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Cojak

The truth can hurt

01000001 01100011 01110100 01110011 Posts: 24275 **9/5/22 7:46 pm**

Do you miss things of the past? You that remember all the 'sins' we listed in the COG in the 40-60 era, how many should exist today for the COG? Pick more, but most hit the ladies of the church i.e. wearing pants, makeup, 'cutting hair', 'stockings required', movies, TV etc.

Now the point: My best friend, I mean a great guy. He was Methodist. One of the best Christians I can remember. After 50 years of friendship on a trip once he said to me, "Jack why do you and the COG think you are better than the Baptist, Methodist, Catholic and others?"
You could have pushed me over with a feather.
"Why would you even say that? I love you like a brother I have never said or thought that!"

"You know I am from Paw Creek. I know Joe and his people. They appear as Pharisees. One of his lady members who knows my wife is Methodist, stopped my wife on the street and asked how could she claim to be a Christian and wear pants?"

Did we come across as thinking we were better than others? I know for years many COG folk thought all Baptist etc were headed to Hell... and did not mind saying so. Now the story is much different. Even Our pastor said Sunday WE ALL SIN! Whoa, We used to 'make mistakes,' but once saved, sanctified and filled with the Holy Ghost WE NEVER SINNED!!!!!
Some of you may be too young to know about those previous 'sins' but we did say, "Going to a movie or shooting pool' was a sin.....

I personally think we did not mean to, but did come across as Pharisaical. JMO

Embarassed

_________________
Some facts but mostly just my opinion!
jacsher@aol.com
http://shipslog-jack.blogspot.com/

Aaron Scott

Cojak...

Hon. Dr. in Acts-celeratology Posts: 6032 **9/8/22 7:36 pm**

There are several "tribes" within the Church of God. The one that probably gets the most attention is the one that equates holiness with harshness. Or if not quite that, then with the belief that if others aren't doing it like we are doing it, then they are going to hell, are poor Christians, etc.

I was raised in a conservative Church of God home (pretty much all of us of a certain age were). But I do not recall a single instance of hardness or harshness toward others. As a matter of fact, for no reason outside of perhaps the influence of those outside my family, I when through a season there where I think I was the most conservative (in that my attitude was overly-strong about what others were wearing).

In fact, I didn't even know that "bobbing one's hair" was considered worse than jewelry or makeup in some quarters. All I knew if that my mother and sister didn't wear pants or jewelry (later my sister "backslid" and started wearing jewelry--I hope she can get right before Jesus comes!), and from that and hearing the teachings read every time someone joined the church, I gained a conservative view.

Another tribe was those folks who, knowing good and well what the Teachings said, would wear jewelry, pants, makeup, etc. While I happen to know folks who were dressing "liberal" before we changed the teachings, and know they were true-blue Christians, it still didn't feel right. After all, if you agreed to join the Church of God and those were the teachings, it seems that you are obligated to keeping them.

Then I started noticing that the wives of some of the highest, most visible ministers in the Church of God would dress that way even at campmeetings that were very conservative (like Florida's!). That tribe created a bit of the problem, I think....

There was a very strong reaction to that in some quarters. Sometimes the reaction was to feel that we now had permission to do what we wanted to do. But the reactions that I saw the most (back before the teachings changed) was a kind of sorrow at feeling like the Church of God they had joined was no longer the same Church of God...or that we were starting to lose ourselves. Some, though, instead of sorrow or sentimentality, were adamant in their righteous indignation, and they didn't mind letting everyone know about it.

In, I think, 1990 (maybe a year earlier?), I visited the Western North Carolina Campmeeting (Charlotte). The Florida Campmeeting had ended and I had some time off, so I went to North Carolina. Bro. Dennis McGuire was the Overseer then. And while I may have misread him, I seemed to detect that he felt the pressure. His daughter was, like many other Church of God young ladies, not as walk-the-line as some conservatives liked. I remember Bro. McGuire almost humbly saying something about the criticism (or perhaps just hinting at it), and then saying something like "Give me a chance." That is, give him a chance to deal with such things, since he was not going to alienate his daughter.

In any case, T. L. Lowery preached the campmeeting, and it was just incredible. I felt like I had stepped into a time warp and went back about ten years in time. That is, ten years earlier, the Florida folks would have been dressing the way most of the folks at the campmeeting were dressing. It was just glorious!

Since we received the Paw Creek Church of God newsletter every so often, so on Sunday, I decided to visit there for Sunday morning service. I must tell you that it was about as dead of a service as I have ever attended. I know those folks are good folks, but I believe they had allowed the way others were doing to get in their craw...and I was only too happy for the service to close. I hate to say that, but that's how it was.

Now take the Dallas, NC, Church of God. That is a conservative church, but if I lived in the area, that would be my church (probably not my wife's, since she, too, is backslid and wears jewelry and makeup!). So I believe it was weighing on Bro. Chambers' heart so heavy that it might have taken the service down. I seem to recall seeing him at campmeeting and noticing that he didn't seem all that enthused.

(Florida typically had the best campmeetings anywhere. In time, though, with conservatives and "liberals" all attending, that likely sapped a little of its thunder. Which is why I was so glad to have stepped into the time warp. Thankfully, over time, the folks who attend campmeeting have largely gotten over their differences. The ones who haven't? They don't come to campmeeting--they hold their own campmeetings. Probably not a good idea for them to attend a revival since, if they don't like everything they see and hear, they'll "sit down on it.")

I DO believe the Church of God is better than other denominations. NOT better than other PEOPLE, but denominations. If I didn't, I wouldn't belong to the Church of God. In fact, WHATEVER denomination (or non-denomination) someone belongs to, if they don't think it's the best one, they ought to move on to the one they believe is the best. I would...except I haven't heard or known of a better denomination. It may be that a Methodist would sense that in me and take it that I thought less of them, but I don't. I just believe we are, well, "righter" about some things.

Cojak

01000001 01100011 01110100 01110011 Posts: 24275 **9/9/22 8:10 pm**

Thanks Aaron, you are right of course of the groups. My dad would not wear a tie clasp when he wore a tie (He preferred a Bow tie) When many cuffs were for cuff links, dad wore two buttons mama had tied together to work as cuff links. However he never preached along those lines.

I look back and I was very fortunate to have the parents I had. Dad loved his church just like family.
Anyway, my point was I think, some seem to think we have not changed as a denomination, but we certainly have.

We pray God's blessings on you and your work there. You also have a wonderful family, even if one wears a little make up! LOL
Love from NC
_________________
Some facts but mostly just my opinion!
jacsher@aol.com
http://shipslog-jack.blogspot.com/

Old Time Country Preacher

Re: Cojak...

Acts-pert Poster Posts: 15564 **9/10/22 5:55 pm**

georgiapath

Re: Cojak...

Acts-dicted Posts: 7587 **9/12/22 4:05 am**

Aaron Scott

Georgiapath

Hon. Dr. in Acts-celeratology Posts: 6032 **9/12/22 12:29 pm**

I've never heard the term before, but I take it to be earrings.

Aaron Scott

Georgiapath

Hon. Dr. in Acts-celeratology Posts: 6032 **9/12/22 12:36 pm**

I've never heard the term before, but I take it to be earrings.

Old Time Country Preacher

Re: Cojak...

Acts-pert Poster Posts: 15564 **9/16/22 11:20 pm**

Carolyn Smith

Hon. Dr. in Acts-celeratology Posts: 5909 **9/16/22 11:26 pm**

This reminds me of a joke I heard many years ago...

A man said, "I dreamed I went to heaven, and there was a group of people standing off to the side all by themselves, ignoring everyone else, just talking amongst themselves.

I asked someone who they were, and the reply was, "That's COG folks. They think they're the only ones here."

**********
Thanks to OTCP for that brain balancer reference. Kinda showing your age there, bro! Very Happy

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Cojak

01000001 01100011 01110100 01110011 Posts: 24275 **9/17/22 9:19 am**

Mat

Its been a good while ...

Acts Enthusiast Posts: 1979 **9/24/22 6:49 am**

Its been a good while since I posted, but as to the nature of COG folks, I have seen both - loving and accepting, as well mean and condemning. Being COGOP and part of the Tomlinson family, I could tell you some stories of both verbal and physicals assaults. Your written and oral history, though revised, created some false perceptions.

That said, I have read the same discussion among people raised in other branches of the Pentecostal Movement, as well as Baptist (Fundamental Baptist, in my opinion, are the most judgmental), Methodist, and other denominations. You can find Catholics and Orthodox, and even LDS people who match those descriptions.

I have learned to come right back at them, as there is always something in the lives of people who are spiritually legalistic which is hypocrisy. However, in general, COG folks have been more kind than condemning to me.