I was surprised to say the least when I was asked to meet my Pastor, Henry Hildebrandt, at this office on July 22nd to find out that I was banned from all the meetings of the Church of God (Restoration). I was told by Henry that the decision was made by Danny Layne, Ray Timsman, and himself, all ordained ministers of the Restoration. Their pictures are above listed from left to right.

At the time, Henry Hildebrandt told me I was no longer welcome to attend meetings where I had been under church discipline and considered a visitor since Feb of 2007. This was for telling Henry Hildebrandt that I felt their anti-medical teaching where they teach that the sisters need to be willing to die before getting medical help in child bearing, and if they do go for life saving medical help, it is sin — was ludicrous.

When Henry Hildebrandt informed me that I was no longer welcome and banned from all meetings, he neither made any attempt to show me the errors of my 16 objections to Restoration practices and doctrines. Nor did he deny any of my points. While in the office with him, I brought up his teaching that we are to marry the church (meaning the Restoration) and told him that I considered it amateuristic and to be spiritual polygamy, but he didn’t want to discuss it. I also let him know that I felt he was under the influence of a sectarian spirit and that he needed to stop professing to be anti-sectarian.

I had emailed Henry Hildebrandt the 16 Objections to Restoration Practices and Doctrines at his prompting when in his email he noted that “most of the time I have found that when a person is in disagreement with the body on a major point, there are usually other areas that need attention”. I find it strange that in the email that I responded to from Henry Hildebrandt, he told me “if the whole body is wrong then you have an obligation to show us by the Bible…” yet in the meeting he made no attempt to show me by the Bible where I was wrong, nor has he responded to the email that I sent him with the 16 points in it. I guess only I have an obligation to show them their errors, they don’t have any obligation to show me mine — and that I will do!

I talked to my wife shortly after and told her what had happened. She promptly told me “Bob you’re not saved”. When I answered the phone the next day, I got Danny Layne who was calling for Susan and had a short conversation with him. When I told Danny Layne that casting a Christian out of their assembly over disagreement in non-essentials is sectarian and when I let him know in my opinion he was operating under a sectarian spirit, he let me know that he didn’t think I was saved. When asked what my sin was, Layne told me that I didn’t believe the Restoration was prophetic which is one of their cardinal teachings.

Danny Layne also told me that this was not a top down action the ministry had taken against me, but that there had been a number of members that had been concerned about me for some time. Especially since I had contacted 911 during a panic attack I had back in early 2007. (I am not giving word for word the conversation I had with Danny Layne but giving it to the best of my remembrance.)

Members going to the Restoration ministry with concerns about other members that are not carrying the party line is part of the culture of the Restoration. When someone goes against what the ministers teach the members, they wonder what is wrong with this person and they often express their concern to the ministry by asking if that person is still saved. Shortly after the issue of phoning 911 in early 2007, I had one local member of the Aylmer congregation ask me if I was still saved, and another member asking me almost weekly how I was doing spiritually.

Since I was cast out on Tuesday, July 22nd, I have not received one call from a Church of God minister nor a call from any members of the movement concerning my state or how I am doing. It seems they have cast me out and washed their hands of me. May the Lord have mercy on their souls. “Inasmuch as you have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren you have done it unto me” Jesus said.

I am glad to report that by the grace of God I have a heart full of love for all of them and while it is difficult for me to understand how someone can be saved and take such unscriptural action against another Christian, I am more than willing to hope all things and endure all things and pray that the Lord will show them the error of their way. I pray for them daily and want to say by the grace of God I am completely free from all bitterness or any get-back spirit.

For those that are wondering why I am publicly posting what should be a private matter, I would like to answer that question clearly and concisely.

1. I feel I need to go on record and provide documented information showing why I was cast out of the Restoration, as the Restoration ministers are so bias against those they cast out that they tend to slander them and not provide a balanced account of what really happened.

2. I feel that prospective members need to be made aware of what they are getting into when they join the Restoration. The practice of hiding doctrines from prospective members and new members is unfair and in my opinion not in good faith.

3. By taking these issues which should be dealt with in a private matter public, I hope to force the Restoration ministers to address these issues for the betterment of the other members of the Restoration movement. You may understand this point better when you read my 16 objections below.

4. I want a place that I can reference people to that want to know the objections that I made which got me cast out and banned.

The following are the 16 objects to Restoration practices and doctrines as I sent them in my July 16th 2008 email to Henry Hildebrandt numbered in the order I emailed them to him and reorganized under the following five headings. It was for holding and making these objections they cast me out of their assembly and told me I am no longer saved.

End Times:
3. that the Restoration will never compromise;
4. that no Christians will be left in any denominations and they will only be found in the Restoration before the Lord comes back;
5. the back dating of the fall of the church to 270 by holding that the three days and a half of Rev 11 are 350 years and that God purposely using the day symbol in this way so that many people would not accept the 270/1880 dates;
8. that the Restoration is prophetic and therefore can do no wrong;

Authoritarian Ministry:
1. believe what ever the ministry teachings without questioning it;
2. follow counsel given by the ministry even if you don’t understand it;
6. that not keeping Restoration rules is sin and causes you to lose your salvation;
7. ministers going on Internet while telling others it is sin to do the same;

Movement Orientated:
10. teaching that when you praise the Restoration you are really praising Jesus as the Restoration is Jesus body;
11. attributing the accepting the Restoration as the church, obeying the Restoration ministry, and keeping all the Restoration rules being the way of spirituality vs. having a deep devotional life, an active burden for souls, a consistent increase in the Fruit of the Spirit, and freedom from carnality;
12. teaching and encouraging members to praise the ministry verbally in meetings;
13. teaching that we are to be married to the Restoration;

Non-Conformist/Unwritten Rules:
14. teaching a standard of dress that is not based on modesty only, but also based on distinction for the sake of being distinct and noticed;

Ethically Issues:

8. being less than forthcoming and purposely leaving authorities with wrong impressions concerning deaths where members refused medical help;
9. the hiding of divorce/remarriage and the anti-medical teaching from visitors and new members;
15. a low standard of sanctification that allows for carnality in the sanctified;
16. and of course the anti-medical teaching.

I am in the process of expanding on each of the above points to better explain where I feel the error is.

Note: This post is copyrighted 2008 by Bob Mutch and may not be duplicated or distributed in part or in whole in any media form. This post has been back dated as I am not wanting to expose my readership directly to this issue. While I am not in favor of making private letters or emails public, my email was shown by Henry Hildebrandt to Danny Layne and Ray Timsman and forwarded to Susan Mutch. At the point that Henry Hildebrandt started showing my email to selected individuals I no longer considered it a private email.