Beware Ambassadorsâ Bearing Gifts!
The letters below in colored print have been reproduced and added to this article.
-James.
Are you frustrated? Is your life in turmoil? Is your marriage a disaster? Are your finances in shambles? Are you turned off by the sham of popular religion? Are you nauseated by the phoniness that dominates todayâs society? Are you seeking for answers? Are you now ready to get yourself involved in truly purposeful and worthwhile endeavor?
If your answer is, Yes, look out! Youâre in dangerous territory. Your immediate decisions and actions could be extremely hazardous to your wealth, not to mention your future spiritual well-being
You are a prime candidate for suckerdom!
FATAL ATTRACTION
If you presently find yourself in the position described above (and donât we all at one time or another in our lives?), you may possibly find yourself attracted to the television program that is presently at the top of the religious program charts: I refer to The World Tomorrow program.
Watch out! It could be a fatal attraction!
It is easy to see why this slick, well produced program would attract the attention of many people who are concerned about the present state of our nation, The World Tomorrow appears to offer solutions to the great questions of the day. If you call (toll free, of course) the sponsors or the program, the Worldwide Church of God (WCG) headquartered at Ambassador College, in Pasadena, California, they will graciously send you a free subscription to their monthly publication, The Plain Truth magazine. Upon request, they will also send you (âfreeâ of course) vast collection of glossy publication on a multitude of religious and other topics, topics that will stimulate your mental processes and encourage you to seek the âanswersâ that are presently lacking in you life.
These âanswers,â naturally, are only available from one source -âGodâs one true church,â which conveniently happens to be the Worldwide Church of God.
Beware âAmbassadorsâ bearing âfreeâ gifts!
CO-WORKERS AND THE âGREAT COMMISSIONâ
Many recipients of this âfreeâ material, impressed by its quality and apparent truthfulness, begin to feel guilty for not having paid for it.
They decide to âhelp outâ by sending in a check.
By return they receive a letter of thanks addressing them as âco-workerâs in THE Great Work of God.â If they continue to contribute money, they receive lengthy âco-worker lettersâ extolling the alleged virtues of âthe Workâ and telling of the grandiose plans being implemented to âspread the gospelâ still further afield.
With each passing âco-worker letterâ it is heavily implied that the Great Creator God of Heaven and Earth has Personally led you into direct contact with His âone true church.â You should now âobviouslyâ want to join the âselect of the electâ (WCG), attend church services, and play your God ordained part in the fulfillment of the âgreat commission.â Obviously!
The ploy is subtle. Itâs very attractive, It appeals to the ego. It seems to be logical and make sense, gives you a sense of âworth,â Who, after all, would be spiritually dumb enough to turn down the Creatorâs direct and Personal invitation to become one of His âelectâ and have âa part in His great end time Workâ? Few indeed!
After all, who wishes to commit spiritual suicide?
AN ADDED BONUS
Stop! Thereâs more. As an added bonus, you are personally guaranteed that, in âthe glorious and wonderful World Tomorrow,â you PERSONALLY will have a direct part in straightening out this sin sick world. Who could ask for anything more?
Heady stuff, this exclusivist religion!
TRUE BELIEVERS
Letâs face it! There is a great emptiness â a yawning void â in the hearts and lives of most people. This vacuum cries out to be filled!
But there is a problem! Most people have little interest in being free and independent. Such a prospect frightens them! Most have a burning desire to âbelong,â to be part of the âinâ crowd, to be where the âactionâ is. They want to hitch heir wagon to a âcause,â or to a religious or political guru â a leader who will at least lend a sense of purpose to their otherwise miserable existence. As a result, many are ripe to become âtrue believersâ in a political or religious cause!
THE CHURCH WAS THEIR LIFE
Mr. Garnet Hill of Miami, Florida, was one such true believer. In the early 195Oâs and nearing retirement, Garnet and his wife happened to stumble across The World Tomorrow radio program. They were impressed. It seemed to be what they were looking for. They responded, and were later baptized Into the Radio Church of God later to become the Worldwide Church of God).
From the beginning the Hills were totally identified with its alleged purposes and goals. The church was their life!
Like all âgoodâ church members, the aging Garnet Hill and his wife gave at least ten percent of their meager incomeâ to Worldwide Church of God. Every third year they gave an additional ten percent to the church for the sustenance of the widows and others in dire need, In addition to this horrendous financial burden, the Hills (like all âgoodâ church members) repeatedly gave sacrificially as instructed by their new guru, âGodâs one true apostle,â Herbert W. Armstrong. He always said the money was âdesperately neededâ to do âGodâs Work.â
SELLING HIS LAND
In 1970, Garnet Hill (then in his late seventies and with his wife ill with cancer) responded in his usual whole-hearted manner to yet another of Armstrongâs urgent pleas for more money to keep âthe Work of Godâ moving ahead.
In additional to his home, Hill owned six plots of land in Hollywood, Florida, valued at $35,000. In his zeal to comply with Armstrongâs relentless demands, Hill decided to sell the land and give the lionâs share of the proceeds to âthe Work.â
The sale of the six plots was left in the hands of Armstrongâs local representative, Brent Curtis, and his assistants. Later, Hill was told that the sale realized $30,000, or $5,000 less than the landâs assessed value. Of this, Hill gave $20,000 to âthe work.â He asked for $10,000 for himself, so that he could meet any emergencies that might arise in his old age.
NO RECEIPT
When, after a number of months, he had failed to receive a receipt for his generous donation Hill began to ask Curtis and Armstrongâs other agents in the Miami area for an explanation. Although his queries went unanswered, Hill was accused of being a trouble maker. He was told to âbe patient.â He was also told he needed to ârepentâ of his âbad attitude.â
Hill was then ordered to âkeep quietâ about the apparent theft of his $20,000. His reply was that it would be âa sin to cover up sin.â
FOLLOWING CHRISTâS ADMONITION
Four years later, Hill decided to follow Christâs admonition in Matthew 18:15-17. On February 10, 1981. ins âpersonalâ letter to Herbert W. Armstrong, he took his $20,000 problem to âheadquartersâ in Pasadena, California. Hill expected, in all good faith, that the problem would be immediately corrected.
On November 9, 1973, Bob G. Seelig of the accounting department at Pasadena âheadquartersâ had written Mr. Hill. Seelig stated that they had âchecked all (their) donation records and other sources of information (and)⌠there seems to be no knowledge or record here of your donation.â
Three years and three months later, on February 14, 1977, in a letter from âthe legal office at Godâs work,â and signed by Benton Nesmith, Hill was informed that his funds had been somehow âmis-applied.â Nesmith went on to explain that âwe recently succeeded, after a protracted effort, in obtaining $5,000.00 for the church. This represents a portion of the funds from the sale of your lots which were not sent to headquartersâŚâ
[In the words of Neville Gilbert, a close friend of Hill, “the Pasadena crooks had apparently put the ‘heat’ to the Miami crooks, who had in turn come through with 25% of the stolen loot”].
This blatant admission of deceit and fraud was followed by a request that he (Hill) send the church the deeds to his remaining property. Also enclosed was information on how to bypass probate for savings accounts. The church obviously wanted all his savings when he died!
NO LONGER WELCOME
Late in 1981, Hill, now 87, in rapidly failing health and legally blind, received a phone call from Al Kersha, Armstrongâs new head man in Miami. Kersha was angry: âYou are not welcome (at services). I am putting you out of the church for talking about itâ (the theft). Hill later told friends that Kersha then slammed down the phone with such violence that it hurt his (Hillâs) ear.
Garnet Hill was devastated by his excommunication from Worldwide Church of God. He now found himself alone, with no family or friends. His former âbrethren in Christâ were forbidden to speak with him, for fear of being contaminated by his âsin.â
A few lay members in the Miami Worldwide Church of God congregation tried to give Hill moral support, phone calls etc. but feared to do more for him lest they, too, be excommunicated on orders from the Pasadena Pope.
The Armstrong cult has a diabolical grip on its adherents
NO MERCY AND COMPASSION
During the months following his excommunication Hill, broken, disillusioned, emotionally destitute, and now legally blind, cried out for help. Only one Worldwide Church of God deacon had the courage of his spiritual convictions. He heard Garnet Hillâs cry, and helped him.
TREATED WITH CONTEMPT
It would, perhaps, be logical to assume that âGodâs true churchâ would respond, as Jesus did on similar occasions, with mercy and compassion. Wrong again!
Mr. Hillâs personal letter to âGodâs one true apostle,â Herbert W. Armstrong, protesting his excommunication was treated with the same contempt that has consistently characterized the cult that has become known an âThe Worldly Church of God.â
February 10, 1981
Dear Mr. Armstrong:
I was put out of the Church for TELLING THE TRUTH. I am 87 years old and can hardly see.
In 1970 I received your letter how bad the Church needed money. My wife
had cancer, and I didnât have much cash. But I did own six lots so I gave
those to the church. The lots sold for $30,000. I got $10,000 and $20,000
was to go to the church.
I GOT NO RECEIPT.  I ask [ed] Mr. Curtis minister at the time and he said
donât worry about it.  He kept telling me the same thing.  AFTER A LONG
TIME I wrote Pasadena about the $20,000.  They NEVER RECEIVED IT.
This is where my troubles started because I started asking what happened to the $20,000.  I WAS TOLD TO KEEP QUIET and told donât talk about it.  You said it was a SIN TO COVER UP A SIN.  I HAVE BEEN MISTREATED BECAUSE I WOULD NOT COVER UP.
Last Penticost [sic] Mrs. Witte a church member ask me about the problem. I told her I felt terrible about the COVER UP.  She said I donât believe a word you said.  The next day Mr. Kersha the new local minister called on the phone and said âYou ARE NOT WELCOME, I am putting you out of the church for going around telling people about it.â  I was standing by the wall.  SHE CAME TO ME.  MR. KERSHA WOULD NOT LET ME TELL HIM TRUTH.  Mrs. Wittle sought me out I did not seek her.
My friends no longer call me. After Mr. Hill was disfellowshiped
Someone must have SPREAD EVIL ABOUT ME.  I am not the one who had
done evil.  Mr. Pearson a deacon, later promoted to elder has not liked me because I would not sell him my deceased wifeâs rings for $700.  After I had already had them appraised for $1850 at House of Diamonds of Miami.  He got angry with me because I turned them into the church.  Mr. Armstrong I ask you WHO DID THE WRONG? . . . WHY HAVE ALL THE MINISTERS TREATED ME LIKE I WAS THE THIEF? . . . . Mr. Armstrong I am getting along in years and am angry and LONELY since being put out of the Church and TREATED LIKE A THIEF.
I want to know if you approve of the way I have been treated?  Please let me know. God knows the truth.
Mr. Hillâs âpersonalâ letter to Armstrong was answered by Joseph Tkach, an Armstrong assistant, on April 9, 1981. Tkach fully approved of the cultâs mistreatment of Hill.
Dear Mr. Hill:
Your letter was forwarded to me by Mr. Hunsberger of the personal correspondence department. I have REVIEWED OUR FILES and received additional information regarding the background of your situation FROM OTHER PEOPLE IN OUR LEGAL DEPARTMENT AND MAIL PROCESSING CENTER. I feel I understand what happened.
Also, I have verified with Mr. Kersha the circumstances leading up to your being disfellowshipped. After all this review, my conclusion is that Mr. Kersha has performed this duty as God would have him to.
It is regrettable that the sale of your property was mishandled like it was, but you must come to realize that THE PEOPLE INVOLVED HAVE REPENTED of their wrong doing. When God forgives He forgets. YOU MUST LEARN TO DO THE SAME. Mr. Kersha has given you several warnings about talking against the ministry of the church. You shouldnât have continued to harbor this ill will.
The action of being disfellowshipped is used to show you the gravity of your sin â unwillingness to forgive and forget. Upon PROPER REPENTANCE Mr. Kersha would be very happy to welcome you back to the church â with open arms. Itâs my sincere hope that you will be able to return.
AWESOME HUMAN WRECKAGE
Shortly thereafter, 89-year-old Garnet Hill died. He was just one hideous example of the awesome human wreckage strewn in the wake of Herbert W. Armstrong in his diabolical lust for fame, fortune and raw power. There are tens of thousands more!
A few days prior to his death, Garnet Hill received his final letter from âGodâs one true church.â No, the letter didnât inquire about Mr. Hillâs health and spiritual well-being. No, it didnât offer him spiritual or financial assistance. It asked if Worldwide Church of God was still named in his Will.
Nuff said!
And the moral of this true story? Beware âAmbassadorsâ bearing gifts. The life you save may be your own!
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Mr. Hillâs humble home can be found here.
