Worldwide Church of God: A Question Of Balance

What is it that compels the Hateful Christian's that send letters to the "Painful Truth" web site? One would have to wonder how people, in the name of God, can justify their hatred toward others and expound a so called "Holy Religion" in the same breath! Is it the fear of the loss of salvation, or the saving of the so called "Lost Souls" that drives these zealot's to spend so much time working for a future after death that they never stop to look at the needs of others in this life, to lend a hand to a suffering individual, (especially on the Sabbath), or to enjoy the warm relations of having friends outside their narrow theological interpretations? Or could it be that after a lifetime of following the teachings of HWA, and tithing away a retirement, that the "deceived" cannot face the fact that the man they thought they knew and loved was a Charlatan, and a Incestuous Lying Hypocrite? This man gave them a purpose in life! All were marching ahead toward a common destiny, the Kingdom of God! Would these Crusaders for Christ ever read anything that might challenge them intellectually? Is it possible that the "Good Book" they use is full of teachings that can easily be proven for what they are, that is "hand me down Fairy Tales?" Would it be ever understood by the son of Herb, that the NT writings were not of just one cult but many, each borrowing from the fairy tales told to them from there parents, and the religious leaders of the time, that learned them from other tribes? These mixes of Holy Religion's are one and the same, the "Mystery Religion" of the Pagans. The answer to the many question's above, is a Triumphal YES!! Those of us that have awoke from the deep black fog of theology, to the reality of a world that lives by the laws of nature, IE:( Dog eat Dog, self-serving ministers demand tithe's, infliction of guilt and fear to manipulate others, etc, etc, etc, ad nauseam,) we realize that after having gone through such a destructive religious system people need help! The "Painful Truth" Website has been that help to me! Thank You Ed.

Some time ago I saw a movie called Pleasantville, it was about two 1990's teen's traveled back in time to the 1950's. On their arrival the first thing they noticed was the 50's world was all black and white, no color at all. After some time the teen's let their less than conservative values be known to the citizens of Pleasantville. Many of the good people were in shock, others were freethinkers and explored outside the narrow view of the world that restrained them. As the free thinkers explored outside the restrictive world they lived in, a strange and shocking experience fell upon them, they began to see with their eye's SOMETHING SHOCKING, SOMETHING UNKNOWN TO THEM, *COLOR*!!!!

The monumental joy of this occasion opened up a new world view for the freethinkers. They saw the world in another perspective! In time the little town of Pleasantville grew divided. Those who could see in color and those who could not. Those who saw in only black and white grew protective of the only way they ever knew! Violence ensued, friend began to hate friend, wife's were pushed around by dominating husband's (sound familiar), the burning of library books that suddenly had print and drawing's on the pages, appeared miraculously (where as they had been blank before the 90's teen's arrived on the seen). The world of Pleasantville would never be the same!! The people were now longer held captive to a world without color. Idea's and creativity flowed, the ability to make a true freewill decision based on a world perspective of the individual was now possible! You see, no one pushed the folks into the world of color, they eventually saw the joy of reaching out and exploring a unknown world, and making decisions based on the knowledge, experimentation, and observations of that world, all with the creativity of the mind. This is called science. Never perfect, never all knowing (unlike some jack-ass ministers I know) capable of flaws, but always seeking a new way to ease the human experience. The free-flow of idea's in America is one of the things that made this country great! Not shallow religion. The takers have always been the religious bigots that lead a movement that instills loyalty to a group, and yet shuns a world that can see with eyes and think with the brain, but in the same breath will instruct their disciple that "when in need, go to social services, you pay taxes." In the real world, mankind gives to the benefit of humanity. The human desire is to improve the world-no matter what the problem. This is the essence of what it means to be a caring human being! This movie is a must for the captive of armstrong theology!

Love, compassion, faithfulness, friendship, wisdom from hard experience, all these lovely things make life joyous and tolerable, adding purpose to the human quest, that is to give to the world food for the hungry, to shelter the orphan, to protecting the frail, and to open the eyes of the blind, and to seek every nook and cranny of knowledge that will improve the human experience. Will you not my brethren reach out and be healed, will you not take the healing salve of real truth and justice, and applied it to your own eyes? Will you not learn from observation?

(Words--Graeme Edge, Music--Ray Thomas)

After he had journeyed,
And his feet were sore,
And he was tired,
He came upon an orange grove
And he rested
And he lay in the cool.
And while he rested,
He took to himself an orange and tasted it,
And it was good.And he felt the earth to his spine,
And he asked.
And he saw the tree above him,
And the stars,
And the veins in the leaf,
And the light,And the balance.
And he saw magnificent perfection,
Whereon he thought of himself in balance,
And he knew he was.

Just open your eyes,
And realize, the way it's always been.
Just open your mind
And you will find the way it's always been.
Just open your heart
And that's a start.

And he thought of those he angered,
For he was not a violent man,
And he thought of those he hurt
For he was not a cruel man,
And he thought of those he frightened
For he was not an evil man,
And he understood.
He understood himself.
Upon this he saw that when he was of anger
Or knew hurt
Or felt fear,
It was because he was not understanding,
And he learned,
Compassion.
And with his eye of compassion
He saw his enemies like unto himself,
And he learned,
Love.
Then, he was answered.

Just open your eyes,
And realize, the way it's always been.
Just open your mindAnd you will find the way it's always been.
Just open your heartAnd that's a start.

In conclusion, our lives should not consist of what the church and state tell us, we must make the decision to open our eyes and evaluate ourselves, our culture, and our religious and government institutions. Armstrong theology is truly passed on to the masses as "the opiate of the people". Therefore we must learn to evaluate those who put themselves forward as teachers, their motives, their behavior, their rate of compensation, for where there is money, the greedy shall be at hand! There is much that can be learned if and when you want to see "The Vision" not in black and white, but COLOR.

Do not duplicate, copy or redistribute in any form without the prior written consent.

Disclaimer