United Church of God

The United Church of God, an International Association (UCGIA)^[1] is a Christian denomination based in the United States with members in various countries around the world. The church was formally founded in 1995^[2].

The UCGIA calls itself "The United Church of God, an International Association", with the last three words italicized^[2] in order to differentiate the UCGIA from local congregations and denominations which also bear the name of the United Church of God.^[1][3] The United Church of God has no association with any other organization or denomination.^[4] The UCGIA states the following as a commission:

"We trace our origins to the Church that Jesus founded in the early first century. We follow the same teachings, doctrines and practices established then. Our commission is to proclaim the gospel of the coming Kingdom of God to all the world as a witness and teach all nations to observe what Christ commanded (Matthew 24:14; 28:19, 20)."^[2]

Contents 1 Background 2 Government 3 Ambassador Bible Center 4 Mission and Media 5 Doctrine 6 History 7 See also 8 References 9 External links

Background

UCG is an offshoot of the Worldwide Church of God, which was originally incorporated in the 1940's as the Radio Church of God by its founder, Herbert W. Armstrong. After Armstrong's death in 1986, the subsequent WCG leadership introduced a series of major doctrinal changes, starting in 1994, which substantially altered the fundamental beliefs and goals of the original Worldwide Church of God.^[5] A large segment of the membership wished to retain fundamental or first-century Christian teachings (known by non-adherents as Armstrongism^[6][7][8]) and consequently left WCG to start their own organizations.^[9] The United Church of God was established in May 1995 and is the largest of these offshoot organizations. The United Church of God does not identify itself as "Armstrongist" or as followers of the teachings of Herbert W Armstrong. Proof of doctrine is not traced to Armstrong, but to the Holy Bible itself. ^[10][11]

Government

The UCGIA is governed by a 12-man board called the "Council of Elders" that is elected by the church's paid and lay ministries, which form the "General Conference of Elders". The General Conference meets once a year in May to perform tasks that include approving a budget, operational planning, strategic planning, electing members of the church council, and participation in seminars. The council acts as the governing body for the international association and is responsible for forming policy and doctrine for the Church. The council meets four times a year.

The international headquarters of the UCGIA is referred to as the "Home Office" and is located in Milford, Ohio (a suburb of Cincinnati). This office is headed by the UCGIA President, who is the church's official spokesperson and is charged with administrative responsibility over day-to-day functions, such as managing the church's paid ministry and producing literature or other publications. The president is appointed by the Council of Elders (COE) and can be removed from his appointment by the COE. The COE must remain in the confidence of the General Conference of Elders, and COE members serve on a rotating system of election wherein three of twelve men are up for re-election or replacement in any given year.

Ambassador Bible Center

The Home Office also houses the Ambassador Bible Center (ABC), a nine-month program of classes in the church's Biblical theology. The ABC program is intended to give instruction in the church's teachings, and is most often taken by young adults. It is modeled from the now-closed Ambassador College.^[12]

Mission and Media

UCGIA states that: "The mission of the Church of God is to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ and the Kingdom of God in all the world, make disciples in all nations and care for those disciples." Emphasis is consequently placed on the proclamation of "The Kingdom of God" to the general public, which is accomplished through various media, ranging from Twitter and Youtube to more traditional forms such as radio, print and television.

UCGIA publishes and produces the following:

• The Good News magazine is the flagship publication of the United Church of God. It is a free magazine and is published bi-monthly. The magazine contains articles that discuss Bible prophecy, world news and trends, social issues, church doctrine and Christian living.
• The Beyond Today Television Program. The Beyond Today program airs on WGN America and is shown on over 100 Public-access television cable TV stations and is accompanied by a multimedia website and a presence on Youtube.
• The World News and Prophecy newsletter is published bi-monthly and contains articles focused on world events as they relate to Bible prophecy. It predicts the rise of a European Union, the decline of U.S. and British power, and the moral decay of Western culture. Within this context, the newsletter presents issues and editorial opinion from the point of view of Armstrong's teachings on British Israelism and biblical prophecy.^[13][14]

• Vertical Thought is a quarterly publication published for youth. The publication contains articles from both church ministers and youth, and aims to strengthen the Christian faith of its youthful readership.
• The United News is a newsletter which focuses on news and events within the United Church of God. The newsletter contains articles on UCG missions, church activities, reports on church governance, doctrinal and Christian living articles, and birth and death announcements of church members.

In addition to the above publications, the UCG has produced 33 booklets on various Biblical topics, a 12-lesson Bible study course, a monthly systematic Bible reading program with commentary, various article reprints, a national radio program, local public-access television programs, and a website. A series of presentations called the 'Kingdom of God Bible seminars' was scheduled to begin in September 2011.

Doctrine

The UCG follows and believes in most of the basic doctrinal principles shared by other Christian churches. However, some of its teachings differ from today's mainstream consensus in a number of key areas, including disagreements with Catholic and Protestant tenets.

Doctrinal distinctives include:

• Belief in a non-Trinitarian view of God. Specifically, the belief that the Holy Spirit is the spirit/power of God and of Christ Jesus rather than a separate person in the Godhead. God 'the Father' and Jesus Christ are viewed as distinct 'God beings' in the 'God family'.[5] [6][7] [8]
• Belief that Christians are begotten as children in the Family of God and will at their resurrection become "spirit-born divine beings who are part of Elohim, the universe-ruling family of God." [9]
• Belief that the core of Jesus Christ's message was the coming of a literal earthly Kingdom [10][11] and that people who are 'saved' will not go to heaven, but will live and rule eternally with Jesus Christ on earth after his second coming, and will subsequently share rulership over the entire universe as part of the 'God Family'. [12]
• Belief that the final destination of the unrepentant wicked is not everlasting torture, but annihilation or permanent destruction. [13]
• Belief in British Israelism, which is the teaching that people of Western European descent, primarily the original British colonies and the United States, are direct physical descendants of the Ten Lost Tribes of the northern kingdom of ancient Israel [14] -- whereas the historical Jews (and modern-day Israel) are descendants of the ancient southern kingdom of Judah. It should be noted that this teaching is inherently NOT anti-semitic, unlike some concepts from British Israelism [citation needed].
• Belief that the basic Old Testament law is not "done away with" and is carried over into the "New Covenant" such that certain commandments apply to Christians today, including the Ten Commandments and teachings such as clean and unclean meats, literal observance of Holy Day festivals such as eating unleavened bread during the 'Days of Unleavened Bread', and living in 'temporary habitations' during the 'Feast of Tabernacles'. These beliefs exclude civil and sacrificial temple laws, but [15] includes the literal observance of the seventh-day Sabbath and the holy days of the so-called 'Jewish calendar' of the Old Testament,[16] dietary restrictions,[17], and the condemnation of homosexuality^[15].
• Belief that today's mainstream Christian teachings resulted from doctrinal corruption under the influence of Greco-Roman philosophy which occurred early in the history of the church, so that the major Christian churches now teach various pagan ideas and practices under the guise of Christianity. ^{[16][17][18][19][20][21]} Members believe that the doctrines and practices of the United Church of God can be traced to the original teachings of Jesus Christ and the early 'Church of God' as described in the New Testament.[18][19][20] [21]
• Belief that people who do not know or understand the truth of the Bible during their lifetimes will be given time to learn these teachings after the 'second resurrection' to a new physical life. After living again in the Millenial world under God's Kingdom, those who continue to reject God's Holy Spirit and way of life will be annihilated after the "Third Resurrection" along with unrepentant former believers who had turned away from God. They are destroyed in the third resurrection (the "resurrection of fire") in the Lake of Fire, along with Satan and his demons. [22]
• Belief that the ancient pagan origins of traditional Christian celebrations (especially Christmas and Easter) render them inappropriate for true Christians.[23]

History

The United Church of God was founded at a conference organized in Indianapolis, Indiana in the spring of 1995 and attended by WCG and former WCG ministers concerned by the doctrinal changes introduced by the WCG.^[22] The first president of the United Church of God was David Hulme, who left the United Church of God after he was voted out of the office of president for refusing to move Church's home office to Ohio in 1998.^[23] He subsequently formed a new group called "Church of God, an International Community".^[24] Following Hulme, elders selected to serve as president have been Les McCullough in 1998, Roy Holladay in 2002, Clyde Kilough in 2005 and Dennis Luker in 2010.

A decision to move the Church's home office to Texas was rescinded in 2008, causing considerable tension within and between the Council of Elders and the General Conference of Elders. ^[25]

In 2009, two members of the Council of Elders resigned -- then-president Clyde Kilough, whose resignation was effective July 28th, 2009; and Richard Thompson, effective July 27th, 2009. A letter sent out by the Council of Elders said that the resignations were for "personal reasons".^[26]

In 2010, earlier tensions rooted in the rescinded Texas move and governance disputes continued to mount and led to the Council of Elders requesting (and accepting) the resignation of Clyde Kilough as President of UCG. Resignations were also accepted for Jim Franks (Ministerial Services) and Larry Salyer (Media Operations). The call for Kilough's resignation was prompted by a resolution that Kilough had jointly crafted with other administrative staff, which had proposed that UCG's governance structure be reviewed. The resolution was submitted directly to the General Conference of Elders, therefore bypassing review by the Council of Elders, prompting the Council of Elders to remove Kilough and to reinstate Roy Holladay as acting President until the new President was appointed.^{[27][28][29][30]}

Dennis Luker was appointed president on June 24, 2010.^[31] But tensions with a group of ministers continued to build, ending with dozens of pastors and local elders resigning from UCG in December 2010.^[32] In early 2011, those ministers met in Louisville, Kentucky to form a new group, the Church of God, a Worldwide Association with Kilough as president. The resignations were the result of increasing conflict between UCG's Council of Elders and personnel that had formerly been in administrative or council roles.

See also

• Herbert W. Armstrong
• Armstrongism
• British Israelism
• Worldwide Church of God

References

1. ^ ^{a b} Website of the United Church of God, Tucson, Arizona. Accessed 12 August 2006
2. ^ ^{a b c} About the United Church of God, from the UCG official website.
3. ^ Website of the United Church of God, Portland, Oregon. Accessed 12 August 2006
4. ^ [1] What religion or denomination is the United Church of God?
5. ^ "Transformed by Christ: A brief history of the Worldwide Church of God". http://www.wcg.org/lit/aboutus/history.htm. Retrieved 2009-01-08. 
6. ^ "Armstrongism, The Worldwide Church of God, The Church of God International". http://www.equip.org/PDF/DA190.pdf. Retrieved 2010-08-30. 
7. ^ "Armstrongism". http://www.4truth.net/site/c.hiKXLbPNLrF/b.2904335/k.9964/Armstrongism.htm. Retrieved 2010-08-30. 
8. ^ "What is "Armstrongism"?". http://www.realtruth.org/articles/080104-001-religion.html?cid=RT0029. Retrieved 2010-08-30. 
9. ^ "Brief History of the United Church of God". http://www.ucg.org/about/history.htm. Retrieved 2009-07-05. 
10. ^ "The Most Frequently Asked Question: What Is The Origin of United". United News (United Church of God) (Vol.9, No.1): 3. January 2003. http://www.ucg.org/un/un0301/un0301.pdf. 
11. ^ Tucker, Ruth. "From the Fringe to the Fold, Part 2: The Tumultuous Year". http://www.ctlibrary.com/ct/1996/july15/6t826b.html. Retrieved 2009-01-08. 
12. ^ de Campos, Jorge. "Living the Truth: ABC Motto Is a Reminder to All". http://www.ucg.org/un/un0509/. Retrieved 2009-07-05. 
13. ^ Schroeder, John (March 2002). "The Last Battle for the British Empire". World News and Prophecy. http://www.wnponline.org/wnp/wnp0203/lastbattle.htm. Retrieved 2009-07-05. 
14. ^ "Response to "A New Look at Prophecy"". February 2003. pp. 2. http://www.ucg.org/papers/prophecyresponse.pdf. Retrieved 2009-07-05. 
15. ^ "If one accepts the Bible as inspired by God, then homosexual activity is intrinsically wrong and unacceptable in a truly Christian society" Petty, Gary. "The Gay Rights Battle". http://www.gnmagazine.org/issues/gn52/battle.htm. 
16. ^ Kieffer, Paul. "Papal Authority, Protestants and Prophecy". http://www.gnmagazine.org/wnp/wnp0708/prophecy.htm. 
17. ^ Rhodes, Melvin. "Europe and the Church, Part 12: A Period of Change for the Papacy". http://www.wnponline.org/wnp/wnp0909/europe-church-papacy.htm. 
18. ^ Rhodes, Melvin. "Europe and the Church, Part 5: The Identity of the Little Horn". http://www.gnmagazine.org/wnp/wnp0809/europe-church-horn.htm. 
19. ^ "The Rise of a Counterfeit Christianity". http://www.beyondtoday.tv/booklets/CJ/counterfeit.htm. 
20. ^ "How can I find the true Church of God?". http://www.ucg.org/bible-faq/true-church-of-god.htm. 
21. ^ McNeely, Darris. "Visions of Judgment: The Horsemen of Revelation". http://www.gnmagazine.org/issues/gn50/thehorsemen.htm. 
22. ^ "The Uniteds", Ambassador Report, Issue 59, June, 1995
23. ^ "United Dethrones Hulme", Ambassador Report, Issue 68, April, 1998
24. ^ [2], [3]
25. ^ "Ambassador Watch: Meeker Requiem". http://ambassadorwatch.blogspot.com/2008/05/meeker-requiem.html. 
26. ^ "Ambassador Watch: They're gone - but what does it mean?". http://ambassadorwatch.blogspot.com/2009/08/theyre-gone-but-what-does-it-mean.html. Retrieved 2009-08-02. 
27. ^ "Another UCG Shakeup", Church of God News, April 12th, 2010.
28. ^ "UCG Current Crisis", April, 2010.
29. ^ "The Constant Perils of a Dis-United COG", Shadows of WCG Next Generation, April 13th, 2010.
30. ^ "Updates on UCG Administration Changes", United Church of God Member's Site, April 23rd, 2010.
31. ^ [4]
32. ^ Realtime United blog, 12/23/10

External links

• United Church of God - official web site.
• The Good News Magazine Online - Official website of the Good News Magazine.
• Beyond Today Online - Beyond Today Multimedia website.
• World News and Prophecy
• Vertical Thought
• Radio Church of God Fundamental Beliefs comparable to UCG Fundamental Beliefs
• Brief history of the United Church of God - Official history from UCG website.

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