Worldwide Church of God Changes Practices After Leadership Transition, Reports Say

The Worldwide Church of God was established in 1933 by Herbert W. Armstrong with 20 followers, according to a 1986 Christianity Today report. That report said the group was based in Pasadena, California, had about 99,000 baptized members, operated in more than 100 countries, and was known for the weekly television program “The World Tomorrow” and the monthly publication The Plain Truth.

In June 1978, Armstrong disfellowshiped his son, Garner Ted Armstrong, from the Church, a Trumpet report from January 1979 stated.

On January 3, 1979, Judge Steven Weisman entered the Church’s headquarters in Pasadena, according to the same Trumpet report. Weisman declared that he had fired pastor general Herbert W. Armstrong and had assumed control of the Church. The report said his actions were backed by the California attorney general’s office and were initiated by a group of former members seeking to take over the Church. The Trumpet’s account describes these events as an attack on God’s Church, a characterization that reflects that publication’s view rather than an established finding. No other source in this material describes the court action, so its details rest on that single report.

Christianity Today reported that the transformation of the Worldwide Church of God began in 1986, following Armstrong’s death. An evangelical-times.org article gave Armstrong’s dates as 1892 to 1986.

In spring 1997, the National Association of Evangelicals (NAE) voted overwhelmingly to accept the Worldwide Church of God into membership after examining its doctrinal changes, according to evangelical-times.org. NAE president Don Argue praised WCG leader Joseph Tkach for seeking the truth through careful study of the Scriptures, even at significant cost to the denomination, the report said. Another evangelical-times.org article described the NAE’s welcome of the group in 1997 and characterized the Church as having undergone a significant transformation toward biblical Christianity; that article’s wording reflects the author’s assessment.

Membership figures differ by scope. An evangelical-times.org report said the Worldwide Church of God once had as many as 90,000 members in the United States alone, a figure that had dropped to just under 50,000. The Christianity Today figure of about 99,000 baptized members covers the group worldwide, so the two numbers measure different populations and are not in conflict.

According to evangelical-times.org, the book The Liberation of the Worldwide Church of God was written by J. Michael Feazell, a senior leader within the organization. Feazell served as executive assistant and senior editorial adviser to Joseph W. Tkach Sr., whom the same report identified as the chosen successor to founder Herbert W. Armstrong.