Harold Camping's Controversial Teachings Back on the Air
Family Radio has begun re-airing controversial teachings of Harold Camping to the surprise of a former Camping follower.
Trevor Hammack, pastor of Victory Baptist Church in Texas, announced "Harold Camping is Back" on his radio program Sunday. Hammack, who was a devoted follower of Camping in the 1990s, found that his former Bible teacher's messages on "the end of the church age" were being re-aired.
"You've got to be kidding me," Hammack said. "Family Radio, you already realized the absolute mess you made around the world by these crazy [end of the world] predictions and now you're going to go back to Harold Camping's teaching from 2001 where he told everyone the church age was over and everyone should flee the church and you're going to re-air that?"
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Camping, founder of Family Radio, is most well-known for his failed predictions on Jesus Christ's return and the end of the world. Although he has made previous Judgment Day predictions, he gained the most attention for his May 21, 2011, forecast, saying that true believers would be raptured and the apocalypse would begin. He also predicted that Oct. 21, 2011, would be the day the world is physically destroyed.
In the months following the failed predictions, Family Radio removed all content from its website in relation to Judgment Day.
The 91-year-old Christian broadcaster also issued a statement in March this year, admitting that his predictions were wrong and sinful. He further stated that he had no interest in making another prediction.
"[W]e now realize that those people who were calling our attention to the Bible's statement that 'of that day and hour knoweth no man' (Matthew 24:36 & Mark 13:32), were right in their understanding of those verses and Family Radio was wrong," said Camping. "Whether God will ever give us any indication of the date of His return is hidden in God's divine plan.
"God has humbled us through the events of May 21, to continue to even more fervently search the Scriptures (the Bible), not to find dates, but to be more faithful in our understanding."
After a period of silence from the broadcasting network, Hammack decided to "check in" on Family Radio last weekend. That's when he discovered the complete unedited re-airing of Camping's past teachings on the "end of the church age."
Though Family Radio had still been airing Camping's messages for the past year, they were not related to any of his controversial teachings such as on doomsday or the apostasy of the church.
Hammack, who read all of Camping's books and listened to most of his teachings in his early Christian years, believes Family Radio began re-airing the church teachings in July.
The Christian Post called the radio network and was told that Camping's past church teachings were being re-aired but was asked to call back to speak with someone else. CP was unable to reach another Family Radio representative.
In his 2001 messages, Camping states that God's judgment on churches had already begun and that salvation could no longer be found within churches. The broadcaster encouraged believers to leave their churches, which he claimed were being controlled by Satan.
Hammack listened to and recorded those messages when they originally aired over a decade ago. The "end of the church age" consists of many episodes, according to Hammack, who is concerned that new believers today could be misled.
"You would think that Family Radio would get as far away from Harold Camping's teaching as humanly possible and bring Bible teachers who would get back to teaching the Scriptures," said the Texas pastor. "But it looks like Family Radio, at least it seems in principle, still agrees that the church age is over and everyone should leave their church."
"Now, after everything, that teaching is back on the air? I'm in absolute shock by the whole thing ... I thought they had learned their lesson."
Hammack said he would try to get in contact with Family Radio to express his concerns.
Family Radio, based in California, is a nondenominational, noncommercial, nonprofit, listener-supported, 24-hour, ministry with stations throughout the country and overseas.
