ARMSTRONGISM: IS IT THE PLAIN TRUTH?
Harold Berry
From back of booklet: "How could something that sounds so right be so wrong?"
Armstrongism. like many other cults today, sounds good. In the
teachings of Herbert W. Armstrong, you'll find words that you are
familiar with -
salvation, faith, heaven, justification, and so forth. But the
'catch' is in the definition of these terms. Armstrong assigns
definitions that are
contrary to the Scriptures - based on assumptions, hunches or even
coincidences. In order to detect these false doctrines you must be
aware of
them. This booklet will help you understand what Armstrongism is, and
it will show you where it departs from Scriptures.
Herbert W. Armstrong
And His Worldwide Church of God
John Bowden with introduction by Madelyn O'Hair
It is interesting that this book is published by the American Atheist
Press in Austin Texas. For an atheist group to be concerned about
Armstrongism
was interesting. What spurred them on was the original publication of
the Ambassador Report, the WCG's plans to purchase government property
in
Pasadena worth millions for an incredible small price. This is
written by a man from Australia and comes from that point of view
relating incidences
with WCG in his country. Topics discussed include "Hobnobbing with
the Great"; "The Great Man Visits Sydney"; "Delusion of Grandeur";
"Armstrong as
Advertising Agent"; "Big Business"; "Broken Homes"; "Fraudulent
Representation".
Robert Sumner
"In this volume, I am not questioning the sincerity of Herbert W Armstrong, Garner Ted Armstrong or any of their followers in the Worldwide Church of God. No doubt some are insincere, just as in any other religion, but that is not my accusation. My position in this book is that the entire movement is heretical, completely at variance with the Word of God and the historic Christian faith. I think this will be easy to prove."
"The author of this present work was the very first one to publicly oppose the heresy of Mr. Armstrong and his Worldwide Church of God (then called the Radio Church of God). While pastoring in Texas in the late 1940s and early 1950s, I occasionally heard some of his radio broadcasts over one of the powerful border stations. One time I listened in amazement as Mr. Armstrong spent his entire broadcast belittling and ridiculing John 3:16 in as style I then - and still do today - considered blasphemy While I felt at that time the man was a vicious heretic, I frankly did not think his unorthodox approach to the Scriptures would gain a following of merit."
ARMSTRONG'S
CHURCH OF GOD: DOCTRINES OF
DEVILS No. 1. Exposing the
cults of our day
Salem Kirban
"Humanly speaking, if I were not a Christian, I would quickly join Armstrong's Worldwide Church of God and attend his college."
"But as A Christian, I cannot accept his theology. And as a Christian author, I must expose what I personally consider to be one of the most deadly cult forms existing today - The Worldwide Church of God... known by some as The Radio Church of God, The World Tomorrow, The Plain Truth or British Israelism... or as Armstrongism!"
"Herbert W Armstrong's brand of theology mixes a little truth with a little of his own theories. And if a Christian does not make a thorough study of his theology...he is bound to fall hook, line and sinker for THE PLAIN TRUTH message."
"It is far easier for a Christian to discern the differences between Mormonism and Christianity or Buddhism and Christianity...than to discern even that there is a vast, vast difference between Armstrong's Worldwide Church of God and Christianity! And this is where the danger lies!"
THE TRUTH SHALL MAKE YOU FREE:
Herbert Armstrong's Empire Exposed
John Tuit 1981
From the back cover: "This book is an expose by John Tuit, the man who initiated the lawsuit brought by the Attorney General of California against Herbert W Armstrong, Stanley Rader, and other leaders of the Worldwide Church of God."
"Church Business - High Finance - Rip-Off. Most Noted Church State Lawsuit In Recent History. Herbert Armstrong, Self Appointed Apostle of God, Preaches Morality, Practices Immortality. Garner Ted Armstrong, Wayward Son and Anointed Heir To The Armstrong Empire, Loses Inheritance. Stanley Rader, Attorney and Accountant: The Power Behind The Empire. God's True Church Or Spiritual Fraud? Herbert Armstrong and Stanley Rader: Their Connection With Illuminati Inspired, Satanic, One World Conspiracy. Original Publishing Contract On This Book Broken By An Affiliate of Time Inc. Attempted Suppression?"
AW comment: Despite the wacko references on the back cover to "the Illuminati" and suggestions Time suppressed it (the author's views are too "off the wall" for any mainstream publisher) this is still a valuable resource.
THE ARMSTRONG EMPIRE: A
Look At The Worldwide Church of God
Joseph Hopkins 1974
"Here is a comprehensive up to date story of the Worldwide Church of God the multi-million dollar religious empire best known popularly for its radio broadcast "The World Tomorrow", and its magazine THE PLAIN TRUTH.
"Hopkins begins by sketching the life and career of founder Herbert W Armstrong, and proceeds to outline the major doctrines and some of the startling claims of this unusual sect, including the teaching that the ten lost tribes of Israel have survived to the present day, and that the Anglo-Saxon people of Britain and the United States are the literal descendants of Joseph's sons Ephraim and Manasseh. The Armstrong Empire also contains a full report on the recent upheavals in the organization, including the removal and subsequent restoration of Herbert Armstrong's handsome son, Garner Ted - with whom Hopkins obtained and exclusive interview."
AMBASSADORS OF ARMSTRONGISM:
An Analysis of the History and Teachings of The
Worldwide Church of God
Paul Benware 1977
Second Edition 1988
"The causal listener to radio and TV broadcasts of THE WORLD TOMORROW and readers of the beautifully produced four-color magazine THE PLAIN TRUTH with its interviews of statesmen and other world figures, is not likely to recognize immediately their departures from Biblical truth. What are the dangers of the doctrinal positions proclaimed? Are there clear Biblical answers to the claims of the Worldwide Church of God?"
In this book, Benware, Professor of Bible and Theology at the Moody Bible Institute of Chicago, investigates the church's history, its propaganda methods, and its major doctrinal teachings. He then ably refutes the major doctrinal errors of the Armstrong cult with the plain truth of Scripture."
ARMSTRONGISM 300 ERRORS EXPOSED
by 1300 Bible Verse
S. E. Anderson 1975
"This exposé of Armstrongism is the result of long and concentrated study of the cult's magazines, books, tracts, correspondence lessons and personal letters. Their radio and TV programs are "come on" devices meant to lure people to further study and eventual capture.
"The author has spent 50 years in Bible Studies, preaching and teaching. He served on a seminary faculty 12 years and 7 years on a college faculty. During that time he graded many thousands of lessons in Bible and history, from a wide variety of students of many denominations. In such work he had to develop skills in sorting out falsehoods from truth, bad logic from good reason, and baseless traditions from historical facts.
"Many of America's 130,000,000 Christians feel that Armstrongism is as dangerous to our churches as drugs are to a peaceful society.
"For rapid Growth, Armstrongism rivals Mohammedanism in its earlier years. In attacking Christian churches, Armstrong's psychological skills rival those of the communist."
ARMSTRONGISM: Religion or Rip-off
Marion McNair
No date, but deals a lot with GTA's exile 1974-75
"Thousands of normal family units have been broken up by Armstrong's regime. Many, many people have suffered physical ailments and died rather than see aid from those in the medical profession.
"But, perhaps most pathetic of all is the little known case of the poor, the fatherless and the widow who have been deprived or have deprived themselves of, adequate food, clothing and shelter to give to an organization which freely admits it's commission is not the same as that which Christ gave to his apostles and His church.
"He reveals the details of Armstrong's failure as a team worker in school, his failure as a business man, as a family provider and as a prophet and minister.
He reveals the facts surrounding Armstrong's inability to cooperate with other ministers and how he left Oregon after the close of World War II- after having TWENTY-ONE major prophecy failures between early 1938 and mid 1945.
The author dares to tell the truth about Herbert Armstrong's Jet-set banquets with party tabs running as high as $10,000.
Documents the rise and fall of Portune, Meredith, Hoeh, McNair, Dart, Smith, Cole, McCullough, Hunting, Rader. Also lists failed prophecies from the 1960's to the 1972 disaster.
THE PLAIN TRUTH about ARMSTRONGISM:
An Updated Expose of the Worldwide
Church of God
Roger Chambers 1988
"Armstrongism is presented to the public in a very convincing way. Madison Avenue has never offered a more efficient hard sell. But the broadcasts are seldom given to explaining the specific teachings of the sect
"It is astonishing that the ancient Ebonite error concerning the Law and the Sabbath can enjoy both resurrection and survival through Seventh-Day Adventism in the same world that has access to the New Testament. If Adventist error can survive the Epistle to the Galatians, the Armstrongite version of it will be as durable."
AW comment: Well, the author got that last bit wrong :)
Herbert W Armstrong and his Worldwide Church of God:
A Critical Examination
Roger Campbell 1974
"Each chapter in this book deals with some specific area where Herbert Armstrong has departed from correct Bible interpretation. Along with the exposition of error, I have shared the approach that I have found to be most helpful in leading people from Armstrongism to the Truth.
Some of the things revealed about Mr. Armstrong and his theology will be surprising. Some readers may even rebel at some of the facts presented, and my doubt their accuracy. In that event, it will be a simple task to check the references to Armstrong's material To the best of my ability these references are carefully quoted, in their context, to present a true picture of Herbert W. Armstrong and his Worldwide Church of God.
Radio Church of God: How
It's Teachings Differ From Those of Seventh-Day Adventists
Harry Lowe 1970
"We have gone through about thirty-six copies of The Plain Truth, noting the letters under "What Our Readers Say," and we have not found any that speak of the victorious experience through Christ's grace. There may be some that we have not seen, but the main emphasis surely seems to be on blessings received from tithe paying or keeping the law, or a consciousness of knowledge or enlightenment beyond the blindness of those around them. None seems to emphasize a deeper love for Christ as our Savior"
AW comment: This was a semi-official Seventh-day Adventist response to Herbert Armstrong's teachings, produced by an Adventist publishing house.
The Armstrong Error: The
Plain Truth on Herbert W. Armstrong
Charles F. DeLoach 1971
DeLoach was a former member of the church
"Herbert W. Armstrong's Radio Church of God, while appearing to be Christian, is in reality a perversion of Christianity. This is clearly revealed by the author who was a member of Armstrong's cult before his conversion. This book should be read by all Christians, and should be given to those who have become confused by Herbert W. Armstrong and the Radio Church of God.
"I hold no bitterness or resentment toward the Armstrong people. My personal feeling toward them is one of sorrow, for they have deceived themselves into believing they serve God. But like the dedicated Buddhist, Hindu, or Muslim, they serve another In my own case, my association with them, my study under them, then the very lengthy and exhaustive Bible Study and library research that was required to free myself from their teachings has given me an understanding of the Holy Scriptures and its true doctrines which I might not have otherwise obtained and which I find priceless."
Herbert W. Armstrong & The Radio Church of God:
Is It The Plain Truth?
Walter Martin 1985
Dr. Walter Martin is the author of the best-selling THE KINGDOM OF THE CULTS and the director of the Christian Research Institute. In this helpful little booklet, he takes a careful look at the theology of Herbert W. Armstrong in the light of Scripture. He points out the areas of Armstrong's doctrine which are theologically weak or contrary to the Bible, using evidence from the Radio Church of God documents and broadcasts
"The author's purpose is twofold: to uphold the integrity of Scripture, and to warn those who may be misled by what seems to be "The Plain Truth."
Herbert Armstrong's Tangled
Web: An Insiders View of the
Worldwide Church of God
David Robinson 1980
AW comment: Perhaps the most damning expose of Herbert Armstrong ever. Former WCG minister David Robinson blew the lid on Armstrong's moral hypocrisy. Unfortunately David Robinson's son, John (at one stage editor of The Worldwide News), has refused to allow republication of Tangled Web. Copies are very difficult to obtain.