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PASTOR GENERAL'S REPORT, May 6, 1980
Page 3
in California. An ex-judge was appointed, secretly in a Los Angeles
Superior Court judge's private chambers,as receiver of God's Church.
Yes, after almost a year and a half--still UNBELIEVABLE! Nothing
like it had ever happened in this land of the FREE and home of the BRAVE!
Now nearly all the large churches of the United States are behind
us, giving legal assistance in this lawsuit. They know this is a TEST
CASE. If we fall, they will fall.
God's Church did not cave in. We did not fight back in the sense
of attacking the State, but we did effectively DEFEND ourselves.
On the very first day, January 3, last year, the receiver "fired" me,
Mr. Rader, and the entire Board. He claimed he was running the Church
from here on and would decide all policies, doctrines to be believed, type
of services and all activities.
But God had foreseen it all, and had moved me to a home in Tucson,
Arizona. The RECEIVER stopped my first letter to ministers and members
asking for special funds for defense at the Pasadena post office. But I
immediately wrote another letter which was mailed from another post office,
directing all tithes and offerings sent to me, here. GOD'S CHURCH NEVER
STOPPED OPERATING. The Work continued to GROW!
But the names of God's Apostle and Treasurer had been blackened by
false witnesses, just as that of Jesus was by false witnesses.
And so another level of government started its own independent
investigation into the false allegations against Mr. Rader and me, and
against general mismanagement of the Church and Work. This government
office has been investigating us for some time. A few days ago, at my
invitation, two official investigators came to Tucson for a talk with me
in my home. They had talked personally with the
lse accusers. They
had checked out records--everything. They told me their investigation
was now almost finished. We will, I am certain, be totally exonerated
of any wrong doing.
But I was especially interested in one question they asked me.
Since we operate on the Biblical hierarchical form of government, from
the top down, and I am responsible for making policies, establishing
procedures, doctrines, etc., WHAT IS MY DECISION MAKING PROCESS?
I was glad to answer that!
First, Jesus Christ is living HEAD
the Church and Work. He is
the WORD of God in Person, and the Bible is the same Word of God in print.
I follow His teachings and ways. I pray constantly for leading and guid
ance. I follow the Biblical teaching and examples. I follow the Biblical
admonition, "In multitude of counsellors there is safety." On various
problems I counsel with our leading ministers best qualified in the area
of the problem for counsel. On all major policies or decisions, I call
a Board meeting, and we counsel together. When we are all unanimous-
because we seek not our own ideas or wills, but God's, a motion is made
and the vote is unanimous. The final decision, it is true, is mine--but
in all meetings on such problems or decisions we have all been unanimous.
The motion is not put until we are.