Spanky's Homophobic Rules at Their Living University

Spanky has now, again, proved he doesn't learn much from history. When Ambassador College went through the process of accreditation many points were discriminatory, and today that practice is STILL done at the Living Church of God university, Living University. You can see that in their LU Catalog, which can be read directly here: http://www.livinguniv.com/Documents/LUCatalog.pdf

"Live a moral life which includes, but is not limited to, abstinence
from all sexual relations outside the bonds of heterosexual marriage." (Page 56, point no. 7)

That is blatant discrimination against homosexuals - and regardless of what your personal opinion on that subject is, it is also clear that they require you observe the laws of the land.

"Obey, honor, and sustain the law of the land." (same page, point no. 5)

One of the key elements to get state funding is that you don't practice any form of discrimination, and the wording could have been changed to the following to be legal:

"Live a moral life which includes not practicing any pre- or extra-marital sex on campus."

That type of wording would have been in accordance with the laws of the land, but apparently the homophobic belief that other people's practices could be "contagious" are still believed in cults such as the Living Church of God.

They are setting themselves up for persecution, but - once again - that would be used as yet another sign of "being faithful" using the standard chapters of Matthew 24 combined with the book of Revelation. A clever plot to instigate the martyrdom they so wish as proof of being somehow special.

Be attentive when investigating such a group because they will use any trick in the book to appear righteous - and thus get more donations because they can afterwards claim they don't get any state funding when that would have been available to them if their terms of admissions were in accordance with "the laws of the land."

An Article Worth Reading

I will make it very short this evening, but I just stumbled across an article that I felt I wanted to share with all of you. It's entitled "Counterpoint: The "Good" that HWA And WCG Did", and can be found right here: http://shadowsofwcg.com/?p=615.

The article will open in a new window, so you can either click the title or the link to read the article.

Happy reading. :-)

An Ideal Time To Clean Up Your Homes

In the Armstrongism-churches there is great focus on "de-leavening" just before the foot-washing ceremony and Passover, but have you considered that the end of the summertime could be just as ideal a time to clean up your homes? Get rid of all the stuff you have saved. Check up what you need, but certainly also what you could just as well get rid of...

I have often given the advice that you can't build new habits if you keep repeating the same mistakes [ref: "How Can You Change Your Life If You Keep Repeating the Same Mistakes?" and "New Habits Require New Thinking"].

You need to remember that principle, because if you keep lots of clutter around your home you will end up with bad conscience because you never quite get around to cleaning up, but even more importantly: it will be more difficult for you to decide what IS truly important to you.

Many families have had floods in their homes, and in those circumstances they were FORCED to throw out everything. By deciding what is a keeper and what is to be removed, you will be taking an active role in making that decision instead of losing everything as a result of a natural flood.

So you might as well free yourself from the slavery of clutter and old habits. That will bring you even more space to focus on what is truly important to you and your family and friends.

Pre- or Post-1978?

I have noticed a funny thing about the hwa-admin guy posting on Usenet in the group news:alt.religion.w-w-church-god. He often includes this comment:

Warning: Some of the statements and teachings
Warning: in these earlier issues of The Plain
Warning: Truth (earlier than around 1978) were
Warning: later changed or discarded.

Why don't they play with open cards as to what was considered valid past 1978? How would outsiders know what to expect when faced with such a "warning"?

The very subject of thought and mind control was an issue in the cult of Armstrongism ever since the 1934-article that in fact spoke out AGAINST ministers controlling the sheep as dictators. That article was virtually impossible to get a hold of in any of the WCG splinters, and the Worldwide Church of God itself since the crisis in the 1970s.

Herbert Armstrong WANTED control, and had no problem in using the name of Christ to create the foundation of that control. Stay tuned... More will come on this blog. :-)

"Pay and Pray"

The motto of many splinters of the Armstrongism groups seems to be "pay and pray" - often referring to the fact that the ministry doesn't want lay members to have any teaching functions whatsoever, either online or offline.

In a concrete example, one COG-leader had an issue with a member who had released information about a competing church organization simply because this was not published by himself. As Pastor General (a popular term for a church leader in the circles of Armstrongism), this person believed it was only ministers that should publish anything online.

The issue was never the actual content of the site, but what was viewed as rebellion because this person was not willing to take down the website. [Later, the webhost supplying the website was merged into another service, and the original site disappeared.]

When you go through newsletters from these COG-groups you quickly discover the negative angle in which the internet is often mentioned. It's all part of the angle that the ministry need to make the internet appear negative - despite knowing very well that this would be like saying books were bad just because some bad novels are published every year.

Everything depends on the eye of the beholder. It's an excellent networking tool offering fellowship through social media like we have never before seen, so on the social side, there is a big potential for friendships across time zones.

Likewise, you could take any online information database and find minor errors in details. Usually an e-mail to the webmaster with relevant documentation can upgrade their databases, and such errors are pruned constantly by people who do offer feedback on whatever might be in error.

But the intentions of the ministry in many groups is mind control, and you should never fall for this type of control. They often use "prove all things" when attracting people as co-workers and members, but once they are caught like fish, the principle becomes "pay and pray" instead of actively involving people in the development of the organization.

Stay informed - regardless of what anyone else might recommend. :-)