Post-WCG Life and Theology ARCHIVES

I had the opportunity to meet Jon Buck in the late '90's at one of which was probably my last Feast of Tabernacles of WCG. I will say with my meeting with him, he's quite a character and that is a good thing. He was supportive of the changes in the WCG without the evangelical schmaltz that Joe Jr. and friends sought to aggressivel impose on the WCG membership. C'mon, Jon is a Brit and Brit's have no time for sentimentality (especially the American kind) or being "over the top." I do hope there will be an opportunity to talk with Jon Buck again at some pont (hey, if you are reading this blog, feel free to comment here anytime!). He currently pastors a WCG church in Barrie, Ontario. I have replied to Douglas Becker in the comments section of the post on Bishop Carlton Pearson's view on universalism that the evangelical WCG still preaches a righteous provision on the unevangelized dead. Jon Buck explains this in the Sepember/October 2005 edition of The Northern Light (a Canadian based WCG publication) in the Pastor's Corner section titled Exclusive or Inclusive? What Are We? Mind you, there are those Protestants especially of Calvinist persuasion wished WCG that they would accept a more restrictivist view (in addition with the belief of the Western Church's view of hell, eternal torment in The Lake of Fire). Because of the new evangelical WCG's refusal to do so, those of Calvinist persuasion still believe that the WCG is a still a cult. Where do I stand? Those who have known what I have said that I believe that theological the WCG is orthodox in it's theology but cultic in it's orthopraxy (the practice of those beliefs) . The root cause I believe, is the hierarchial government that is still instituted (but this is another subject for another time). I see nothing cultic in believing in the divine perseverence of God. A 19th century Scottish fiction writer and Congregationalist preacher George MacDonald believed in it to and had no use for the restrictivist view of Calvin (which the theory of predestination actually reduced him to tears). Well here is the link to Jon Buck's article at http://www.wcg.ca/northernlight/2005_sep_oct/pastors_corner.htm . I hope many will enjoy it or be inspired by it!