9/22/2010

The Plain Truth About Worldwide Jets, Jewelry, Gifts, Clothes, And Cars




Now in their 20s, their lawsuits claim that when Long showered them with "cars, clothes, jewelry and electronics," flew them across the world in private jets and booked them into luxury hotels, all the while pushing them into a sexual relationship.
"The allegations are that sexual things started to happen at 17 and 18 years old," their attorney said. Even though 17 is above the age of consent in Georgia, they claim that the pastor violated his "fiduciary duty as [their] spiritual advisor" and demand a trial by jury. 
Long's attorney, Craig Gillen, countered the men's claims, writing in a statement that  "Long adamantly denies the allegations."  Robinson v. Long

9/18/2010

UCG Breaking The Law?

Keeping the weekly Sabbath and holy feast days deeply affected everyone in the WCG in one way or another. HWA, in his infallible style, perfectly laid down which Levitical laws, exactly when and precisely how his sabbath and triple-tithing festivals should be kept. Armstrong transformed the symbolism of these old covenant Levitical laws and festivals into differing heretical interpretations of new covenant  doctrines. The egotistical, headstrong, high school dropout, 20th-century apocaholic false prophet was proven erroneous or incontrovertibly wrong, innumerable times. Armstrong was finally forced by the abundant facts staring him in the face to admit he was doctrinally, biblically, or morally wrong, and he made major changes to his cult's sect's doctrines in many key areas.  

When pulled out of public schools by Armstrong for observing holy days, school children could be adversely affected; due to isolating sabbath restrictions, they could not participate in sports, band, and many other key developmental activities in school. That's not exactly a trivial matter. Also, those in the COG were severely handicapped in their limited choices for getting any higher education. Other than choosing God's college restoring true values, all other "pagan" higher education was viewed to be of highly dubious value.  Other occupational fields generally were denied, either because it was not permitted by Armstrong or the government (such as military and defense related jobs). Those lucky enough to be employed in the professions were very, very few and far between in the church. Of the permissible jobs remaining, the need to be off every Friday night and Saturday without exception, and of course the absolute need to be off during the festivals severely affected every member's employment choices at every point in their lives.  

With today's high double-digit unemployment in many areas, finding and keeping suitable employment is not just an academic issue for many Worldwiders, with the sole exception of perhaps the ministry. There's slim pickings indeed leftover for survival after taxes, three tithes, and buying thousands more in Dom Perignon for The Apostle. Take, for example, two former UCG schoolteachers who operate a day care business in Chile. Should they stay open for business during the Sabbath and Holy Days?

 “Through the years, we didn’t discuss the issue of the Holy Days while Mr. Mario Seiglie was our pastor, and neither with Saul Langarica for the first six years of his tenure and we just rested and regularly attended all the Sabbaths and Holy Days. We thought it was a private matter on how we resolved this issue. It must also be stated that we were never suspended for this matter. It was never mentioned as a reason for the suspensions. The subject was broached in 2009 and 2010 by Mr. Langarica, but no decision was made about the matter." 

The UCG's answer to this problem? Luker and Rhodes' Take On How To Observe The Sabbath

9/06/2010

Teenage Wasteland





Growing through adolescence into adulthood is not an easy experience for most teenagers. For Church of God teenagers, it's even harder. Much harder. Going through absolute hell might not be too strong a description for many of them. Observing COG doctrines, repeated absences for cult church holy days, explaining the controlling COG Talmud to your peers in the public school system can create a world of conflict, angst, embarrassment, and difficulty for you all on it's own. 


Hopeless, hapless UCG teens told to expect the imminent collapse of the US, brutal German captivity, and the great Tribulation to begin shortly thereafter, can forget about participating in sports, band, or most anything else important to higher education in high school. They can scratch through the calendar days for thrilling Friday night football games, anything having the remotest thing to do with Christmas, dating anyone outside God's true cult church, senior prom on the Sabbath, and preparing for many future jobs and professional occupations.


Your triple-tithing baptized parents, and the ministry in good standing, it is said, receive the Holy Spirit. God is calling them. They get to become God "as God is God". Try dealing with this mindset, while having the one true cult church on earth dictate every aspect of your personal life twenty-four hours a day. The ultra-authoritarian, dogmatic, robotic COG mindset doesn't develop or tolerate true critical scholarship, accreditation, peer-reviewed independent thought or freedom of action. Just think of your developing adolescent sized, fantastic, neuroplastic human brain. Now, next slide up- see your incredible brain shrinking, shriveling up while on UCG. Get the picture? If it's not your parents, it's the arrogant, inept ministry controlling what you do with all of your time, talent and money. Or not do, such as stone-age throwback, AC troglodyte David Pack, prohibiting blogging, censoring COG use of the Internet.   


UCG's Ryan Shallenberger and Micah Gunn in this song lament a cold and broken UCG, wondering about the next crisis arriving on their horizon. It's Simon and Garfunkle revisited, with some Bob Dylan thrown in for good measure.  Way to go, guys. Make an album!