{"id":1257,"date":"2021-07-29T19:55:52","date_gmt":"2021-07-30T02:55:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cag.clearthinking247.com\/?page_id=1257"},"modified":"2022-01-27T00:15:27","modified_gmt":"2022-01-27T08:15:27","slug":"perform-your-duty-2","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.cag.clearthinking247.com\/en\/perform-your-duty-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Perform Your Duty (2)"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-page\" data-elementor-id=\"1257\" class=\"elementor elementor-1257\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-14cf3a1 elementor-section-full_width elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"14cf3a1\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-64a6e64\" data-id=\"64a6e64\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-487b7c7 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"487b7c7\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Perform Your Duty (2)<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-92c1bf5 elementor-section-full_width elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"92c1bf5\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-33 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-f69efd9\" data-id=\"f69efd9\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-33 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-64af7b1\" data-id=\"64af7b1\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-6f7063f elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"6f7063f\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<ul><li><p>&#8220;In 2006, Zhang Hua closed her barber shop and started serving full-time for CAG as she <strong><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">&#8220;performed her duty.&#8221;<\/span><\/strong> For twelve years, Zhang Hua has served as church leader and community leader, but she has never received a salary. Zhang says, &#8220;God&#8217;s family tells us that everyone must <strong><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">&#8220;perform one\u2019s duty&#8221;<\/span><\/strong>, and you will be saved until the end of the world.&#8221;&#8221;<a href=\"#_ftn1\" name=\"_ftnref1\">[1]<\/a> &#8220;In 2015, Zhang Hua became the leader of the visa team in the Northeast Area. She discloses that many people submitted forged real estate certificates, bank records, and academic certificates when they applied for visas. She says, &#8220;There are also some people who are actually unwilling to [leave China]. But they have the skills needed [abroad] and they [left] with tears in their eyes.&#8221;&#8221;<a href=\"#_ftn2\" name=\"_ftnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/p><p><a href=\"#_ftnref1\" name=\"_ftn1\">[1]<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/zhuanlan.zhihu.com\/p\/41906333\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Chen Jingshou, Beijing News Peeling Onions, &#8220;Beginning of the Cult \u201cAlmighty God&#8221; <\/a>, August 12, 2018, accessed January 25, 2022.<\/p><p><a href=\"#_ftnref2\" name=\"_ftn2\">[2]<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/zhuanlan.zhihu.com\/p\/41906333\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Ibid<\/a>.<\/p><\/li><\/ul>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-33 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-842a687\" data-id=\"842a687\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-62c8a94 elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"62c8a94\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" src=\"https:\/\/www.cag.clearthinking247.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/TrinityLotus-1024x576.jpg\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-image-941\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.cag.clearthinking247.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/TrinityLotus-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.cag.clearthinking247.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/TrinityLotus-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.cag.clearthinking247.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/TrinityLotus-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.cag.clearthinking247.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/TrinityLotus.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-dc1430c elementor-section-full_width elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"dc1430c\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-33 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-9ca1428\" data-id=\"9ca1428\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-8d7cc3f elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"8d7cc3f\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"933\" height=\"963\" src=\"https:\/\/www.cag.clearthinking247.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/C-T-24-7_All_Page_1-3-1.jpeg\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-image-817\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.cag.clearthinking247.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/C-T-24-7_All_Page_1-3-1.jpeg 933w, https:\/\/www.cag.clearthinking247.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/C-T-24-7_All_Page_1-3-1-291x300.jpeg 291w, https:\/\/www.cag.clearthinking247.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/C-T-24-7_All_Page_1-3-1-768x793.jpeg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 933px) 100vw, 933px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-33 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-d5f8912\" data-id=\"d5f8912\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-f4e3eef elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"f4e3eef\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<ul><li><p>Besides serving physically, Zhang says, \u201c<strong><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">\u201cperforming one&#8217;s duty\u201d<\/span><\/strong> also means donating money. The &#8220;Principles of Church Work Manual&#8221; states, \u201cIt is a good deed to dedicate all of your own to God; some people do not fully dedicate all of their own to God when they die. This is the biggest failure in believing in God.\u201d<a href=\"#_ftn1\" name=\"_ftnref1\">[3]<\/a> She explains, &#8220;many brothers and sisters have to give to God in order to show their sincerity. The teaching of \u201cAlmighty God\u201d says, the end of the world will come soon; and it is useless to keep money. Only by giving to God and keeping the money in heaven can we be saved.&#8221;<a href=\"#_ftn2\" name=\"_ftnref2\">[4]<\/a><\/p><p><a href=\"#_ftnref1\" name=\"_ftn1\">[3]<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/zhuanlan.zhihu.com\/p\/41906333\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Ibid<\/a>.<\/p><p><a href=\"#_ftnref2\" name=\"_ftn2\">[4]<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/zhuanlan.zhihu.com\/p\/41906333\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Ibid<\/a>.<\/p><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cag.clearthinking247.com\/perform-your-duty-1\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Go to &#8220;Perform Your Duty (1)&#8221; for additional information.<\/a><\/li><\/ul>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-33 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-8f81fed\" data-id=\"8f81fed\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-c9a9a16 elementor-section-full_width elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"c9a9a16\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-33 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-7653e22\" data-id=\"7653e22\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-33 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-1c5a854\" data-id=\"1c5a854\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-8371e90 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"8371e90\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<ul><li><p>The <strong><span style=\"color: #800080;\">\u201c<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><em>Principles of Performing One\u2019s Duty Adequately<\/em>\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/strong> does say something similar to Zhang\u2019s quotes. The principles require CAG members to perform their duties adequately, i.e., to meet God\u2019s requirements and satisfy Him. It warns CAG\u2019s members that, <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong><span style=\"color: #ff0000; text-decoration: underline;\">&#8220;there is quite <em>a substantial relationship between people\u2019s<\/em> <em>salvation<\/em>\u00a0and how they fulfill their duties, whether they can do them well, and whether they can do them adequately\u2026<\/span><\/strong><\/span> The standard that God requires of you is to perform your duty adequately. How should the word \u201cadequately\u201d be explained? It means you must meet God\u2019s requirements and satisfy Him, and your work must be called adequate by God and be given His nod of approval; only then will you have fulfilled your duty adequately\u2026 If you do not do it adequately, then what will the consequences be? <span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong><em>In severe cases, people\u2019s hopes of salvation might disappear and be dashed<\/em><\/strong><\/span>; in less severe cases, they might be deprived of their right to fulfill duties.&#8221;<a href=\"#_ftn1\" name=\"_ftnref1\">[5]<\/a><\/p><p><a href=\"#_ftnref1\" name=\"_ftn1\">[5]<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/en.godfootsteps.org\/principles-of-performing-duty-adequately.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Church of Almighty God, 170 Principles for Practicing the Truth &#8211;\u00a0 78. The Principles of Performing One\u2019s Duty Adequately (Excerpted from \u201cWhat Is the Adequate Performance of Duty?\u201d in Records of Christ\u2019s Talks)<\/a>, accessed January 26, 2022.<\/p><\/li><\/ul>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-33 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-e0fc3b0\" data-id=\"e0fc3b0\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-6789481 elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"6789481\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" src=\"https:\/\/www.cag.clearthinking247.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/IMG_0004.jpg\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-image-181\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.cag.clearthinking247.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/IMG_0004.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.cag.clearthinking247.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/IMG_0004-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.cag.clearthinking247.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/IMG_0004-768x576.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-8ec5541 elementor-section-full_width elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"8ec5541\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-33 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-4739af7\" data-id=\"4739af7\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-d263f4c elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"d263f4c\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" src=\"https:\/\/www.cag.clearthinking247.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Misconception-1024x576.jpg\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-image-945\" alt=\"\u8b2c\u8ad6-\u8aa4\u89e3-\u8b2c\u8ad6\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.cag.clearthinking247.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Misconception-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.cag.clearthinking247.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Misconception-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.cag.clearthinking247.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Misconception-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.cag.clearthinking247.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Misconception.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-33 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-d056543\" data-id=\"d056543\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-936b300 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"936b300\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<ul><li><p>As quoted above, CAG warn church members that they might lose their salvation if they do not <span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong>\u201cPerform Their Duties Adequately&#8221;<\/strong><\/span>.\u00a0The principles further define that \u201cadequately\u201d is not simply going through the motions when<strong><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"> \u201cperforming one\u2019s duty.\u201d<\/span><\/strong> Rather, \u201cwhen [you] faced with a duty that needs your effort and expenditure, and that requires you to dedicate your body, mind, and time, you must not hold anything back, harbor any petty cleverness, or leave any leeway.\u201d<a href=\"#_ftn1\" name=\"_ftnref1\">[6]<\/a> In other words, in order to <strong><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">\u201cPerform Your Duty Adequately,\u201d<\/span><\/strong> giving 100% of your effort and 100% of your time, money, and assets are expected from you and all CAG members.<\/p><p><a href=\"#_ftnref1\" name=\"_ftn1\">[6]<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/en.godfootsteps.org\/principles-of-performing-duty-adequately.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Church of Almighty God, 170 Principles for Practicing the Truth &#8211;\u00a0 78. The Principles of Performing One\u2019s Duty Adequately (Excerpted from \u201cLife Entry Must Begin With the Experience of Performing One\u2019s Duty\u201d in Records of Christ\u2019s Talks)<\/a>, accessed January 26, 2022.<\/p><\/li><\/ul>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-33 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-1e75c8b\" data-id=\"1e75c8b\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-892c803 elementor-section-full_width elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"892c803\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-649c6ff\" data-id=\"649c6ff\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-b12732b elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"b12732b\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">CAG's Principles of Offering Donations and Alms<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-35c98d6 elementor-section-full_width elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"35c98d6\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-a5a5409\" data-id=\"a5a5409\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-49f5ebb elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"49f5ebb\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p style=\"padding-left: 40px;\">CAG\u2019s literatures have some principles or rules regarding the handling of donations for followers to comply with. All five <em>Principles of Offering Donations and Alms<\/em> seem to contradict to the allegations reported on the news media. However, principles numbers (2) and (5) says, <strong><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">&#8220;(2) New believers who do not understand the truth are forbidden from offering donations. Only those with true faith in God may donate\u2026.. (5) Money and goods donated to God should be given to the church for safekeeping. One may also look after them oneself, or they may be handed to someone else who truly loves God, for safekeeping.&#8221;<\/span><\/strong><a href=\"#_ftn1\" name=\"_ftnref1\">[1]<\/a><\/p><p style=\"padding-left: 40px;\">In real life, these two principles have a built-in psychological pressure to those who have joined the church for a while to give more and keep less. In addition, there are also <em>Principles of How to Treat Offerings to God<\/em>, of which the first three principles give total and complete control to the priest, the man used by the Holy Spirit, and God:<\/p><p style=\"padding-left: 40px;\">&#8220;(1) The money and goods of God\u2019s house, including all of its property, are offerings to God from His chosen people, and belong to no church or person; (2) No one has the right to partake of offerings to God <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong><span style=\"color: #ff0000; text-decoration: underline;\"><em>except for God and the priest<\/em>.<\/span><\/strong><\/span> Any person who steals from them is a Judas, and must be punished; (3) Offerings donated to God are to be arranged, transferred, <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong><em><span style=\"color: #ff0000; text-decoration: underline;\">and controlled by Him and the man used by the Holy Spirit,<\/span><\/em><\/strong><\/span> and no one may interfere with them or move them at will\u2026\u2026&#8221;<a href=\"#_ftn2\" name=\"_ftnref2\">[2]<\/a><\/p><p style=\"padding-left: 40px;\">First, number one (1) essentially says that the believers and the church administration at the local level are not allowed to use the offerings. Second, the other two principles, (2) and (3), point to the recipients of the offerings. It makes one wonder the real identities of the priest, the man used by the Holy Spirit, and CAG\u2019s Almighty God.<a href=\"#_ftn3\" name=\"_ftnref3\">[3]<\/a><\/p><p style=\"padding-left: 40px;\">The CAG\u2019s own holy book, <span style=\"color: #800000;\"><strong>&#8220;<em>The Word Appears in The Flesh&#8221;<\/em><\/strong><\/span>, provides a list of The Ten Administrative Decrees That Must Be Obeyed by God\u2019s Chosen People in the Age of Kingdom. In number three (3), it decrees the uses of offerings:<a href=\"#_ftn4\" name=\"_ftnref4\">[4]<\/a> &#8220;The money, material objects, and all property in God\u2019s household are the offerings that should be given by man. <strong><em><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">These offerings may be enjoyed by none but the priest and God, for the offerings of man are for the enjoyment of God. God only shares these offerings with the priest; no one else is qualified or entitled to enjoy any part of them. All of man\u2019s offerings <span style=\"text-decoration: underline; color: #008000;\">(including money and material things that can be enjoyed)<\/span> are given to God, not to man, and so these things should not be enjoyed by man; if man were to enjoy them, then he would be stealing offerings. Anyone who does this is a Judas, for, in addition to being a traitor, Judas also helped himself to what was put in the money bag.&#8221;<\/span><\/em><\/strong><a href=\"#_ftn5\" name=\"_ftnref5\">[5]<\/a><\/p><p style=\"padding-left: 40px;\">As the above paragraph\u2019s red and green words indicate, the priest and God can enjoy money, material objects, and all property. But how does God enjoy these earthly material items that only human craves to embrace, possess, and enjoy.<\/p><p style=\"padding-left: 40px;\">If one reads closely the contexts of these principles and decrees, they all emphasize acts of obedience and, if not, then judgment and punishment for all violators. These money schemes as camouflage in \u201cPerform Your Duty\u201d and illegal act allegations were not well publicized to the public outside of China until April of 2002.<\/p><p style=\"padding-left: 40px;\"><a href=\"#_ftnref1\" name=\"_ftn1\">[1]<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/en.godfootsteps.org\/principles-offering-donations-and-alms.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Church of Almighty God, 170 Principles for Practicing the Truth &#8211;\u00a0 85. The Principles of Offering Donations and Alms<\/a>, accessed January 26, 2022.<\/p><p style=\"padding-left: 40px;\"><a href=\"#_ftnref2\" name=\"_ftn2\">[2]<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/en.godfootsteps.org\/principles-treat-offerings-to-God.html#sw=The%20Principles%20of%20How%20to%20Treat%20Offerings%20to%20God\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Church of Almighty God, 170 Principles for Practicing the Truth &#8211;\u00a0 86. The Principles of How to Treat Offerings to God<\/a>, accessed January 26, 2022.<\/p><p style=\"padding-left: 40px;\"><a href=\"#_ftnref3\" name=\"_ftn3\">[3]<\/a> Some house churches in China are required to turn in most or all offerings collected to their mother church, i.e., the headquarters, in their hierarchy. A local house church leader in Northern China had multiple times shared her testimony that she had to spend her own money which had created financial hardship for her to run the local ministries of home gatherings.\u00a0<\/p><p style=\"padding-left: 40px;\"><a href=\"#_ftnref4\" name=\"_ftn4\">[4]<\/a> <em>The Word Appears in the Flesh<\/em> is CAG\u2019s Bible, the new revelation allegedly spoken by the female Christ.<\/p><p style=\"padding-left: 40px;\"><a href=\"#_ftnref5\" name=\"_ftn5\">[5]<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/en.godfootsteps.org\/ten-administrative.html#sw=The%20Ten%20Administrative%20Decrees%20That\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Church of Almighty God, <em>The Word Appears in The Flesh<\/em> &#8211; <em>The Ten Administrative Decrees That Must Be Obeyed by God\u2019s Chosen People in the Age of Kingdom<\/em><\/a>, accessed January 26, 2022.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-4892ca0 elementor-section-full_width elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"4892ca0\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-b4505f4\" data-id=\"b4505f4\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-1709e77 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"1709e77\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cag.clearthinking247.com\/perform-your-duty-1\/\" target=\"_blank\">Go to \"Perform Your Duty (1)\"<\/a><\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Perform Your Duty (2) &#8220;In 2006, Zhang Hua closed her barber shop and started serving full-time for CAG as she &#8220;performed her duty.&#8221; For twelve years, Zhang Hua has served as church leader and community leader, but she has never received a salary. Zhang says, &#8220;God&#8217;s family tells us that everyone must &#8220;perform one\u2019s duty&#8221;, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"no-sidebar","site-content-layout":"page-builder","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"disabled","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"disabled","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"default","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-1257","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cag.clearthinking247.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1257","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cag.clearthinking247.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cag.clearthinking247.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cag.clearthinking247.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cag.clearthinking247.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1257"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/www.cag.clearthinking247.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1257\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4544,"href":"https:\/\/www.cag.clearthinking247.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1257\/revisions\/4544"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cag.clearthinking247.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1257"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}