Joel, regarding your letter in the Royal Vision January-February 2025 titled “Follow Mr. Flurry’s Faith”:
Throughout this article you make multiple statements as though it is just common knowledge and fact that what you are saying is without any question truth but, as is typical of religious cults, very rarely do they provide any back up to these sorts of dogmatic statements. The very first sentence of your article starts out “America’s election was supposed to be a nail biter” while you know most liberal news media would have had you believe that. I for one was expecting a Trump victory with room to spare, albeit it was bigger then I expected, but I know of many others who felt this way as well. Americans had had enough. Every poll showed Americans believed the direction of the country was wrong. The statement “it’s the economy stupid” also comes to mind. But stating the facts would not have fit your article’s narrative would it?
Your very next statement is even more ridiculous: “Trump’s victory was not just an impossible political comeback–it was a miracle.” What?? Trump has been the most popular political figure since Ronald Reagan. Whether you believe he had the 2020 election stolen from him or not, he has been a powerhouse in American politics. Even the Democrats believed he was a threat or there would have been no need to attack him as they did! You then state that “Four years ago, everyone said Donald Trump was finished. Everyone except Gerald Flurry.” Really Joel!? That is a flat out lie! I know you are not so ignorant as to actually believe that!You then immediately say that “people abandoned him [GRF*] over it.” If this was “Gods prophecy” shouldn’t that statement read “people abandoned God”? But when you worship a man, that man takes the place of God in your mind, which is clearly evident in this article.
Then comes the biggest gaslight of them all “He (GRF) staked his reputation and that of the entire organization on the forecast that President Trump would return.” First of all it was not a “forecast.” I heard Gerald Flurry personally in a sermon state it was a prophecy.1 He also stated this in the January 2021 Trumpet magazine. Additionally, it was in your ad campaign for Newsmax and RealClear Politics in December of 2020. So let’s look at what GRF actually prophesied was going to happen.
You well know it was not simply that Trump would get back in some time in the future, as you falsely lead people to believe! Truly shameful! Here is the false prophecy: “A Biden presidency is against Bible Prophecy.“2 That is a dogmatic statement that can’t be sidestepped. The tricky thing about true prophecy is it is directly from God through his true prophet and it is always 100% accurate, not 99.9% or even far less than that in GRF’s case. If it’s not 100% accurate, what we have on our hands is a lying false prophet! Deuteronomy 18:22 tells us exactly what to do with those people. GRF didn’t just prophesy that Trump would get back in, he prophesied that Biden would not be the next president and that God would not allow Trump to be removed. So false prophet Gerry is not even close to the godly standard of perfect. Not to mention the many other failed prophecies of HWA and GRF. GRF likes to wash this away by making statements like “God doesn’t always reveal everything all at once,” or “God speaks in coded messages”3 or “I see where now I can understand this verse deeper or different.” When it comes to a prophet revealing prophecy, God does not hide the meaning behind some smoke screen so his prophet gets it wrong discrediting him and God. This simply exposes him as the false prophet that he truly is. You continuing to tout him as some prophesied biblical character is shameful!
You then go on to talk about how GRF has told you in a meeting, the end time Antiochus “Obama” “has now peaked in power and is being silenced.” GF is now distancing himself from that prophecy, which has obviously failed. GF knows that Obama is no longer a relevant figure and desperately needs to push this failure to the background as quickly as possible. If I am wrong, please enlighten me to the accomplishments of this Antiochus and exactly how he fulfilled this office. Obamacare is a disaster but I don’t know that it rises to the level of an end time Antiochus.
As is typical, you boast about all the amazing PCG achievements. You talked about how God revealed Malachi’s Message to GRF (What revision are you on now anyway?). Why doesn’t PCG post the original MM and latest version so people can compare?
The BIG court case win against WCG. You remember, the court case that PCG actually flat out lost and paid millions in lawyer fees to fight and then had to buy the copyrights for millions of more dollars from the victors?4 Yet you brag about a victory every opportunity you get! MOA was supposedly revealed to HWA and PCG paid millions for it so why did PCG have to modify5 God’s special revealed knowledge? I guess God is not speaking clearly to his “end time Apostle.”
You then go on to talk about the “Just One” (Habakkuk 2:4), another persona that GRF has taken on. Apparently GRF is the “Just One.” So following GRF’s faith should “fill your life with stunning miracles and exciting growth” just like God has done for the PCG! Please tell us about the growth in the PCG! What is the current membership? We all know it’s down significantly. How about the money? Are you even keeping up with the rate of inflation? Why don’t you release any of these figures? What are you hiding? Your Europe financial statements show a clear decline. Even your founder HWA said if the Work wasn’t growing, there was a problem! Please show us the mighty miracles. How many healings of major diagnosed illness have you had in your cult? Exactly what is PCG doing besides a dance show with pagan origins?6 Is that the exciting growth and stunning miracles you are referring to? Maybe it’s Jerusalem? How many people have showed up at your library?7 The one PCG established to educate the Jews about their history. Laughable!
You wrap up your article with fear mongering, declaring any who reject GRF and his faith will burn in the Lake of Fire. Once again classic cult tactic!
I welcome any rebuttal to this letter from Joel or any other supporter of PCG.
By Ben [name changed] (former member of PCG)
December 20, 2024
*GRF=Gerald R. Flurry; PCG=Philadelphia Church of God; HWA=Herbert W. Armstrong; MM=Malachi’s Message; MOA=Mystery of the Ages; Gerry=GRF
Footnotes:
1 GF has denied that he gave a prophecy and that it was only words that he said (Read 2-4-21 letter to ESN). Go to “Gerald Flurry and His False Trump Prophecies” and notice the first paragraph under the heading “Trump Going to Remain President” where he says, “God has not shown me where there is any error in that prophecy that I have made.”
2 Read article: Gerald Flurry Sweeps Trump Prophecy Under the Rug (will also link at end to two of the letters the author has written.)
3 Read article: Gerald Flurry Says He “Made a Mistake” in His Article on Trump (GF’s false prophecy is now a “mistake” and God speaks in a “coded” way).
4 Read: Allowing HWA’s literature to be republished (Will cover the WCG / PCG Court battle)
5 Gerald Flurry deleted and changed portions of MOA. Read: Flurry Has Already Changed Mystery of the Ages! (April 13, 2004 letter to ESN and previous letter for April 7)
6 Read: Edmond Elite Youth Being Taught How to Riverdance (Irish Dancing (October 1, 2013 letter); and Does Irish Dancing Have Druid Roots? (October 30, 2021 letter)
7 Read: Gerald Flurry Gallivanting to the Middle East in His Expensive Jet Plane which mentions the Jerusalem library (March 15, 2022 letter).
Back to Articles on Gerald Flurry
Mike’s Enlightenment Page (info on PCG & GF; includes testimonies)