The Cult of Iglesia ni Cristo - (Church of Christ)
(A Man-Made Church, Controlled from the Philippines)
Beware when invited to a "Bible Study" to the "Church of Christ" - this MAY be a disciple of the
Church of Christ which is controlled/based in the Philippines, also known by its real name in
Philippines-language, as the "Iglesia ni Cristo."
There are MANY secret (unbelievable) things that outsiders are not shown
(or even ALLOWED to know about), when invited to an innocent-sounding "Bible Study."
Once "indoctrinated, the new "member" is gradually exposed to more and more truths,
that would shock any reasonable person, if they knew everything up front. It is our intention to
expose some of these things UP FRONT, so that anyone desiring friendship and Bible Study can
make an educated decision before getting lured into the web of the Church of Christ
(Iglesia ni Cristo). Everything up front - No Secrets and No Gradual "Re-education"
by their church/cult leaders..
Iglesia ni Cristo, a religious sect founded in the Philippines in 1914 by a filipino man named Felix Y. MANALO, a self-proclaimed saint or "last messenger" of God (Manalo reportedly tried to "work his way up" in a couple religions, and finally claimed he was an atheist before he "saw the light" and started building the Iglesia ni Cristo cult with a small band of followers in the Philippines.
Iglesia ni Cristo (Church of Christ) members feel coerced into donating huge amounts of
income regularly into the Manalo Family/Iglesia (church) treasuries, and are never
allowed to ask where the money has all gone.
Questioning church "authority" is likened to "questioning Christ."
Iglesia ni Cristo is Tagalog (Filipino language) for "Church of Christ."
Keeping its Iglesia ni Cristo (filipino Church of Christ) members psychologically
imprisoned through mind-control techniques, subtle intimidation, domination of the
personal lives of its adherents, and a cheap imitation of genuine Christianity, the
Iglesia ni Cristo, or "Church of Christ" in English, is slowly spreading its pernicious
influence throughout the world. Its core doctrines are unscriptural in the extreme.
The majority of its members come from disgruntled religion-seekers, mainly Filipino
ex-Catholics, and non-Filipino men who married Filipino women and found themselves
seduced into the lifestyle/religion, frequently unable to get out due to serious
marital pressures from a brainwashed spouse/family.
Basically a man-made, family-run church/Business, it is currently run by Erano MANALO,
who took control over the church treasury and administration when Felix MANALO
(the founder) passed away. And now Eduardo MANALO is number two in "command" - insiders
say that he will be taking over when Erano MANALO is no longer capable of ruling.
This nepotism, or keeping control of the vast church treasury and administration
"in the family" so to speak, has led many (especially those "in the know", close
to the central administration in the Philippines) to call the church - The MANALO church.
Congregations and members throughout the world are being directly and sharply ruled
by the church "administrator", yet they NEVER get to vote on who is best qualified to
do so, nor do they get any say so on ANY of the many decisions that affect the many
local congregations around the world - these decisions are handed down from the MANALO
family in the Philippines. The big question is - does God get to vote? How?
Iglesia ni Cristo tells members who to vote for in U.S. Elections
(Aren't there laws against non-profit organizations doing that?)
For instance - THE VOTE. The MANALO family (specifically Erano Manalo) decides who he
wants to win, in every U.S. Election. Then, through the many levels of lower administrators,
he tells everyone in the church who to vote for. People are notified in their homes late
in the evening, when their "deacon" shows up to quietly (very hush-hush) tell them who
they must vote for. None of this is done publicly, for fear of reprisals from government
officials, and major news scandals. They also fear that the IRS will then take away their
"tax exempt" (church) status.. Despite this admittedly unbelievable practice, which takes
place in nearly every election, big or small, the members of each state and therefore of
their respective, local congregations don't get a say so, in who they are told to vote for.
As an example, members were ordered/"asked" to vote for Clinton in both presidential elections,
which caused tremendous resentment in the local churches among followers who didn't like
Clinton. Clinton is for abortion, and doesn't have the morals of an alley cat, so
naturally the more conservative-minded people didn't care for him - but they were mentally
coerced into obedience.
Iglesia ni Cristo (the Manalo organization ) gets people to believe the ridiculous theory/heresy
that Felix Manalo was the "last messenger of God", and then they apparently use their claim that
they are "the only way to salvation", to "coerce" large, regular donations of money
from their "members", and to influence voting in national elections.
Without their sacred "last messenger" hoax, their entire authority to DICTATE would quickly
crumble, but with MANALO as their self-proclaimed "Last Messenger", they have to
close their minds, eyes, and ears, and just submit to every newly-invented manalo-rule
that is issued. Blind obedience to a fake religious leader...
The Manalo Church does this by continual preaching on "unity" and putting the "cause"
ahead of the individual. They continually insist that to vote
against "their" candidate, is to vote against Christ - something that innocent, well-meaning
children of God would never do. This appears to be a form of brainwashing, since if the
person goes against the "flow", they are shunned, to minor and major degrees.
Interestingly, "rogue" ministers and higher "ranking" deacons in the Manalo church seem to
be setting their own sets of RULES. Many policies, rules and regulations of local congregations
are very different from other congregations of the Manalo church worldwide, which leads observers
to conclude that there isn't much so-called unity at all.
The administrative section of the church
which is located in the Philippines, is completely unresponsive to the pleas and letters from low-level members
(local church officials change the tyrannical rules often, without the knowledge of the higher-ups)
and simply doesn't seem to have a clue what goes on in many local congregations!
The ministers are often ruthless dictators, issuing commands that damage marital
relationships in families, cause children to seek refuge, fulfillment and acceptance
outside the family/church body (often finding it in the wrong places, with the
people in pursuit of worldly pleasures), and just creating a spirit of distrust, fear of questioning
the rules, and lack of open-mindedness, completely lacking in the attitude of "love thy neighbour."
The Manalo church is active - they actively SHUN and expel family members who question
the leaders/"officers" of the church. They SHUN members who refuse to SHUN others, which wreaks havoc
in families and friendships - no one is to be trusted (or loved!), since they might be
the ones to "turn you in" to the deacons or ministers. Actually, it's not so bad,
just as long as you DON'T DARE TO QUESTION CHURCH AUTHORITY - Pretty sad....
It is NOT easy to break free mentally, from the environment once one's family and friends are all
disciples in the Iglesia ni Cristo - it is very similar to a hostile divorce situation, and the emotional
pressures to just "conform" and go along with the flow are simply enormous. It is much
easier to just come to church, give your money, and be happy and at peace with everyone,
then it is to speak out against a policy. To speak out against something disagreeable,
or something that is
causing doubts, is unheard of - it makes the "doubter" feel foolish in the minor/early
stages, and in the latter stages they are ultimately EJECTED from the church/cult when
they persist in attempting to have their own conscience/will.
At this point, that may sound like a blessing, but when the rest of your family
remains in the cult, it has devastating consequences (not that the cult minds -
at least the rest of the family is still ensnared and STILL GIVING LARGE AMOUNTS
OF MONEY...). Perhaps that's the REAL bottom line - they wouldn't survive for long
without the MASSIVE INFLUX OF CASH, since they certainly don't have enough
love to run on for very long...
The Manalo family, and the Iglesia ni Cristo are not the first ones with the "Last Messenger of God"
hoax. Actually, take a look at the Jehovah's Witnesses, and more importantly,
the Morman Church (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints), and you'll be stunned
at how similar the Iglesia ni Cristo's organization and doctrines are (almost carbon copies!).
Joseph Smith of the Mormans is a great "Last Messenger" kind of guy as we all know!
Look further into the background of Felix Manalo, and the churches he used to affiliate himself
with in his religion-hopping days (following his ridiculous stint as an "atheist.").
He brought all the pieces of the Iglesia ni Cristo puzzle together from stuff copied from
other religions - denominations which existed BEFORE he jumped up and proclaimed himself
"SENT" by God - denominations that he subsequently condemned as "not of the TRUE faith."
Is this a hoax or is this a HOAX? Are you ready to "sign up" yet??
UnBiblical Doctrines
Salvation by Works - Members must obey EVERY detail of every whim of the church/cult
administrators, or "they won't be saved on judgment day." This leads to tremendous
feelings of guilt among followers that aren't "picture-perfect." They feel uneasy
around "the brethren" at all times, and are always seeking to "prove" their devotion
to Christ, by PROVING it to the church/cult. This goes against a clear-cut Bible verse
that teaches that we are saved by faith through grace, and not by "works."
They take the verse "Faith without works is dead" to the EXTREME, and psychologically
badger the membership in conformity in every detail of the will of the church
administration (MANALO).
Denial of the Deity of the Lord Jesus Christ
Denial of the Trinity (Godhead)
Baptismal Regeneration - They teach that you MUST be baptized to be saved.
And not only baptized, but you must be baptized by their Iglesia-trained "ministers",
and baptized INTO their church/cult, or there is NO hope for salvation.
Christians understand the importance of baptism - not only is it symbolic of
the death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ (THE Gospel),
but it is a public profession of faith. But to make it an extremely complicated
ceremony with many PREQUISITES, absolutely required for salvation, is taking it
way too far.
Authority/Inspiration of the Holy Bible - Let's not debate over which "version"
of the Bible is the best. But let's NEVER claim that the Bible is wrong!
Different versions-Different interpretations-YES! Let's CELEBRATE our differences,
our "right to be wrong" and all the Holy enjoyment that comes from sitting down
to read God's Word, and from debating the true meaning/interpretation of passages.
This debate is part of the blessing of reading the Bible, and of being a Christian.
But the IGLESIA has gone WAY overboard in running to countless different versions
to prove "PET DOCTRINES", and when confronted with Scripture that easily refutes
some of their more ridiculous claims, they flatly say that the Bible is wrong!
They claim that this or that Apostle wrote the story wrong, and that Felix MANALO
(the alleged "last messenger") has received some sort of psychedelic second inspiration
directly from God Himself, that the REAL meaning of the Bible is something COMPLETELY
different from what it so plainly states. They use their pet doctrine that Felix
MANALO is an actual ANGEL, to support that insanity. Do people really swallow this
"snake oil?" Yes - they are actually REQUIRED to raise their right hand and solemnly swear that
they believe every word, or they won't be accepted for membership!
They sign up for membership, talk loudly about "the true church", piously give large amounts of money,
get into the habit of dressing up in their "righteous and holy suits and dresses for church, and then
change from their splendid church attire to
their miniskirts and head for the nightclubs and motels in the evening. The members exhibit no fruit
or evidence of salvation whatsoever, other than the fact that they rarely miss a church service
(to most members, church attendance is THE way to Heaven - no other sin compares to missing church!) (Is your mouth STILL hanging open in total disbelief?)
Veneration of their prophet (the late Felix Y. Manalo) as a genuine Angel
(commonly referred to as "The Last Messenger of God") - Putting on their
"supernatural blindfolds", they twist REVELATION 7:2-4 all around to say
that the "angel" in the verse is really Felix MANALO (some old guy from the
Philippines - funny how I still hadn't realized that by the tenth time I
read that verse!), "And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having
the seal of the living God: and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels,
to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea, Saying, Hurt not the earth,
neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in
their foreheads. And I heard the number of them which were sealed: and there
were sealed an hundred and forty and four thousand of all the tribes of the
children of Israel." HMMM...... I STILL don't see MANALO anywhere in that verse,
and "by the way", since he passed away years ago, HOW can he possibly be an angel?
Strange, but true!
Don't be Deceived!
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