Worldwide Church of God: Rebellion 1974, Comments

I thot that MAM's article REBELLION 1974 was excellent and hit the nail on the head. However, I've something to add to the WCG debacle that might be of interest. As we all know Garner Teddy LaStud was disfellowshipped in 1972 and bounced again in 1978.

It was at the Feast of Tabernacles on Maui in 1978 that I sat down and had a personal conversation with a close member of the Armstrong family. I'm keeping the name private, but if you (the Editor) personally and privately want to know it, I'll send it along. I just don't want the name plastered all over the Internet.

Apostle Herbie used the excuse of Garner Ted Armstrong's whoring as the reasons for his disfellowship, and as MAM correctly said that this was the "official" reason for his leaving both times. Old Herbie stated (or almost) in much of his co-worker letters, although he never actually stated that adultery was the real reason. As usual, he ducked the issue, and wouldn't come right out and say "adultery." He couldn't. He was worse that Garner Ted Armstrong. I'm glad to see that MAM brought out that fact. Herbie actually avoided the real issue. Because the real issue was POWER. This was also brought out in the article. Power, as many of you know is nothing unusual in large corporations. As many have previously testified on this site, that the power play and internal politics at Pasadena was sickening. It was the most ruthless that ruled. The meek sure did NOT inherit the Pasadena campus. Please check out 30 YEARS IN THE WORLDWIDE CHURCH OF GOD - PARTS 1-4, as one typical example. There are many others.

MAM brought this out well, but I actually heard this truth from one of the Armstrong close relatives. This is merely an "Amen" to his/her article. Power was the key to Garner Ted Armstrong getting the boot both times. "Adultery" was simply the smokescreen.

Back in 1972, Garner Ted Armstrong didn't like the way daddy was running the show. He challenged his father's leadership in his typical, cynical, and crass way. Garner Ted Armstrong has a characteristic way of approaching a touchy subject like a D-12 tractor. Herbert W. Armstrong exploded (from what we hear), while Garner Ted Armstrong was trying to whip up a following behind the scenes. When Herbert W. Armstrong found out (from the loyal snitchers), Garner Ted Armstrong was thrown out. He was kept out - in comfort with salary and perks, of course. He stayed at some luxury cabin in the mountains during his "exile." One member spotted him at a country store in the area buying beer - so, what's new? He was obviously not spending his time in fasting and prayer. We never found out if he had a companion in his mountain retreat.

Garner Ted Armstrong had to eventually "repent" of his sins and confess that Herbert W. Armstrong was really "God's Anointed" - God's one and ONLY apostle - and only then could he return. Two "evangelists" - Meredith and Ray Cole - were reportedly furious at this re-instatement. They (and others) knew of the hypocritical shenanigans that were in place. But blood (this time) was thicker than water. Please remember, many were vying for that #2 spot next to Herbie. There were several others who figured they were qualified to be the next "apostle." Some even thot they were going to be the two witnesses. Several others also knew of Garner Ted Armstrong's roaming genitals, but - for political reasons - many kept their mouths shut while others sided with Garner Ted Armstrong. Les Mac was one of the latter. He, like others, figured that the power would eventually go to Garner Ted Armstrong one day, and he (with others) wanted to be on the winning side. But, Mac forgot about Rader.

Garner Ted Armstrong had six years of re-instated glory before the splat hit the fan in 1978. Garner Ted Armstrong once again tried to take the power from Herbert W. Armstrong. A meeting was held in which (among others) the Armstrongs, Rader, Ron Dart, and others were present and witnessed the verbal war that followed. According to Dart, BOTH Armstrongs were screaming, almost out of control, and again, the issue was power. This - out of control - screaming match went on for quite some time until Garner Ted Armstrong stormed out. From what I hear, it almost came to a fistfight. (Isn't this a wonderful example for "ministers of God?). All others, reportedly, then swore allegiance to Herbie. Garner Ted Armstrong had openly criticized his father up to a few months before, thus threatening Herbert W. Armstrong's power base, but the brethren never heard these facts other than those subtle innuendoes about Garner Ted Armstrong's infidelity.

However, there was one big factor ignored here. That was Stan Rader. At the time, Stan was business manager and had control of all the church finances. I'm still asking for the detailed facts of what happened to all the profits from the Pocono FOT site, the Wisconsin Dells site, the Estes Park site, the Colorado site, Big Sandy campus, Bricket Wood campus, the other properties, the aircraft they sold, the gold they bought and traded, the overseas investments, the apartments they owned and sold, etc., etc., yak, yak, yak. You get the idea. Anyone got any clues?

With Rader virtually in control and having Herbie's "ear," he was really second in charge, and if you challenged the old man, then you challenged Rader. That's where Garner Ted Armstrong hit his ultimate brick wall. With his nose flattened, he took off and started his own cult. You know the rest of the story.

But the whole "plain truth" of Garner Ted Armstrong's disfellowships were a result of a power play within the WCG. This is typical of most corporate tactics. Those of us who have been in business know this as standard practice. But this was corporate politics to the extreme. It was simply an internal power play, and Garner Ted Armstrong lost. Herbie used sex only as the feeble excuse (as MAM said - but NEVER emphasized it), because Herbie was a worse whore than Garner Ted Armstrong. One person told me, much later, that Herbie would try and screw anything that moved. But we've all read Dave Robinson's TANGLED WEB.

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