Articles for the Benefit of Members and Ex-Members of the WCG

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20
Worldwide Church of God Intransigence

A cult maintains control over its members by careful manipulation of their minds. High on the WCG's agenda is to indoctrinate members against opening their minds to outside influences. This keeps them trapped and loyal to the leaders.

Rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry (1 Sam 15:23, NKJV).

The intransigence of members and ex-members of the Worldwide Church of God will be their undoing. Samuel wrote that stubbornness is idolatry.

Why? Because a stubborn person refuses to open his ears to the truth, he refuses to be objective, he refuses to consider that he might have something to learn, and so his ideas or views become his idol.

But where did his ideas or views come from? His theological viewpoint is a composite of what he has learned from various sources. The chief source for members of the WCG is their church and its teachings. These were first derived from Herbert W Armstrong, who also gleaned much of his information from previous Sabbatarian sources such as Church of God Seventh Day and especially G G Rupert who published a journal entitled The Remnant of Israel between 1916 and 1929. (Many copies of Rupert's papers were later found in HWA's basement. And some of Armstrong's writings were compared with Rupert's and were found to be strikingly similar - even word for word plagiarism of Rupert's work!)

Armstrong's theology was added to by a few others in the WCG hierarchy who could influence him, and later when Joseph Tkach took over in 1986, church teachings were modified considerably. But one thing remained the same -- WCG intransigence.

It is almost as though it is the core of WCG dogma. Members stubbornly refuse to listen to any spiritual input if it does not come from their leaders or if it is not openly approved by them. Thus, information is strictly controlled, just as in any hard-line communist regime.

The parallels between communist rule and that in the WCG are quite striking.

• Information is strictly controlled. Spiritual material from WCG sources or WCG-approved sources ONLY is recommended.
• Members are expected to be dutifully loyal to their leaders.
• Dissent is not tolerated, and often dealt with by severe punishment.
• Individual freedoms and rights are curtailed.

These are oppressive conditions to exist under. They do not contribute to true freedom and equality. The WCG maintains a very spiritually oppressive environment which plunders God's people of what are their spiritual rights.

Of course, loyal, effectively conditioned members don't see it like that. They are content to surrender their individual rights to those who rule over them. They have been deceived into thinking that it is their spiritual duty to do so, just as Jeremiah predicted (5:31). But Jeremiah also asked the question: "What will you do in the end thereof?" In other words, where will it get you if you do that?

Spiritually, it won't get you far. Your true loyalty is to Christ, not to men who claim to represent Him. And if you relinquish your obligation to think for yourself and allow a church leader to do it for you, you are not following the lead of the Spirit which is a Christian duty (Rom 8:12-14); you are following a man who has put himself in charge OVER you (a biblically untenable position - see Matt 23:8).

Usurping Christ's Position

The man of sin; the false prophet; the antichrist is such a one. He puts himself in place of Christ in the lives of those whom he can deceive. He usurps Jesus' offices, ascribing them to himself. And through subtlety and disguise he dupes the minds of those who are not spiritually discerning. He effectively gets them to follow him.

This is what HWA did in the WCG. He got members to follow him. He became the WCG's Pontifex Maximus or pope. It was all achieved discreetly and even he could not see the pernicious nature of what was taking place because he was a pawn in the devil's grip.

"But," you might protest, "those were in HWA's days. Things are much different now. There is a new freedom in the church."

Don't kid yourself! The same mentality prevails in far too many instances. The same mind control exists - under much more discreet disguises. The same subjugation occurs, with members giving obeisance to a man. This time it is Joseph Tkach junior. He is the new 'pope', holding ultimate power over you and you are one of his subjects. You don't realise what you are doing, but you are effectively worshipping him. The one you obey in a spiritual sphere is the one you worship.

It is cult mentality. It is very spiritually damaging.

The irony is, you would think members after 20 or 30 years would begin to see through it and would rebel. But the longer this lie grips the mind, the harder it seems it is to be rid of it. I know long-standing members who will not jack the system. They continue on, blindly following. They think it doesn't matter so long as they pray to God each day and perform what they see as their religious duties. They don't perceive that they are giving homage to the devil who devised the system they are dutifully submitting to.

Better off Outside the WCG

What they forget is that their duty is to Christ, not to church leaders. If they had never been part of the WCG, or any church, they are still brothers and sisters with Christ. They don't need any man reminding them of that relationship. That is a personal relationship which exists OUTSIDE a church organisation. And, actually, it exists most effectively outside church organisations! Because there is no man to get in the way!

But try telling Worldwiders that they would be better off outside their church?! Huh! They'd give you a funny look and turn away before you could explain why. They are so mind-controlled, so conditioned, so subservient to WCG leadership suggestions that to consider anything other than what their church leaders propose is as bizarre as going to the moon for a daytrip!

It is a travesty that people with intelligent minds can be so myopic! They have surrendered their ability to think, and to use their minds in a meaningful spiritual manner!

A central teaching of the WCG years ago was that the WCG is the only true Church on earth. With this false dogma in the mind, anyone not inside the WCG was therefore regarded as "lost". After my wife and I were thrown out of the church by the local Hitler - (oops, sorry) minister - a friend confided to us that he had seen his wife's prayer list. On it she had written "Malcolm and Helena - lost!"

How tragic! The tragedy was her myopia, not our position outside the WCG! We could accept that. But I can't accept how her mind has been messed up by the WCG infidels who have the gall to call themselves ministers of Christ! What an insult to Jesus, who stood for freedom, for equality, for justice and for truth!

WCG = Worldwide Cult of the Gagged?

The WCG ministry were notorious at trying to gag and control people.

A friend of ours was put out of the WCG for not complying with some of their petty rules. One time he was told not to attend services because he would not wear a suit! They gave him little personal freedom to decide how best to come to church. They didn't seem to think he had the gumption to be able to decide what was best to wear, so in their arrogant presumption they decided for him. They imposed their will upon him.

Perhaps they were right in their assessment that he was not wearing what was ideal. But that is not the point. They had no right to dictate to him. They could suggest and offer constructive advice in a tactful way, but they certainly had no right to bulldoze him into complying with their rules.1 Such rules are not in the Bible, they are man-made rules and man is not to rule in the Church. God is.

If a pauper had come into a meeting in rags, would they have suggested he left? If they would, they would have been respecting persons and sinning.

You do not enter the Kingdom of heaven on the basis of externals, but 'internals' - what is in your heart.

What the WCG ministry expressed from their heart to our friend was not godly. It was demonic.

A minister once tried the same thing on me. He did not think what I wore to church meetings was quite up to his standards. I preferred to wear a jacket and trousers than a formal suit. I felt there was too much formality which detracted from reality and suits were not always my personal preference. When he suggested I should wear a suit I thought I would taunt him and see how far he would go. I asked, "And if I don't wear a suit, will you disfellowship me?"

His reply was swift. "Yes." I believe he meant it too!

These are bully-boy tactics. They are what Jesus meant when He described how the Gentiles lord it over their subjects (Matt 20:25). But He said such behaviour "should not be so with you" (v 26).

The same bully-boy treatment is still practised by Worldwide, although they claim it is not. They say the policing and abuse of the past is a thing of the past. It is not. That is a lie! It's just that such cloning is more subtle and not apparent.

• Dissidents are still not tolerated.
• Freedom of speech is still not allowed.
• Freedom of worship is non-existent.
• Dictatorial authoritarianism is still in force.
• And WCG mentality is still cloned.

A people can be brought to spiritual ruin by following their leaders. Intransigence abets the evil.

What Ails the People

Look at the Jewish nation at the time of the Roman occupation in the first century. They resisted Christ's message and crucified Him. Had John the Baptist not preached about the imminence of their Messiah's coming, he would have been ignored too. Every prophet God sent was overlooked or forgotten by His people. Their words were disregarded.

The religious leaders resisted God's prophets and most of the people blindly followed.

O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing (Matt 23:37, NIV).

Because of their intransigence, Jerusalem was tragically decimated. Jerusalem is a type of the Church. The destruction is to be repeated in our day. Note that!

Jesus' words are just as true today:

To what, then, can I compare the people of this generation? ...We played the flute for you and you did not dance, we sang a dirge, and you did not cry (Luke 7:31,32, NIV).

A prophet today is equally snubbed. Most people do not respond. Their intransigence is perhaps only exceeded by their folly!

Malcolm B Heap, Feb 1998

Further Reading

A comprehensive exposition on the correct exercise of authority in the church is given in the book God's Church -- Whose Authority? available for £3.00 ($5.00 US) from Midnight Ministries, PO Box 29, Aylesbury, HP17 8TL, UK.