Transformed by Truth [Hardcover]

Joseph Tkach (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 1997

Transformed by Truth

Product Details

• Hardcover: 207 pages
• Publisher: Multnomah Books; First Edition edition (September 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1576731812
• ISBN-13: 978-1576731819
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.3 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 2.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,687,156 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Heartwarming Romp, September 24, 2009

By 

Jessica (Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Transformed by Truth (Hardcover)

A wonderful tale of the much-needed collapse of a sham church created by a dead Iowa ad-man around the turn of the century. A 'church' led by a leader with over five decades of failed "End of the world" prophecies that left tens of thousands of dead, medically untreated, 30%-tithe-impoverished, socially-isolated, and emotionally crippled members in its wake.

Though the chapter on church potlucks and the recipe for lemon tarts was of special interest.

The church has since fractured into a handful of increasingly fanatical splinter groups like the 'Philadelphia Church' headed by Gerald Flurry; a man known mostly for his impassioned rhetoric on the evils of the world, Philadelphia being the One True Church and he its Prophet, and his 1993 DUI charge.

Philadelphia's numbers under Flurry's theatrical leadership are in stark decline, which have led the group the enact such sweeping spiritual reforms as banning its members from using Facebook.

However, the spamming of Amazon reviews is still clearly encouraged and supported, as outlined in the book of Jamaicans, chapter 2 verse 4. To fully understand the book of Jamaicans and other texts, Flurry suggests you read his commentaries. The chapters on how the devil deceived him into driving drunk are real edge-of-your-seat stuff; I felt my spiritual armor swelling with pride. Let the second 50 years of failed prophecies begin!

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars An easy read, but more of a PR piece than a factual account., August 28, 2007

By 

S. Stacy - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Transformed by Truth (Hardcover)

"Transformed by Truth", written by current WCG pastor general Joseph Tkach (Junior), claims on its cover to be "the inside story" regarding the WCG's transformation from "heresy" to "orthodox". And to some degree, it is - the author was present or privy to many of the key events he describes. However, the book is somewhat convoluted from the get-go - in attempting to describe the "transformation" in a manner that makes sense to both former and current WCG members, plus outside readers, Tkach's explanations and rationales presented through the book tend to be shallow and somewhat flimsy from time to time. Since a large part of the book deals with the actions of his own father, the work does tend to read like a simplistic hagiography at points instead of an "inside story". Becuase of these factors, it is not a heavily-researched work and its usefulness is diminished as a result - those looking for objective information on the WCG may be disappointed with its "touchy-feely", emotional style. On the other hand, it does bring out some good information on its topic from time to time and does do a fairly good job providing an introspective viewpoint of that period in the Worldwide Church of God's leadership. It is most useful when read in comparison to another work on the topic instead of alone, as its author's apparent wish to smooth-over some of the less positive events in question tend towards misleading at times.

11 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Transformed, They Goofed, February 4, 2004

By 

Joseph J. Slevin (Carlsbad, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Transformed by Truth (Hardcover)

This book is a good chronicle of many of the changes in the Worldwide Church of God (WCG), however, it's approach is deconstructionist in nature.

Those involved in the transformation of the WCG deconstructed the church and sent literally tens of thousands spinning out of the church into splinter groups, support networks, other Sunday keeping groups, all the way to the isolated.

This is a good work if you want a compare and contrast of teachings and beliefs of what many call a cult and what is considered mainstream.

The legacy left by those who supported this book is one of dismal failure. Lives were not transformed for the better and Christian love was left somewhere in the lurch.

The Sabbath keeping legacy does precede the SDA/Sabbatarian Adventists contrary to the chart that Tkach has in his book. Sabbath keepers can clearly be linked all the way back to 1525 in Germany/Moravia, through the Seventh Day Baptists, who called themselves 'church of God.' Even Ellen G. White mentions that the person who wrote about the Sabbath in early Adventism was himself a freewill Seventh Day Baptist.

There were many things non-cultish about the WCG, people were well travelled, educated, employed. They understood world events. They could tell you who world leaders were and the issues at hand. Yes, as with any other group of people, there were extremes.

The transformation written of here is from only one perspective, as expected. Yet the full truth of the happenings behind the scenes are for another venue.