Herbert W. Armstrong - memories

by Jim_TX 15 Replies latest jw friends

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  Jim_TX

  An ad that appears when viewing certain pages on the JWD web site refer to Herbert W. Armstrong - and his religion.

  I remember this fella... not personally - but through the radio - and his preaching that he used to do on the air.

  I remember tuning in a radio station - far far away (when I was a kid) - in Del Rio, TX (or perhaps across the border in Mexico - XERF?).

  He would get air time, and then preach - for what seemed like hours - although, I'm sure that it was only a 30 minute spot - or perhaps an hour-long spot of air-time.

  I even seem to remember telling my mom at the time how much he sounded like Jehovah's Witnesses - in what he was preaching about.

  I also remember my mom defending the JWs - saying - essentially - that Herbert Armstrong was a kook. A nut-case. Nothing like the JWs.

  H.W. Armstrong had his own set of literature... I really think that he was a 'subscriber' to JW literature... and probably stole many ideas from the Watchtowers... or other publications that he could get his hands on.

  Or... perhaps it's the other way... perhaps the JWs 'borrowed' from HIS literature.

  In any case... it brings back memories.

  Regards,

  Jim TX
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  nomoreguilt

  If I remember correctly from my mother, this fellow was an early apostate of jw's. Some older ones may remember this.

  NMG
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  rekless

  My mother sucscribed to his magazine "The Plain Truth" then started studying with the JWs because the Jws were the closest thing to Armstrong.

  It was rumored he became apostate and borrowed some of the society's teachings.

  I don't know for sure.
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  rekless

  Excuse me, subscribed
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  Leolaia

  He was actually an "apostate" of Seventh Day Adventists. This accounts for a number of similarities (and differences -- such as his sabbath observance), such as his teaching that 1799 marked the beginning of the time of the end (taught by both Adventists and JWs before 1934), but other similarities -- especially his use of the date 1914 -- strongly indicate that he was influenced by the JWs. He also had influences from other Restorationist sects and authors, including the Anglo-Israelism of J. H. Allen and the anti-holiday views of the Plymouth Brethren who also influenced the JWs as well (hence, both Armstrong and the JWs used Alexander Hislop, a Brethren writer, as a source). One thing I really would like to know is the direction of dependence in Armstrong's teaching that the end of the world would occur in 1975. I saw some evidence before that suggested that he was claiming it prior to 1966, but I forgot where I saw that...
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  Honesty

  This info is correct as far as I can remember.

  I have family who are in Armstrong's original cult as well as family who are JW's.

  It's an interesting mix of false prophets, prophecies and predictions when they get together.

  Lunatics, all of 'em.

  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1975_in_Prophecy!

  Enjoy.
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  HappyDad

  In the early 1980's I would occasionally listen to Armstrong on the radio. I even called their number and started getting the Plai Truth magazine. When the magazine came, my wife was in a rage about it but I denied everything and said that someone I worked with must have put my name in.

  Anyhow, I remember reading one of his articles where someone asked if he had ever been a JW and he said that he never had been associated with JW's at all but he would read their literature as well as literature from various denominations.

  Back then, another JW "brother" and I would discuss what the WWCOG (Armstrong) had to say, and we agreed that he was really close the the "truth".

  I don't know about my friend but I always wished we (JW's) could embrace some other type of tactics other than door to door and always putting our religion on page one to everyone we met.

  HappyDad

  Edited to say: To those who ever read his magazine, he really loved to publish pictures of himself with world leaders......as if they really gave a rat's a$$ about him.
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  prophecor

  Hi Jim Tex. I am a subscriber to much of his literature, magazines, books and pamphlets. His ideas are slightly to the absolute right of Jehovah's Witness, though I've been impressed with the teachings. He was branded an apostate by leaders within his own Church. They dismissed much of his teachings as heresy, after he died, and did everything in thier power possible to erase all thoughts, speech from the past and make him a non entity, in church theology and doctrine. Reminds me of what Franz went thru, only the other way around. I at least credit thier organisation for trying to console thier congregants, when they found themselves to wrong. Not like ours, who won't admit to anything. We're a bunch of Cover Artist.

  Time went about to prove that he might not have been the Looney Tune that leaders within the church tried to brand him as being. His teaching have been resurfaced, seemingly without being edited, as is so often done in our organisation. There appears to be a resugence of belief in the things he was trying to preach to the congregations. The attempt to silence him has been stopped, even though, posthumously.

  The information he presented, and the way in which he does, is quite remarkable. There are books of his; the greatest one, Mystery of the Ages, can be requested at no charge, or you can download a copy of it directly to your computer. Most of the literature is available for immediate reading, or, you can request whatever information to be sent, without cost, to your home. His ideas may seem a little radical at first, but he has a keen insight into the solving of the worlds problems, political ills, that are just not for the ordinary thinker. You may find yourself, a little more than just amazed. I was.

  http://www.thetrumpet.com/sites/mysteryoftheages/index.php?gclid=CMnriomNwpECFQGNHgodyXroyQ

  Art
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  bigmouth

  I think the H. W. Armstrong radio broadcasts must have been the earliest memories I have of somebodys religion.
  
  Mum used to have a transistor radio on the frig and he used to boom out for what seemed like hours every evening with his long American vowels.
  
  Mum used to say that he sounds just like the Witnesses with whom she had started studying.
  
  This would be about 1971 I think. You can still find The Plain Truth in some fish and chip shops.
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  jaguarbass

  I remember listening to him on the way to the meetings back in the days of am radios.

  Then there was his son Garner Ted. I always thought that was an unusuall name.