Tuesday, February 23, 2016

"Nonwhite" WCG Congregations in South Africa (1976)

HWA's WCG used to have racially segregated congregations in Apartheid South Africa.
PRETORIA, South Africa - About 45 members from the Johannesburg and Pretoria nonwhite churches met Feb. 1 at Pretoria Zoo for a picnic. A record player, provided by the family of a member, played music during meals. Also present was Sydney J. Hull, a local elder from Pretoria. (Worldwide News, March 15, 1976, pp. 13-14.)
And just imagine. WCG tended to be quite supportive of the Apartheid regime. PCG has tended to be sympathetic towards the Apartheid regime.

Sydney Hull would later join LCG. At one time he was the leader of LCG in South Africa. Then he switched allegiance to RCG before going back to LCG but he was only allowed to return as a laymember. He passed away on March 13, 2011.

2 comments:

  1. As a young child, I traveled with my family to Big Sandy, Texas for our first Feast of Tabernacles in 1958. The Ambassador College students put on a fun show every year, and my family wanted to be sure to have good seats, so my parents sent us ahead to save seats. We did find some excellent seats, but then the deacons came by to ask everyone in that section to find other seats, because they were making that the Colored section. By that time, the only large blocks of seats suitable for a family were towards the rear of the building.

    My parents were not only hugely disappointed, but because we were from the North, and this was also supposedly God's true church, they didn't believe us when we told them of the Colored section. I was told that this would be the last time my brother and I would be trusted to save the family seats. As for the church, apparently they were all too happy to observe the Jim Crow laws of the South.

    BB

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  2. My word. Thank you for sharing your story on this blog. It is much appreciated.

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