Worldwide Church of God: Kingdom Before Them, Toxic Wasteland Behind Them

The following are some recent email correspondence between Mr. P. , Joe Tkach and Greg Albrecht.
This is the most help you will ever get from the Worldwide Church of God, (thank you Jesus!) unless you are Bernie Schnippert and you need a Hot Tub installed.
Maybe they are the Locusts from that Psalm by Dwight Armstrong?

I am trying to recover from my Worldwide Church of God experience and could use some help in my recovery.

Dear Joe, please send me some financial support for my injuries. Please make me whole once again!! The Worldwide Church of God has been a unbelievable nightmare, the abuse and the withdraws from mind control have been beyond what I can now handle emotionally as well as financially!!! As a lover of God I realize you will be like the good Samaritan and make me well if the Holy Spirit leads you to such an act of mercy.

Will you as a representative of the only Great and Almighty God be willing to help me? As you and your Christ-led organization walk toward Jesus I hope you will see the need to restore individuals such as my self!

I am replying to your e mail sent to the Worldwide Church of God Website asking for financial assistance. We are genuinely saddened to hear that you are not doing well. Our prayer is that you will soon gain the comfort and peace of mind you seek. Although you ascribe these troubles to your relationship with the Church, we respectfully suggest that psychological difficulties are extremely complex, and in the end are simply not often capable of accurate attribution to third parties.

Whatever the source of your problems, it may be wise to seek professional counseling. It is beyond the scope of our spiritual mission to supply people with financial assistance for their health services. Our records indicate that you are not currently a member of the Worldwide Church of God. If you are in financial need, perhaps it would be wise to make this request of your current Christian fellowship, to your health insurer, or to the public health services.

Once again, Mr. P., we sincerely hope you are able to find the peace of mind you seek.

I have received your e-mail answer to my request. The subject of psychological troubles that I have experienced in the past several years is due to the religious fraud, abuse, and upheaval that Worldwide Church of God has bought upon myself and my family! As you are well aware, many current and former members of the church have experienced a type of cognitive distortion of the so called biblical beliefs, as taught by the Worldwide Church of God.

Your church is the source of many psychological disorders that people have suffered from, for the years they were affiliated with the your group, not to mention the years before Armstrong's death.

You wrote that "psychological difficulties are extremely complex, and in the end are simply not often capable of accurate attribution to third partyies". Sir, this is in dark contrast to what has been apologized for from the pulpit, and including the recommended books such as "OUT OF THE CULTS AND INTO THE CHURCH" that was placed in church libraries, not to mention literature that has been sent through the mail to our homes!!

There is much in the literary world that stands out and contradicts that statement of yours! Many studies have been completed on the results of abusive mind control cults and the havoc that they bring into the lives of not only the member of the cult, but their families. These are attributed to third parties, as most psychological problems are. You Sir should know what you are talking about if you are to present yourself as a educated man!

Consider how many human beings have gone through the doors of the Worldwide Church of God only to leave. The vast majority of these folk will never again put there trust into organized religion ever again, and others that are now atheists, will never again believe in a Deity.

Now, to project reason on this situation we must ask: Did these people have lives that were fulfilling when they hitched up to the Worldwide Church of God bandwagon, and if they did, why did they leave Worldwide Church of God? There are really only two answers to this puzzle. The first answer would be: their lives were not fulfilling and like most thinking human beings they sought out the reason for their existence on this earth and sought to affirm that there was more to life and the afterlife than their current existence.

After some time in the Worldwide Church of God they realized that the teachings of the church, such as the "prosperity gospel" that was expounded week after week along with a great deal of free church literature (this tactic makes people feel obligated to give money, a tried and true advertising trick that is still in use by corporations with something to sell the public) was not in itself fulfilling.

The burdens of sin that no human could possible avoid, became a mill stone around there necks. Passover was a time that many would feel better about if they were dead and not suffering through it. The Law of Moses, as taught by Worldwide Church of God, along with the threats that you would "hang from a meathook if you ever left the church" along with the heavy hand of some oppressive "ministers" that were more like Nazis then Shepherd's, is the root cause of many documented suicides, divorces, alcoholism, psychological problems, atheism etc. This is directly attributed to the "effective brainwashing of the membership".

These people lost their identities and control over their lives! A common tactic used by cults to control the membership and extract money from them!

The second reason why so many leave is, when they enter the church, they are challenged and feel "exclusive to God" , only to reason and observe what goes on within the ranks, the pleas for money "in order to bring light to a dying world" and then they see the hypocrisies. They are uncomfortable with the guilt of not overcoming sin and begin to see the light of freedom from this oppressive religion.

They see how much church leaders pay themselves and then look at how much is extracted from them per year, or for the past decade or two, and begin to see the real reason for the existence for the Worldwide Church of God, MONEY.

It truly is mind boggling at first! You people are responsible for the misery and psychological troubles that you have bought upon myself and countless others. And you say you are "bringing the light of God to man"???? Much of what is stated here can be documented through a search of Ambassador Reports past issue's.

You also said in your e-mail that "it is beyond the scope of our spiritual mission to supply people with financial assistance for their health services" This Greg is a final kick in the teeth of the poor and downcast. You created my deep wounds, now take the responsibility for them.

You also stated in your e-mail "if you are in financial need..... make your request of your current fellowship, to your health insurer, or public health services." Greg this is the same as a corporation that creates a toxic waste mess. This mess is thrown to the ground after extracting everything of value from it, only to have the government come in and use OTHER PEOPLES MONEY to restore the land!! The challenge that the Worldwide Church of God faces along with it's Christian duty, is to restore those you have thrown down and injured!! I will have peace of mind only when you return to me what you have taken by "undue influence". It is at that time I will be able to pay for my own treatment because I believe in the concept of personal responsibility.

I was a naive young man when I joined up with you people, looking for security in a nuclear age. I will not unload my problems on others and have the taxpayer or another entity foot the bill!!!!!

Take personal responsibility Greg, just like your mother might have taught you as a child. Return the money and restore me. Keep the money and you continue to beat and oppress me along with my family, ever further, and evermore!

We had hoped that you would respond more positively to what we truly intended to be a sensitive and understanding response to what you claimed to be a need for money to treat psychological problems. Once again, be assured that you have our heartfelt concern for the psychological problems that you say have beset you during your life. It is our sincere hope and prayer that God will alleviate your ailments, whatever they may be, and grant you a sound mind and the peace that Jesus alone can give.

It would appear that your note is simply a criticism of the Worldwide Church of God for a wide range of complaints, and as a result of your conclusionary, unfounded, and untrue statements you ask that we give you money. Whatever your real motives, the Church respectfully but unequivocally and emphatically denies that it is the cause of your problems. We respectfully but unquivocally (sic) and emphatically deny your request for money.

The Church absolutely contests your accusations, and notes that it does not cut off or deny information or education to its members, who are represented in all professions and careers and who lead productive lives as good citizens of countries around the world. Worldwide Church of God members fulfill responsible roles in society. We reject your allegations as being without foundation and false.

This reply is the final one you will receive from us on this particular matter. A lack of response to other emails will simply be reconfirmation of what is stated here. The Church is saddened by any and all experiences in your life that have caused you pain, whatever the cause. We trust that you will continue to seek both medical and spiritual solutions through available agencies and resources for the problems you describe. We proclaim Jesus Christ, the Prince of peace, and pray that he may grant you the peace that you seek, in all your dealings, whether they be with God or humans.

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