OUTSIDER'S INSIDE UPDATE^™

Volume ONE ... a newsletter of understanding ... Spring `97

Published by the Exit & Support Network™ 
 All Rights Reserved ©

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VOLUME Four contents:

NETWORK NEWS
PROPAGANDA and Dialectical Materialism (two techniques the WCG has used
   throughout its years in an effort to control)
As the Whirlwide Turns, Part Four
When Prophecy Fails!!!
Cognitive Dissonance
The "HISTORIC" TKACHIAN THOUGHT REFORM PROGRAM
What You Don't Know Did Hurt You
Recapturing True History
What Faulty Doctrine???
The Pseudo Numbers Game
The Selling of Assets and Loss of Members
The Evangelical Televangelist Scandal
The Five Year Plan and the beginning of The Cognitive Dissonance Campaign
So, was there a Plan to DIVIDE and CONQUER the Worldwide Church of God? You Bet There WAS!!!
FEAR!
The Godfather Buys a New Bride
"The Little Rascals" featuring Hanky and Spanky
CRI Asks ESN for Help (link starts with CRI Story and covers corruption exposure)
What is Armstrongism?
Divide and Conquer
The Flock Scatters!!! Does It Really???
In Transition??? How Appropriate a Name!
Ronald L. Dart
Armstrongism Adapts A New Identity
Friends Of The Sabbath

Go to OIU Volume 5 contents

Back to OIU Newsletters

Disclaimer

NETWORK NEWS   

Where have we been? A day doesn't pass without the phone ringing, requesting the latest OIU. Some have wondered if the Exit & Support Network (ESN) was still in operation. Those who have called have been updated and informed with up-to-the minute details regarding the ESN. To us it seems like Volume THREE was mailed just yesterday; others reading it for the first time conclude its content describes the exact events as they unfold this very day. We have good excuses why we have held off on re-issuing the OIU. Do you as a reader have a good reason not knowing what the ESN is up to these days?

The ESN is well into its fourth year although its accomplishments might suggest many years of operation. The successes of the ESN are largely due to the relentless dedication of several who are fully committed to assisting those caught in the web of religious deception. Listed below are just a few of the priorities and accomplishments:

1. Monitored the WCG's orchestrated agenda with the dismantling of the previous structure and employment of the evangelical marketing strategy.
2. Exclusively investigated and covered the Garner Ted Armstrong sexual assault lawsuit. Issued SIX detailed investigative reports to hundreds. The ESN did the arduous detailed research work, while fringe propagandists plagiarized the writings, claiming self-seeking fame and recognition. Details will follow!
3. Maintained scrutiny on the evolution of the extension COG groups with research and investigation (R&I) detailing the reasons behind the events.
4. Built the only available WCG conglomerate archive that rivals none, including the WCG itself!
5. Attended several national conferences on topics such as: law enforcement, mind control, cults in today's society and studies of ancient religions.
6. Conducted several seminars at professional conferences on deceptive religious organizations and the mainstreaming of cultic groups.
7. Mailed hundreds of packets for info-requests and specific assistance.
8. Accomplished several Research & Investigative (R&I) trips across the country relating to the reasons behind the events.
9. Continued producing support assistance to hundreds seeking references, assistance or answers to their questions.

And that is only part of it! The ESN has been in the forefront of several traumatic events with individuals and breaking news. We have been active as a voice and proactive with the endeavor to expose the works of evil. The few of us who have dedicated the countless hours and sacrificed our personal lives carry the load of a major work force. The ESN's success is credited to the fact that we will not give up and our strong will-will continue to inspire us to unravel the rat's nest of decades of deception. Our collective voice will continue to help free those exploited by propaganda, mind control, religious fraud, corruption and political agenda. The sinister psychopaths [Read: Profile of a Sociopath] who come in HIS name inflict slavery on the unsuspecting by cunningly assuming power and control while perpetrating their money hungry, occultic, New Age agenda on the souls of those who are looking for Christ.

The time lapse between reports has allowed us to gather critical information on those involved in the hypocrisy. There is no more time for ignorance or silence. While we cannot control the evil or do away with the perpetrators, we can expose them. Collectively, that voice will reach others as a warning. The least we can do in the name of God is help our fellow man from stumbling into the currently brewing cesspool refashioned from the leftovers of decades past.

The OIU mission remains the same as the day we started the first official WCG Network. We will continue to:

• State the facts.
• Report the true history of the WCG and counter the refashioned lies.
• Provide information that propels questions and critical thinking.
• Report the reasons behind the events.
• Foster accountability on behalf of those posturing as religious ministers or church organizations.

Yes! We've been very busy, now it is about time you know what is going on.

WARNING:

Please read the following articles carefully. The information covers techniques the WCG has used throughout its years in an effort to control. The OIU objective is to provide the necessary understanding of the composite theory behind the actual events of confusion. No one said it would be easy and we'd be happy to answer any further questions relating to the information in this OIU.

PROPAGANDA

What is it?

"Propaganda is the expression of opinion or action by individuals or groups deliberately designed to influence opinions or actions of other individuals or groups with reference to predetermined ends."

Propaganda and Democracy

Many opinions or propaganda are highly charged with emotion, prejudice and bitterness. People make a virtue of defending their own opinions or propagandas. Many would deal with opinions or propagandas they don't like by suppressing them-by violence, if need be. But suppression of unpopular opinions or propagandas is contrary to democratic conceptions of government.

Propaganda conforms to democratic principles when it tends to preserve and extend democracy; it is antagonistic when it undermines and destroys democracy.

Democracy has four parts, set forth or implied in the Constitution and federal statutes:

1. Political: Freedom to vote on public issues, freedom of press and speech to discuss those issues in public gatherings, in press, radio, motion pictures, etc.
2. Economic: Freedom to work and to participate in organizations and discussions to promote better working standards and higher living conditions for the people.
3. Freedom from oppression based on theories of superiority or inferiority.
4. Religious: Freedom of worship, with separation of church and state.

Many are misled by propaganda antagonistic to democracy as few persons have had the opportunity to learn how to detect and analyze propaganda.

The chief danger of propaganda is its appeal to emotion and decisions made under stress of emotion often leading to disaster when the emotion crowds out cool, dispassionate thought.

"Free propaganda," wrote the Springfield Republican, Sept. 3, 1937, "is nothing but free publicity for views, interpretations, arguments, pleadings, truths and untruths, half-lies and lies of all creation. Propaganda is good as well as bad. We are surrounded by clouds of propaganda... It is up to each of us to precipitate from those clouds the true and the false, the near-true and the near-false, identifying and giving to each classification its correct label."

ABC's of Propaganda Analysis

1. All propaganda is associated with conflict in some form--either as cause, or as effect, or as both cause and effect.
2. If we check our own opinions with respect to conflicts about which we feel strongly-on which we take sides-we see the direction of our own propagandas or opinions.
3. Propaganda, which concerns us most, is today's propaganda associated with today's conflicts. It affects our incomes, our businesses, our working conditions, our health, our education, our rights and responsibilities in fields political, economic, social and religious.
4. Our own opinions, even with respect to today's propagandas, have been largely determined for us by inheritance and environment. We tend to distrust the opinions of those who differ from us in those ways. Only drastic changes in our life conditions, with new and different experiences, associations, and influences can offset or cancel out the effect of inheritance and long years of environment.
5. A fundamental step in propaganda analysis, therefore, is to analyze ourselves, to make clear why we act and believe as we do with respect to various conflicts and issues-political, economic, social and religious.
6. The most effective way to deal with propaganda, once we recognize it, is to suspend our judgment until we obtain essential facts and implications involved in the propaganda. We must ask: Who is the propagandist? Is he consciously and intentionally trying to influence our thoughts and actions? For what purpose does he use the common propaganda devices? How does he use words and symbols? What are their exact meanings? What do they mean to the propagandist's interests? Do his interests coincide with the interests of most citizens?
7. That fact that some words are "omnibus" words makes many the easy dupes of propagandists. Omnibus words are words extraordinarily difficult to define. They carry all meanings to all men. Therefore, the best test for the factual content of propaganda lies in specific, concrete definition of the words and symbols used by the propagandist. Moreover, sharp definition is the best antidote against words and symbols carrying a high charge of emotion.

How to Detect Propaganda

We are fooled by propaganda chiefly because we don't recognize it when we see it. We can more easily recognize propaganda when we see it, if we are familiar with the seven common propaganda devices. These are:

1. The Name Calling Device.
2. The Glittering Generalities Device.
3. The Transfer Device.
4. The Testimonial Device.
5. The Plain Folks Device.
6. The Card Stacking Device.
7. The Bandwagon Device.

Why are we fooled by these devices? Because they appeal to our emotions rather than to our reason. They make us believe and do something we would not believe or do if we thought about it calmly, dispassionately. In examining these devices we note that they work most effectively at those times when we are too lazy to think for ourselves; also, they tie into emotions which sway us to be 'for' or 'against' nations, races, religions, ideals, economic and political policies and practices, and so on...

Abraham Lincoln must have had in mind citizens who could balance their emotions with intelligence when he made his remark: "but you can't fool all of the people all of the time."

[The above introduction to understanding propaganda was excerpted from Volume 1 of the publications of the Institute For Propaganda Analysis, Inc.]

"KNOW YOUR ENEMY is the first principle in any encounter, whether it be football or war (hot or cold)."¹ The American events of this century have served as spawning grounds for creating and enhancing diabolical techniques that attack the citizen's mind, disabling him from having the ability to learn how to think independently, let alone objectively analyze events unfolding before his eyes. The wars of this century have taught the leaders how to capture their target through psychological means, as the physical techniques of the past become antiquated.

Propaganda became a staple in the American diet with the birth of the radio. The more citizens listened to the box in their living rooms, the less they exercised their thinking skills. The cracker barrel discussions² of the last century gave way to opinions and thoughts entering the mind, leaving critical discussion a thing of the past. As the newspapers grew along with the radio monopoly, the citizen took on a new, more submissive role as sharp thinking skills eroded throughout each decade. Even before radio, the infamous KKK propaganda movie, Birth of a Nation, paved the way for an onslaught of movie and TV propaganda.³

"Some of the devices now so subtly and effectively used by good and bad propagandists are as old as language. All have been used in one form or another by all of us in our daily dealings with each other. Propagandists have seized upon these methods we ordinarily use to convince each other, have analyzed and refined them, and have experimented with them until these homely devices of folk origin have been developed into tremendously powerful weapons for the swaying of popular opinions and actions."

The point of stressing this topic as an introduction to OIU Vol. FOUR is to accent the importance of understanding what is propelling the unfolding events. When one earnestly puts aside his biases, to educate himself about the tactics used by the WCG system and ministers in an effort to inhibit critical thinking of its members, one's mind opens up to a world of understanding and discernment surrounding the deceptions. It is through the educational process of looking outside the closed tunnel vision fostered by the WCG way of life that leads to learning the real truth behind THE PLAIN TRUTH. Then reasons behind the events easily unfold before one's eyes.

Dialectical Materialism

"The end of war is the control of a conquered people. If a people can be conquered in the absence of war, the end of war will have been achieved without the destruction of war. A worthy goal... and the glory of Communist conquest over the stupidity of the enemies of the People."
--Brainwashing, A synthesis of the Russian Textbook on Psychopolitics, an exposé by Kenneth Goff

"Through clever and constant application of propaganda, people can be made to see paradise as hell, and also the other way around, to consider the most wretched sort of life as paradise."
--Adolph Hitler, Mein Kampf

"The beginning of wisdom is to call things by their right names."
--Chinese proverb

See Proverbs 8: 5-20

Recently the OIU questioned several regarding their education on Communism. All replied that whatever knowledge they had was contributed through self-study. No one recalled covering the "topic" in any significance in their past education, which for all consisted of advanced degrees. Is there any wonder why?

As the 20th Century approaches its end, we become increasingly aware of the stronger governmental controls placed on individuals and society in general. Surely, many feel the controls and increased surveillance measures are welcomed as they, as citizens, are led to believe it is for their own well-being. That, along with the "security" feelings generated by those in charge of providing "these" measures, has led many throughout our society to be complacent and submissive toward the loss of personal freedoms.

Why, others wonder, do Americans sit on their laurels and allow the Constitution to be eroded by soft-sell propaganda? What creates such apathy and ignorance, which appears to replace the critical thinking, courage and energy needed to confront the issues of our day?

Unless one had majored in "history," chances are one's understanding of historical events are very shallow and rote at best. Schools certainly do not concentrate in this area and most students form a disdain for the word by 7th grade. This deficit of understanding has created a generous gap for exploiters or controllers with agendas opposite to the Constitution or our democratic society.

In our in-depth research the ESN was forced to delve into the history of the United States. We could not possibly understand the growth or history of the WCG without paralleling the events occurring in the United States or throughout the world. As time passes, the OIU will continue to define the reasons behind the events. As much as we'd like to sum it up in a few paragraphs, it is not possible due to the complexity and enormity of the issues related to our history in society and its connection with this century's Christianity.

First, a little history review will help to understand the origin of Dialectical Materialism.

"George Friedrich Wilhelm Hegel (1770-1831) was a German philosopher who was very influential during the nineteenth century. Though much of his writings are considered abstruse, what he was and is in reality, (as he continues to live through his ideas), is a master manipulator and an expert in the art of lying. The form of manipulation he espoused is what communists the world over use today. It is called the "dialectic," that is, thesis vs. antithesis which leads to synthesis."⁴

This is all very confusing! And that's just the point. If people knew of the manipulation and deceptions fostered upon them, the perpetrators would lose control. Two guides to dwell on: What we don't know, will hurt us and what seems laudable is actually a smoke screen for sinister purposes and motivations.

Karl Heinrich Marx (1818-1883) was a German economist, philosopher and revolutionist whose writings form the basis of the body of ideas known as Marxism. With the aid of Friedrich Engles he produced much of the theory of modern socialism and communism. Marx's father, Heinrich, was a Jewish lawyer who had converted his family to Christianity partly in order to preserve his job in the Prussian state. Karl himself was baptized in the Evangelical church. As a student at the University of Berlin, young Marx was strongly influenced by the philosophy of G. W. F. Hegel. Following in the footsteps of Ludwig Feuerbach,⁵ Marx applied Hegel's concept of "alienation" to ownership of private property, which he said caused humans to work only for themselves and not for the good of their species. He elaborated on the idea of alienation of an economic base and called for a communist society to overcome the dehumanizing effect of private property. Marx's close relationship with Friedrich Engels laid the foundation for their materialistic conception of history. They argued that human thought was determined by production. They developed a method of analysis they called Dialectical Materialism, (DM) in which the clash of historical forces leads to changes in society.⁶

Facts and Points about DM:

• Dialectical Materialism is the underlying philosophy of most contemporary Communist governments.
• Dialectics is termed from Hegel's philosophy, which is a way of thinking about the world, in all its complexity.
• With dialectics, the changes and interactions that anything undergoes are brought into focus and emphasized and special attention is devoted to whatever patterns emerge.
• The uneasy tensions between historical forces promoting change, and the systemic ones promoting stability are captured in the idea of 'contradiction,' understood as a progressive pulling apart of what is functionally united.
• DM is a synthesis of materialism and the dialectic developed by G. W. F. Hegel.
• Change is viewed as the result of the interaction of opposites. Each thing that exists (thesis) gives rise to the opposite (antithesis); the interaction of thesis and antithesis is ultimately reconciled (synthesis) to become a new thesis. Marx and Hegel used these assumptions to analyze and explain historical development.⁷

In her book, The Rewriting of America's History, author Catherine Millard states:

"...The Hegelian Principle can be explained as follows: Change in a society is brought about in a three-step process: Thesis, antithesis, and synthesis. The first step (thesis) is to create a problem. The second step (antithesis) is to generate opposition to the problem (fear, panic, hysteria). The third step (synthesis) is to offer the solution to the problem created in step one-change which would have been impossible to impose on the people without the proper psychological conditioning achieved in stages one and two."

This proper psychological conditioning is a major power component to mind control. Propaganda is blindly accepted through carefully orchestrated steps used by totalitarian regimes to control people. "By deliberately creating chaos in economics, in crime control, and other societal problems, and then forcing change on people to supposedly 'solve' the problems they themselves created. Planned chaos brings about anarchy, and anarchy, being a terrifying state of lawlessness, finally causes people to throw up their hands and give up their freedom (change) for the relative stability of totalitarianism."⁸ 

What does all this have to do with propaganda? Propaganda is the distraction; dialectical materialism is the method of delivery. Propaganda is the lie; dialectical materialism is the contradiction. Propaganda is successful when the conditions are ripe and the audience is prepared. The following conditions are essential:

• Trust in the authority issuing the propaganda.
• An environment not conductive to inquiry.
• Information control.
• Apathy or submission created from confusion, trauma or change.
• Non-critical thinking; submission of personal will.
  

Dialectics can further be explained as logic of two opposites-meaning, two opposites fed in the mind at any given time. Anytime you accept simultaneously contradicting beliefs or concepts, you are rendered docile and indifferent to furthering arguments from either side. This is also known as doublethink. Contradiction is caused when two messages are stated at the same time. Opposing views, simultaneously stated, creates confusion and contradiction. The mental state of confusion and contradiction induces psychological trauma. The psychological trauma is equalized by submission to the newly propagandized view. Cognitive dissonance is the mental conflict caused by opposing views, which leads to a mental dissociative state, or trance-like state. The dissociative mental state allows the propagandist to manipulate his targets under his control without rebellion.

"Hegel's principles underlie Marxist socialism, where man is the measure of all things and the state is worshipped, inevitably leading to slavery. Socialism is simply a system, an idea, a mind state, a worldview that insists that people serve the government and man's arbitrary government is exalted uber alles. Heil Hitler! Have we learned nothing from history?

Hegel's dialectics (known also as the Hegelian Principle) is a glorification of the state over man and reveals an immoral end-justifies-the-means mentality. It is a crass manipulation of mind and matter, severed from vital spiritual principles that inform a normal, healthy person's bedrock character (don't lie, cheat, steal or murder)."⁹

The significance of understanding the origins of communism and the philosophies molded through the Marx/Engel era will be explored in future issues and reports, as it strongly pertains to what is happening in 20th century Christianity. An understanding of their Dialectics and Materialism is, however, pertinent to discerning the actual WCG events.

The carefully orchestrated events of these past eight years, initiated by the elitist controllers of the Worldwide Church of God have been largely implemented by the age old psychological techniques that have placed "historic" names such as Hegel, Marx, Lenin, Stalin, Hitler and Mao in bold print on the pages of history.

As Herbert W. Armstrong accurately pointed out in his letter to the Brethren, Nov. 1967, "The biggest mistake Mao Tse Tung made was not having a 'GOD' at the head of the government."

Just like there are reasons behind the events, so, too, there are reasons why a WCG member, when asked about changes, so often responds, "Nothing's changed." Further on in this report, will be explained how dialectical materialism was carried out on the members of the WCG and extension groups and the devastating effects that resulted.

AS THE WHIRLWIDE TURNS™  
Part Four

"Well what comes from the 1994 Feast of Tabernacles? Another exciting family reunion! A dawning of a NEW AGE and the wonderful world tomorrow, when the Feast of Tabernacles anticipates a worldwide harvest of redemption, a time when the earth is filled with knowledge of the Lord. A time when nature, government, economy, culture will work in harmony in bringing His children to glory and fulfilling our INCREDIBLE HUMAN POTENTIAL." Joseph W. Tkach Sr. 1994

The one item left out of this telling statement of introduction made by Joseph Tkach Sr. (JWT Sr.) way back in `94, is the fact that God's Great Plan of Salvation included one world religion along with the one world government system run by the Great Architect of the Universe.

Yes, it was a time when all would dwell together in harmony with the lion and lamb. A time when all leaders would turn their swords into plowshares and unite as one people. The truth would be open to everyone, as God's Way would rule the Universe. All would rejoice in the Government from the top down. All would be keeping the Sabbath, as it was the sign between man and God. Only those in the one true church, who endured to the end, would be the bride-to-be, changed at the twinkling of the eye at Christ's return. The one and only true church in His universe was being trained to be the leaders in the Wonderful World Tomorrow. The trials of this fleshy, carnal life, along with strict obedience to God's only true ministers and HQ church on earth, were to guarantee a name in the Book of Life. The Plan of Salvation demanded Sabbath Keeping and Law Keeping as defined by His instruments that He alone ordained.

Disobedience meant disfellowshipment from the vine, the body. Once discarded into Satan's world, all would be lost-Salvation-the Resurrection-the World Tomorrow-and Eternity would be lost forever. The end would be met in the Third Resurrection, when the loving God would raise the failures and allow them to view the wonderful Satan-less world just prior to tossing them into the Lake of Fire to be obliterated as if they never were, leaving behind those who endured to the end. Ah, the Mystery of the Ages. How incredible to be exclusively called by the living God, or "Great Architect of the Universe,"¹⁰ as part of His small flock of children, following His Apostle Herbert W. Armstrong.

[Update 2005: For those who are interested, see: "Questioning HWA's Doctrines."]

WHEN PROPHECY FAILS!!!

One book, which clearly explains the Tkachian THOUGHT REFORM strategy, is, When Prophecy Fails, by Leon Festinger, Henry W. Riecken and Stanley Schachter. Its subtitle, "A social and psychological study of a modern group that predicted the destruction of the world," includes 250 pages of well-documented historical examples of various religious groups, which, like the WCG, gathered huge followings. The many examples demonstrate how these groups, headed by prophetic, often charismatic leaders claiming to be God's only true human instrument, grow--become fanatical--and attach their total allegiance to the man who dictates the future for them.

What sets this book aside from others is the detailed explanation of why adherents to apocalyptic groups continue to support the group, even after the leaders die or are proven false or frauds. Time and again throughout history, religious leaders have claimed the coming of Christ, dated His return and documented prophecy predictions for all to view. In our in-depth research of the WCG we learned the format presented in this 1955 classic is verbatim to the propagation of the WCG chronology of events throughout the past ten years. The insightful research also invites a closer look into the well thought out Tkachian methods used to manipulate and deceive thousands into a new THOUGHT REFORM program.

Cognitive Dissonance

If you are a current member of the WCG, you may have been privy to several comments made by Joseph Tkach Jr. regarding "cognitive dissonance." We at the ESN were quite amused to hear the words flow from his lips starting on the January `96 "Bible Answer Man" show with Christian Research Institute's President, Hank Hanegraaff. The Tkachians take every opportunity to explain that the WCG change created a cognitive dissonance in its members. The ESN has been reporting on the subject of cognitive dissonance well before Tkach Jr. started putting his public spin on the trauma-induced psychological problem. Our thorough and ongoing studies in mind-control, programming, hypnosis and on how cults operate, along with the real history of the WCG and Herbert W. Armstrong, were instrumental in uncovering and understanding the methods employed by the WCG leaders to recruit and maintain adherents. The well-trained ministers and business moguls have adopted the age old methods used by other "historic" groups and incorporated some of the latest mind control, manipulation and persuasion techniques known to man. The WCG psychological THOUGHT REFORM was keenly maneuvered and demonstrated through the "change" strategy stemming from the inner offices and secret compartments of HQ, which lead to the carefully orchestrated fraction of the WCG conglomerate.

What does all this mean? Most everyone who talks with us asks, "How have they fooled me like this?" or, "Why couldn't I see through the deception?" These varied questions always point to the same answer: "In our society today, what you don't know, will hurt you!" The deceptive, and often sinister tactics used throughout society in marketing, advertising and recruiting are aimed at the unsuspecting. No one can protect himself from being victimized by the spiritual rape artists' techniques, if not educated or skilled as to how to detect the perpetrators. That, coupled with religiosity and emotionalism, leaves even the most intelligent a perfect target. Millions of spiritual searchers have fallen into the hands of charlatans and deceivers throughout history. The search for salvation and truth has historically led many into destruction, poverty and death. On the other hand, perpetrators have stepped up their enlightenment on the slick and evil techniques needed to exploit and conquer the human nature of their fellow man. The God, Gospel and Salvation business has earned fame, fortune and name place in the books of history.

Where does cognitive dissonance fit into the picture? It was one of the carefully orchestrated psychological techniques deceptively used on the membership of the WCG organization. It provided psychological disarmament of members' thinking ability, which allowed implementation of the new THOUGHT REFORM. This induced a psychological trauma technique paving the way for the controllers of the organization to manipulate their well-planned re-structuring and eradication of the multi-million dollar religious empire!

Psychological journals, countless books and volumes of research work on stress and trauma clearly define cognitive dissonance and dissociative disorders. There are hospitals and agencies devoted specifically to the cure for this disorder. A clear explanation relating to the WCG may be quoted from When Prophecy Fails:

"Dissonance and consonance are relations among conditions-that is, among opinions, beliefs, knowledge of the environment, and knowledge of one's own actions and feelings. Two opinions or beliefs, or items of knowledge are dissonant with each other if they do not fit together-that is, if they are inconsistent, or if, considering only the particular two items, one does not follow from the other. For example, a cigarette smoker who believes that smoking is bad for his health has an opinion that is dissonant with the knowledge that he is continuing to smoke. He may have many other opinions, beliefs, or items of knowledge that are consonant with continuing to smoke but the dissonance nevertheless exists too."

"Dissonance produces discomfort and, correspondingly, there will arise pressures to reduce or eliminate the dissonance. Attempts to reduce dissonance represent the observable manifestations that dissonance exists. Such attempts may take any or all of three forms. The person may try to change one or more of the beliefs, opinions, or behaviors involved in the dissonance; to acquire new information or beliefs that will increase the existing consonance and thus cause the total dissonance to be reduced, or to forget or reduce the importance of those cognitions that are in a dissonant relationship."

"If any of the above attempts are to be successful, they must meet with support from either the physical or the social environment. In the absence of such support, the most determined efforts to reduce dissonance may be unsuccessful."

"…Rationalization can reduce dissonance somewhat. For rationalization to be fully effective, support from others is needed to make the explanation or the revision seem correct. Fortunately, the disappointed believer can usually turn to the others in the same movement, who have the same dissonance and the same pressures to reduce it. Support for the new explanation is, hence, forthcoming and the members of the movement can recover somewhat from the shock of disconfirmation

The authors highlight this text with the history of the Millerite movement of 1800's. When their prophecies, similar to HWA's prophecies, failed, the majority of the members did not disband, but instead regrouped and fractionated with renewed adherence to their leader's original prophecies. The history of the Millerites offers an insightful look into the behavior of those who are inflicted with "disconfirmation" and clearly defines the expected outcome for those who may choose to exploit the weaknesses in human nature.

For the full understanding of cognitive dissonance in this context, you should get the book. Though out of print, it may be located in the library or bookstores, which carry old books.

So what's the big fuss about cognitive dissonance anyway? As previously stated, it can be used as a destructive tool to manipulate and hurt the unsuspecting. Before explaining how the Tkachian strategy capitalized on this, let's take a closer look at what happens to an individual purposely inflicted with techniques related to cognitive dissonance. Psychological trauma causes mental stress. As the stress builds, normal mental capacity diminishes. The brain can hold only so much stress before it starts to shut down. When the stress is enhanced with contradictions and confusion, the person's mind is unable to exercise critical thinking skills. The contradiction and confusion leads to more stress and the cycle continues causing trancing and dissociation. Dissociation is a psychological component that mentally removes the person from his current stress. Normal dissociation could be explained by daydreaming. Abnormal dissociation impairs memory and functionality.

Victims of severe abuse, or incest, often handle the painful trauma by disassociating. The dissociation can often lead to splitting or recreation of identities. That disorder is known as Dissociative Identity Disorder, or DID. The dissociation alleviates the pain and trauma at the time of infliction, but the repercussions of the intense dissociation are equally devastating which often results in the inability to discern reality from fantasy. Cognitive dissonance and dissociation affects everyone differently. Perpetrators who intentionally create an environment that induces these phenomena have a general idea as to what they expect regarding results and work within those confines.

There are many levels or degrees to the dissociation process. The degree we are concerned with is that which was manipulated by the WCG religiocrats™ to mastermind their THOUGHT REFORM program. The recipients of the clever trauma-inducing technique involved members of the church, Evangelicals in the greater Christian community and the public at large.

The art of propaganda teaches us that the propagandist mixes lies with truth. The skilled propagandists also preach against what they are directly guilty of committing. A good salesperson knows he should always meet his objections up front and leave his customer with no questions or concerns at the end of his presentation. No concerns usually mean a sell or sealed deal!

When Joseph Tkach Jr. started announcing the cognitive dissonance within the organization as an excuse for the traumatized members, he may have well admitted to implementing the strategy that inflicted the trauma on the members. The cat's out of the bag; his only recourse is to meet the objection up front like a good little propagandist.

The "HISTORIC" TKACHIAN
THOUGHT REFORM PROGRAM

Before delving into how the Tkachians strategized the cognitive dissonance, which aided their Cult In Transition historic campaign, please note the following:

• Based on Joe Jr's intellectual record, experiences and WCG history, we do not for a moment believe he has the in-depth sophisticated abilities to devise and orchestrate the THOUGHT REFORM program, or new marketing business strategy. For those who would attest that it is God or Jesus orchestrating the THOUGHT REFORM, we ask: "Is God a liar? Is God double-minded? Is God the same today, as He was yesterday?" Ponder these questions as you research the events regarding the history of the WCG organization and the men who held the power that corrupts.
• Tkachian is a term used to explain the methods and label current authors of the WCG revision and fragmentation.
• Based on the vast history of the WCG organization (some of which we reported and more of what we will report in the future) we strongly believe that the religious system/doctrines were used as a product to recruit members for one purpose, while maintaining subterfuge agenda pertaining to the covert multi-million dollar empire. The incredible unfolding of events has proven that the religiocrats are spiritually removed from the religious system they hide under, as they push doctrine in the forefront as a distraction to the actual game plan.
• Readers of the OIU come from all faiths and understandings; we at no time mean to insult personal belief. Our objective is to demonstrate how religion/doctrines have been used to manipulate and deceive thousands as the religiocrat capitalists conspire with power, wealth and political goals for their own personal gain.

Once Upon A Time!

The passing of Herbert W. Armstrong, in no way, marks the beginning of what many would term, the event of "change." Because the WCG has always operated as a secret society manifesting a cultic, closed system with severe information control, few have been able to critically consider the entire history of the organization. [Note: The only purpose of secrecy is to hide evil.] The leaders today and from the past are expert propagandists and revisionists. The WCG foundation has been historically supported by layers of lies surrounding the history of Herbert W. Armstrong; the inception of the Radio Church of God, the mission of the "church," and now the events of change, all of which domineered the WCG news these past several years. Few could contemplate the enormity and complexity of the actual history of this 62-year-old organization. This lack of awareness is greatly due to the psychologically abusive system fostered by its creators and supposed spiritual leaders. Exploration of the WCG history unveils a very different picture than that acquired while under the influence of its system. Often, researchers are devastated over the newly learned facts that were deeply hidden under the facade of "God's One True Church." While under the programming of the WCG system (often termed as Armstrongism), members lived under strict obedience to a law outlined by the controllers. That law mandated that members never deviate from the ministers' rule in thought, word or deed. Mavericks daring to test the minister were analogous to testing God and were quickly discarded like Satan-inspired rubbish from the flock. The reader should recall that salvation solely depended on being a member of the Worldwide Church of God; if you were cast from the vine, your destiny was the third resurrection and obliteration in the LAKE OF FIRE. Once programmed, the method of fear and guilt induction guaranteed a tight sovereignty on the members. This mental domination often allowed the leaders to carry on business as usual with sinister or clandestine agenda. The little flock was not cognizant of the leaders' mind control regime inflicted upon them. The WCG history consists of two views:

A.) The members' view
B.) The reality, or actual history, of the Worldwide Church of God.

The Tkachian THOUGHT REFORM could not have succeeded had the leaders allowed healthy behavior to flourish. The following tactics represent a long list of behavior control coercion used:

• Submission to "the authority"
• The attitude of "Be Like Children"
• Non-questioning
• Strict obedience to man interpreted "biblical laws"
• No viewing of outside literature
• No listening to "Satan's" Christianity on radio or TV
• No furthering of education at " Satan's" institutions
• No participation in the world activities, including voting
• Reporting on other members to the minister
• Shunning those who left, or were discarded from the WCG
• Cutting off family and friends leaving the WCG
• Destruction of personal will and identity
• Replacing self worth with self loathing
• Control of emotional environment

The closed WCG system dictated every behavior of its adherents making it virtually impossible for critical thinking to occur. In the future the OIU will discuss how hypnosis was used by the authority to deceive and control the members. Once programmed into the thinking that HWA was God's Apostle and the WCG was His only church on earth, it was near impossible to break from the embedded phobic fears tightly instilled by its ministers into the members thinking patterns through the keenly presented propaganda and verbal, mind-image torture program.

The Tkachians propagate that they have led the church out of apostasy to Jesus Christ. They play the innocent born-again role, claiming ignorance to the actual history of the WCG. As we continue to closely monitor the continuing abuse and deception fostered by the current elitists, we can easily visualize their smirks behind closed doors as they count their successes in multi-million $$$, as they dupe the remaining WCG members and onlookers that have sucked up the propaganda. One could only wonder what their feelings of accomplishments are these days as they adulate themselves for having carried their destructive talents into what was traditionally considered mainstream Christianity.

Beware! Wolves coming in sheep's clothing? No more, dear readers. The wolves don't bother to change costumes anymore. They have conditioned their targets so well that they can come, as they are, to get the job done and gobble up the goodies. And worse…. they come without conscience.

What You Don't Know--Did Hurt You!
So Where Did It All Start?

"It was 1969 when the Plain Truth took on a secular appeal for the first time. I recall being asked what my thoughts were regarding the fall of income. It was the beginning of a turbulent decade and the demise of the church." --J. W. Robinson, assistant Editor to Herman Hoeh. [ESN interview with J. W. on tape] [Update: Herman Hoeh died 11-21-04]

The WCG groupthink trains one to look ahead for the coming of Christ--for the Great Tribulation. For His elect will be changed, in the blink of an eye, into a spiritual being and joined with Christ on the Mount of Olives in preparation for the 1000 year reign. The committed members glued themselves to the gloom and doom news in anticipation that the end would be soon and they would not endure physical death. Each news event would be translated as part of God's plan and proof text that the world was going to end--very soon. This mental outlook mandated a "here and now" attitude. The past was insignificant; the future was described in the Mystery of the Ages, or The Wonderful World Tomorrow-What Will It Be Like? All the thinking was done for the member. The repetition of apocalyptic spin assured the ministers that the flock would not have ears to hear, or eyes to see, what was actually going on, or reveal that the ministers were doing the opposite of what they were preaching. "Learn to discern," and "prove all things," were merely words with no meaning. It was this same thinking that propelled people to forego dental work, education, careers, retirement savings, purchases such as homes or cars and all other investments into personal futures. The daily message was, "all is vanity." To understand the past or to plan for personal physical future was considered casting pearls to swine. It was (and continues to be) this same groupthink that has fueled the energy for the deceivers to carry on their daily covert activities under the guise of a church.

To understand the current THOUGHT REFORM, we must take a closer look into the history of the WCG as an organization and stretch beyond the current doctrinal distraction and onto the real story that destroyed the WCG empire. The ESN has assisted over one thousand WCG affiliated members over a two-year span. Our one-to-one work with victims clearly demonstrates that members struggle to view past their own personal experiences within the WCG. The WCG destructive system strips adherents from critical frame of reference, pilfering the thinking tools to view the "church" from other perspectives. The limiting, "here and now," thinking destroys abilities to objectively view chronological events of history and compare them to current strategies being used by the controllers. This is a serious problem for victims under the mind control of deceivers.

We will be delving deep within the history surrounding the WCG and its leaders in future OIUs and on the ESN R&I Audio Outreach. For now, we will state an overview prior to 1969.

Recapturing True History

The 1970s followed two financially productive decades. The British-Israelism (BI) -- Lost Ten Tribes message gathered momentum as it sailed its way through years of depression, racial unrest, World Wars, Civil Rights movements and the escalating trauma of nuclear war threat between the US and Soviet Union. By 1973, the once small Radio Church of God (RCG) grew to its all time high, 52,000 members.¹²

What many fail to acknowledge, or realize, is that the main Armstrong message was twofold: white supremacy and the pending Great Tribulation. God's people were the Aryan white race--the chosen ones who were selected to escape the fiery torture soon to demolish the land they inhabited. God's great plan, as outlined by the WCG writers (and documented throughout the archive of printed materials), consisted of shipping all the blacks back to Africa, Japanese back to Japan, Asians to their perspective countries, and so forth.

Without intending to do a detailed report on United States and Britain In Prophecy at this time, it is important to parallel the church's events with what was occurring in society. HWA's main message from the beginning of his ministry capitalized on society's unfolding events as it girdled the Aryan belief. His timely message rang out through the newly popular radio industry.

By the 1930s, the United States was in a major depression. The turbulent and corrupting 1920s left scars on the hearts of the US people. The unpopular immigration laws fueled many secret societies and rebellions, such as the Ku Klux Klan. Shortly following the rebirth of the KKK, its organizers incorporated Fundamental Protestant Christianity into its agendum empowering its sinister and evil behavior with credibility. The little KKK group of a few thousand swelled to seven million under their new Biblical format. By 1924, the KKK and Freemasonry¹³ worked as one group with one main goal: One government, one race, one religion! The KKK was anti-Catholic, anti-Jew and anti-black--in that order. By 1927, the KKK lost its popularity due to the exposure of abuses and atrocities it inflicted on the people of the US. By the late 1920s, Freemasonry distanced itself from their brothers in the KKK. Meanwhile, not less than forty thousand KKK members became Protestant ministers and continued to carry their main message throughout the land--British-Israelism.¹⁴

The largest proponent of British-Israelism during the 1930's to 1970 was Herbert W. Armstrong. His message of anti-Catholicism (Romanism) and Lost Ten Tribes attracted those steeped in the racial thoughts from earlier decades. The BI system chose specific Scriptures to validate its belief and behavior. It is often stated that HWA said things that made sense--and for many Radio Church of God members, HWA was telling the world what it wanted to hear.

A future report will closely scrutinize and detail the events listed above, along with an in-depth report on British-Israelism. This OIU issue is concerned with the history of the WCG in relationship to its current fragmentation and alignment with mainstream Christianity.

The BI message continued in popularity throughout the 1950s and 1960s. The year 1952 initiated the first booklet on God's way of living. As the years passed, the booklets and titles increased with thousands of free publications circulating throughout the US. The Armstrong message started gathering much more hate and negativity by other Protestant churches, Jewish synagogues and organizations such as the NAACP, than it did in recruiting results. British-Israelism, while strongly supported by the wealthy and power elite, continued to cause no small stir among advocate groups and civil right activists.

By 1971, Civil Rights escalated to all time highs spurring laws to be written. One such law mandated that minorities were not to be excluded from non-profit organizations. A trip through the Envoys and church literature will verify that Afro-Americans were not allowed in the church, or the college. Even though the WCG started allowing a few black adherents to enter its system, repression continued and was joined by other problems, which prevailed and pushed the church on a downhill spiral.

The 1920s KKK anti-Catholic message was the bread and butter of Armstrongism. What fueled additional scrutiny and exposure from the Protestant community was HWA's message of disdain for all Christians. He crossed the line even with like-minded Protestants when he set up his own totalitarian system on earth calling it the one truth. HWA added fuel to the fire when he grouped the Protestants with the Catholics, as he labeled all other Christians deceived and of Satan. [A real no-no in decades past.]

By the mid 1960s, the total Armstrong message and empire was under strong attack by outsiders. As stated in past OIU Volumes, the Evangelical community was pointedly focused on the WCG and wrote very critical assessments of it--frequently.¹⁸

The 1969 introduction to the secular message in the Plain Truth was an indication to some insiders that the church was faltering. Ernest L. Martin, Head of the Theology Dept., was one of the first to confront doctrinal error. By 1974, he, along with several thousand members and ministers, exited the WCG, blaming "faulty doctrine" and gross corruption with its Apostle, Herbert W. Armstrong and his free-wielding son.

[Update: Ernest Martin died 1-16-02.]

What Faulty Doctrine???

HWA's son, Garner Ted Armstrong, was disfellowshipped for "gross sexual sins" in 1972. [Update: Garner Ted Armstrong died of pneumonia at age 73 on September 15, 2003.] This was just at a time when many high level evangelists and ministers were questioning the teachings of HWA. Previous OIU issues touched on the history of the 1970s and the significant part it plays in the current restructuring and dividing of the organization. It became strongly apparent to Ernest Martin, Kenneth Westby, David Antion, Al Corozzo and many others that HWA was not espousing inspired doctrines from the Great Architect. As HWA, GTA, Rader and other elites from the WCG ministry were living in extreme opulence with several homes each, personal aircraft, opulent cars (Rolls Royce), endless bank accounts, real estate holdings, diamonds, furs, crystals, free college tuition, lavish expense accounts, all expense paid vacations to resorts, ETC., thousands of members were living in impoverishment, while giving their last dime toward HWA's pleas for income. Some were so poverty stricken, they could not afford meat or fresh vegetables, or other necessary basics of life. Detailed testimonies of abuse have found their way to the ESN, but the personal tragedy of the Canadian woman who was shoved onto the streets, along with her son, to live, homeless, following a long abusive intrusion into her personal life by the minister is a story that cries out for justice. The OIU will share this, and many other stories, in the future. [The Richard Plache Tapes reveal more about the exploitation of members.]

What might seem like a broken record for some readers is actually crucial information toward the discernment of the blatant lies delivered to the current members of the WCG and its extension groups. Few recall or know about the massive doctrinal upheaval that occurred in the early 1970s. HWA was, for the first time, challenged from within the church for further explanations of his teachings. These certain ministers, who at the time were most dedicated to pleasing God, were pioneers in exposing a goodly amount of the vast corruption that prevailed behind the HQ wall in Pasadena. Among many erroneous doctrinal complaints the following were of grave concern:

• The splitting up of families and marriages.
• Suicides initiated by doctrinal demands and manipulations.
• The Tithing Fallacy: The stealing of New Testament "un-biblical" tithes from members.
• The Israel Identity and Lost Ten Tribes-Identity Movement.
• The Healing Doctrinal demands.
• The dictatorial, authoritative control on "Gods' people."
• Issues surrounding Grace vs. Law.

HWA's confrontation with his extreme financial opulence, misuse of funds, and corruption fueled the WCG turbulence throughout the 1970s and was compounded by the fact that the church did NOT have a doctrinal belief. Often misconstrued, as doctrine was a carefully crafted and borrowed system of theology known as "God's Way of Living."

Archival documentation carefully scripts the momentous events that caused thousands to flee from the Armstrong empire and its teachings during the early 1970s. Pertinent documentation and knowledge that the Tkachians chose to cover-up was replaced by layers of lies and gross deception toward the unsuspecting. As we continue to expose the twisted deception by the "current leaders" from all the groups, it will become very obvious to the most skeptical that the supposed "Christian" leaders of the WCG, UCG, GCG, CGI, CEM, PCG have knowingly and blatantly lied and deceived the WCG remnant and continue to do so this very moment.

The lack of recruiting and doctrine problems propelled Robert L. Kuhn (Stan Rader's friend and close relative of Mr. Kuhn from Kuhn and Loeb bank), along with GTA, to devise the Systematic Theology Project. Despite their concerted effort, which compiles about eight inches of printed matter, the project was quickly dismissed by HWA upon his return from abroad, as he labeled the designers of the "new theology" liberals.

The Pseudo Numbers Game

The membership peaked at 52,000 in 1973 (men, women and children). Following the multi-thousand member exit in 1974, there has been a membership decline ever since. Despite a few new recruits during the 1970's, Garner Ted Armstrong's sexual encounters, the church's public exposure of the corruption, dictatorial oppression on its membership and grave doctrinal upheaval, led to an increased attrition rate. Readers must keep in mind that the WCG management always used "numbers" to confuse and defuse issues.¹⁹ This tactic of contradiction of numbers, or inflation of the actual church membership, helped diffuse the financial imbalance, which could never support the actual member count. The church membership has always been considerably lower than what was propagandized. This is very significant, especially when one starts to scrutinize the "income" of the organization. The WCG's dual agenda has been cleverly disguised by mis-reporting actual membership counts and income. Had the actual membership count been honestly noted, it would have been too obvious that such an opulent empire on earth could not have been supported by the tithes and offerings from the meek and lowly. Furthermore, it was well known and documented that money was not pouring in from the "co-workers." Where did the multi-million $$$ come from? That is another layered rat nest. More on this crucial topic soon.

The ESN will issue a separate report on how and why WCG manipulates the membership count. It is imperative to understand that this specific issue is crucial to the ongoing waste, fraud and abuse under the guise of a religious institution. If it were publicly known that the WCG acquired its massive non-profit empire in multiple devious ways other than running a respectable institution, its leaders, current and past would be spending their physical lifetimes in the same type of cell Charles (Chuck) Colson, was given prior to his infamous Prison Ministries.

The constant use of propaganda and history revision inhibits critical thinking necessary to scrutinize the events. Few realize that HWA, Stan Rader, Osamo Gotah, Aaron Dean and other select persons were away from the HQ scene during the late 1960s and 1970s up to 300+ days a year. Their visits to highly speculative Communist countries had nothing to do with "bringing the Gospel throughout the world." Significant dissension and disdain arose when some members learned that these trips had zero to do with the Gospel and everything to do with "political agenda." Millions of dollars were poured into an International deception that was largely carried out by the very same leaders of the current WCG conglomerate organizations: namely, Global Church of God and United Church of God, An International Association!! [Update: Rod Meredith, founder of Global Church of God, later founded Living Church of God in 1998.]

For the most part, the little flock was shielded from the massive turbulence that gnawed at the very cornerstone of the WCG empire. Scandal following scandal permeated international newsprint exposing the core of deception. The gross WCG behavior cast deep shadows on what sheltered members wholeheartedly believed was God's one and only true church on earth. The volcano of 1970 events erupted in 1978 with the ousting of GTA. The WCG religiocrats continued displaying tacky, unethical behavior, as described and archived in hundreds of reports and resignation letters from high level ministers who dissociated themselves from the wicked corruption within the church. Less then a year following GTA's ousting from the WCG, several members approached the California Attorney General for assistance, which led to the infamous receivership and two year legal battle over Church and State. By the end of 1978, the volcano of pus exploded, introducing a fire drill management for the next two decades. The real story of the receivership crisis is deserving of its own book. Unfortunately, the only published account was skillfully crafted by Stanley R. Rader, author of, Against The Gates of Hell. This propaganda cover-up book was distributed through another Rader/HWA entrepreneur adventure called Everest House Publishers. Everest House publishing was supported by WCG tithes, but unbeknownst to the members, it carried hard-core occult publications. Ah, if the sheep only knew their hard-earned tithes were being funneled to corporations that espoused occult teachings and NEW AGE ways for living.

Adding salt to the already wounded Worldwide Church of God of the 1970s, The Peoples Temple, hiding out in the jungle of Guyana (their Petra) and under the guidance of Rev. Jim Jones (their Apostle), followed their one true God-inspired leader (their HWA) to their deaths. More recent, as we prepare to print Vol. FOUR, we are triggered again by the horrific mass murder-suicide committed with the obedience of a cult leader promising a better kingdom. The Jonestown event introduced an onslaught of public awareness of destructive cults in our society. Following the Jonestown event, many WCG dissidents distributed Kool-Aid packets to their "dictator" ministers as a wake-up call. While the ministers ignored the warnings, the world was waking up to the 20th Century understanding of Cults In America.

[Note: Read this part in the Rules of Disinformation which talks about the CIA being involved in Waco and Jonestown. Our readers can do further research online concerning "Jim Jones being a CIA operative conducting mind control experiments."]

The Selling Of Assets
and Loss Of Members

As pointed out in Volume THREE of the OIU, the Tkachians, in their heroic attempt to transform the cult into a church espousing Christ, blamed the sudden financial crisis on the heroic doctrinal change. Within two weeks of the famous January New Covenant sermon, the Tkachians (David Hulme included) were issuing news releases to the LA Times and Pasadena Star News regarding the severe financial loss due to members withholding of tithes and offerings. Headlines read: Tithes and offerings wane because of doctrine change. Who would have known then that the WCG PR of doctrinal upheaval was a conditioning device targeted at the duped in prep for the next big event: the United Church of God breakaway.

Readers unknowing of the real WCG history had no way of discerning the newly devised deception and propaganda being played out before their confused eyes. Few realized that the organization, which touted 90,000 members, in reality, had about one third that number and was falling quickly. Fewer realized that assets were being liquidated with breathtaking speed starting as early as September of 1978. The secretive manipulations of (international) financial dealings were never exposed to the unsuspecting members. Despite the array of allegations permeating the church's headquarters surrounding financial corruption, the lavish multi-member WCG legal team spearheaded then by Rader, Kuhn, Cornwall and Helge employed unseen measures to hide the real financial WCG story.

As desperate members depended on the spin from the propaganda riddled Worldwide News, the real story played more like The Godfather. As mentioned earlier, the WCG has two histories: the members' view and the actual history. Those who viewed the movie, The Godfather, may recall how peaceful and joyful the baptism and wedding seemed to be. The viewer, however, was entertained with the duality of agenda splattered across the screens. Simultaneously occurring with the joyous events of the Corleone "Mafia" family, were murders, plots, corruption and evils of every description. Get the picture?

Secret liquidation of assets continued throughout the 1980s and into the 1990s. The church's financial condition cannot be determined by what is written to the members, or by the seldom-issued finance reports. Pastor General letters trumpeting financial panic attacks were timely orchestrated like campaigns and always written in conjunction with pending "Holy Day" offerings. When one casually reads though forty years of member letters, the game plan becomes most obvious and quite unprofessional. One is able to discern many tricks to the WCG trade (scam). The few financial reports presented in the WWN were distortions of financial facts leaving nothing to be verified.

The WCG totalitarian government and dictatorial ministerial control provided the perfect medium for gross deception and despicable behavior to go unchecked.

Following the death of HWA in 1986, the multi-million dollar empire continued with business as usual-but don't be fooled into thinking the church or its members were the main event with the Tkachians, anymore than they were under the image of HWA. The WCG membership, as small at it was, was built through a carefully fabricated image of one man; that image was fashioned and orchestrated through propaganda and marketing, which created the image into an idol. That idol was Herbert W. Armstrong. It is uncertain whether the Tkachians were prepared to deal with the loss of HWA's image in 1986. Had it not been for Rader's keen marketing strategy introduced in 1979 called, "Get The Church Back On Track," (GTCBOT) it is doubtful the declining membership would have sustained itself through the mid- 1980s. The Rader plot did buy time and allowed for asset liquidation, while most members were distracted with the image. At the very least, the campaign maintained a holding pattern for the most dedicated and unquestioning adherents.

The newly devised image promotion of HWA is analogous to the same strategy used in Communist China with Mao Tse Tung. Huge picture promotions monopolized the presses as HWA's picture took center stage in every piece of literature shipped from Pasadena. The image of HWA was carefully carried out by God's ministers. A small increase in recruiting was noted following the early 1980s recession, but that, too, halted when Reagonomics spurred the happy yuppies era into financial oblivion instead of religion. The decadent 1980s showed more interest in Junk Bonds than they did following The Law. The death of HWA crushed the GTCBOT promotion leaving the Tkachians to handle the next fire drill. The Tkachians attempted to maintain the status quo, but soon found out that the WCG was a personality cult and the excitement from the sheep declined along with the "We Are "Family" membership. The declining membership did entertain a few baptisms mostly generated by fence-sitting members who believed that the Tribulation was closer at hand now that HWA was gone.

The see-speak-hear no evil mentality of members prevented critical questioning. As the leaders/ministers preached the party line to the church, they managed with a heavy fist to any who dared to buck their system The see-speak-hear no evil mentality of members prevented critical questioning. As the leaders/ministers preached the party line to the church, they managed with a heavy fist to any who dared to buck their system.

Tkach Sr.'s role continued the image strategy with the "We Are Family" campaign. The big message emulated the mission of HWA, while little notice was given to the cut backs such as discontinuing the international Sky Channel. While the Tkachians were propagandizing growth and "the power of the beast with ten horns," the duality was that the Plain Truth magazine, The World Tomorrow telecast and the HWA belief system was failing fast. There was no market for any of it. The presses cranked up the same old cold war propaganda booklets, but generated no growth or future perspective. The WCG may have been ninety-five percent corporate empire and political agenda, with five percent church, but how were the Tkachians supposed to continue the WCG duality if the five percent posturing as a church dried up?

At a time when the proposed income was looking healthy, shall we say, the "churchy part" was in steep decline. Because members were not included in on anything dealing with management matters, they were unaware of the depth of the WCG multi-faceted business machine. With hundreds of real estate holdings worldwide, how is one to track the WCG paper trail? How is one to investigate all the sub-corporations that seem to be dealing with everything but churchy things? Along with the Ambassador International Cultural Foundation (AICF), the WCG business shenanigans are as thickly woven as rat's nest. The US and International investments have certainly been fruitful for the overall WCG picture. The liquidation of real estate was actually a wise move as the real estate hey day crashed by 1987-88 leaving those holding non-income producing property, in the bag, as they say. But where is ALL the money generated from the discreet selling of assets over the past (almost 20) years? Considering the current assets remaining, the figure must be in the billions. Certainly a question or request for assistance from the Chase Manhattan Bank or Kuhn Loeb Bank in is order! Wouldn't you think? Maybe the Rockefeller Foundation could lend a hand toward the investigation. Just a thought. [Note: David Rockefeller, Chairman of the Chase Manhattan Bank is said to be the prime mover in the secret Bilderberg and Trilateral Commission elite groups. The reader is encouraged to do further research.]

As if the death of the HWA image wasn't enough, look what lurked around the corner!

The Evangelical Televangelist Scandal

The Tkachians were well aware that the WCG propaganda picture was going to change dramatically as the 1990s unfolded. While the multi-millions were quietly changing hands throughout the previous decade, it would be a matter of time before the controllers were forced to radically change the failed religious product (traditionally known as Armstrongism), which concealed the multi-faceted financial pursuits. Some mistakenly think that because The World Tomorrow supposedly received high viewer ratings, that it generated tithe-paying recruits too. That was not the case. The telecast was a financial loss, as were all the other fire drill recruitment attempts with PT cardholders, PT magazine racks, junk mailings, etc.

Have you ever wondered why The Plain Truth did not feature an article about the deception in the Evangelical televangelist arena? Remember when Jim Bakker and Tammy were crying crocodile tears over the TV screens, only to be followed by Jimmy Swaggart with his "Forgive me, Lord, I have sinned against you" sobering routine for all the world to see? If that were not enough, Jerry Falwell was right on the transgressor's tails as he slid down that big expensive slide at Heritage Park to commemorate his proud purchase of the park. [Update: Jerry Falwell died 5-15-07] What a display for all to see and what a learning lesson on human nature in the name of Christianity. Why, some wonder, didn't the WCG discuss this event the way it picked other events to capitalize? The answer is simple. Why would the WCG Tkachians want to draw attention to themselves? Instead, they used simple psychology as viewed in the WWN Dec. 12, 1988: David Hulme is quoted:

"Some astonishing changes are taking place in the religious viewing habits of the American public. The World Tomorrow is holding its own and even gaining ground in some age groups."

The article goes on to say the July Arbitron figures show that the religious audience is declining partly because of scandals. Out of a US population of about 245 million, only some 13 million watch religious television. The top 10 religious television programs have lost more than 30 percent of their audience (2.6 million viewers) since November 1987.

Hulme adds:

"Meanwhile The World Tomorrow audience is proving to be stable. Audience levels for the telecast have generally remained at consistent levels, with slow but steady growth in all categories"

The article points out that Robert Schuller is the most-watched religious program, according to the Arbitron and has an audience of 70 percent women and 30 percent men. Hulme states The World Tomorrow has even more viewers and attracts a younger group of people. Hulme defends the WT by stating:

"Other religious programs lost more than 50% of their audience and people are simply turning off, while The World Tomorrow audience is more broadly based than traditional religious audiences. Thus, many are exposed to God's truth that otherwise might not be reached."

Are we to believe the highly spotlighted WCG, with its corruption reports miles long, was not affected by the Evangelical corruption exposure? While New Ager Robert Schuller gathered no moss with his ecumenical message filling every seat at the famous Crystal Cathedral, the rest of TV "Christian" stars were having lots of problems. What is one to believe here? The reports given by Hulme shake out as mere propaganda leading members to think that The World Tomorrow is doing fine only to find the programming is pulled from television a few months later. Much could be expounded here, but the current point is that we should consider the implications that arose from the exposure of the Jonestown Massacre in 1978 to the Evangelical scandal of 1988. These episodes not only inspired (real) authorities to scrutinize supposed religious entities dressed in their multi-million dollar robes, but it started the viewing public thinking about Christian rip-off artists (for awhile anyway). The evangelical televangelist scam marked another event that worked against the already ailing Worldwide Church of God. By 1989, televangelists lost up to fifty percent of their TV income, including Pat Robertson's multi-million $$$ pursuit. The televangelist corruption exposure drew a mark for the WCG religiocrats. Now the dung hit the fan and something had to be done to call off the dogs and attempt damage control.

The Five-Year Plan
and the beginning of the
The Cognitive Dissonance Campaign

Please take the time to review the next few pages, as the information is pertinent to understanding the reasons behind the events. Take special notice of the key planners. As you will learn through this and future OIUs, the very people in charge of the "breakaway" COG's are the same leaders who were highly involved in transforming the Worldwide Church of God into a New Age Ecumenical "church," espousing a mixed bag of unorthodox Protestant Evangelical teachings. To understand how the United Church of God was/is part of the overall strategy of divide and conquer the reader must assess the chronological steps that were taken and who were the designers of each step.

Future OIU reports about UCG will highlight the key players of the UCG development. These same players were the ones who placed the first slice in the WCG pie. Who said, "You can run, but you can't hide"? The incredible attempt to revise WCG history, past and current, is largely attributed to the key men who have been working together behind the scenes for decades. It is said, "Liars get caught because they trip over their own lies." Well, readers, there have been lots of falls, but sadly, few good people have been watching.

July 11, 1988 Worldwide News

"Bernard W. Schnippert, director of Media Production Services, was named coordinator in May of a task force to develop a five year plan for the entire work. Addressing the assembled group, Mr. Schnippert said the five-year plan is an organizational structure that allows for a planned approach. There is a danger of thinking it is set in concrete or in water. It will be reviewed and revised quarterly.... Satan would like us to think we can't get there from here, but we can and we will."

April 3, 1989:

"It's amazing what you can do when you have people working together as a team," Pastor General Joseph W. Tkach said when reviewing the final version of the new five-year plan he commissioned last May."

"Bernard Schnippert, coordinator of the team Mr. Tkach commissioned to develop the plan, presented it to him March 16."

"The plan is a 43 page analysis of projected growth in the WCG, the Ambassador Foundation and Ambassador College."

"It begins with a discussion of the importance of planning and how it relates to Christian faith. The introduction opens by quoting Proverbs 29:18 'Where there is no vision, the people perish.'"

The article states the following:

• The bulk of the report is devoted to analysis of present program and expenses as well as projection of future needs.
• A natural consequence of preaching the Gospel, according to the plan, will be an increased and growing base of members and co-workers around the world.
• "The plan," according to Mr. Schnippert, "shows that Mr. Tkach values teamwork and is a planner, but that he follows God's lead."
• The task force put together a set of objectives that begins with a general overview and ends in specific details.
• Since the plan is ongoing, the task force will continue to meet. Although the first completed version of the plan has been given to Mr. Tkach, the group will present a revised plan (1990-1994) next year and each year thereafter.
• The task force included Dexter Faulkner, editor of the Church's publications; Barry Gridley, manager of Publishing Services; David Hulme, manager of Communication and Public Affairs; Joseph Locke, Ambassador Foundation vice president for international affairs; Leroy Neff, treasurer; Larry Omasta, producer of The World Tomorrow; Rick van Pelt, manager of Facilities Administration; James Peoples, manager of Computer Information Systems, Purchasing and Travel; Richard Rice, manager of the Mail Processing Center; Larry Salyer, associate director of Church Administration for international areas; Mr. Stevens, Joseph Tkach Jr., associate director of Church Administration for the U.S.; Donald Ward, president of Ambassador College; Mr. Wright and Ronald Sower and Scott Weiner, who assisted Mr. Schnippert with the five year plan.

[UPDATE: Richard Rice died suddenly July 27, 2003 of a massive heart attack.]

July 3, 1989
Joseph W. Tkach states:

"As artisans we need to understand the blueprint to really begin to build the spiritual Temple that God is in the process of erecting."

"The mission statement of the church is "to proclaim the gospel of the coming Kingdom of God to all nations, to preach the Word of God and expound the doctrines of the Church, to develop and maintain a qualified ministry, to establish and support local congregations, to teach and spiritually nurture the members of the Church together with the co-workers and all who desire the truth of God and to provide assistance for the Church needy."

"Our work must be seen as a portion of a long continuum or process in which every person will be granted the opportunity for salvation."

Larry Salyer adds:

"The mission statement is the foundation for all planning. It shows us where to go and to whom we go. Without planning we make decisions based on money, opportunity, and emotion,"

August 28, 1989
"If you fail to plan, you plan to fail," Pastor General Joseph W. Tkach said in his keynote address to managers assembled for the five-year plan workshop Aug. 2, and 3. The workshop was the first stage in the development of the 1990-1994 Pastor General's Five-Year Plan.

"This is the first year that the operation managers laid the ground-work for the plan in a two-day workshop. Mr. Tkach called the new format an important benchmark for the Work."
"This workshop "is one of the first times in God's Work that many of the leaders...have a forum to [discuss plans] as brothers in Christ, respecting one another, having tolerance for whatever differences of opinion might be, he said."

This article points out the managers and task force met in regular two-hour sessions to discuss goals and objectives for the Work throughout the previous year. Tkach explained:

• "That meeting was more than a spring-board for the five-year plan and that it also promotes communication among the departments, fostering the kind of team spirit that will make the operations more efficient."
• "For me to make decisions, I need to have accurate information funneled in to me."
• "Wherever you see success, a certain plan of action was employed to accomplish the objective."
• "Planning leads to success because it helps the planner focus on what he or she is doing."
• "When you have a plan, it enables you to meet challenges and to succeed when the unexpected comes along. No general goes into battle without planning his strategy. In fact, no successful general would go into battle without a contingency plan that his troops could fall back on."
• "Of course, one of the greatest benefits of right planning is that it involves teamwork. Two can't walk together unless they agree (Amos 3:3). Unless we plan, our operational managers won't be headed in the same direction. And what one department does affects the others."

February 19, 1990
"Bernard Schnippert, director of the five-year planning task force, presented the final version of the 1990-1991 five-year plan to Pastor General Joseph W. Tkach Jan. 12."

"The plan reflects presentations made by operation managers from many previous meetings and decisions based on the follow-up meetings Mr. Tkach conducted after he reviewed the outline of the plan in September."

"Mr. Schnippert explained that although the planning meetings and the plan itself are 'invaluable tools, the plan doesn't include every detail of every operation for the next five years.' It is rather a basis for decision-making and a springboard to more detailed planning on an operational level."

"The plan explains that the five-year planning meetings were a key element in a dynamic process that allowed the leaders of God's Work to identify the factors and conditions that must be considered and faced in the future. In addition, these meetings gave the managers a broader perspective, helping them see the future needs and challenges of the entire Work."

"The five-year plan goes on to say that the "Work will curtail the rapid growth in the media areas that it experienced in the mid- 1980s. As a result, US magazine circulation and television market penetration will decrease or remain flat."

"Farmers prune, or cut-back, to prepare for future growth. In the same way, the Church must prepare for future growth by cutting back in some areas, making it possible to upgrade the resources of the support departments."

August 13, 1990
"Vision is the art of seeing the invisible," Pastor Joseph W. Tkach said in his opening address to operation directors and department managers assembled for the five-year plan workshop."

"Mr. Tkach summed up his thoughts about the need for Church management to be looking for new ideas and new methods to do the Work. People don't usually find things they're not looking for. If you're constantly looking for a better way, you're bound to come across it sooner or later."

"This workshop was the second stage of a three-stage process in the development of the 1991-1995 Pastor General's Five-Year Plan."

"Another reason the managers met for the planning workshop, Mr. Tkach pointed out, was 'to find better ways of doing their jobs.'"

August 27, 1990
Five-year reports emphasize conservative spending plan, says the main headline.

"Operation directors and department managers of the Work gathered for five-year planning meeting Aug. 1 and 2."

"This presentation was sobering, emphasizing the need for a conservative approach to spending," said Bernard Schnippert, director of Media Operations and leader of the five-year plan task force."

After an explanation of the sudden falling financial trend, Mr. Wright explains:

"In view of the present financial situation, the Church must build its financial base so it can preach the gospel message to the greatest number of people. That means first putting the message in the hands of individuals who can help support the Work in reaching others."

Evangelist David Hulme, vice president of Ambassador Foundation Domestic and Director of Communications & Public Affairs (CPA) "spoke about the public relations efforts of the Church. The two most important objectives are to support and improve the credibility of the Worldwide Church of God and its activities; and to deliver information about the Church and its activities in a timely and appropriate manner to the media, community officials and other individuals or groups."

"Discussing the difficulties of public relations, Mr. Hulme said, 'Staying out of the media is often tougher than receiving coverage.' But by using a proactive approach to provide personal briefings and information kits with accurate documentation, CPA helps the media better understand the Church and its activities."

"Because of this approach, during the televangelist scandals the Church was able to explain key positive differences between its activities and those of other religious organizations."

So, was there a PLAN
to DIVIDE and CONQUER the
Worldwide Church of God?
YOU BET THERE WAS!!!

If you were to quiz a member during the 1970s or 1980s about his reasons for remaining in the WCG, you would have probably been told it was because it was God's one true church and that Christ was coming "in your lifetime." This theme surrounded mountainous amounts of prophecy predictions, which provided the spiritual drug necessary to keep the obedient membership motivated and close to the vine. This wasn't just any prophecy-it was PROPHECY! Many forget its importance associated with each decision a given member would make. It was PROPHECY that determined everyone's future, be it the Kingdom or Lake of Fire. The common teaching was that one third of the Bible consisted of PROPHECY and the only person who had the code was Herbert W. Armstrong. The Armstrong spin with PROPHECY inspired members to adhere to the strict obedient demands termed as God's Laws.

Why was PROPHECY such a successful tool for the WCG system? Here lies another topic respectful of much space; however, for now, let's look at how PROPHECY (future telling) works on the spiritual minded. Taking the example from 1972, WCG old timers will recall how HWA prophesied that the end of the age was going to occur. The years building toward this event inspired thousands to give every available penny to HWA and to God's earthly headquarters. Thousands had their luggage packed and ready to run at the ministers' call. The ESN has files of letters and personal stories from those who were caught in the web of deception. Heart wrenching words depict stories of times when one would do anything to be counted worthy of the great escape to safety. The many PROPHECIES were delivered by scripted words and flagrant pictures describing torturous events. The WCG publications consisted of riveting pictures and stories about weather calamities, nuclear wars, crime, disease, death and mass destruction. All this "fear tactic" advertising coincided with society's fears surrounding the "cold war" era. The WCG message clearly capitalized on despicable traumatic "soon coming" events. The big question for members, or those lured into the WCG's teachings, was, "Will you be worthy to escape the pending fiery Tribulation?" The answer is found throughout the WCG archive of propaganda books, reprints, tapes and articles.

F-E-A-R!

[Note: This equally applies to the fear methods that are being used in all authoritarian, exploitive offshoots and splinter groups of WCG.]

The psychological base that placed WCG adherents into traumatized states was fear. Once a member was successfully entrenched into the fear indoctrination, that member became the property of the controllers. The syndrome became a "Catch 22" situation. All other teachings were anchored on the great escape from the dreadful, fiery, Great Tribulation that was to occur "in your lifetime."

Professionals call this manipulation "fear phobia induction." Once one is fear phobic, one becomes submissive to authority or events. For some, the trauma is so paralyzing it causes dissociative disorders. As mentioned above, dissociative disorders cause one to "trance out" once the trauma becomes too frightening or unbearable. This same syndrome is often observed with victims of physical or sexual abuse. The victim is under constant infliction, but lives in a state of denial. The overwhelming fears become compartmentalized as one functions in a state of cognitive dissonance. [Note: Also read: What do I do about phobias? (Q&A)]

It is difficult for many to comprehend that their leaders actually intentionally initiated these techniques and were very skilled in psychology and behaviorism. How, many wonder, could a man not be deathly fearful of using such deception under the name of Jesus Christ and God? This naïveté comes from the repression of education or critical thinking fostered within the system. The very things the members were prohibited from learning or doing, were exactly what the "leaders" engaged in. While Joe Tkach Jr., and the rest of the Tkachians were preaching against evil, satanic psychology, they were actively obtaining higher degrees in the very art they labeled satanic. While the member focused on obedience, God's great ministers were increasing their intellect on psychological theories and studies of human behavior. Only the educated are in tune with the Skinner box experiments, hypnotism techniques and latest developments with human brain conditioning. [Refer to the book, Snapping: America's Epidemic of Sudden Personality Change] Ministers received free (paid by tithe and offerings) university education to hone the