Remembering Richard F. Ames

It is with great sadness that we inform you of the death of longtime evangelist Richard Franklin Ames. Many of you were familiar with Mr. Ames from his many Tomorrow’s World telecasts, magazine articles, and booklets. You may even have had the opportunity to meet him in person at one of our Tomorrow’s World Presentations.

Mr. Ames was a driven, “type A” personality and a man of achievement. Born in June 1936, he grew up and attended public schools in New London and Meriden, Connecticut. He served as co-captain on his high school football team and as Senior Class President, and he began his broadcast media career working after school as an announcer for a Meriden radio station. Following graduation, he went on to get a B.C.E. degree from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, New York, and went to Yale University to complete a year-long graduate course in traffic and transportation engineering. He was subsequently hired as a transportation engineer at the Southeastern Virginia Regional Planning Commission in Norfolk, Virginia.

But engineering was not to be his ultimate calling. As many do, he realized he was missing something in life. It was then that he was introduced to the work of Herbert W. Armstrong, and he left his work in Virginia to attend Ambassador College in Pasadena, California, in 1962. There he served as Student Body President and married Kathryn Lind Meredith in 1964. Kathryn was the younger sister of the late evangelist Roderick C. Meredith, my predecessor in this work.

Mr. Ames was ordained a minister of Jesus Christ a year later and served congregations in seven states as part of a rapidly growing work. Over the course of his life, he also taught theology, speech, and broadcasting at the Big Sandy, Texas, Ambassador College campus, and served as Director of Admissions, an instructor of theology, and Registrar at the Pasadena campus.

From 1986 to 1994, he became a familiar face to many on the television program The World Tomorrow, which, at its peak, was the most-viewed religious program in the United States. As one of its four presenters, Mr. Ames traveled to record on-location programs in Israel, Egypt, Great Britain, Germany, and locales across the United States.

Mr. Ames left the Worldwide Church of God after it began substituting heathen doctrines and Greek philosophy for the pure words of Scripture. He humbly joined with many others in supporting the revived Work, led by his brother-in-law, and explained his decision in a letter he wrote at the time: “I used to argue with Dr. Meredith, telling him that the Worldwide Church of God would never accept [a doctrine nowhere found in Scripture], and that the Church would not do away with the sanctity of the Sabbath. He was right and I was wrong.”

Before long, Dr. Meredith asked Mr. Ames to go on television again, where he produced programs from 1996 until a few weeks before his death. When the Living Church of God was organized, he was additionally made Director of Media Operations. Through his work as broadcaster, writer, and speaker, he reached millions of people in many countries around the world. He understood deeply what God has prophesied for His faithful servants who dedicate their lives to His Work: “Those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the firmament, and those who turn many to righteousness like the stars forever and ever” (Daniel 12:3).

But dates, places, and achievements do not tell us about the whole man. Even in his last days, confined to a hospital bed, he wanted to know, How is the Work doing? Has the latest book gone to the printer? His mind was focused on doing the Work of God—as was the mind of Jesus Christ, who proclaimed to His disciples, “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to finish His work” (John 4:34).

The more you get to know someone, the more you realize that Jesus Christ was the only perfect man to ever walk this earth. Knowing this, someone once asked Mr. Ames how he could work for his brother-in-law. After all, he would have seen Dr. Meredith’s human weaknesses up close. His answer was unambiguous: “I fear God.” Mr. Ames deeply understood that Jesus Christ is the true Head of the Church and that as long as the human leader is following Christ—as clearly revealed in the Bible—it would be a grievous error to rise up against him, imperfect as he may be. I’m sure that is why he was my greatest supporter when I was appointed to be Dr. Meredith’s successor, even though I was nearly a decade younger than he was.

For many years, Mr. Ames was truly our elder statesman, always “the adult in the room.” As one of our Canadian ministers put it, “When Mr. Ames spoke, everyone listened.” Mr. Stuart Wachowicz, evangelist and regional director of Canada for Tomorrow’s World and the Living Church of God, wrote this about the man he had come to know:

Mr. Richard Ames will be remembered for his many contributions to the Work of God in this age. His total focus was on “doing the Work,” which was always an inspiration and encouragement for all of us to look past our own desires and project our energies on the calling he valued so much. For my wife and I, Mr. Ames will be most remembered for his admonition to “claim God’s promises,” and therefore put total trust in our Father and Christ. We will always cherish the memory of the visit Mr. and Mrs. Ames made to Alberta quite a number of years ago, during which time he gave Tomorrow’s World presentations in Red Deer and Calgary. Their sincere concern for the brethren made a very deep and lasting impression. The same impression was shared by members across the nation. It will be wonderful to see him again in a glorified body in the soon-coming Kingdom of God.

Mr. Ames made prophecy understandable to millions, and three of his booklets focused on the subject: Understanding Bible Prophecy, Armageddon and Beyond, and The Middle East in Prophecy. However, his focus was not merely on understanding future events, but on turning many to righteousness. Note this admonition from his article “How to Escape Armageddon” in the July-August 2024 Tomorrow’s World magazine—the last issue to be published before his death on July 4:

Perhaps you have not been praying; now is the time to get down on your knees and cry out to God for a change in your life. Scripture tells us how to draw close to God. “Seek the Lord while He may be found, call upon Him while He is near. Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the Lord, and He will have mercy on him; and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon” (Isaiah 55:6–7). God promises to bless you and forgive you if you seek Him with your whole heart.

As a teacher and an encourager, Mr. Ames always looked for the best in others. There were times when he was direct. He could bark, but he did not bite. If he saw some way in which you could improve in your life, he would bring it to your attention—but sincerely motivated by love and a desire to help you improve, while also striving to hold himself to the highest standard.

Richard Ames was a fellow worker in Christ, a true friend, and an inspiration. We look forward to seeing him again at the resurrection in the Kingdom of God.