The real horror of Herbert Armstrong and the house of horrors he built was incompetence. Incompetence is the horror we all face and for some, it is worse than for others.
Herbert Armstrong might have been competent in building a cash machine, but seemed to be incompetent in nearly every other way, particularly in being a loving, caring human being, instead of reducing people to mere widgets to be manipulated in his sloppily built Church Corporate.
The horror of incompetence was not to be lost to those who followed him even after he died: The whole lot of them have been described by one here as being "hirelings" -- certainly not a ringing endorsement of the house of horrors full of dead things that Herbert built. Not only do we have dead people with all but a handful of past evangelists [evil angels] now dead, the ones alive clinging to their dead works and their dead belief systems like zombies, but the spit-offs now lukewarm and getting more so, are having a tough time of recapturing the true values of the glorious irrelevant empire doomed even before the flesh grew rigor.
The vampires abound, feeding off the blood of innocents and turning some of them into the same kind of ghoul they became.
Indeed, it is a "season with a reason", for the rebellious ministry preaching heresies in their idolatry of a dead prophet have become warlocks doomed to grave indifference to their cash cow audiences. They are still looking for the right balance of blood and gore, with the gloom and doom of necrotic prophecies to bring chilling fright to the children of those who will not stay the course of evil with them.
Unpleasant dreams of children of a lost generation in this village of the damned, continue in their nightmares of burning up in the Lake of Fire for their lack of diligence in continuing the ravenously hungry cash machine built by the incompetent, feeding off the fortunes of those trapped in their feeding frenzy, devouring the brains of the unwary.
It is the incompetence and what it has bred which is the real chiller here, even though there are those who would have Herbert Armstrong rise from his grave to lead cadavers into his glorious kingdom.
One would hope the peasants would storm the castle in protest, even as Frankenstein rises from the table.
It's spooky: Resuscitated ghosts of prophecies past, still making their rounds at this time of year. You can even see some of the church of gods' videos about Halloween if you choose to do so.
Be afraid.
Be very afraid.
Even so, it will be over soon and we will be looking for the next season to milk the cash cow for all it is worth, preying on the fears of the helpless victims trapped in the house of horrors.
Aah, the ghosts of Christmas past and Halloweens missed.
I enjoyed Christmas in 1975, in spite of the kingdom of God being restored. Evidently "God" didn't mind, I'm still alive.
But hey, I got to enjoy the FOT and Christmas that year, my last year in the cult.
Oh, it's been a rough 32 years since then, keeping all my money to myself (except for Uncle Sam's part) and enjoying all the nasty pagan holidays but I survived it.
I even got a new car to have to take care of, how miserable that was, instead of patching up an old piece of crap to drive to Big Sandy and leave me stranded a hundred miles from anywhere.
Aah, the memory of getting grease all over my one and only Sabbath suit changing the bottom radiator hose on my beautiful 15 year old car on the side of the road. Those were the days.
Wow, how it hurt me to be able to go to the grocery store and not have to use food coupons to buy food for the family. The worst part was when I didn't check the labels to make sure there was no pork in anything. I really hated to miss reading those.
That Christmas ham given to employees for Christmas, yep, I had to force myself to enjoy it. I absolutely hated eating that delicious piece of meat, so much so that I forced myself to have several helpings.
Yes, it's been a miserable 32 years but . . . I think I'll pull through and be okay.
Hmmm. What if Herbert, at final option time, accepted Christ and received salvation. And those who seem to have such a personal hatred for him, receive a life sentence to Hell for their continuous hatred? Wouldn't that be a twisty plot worthy of Michael Crichton?
What I like about that photo is how the string of the banner cuts across the circle of the emblem, making it a nice "No" symbol, like the no-smoking signs.
Herbie and Hitler accepting Jesus on their death bed...hmmmmm....I bet that's the first time I've heard a Herbie fan put those two together in one sentence.
Nobody's life is beyond redemption. Some people just cause a hell of a lot damage on their way through! Are we supposed to cut those people slack for the damage they caused?
People revived after a Near Death Experience claim that upon death, when your spirit separates from this mortal coil, you get this life review where you feel every hurt and every joy you ever caused another human being. If that is true, I wouldn't want to be either Herbie or Hitler.
Survey says: The whole deathbed acceptance of Christianity has a pretty miserable history. The only person we know who got off with that is a man on a cross next to Christ. And that story is a tad on the suspect side.
I fear those who have lived lives of the lost will wind up where Vistaadmins everywhere are headed: Oblivion.
Guys, I think Tom is just yankin' your cranks here. Either that or . . . well, he's been play acting at Herb's Black Book too much. Who knows, he may even be blind by now.
The tip off is his claim to be a Vista Administrator. I don't know anybody who would take any pride in this "shoot yourself in the foot" so-called O/S. I predicted over a year ago this would be a big dud of a product. And it is. It's almost as embarrassing as Microsoft's "Bob." (Remember that dud?)
Anyway, real Sys Admins work with UNIX, or even VAX/VMS, not this dopey stuff from Microsquat. And Tom knows this, if he knows anything. That's why I say he's just pullin' yer pud here. Sort of like Armstrong did all those years with us.
Anyway, real Sys Admins work with UNIX, or even VAX/VMS, not this dopey stuff from Microsquat. And Tom knows this, if he knows anything.
Real Sysadmins would know Windows NT technology (from which XP and Vista derive) is borrowed straight from VMS. The NT Project leader came from DEC. If you shift each letter of VMS to the left one, you get WNT. Kind of like IBM and HAL.
I was predicting the same for VISTA until I had to buy it for a project, and I kind of like it now. Unfortunately Vista 64 bit doesn't run all the old Microsoft software. And companies are slow to provide drivers for it. But most things work.
But Tom is still a jerk. And he's stupid for using a copyrighted icon for his logo.
Survey says: The whole deathbed acceptance of Christianity has a pretty miserable history.
I'm glad we got someone online who knows the enrollment books of hell so well!
Perhaps we can google people in hell now? If there is a hell, HWA would have to be there for doing his daughter? Would that be called Helloogle? Googlehell? Deviloogle? Anyone have a URL?
Anonymous said But Tom is still a jerk. And he's stupid for using a copyrighted icon for his logo.
As Stingerski pointed out, anyone who would proudly proclaim to be an anything admin for MicroSucks pretty much "outs" themselves as a low-level technocrat.
As for VistaAdmin's use of a copyrighted logo, it's not only ignorant, but it's illegal and, head's up, Tom, BREAKING THE LAW. You may not be aware of it, but millions and millions of dollars (or whatever currency you use wherever you are) have been successfully sued for and won by corporations against unauthorized use of their names or logos.
The essence of the copyright law is "Thou shalt not steal." Of course, we're still not sure that you actually own a Bible or read it, since I can't find most of the "Bible" you quote anywhere in my many translations. Ah, maybe it's Tom's Bible (I guess if you think stealing a logo is ok, then taking your own loopy meanderings and purporting it as the Word of God - and that breaks the "Thou shall not bear false witness" that you do every time you post here - is perfectly acceptable).
Tom may be typical of what is left in armstrongism...the final few times I attended any COG service, the vast majority of the folks that were left represented the very old and the "fringe" people of society. To give you an example; the character of "Keymaster" played by Rick Moranis in Ghostbusters. The socially inept, the conspiracy theorists, and those who had so many years invested in armstrongism, they might as well see it through.
Many of them do not effectively manage their own affairs, but fully expect to lord it over everyone else in the "World Tomorrow." That is what keeps folks like Tom involved. Armstrongism give them purpose and a sense of power, even if only false. Proof of that is his obvious pride in being a Vista Admin...An O/S really only suited for home use.
Tom can make his pronouncements regarding who is demon possessed, who is spirtually dead and so on all he wants. We've heard it all before. His responses are typical armstrongism: Defend herbie, evade questions, judge, threaten, then condemn. What Tom should recognize is that Doug has probably had a really terrible experience at the hands of "God's chosen" and is trying to work through it. Instead he is "Demon possessed."
I feel for Tom's children. I know full well what it is like in a household where the patriarch has swallowed the herbie theology hook, line, and sinker.
"Tom may be typical of what is left in armstrongism.."
Tom is not a typical Armstrongite. A typical Armstrongite would never look at Gavin's blog. My guess is that most of them flee from the web at the behest of their leaders.
Tom is just a guy with a computer who likes to pimp us.
One of the bonuses of having folks that didn't join the WCG related groups is that you still get invited to the Xmas meal with the turkey and all its trimmings.
One member of the UCG took exception to me once because he felt I should not be going to enjoy the Xmas dinner. My answer to him, was the reply in the Plain Truth about Xmas booklet of the WCG, it was just a meal with my folks.
I do my best to stay away from pork (but that is another matter).
My parents are not religious and could never understand how their son was lost in their eyes (to a religious cult). But I am thankful these days that they were spared all the trials and tribulations that came with it.
Regarding Tom, my only experience with him was about a year ago when I requested information about his group to be listed in the Bible Sabbath Association UK directory (which I try to maintain).
He gave me a sharp reply requesting to have no part of it, wanting me to remove his details as I listed Sabbath groups which were outside of Armstrongism (ie. the Seventh day Adventists).
He may not be a typical Armstrongite but he certainly lacks humility and mutual repect for other people outside his own Sabbath keeping group.
Regarding Tom, my only experience with him was about a year ago when I requested information about his group to be listed in the Bible Sabbath Association UK directory (which I try to maintain).
He gave me a sharp reply requesting to have no part of it, wanting me to remove his details as I listed Sabbath groups which were outside of Armstrongism (ie. the Seventh day Adventists).
Now that's pretty hard core since there's not a whole lot of difference between the lot of them.
But have heart dear Robert, no good deed in Sabbatarianism is ever without its punishment.
On the church-snob-o-meter of religious cuisine that's got to peg the needle somewhere between a "slight hint of grandpa's two week old fart" to an and "overwhelming hints of burnt raisin toast".
Not as bad as Flurry or Cox, but definitely on his way there!
What would be the joy or point to being an Armstrongite, when your reward for doing such is (surprise!) becoming an Armstrongite for all eternity? Gag me with droppings!
>>Regarding Tom, my only experience with him was about a year ago when I requested information about his group to be listed in the Bible Sabbath Association UK directory (which I try to maintain).<<
It is against sound doctrine to start one's own church, so I don't have a group. Starting a group/church has been reserved for heretics like David Hulme, John Jewell and whoever else has started his or her own church.
Tom said, "It is against sound doctrine to start one's own church, so I don't have a group. Starting a group/church has been reserved for heretics like David Hulme, John Jewell and whoever else has started his or her own church."
"I do my best to stay away from pork (but that is another matter)."
It means that the only way to follow the dietary requirements is to follow either a strict vegetarian or kosher diet. This means that we have to follow all of the laws, not just avoiding the wrong types of meats. We have to ensure the meat we are eating has been slaughtered correctly with the blood drained etc. Buying any common meat from a supermarket and then claiming to obey God's food laws just doesn't work.
As I recognise the inconsistencies I no longer actually say that I am following the food laws because I acknowledge that there are many laws that I am not observing which are still valid for us.
The muslims regulate their dietary requirements using hallal certification. The jews use kosher certification to ensure all the Biblical laws are met. The majority of Sabbatarians are Seventh day Adventists with the majority following a strict vegetarian diet. Within the Armstrongite movement there is no certification ensuring the food that we eat follows God's laws, each man to his own (as they say).
If I go around claiming I am observing God's food laws then I am not being honest as I still eat common food (meat from the supermarket that has not been slaughtered according to Biblical standards).
I recognise that my observance is contradictory and almost meaniningless, but I am not lucky enough to live in an area with a kosher deli so I have to make do unless I can find some way around it.
I hope that Tom realizes that all of the vitamin D, added to commercially produced milk, is from porcine sources. Further, it doesn't do any good to simply buy your milk directly from a farmer, every product on the shelf of your local supermarket that has milk as an ingredient, is contaminated by this porcine vitamine D.
Also, Tom, do you eat pancakes in a restaurant? The pancakes are cooked on a common grill, along with sausage and bacon. They can't help but absorb pork juices, as do your restaurant eggs, hash browns, or breakfast steak.
Robert is correct. In order to be in compliance with clean and unclean you must observe the totality of the law. Some have said, "Well, this is why we ask God's blessing on our food!", but if that were a valid statement, you could simply ask God to bless pork chops before chowing down on them.
I recognise that my observance is contradictory and almost meaniningless . . .
Well, unless you were born of the Jews, why try to observe it then? What is the point? This covenant was for the Jews, not the Gentiles.
And there is no evidence that science has ever found that confirms a kosher diet is superior to any other diet. Animal flesh . . . is animal flesh . . . is animal flesh.
I do agree with you that going vegetarian is probably the best way to go -- and the only way to go if one wants to be kosher. But I went vegetarian (mostly) after reading a book awhile back titled Mad Cow, Mad Cowboy. The author was a long time cattle rancher and he knows just how polluted our meat supply really is. It is disgusting what the industry is trying to feed us -- and even more disgusting what they are feeding their livestock, all in the name of increasing profits.
The FDA knows the score here. But they do next to nothing for us. Government agencies are nothing but much ado about nothing. They make a lot of regulatory noise while they promote such industries behind closed doors. The only real protection that the consumer has is education and avoiding most meat and dairy products. You will live longer too.
Someone on here said: Well, unless you were born of the Jews, why try to observe it then? What is the point? This covenant was for the Jews, not the Gentiles.
The covenant you speak of was with the Israelites.
31 comments:
The real horror of Herbert Armstrong and the house of horrors he built was incompetence. Incompetence is the horror we all face and for some, it is worse than for others.
Herbert Armstrong might have been competent in building a cash machine, but seemed to be incompetent in nearly every other way, particularly in being a loving, caring human being, instead of reducing people to mere widgets to be manipulated in his sloppily built Church Corporate.
The horror of incompetence was not to be lost to those who followed him even after he died: The whole lot of them have been described by one here as being "hirelings" -- certainly not a ringing endorsement of the house of horrors full of dead things that Herbert built. Not only do we have dead people with all but a handful of past evangelists [evil angels] now dead, the ones alive clinging to their dead works and their dead belief systems like zombies, but the spit-offs now lukewarm and getting more so, are having a tough time of recapturing the true values of the glorious irrelevant empire doomed even before the flesh grew rigor.
The vampires abound, feeding off the blood of innocents and turning some of them into the same kind of ghoul they became.
Indeed, it is a "season with a reason", for the rebellious ministry preaching heresies in their idolatry of a dead prophet have become warlocks doomed to grave indifference to their cash cow audiences. They are still looking for the right balance of blood and gore, with the gloom and doom of necrotic prophecies to bring chilling fright to the children of those who will not stay the course of evil with them.
Unpleasant dreams of children of a lost generation in this village of the damned, continue in their nightmares of burning up in the Lake of Fire for their lack of diligence in continuing the ravenously hungry cash machine built by the incompetent, feeding off the fortunes of those trapped in their feeding frenzy, devouring the brains of the unwary.
It is the incompetence and what it has bred which is the real chiller here, even though there are those who would have Herbert Armstrong rise from his grave to lead cadavers into his glorious kingdom.
One would hope the peasants would storm the castle in protest, even as Frankenstein rises from the table.
It's spooky: Resuscitated ghosts of prophecies past, still making their rounds at this time of year. You can even see some of the church of gods' videos about Halloween if you choose to do so.
Be afraid.
Be very afraid.
Even so, it will be over soon and we will be looking for the next season to milk the cash cow for all it is worth, preying on the fears of the helpless victims trapped in the house of horrors.
Aah, the ghosts of Christmas past and Halloweens missed.
I enjoyed Christmas in 1975, in spite of the kingdom of God being restored. Evidently "God" didn't mind, I'm still alive.
But hey, I got to enjoy the FOT and Christmas that year, my last year in the cult.
Oh, it's been a rough 32 years since then, keeping all my money to myself (except for Uncle Sam's part) and enjoying all the nasty pagan holidays but I survived it.
I even got a new car to have to take care of, how miserable that was, instead of patching up an old piece of crap to drive to Big Sandy and leave me stranded a hundred miles from anywhere.
Aah, the memory of getting grease all over my one and only Sabbath suit changing the bottom radiator hose on my beautiful 15 year old car on the side of the road. Those were the days.
Wow, how it hurt me to be able to go to the grocery store and not have to use food coupons to buy food for the family. The worst part was when I didn't check the labels to make sure there was no pork in anything. I really hated to miss reading those.
That Christmas ham given to employees for Christmas, yep, I had to force myself to enjoy it. I absolutely hated eating that delicious piece of meat, so much so that I forced myself to have several helpings.
Yes, it's been a miserable 32 years but . . . I think I'll pull through and be okay.
Hmmm. What if Herbert, at final option time, accepted Christ and received salvation. And those who seem to have such a personal hatred for him, receive a life sentence to Hell for their continuous hatred?
Wouldn't that be a twisty plot worthy of Michael Crichton?
-- Neo
Neotherm said...
Hmmm. What if Herbert, at final option time, accepted Christ and received salvation. . . .
What if Hitler did? That's what makes Christianity evil.
Has Dougie finally lost it? Seems so.
Lochinvar
What I like about that photo is how the string of the banner cuts across the circle of the emblem, making it a nice "No" symbol, like the no-smoking signs.
Herbie and Hitler accepting Jesus on their death bed...hmmmmm....I bet that's the first time I've heard a Herbie fan put those two together in one sentence.
Nobody's life is beyond redemption. Some people just cause a hell of a lot damage on their way through! Are we supposed to cut those people slack for the damage they caused?
People revived after a Near Death Experience claim that upon death, when your spirit separates from this mortal coil, you get this life review where you feel every hurt and every joy you ever caused another human being. If that is true, I wouldn't want to be either Herbie or Hitler.
Douglas
Your posts are becoming even more irrational, which are clear signs of demon possession.
Tom
Corky
>>>I enjoyed Christmas in 1975, in spite of the kingdom of God being restored. Evidently "God" didn't mind, I'm still alive.<<<
You are physically alive, but spiritually dead.
Tom
Lochinvar,
No, Douglas has not lost it but has discovered it! That being the truth about the rotting corpse of armstrongism!!!
If you don't agree, drop your local ministers pants and do the "B"strong!"
Your brother out of Armstrongism,
Kscribe.
MahonT said...
Douglas
Your posts are becoming even more irrational, which are clear signs of demon possession.
MahonT said...
Corky
>>>I enjoyed Christmas in 1975, in spite of the kingdom of God being restored. Evidently "God" didn't mind, I'm still alive.<<<
You are physically alive, but spiritually dead.
Tom, you judge others but not herb. What is your problem Tom?
Answer: Prostitute for the armstrongism movement.
However you did give me an idea for a video.......
Thanks Tommy!!!!
MahonT said...
Corky
>>>I enjoyed Christmas in 1975, in spite of the kingdom of God being restored. Evidently "God" didn't mind, I'm still alive.<<<
"You are physically alive, but spiritually dead."
As if you knew a damn thing about either one.
Survey says: The whole deathbed acceptance of Christianity has a pretty miserable history. The only person we know who got off with that is a man on a cross next to Christ. And that story is a tad on the suspect side.
I fear those who have lived lives of the lost will wind up where Vistaadmins everywhere are headed: Oblivion.
I suggest you repent.
Mark Lax
Oh this is so funny! Tom thinks physical miscegenation is sinful, but he is spiritually miscegenating Gavin's blog!
BB
Guys, I think Tom is just yankin' your cranks here. Either that or . . . well, he's been play acting at Herb's Black Book too much. Who knows, he may even be blind by now.
The tip off is his claim to be a Vista Administrator. I don't know anybody who would take any pride in this "shoot yourself in the foot" so-called O/S. I predicted over a year ago this would be a big dud of a product. And it is. It's almost as embarrassing as Microsoft's "Bob." (Remember that dud?)
Anyway, real Sys Admins work with UNIX, or even VAX/VMS, not this dopey stuff from Microsquat. And Tom knows this, if he knows anything. That's why I say he's just pullin' yer pud here. Sort of like Armstrong did all those years with us.
Stingerski said...
Anyway, real Sys Admins work with UNIX, or even VAX/VMS, not this dopey stuff from Microsquat. And Tom knows this, if he knows anything.
Real Sysadmins would know Windows NT technology (from which XP and Vista derive) is borrowed straight from VMS. The NT Project leader came from DEC. If you shift each letter of VMS to the left one, you get WNT. Kind of like IBM and HAL.
I was predicting the same for VISTA until I had to buy it for a project, and I kind of like it now. Unfortunately Vista 64 bit doesn't run all the old Microsoft software. And companies are slow to provide drivers for it. But most things work.
But Tom is still a jerk. And he's stupid for using a copyrighted icon for his logo.
Anonymous said...
Survey says: The whole deathbed acceptance of Christianity has a pretty miserable history.
I'm glad we got someone online who knows the enrollment books of hell so well!
Perhaps we can google people in hell now? If there is a hell, HWA would have to be there for doing his daughter? Would that be called Helloogle? Googlehell? Deviloogle? Anyone have a URL?
Anonymous said But Tom is still a jerk. And he's stupid for using a copyrighted icon for his logo.
As Stingerski pointed out, anyone who would proudly proclaim to be an anything admin for MicroSucks pretty much "outs" themselves as a low-level technocrat.
As for VistaAdmin's use of a copyrighted logo, it's not only ignorant, but it's illegal and, head's up, Tom, BREAKING THE LAW. You may not be aware of it, but millions and millions of dollars (or whatever currency you use wherever you are) have been successfully sued for and won by corporations against unauthorized use of their names or logos.
The essence of the copyright law is "Thou shalt not steal." Of course, we're still not sure that you actually own a Bible or read it, since I can't find most of the "Bible" you quote anywhere in my many translations. Ah, maybe it's Tom's Bible (I guess if you think stealing a logo is ok, then taking your own loopy meanderings and purporting it as the Word of God - and that breaks the "Thou shall not bear false witness" that you do every time you post here - is perfectly acceptable).
Tom may be typical of what is left in armstrongism...the final few times I attended any COG service, the vast majority of the folks that were left represented the very old and the "fringe" people of society. To give you an example; the character of "Keymaster" played by Rick Moranis in Ghostbusters. The socially inept, the conspiracy theorists, and those who had so many years invested in armstrongism, they might as well see it through.
Many of them do not effectively manage their own affairs, but fully expect to lord it over everyone else in the "World Tomorrow." That is what keeps folks like Tom involved. Armstrongism give them purpose and a sense of power, even if only false. Proof of that is his obvious pride in being a Vista Admin...An O/S really only suited for home use.
Tom can make his pronouncements regarding who is demon possessed, who is spirtually dead and so on all he wants. We've heard it all before. His responses are typical armstrongism: Defend herbie, evade questions, judge, threaten, then condemn. What Tom should recognize is that Doug has probably had a really terrible experience at the hands of "God's chosen" and is trying to work through it. Instead he is "Demon possessed."
I feel for Tom's children. I know full well what it is like in a household where the patriarch has swallowed the herbie theology hook, line, and sinker.
"Tom may be typical of what is left in armstrongism.."
Tom is not a typical Armstrongite. A typical Armstrongite would never look at Gavin's blog. My guess is that most of them flee from the web at the behest of their leaders.
Tom is just a guy with a computer who likes to pimp us.
-- Neo
Corky,
One of the bonuses of having folks that didn't join the WCG related groups is that you still get invited to the Xmas meal with the turkey and all its trimmings.
One member of the UCG took exception to me once because he felt I should not be going to enjoy the Xmas dinner. My answer to him, was the reply in the Plain Truth about Xmas booklet of the WCG, it was just a meal with my folks.
I do my best to stay away from pork (but that is another matter).
My parents are not religious and could never understand how their son was lost in their eyes (to a religious cult). But I am thankful these days that they were spared all the trials and tribulations that came with it.
Regarding Tom, my only experience with him was about a year ago when I requested information about his group to be listed in the Bible Sabbath Association UK directory (which I try to maintain).
He gave me a sharp reply requesting to have no part of it, wanting me to remove his details as I listed Sabbath groups which were outside of Armstrongism (ie. the Seventh day Adventists).
He may not be a typical Armstrongite but he certainly lacks humility and mutual repect for other people outside his own Sabbath keeping group.
Robert said...
Regarding Tom, my only experience with him was about a year ago when I requested information about his group to be listed in the Bible Sabbath Association UK directory (which I try to maintain).
He gave me a sharp reply requesting to have no part of it, wanting me to remove his details as I listed Sabbath groups which were outside of Armstrongism (ie. the Seventh day Adventists).
Now that's pretty hard core since there's not a whole lot of difference between the lot of them.
But have heart dear Robert, no good deed in Sabbatarianism is ever without its punishment.
On the church-snob-o-meter of religious cuisine that's got to peg the needle somewhere between a "slight hint of grandpa's two week old fart" to an and "overwhelming hints of burnt raisin toast".
Not as bad as Flurry or Cox, but definitely on his way there!
What would be the joy or point to being an Armstrongite, when your reward for doing such is (surprise!) becoming an Armstrongite for all eternity? Gag me with droppings!
Robert said:
I do my best to stay away from pork (but that is another matter).
Seeing how animal flesh is animal flesh is animal flesh, what is your point? Are you talking Old Covenant here? If so, I understand.
If not, I do not understand this remnant of Armstrongism, as pork is no better, or worse, than the rest of our polluted meat (and dairy) supply.
mahontom
Robert
>>Regarding Tom, my only experience with him was about a year ago when I requested information about his group to be listed in the Bible Sabbath Association UK directory (which I try to maintain).<<
It is against sound doctrine to start one's own church, so I don't have a group. Starting a group/church has been reserved for heretics like David Hulme, John Jewell and whoever else has started his or her own church.
Tom said, "It is against sound doctrine to start one's own church, so I don't have a group. Starting a group/church has been reserved for heretics like David Hulme, John Jewell and whoever else has started his or her own church."
Herbert Armstrong started his own church . . .
"I do my best to stay away from pork (but that is another matter)."
It means that the only way to follow the dietary requirements is to follow either a strict vegetarian or kosher diet. This means that we have to follow all of the laws, not just avoiding the wrong types of meats. We have to ensure the meat we are eating has been slaughtered correctly with the blood drained etc. Buying any common meat from a supermarket and then claiming to obey God's food laws just doesn't work.
As I recognise the inconsistencies I no longer actually say that I am following the food laws because I acknowledge that there are many laws that I am not observing which are still valid for us.
The muslims regulate their dietary requirements using hallal certification. The jews use kosher certification to ensure all the Biblical laws are met. The majority of Sabbatarians are Seventh day Adventists with the majority following a strict vegetarian diet. Within the Armstrongite movement there is no certification ensuring the food that we eat follows God's laws, each man to his own (as they say).
If I go around claiming I am observing God's food laws then I am not being honest as I still eat common food (meat from the supermarket that has not been slaughtered according to Biblical standards).
I recognise that my observance is contradictory and almost meaniningless, but I am not lucky enough to live in an area with a kosher deli so I have to make do unless I can find some way around it.
I hope that Tom realizes that all of the vitamin D, added to commercially produced milk, is from porcine sources. Further, it doesn't do any good to simply buy your milk directly from a farmer, every product on the shelf of your local supermarket that has milk as an ingredient, is contaminated by this porcine vitamine D.
Also, Tom, do you eat pancakes in a restaurant? The pancakes are cooked on a common grill, along with sausage and bacon. They can't help but absorb pork juices, as do your restaurant eggs, hash browns, or breakfast steak.
Robert is correct. In order to be in compliance with clean and unclean you must observe the totality of the law. Some have said, "Well, this is why we ask God's blessing on our food!", but if that were a valid statement, you could simply ask God to bless pork chops before chowing down on them.
BB
Robert said:
I recognise that my observance is contradictory and almost meaniningless . . .
Well, unless you were born of the Jews, why try to observe it then? What is the point? This covenant was for the Jews, not the Gentiles.
And there is no evidence that science has ever found that confirms a kosher diet is superior to any other diet. Animal flesh . . . is animal flesh . . . is animal flesh.
I do agree with you that going vegetarian is probably the best way to go -- and the only way to go if one wants to be kosher. But I went vegetarian (mostly) after reading a book awhile back titled Mad Cow, Mad Cowboy. The author was a long time cattle rancher and he knows just how polluted our meat supply really is. It is disgusting what the industry is trying to feed us -- and even more disgusting what they are feeding their livestock, all in the name of increasing profits.
The FDA knows the score here. But they do next to nothing for us. Government agencies are nothing but much ado about nothing. They make a lot of regulatory noise while they promote such industries behind closed doors. The only real protection that the consumer has is education and avoiding most meat and dairy products. You will live longer too.
Someone on here said: Well, unless you were born of the Jews, why try to observe it then? What is the point? This covenant was for the Jews, not the Gentiles.
The covenant you speak of was with the Israelites.
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