The interview titled "The United Church of God: The Christians Who Rest on the Sabbath and Don't Eat Pork" was published on page 14, Wednesday, Feb. 8, 2006. Here is a translation:

Who Are They

The United Church of God–Italy was born in 1996, from a series of fragmentations of the Worldwide Church of God which were caused, in 1995, by the change in the doctrinal orientation of Herbert Armstrong's successors, following his death in 1986.

How Do They Preach the Gospel

The United Church of God preaches by distributing for free the bimonthly publication La Buona Notizia, whose maximum national distribution is approximately 7,000 copies. At the international level, this movement has approximately 22,000 supporters, a few hundred of whom are in Italy .

The pastor Carmelo Anastasi welcomes me in the editorial offices of the magazine La Buona Notizia. He first checks my credentials and asks about the inquiry that Libero is currently doing on the various religious movements present throughout our national territory.

"Unfortunately certain reporters," explains Anastasi, "are only looking for negative issues in order to misrepresent the minorities and depict them as 'sects.' This search for the sensational and the eccentric is a real disservice to the truth. And I do speak from experience since for several years I was the managing director of the Italian edition of the magazine The Plain Truth (La Pura Verità)."

After explaining to him that I am a sociologist and that the purpose of the inquiry is to inform the public about little-known religious organizations, allowing the leaders representing them to speak out, he gladly accepts the opportunity to answer my questions.

Can you give us a brief account of your history?

The United Church of God traces its origins to the Sabbatarian and millenarian Christianity of the first century, whose movement managed to survive the persecutions of the Middle Ages. Starting in the 15th century, the movement reflourished as a result of the migrations to America , and spread throughout the world thanks to the preaching of William Miller (1782-1849), followed by Gilbert Cranmer (1814-1904) and the Worldwide Church of God of Herbert W. Armstrong until 1995.

That year, Armstrong's successors (Armstrong died in 1986) started to betray the Church's spiritual heritage... This resulted in a series of painful schisms and fragmentation of the Church throughout the world. But in 1995, an ecclesiastic reorganization occurred at the international level. In Italy, some Italian brethren found out about the rebirth of the Church (UCG IA) in the United States, and decided to incorporate in Italy the United Church of God as well as to operate in association with the UCG IA .

What is your relationship with the Worldwide Church of God?

We try to live in peace with everyone and leave the judging to God.

What do you think about Herbert Armstrong?

He did make some mistakes, as all men do. Nonetheless, he was a great preacher, a man of God. We would like to point out, however, that our main reference is Jesus Christ, not Armstrong.

What do your teachings and principles consist of?

What distinguishes us is the observance of the biblical feasts and, most importantly, the original Ten Commandments, which include the sanctification of Saturday as the seventh day of weekly rest and the prohibition to worship images and sculptures. We believe that faith without obedience is not true faith. You can learn more about our teachings on our Web site.

What kind of activities do you carry out?

We contribute to the peaceful spreading of the gospel of Jesus Christ through the publication of our free periodical La Buona Notizia and of other pamphlets, as well as through seminars, national conventions, charitable and educational activities.

Do you have any particular prohibitions?

The Bible forbids the meat of some animals (such as mice, snakes, rabbits, horses, pigs, etc.) as well as the blood of all animals, as they are not suitable to man's health if eaten. The same holds true for sexual acts against nature, which are responsible for the transmission of venereal diseases.

How do you view the other churches?

In spite of their historical errors, they have all contributed to Western civilization—especially the churches of the founding fathers of the American Constitution.

Then you are in favor of ecumenism?

We do not believe in compromises. Plus, history teaches us that man's religious monopoly tends to suppress and persecute those minorities who live their Christianity in a different way. The supreme good is the biblical truth, and not unity at all costs. We prefer tolerance and peaceful coexistence among the various religions. This is the true love preached by Jesus Christ.