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11/12/05 a.m. Here is sort of a strange story about Wal-Mart:

NEW YORK -- The Catholic League, a civil rights organization defending Catholic individuals and the institutional church from defamation and discrimination, is touting its victory over retail giant Wal-Mart on its Web site today.

The organization earlier this week threatened Wal-Mart with a boycott if it did not apologize for "insulting Christians by banning Christmas," and withdraw "an insane statement regarding the origins of Christmas” and revise its Web site.

The dispute began when a woman recently complained that the store was replacing "Merry Christmas" with "Happy Holidays" and received an e-mail response from Wal-Mart's customer service department explaining that Wal-Mart is a "worldwide organization and must remain conscious of this." The response went on to attribute the origins of Christmas traditions to other cultures. "Santa is borrowed from the Caucuses, mistletoe from the Celts, Yule log from the Goths, the time from the Visigoths and the tree from the worship of Baa. It is a wide, wide world," per the e-mail.

The League also objected to Wal-Mart's Web site, www.walmart.com, which it found "discriminatory in its treatment of Christmas." The Web site directed searches for Hanukkah and Kwanzaa to Jewish and African-American holiday sections, but searches for Christmas led to a generic holiday section.

Wal-Mart originally stood by the explanation, but the League refused to back down.

This morning, however, Wal-Mart spokesman Dan Fogleman released a statement apologizing for "inappropriate and inflammatory comments" made by the associate, who has been fired. The retailer also has revised its Web site to direct customers to a "Christmas site."

It was nice that Wal-Mart tried to have the truth about Christmas originally. If this is about all there is to this, it is sad that the associate who told the truth was fired for telling the truth. The complete news piece is at http://www.brandweek.com/bw/news/recent_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1001478062

Last night ICG's Mark Armstrong reported:

We’ve been thrown something of a curve by a new law that will take effect as of January ’06.  At that time all programming will be required to have closed captioning encrypted on the broadcast tapes...We are researching the best way to go about this, and must begin immediately getting some programming ready for the new year.

The AW site has had a letter or two on the David throne issue. Here is what LCG sends out on that matter:

            Thank you for your question about Jesus Christ sitting on King David’s throne in the millennium. The key is in understanding the genealogies of Jesus Christ in Matthew 1 and Luke 3.

 

Both Matthew 1 and Luke 3 give the genealogies of Christ, and while they appear to be contradictory, they complement each other. Matthew 1 is clearly that of Joseph, Mary’s husband, and Matthew was writing it to prove to the Jews that Jesus was the Messiah. Historically it was the Jews’ custom to trace descent through the father. From a purely legal point of view, the Jews looked on Jesus as a son of Joseph (John 6:42). God also inspired that Joseph’s lineage was given to emphasize the fact that Jesus had been born of a virgin.

 

Some take the position that because of a curse that God placed on one of Joseph’s ancestors—Coniah, or Jeconiah—Christ could never sit upon the throne of David. That would have been the case if Joseph had actually been his natural father.

 

 Jeremiah recorded that Coniah, (Jechonias—Matthew 1:11–12), was so evil that God cursed him and his seed saying, “Write this man down as childless ... for none of his descendants shall prosper, sitting on the throne of David, and ruling anymore in Judah” (Jeremiah 22:30). Jeconiah did have children (1 Chronicles 3:17), but was childless as far as having any descendants on the throne of David, ruling the separate nation of Judah. The answer is in the genealogy of Mary in Luke 3. Again, according the Jewish custom, Mary’s genealogy was given in her husband’s name. Please notice that the original Greek says Joseph was “of Heli” (Luke 3:23). Since Joseph’s father was Jacob (Matthew 1:16), Joseph was the son-in-law of Heli.

 

There was no impediment to Christ sitting on the throne of David, ruling over Judah, in His genealogy through Mary. Her ancestor was David’s son Nathan, not Solomon or one of David’s other children (Luke 3:31). To fulfill His promise of establishing David’s throne forever, God honored Nathan by making him the ancestor the King who would sit on David’s throne through eternity (Luke 1:31-33).

 

It was possible for Mary to transmit David’s royal inheritance—the right to the throne—to her son. According to the law of God, when a daughter was the only heir, she could inherit her father’s possessions and rights if she married within her own tribe (Numbers 27:1-8; 36:6-8).

 

The genealogies also prove the virgin birth: The curse on Jeconiah’s seed would have passed on to Christ if He were Joseph’s natural son, but He was not—He was begotten by the Holy Spirit and was the Son of God. Jesus was Mary’s son descended from Nathan.

Why any interested in a COG answer would not ask a COG seems sad to me, but some still contact AW (an anti-COG site) sometimes for such things.

11/11/05 p.m. In yesterday's WCG Weekly Update, Tom Hansen wrote:

Today we say good-bye to Vance Gilless, facilities director, who is taking a job with the Metropolitan Transit Authority in Los Angeles, and Darwin Ruggless of the Facilities Department.

I did not know Vance Gilless and presume that WCG may be close to being at its intended minimum staff levels.

From Reuters:

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - Outside the Vatican walls, Pope Benedict appears as public a figure as his predecessor John Paul, kissing babies, shaking hands and drawing large crowds.

Inside the walls, he is perhaps the most reserved and private pontiff in nearly half a century.

Nearly seven months after his election, the 78-year-old Benedict still has not really shown his cards. The German Pope has kept even some of his closest collaborators guessing about the decisions he may take.

The public Pope shines every Wednesday in St Peter's Square. People chant his name and cheer as he passes. He clasps his hands above his head in a victory sign.

According to Vatican statistics, he is attracting twice as many people to his general audiences and Sunday blessings than John Paul did in the same period in 2004.

But the private Pope, according to several well-placed Vatican prelates who spoke on the condition of anonymity, is another matter.

"The style inside the Vatican now is totally different," said a monsignor. "He is keeping a lot of us guessing."

The full story is at http://today.reuters.co.uk/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=topNews&storyID=2005-11-10T105013Z_01_YUE038998_RTRUKOC_0_UK-POPE-STYLE.xml&archived=False There was an interesting public statement that Pope Benedict made, however, last week which is at the GCG News page.

On other matters, what kind of songs did early Christians sing?

Here is a quote from a fourth century publication known as the Apostolic Constitutions :

A recent book on early biblical and church practices states:

Hence evidence does support the idea that psalms were the main types of hymns that the early Christians sang on the Sabbath (as that is when the early Christians, did in fact meet--Sunday worship is not alluded to in any historical literature prior to the 2nd Century--and the first clear mention of Sunday worship was by Justin Martyr: A Saint, Heretic or Apostate?).

Hence, it is clear from the historical evidence that those who met on the Sabbath primarily sang psalms. More biblical information on this subject is found in the article Praises to Jesus Christ or Biblical Hymns: Which Should Christians Primarily Sing?

On other matters, a reader, whose wife in English, sent this: 

HARRISBURG, Pennsylvania (AP) -- A biochemistry professor who is a leading advocate of "intelligent design" testified Monday that evolution alone cannot explain complex biological processes, and he believes God is behind them.

Lehigh University Professor Michael Behe was the first witness called by a school board that is requiring students to hear a statement about the intelligent design concept in biology class.

Lawyers for the Dover Area School Board began presenting their case Monday in the landmark federal trial, which could decide whether intelligent design can be mentioned in public school science classes as an alternative to the theory of evolution.

Behe, whose work includes a 1996 best-seller called "Darwin's Black Box," said students should be taught evolution because it's widely used in science and that "any well-educated student should understand it."

Behe, however, argues that evolution cannot fully explain the biological complexities of life, suggesting the work of an intelligent force.

Evolution absolutely cannot accurately explain the origins of life as any true scientist must realize. One area where I differ from Dr. Behe is that although I believe that the theory of evolution should be mentioned and its flaws pointed out, I believe that intelligent design is the only concept that needs to be taught in detail between the those two theories.

Two articles of related interest would be:

Is God's Existence Logical? Some say it is not logical to believe in God. Is that true?
Is Evolution Probable or Impossible or Is God's Existence Logical, Part II This short article clearly answers what 'pseudo-scientists' refuse to acknowledge.

11/09/05 a.m. Yesterday, WCG's Christian Odyssey announced an addition to WCG's website that included these comments from J. Tkach (Jr.):

In our fellowship, we have long agreed that women do not need to wear head coverings in church today—these specific instructions do not apply in our culture. Having “solved” that question, we felt little need to dig into the passage any deeper. In decades past, our main use of the passage was to say that men should have short hair and women should not (verses 14-15)...

Actually, I get the feeling that our old decision about head coverings was based more on what made “sense” to us than it was based on a study of the text. We did not have a good explanation for why head coverings were obsolete but hair lengths were not. We were unwittingly basing our beliefs on assumptions that were rooted in modern culture.

Actually, I believe that he is incorrect in his assessment. In my opinion, he seems to be saying that the decision to not requires veils and similar head coverings for women was a cultural and not a scriptural decision--and the reason, I believe is to set the members up for his ultimate plans to allow women to be involved in actions that the Bible indicates are not gender appropriate.

Anyway, I have previously looked into this heading covering issue and my conclusions differ from those of WCG--WCG went so far as to actually state:

Paul has given six reasons for women to wear a head covering...

Today, we cannot confidently use any of these reasons...

The WCG doctrinal review team concludes that women are permitted to speak in church without head coverings...Men should not try to look like women, nor should women try to look like men. God created male and female different, and he declared that to be good, but the Bible does not specify (nor will we) the characteristics of masculine and feminine attire. That changes from one nation to another, from one culture to another, and from one century to another. In Paul’s day, it meant that women should wear head coverings when speaking in public, but it does not mean that today.

So WCG is once again concluding that portions of the Bible do not apply today, and using "red herring" arguments. A more biblically-supported position is shown in the article Veils and Other Coverings.

On a differnt matter, WCG's Christian Odyssey stated the following:

Wise parents capitalize on teachable moments in the lives of their children. One such moment comes around each December as Christmas dominates community, school and family life for most people in North America. Though we may object to the commercialism of much of these Christmas celebrations, we can take advantage of this annual opportunity to help children learn about the miracle of Jesus’ birth.

While the bolded portion is true, the true objection to Christmas is that it incorporates pagan religious practices that the Bible specifically warns against (Jeremiah 10). Since Santa Claus and other parts are based on lies, this holiday is not something that true Christians should observe as it is not of the truth--"no lie is of the truth" (1 John 2:21).

11/08/05 a.m. The Nov-Dec 2005 issue of G&S's Church of God News had this piece from a CG7 member:

There have been apostate groups and individuals within CG7 for the past 20 years that have lost their conviction about the Sabbath, but most have left the Church. One of the most recent was just a few years ago in which a California congregation split, with the Sunday leaning group finally dissolving and joining local Sunday Churches.

What has changed on an official basis within CG7, is the teaching today that Sabbath is only a secondary issue or as they like to say, a “distinctive” that has no bearing on the core beliefs of Christianity. In that kind of environment, I expect we will see many more such apostate groups forming within the Church, and whether they continue to leave or finally organize within the Church is a serious question.

My own prediction is that in the end time, most Sabbatarian Churches will buckle under severe pressure from both inside and outside forces, and allow a mixture of Sunday and Sabbath observing congregations within their midst, to avoid persecution and censure by dictatorial governments that will soon return to the Western world in a time of great crisis. That is when Revelation 18:4 will come into play in a special way, to separate the goats from the sheep, and who will escape the final end time plagues and who will not.

That is one take of it. I believe, that the following statements from Revelation 3, which HWA said applied to CG7, do in fact still apply to them and that CG7 is becoming more Protestant:

1. "And to the angel of the church in Sardis write, 'These things says He who has the seven Spirits of God and the seven stars: "I know your works, that you have a name that you are alive, but you are dead.
2. Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die, for I have not found your works perfect before God.
3. Remember therefore how you have received and heard; hold fast and repent. Therefore if you will not watch, I will come upon you as a thief, and you will not know what hour I will come upon you.
4. You have a few names even in Sardis who have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with Me in white, for they are worthy.

I should also add that I have contact with a few in CG7 that I believe are part of verse 4. But CG7 itself (the main one anyway) is becoming more and more Protestant. Some of this is documented in an article on The Church of God, Seventh Day.

11/06/05 a.m. Ambassador Watch had this piece from former Plain Truth writer Keith Stump:

Hello Gavin! I see that Bob Thiel, on his website, is quoting from an old Plain Truth article (which, in turn, cites various sources of questionable merit) perpetuating the widespread myth that "Samhain" was an ancient Celtic "lord of the dead". No such god ever existed. (I mentioned this in my article about Halloween last year, which you were kind enough to put up in your "Columns" section.) All reputable scholars and archaeologists of Celtic history are unanimous on that point. There is no debate. A mere half-hour's research in reputable source material (as opposed to fundamentalist Christian polemical works, or the discredited and error-ridden 11th edition of the Encyclopedia Britannica) would have made that fact abundantly clear. This alleged "god" was an invention of 18th-century crackpot "scholars", and is widely acknowledged as such. "Samhain" merely means "summer's end"; it is a calendrical observance.

Playing fast and loose with the facts is typical of many COGs, where rejection of scholarship and intellectualism continues to run rampant. There is never any reevaluation, only perpetuation of the old myths and errors.

It is sad that Keith Stump feels the need to dump on the COGs for alleged rejection of scholarship, so let's look at the facts in this case:

1) I simply quoted the Plain Truth article on my news page (this is a scholastically appropriate action)
2) I specifically cited the article as the source (this is a scholastically appropriate action)
3) The article specifically cited its source (this is a scholastically appropriate action)
4) Many non-COGs agree with the position that the Plain Truth once took
5) Keith Stump states that many secular sources are not credible, but the ones he looked at are
6) Keith Stump falsely states that for "many COGs...There is never any reevaluation, only perpetuation of the old myths and errors." I would suggest that my articles, especially those that document the specific beliefs of the COGs, show that all that have done something beyond perpetuation.
7) Keith Stump failed to mention that my own article on Halloween which did not mention the Samhain god view (prior to my additions to it this morning), but simply that Samhain was a druid holiday.

As far as a half-hour of research goes, in a half-hour he should have been able to find the following article that, while it intends to agree with Keith Stump's perspective, both agrees and disagrees with specific portions of his position:

"Was/is Samhain a Celtic God?
The answer is a definite yes and no:

YES. He did exist. Many Neopagan and secular sources are probably wrong. As As Isaac Bonewits writes: "Major dictionaries of Celtic Languages don't mention any 'Samhain' deity..." 8 However, there is some evidence that there really was an obscure, little known character named Samain or Sawan who played the role of a very minor hero in Celtic mythology. His main claim to fame was that Balor of the Evil Eye stole his magical cow. His existence is little known, even among Celtic historians. He was a hero, not a god...

Samhain is pronounced "sah-van", although many neo-Pagans pronounce it as "sow-in" (where "ow" rhymes with "cow"). Samhain is Irish Gaelic for the month of November. Samhuin is Scottish Gaelic for All Hallows, NOV-1...

In 1989, Johanna Michaelsen wrote a book opposing the New Age, Humanism and Wicca. It is titled "Your Child and the Occult" 4 She writes:

"The Feast of Samhain was a fearsome night, a dreaded night, a night in which great bonfires were lit to Samana the Lord of Death, the dark Aryan god who was known as the Grim Reaper, the leader of the ancestral Ghosts."...

John Ankerbert & John Weldon have written a series of pamphlets that are among the best works by conservative Christian authors for the general public. They make extensive use of footnotes and exhibit careful research of their topic...stating:

"...400 names of Celtic gods are known...'Samhain' as the specific name of the Lord of Death is uncertain, but it is possible that the Lord of Death was the chief druidic deity. We'll follow the lead of several other authors and call him Samhain."

There appear to be many, mostly male, deities which had names starting with "Sam." None were Celtic. However, the similarity in their names to Samhain might have contributed to the confusion...

Samana, "the leveler" is the name of an Aryan God of Death (a.k.a. Yama, Sradhadeva, Antaka, or Kritanta) according to the ancient Veda scriptures of Hinduism...

Shamash was the Sun God and God of righteousness, law and divination of the Assyrians and Babylonians."

(Source: The myth of Samhain: "Celtic god of the dead". http://www.religioustolerance.org/hallo_sa.htm 11/05/06).

Presuming the quotes in the above article are accurate (and it should be noted that the authors of it disagree with the conclusions of some of whom they quoted), what we learn is:

1) There are researchers outside of the COGs who believe that Samhain (or one with a similar name) was a hero or a god
2) The druids apparently had a "Lord of the dead"
3) There was a pagan festival named Samhain
4) There was a Celtic hero with a similar name
5) There is an Aryan god with a similar name
6) There was a Babylonian god with a similar name

In his own article, Keith Stump makes such statements as:

First, there's no need to point out that Halloween is not found in Leviticus 23. (Duh.) Leviticus 23 is obsolete and irrelevant anyway...For most, Halloween long ago ceased being viewed as a religious observance--and never was, by Americans. The Halloween that many of us know today is largely an American phenomenon. And it's a purely secular observance.

Yet some of Halloween's customs do have roots in pre-Christian ("pagan") practices. "Pagan" has long been a popular buzz word among Christians, especially among the COGs...

The Celtic festival of Samhain (which means "summer's end" and marked the Celtic New Year, and is properly pronounced SOW-in, not "Sam Hain") was considered to be a magical time, when the thin veil between the worlds was lifted, and the dead walked among the living. It was a night of ghosts and fairies, in which bonfires were lit and fortunes were told, and the thoughts of all turned to the afterlife. For some odd reason, the Celts didn't think that exposing their children to contemplation of death and the afterlife was a problem. And, of course, the "witches" of the time were primarily herbalists and midwives. Witches as evil, devil-worshipping crones were an invention of the medieval Church, perpetuated by modern fundamentalists...

To all COG members out there: Is your children's Christianity so feeble as to be endangered by a plastic mask and a few candy bars? Are your children so inadequately grounded in their religion as to be tempted into a life of witchcraft by attending a costume party? Are you yourself so poorly rooted in your faith that you fear your children will ask questions to which you have no satisfactory answers?

I have seen no evidence of children being psychologically warped or seduced into a life of witchcraft and perversion as a result of innocent Halloween activities...

Halloween is also a good time to reconsider our own views about death and the afterlife.The unbiblical doctrine of "soul sleep" would be a good place to start. The Bible clearly teaches (and centuries of experience demonstrate) that death does not interrupt self-awareness; personal identity survives death!...

There is nothing inherently evil or spiritually harmful about this tradition

After dismissing the need (without proof) for observing biblically sanctioned holy days, we have Keith Stump explaining that it is appropriate for Christians to allow their children to observe this holiday with customs of pagan roots (to the best of my knowledge, Keith Stump does not have any children of his own--but I am unsure of that). And that witches essentially being evil was "an invention of the medieval Church".

What does the Bible (NKJV) say?

There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, or one who practices witchcraft, or a soothsayer, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, or one who conjures spells, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead. For all who do these things are an abomination to the LORD, and because of these abominations the LORD your God drives them out from before you. You shall be blameless before the LORD your God. For these nations which you will dispossess listened to soothsayers and diviners; but as for you, the LORD your God has not appointed such for you (Deuteronomy 18:10-14).

For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, And stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry (1 Samuel 15:23).

And they caused their sons and daughters to pass through the fire, practiced witchcraft and soothsaying, and sold themselves to do evil in the sight of the LORD, to provoke Him to anger. Therefore the LORD was very angry with Israel, and removed them from His sight; there was none left but the tribe of Judah alone (2 Kings 17:17-18).

The original KJV also has this statement:

Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live (Exodus 22:18 KJV).

On the subject of witches not being considered evil until the medieval Church, Keith Stump is simply wrong. This is certainly a more scholarly error that properly quoting a source who cited something that appears debatable.

But the real question here is not whether or not there is absolute proof there was a specific druid god named Samhain, the real question is: Should Christians celebrate Halloween or let their children celebrate it?

Again let's look at the Bible and not the opinions of men.

Thus says the LORD: "Do not learn the way of the Gentiles; Do not be dismayed at the signs of heaven,
For the Gentiles are dismayed at them. For the customs of the peoples are futile (Jeremiah 10:2-3).

At the absolute best, Halloween customs are futile and detract from the emphasis to worship the true God.

You shall not bow down to their gods, nor serve them, nor do according to their works; but you shall utterly overthrow them and completely break down their sacred pillars (Exodus 23:24).

Note that not only are God's people not to worship other gods, they are not to "do according to their works" (of those who did)--like Halloween. This is also confirmed in the passage below:

do not inquire after their gods, saying, 'How did these nations serve their gods? I also will do likewise.' "You shall not worship the LORD your God in that way; for every abomination to the LORD which He hates they have done to their gods (Deuteronomy 12:30-31).

No true Christian would want to encourage their children to participate in pagan customs associated with Halloween.

Keith Stump appears to encourage the celebration of Halloween partially because he asserts that "soul sleep" is a non-biblical doctrine. There are many verses to cite to disprove this, but I will simply show two (one from each Testament) which disagree with his position:

But the dead know nothing (Eccl 9:5).

He said to them, "Our friend Lazarus sleeps, but I go that I may wake him up." Then His disciples said, "Lord, if he sleeps he will get well." However, Jesus spoke of his death, but they thought that He was speaking about taking rest in sleep. Then Jesus said to them plainly, "Lazarus is dead" (John 11:11-14).

Thus Jesus in particular, and the Bible in general, support the idea that the dead know nothing and are analogous to those who are sleeping.

Concluding thoughts

The simple truth is that the COGs can be deceived by relying on statements of other researchers. Perhaps there was not specifically a god named Samhain associated with the Samhain celebration. However, since there was a Celtic mythological hero named Samain or Sawan, and since the celebration was never biblically Christian, perhaps the Samhain celebration had Babylonian roots as the Babylonians had a god of a similar name (the incorporation of other ancient Babylonian religious practices in the world's three main branches of its form of Christianity provides compelling evidence to consider that this may be so).

Yet irrespective of the Samhain god issue, the evidence is clear that Halloween contains pagan elements, the Bible condemns incorporating pagan forms of worship by true believers, the Bible condemns witchcraft, and the Bible does not enjoin the celebration of Halloween. These positions are overwhelming.

Sadly, many of those once part of the COGs simply refuse to see the overwhelmingly plain truth on these and other doctrinal matters.

On unrelated matters in the news front from Israel, Artuz7's Hillel Fendel reported:

President Katzav's office categorically denies any intention to sign an agreement to give over parts of Mt. Zion to the Catholic Church. Arutz-7 has received a copy of the alleged agreement to do so.

Whether or not this particular document will be signed, the Catholic Church will end up with more of a presence in Israel than they now have.

11/05/05 a.m. ICG's Mark Armstrong reported:

As I mentioned during my comments at this year’s feast, our mailing list has grown to over 84,000 names and addresses!  We’ve sent out somewhere in the neighborhood of a quarter million books, booklets, brochures, newspapers, newsletters, tapes, CDs and DVDs over the past year. We are coming to a point where we are beginning to run low on our stocks of several booklets that need to be reprinted, in addition to the fact that we need to direct further letters and additional offers to that huge number of individuals who have responded to our programs in the past.  Members of our Board of Directors have all been included in discussions as to whether we might pursue a shift in strategy, at least for a time.  We will certainly remain on the individual affiliate television stations that are performing cost effectively.  But we are considering taking a hiatus on WGN that would free up resources needed to replenish our considerable library of titles, and to communicate more effectively with that vast mailing list. 

LCG is also on WGN, but has no plans to go off of it.

From http://www.livescience.com/history/051104_guy_fawkes.html:

This week, millions of people will throw a party for the man who once tried to blow the British Houses of Parliament to smithereens.

Guy Fawkes Night is celebrated in Britain annually on November 5th...

While the plot itself was the work of a small number of men, it provoked hostility against all British Catholics and led to an increase in the harshness of laws against them. Even to this day, it is the law that no Roman Catholic may hold the office of monarch and the reigning king or queen remains Supreme Head of the Church of England...

Guy Fawkes Night is not solely a British celebration. The tradition was also established in the British colonies by the early American settlers and actively pursued in the New England States under the name of "Pope Day" as late as the Eighteenth Century.

It does seem strange that in Britian they still have a holiday for a Catholic bomber (though it is apparently a holiday for his death).

On other matters:

Marauding youths torched nearly 900 vehicles, stoned paramedics and burned a nursery school in a ninth night of violence that spread from Paris suburbs to towns around France, police said Saturday. Authorities arrested more than 250 people overnight — a sweep unprecedented since the unrest began.

For the first time, authorities used a helicopter to chase down youths armed with gasoline bombs who raced from arson attack to arson attack, national police spokesman Patrick Hamon said.

The violence, which was concentrated in neighborhoods with large African and Muslim populations but has since spread, has forced France to address the simmering anger of its suburbs, where immigrants and their French-born children live on the margins of society.

With 897 vehicles destroyed by daybreak Saturday, it was the worst one-day toll since unrest broke out after the Oct. 27 accidental electrocution of two teenagers who believed police were chasing them. Five hundred cars were burned a night earlier.

In a particularly malevolent turn, youths in the eastern Paris suburb of Meaux prevented paramedics from evacuating a sick person from a housing project, pelting rescuers with rocks and torching the awaiting ambulance, an Interior Ministry official said.

The complete story is at http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2005/11/05/international/i014113S40.DTL

This type of rioting will most likely strengthen the resolve of the French to diminish immigration.

11/04/05 a.m. Leon Sexton of Legacy reported that they "have a Church of God congregation of about 25 brethren that meets regularly in" the Taungoo District of Myanmar (Burma).

WCG Today Weekly Update for Nov. 3 reported:

Employee transitions

With continued downsizing at headquarters we learned that we will be losing the services of Ron Grove, the layout editor for WCG Today and Christian Odyssey. Ron began work for the WCG in 1974, and we have worked together since 1980. Ron’s last day will be Dec. 16. Please join me in praying for God’s richest blessings and guidance on Ron as he seeks employment elsewhere.

John Halford, editor of the UK Plain Truth, will now also serve as editor of a re-designed Christian Odyssey. He will work from his home in Indiana, while most of the publication functions will remain in California.

WCG keeps changing people and programs. This will probably still occur once it also changes its name.

11/03/05 a.m. The Jerusalem Post reported:

The security cabinet approved the placement of an EU contingent at the Rafah crossing between the Gaza Strip and Egypt on Tuesday, but the role envisioned for this force caught some EU officials by surprise.

Prime Minister Ariel Sharon met with visiting Italian Foreign Minister Gianfranco Fini after the approval and said the force should have "real powers," not just supervisory ones...

According to diplomatic assessments in Jerusalem, France and Spain have been pushing for an EU role, while Britain was "less enthusiastic" and Germany was hoping some other solution could be found.

Shalom said an EU team was on its way to Israel to hold discussions with both sides.

He termed the security cabinet's decision "historic" and said it gave the EU - which has for years expressed an interest in taking a more active part in the diplomatic process - an unprecedented role. Shalom said the willingness to give the EU this role indicated a newfound trust and confidence in Europe.

And, not surprisingly the Catholic World News reported this yesterday:

The Vatican representative at the UN has called upon the international community to recognize the difficulties facing Palestinian Christians, and renewed the Holy See’s suggestion that Jerusalem should be given special status as an open city with international protection.

On other matters, UCG's Roy Demarest reported:

Presently, many of our members, especially in South Palm Beach, Broward and Dade counties, still have no power or phone service. Schools in Broward County (where the Miami congregation meets) are closed until at least Monday. Travel is very difficult in many areas due to no traffic signals. There will be no church service in Miami again this Sabbath and probably not in West Palm Beach.

I have not heard of any injuries to our members or severe structural damage to any of their property, but I have just now been able to contact anyone. Many areas are still without phone service.

Hurricane Wilma hit many of us by surprise. I didn’t even put up my hurricane panels before leaving for the Feast because no hurricanes were on the horizon. I believe that we came through this frightening storm (my neighbor’s words, as we were at the Feast) in as good a condition as possible. We have been truly blessed overall.

It hit our family by surprise as well. While we attended the FOT in Clearwater Florida (which is on Florida's west coast), the news indicated that the storm was to hit west Florida--which it really did not (just a lot of wind and some small amount of rain). When we drove to Ft. Lauderdale (which is on Florida's east coast) after the end of the Last Great Day, we were surprised by the power outages, downed street signs, curfew, police presence, closed hotels, lack of gasoline, downed trees, and closed airports in that area.

PCG's Gerald Flurry wrote:

Daniel 11:40 tells us the king of the south will “push” at the king of the north. When does this push occur? It must happen after the book of Daniel was revealed in this end time. Daniel 12:9 tells us the time of the end began when Daniel was revealed. So the king of the south must arise after Daniel was revealed to God’s end-time Church—to Herbert W. Armstrong. However, many of the specifics of Daniel’s book have been revealed to the Philadelphia Church of God today...

“Thus,” Mr. Armstrong wrote, “was the prophecy of verse 4 fulfilled to the letter.” He continued: “Now notice what follows. From here the prophecy foretells the activities only of two of these four divisions, Egypt, [anciently] called ‘king of the south,’ because it is south of Jerusalem; and the Syrian kingdom, [anciently] the king of the north, just north of Judaea.”...

Daniel 11:42 implies that Egypt will be allied with the king of the south, or Iran...

The king of the south, or Iran, is going to “push at him”—that is, the king of the north (the European Union)...

The king of the south is about state-sponsored terrorism. That is how Iran became king! Daniel 11:40-43 is an end-time prophecy. It is about a nation that is always pushy in its foreign policy. It pushes until it starts a war. Having such power means that it must be a large oil-producing country. This king is close to Jerusalem, Egypt, Ethiopia and Libya.

Who else could it be in this end time but Iran?

Iran is extremely radical and the king over radical Islam.

At the FOT, LCG's RC Meredith stated that LCG does NOT believe that Iran is the King of the South unlike the position taken by Gerald Flurry. LCG believes, like HWA did, that the King of the South would be geographically south of Jerusalem, although some of its members nations could be north.

Here is a link to an article titled Is there a Future King of the South?

11/02/05 a.m. ACD's Ken Ryland posted the following:

Jesus is the Reason for the Season
During the recent Feast of Tabernacles I got a call from a pastor friend who had opened his home to friends and family to celebrate the Feast this year. Finances had not permitted the pastor to travel for the Feast, so he thought he could help a few others enjoy the Feast in his home. What transpired, however, was anything but joyous.

One of the families that showed up with a troubled adult son seemed to think that it was everyone else's responsibility to put their son's life back together. For them, that was the purpose of the Feast of Tabernacles. They wanted deference shown to their son in order to make this "his" best Feast ever. They felt that by insisting on everyone else serving his needs, this might give him the boost of encouragement he needed to get over his problems (which were mostly the fault of other people).

While talking things over with this young pastor, it occurred to me that the people involved in this turmoil had completely forgotten what the Feast was all about. They had been doing it for so many years as a matter of rote that they were no longer able to enjoy it as it was meant to be observed...

The return of Jesus and the establishment of His eternal kingdom are the real reasons for the season of Tabernacles.

Of course, Deuteronomy makes it clear that the Feast is not to be observed at home (within your gates) if physically possible:

Deuteronomy 12:17-18, You may not eat within your gates the tithe of your grain or your new wine or your oil, of the firstlings of your herd or your flock, of any of your offerings which you vow, of your freewill offerings, or of the heave offering of your hand. But you must eat them before the LORD your God in the place which the LORD your God chooses, you and your son and your daughter, your male servant and your female servant, and the Levite who is within your gates; and you shall rejoice before the LORD your God in all to which you put your hands.

Deuteronomy 14:22-23, You shall truly tithe all the increase of your grain that the field produces year by year. And you shall eat before the LORD your God, in the place where He chooses to make His name abide, the tithe of your grain and your new wine and your oil, of the firstborn of your herds and your flocks, that you may learn to fear the LORD your God always.

In his November letter, WCG's J. Tkach wrote:

One result of our painful spiritual journey from legalism to the simple joy of the unadorned gospel is that our gracious God has equipped us as a denomination to spread the good news in its pure form.

Interestingly, I read 1 John yesterday and noticed this passage:

1 John 2:21, no lie is of the truth

What else is Christmas, Easter, etc. but human traditions based on lies? A long while ago I wrote an article titled Is There "An Annual Worship Calendar" In the Bible? which exposed some of the flawed logic in WCG's positions on Holy Days. And the truth is that since WCG's position contains lies, it is not of the truth.

11/01/05 a.m. In today's CGOMUK newsletter was this info from Richard Gawith:

The Churches of God Outreach Ministries can report that we  have this year received an increased number of literature requests:
 
....E-mail requests have already topped all of 2004 by +6% as of the end of September
....These next three months will just increase that percentage above all of 2004
....1-800 calls have also already topped all of 2004 by almost 7% as of the end of September. These next three months will also just increase that percentage above all of 2004
....Regular mail was up over 72% for the month of September compared to September of 2004. It was up by over 32% for the 3rd quarter compared to 3rd quarter 2004
....And it is up by over 9% for the year compared to this same time in 2004
....We have added 177 NEW names to the international mailing lists this year
....We have added 382 NEW names to the USA mailing list this year
.....Our mailing list totals are now up to 4,334 active subscribers of a mailing list of 4,982 for the USA
....658 active subscribers of a mailing list of 1,010 for the International list

CGOM remains a fairly small, splintered group. More information can on them can be found in the article titled Church of God Outreach Ministries.

The Nov-Dec issue of WCG Today has this article by Matthew Morgan:

PASADENA—As announced in a previous issue, Ron Kelly retired in July, and I have assumed his responsibilities as controller. I look forward to keeping you informed quarterly about the church’s finances and other related issues. I consider it a privilege to be a steward of the church’s day-to-day financial operations, and I will strive to be a good steward. I welcome your comments and suggestions.

Third quarter

The third quarter is complete, and we are in the process of preparing the budget for 2006. On the income side of the equation, all is holding steady to date due primarily to an unexpected estate donation and higher than expected return on investments.

However general donations are below budgeted levels, raising some concern as we enter the fourth quarter of the year. Your consistent offerings are important to the work of your local congregation and to the administrative headquarters of the church. Thank you for your consistent and generous support.

The expense side of the equation has proven more challenging this last quarter. Increasing health-care costs and unexpected delays in the permit process on the remodeling project for the Glendora administrative building have caused expenses to exceed budget estimates. These areas will continue to be a challenge in the remaining months of 2005 and for the first quarter of 2006.

I am happy to report that many of you donated generously to help your brothers and sisters in the path of Hurricane Katrina. As of Oct. 18, donations of about $273,892 have been received. The funds are being forwarded to pastors in the region affected by Katrina for disbursement to members in need...

New headquarters office

Progress has been made on the new headquarters building in Glendora. Most interior demolition and earthquake retrofitting is complete. In addition, a contractor has been selected, and all plans are in place to begin the task of remodeling. The remodeling work will commence as soon as permits are approved by the city. We expect work to begin the last week in October with a 12- to 16-week time frame to completion.

Plain Truth Ministries (PTM) initially planned to share office space with the church at the new location. However, it has been decided that this is an opportune time for them to relocate to a separate office well suited for their ministry plans. As they have anticipated and are planning for such a move, they expect to be relocated near the end of the year.

The church is in the process of finding a tenant to lease about 6,000 square feet of office space initially slated for use by PTM. We will miss the opportunity to work so closely with the dedicated PTM employees and wish them well as they make this transition.

WCG's Rod Matthews reported:

Australian Office Move

Late last year, the Australian Office completed the move from the Burleigh Heads building it had used since 1976 to its new facility at Varsity Lakes, about five kilometers (three miles) away. Located in a new office park development, the two-level building is much more compact and modern. It has proven to be suitable for housing the management and administrative support staff who serve the congregations of the church across the country as well as Ambassador College of Christian Ministries and the church’s professional development arm, Pacific Training & Development.

The facility includes a modern, well-equipped meeting room suitable for small conferences and seminars. It has been used for the two national ministerial conferences conducted this year.

WCG Today also reported:

Jim and Marge Friddle celebrated their 50th anniversary July 23. They were honored at a dinner July 24. They also celebrated 50 years of ministry in the Worldwide Church of God. Jim graduated from Ambassador College in 1955, and their first pastorate was Big Sandy, Texas. Since that time they have served in numerous congregations and count it a wonderful blessing to serve God’s beloved family. Serving in ministry has been the joy of their lives. Though retired, they still serve in the Charlotte, North Carolina, congregation. They have a daughter, Becky Hackman; three sons, Stephen, Nathan and Philip; a daughter-in-law, Sharon; and seven grandchildren...

Ministerial transitions

PASADENA—Church Administration announced the following ministerial transitions.

Gary Crowell, pastor of the Honolulu, Hawaii, church, went part-time paid as of Aug. 15. Crowell was previously a bivocational pastor (not receiving pay).

Paul David Kurts, pastor of the Hickory, North Carolina, church, changed from church pastor to dual career church pastor May 29.

Lester A. McColm became part-time pastor of the Fresno, California, church Aug. 1.

Todd Crouch was hired church pastor-full time, Sept. 12, to serve in Washington, Pennsylvania; Cambridge, Ohio; and Wheeling, West Virginia. He replaces Tom Smith, who pastors the Pittsburgh church.

There was no mention of the Feast of Tabernacles that I saw in this issue. The closest thing I saw was an announcement that there was some type of 'grace festival' in Italy:

Members celebrate grace at festival in Italy

INTRA (VERBANIA), Italy—One hundred thirty-six members gathered on the shore of Lake Maggiore for worship services Aug. 27 through Sept. 3. Simultaneous translations were offered in English and German.

With the sale of its properties and the new financial model, WCG simply no longer needs the tithes of those with it who still keep try to keep the Feast of Tabernacles.

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Volume 9, issue 16