(Update: May 21, 2021: It is publicly known that some of the Covid vaccines, such as the Astra Zeneca vaccine and the Johnson and Johnson vaccine, can have a rare side effect of causing blood clots. With the Johnson and Johnson vaccine this side effect appears to mainly occur among women younger than 50 years old. Covid also produces blood clots. Nevertheless the CDC has recommended continuing to use the Johnson and Johnson vaccine. Anyone worried about such matters one should consult with one's doctor. We need to decide what do to based on medical science not the fear that Armstrongism often promotes or the hope that somehow their false prophecies will soon be fulfilled thus solving all our problems. We must face reality.)
In early May 2021 PCG released the July 2021 issue of their recruitment magazine, The Philadelphia Trumpet. This issue was released before the recent round of deadly strife in what used to be Mandatory Palestine. Even though hundreds of Americans are still being killed by Covid-19 every day PCG's leadership has decided to scare their readers about the vaccines that immunizes people from that dreadful disease, Covid-19. Anti-vaxxerism has been long term problem in the United States and elsewhere. Thankfully many people such as Voices for Vaccines, are trying to stand up against this dangerous and unscientific tendency. It is unfortunate that the PCG leadership has chosen to adopt an anti-vaxxer stance regarding Covid vaccines.
The cover illustration is by Gary Dorning. Here getting vaccinated against that frightful disease that is named Covid-19 is labelled as a form of "coercion" and the widespread attempt to encourage people to get vaccinated is presented as being somehow threatening. It is astounding that PCG's leaders choose to present the Covid vaccines as a threat to their readers rather then encourage them to protect themselves against that awful and sneaky disease that is Covid-19.
The editors of this magazine are Gerald Flurry, Stephen Flurry, Joel Hilliker, Philip Nice, Brad Macdonald, Richard Palmer, Jeremiah Jacques and Dennis Leap.
This issue has a circulation of 241,917 issues. For the May-June issue it was 243,028. For the April issue it was 247,023. For the March issue it was 248,523. For the February issue it was 246,497. For the January issue it was 247,820. The circulation stays in its previous position.
Gerald Flurry has an article discussing the immanent succession of a new Chancellor in Germany. He speculates that the Christian Social Union in Bavaria might break away from its alliance with the Christian Democratic Union and run in all of Germany as its own party.
Gerald Flurry has an article insisting that Donald Trump will return to the presidency. It is even implied that he might return to power in a military coup. Even though Biden was elected Flurry continue to stir up anger at the incumbent President among his followers and give them false hope that somehow Donald Trump will return to the presidency without needing to run in the 2024 election. This is partly an attempt to explain away his failed prophecy that Donald Trump would win the 2020 election and once it became clear that Biden had won this failed prophecy was altered to fit changed circumstances.
Stephen Flurry has an article condemning the political left once again. This time he cites statements by various leftist politicians calling for further reforms of policing to say that these leftists will never be satisfied therefore there is no need to listen to them or try to meet them halfway or anyway in managing American society.
Condemning Covid Vaccines
Stephen Flurry has an article saying that vaccines that protects us from the dreadful Covid-19 are somehow dangerous. He falls for the logical fallacy of the false equivalence, namely he compares the deadly disease Covid-19 with vaccines designed to stop Covid-19. That is like comparing apples and oranges. He outrageously calls the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic as merely "a fairly standard flu epidemic" on page 11 even though Covid-19 is not a flu at all. Currently about 675 Americans die of Covid-19 every day.
Richard Palmer has an article scare mongering against vaccine passports. As more people get vaccinated to protect themselves from the dreadful disease we call Covid-19 people and businesses will find it easier to manage people by only letting vaccinated people to gather in certain venues. He says such a hypothetical is not the "mark of the beast" but then he dilutes his previous point by saying it may lead up to that. Such scare mongering is unhelpful in the current situation. The PCG 1% would not have any need to be worried about being inconvenienced with not having a vaccine passport if they just did the socially responsible thing and make America stronger by getting themselves vaccinated against that frightful disease.
It is shameful that PCG chooses to stir fear and doubts about vaccines against Covid-19. Alas, Armstrongism has a long history of adopting a hostile attitude towards medical science. Much pain and misery has been caused over the years by this hostile attitude that Herbert Armstrong and his hirelings promoted to their followers. For decades Armstrongism has caused people to be afraid of, and even refuse medical treatment.
One of the most detailed records of this dreadful aspect of Armstrongism is William Hinsom's book, Broadway to Armageddon (1977). It is wise to heed the warning contained in this book.
Aren't PCG's leaders afraid that someone might unnecessarily place themselves in harm's way, or even die, reading their words on the matter of getting vaccinated to protect oneself from Covid-19? As far as is publicly known based on PCG's writings Stephen Flurry or Richard Palmer do not have any training in providing medical care. This is also true of Herbert Armstrong. They are talking about matters for which they have no professional training. The rise of particularly dangerous variants of Covid-19 such as those originating in Britain and India make it necessary to get as many people vaccinated against Covid-19 to reduce the danger of this dreadful threat. Those who are in doubt about vaccines against Covid-19 should go consult with their doctors about this topic, not unqualified people passing on unscientific scare stories.
Forgetting America's Indebtedness in the 1940s
Robert Morley has an article bemoaning so-called free money as having negative consequences. So the government chooses to be generous in providing financial assistance to help people in their time of need in this ongoing pandemic and Morley chooses to complain about the government spending money trying to help people. At one point he makes the following absurd complaint.
The national debt took more than 200 years to reach $1 trillion. It took only 26 more years [from 1982] to rise to $10 trillion in 2008, and only 12 years to exceed $27 trillion. (p. 17.)
The problem with the above statement is that Morley neglects to take inflation into account. A dollar in 1982 is worth more than it is today. A more accurate way to assess the size of the national debt is to compare the national debt to the nation's GDP instead of just looking at numbers that change due to inflation. Viewing it that way one would learn that the US reached a record level of debt in the 1940s and early 1950s due to World War II which is never mentioned in Morley's article. And that debt was greatly reduced as a percentage of GDP by about 1955. The national debt's record in and immediately after World War II has only been equaled by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, a pandemic which ironically is often downplayed by the PCG leadership.
Morley used to be a regular author of articles in PCG's recruitment magazine. For whatever reason that is not the case at present.
The Infographic bemoans the decline of the US dollar's purchasing power. Instead of comparing the national to the size of the GDP it is measured compared with the price of gold which has the effect of making appear that though the US dollar has become drastically undervalued since the dollar's convertibility with gold was abolished in 1971. In the Infographic a complaint is made that abolishing the US dollar's convertibility with gold made it possible for the Federal government to print as much money as it liked but even so the national debt did not match the previous record height set because of World War II until the current coronavirus pandemic. Also the infographic does mentions that inflation is an issue when studying financial statistics but the implications of that fact is astoundingly ignored everywhere else in this recruitment magazine.
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Joel Hilliker has an article saying that lying is wrong. While introducing this topic he goes on a right wing political spiel including questioning the legitimacy of last year's presidential election.
Look at the role of lying over just the past year with COVID-19, with irregularities in America's election last November, with truth and facts being censored by media and Big Tech, with leftist causes being promoted in spite of contrary facts. There is an epic amount of lying in the public sphere today. (p. 20.)
Jeremiah Jacques has an article about Elizabeth Anne Everest, the childhood nurse for Winston Churchill.
Gerald Flurry has an article saying the Former Prophets are also prophets who predict the future. It is mentioned that this article was published in PCG's other recruitment magazine, Watch Jerusalem, which is specifically targeted at making converts out of Jews.
Gerald Flurry has an article discussing Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's split away from the British royal family which he hysterically denounces as causing division between America and Britain. This is an absurd claim to make. America and Britain need each other to pursue various common interests. This family rift, as tragic as it is, cannot change that fact. This is the second full length article in PCG's recruitment magazine mentioning this family split with the previous issue containing an article by Richard Palmer on this topic.
WorldWatch discusses France conducting its first military space exercises; Denmark trying to get Muslim immigrants to leave; saying the "fringe right" in the Netherlands did well in their elections even though it was a mainstream party that gained power; a petition among French police officers and soldiers claiming France is on the verge of civil war with the Muslims in it; Germany pledging $2 billion in aid to Lebanon which is portrayed as an attempt to influence that nation; Brigadier General Esmaeil Qa'ani visiting Iraq for two days in the early part of April 2021; Russia making deals with Cuba and Venezuela; President Putin signing a law that could let him remain as President as late as 2036; President Biden's decision to withdraw US forces from Afghanistan by September 11, 2021; and China opening up more coal plants while America and Europe close theirs down since it is not needed so much anymore.
Also contained in WorldWatch is a little article scare mongering that America may soon experience hyper-inflation like in Venezuela. What PCG do not mention here is that a major reason why Venezuela is in such a mess is because their economy is heavily dependent on one resource, namely oil. In contrast America has many sources of income and consequently numerous options for managing the nation's finances. Also the US government's decision under Donald Trump to impose economic sanctions on Venezuela further exacerbates the situation.
SocietyWatch discusses the rise in gun violence in America over the last year (which is partly caused by political reluctance to change rules on this topic since such attempts are constantly blocked by the National Rifle Association, which is not explained in this little article); the problem of children finding ways to see pornography on the Internet in Britain; the introduction of military uniforms for pregnant women in the US Air Force which is portrayed in a negative manner; and reports indicating that many Canadians happen to have few savings.
Stephen Flurry has an article saying that the Fourth Commandment also requires one to work on the other six days. In this little article he condemns those who criticized Herbert Armstrong who making buildings when HWA had said Christ would return in just a few years. Stephen Flurry neglects to mention that it was Herbert Armstrong who told his followers from 1953 onwards that Christ would return in 1975.
Some people criticized Mr. Armstrong for continuing to expand the work of God's true Church by constructing new buildings when they thought Jesus Christ's return was immanent. [Stephen Flurry then cites Herbert Armstrong's August 28, 1967 Co-Worker Letter to settle his point.] (p. 33.)
The discussion board has three letters condemning Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.
Here's a letter from a person in North Carolina who has disconnected himself from mainstream sources of information.
I quit watching and listening to the mainstream media several years ago and now depend on the PCG for almost all my news. I read the Trumpet from cover to cover every month. I listen to your podcast as often as I am able, making sure that I hear the weekly wrap-up every week. My life just would not be the same without you.
It is frightful to imagine a person such as the one cited above choosing to take this issue's statements about Covid-19 vaccines at face value. By depending on PCG to provide the news for this person alternative perspectives will be harder to notice or listen to for this person.
Here's a letter from a person bemoaning gay people. The letter is in response to an article complaining about the transgender community and efforts to make society more responsive to the needs and concerns of the transgender community.
The only answer to this is the Word of God. ... Most churches have become one with the world, with their gay flags flying. We have kicked God out of churches, the home, schools and government, and have become a lawless society. Man has caused the problem, but man can't fix it. Only God can.
Joel Hilliker has an article denouncing the political left in Britain for supposedly exaggerating the problem of systemic racism.
The left has no interest in significant, documented improvements in race relations. That is because their power comes from dividing people. (p. 35.)
But PCG also creates divisions between people. Those labelled as "Laodiceans" are shunned by PCG members for either not being in PCG or for being removed or choosing to leave PCG. PCG publishes a book, namely Mystery of the Ages, that demonizes the doctrine of the Holy Trinity as a blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, which is viewed by some Christians as the unpardonable sin. Also in this book interracial marriage is condemned as contrary to (HWA's) God's will. Furthermore PCG teaches that it is the only true church in the world thus dividing PCG members from the rest of the world. PCG is very divisive.
And so we see that PCG continues to try to attract new members and keep current members persuaded to remain within PCG. However there is no need to be afraid of the PCG leadership's words of doom and gloom about events supposed to occur before Christ's return. Since its founding in 1989 PCG's leaders have made numerous false prophecies that failed to occur thus proving that the PCG leadership do not know what will happen in the future. And since they are wrong about their claimed ability to predict the future why listen to the PCG leadership about vaccines either?
As for vaccine hesitancy many have been dismayed by the prevalence of this tendency among some people. Many have wondered how they can be persuaded to get vaccinated. But just because some people choose to do this you don't have to do so. Those who get vaccinated against Covid-19 will make America, or whichever nation they happen to live in, stronger against that dreadful disease. Those who get vaccinated protect themselves and those around them from Covid-19 by getting vaccinated.
That dreadful disease can and will be put under control if everyone do their part.
(Update: May 21, 2021: I had accidently allowed a paragraph to be placed twice in this post. It is exactly the same as the paragraph immediately under the second picture of this post. The duplicate mention of this paragraph has been removed.)
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