By January of 1995, there was a clear consensus at the top--and among many pastors and laypeople as well--that there was no turning back. It was then that Tkach, Sr., issued a document on the "new covenant" that would enunciate for any still in doubt that the church had departed from Armstrong's teachings. Here, among other things, he focused on the Sabbath: "There is nothing in the new covenant that says we are required to keep the Sabbath according to the rules of the old covenant. . . . Being Sabbath-keepers does not make us more righteous than other Christians."

1995 became the tumultuous year. The "new covenant" proclamation unleashed pent-up emotions that had been, in some cases, simmering for years. The Pasadena headquarters was suddenly inundated with protests and resignations, including that of David Hulme, television host for The World Tomorrow. In his letter of resignation, he asserted that the "so called 'new truths' " were "in fact rather old errors," and accused Joseph Tkach of already believing these new truths when he succeeded Armstrong in 1986.

The trickle out of the church seemed to turn into a flood in 1995. At a conference in Indianapolis in early May, the United Church of God (UCG) was formed and, unlike previous splinter groups, posed a serious threat to the WCG. Former WCG directors and pastors were among the 150 "elders" who gathered in Indianapolis to select a board and name David Hulme, who had also served the WCG in public relations, as chairman.

By year's end, the number of those affiliated with the movement was estimated to be 17,000, far exceeding the size of any of the other splinter groups. They justified the new movement, saying: "Long-held beliefs members have dearly sacrificed ...