Raising the Ruins (3 page)

That wasn’t the only record to be broken that year. Before 1985, the one-year record of book distribution was 635,000 copies of
The United States and Britain in Prophecy
.
In 1985, 740,000 people requested
Mystery of the Ages
—and the book wasn’t even released until September of that year.
²⁹
That is
740,000 requests in just four months’ time.
As the
Pastor General’s Report
noted, “This book is quickly becoming one of the most highly acclaimed and sought-after pieces of literature Mr. Armstrong has written.”
³⁰

The records continued on into 1986. After Mr. Armstrong died on January 16, the church prepared a special tribute to be broadcast on
The World Tomorrow
television program. Airing the weekend of January 25-26, it was the first time the church ever offered
Mystery of the Ages
(softbound) on television. It resulted in the highest response ever for
The World Tomorrow,
when 107,000 viewers requested the book by early February.

A year later, in 1987, another program that offered the book to viewers generated 59,000 calls. Later that year, a summer re-run of that same program brought in 37,000 more requests. By that same time, mid-1987, there were 5,000 copies of the book in U.S. libraries.

All totaled, by early 1988, about 1,245,000 copies of
Mystery of the Ages
had been distributed worldwide.
³¹

Quite unlike Tkach’s and Feazell’s books, Mr. Armstrong’s “remarkable” book actually produced remarkable results. Of course,
WCG
officials today might argue that it’s an unfair comparison. By the time their books rolled off the presses, the church’s media machine and subscriber base had all but vanished. Mr. Armstrong, on the other hand, benefited from a sprawling, worldwide work that had attracted a huge following over the course of 50 years.

But
THAT’S EXACTLY THE POINT
. Mr. Armstrong’s whole work—his writings, his sermons, his institutions,
his entire life
—had a hugely positive impact on millions of human beings who wanted to be
part
of that work. Of course there were the occasional critics who disliked Mr. Armstrong’s theology. As the
Pasadena Star-News
wrote the day after Mr. Armstrong died,

[T]hose who choose—or who believe they are divinely chosen—to spread the message of monotheism in the world are bound to endure more than their share of mortal vicissitudes. Many of these men and women, however, leave a legacy that makes all their suffering worthwhile. Herbert W. Armstrong was such a man.
³²

There were obstacles and hardships along the way—critics and skeptics—but his
LEGACY
made all the difficulties worthwhile. That’s how the newsmedia in Mr. Armstrong’s own backyard represented his legacy.

Yet, 10 years later, Joseph Tkach Jr.—the man sitting in the same office Mr. Armstrong established—felt it necessary to apologize for Mr. Armstrong’s “heavy legacy” of “heartache” and “suffering.”
³³
Tkachism, we’re to assume, has brought nothing but joy and peace into our lives. Notice what Tkach wrote in the
Christian Research Journal
in 1996:

The leadership and faithful members of the Worldwide Church of God are deeply grateful for God’s mercy in leading us into the light. Yet our progress has not been without costs. Income has plummeted, costing us millions of dollars and requiring us to lay off hundreds of long-time employees. Membership has declined. Several splinter churches have broken off from us to return to one or the other of our previous doctrinal and cultural positions. As a result, families have separated and friendships have been abandoned, sometimes with angry, hurt feelings and accusations.
³⁴

Only in the upside-down world of Tkachism can
Mr. Armstrong
be blamed for all that. But Mr. Armstrong wasn’t the one who caused the income to plummet. He wasn’t responsible for reducing the headquarters staff from 1,000 employees down to 50. He wasn’t the one who drove out 75 percent of the membership. Mr. Armstrong didn’t abolish all of the church’s teachings, prompting splinter groups to break away, thus destroying families and friendships.

Mr. Armstrong caused none of that.
Tkachism
is responsible for that.

“A Giant of a Man”

Judging by the large outpouring of response to news of Mr. Armstrong’s death, evidently, dozens and dozens of prominent leaders from around the world had nothing but deep respect for Mr. Armstrong as a man and high praise for his work.

The king of Thailand, Bhumibol Adulyadej, said that Mr. Armstrong, “through his understanding, wisdom and humanitarianism, has sought to give encouragement and assistance to people all over the world, particularly to Thailand where he has devoted much of his time and resources thereby becoming a close and valuable friend of our country.”
³⁵

Otto von Hapsburg, then member of the European Parliament, sent this message: “Deeply shocked by news of the death of unforgettable Mr. Armstrong. Am with you all in prayers and hopes for successful continuation of his life’s work.”
³⁶

Prince Raad of Jordan, along with his wife, called Mr. Armstrong a “great humanitarian and philanthropist, a loss the world can
…
ill afford at times such as these”—to repeat, a loss
THE WORLD
can ill afford!
³⁷

Teddy Kollek, mayor of Jerusalem at the time, wrote, “One could only be deeply impressed by his vast efforts to promote understanding and peace among peoples. His good deeds were felt in many corners of the world”
³⁸
—except, apparently, within the Tkach household. According to Tkach Jr., Mr. Armstrong’s church was “judgmental,” “legalistic” and “self-righteous”—fostering attitudes of “superiority.”
³⁹

Jerusalem’s mayor disagreed. So did California’s attorney general, who, at the time, said Mr. Armstrong’s “long and productive life leaves a lasting benefit for many.” Pasadena’s mayor—the man living right there in the same city, with an up-close view of the Worldwide Church of God, called Mr. Armstrong a “giant of a man who provided leadership of goodwill and principle.”
⁴⁰
City officials in Pasadena absolutely loved Mr. Armstrong and his work. Myron Stolp of the Rotary International in Pasadena said just after Mr. Armstrong died, “I can scarcely name an activity in which Ambassador has not in some way been involved!”
⁴¹
Cy Graph, president of the Pasadena Chamber of Commerce at the time, said, “In his own quiet way Mr. Armstrong has done more to promote positive relations between countries than has the [U.S.] State Department.”
⁴²

Even the leader of the free world at that time weighed in on the positive impact Mr. Armstrong had on his church and all Americans. U.S. President Ronald Reagan sent this note to the
WCG
upon hearing that Mr. Armstrong had died: “To the congregation of the Worldwide Church of God: Nancy and I join all those mourning the loss of Herbert W. Armstrong. As founder and leader of the Worldwide Church of God, Mr. Armstrong contributed to sharing the word of the Lord with his community and with people throughout the nation. You can take pride in his legacy. Our prayers are with you. God bless you.”
⁴³

Yet, just 10 years later, the pastor general of the Worldwide Church of God—the very church Herbert Armstrong raised up—apologized to
Plain Truth
readers for all the “heartache” and “suffering” Mr. Armstrong had caused.

Why
should we believe him? Well, because
HE SAYS SO
—that’s why! And what’s more, he enjoys enthusiastic support from evangelicals like Ruth Tucker and Hank Hanegraaff. They all think Mr. Armstrong’s legacy was “heavy” with heartache and suffering.

President Ronald Reagan, on the other hand, said we should take pride in Herbert Armstrong’s legacy.

I’m going with President Reagan’s endorsement.

Lifelong Legacy

In the autumn of 1926, Mr. Armstrong was challenged by his wife, Loma, into an almost night-and-day, intensive study of the Bible. He wrote, “My research was totally different from that of students in a seminary. They absorb what they are taught in the doctrines of their denomination. … But I had been called specially by the living God. … I was taught by Christ what I did not want to believe but what He showed me was true!”
⁴⁴
Mr. Armstrong never claimed to be a Bible scholar—at least not in the sense that he had been trained in a seminary or by a theologian. But he looked at that as a tremendous advantage. Having avoided seminary training, his approach to Bible study was without personal bias or prejudice. He didn’t preach what
someone else
said he should preach about the Bible. He relied solely
on the Bible.

As God opened Mr. Armstrong’s mind to the truths of the Bible, He also opened doors so Mr. Armstrong could teach those truths to a large audience.

What many remember as one of the top religious programs on television in the 1980s,
The World Tomorrow,
actually began as a small radio program in Oregon back in January 1934. The
Plain Truth
began one month later, with Mr. Armstrong rolling a couple hundred copies off an archaic mimeograph machine. By the time of his death, that monthly magazine was sent free to more than 8 million subscribers worldwide.

In 1939, Mr. Armstrong started the
Good News
—a bulletin, established mainly for members and co-workers of the church. Like the
Plain Truth,
it eventually developed into a full-color magazine and peaked with a circulation of over 1 million about a year and a half after Mr. Armstrong died.

In the spring of 1946, only 12 years after his work started, Mr. Armstrong saw that if the work was ever to span the globe, he needed more help. To train that help, he needed to raise up a college. The vision for this educational institution was clear in his mind even before it opened. And it resulted in not one, but
three
Ambassador College schools. The headquarters campus in Pasadena opened its doors in 1947; sister campuses opened in Bricket Wood, England, in 1960, and Big Sandy, Texas, in 1964.

As the college developed and grew, so did the work of the church. In 1953, the radio program began airing in Europe on Radio Luxembourg. Two years later, in 1955,
The World Tomorrow
appeared on television for the first time, although it lasted for only a brief span of time.

The
Plain Truth
went full-color in 1965, 31 years after its inception. The church also began publishing the magazine in German, French, Spanish and Dutch during the 1960s. By 1967,
The World Tomorrow
was poised and ready for another venture into the world of television—only this time, it would enjoy rapid growth.

In the 1960s, Mr. Armstrong sought to put into stronger action what he termed God’s “way of
give”
—the way of godly character, generosity, cultural enrichment, true education; of beautifying the environment and caring for fellowman. He began undertaking humanitarian projects, helping select pockets of the underprivileged around the world. In 1975 he formalized the organization of these activities by founding the Ambassador International Cultural Foundation, or
AICF
. The
AICF
set up mobile schools in Buddhist Thailand to teach illiterate farmers how to raise crops of healthful food rather than illegal drugs. It funded and staffed schools for the disabled, archaeological digs of biblically significant sites and anthropological excursions. Its activities stretched from Bombay to Brussels, the Philippines to the Netherlands, Tokyo to Cairo; they reached Okinawa, Nepal, London, Jordan and Jerusalem.

As these philanthropic endeavors multiplied, they produced an interesting, unforeseen side effect: Doors began to open for Mr. Armstrong to meet high-ranking officials in these foreign countries. Leading individuals welcomed him openly, even taking an interest in his opinions, hosting dinners in his honor. Soon opportunity opened for “testimonial dinners,” hosted by such officials, where they would invite their influential friends to hear Mr. Armstrong speak for 35 to 45 minutes. Mr. Armstrong took these occasions to preach the gospel of God’s coming kingdom, speaking in plain terminology they could understand. These dinners opened the way for personal appearance campaigns, where Mr. Armstrong would speak to hundreds of thousands of leading people in various countries. Bringing his hope-filled biblical message of how God will soon
solve
the insoluble problems of humankind, he became widely regarded as “an unofficial ambassador for world peace.”

The
AICF
also launched a bimonthly magazine,
Human Potential,
which was later renamed
Quest.
It was produced for subscription by heads of state and top officials and professionals worldwide and included many articles written by and for them. In its first issues appeared a Japanese leader’s view of Israel, an Egyptian official’s perspective on the Middle East, a case for international law written by a World Court justice. Reports on archaeology, nature, the wonders of the human mind and body, historical expeditions, arts and cultures of the world all appeared alongside articles of a moral and spiritual nature.

Thus, even as Mr. Armstrong “rubbed shoulders with and come to know the totally illiterate and poverty-stricken poor,” as he expressed it
Mystery of the Ages
,
⁴⁵
particularly via some of the humanitarian projects he undertook and oversaw personally, he also gained considerable credibility, favor and even prestige among the world’s elite. He spent much of the 1970s traveling the globe to spread the gospel message to kings, presidents and other heads of state—all while writing vigorously for the many church publications. Through his travels, Mr. Armstrong met with royalty including the late Japanese Emperor Hirohito, the late Ethiopian Emperor Haile Selassie, King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand, and the late King Hussein of Jordan. He had an endearing relationship with Egyptian President Anwar Sadat before his assassination in 1981. He later gained an audience with Sadat’s successor, Hosni Mubarak. Mr. Armstrong discussed the cause of world evils with former Japanese Prime Minister Eisaku Sato and met with six successive Japanese prime ministers as well. He was on very friendly terms with then-President Ferdinand Marcos of the Philippines and was awarded the Presidential Merit Medal in 1983. Other heads of state Mr. Armstrong visited include Israeli prime ministers Menachem Begin and Golda Meir, Thai Prime Minister Prem Tinsulanonda and British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.