Unfortunately, there are no links to Ted Armstrong's booklet. The reader will have to get the booklet, and good luck on that, because no one in either of Ted's organizations (ICG or CGI) will even acknowledge there ever was such a booklet. But they can find it on the net for a price ($45 was the lowest price I could find).

Also, the book by Traudl Junge ("Until The Final Hour") is not on the net, but the book is available on Amazon.com and I give the page numbers below. The same can be said for the book "The Last Days of Hitler" by Trevor Roper. This book by Roper is an old book (copyright 1947 and published by the Macmillan Company of New York) and there may not be a lot of copies around. But websites like Alibris.com should have info as to how to obtain a copy. I did buy mine from Amazon.

David Antion's tape "79 Disfellowshippments and Firings" as well as C. Wayne Coles tape on his side of that story can be obtained from these ministers by writing or emailing them. Thanks-Myra

After reading Ted Armstrong's booklet on "The Origin and History of the Church of God International" and comparing it with Robinson's book as well as the Ambassador Report, I am convinced that Stan Rader was paranoid when Ted fired him in early '78 and then changed advertising agencies for the WCG, from one owned by Rader to another agency. Rader was too sly to allow that to happen.

According to Robinson, Rader had black and white photos of HWA in the buff with some little French boys and was using these photos as blackmail. HWA mentions in the "60 Minutes" program in January '79 with Mike Wallace, that Rader was "threatening to tell all he knows." Was this the reason that HWA was unable to grant Wallace a personal interview? -fear of Rader telling what he knew? But what was Rader afraid Wallace would hear from HWA?

Interestingly, HWA had agreed to Ted's proposal in early '78 to hire a new advertising agency (other than Rader's) and to separate the church HQ from the College by placing the college (AC) in Big Sandy, and the WCG HQ in Pasadena in order to be accredited by WASC (World Association of Schools & Colleges) as that was a problem (according to Ted-"Origin" pg 51) related to the desire of HWA to call Ambassador a coeducational institution while being under strict control of a hierarchy. WASC would not okay that. If the hierarchy was to be maintained, there had to be a separation of church and college. Student freedom of choice is imperative in a coeducational environment.

On July 31,1978 (after being disfellowshipped from the WCG) Ted wrote a letter to the entire WCG membership attacking basic doctrines adopted by HWA. In the letter he also, denied having any part in the initiation of the production of 'Quest' (a very secular magazine being paid for by the membership of WCG) or the Ambassador International Cultural Foundation (AICF), two very expensive projects of Stanley R. Rader & Robert Kuhn (both acknowledged Zionists who attended Jewish synagogues).

Like Hitler, HWA was unable to recognize his own failures and lack of foresight that led to eventual breakdown in communication, and failure of the entire system. According to Traudl Junge (Hitler's secretary) in her book "Until The Final Hour,"(available on Amazon.com) Hitler denied failure on the battle front so long that it cost him his war. In similar fashion HWA denied failure so long that it cost him his whole support system and his empire. All of his followers followed him right over the edge into the darkness that became known as "Armstrongism." And like Hitler's devoted followers the WCG membership was held under the spell of the advertising man turned 'apostle' forgetting Christ's admonition in Rev. 2:2 to try them that call themselves 'apostles' and get rid of the liars (ie, false prophets are liars, and HWA had more than 200 failed prophecies to his credit).

Rader had informed HWA of Tkach's fencing activities, as well as his involvement with Earl & Shirley Timmons, "With respect to Joe Tkach, I recommended him. Although I did know about his connection with Mr. and Mrs. Timmons (two of the relators in the lawsuit), I did not find out the full details concerning his illegal fencing activities until they surfaced recently while we were preparing our civil rights case. He is obviously not the man I recommended to you and I apologize for my error in judgment." Rader would later regret his "error in judgment" of Tkach even more, when he lost his 'rabbit's foot' (the black & white photos) after apparently allowing Tkach, whom he thought was under his control, to view the evidence. Rader first acknowledged this to HWA in the early 80s according to an earlier AR.

Tkach and the maintenance crew of Ambassador College in Pasadena (along with several others both in and out of the ministry) were known to be "Rader men" due to the fact that they were in his camp and taking orders only from Rader. This included HWA's wife, Ramona Martin, at the time.

One has to wonder exactly what Rader recommended Tkach for as indicated in the above letter, since he became head of the ministerial department after his ordination as an evangelist in '79. He did not lose that position after this letter to HWA from Rader. Was Rader leaving it up to HWA to fire him? If so, HWA failed to heed this warning. What was he afraid of?

Rader knew that HWA was a gutless guru, who was paranoid when it came to confrontation, which was the major reason that he always had a bodyguard in the form of a lawyer at his side. And therefore Rader had other staff people and Ramona to answer the phone when Ted called. What could HWA tell his own son after he disfellowshipped him for doing exactly what he was instructed to do? According to Ted's last letter to his father, dated April 25, 1979 (pg 73 of "Origin")-"It is ridiculous to accuse me of doing the very thing you had appointed me to do."

According to Ted, Rader had at first, encouraged him to take the lead in the WCG stating, "Ted, now is the time for you to put your stamp on the college!" ("Origin" pg 79).

Aaron Dean went on to become HWA's assistant, replacing Bob Fahey.

The Armstrong leadership was no longer in control of the Armstrongite ministry that had been trained by HWA. The regular evangelists, such as Rod Meredith, Herman Hoeh, etc. lost their high position in authority when Tkach was put in charge of the ministry in '79. Many were disfellowshipped (ie, Dave Antion, C. Wayne Cole, etc.).

This would not have happened if Ted had been under Rader's influence, because Rader did not seek the top religious position. He just wanted to be in control of the money. But with Ted gone, he knew that he had to place his myrmidons in positions of control, in order to maintain control of the money when HWA died. He obviously knew where every dime was in all those corporate soles that were scattered out to other states, as well as in the thirteen bank accounts listed under HWA's name.

According to Ted's booklet, HWA had been afraid of being "placed in a mental institution" ("Origin" pg. 67)"He was becoming paranoid about plots against him" (same pg). This accusation is also repeated in DLA's tape "'79 Disfellowshippments and Firings." along with the fact that C. Wayne Cole (the then head of the ministerial dept.) was consulted by HWA about how to go about firing Rader. Of course the loyal Cole tried to help HWA and was stabbed in the back as a result. This information is available on David Antion's taped message, "79 Firings and Disfellowshippments"

After the Dean bros. tape, HWA was able to fire Rader himself (with pay of course, because he knew too much to just get rid of him). But by this time Tkach (whom Ted refers to in his booklet as "one of our former gardeners, who had risen, for some unknown reason, to be in my father's circle of trusted confidants." Origin pg 56) apparently took charge of HWA's ministry and his empire. Did he steal the blackmail? Did the Dean bros?

Unlike Rader, Tkach was not willing to settle for second billing. He wanted the chancellery and the 'Pastor General' position, and the WCG Empire. In order to have it, he had to remove a very prominent obstacle, Herbert W. Armstrong.

Like Hitler "the once sociable" and charismatic preacher of a future utopia, "became an isolated hermit, with all the psychological repressions inherent in that dismal condition"(Trevor Roper-"The Last Days of Hitler," pg.56) This book is available on Amazon.com.

Ted Armstrong pictures himself in his booklet about the origin of CGI, as the 'martyr' of the Armstrong cause. In his last letter to HWA, he states how he could have taken over the church while HWA was compromised by his heart attack during '77 and then relates, "But you see, it never occurred to me!" He writes in his last letter to HWA, "Dad, I intended leaving that personal family problem behind in your study" (reference to the conversation witnessed by Benny Sharp pg 57 "Origin", in which Ted accused HWA of having an incestual relationship with sister Dorothy). This was another final blow to any chance of reconciling with his dad.

But then another "mystery of the ages" surrounds the strange Mr. Timmons, who, as a long time buddy of Tkach, suddenly switched camps in the time of GTA's downfall and became Ted's so called "body guard" which became obvious when, at Ted's funeral he took charge and expelled Benny Sharp from the funeral parlor, even after the Armstrong family had accepted Sharp's final visit to pay his respects to his long time former friend and mentor.

In an email to me Vance Stinson said of Timmons and his wife, "Earl and Shirley Timmons were the ones who brought the lawsuit against the WCG in 1979. They were in Ted's corner then, but Ted pretended he didn't know what was going on."

Earl and Shirley were listed among those suing the church during the so called '79 "Palace Revolution" Did Ted inspire this in order to take over the church?

Vance further stated about a strange phone call that he received from Shirley Timmons after Ted's disfellowshippment from CGI, "On the very night the Council unanimously voted to ask Ted to go into retirement, Shirley Timmons called me at home (about two hours after the decision had been made). I was amazed that she already knew what had happened in the Council meeting (Mark [Ted's son] had obviously called her. She was trying to call E. B. Vance, but mistakenly called my number, seeing the name "Vance" next to the number. I thought it strange that she kept calling me "Mr. Vance." It took me a while to realize that she thought she was talking to E. B. Vance. When I told her I was Vance Stinson, not E. B. Vance, she began telling me about how she and Earl "got" Stan Rader. She then said, "We got Mr. Big Brains, and we'll certainly get your little bitty brains, too." They tried---believe me, they tried! But they were never able to dig up anything on anyone! The lawyers and attorney general rejected their claims on the basis that they had nothing!"

Vance further stated, "Back before the final showdown that resulted in Ted's departure from the CGI, Earl called Benny Sharp aside (this happened at the office out near Lake Palestine) and said, 'We've got you on embezzlement, and we want you out of here by Friday.' Benny angrily let them know he was not going anywhere. The sad fact is that Benny's long-time friend, Garner Ted Armstrong, was behind it all. He denied it repeatedly, but he was a liar"

Did Ted want Benny out of the church? Why? It appears that Benny was a threat to Ted that even the general ministry was not aware of. And what is more, the preacher appeared to be afraid to approach his old friend about the real reason that he feared him. So he had his "bodyguard" intercede. Was this threat related to the fact that Benny had been one of the only three trustees on the board of GTA Association? This Board of Trustees included Ted and Ron Dart, who was already out of the CGI by this time. It is interesting to note that only members of Ted's core family were allowed to be trustees on the GTA/EA Board in the ICG. After Ted's death there were rumors that the ICG split was related to the fact that most of the church's money was banked in the GTA/EA Association's account and could only be accessed by the Armstrong family. (Copies of the Articles of Incorporation for GTA/EA can be obtained by writing the Secretary of the State of Texas, PO Box 13701, Austin, TX, 78711, ph. #512-475-3551).

Vance further stated, "Earl Timmons once told me that there would be no CGI if not for them. He was referring to the fact that he put a big wad of money in Ted's hand back in 1978 just before the CGI was founded. Shirley told me that Earl was holding Ted's hand when Ted died."

Rumor has it that one major reason that Timmons fled Pasadena was related to the fact that Joe had a contract out on him. According to Hope of Israel Ministries, "...Earl Timmons claimed that a deputy attorney general of the state of California told him that Tkach used his influence to assist in the release of Kenneth Moran from Folsom Prison and George Pappageorge from San Quentin. Fearing for his own life, if they were released, Timmons sold his Pasadena home, and moved out of the area, going into hiding." ("The Plain Truth about Joseph W. Tkach--Apostle? or apostate? pg 13).

Interestingly, after the Tyler masseuse (Sue Rae Robertson) brought charges against CGI & Ted for sexual abuse, she complained about threats being made against her life and how that the terrorists who were threatening her, claimed to know where her grandchildren were and how to get to them. Vance Stinson stated that he knew for a fact that those threats came from Earl & Shirley Timmons. And Ted was not in the dark about this according to Vance.

There was no coroner's inquest and with that much money and property at stake there should have been.

Tkach gave an exact -to the minute time of death in the press release given that day (5:59 AM-Jan. 16, 1986) which is strange considering that HWA was up in his wife's chair according to the attending nurse (Bob Herrington). Why would you have a dying man up in the chair and then stand there with a stop watch while he died?

The guard on duty at the time of HWA's death (Tony Alameda) later reported to fellow students in his dorm that "Tkach has just stolen the chancellery" and according to the students who heard his report, Tkach used a pillow on HWA (suffocating him). This was also reported to Norm Edwards (in an email to me a few years back) who verified that he had received this report. Needless to say, Tony Alameda left town after that.

One has to wonder why Aaron would not choose to be at his friend's side to comfort him during the final moments. One clue may be in the words of one of HWA's secretaries as told to John Trechak - "In 1984, Ambassador Report interviewed a lady who had been a personal secretary to both Stanley Rader and Herbert Armstrong. When asked who she thought would succeed HWA, she quite emphatically told us:

In 1984, we didn't take her opinion seriously. Maybe we should have."

Kevin Dean disappeared the next day after HWA's death and according to one minister (Bryce Clark) Kevin "feared for his life."

Bill Dankenbring writes - "Some rumors have even been in circulation which suggested the possibility of foul play -- even murder. The last night anyone saw Herbert Armstrong still alive, there was no nurse in attendance. There was no security guard in his room, or nearby. Interestingly, the last one to see him alive was none other than his trusted assistant Joseph Tkach, Sr., who was to replace him as Pastor General of the Church and "apostle." After Tkach left his bedside that night, no one entered Armstrong's room until the next morning, when his body was found dead. Contrary to an article which appeared in The Worldwide News at the time, he died in his bed, and not sitting up in his wife's favorite chair.

Did Satan the devil pull off a master-stroke at the death and passing of Herbert Armstrong? Was the "passing of the baton" a notorious, nefarious FRAUD? Was Herbert Armstrong, while on his death bed, surrounded by only a few "trusted" aides, deceived, and taken advantage of? The horrendous possibilities are mind-boggling!" (art. "Where and How the Worldwide Church of God Went Wrong")

Did Tkach change his story when he knew that it was not going to ring true? Surely questions would be asked regarding the possibility of negligence, esp. in the case of a terminally ill patient. The nurse (Bob Herrington) sent me an email claiming that he was the only one in the room or even in the entire house at the time of Armstrong's death, when in fact, the housekeeper (Rona Martin) lived there. Aaron Dean claims there was never a guard posted, while the AR claimed there was one around the clock and also that there was nursing care around the clock, which would explain how Tkach knew the exact time of death. But it is highly unlikely that you could suffocate someone with a pillow while they are up in a chair. I am sure that Tkach was aware of that fact. It would be interesting to get Tony Alameda's side of the story, if there is one?

I checked the nurse's license with the state of California and it appears that Bob Herrington has no license for that state. But he did have one with the state of Delaware. So apparently Herrington was not legal to even practice in California in 1986.