21, but instead, a wave came along and cleared it away to the foundation.
Christmas Eve was a sandcastle.
New Year’s Eve was a sandcastle.
Tevet 21 (January 14) was a sandcastle.
A new set of sandcastles are fashioned for this week that will wash away before the Sabbath.
Monday, January 23 @ 10:04 AM ET
or
Tuesday, January 24 @ 10:05 AM ET
or
Wednesday, January 25 @ 10:06 AM ET
Dave is hard to follow during this opaque-rich "The Greatest Unending Story! (Part 416)" given on January 21, 2023. I listen to his messages slowly and then repeatedly at half-speed while transcribing his quotes. This requires reviewing the same paragraphs over and over.
Even doing that did not help much to follow him. Listening to Part 416 is a significant chore, and I hope I never have to do it again. What a burdensome hurdle for the poor folks of RCG. The On-The-Fencers will be glad they skipped this one. My brain feels bruised.
It is a pity Dave did not get a chance to teach his amazing proofs about Elijah rising before February 10, before all this new knowledge came to sucker punch that plan in the nose. Elijah is in there somewhere, but we are left to wonder.
The remaining 30 points of his super-important 60-proof list will also have to remain a perpetual mystery, much to the chagrin of those who tried to number them. It serves you right for trying to follow him so closely.
Despite the confusing fog of Part 416, some key items are gleaned:
• There is no separate Kingdom to Israel timeframe. It is actually the Kingdom of God.
•There is a 45-day Kingdom of God, a fleeing period, a 10-day Great Tribulation, and then, Abib 1 begins the 10-day Day of the Lord.
• There is no 80-day countdown to Abib 1. He gets caught lying about that.
• February 10 is a non-starter and is off the table.
@ 00:03 Well, this will be an exciting message. Very dramatic material…
@ 00:32 Go into this knowing Abib 1 is still our absolute prophetic anchor. It’s inviolable. Now, let’s see how much further we can go in regard to precise timing. Something broke, and I’m gonna pretty much close the message with it.
It is funny to reflect on this early comment considering when he ends the message regarding timing, he is all BUT precise. Sunset Jerusalem time, “possibly Sunday morning” through “possibly Thursday morning” does not scream “precise” to the cynic in me. Perhaps my wicked antichrist mind demands too much of him.
Everyone's brain broke with this message, including those inside RCG. I am aware of the chatter.
@ 09:37 I want to establish that we are waiting for Jesus Christ. Period.
Ha ha ha. A generous 5% of Herbert W. Armstrong’s corpse is chuckling in his grave. Ed Winkfield is wiping the sweat from his brow again now that he does not have to plan on updating all the literature. For the fifth-dozen time. Rest easy, Ed. Strategic procrastination works wonders.
@ 15:23 …what makes it difficult is, Are there three Kingdoms of God after a Kingdom to Israel, or is the first Kingdom of God, because it's built by God and Christ coming to a temple, is that the Kingdom of Israel? That’s the problem.
@ 15:49 And if they [Father and Jesus Christ] do come together to do it, then we get full-on absolute salvation when we go first. Those are the implications.
Dave discovers salvation comes when the Father and Jesus Christ arrive. If Jesus Christ brings the Kingdom of Israel, it is the Kingdom of God. The Kingdom TO Israel is no longer a separate time period. It is The Kingdom of God.
I remember this flip-flopping over the years when I was in the room. As a lay member and by no means a Bible scholar, when I read in the Book of Acts the apostles asking Jesus Christ before He ascended to heaven if He was going to restore the Kingdom to Israel, I perceived it as the Kingdom of God because Jesus Christ was going to establish it. It seemed pretty clear back then.
Sometimes you cannot tell someone they are wrong, even when you can prove it. People must go on the journey themselves to later come back with the same logical endpoint. We have to do that with Dave. Just let him go through his process, and hopefully, he will realize his theory is bunk before too much damage is done.
Parents do this with children. Friends do this with friends. Spouses. Be patient and wait for them to draw the conclusion you pointed out at the beginning of the journey. The critical element is they get it and move on.
So, Dave was wrong. At least he provided a profound, heartfelt apology for stringing the church along.
@ 16:03 And so, I apologize. This has been the most difficult thing I’ve ever wrestled with in my life. And so, the way I could I make myself feel better is I tell myself, “Nobody else ever saw anything but the Millennium.”
Yeah, do not reflect on the error for too long or let it soak in. He needed to wash the filth of failure off quickly before it left a stain. That might be embarrassing.
Dave blames a mistranslation of the word “midst” in Habakkuk 3:2 as an excuse for his manufactured 80-day count from New Year’s Eve to Abib 1 with a 40-day Sabbath in the middle on February 10.
David C. Pack admits he is a deceiver to The Restored Church of God.
While explaining what verses really mean, he exposes the fraud of his original theory.
@ 20:47 There're exactly 81 days minus a few hours because of midnight versus sundown. But there're 81 days between New Year's night and Abib 1. So, you can't really hit the dead middle anyway. It's gonna be 40-41 or 41-40. But, my mistake was looking for a Sabbath…and that just ended or came nicely at 40 days…But the point is, I thought, “That’s interesting.” Kinda 40-40 or 41-40 and a part of a day. And then 40 more.
His mistake was looking for a Sabbath? No. That was his motivation. He forced the math to make it work. Should this be considered a mistake or intentional lying?
Part 414 – January 14, 2023
@ 1:27:40 How many days are there between New Year’s Eve and Abib 1? None of you will know.I’ve done the math for you. How many are there?
@ 1:28:07 Here’s the number: exactly 80 days.
@ 1:28:49 I mean, it’s just basic math. It’s inarguable stuff here, brethren.That’s why I drove home Abib 1. And we had to figure out, “What do you mean ‘midst of the years?’” Boy, did we battle that one. Turns out, it really is dead-on. 40 and 40.
David C. Pack misled the brethren and knew he was doing it. My mommy taught me that is called lying.
David C. Pack lied to The Restored Church of God.
I almost called him out on the greasy, slimy math of the 40-80 day business from Part 414. I kick myself now for letting it go. I counted it over and over and could not get to an even 80 days from December 31 to March 22, with a 40-day middle landing on the Sabbath on February 10.
I figured I must have missed some quick detail in the message. As it turns out, I did not miss anything. He was conning everyone.
For the 80-day count to fit while landing on the Sabbath on February 10, you had to start on January 1 (not December 31) at sunset, February 10 at sunset, and end on March 22 at sunset. Dave was not specific about counting from sunset or midnight because he was purposefully in a gray zone.
He counted on everyone giving him a pass when they went home and not fact-checking the math. I tried to do that, but he was intentionally vague on how you count a day, and I fell for it.
What stopped me from bringing it up was that if you count from sunset on January 1, you can land on each day at sunset. But that is NOT what he taught and NOT what he meant.
I erred on the side of giving Dave the benefit of the doubt, which now makes me a jackass. I apologize for letting you folks down. It will not happen again. The man cannot be trusted. Not when he quotes himself. Not when he presents math.
From now on, when something smells fishy, it will be called out.
Part 416 – January 21, 2023
@ 21:30 But, I have to be honest, brethren…that is simply not what the word “midst” means.
Oh, so now is the time to be honest. He never explained the WHY in the change of the math. The calculator that was broken a week ago must have been fixed because…wow…he was off by a few hours, destroying the entire theory.
The man admitted to all the members of The Restored Church of God that he fooled them. This is the guy they choose to follow?
David C. Pack built a prophetic sandcastle that did not last a week. Ponder that. This not only shows what the man does but who he is.
He set a series of dates for this week and walked away from a February 10 target. How he got there will be covered another time. Dennis, these quotes might work well for the Alumni website.
@ 47:07 It is interesting that the goodman of the house is charged with telling the brethren the hour and the watch…when the thief would come. And so, I’ve told you that. Per Headquarters time, it’s around 10 in the morning. Anytime from tomorrow morning, Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and I guess if you’d say Thursday and no flight [from Jerusalem] time to get out of trouble. It’s possible. It’s possible.
@ 48:54 Frankly, what’s interesting, is if it were tomorrow morning, the Kingdom is 7 times 7 is 49 days. And it would be exactly two months. Now, I’m not saying it is tomorrow. I’m not saying that. But do not rule out tomorrow morning.
Too late.
@ 51:01 I’m not saying it’s tomorrow morning. Exercise your mind. That’s what we’re supposed to do. So, I’m helping you. I’m trying to do the math.
If brethren in The Restored Church of God truly exercised their minds, they would resign. If the “ministers” truly exercised their minds, they would resign. David C. Pack is a carnival barker leading them on a rollercoaster that goes in circles that can never stop.
@ 1:02:07 I hope it's tomorrow. I suspect it's not. It's okay if it's Thursday. I suspect it's not. We'll see which day it is. Check your clocks around the world per Jerusalem sunset. I think math has brought us what we've been waiting for a long time. Good night.
If he can lie about the math from New Year’s Eve to March 22, he can lie about anything.
This picture will change, and a new sandcastle will necessarily be constructed to keep the cycle going. Do not buy into the illusion.
The new dates will be washed away BEFORE the next Sabbath. Consider that.
Part 416 was bewildering, but there are more worthwhile elements to examine next time.
The letter below was on Exit and Support Network and while it pertains to the Philadelphia Church of God it could just as applicable to most of the other COG's. Members are constantly being berated for not sending in as much money as leaders expect. Members are expected to skimp, live frugally, and give tremendously so that the leadership can live opulent lives never worrying about where the next meal will come from.
Who can forget the member letters from Herbert Armstrong raking members over the coals for some crisis in the church and then immediately demand they give as much as they can for some ridiculous mighty push to get a fake gospel out about a "mighty hand from someplace"?
What is the “sin of ingratitude” to the Philadelphia Church of God? What “church” could be more ungrateful than they?
As that false ministry preaches to its members about being thankful, it is never about being thankful to God but about being thankful to them and for their “prophet” and for being ‘blessed’ in receiving “the Truth” from their ministers in the form of “spiritual food.”
But what real food can the members ever afford who first lose at least 30 percent of their income through local, state and federal taxes, and then must pay another 30 percent on top of that into this false church, or else must perish in the lake of fire?
All that a member can do is dream about having real food to eat, but eat “spiritual food,” as they may call it, instead.
What kind of a day of rest is the Sabbath when a working member cannot afford to have a good meal on the eve of that day or on that day?
For years I had to deal with the quandary as to whether I should pay for gas to make it to “church services” or be able to enjoy a nutritious meal on Friday or Saturday after surviving on less than a 500 calorie per day diet while I did hard work all week. Of course, I always paid for gas instead of eating.
In all the fake sermons I heard, the members were never thanked for the wealth and opulence enjoyed by those privileged people at HQ. The members were instead craftily manipulated by well-fed ministers who were skilled at using the Bible as an instrument of spiritual torture to guilt members into paying ever more and more, even beyond what tithes and offerings that fake church could extort out of its members, biblically.
And then, we arrive at that “sin of ingratitude” as classically preached about by Herbert Armstrong in the old WCG. How much ingratitude, or lack of gratitude, must that fake church have, in order to always ask its members for more, more, more…? Man, for lack of such a critical element as gratitude, why could those ministers not instead be asking and praying to receive a spirit of gratitude themselves, instead of for more money?
If people be guilty of the “sin of ingratitude,” as most human beings are ungrateful for what become just basic things to them and which things they take for granted over time, and without regarding the God who made all things, then the fake Philadelphia Church of God is guilty for being ungrateful to and for its members for sacrificing all those basic things and more, even God-given freedom, in order to please and appease the heads of that greedy and corrupt religious organization. None compares to them when regarding the “sin of ingratitude.”
Once on some older Trumpet Daily show, Stephen Flurry (SF) commented about the company CEO of Amazon for not even acknowledging that what profit he was now using for some space project he could then participate in had come from all the people who paid in and whom he profited from. Few comments ever sounded so hypocritical as what was coming from SF’s own mouth then.
Anyways, it is one of my greatest regrets to have given anything at all to that fake church, not just because of personal losses, but because I now know what evil I have contributed to, and not any good. What evil I have financed unwittingly has also caused others to suffer loss and injury. God forgives me for that which I did not intend to do, but how could God ever forgive that fake church who purposefully uses the Bible to extort people to the point of injury and while misusing His name in doing so, with all ingratitude?
By Nate [name changed] (former PCG member) January 22, 2023
