Is The World Mission Society Church Of God Racist?

Though current members may deny this, the World Mission Society Church of God teaches a study called “Six Day Creation” in which they conclude that the curse placed on Noah’s son Ham is the cause of black skin, the justification for slavery and the origin of the entire Black race. They also believe that Noah’s sons Shem and Japeth represent the origins of the Asian and Caucasian races respectively. This horrid distortion of the Bible can not be credited to Ahn Sahng Hong or Zahng Gil Jah, and is not unique to the World Mission Society Church of God. Ellen G. White, Seventh Day Adventist “prophetess,” according to Ahn Sahng Hong, wrote:

The unnatural crime of Ham declared that filial reverence had long before been cast from his soul, and it revealed the impiety and vileness of his character. These evil characteristics were perpetuated in Canaan and his posterity, whose continued guilt called upon them the judgments of God…
On the other hand, the reverence manifested by Shem and Japheth for their father, and thus for the divine statutes, promised a brighter future for their descendants…
The posterity of Canaan descended to the most degrading forms of heathenism. Though the prophetic curse had doomed them to slavery, the doom was withheld for centuries.
God bore with their impiety and corruption until they passed the limits of divine forbearance. Then they were dispossessed, and became bondmen to the descendants of Shem and Japheth.

Ellen G. White Patriarchs and Prophets, Chapter 10, The Tower of Babel

It comes at no surprise that Ahn Sahng Hong, having been a Seventh Day Adventist himself, would pass on Ellen G. White’s ideology.

In the past, former World Mission Society Church of God members have made allegations of racism within the WMSCOG. This resulted in various responses from current members denying the allegations.

Is the World Mission Society Church of God racist if they have Black members?

Are the Black members treated equally? Some say no. Recently, a former member of the Manchester, UK WMSCOG location named Luke, talked about the racism he experienced in a YouTube video with Jordan Hatfield of Great Light Studios (timestamp 49:23). According to Luke, the Korean pastor in Manchester, while arranging members for a video recording, said to him “Brother this is the UK, England, Queen, White people. If we show a DVD to the members around the world of Manchester Zion…it looks like you see the church in Africa not the UK, so when the White members come we need to put them at the front.”

Does racism lurk beneath the surface of the World Mission Society Church of God?

On November 18, 2011, a memo about the upcoming “Family Day” in the New Jersey area was circulated among WMSCOG leaders. Family Day is an event that the WMSCOG organizes in order to appear fun or normal to the public, and to recruit new members. The memo was said to be only for church leaders and only the necessary points were to be communicated to the members. In the memo (available below) it states:

Representatives: The 5 representatives chosen from each Zion should preferably be white (no Korean either).

This is quite consistent with Luke’s account above. Why did the WMSCOG prefer that the 5 representatives from each WMSCOG location be white, and specifically, “no Korean either?” Was it for the optics?

Is this the only documented instance of racism in the World Mission Society Church of God?

On February 20, 2012, a program called the “Armor of God” was being implemented in the World Mission Society Church of God in Ridgewood, New Jersey, and presumably in other locations under the NJ branch’s control. As part of this indoctrination program, which will be posted separately, is what is called “Preaching Discernment Training.” In this document (also available below), WMSCOG gospel workers are advised that:

Preaching to ghetto people is a waste of time.

According to dictionary.com, the definition of the word “ghetto” when used as an adjective in the context in which the WMSCOG applies the pejorative term, is:

Slang: Often Disparaging and Offensive. Noting something that is considered to be unrefined, low-class, cheap, or inferior.

Who does the World Mission Society Church of God consider to be superior? Well, according to the “Six Day Creation” study, the memo below and Luke’s experience in Manchester, one can easily conclude that the WMSCOG considers White people superior. In support of this conclusion, as part of the same training, the WMSCOG also makes the following point:

We cannot bring people who look lower than me, or just like me. We need to preach to people who look better than me.

The above statement proves that the World Mission Society Church of God is using the word “ghetto” in a way that is consistent with the dictionary’s definition of the term. Accordingly, the World Mission Society Church of God would seem to prefer that gospel workers recruit White people.

Why is this important?

It is more than likely that current Black members of the World Mission Society Church of God would never have joined the organization had they known that once indoctrinated, they would be taught that their entire race was cursed by God. People deserve the right to make an informed decision. Members of the public have a right to know if an organization that heavily recruits worldwide has a racist ideology, before joining. Current WMSCOG members who have witnessed unequal treatment of Black people and other minorities within the organization, and deny it, are part of the problem.

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3 Comments
  1. paper says

    One of my family is close with a current Member. Apparently all members are now required to preach to co workers and extended family members. Within 2 days of hearing this my loved one called me and asked for contact information of cousins, uncles, aunts etc. The control they exert over members is so terrible and so sad. Great article btw. Keep up the good work.

  2. Jordan Daniels says

    I was In the WMSCOG when I was an undergraduate student at UCLA. I was studying Piano Performance, and really wanted to play the piano for church services. I practiced the hymns in the New Songs book, learned the church’s arrangements for the songs, and would play through them in the church after preaching meetings for fun in front of other members. I even asked the Pastor if I could be the church’s pianist if an opportunity ever came.

    Some small opportunities came up, such as when the church’s pianist went to Korea for a few weeks and a replacement was needed. Instead of asking me to play, the position was given to the Missionary’s (at the time) wife, who was Korean. She could hardly play the piano, and after struggling through a few services, she stopped playing, and they switched to audio recordings of the songs instead.

    A big opportunity for the pianist position came in Reseda Zion because their pianists was moving to West La Zion. Not only did I not get the position, but they gave the position to three Asian females instead. Of these three, only one could kind of play piano. The others could hardly even play! Why would they split the position between three people instead of giving it to one person who could play well and has shown that they could play? I was someone who went to the church regularly, preached regularly, studied piano in college, and even sang in the church choir. I was very qualified for the position. However, because I am African-American, and they prefer to have Asian females play piano, the position was not given to me.

    The WMSCOG is a racist church, and their racial hierarchy prioritizes Koreans first, other Asians next, Whites, and then by shades of skin tone. The only reason why I never became the pianist there was because of their racism. Nowadays, I have side jobs playing piano for Orthodox Church services, where I am paid to play as well (I don’t think WMSCOG pays their pianist, and I was offering to play for free back then).

  3. Billie says

    Wmscog is not racist be for real

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