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Page 10
The Attorney General
Kept HisWord.
NowIWill Keep Mine.
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I
.\\1 TREASURER
and Gen
eral Counsel for the
Worldwide Church of God.
Last September, while my
church was locked in battle
with the Attorney General of
the State of California over
the que;;tion of whether or
not the State had the right to
investigate our work and our
use of our money.
I
made a
public statement.
Becau,e it had been in,inuated
that I wa, leading the battle to pro
tect our Church becau,e, at lea,t in
part. l wa, personally ambitious
and might even have visions of ,uc
ceeding our Church\ Founder and
Pa,cor General Herbert W.
Arm
strong, I found it nece"ary to spell
out my thinking and my intention,.
Thi\ i!!I \lo hat I ')aid I hen, in a pre�..,
relea!!le and ln an advert\..,ement ,imi\ar
to th1!') one
··\,iany member\ of the pre�.., ha\C
a:-.kedme "ho will lead the Church when
Mr. Arm:-.1rongl:-. gone. ..\.nd many time�.
l
kno\4 '. they a:-.L belie\'ing they know
the amwer They think I v.dl succeed
Mr. Arrnslrong or. at lea..,t. that I hope
to. lhey are wrong. ( at..,o k.now that
1h<:"re are many rnember\i of uur Church
1,1,ho think of me 3:!lo a po..,..,ible !')UCCC\1,or
to our Pa ...tor General. I am touched by
their l,ne and by their fai1h in me. Bu-
t
the\· aho are " ' rong. I do nol con...1der il
e1,e� remote/� p0.\!!1ble 1hat I v.1l/ \UC
. . :eed "-1r. Arm...trong I am not worthy I
:.1.m not �ualified 10 ".:ierve Chri�t in that
\),av l d0 not belie\e it n, mv callinQ:_
lt
certain!\'
;.., not my de..,,re -\�d
J
do�nor
hehe1,·e it i, God', '-"di
"However. I kno\lr' that m� \eadenihip
role in the ,1ruggle again...t the Attorney
General ha\ created a public pre,ence
that apparently lead\ -some pen , on, to
�ue�tion my \inceriry. A, a re!iult, my
moti\'
e\ become \U:-.pect a... I i:ontmue to
defend our Church\ \.\'nrk \-1uch l)f
v.hat I \r� lo do hCL)\ored b� tha.1-.
. .u,pi
c1on. fhere ;ire (ho..,e "ho belie\e I am
,elt-,erv1ng or per,onall .
\ amhitinu . . .. But
they are \Hong [ ' he only thing I v.ant for
rn:-,.�ei(i� a re(urn to a more pr1\ate life f
continue the fight hecau...e I beline it t\ a
gooct fight With all mv heart and .,oul I
helie\e in the rightne!'!� uf our cau,e
"'\'-'hen the lal-'-.
.,Ull\ again.,, u... an: "'rn
and our Church i� free from attack. I "ill
re. . ,1gn my offic1aI Churi.:h po,ltion. I "di
return to the pri\ate practice ol law and,
preferably_ will Je\ · ore the n: .... r rn_\ �ork
ing life tL) publtc ,en· ice"
J closed h _
\ promi,ing ne\er to ...ur
render in our flght and ne\er to lea\e our
Church
fhat j.., v.hal \ -.aid la- . .t September and
that;.., Y.hat I meant. [n Onnher. lJur
fight v.a, \\-on Go\ernor Jerr� Brnv.n
..,tgned in10 lav. Senate 8111 �o 1493.
prrniding that the >\ttorne� (Jenera!
:-.halt ha\e no po\\er..
that he a... )erted �n
the litiga11on agJin"t the World1,1,1Je
Church of God
-\ttlHney General Georg.e Deukme _
ilan
had ,aid he would a'.'lk di...m1..,a1 nf the
law\uit... again..t u, 1f 'iR l4'B became
law. He kept hi.., word . The -.utt" v.ere
di.,n,i..,..,ed. on hi\ reque-.r. October IS
1980.
l"herefore. it,, 1ime for me to kee-
p m _
\
word
I ha\e re�igned my ro\it1on a:-. frea,
urer and a member of 1he Roard nf the
Wor-Jd1,,1,1dc Church of God. _
\-f\ re,igna
tlon 1� effect1\e Jul:-,. l. 1981. I dated m\
notice of re...ignation January), 19�1, a..
,
a kind of ...ymh()t. It wa-. on Januan J.
197Q, e,o;.ac1ly rn-o year... ago . that t)Ur
Church wa'> fir!->t a.,..,aulted b\ the officer'>
of the Attorney General
I v.lll con1inue ti) ..,enc J\ Fxe(Utl\e
\ '
lce-Pre,1dent of the . \mha..,,adnr h1un
dation. "h1ch carrie, on tht' nLln-,eL·ta�1.1n
\.\nrk n( \he Church l J.h,t), a, ,H\ J.th,r
nn. "ill conrrnue !L1 dtft'nd tht" rnlere_
.,.i:,,
i)f �,ur Church v. or!dv. it.fr. Jnd t v. di con
tinue a., a per..,onal a,-,.1-.tantto \1r Herh
err V.· :\rm...trnng
I hope thi, ,taternent v.111 �ene tv.o
purpt1.,e,
hr,t.
I h,)pe it v.ill end f1He\er an�
,pe..:ulation ah(1ut the po,,1hilit� nf m�
-.u(ceeding \1r. \rm'1rnng a... head of
our Chur.:h Thatwilt ne1.erhapren · \,
I
ha\e "!oa1d hefore. I do ni)l expect any
one
!
1
) ...
ucceed .\fr_
,\rm,tn)ng. The Ln
tng (jod ha� entru,ted \1r _.\rm..,trnng
with a (Jreat C,immi..
,,ion and Ci,)d ha,
ne\'er taken a man hefore hi.., "-Ork \o\-3..,
done I do nl)t h)ok ftH or exped another
PJ.-.tor C,eneral. l ' nder no c1rcum..,tance...
v.1ll I t\'Cr he Pa..tor Cieneral ot our
Church I do nut kno\o\- ho" to put th,:11
more l'Jearl)
\e(ondh. I hl)pe 1hi, ..,tatement finally
u.11! L'itar I he \.I. on for m:,.
. rcturn t•J a more
pri\ate life, J rno\e I ha\c de".'.i1red fl)f
more than l"o year,. lht1..,e v.ho kno�
me \J,,11\ r�member thJ.t l re....l�ned m,
ntfic1al p,h1tinn... nni:t hefore. l ,ta�cd
on onl� became nf the battle that needed
tn he fought '\,iv. that the t\t!hl 1, \.\.nn. I
.im !oo�tng for"'ard to the 1rani.Julllty L)f
a prr\ate lite rhar mr f°Jmr/\ J.nd
f
h,He
m1..,...ed . ,.n ..,\1rel\dur:ngthe p.1,t t"l)\ear,
I h : Ht leJrned much during the Ja..
.t
tv. n \ear, I ha �e learnt"d mui . :h ahnut the
realit\ nf lJv. a" tt l'.> rra-:t1(ed tn !he
1.·nit�d State....
l kno" more than I once
did about the need w remain \tgtlant 1n
protection of ciur ha,1c rt�hh
r oo. I hJ\e learned much ahlJUt 1he
..,truggle nf minority group" to ach1e\e
1u\t1ce
I "ill n,)I forget v.hat I ha\e learned
What \ J...,k Cn�d !or n1�v. l') the ..,Hengt'n
anJ "i,dnm to u...e "'hat! ha1.e le:irned in
"-3:,0.\ that \.\.lll ...enc Him °"ell
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Sl-\',l E-� R. R,DfR.
rhe Worldwide Church of God