February 2008 Journal Now Out

The February 29, 2008 edition of Dixon Cartwright’s The Journal is now out.

The main stories include a symposium of independents including Art Mokarow & some CG7 leaders like Tom Robertson (CG7-Meridian), the Big Sandy Board problem (covered earlier here, see Church of God Big Sandy Reports Board Problem), Ronald Weinland (often covered here, the last time was the news item Ronald Weinland Prophesied Millions & Is Spending to Accomplish That), UCG on “bloc voting” (covered earlier here, see United Church of God COE on Bloc Voting, Finances, and Doctrinal Changes), and David Havir wrote another article against hierarchical governance and discussed “apostolic succession” (those interested in what really happened in the first two centuries may wish to read the article Apostolic Succession).

The front and back page of The Journal are available in pdf format.

Regarding UCG and “bloc voting”, Dixon Cartwright (a former UCG affiliate) observed:

In a rare and repeated use of the words vote and voting, United Church of God council members conferring in San Antonio, Texas, Feb. 29, 2008, condemned the practice of “bloc voting” among UCG ministers. Usually the UCG prefers variants of ballot as a noun or verb, as in the general conference balloted (rather than voted) to pass or defeat this or that measure. The unusual usage reflects the belief in the old Worldwide Church of God that voting was a sin. Hence UCG elders don’t vote; they ballot.But in this case, presumably because bloc voting is considered a serious offense, maybe even an actual sin, Robert Dick of Portland, Ore., council chairman, felt free to use variants of the word vote (in conjunction with bloc) several times during the proceedings.

Elders are said to be playing fast and loose by conferring with each other before balloting, and they’re going so far as to recommend to each other whom to ballot for.

Regarding “bloc voting” it really seems that UCG is worried that people that may wish to change its administration could actually win if its elders conferred with one another, and that is that REAL reason I understand that UCG is concerned about this.

Especially since UCG has an election for a couple of Council of Elders’ seats coming up next month.

Here is some additional information on the Big Sandy problem:

Mr. Warren’s alleged improper decorum and removal as the latest events in a two-year disagreement among Big Sandy members centered on the church’s sponsorship of the East Texas Women’s Conference.

Linda Hardy White began the annual gathering of Church of God members from all over the country in Dallas in 2000.

As THE JOURNAL reported in the last issue, Mr. Warren denies he was disruptive at a board meeting and disagrees that his expulsion had anything to do with the women’s conference.

“This all really has to do with relationships and how people are treated,” Mr. Warren said…

Who’s in charge

Pastor Dave Havir is involved because of accusations from some friends and relatives of the woman that he was remiss in not stepping in to defuse the crisis that some, but not all, say has centered on the conference.

Some observers say the disagreements over the women’s conference are not the root cause of the present distress. Rather, they say they are a symptom and that the animosity between the two sides boils down to personality clashes that predate the women’s-conference controversy and are ultimately a clash over who is in charge.

Church members who have criticized Mr. Havir have also leveled the charge that he has assumed too much power in the congregation. Mr. Havir is not a board member…

Church splits happen, but it is sad that they do. David Havir often opposes hierarchical governance in his articles in The Journal (for a different view, please see the article Herbert W. Armstrong and Roderick C. Meredith on Church Government).

In addition to quoting a lot of inaccurate prophecies from Ronald Weinland, The Journal continues to run letters from another one who, like Ronald Weinland, falsely keeps teaching that certain events of Daniel 11 have been fulfilled in 2008. Here is the latest one:

Fulfillment of Daniel 11:40

The Sabbath of March 1, 2008, is four sun cycles from Daniel 11:40’s initial fulfillment in 1896. That day marks exactly four sun cycles (4 × 28 × 3651⁄4 days) from the Battle of Adua in 1896, when Ethiopia completely defeated Italian forces, which Herbert W. Armstrong was the first to understand was the fulfillment of the first clause of Daniel 11:40, which defined that the end time had started.

Geoff Neilson
Cape Town, South Africa

There are at least four that I have reported on that falsely claim/indicate that the Great Tribulation will begin in 2008 and Daniel 11:40 still awaits final fulfillment. (The other two are the Russian group that claims May 2008–see article Great Tribulation Will Not Begin in 2008; and James Malm who believes it starts in the Fall of 2008–please see At Least Two Wrongly Claim Great Tribulation Will Begin in 2008.)

As I have been saying for a long time, the Great Tribulation, while relatively soon, cannot happen in 2008.

The biblically REQUIRED events are simply not far enough along for it to be possible.

Several articles of related interest may include:

End of Mayan Calendar 2012–Might 2012 Mean Something? There is a Mayan calendar prediction for change in 2012. 2012 changes were also centuries ago predicted by the Hopi Native Americans and the Hindu Indians (who were not even on the same continent). Do these Mayan/Hindu/Hopi prophecies have any value? Why might Satan have inspired this date? Can the great tribulation start before 2012?
Two Horned Beast of Revelation and 666 This article explains how the LCG views this, and compares this to Ellen White.
Europa, the Beast, and Revelation Where did Europe get its name? What might Europe have to do with the Book of Revelation? What about “the Beast”?
Why Be Concerned About False and Heretical Leaders? There have been many false leaders–here is some of why you should be concerned about them.
Who is the King of the North? Is there one? Do biblical and Roman Catholic prophecies point to the same leader? Should he be followed? Who will be the King of the North discussed in Daniel 11? Is a nuclear attack prophesied to happen to the English-speaking peoples of the United States, Great Britain, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand? When do the 1335 days, 1290 days, and 1260 days (the time, times, and half a time) of Daniel 12 begin?
Is There A Future King of the South? Some no longer believe there needs to be. Might Egypt, Islam, Iran, Arabs, or Ethiopia be involved? What does the Bible say?