The Iglesia Ni Cristo now, headed by Eduardo V. Manalo and his wife, Babylyn Manalo degenerated into cultism and slowly, its members are starting to notice. This is what happens when the Administration continues to ignore the sentiments of its members. One by one, those who are open-minded and have a strong doctrinal compass know when something is amiss and will choose not to simply follow and obey. Valid questions and grievances are merely silenced by coercion, intimidation and threats of expulsion.

I mention Babylyn here and in a few of my articles in the past because mind you brethren, she was the cause of all the troubles that the INC went through ever since the very beginning. Bro. Eraño G. Manalo warned EVM about this but he did not listen and instead, allowed his wife to meddle with the affairs of the church. It was Babylyn who groomed STF (Special Task Force) leader, Jojo De Guzman to slowly get rid of the “old shepherds” and allow the “new” to infiltrate the church. Bro. Erdy’s stern warning against this was not only ignored but his strict disapproval for Jojo De Guzman to marry into the family was shamelessly defied. Sadly, only a handful of the old shepherds or watchmen stood up against this. The rest became mute dogs who allowed savage wolves to devour the flock.

“For the leaders of my people- the LORD’s watchmen, his shepherds- are blind and  ignorant. They are like silent watchdogs that give no warning when danger comes. They love to lie around, sleeping and dreaming.” (Isaiah 56:10 NLT)

Bro. Felix Y. Manalo taught us the value of trusting the words of God contained in the Bible and not just believing whatever they [the preachers] are saying. “Huwag si Manalo ang paniwalaan niyo, ang Biblia ang paniwalaan ninyo!” (Don’t believe Manalo, believe the Bible). But why was Bro. Felix Y. Manalo so bold in his declaration? It was because, what he [the preacher], was teaching was all based and in accordance with the teachings written in the holy scriptures.

The same boldness that Bro. Eraño G. Manalo carried with him when he publicly invited everyone who may have a question about the finances of the church to come to the central office where the doors were always open for people to investigate and if ever they found even a single property of the church being mortgaged or loaned. He then said, ” If you find one, we can all separate.” Why was Bro. Eraño G. Manalo able to challenge anyone to put the church’s finances under scrutiny? Because the administration of Bro. Eranõ G. Manalo, especially pertaining to the finances was beyond reproach.

This all changed with the administration headed by EVM, Babylyn and the Sangunian. Everything became ego-centric, commercialized and outwardly vain. In order for EVM to enjoy his luxury and limelight, he needed to rule with  an iron-hand to quench the thirst for answers of those that dare ask questions or voice out their sentiments that cast any doubt on his administration. This is why the Sanggunian Ministers and all of their subordinate Ministers became vicious and ruthless in casting fear on their members to deter them from even thinking of questioning anything that happens under EVM’s administration.

So when church members cannot trust their Ministers or their Executive Minister to even care to listen to their concerns, the members will find someone, something or somewhere else to turn to. In the age and time of social media, many of them got expelled from liking, commenting and sharing social media posts that reflect their sentiments. That is how we know that Eduardo V. Manalo was not able to properly manage his Ministers, let alone, his members. He is clearly not in touch with reality as he easily believes made-up propaganda and reports of people around him who want him to remain entranced with this perfect superficial image, rather than believe the actual people who dared to tell him the truth in order for him to correct his mistakes for the sake of the church. He would later on turn the table around and claim that everything he did, including persecuting his own mother and siblings were justified for the sake of the church.

Here is an article that was published in Rappler.com from a current member of the church. Read on and see if these are the same questions and sentiments that you had all along that were never addressed properly nor even answered.

[OPINION] Questions from a member of the Iglesia ni Cristo

DEC 12, 2022 2:34 PM PHT

J. JOAQUIN

‘Why must we attain our salvation in the next life by making this life hell for others?’

This essay is for the youth in the Iglesia Ni Cristo (INC), concerned members, and curious non-members. My goal is to start a discussion about the continuing crisis in the INC that cannot be ignored, and how we can overcome this. Over the years, watching and participating in the church’s activities, I have accumulated questions that I cannot get answers for from the Church.

On our evangelization

The INC has changed drastically since its centennial in 2014. From my interactions with brethren in overseas districts in locales in Asia, North America, and Europe, I have seen congregations becoming smaller and smaller, and even witnessed the loss of a physical Church during the pandemic. Why do we never hear of these in our publications? We have always boasted of buying the churches of dying religions, have held our temples to be the sacred place for worshiping God, and have respected high participation in regular and special offerings, so how can we afford to lose churches?

On our leader’s cult of personality

As much as we criticize Catholic papal infallibility, saying no man should be blindly followed, why then do we hold Eduardo V. Manalo (EVM) on the same level? Why do we hear EVM’s name more than Jesus Christ’s, the head of the church, in worship service? Why do we have activities centered on EVM, such as “OneWithEVM,” and most recently “Obey and Never Complain?” Why are we encouraged to decorate our homes with EVM’s portrait? Why are we required to stay at the end of service to be recorded wishing EVM a happy birthday? Does this not encourage the same blind devotion we ridicule?

Why are we obsessed with Guinness World Records? Why do we use Guinness, which can be paid hundreds of thousands of pesos to manufacture new categories, and which is used by dictatorships as vanity projects to display their power? Why are we trying to prove ourselves to the world with grand one-time events? Are our regular events like weekly bible studies, monthly evangelical missions, and annual games insufficient to show our unity? Why do we care how we look to the world given that we were taught to reject whatever the world thinks of us?

On respecting the law

Why is bloc-voting practiced only in the Philippines, from national to local elections? Why do we not practice it in other countries like the United States? Is it not doctrine to unite in everything, including voting? Do our doctrines change depending on location? Why do we preach that we are apolitical, yet we allow EVM to be a government official, and have Marcoleta serve as congressman from 2019-2022? In the 2015 rally against the Department of Justice’s investigations into the Church administration, we went to the streets and cried, “Separation of the Church and State!” The next year, the Church used bloc-voting to determine representatives of the State. Why do we separate the Church and State only when it is convenient?

We had high-ranking ministers and members, including EVM’s own family members, speak up about corruption within the Church. Why did we not have a dialogue about this instead of immediately excommunicating the accusers? Why do we not weigh the truth of their allegations amidst the revelations of the Church’s properties, like their multimillion-peso Boeing aircraft, their off-shore accounts in Aruba, and their weapon arsenal in the central INC compound? Why do we not consider the accusers to be in danger, even when Canada granted asylum to former members Canono and Menorca II, or when expelled member Jose Fruto was mysteriously killed? Why do we act as if the 2015 crisis never happened?

During the Philippine lockdowns, why did we watch recordings of EVM preaching to a crowd who perfectly followed health protocols, while we crammed ourselves in our own congregations with our potential converts, without social distancing, and with some not wearing masks, and some forced to illegally congregate? Why do we act for ourselves at the expense of non-members’ danger and suffering? Why must we attain our salvation in the next life by making this life hell for others?

On total obedience

Why can we not decide for ourselves how to help people or to do good? Why must we seek approval from the Administration in Manila for even the simplest activity. I recall when we were prevented from joining the community pantry initiative in 2021 to help our fellow countrymen. Why are the lessons in the worship services the same every week: obey the Administration and convert more? Why do we only hear pre-recorded songs in services, not allowing the organist to play live, and allow the recorded singing to drown out our own singing? Are we masking our lack of energy?

I only sense fear among members, not just the fear of eternal damnation, but fear of whatever arbitrary command the Administration shall give. I feel no zeal and passion anymore from members. The Church scares them now into maximizing offerings, conversions, and attendance, so they will not be visited, questioned, and guilt-tripped for failing one’s duties. I see not love, but only a congregation encouraged to monitor each other’s lives lest one of them goes against the Administration.