We now continue.
May 1: In a sermon Gerald Flurry implies that Jordan will be protected in order for Petra to be the Place of Safety. (Flurry ("God's Prophet") Hints at Jordan for Place of Safety)
June: J. Tim Thompson dies of cancer. (Death of Tim Thompson) Apparently his wife has since remarried and no longer works at Headquarters. (See last 2005 letter.)
July-August: (Exposé on the Royal Vision.) Frank Borg writes a confusing article on health insurance. aaaaa
In a July 17 sermon Gerald Flurry confides that he spent $107,500 for stuff WCG sold off, including a Steinway Grand Piano and a candelabra. (Gerald Flurry Spends $107,500 for Items Auctioned Off by Worldwide Church of God) This spending binge cause some to worry that Gerald Flurry is losing it. (What Has Happened to Gerald Flurry??)
August 7: Gerald Flurry's Sermon Tirade at P.Y.C.
August 26: Gerald Flurry sends a co-worker letter announcing the publication of his booklet The Last Hour.
September 5: Barbara Flurry, Gerald Flurry's wife, dies. Mrs. Flurry's Condition is Getting Worse and Mrs. Barbara Flurry Suffered For Years With Health Problems.) Her obituary is published in the November-December, 2004 Philadelphia News.
October 6: Gerald Flurry's 2004 Feast of Tabernacle Sermon
December: Minister's wife disfellowshipped for attempting to reveal shortcomings within the ministry. (Ministerial Evils in Philadelphia Church of God)
2005: Gerald Flurry imposes the CD Ban. PCG Tape Libraries were suddenly shut down around May. (PCG Shutting Down All Tape Libraries) This practice is commented upon in this letter, We Were Told to Destroy the CDs. Details of the CD ban may be seen in the December 10 Pastor General's Report, pp. 3-5.
This is a particularly disturbing and paranoid practice taken up by PCG. All CDs of PCG sermons are to be destroyed once they have been shown to PCG members. Such radical measures, however, have still allowed some sermons to be leaked out.
April 16: Listening to the Dragon sermon played to members. This sermon has been criticized for making fear inducing statements. (Gerald Flurry's Sermon: Listening to the Dragon)
May: Alex Harrison Has Done a Lot of Damage in India.
August 24: Meeting held. Minister Wickramasinghe disfellowshipped. They would come to found the Gentile Assembly and teach that they are the Two Witnesses. (Ministerial Evils in Philadelphia Church of God)
PCG publishes new Habakkuk booklet. Notably it features Gerald Flurry's name in all capitals at the top of the book. See September 12, 2006 letter. This also occurs on the covers of Daniel Unlocks Revelation and The Epistles of Peter-A Living Hope.
December: Imperial College is renamed as Herbert W. Armstrong College to avoid confusion with Imperial College, London. ("College" Name Change, Imperial College Photo Gallery (c. 2004-2005))
Explanation for the name change is further expanded in Raising the Ruins. "Herbert W. Armstrong College was a name we almost used when we started the college in 2001, but since we were then embroiled in a lawsuit over Mr. Armstrong’s literature, we didn’t think it would be wise to use his name for our college as well. But by the end of 2005, after winning all that literature, [note how "winning" is used as a euphemism for buying from the Man of Sin] and with our first crop of seniors months away from graduating, changing the name to Herbert W. Armstrong College seemed like a perfect ending to the story of our legal struggle—and a fitting tribute to Mr. Armstrong’s legacy."
2006:
Dennis Leap demoted.
In the May 6, 2006 Pastor General's Report Gerald Flurry asserts that Lucifer had the opportunity to bring light to the entire world. (Does Gerald Flurry Misquote and Fail to Understand the Scriptures?)
June: In the July issue of Philadelphia News Gerald Flurry unveils a personal appearance campaign. (Gerald Flurry Heralds "New Phase" of Work)
August: (Dennis Leap No Longer Regional Director or Minister)
September: Around this time Garth MacDonald dies, aged 24. (Garth Macdonald Dies Due to Lack of Medical Care)
November 11: Dennis Leap returns. See November 13 letter.
Raising the Ruins by Stephen Flurry released in bookstores. This book attaches criticism for selling the truth. (Selling the "Truth") This book, I am afraid to say, contains many flaws, including omissions of various doctrines and practices of PCG, that cause this book to be an unreliable portrait of PCG.
More on this book may be read elsewhere on this blog.
Minister John Durrad disfellowshipped for relaying a member's question asking who is the human head of the Laodicean church. (Gerald Flurry Disfellowships PCG Minister John Durrad.) He later joined the Church of God's Faithful, a PCG splinter sect. (Church of God's Faithful is a Splinter of PCG)
2007: Announces the creation of a "House for God" (Armstrong Auditorium) in his February 22 Co-worker letter. (Gerald Flurry Plans to Build a "House for God"!)
September: By this Marvin Campbell becomes legally blind, allegedly due to untreated diabetes. (Marvin Campbell Now Legally Blind.)
November 3: Gerald Flurry made comments sympathetic towards Charles Manson.
November 23: Stephen Flurry publishes an article, "You Are Saved by Grace." An analysis of that article by Mr. William Hohmann was later released, What Does Saved by Grace Really Mean?
December 8: In sermons it is announced that Aaron Eagle will assist Marvin Campbell. Jacob Toews was marked and disfellowshipped. Ron Fraser and Frank Borg, a married student at Herbert W. Armstrong College who had written articles for Royal Vision, are suspended. (Three Big Announcements in PCG An account of why Jacob Toews resigned from a Board of Directors in Canada was later published on the Internet. Toews then joined The Restored Church of God.
Trumpet Weekly founded, beginning with the December 8, 2007 issue. Clever Gerry.
The Epitle of James: A Message to the Spiritual Exiles "in the Last Days".
Hosea: Reaping the Whirlwind and Jeremiah and the Greatest Vision in the Bible revised.
2008: Within two weeks of his suspension Ron Fraser is reinstated. See first letters of 2008.
March: Frank Borg leaves PCG and joins the Church of God's Faithful. (Frank Borg Has Gone With Church of God's Faithful)
Around this time in late March Micki Campbell, wife of Marvin Campbell, dies.
According to the April 5 letter a big tithe payer in Australia leaves.
Presents two sermons to Philadelphia Youth Camp students. Commentary may be seen in Gerald Flurry's Philadelphia Youth Camp Sermons - 2008. In the second sermon "That Prophet" predicts the Great Tribulation will come "in five years or less."
First report of this statement on the Internet made in August 11 letter. (Gerald Flurry and His Five-Year Prophecy.) Similar statements are published suggesting that PCG members expects the Second Coming to be very soon (2008, a couple of years, Great Tribulation by 2010, etc.) See the second August 11 letter which says Gerald Flurry predicted the Great Tribulation to occur by 2008 in 2005. Also note the letters of September 14, November 17 and November 19.
After the Feast of Tabernacles Dennis Leap is suspended from the ministry.
Fox 25 Report is published. Part 1 and Part 2 are still available.
This report sparks a lot of discussion on PCG.
December 27: According to the Pastor General's Report leaked onto the Internet some within the PCG leadership are not impressed with how few PCG members are completing the tests for the Correspondence Course.
So far, 2408 members have signed up for the course. Of those, 150 have completed it. On the other hand, nearly 800 have not yet completed the first test. Another 300 have not past the second test. That means about half of the members enrolled are at lesson 8 or less. While some no doubt signed up recently, some have signed up but failed to continue with the course.(See May 7, 2009 letter.)
2009: January 3: Revealing Satan sermon.
February: Tornado appears near college.
April: AC Big Sandy Swan sculpture purchased by PCG to be used on the grounds of Herbert W. Armstrong College.
April 11: Andrew Locher presents the Facebook sermon denouncing social networking sites as window to Satan and condemning young members for maintaining relations with those who have been suspended or disfellowshipped. (The Evil of Social Networking Sites(According to Philadelphia Church of God) ) This seems to be part of a wider crackdown upon the liberties upon Herbert W. Armstrong College students.
April 11: Andrew Locher delivers the sermon Beware Satan's Subtly, also known as the Facebook sermon. Social networking sites (Facebook, Bebo, MySpace) are condemned evil tools used by Satan which young members should leave alone.
June: One PCG member chooses to leave. May there be many more.
This is only a basic sketch of the events surrounding Gerald Flurry and his Armstrongite sect. Much more needs to be done in this regard.
The end.
Any so-called minister of the Bible who keeps saying, "God will call everyone into His family", is NOT reading the true scriptures but putting their 'own' intrepretations on God's Word. Apparently Flurry has forgotten what John 17:9 said from Jesus' own lips. Between Flurry, Osteen, and Schuller it really makes you wonder, as they're valid proof of the sayings from the Book of Revelation. God help us all.
ReplyDeleteIt is sad to read of former friends, such as Marvin Campbell, whose wife has died due to lack of medical care (I suppose), as many other wives have also. I am surprised the PCG is still holding together, with such dictatorial hateful ministers in charge.
ReplyDeleteDick M, Elder in GCI.