Armand continued his pattern of sleeping during the day and painting during the quiet hours of the night. Though his interest in theology never diminished, his church attendance began to wane, possibly due to his unusual sleep habit. Then, one Saturday night in the early 1960s two visitors came unannounced to Armand’s home. They were from the church council. Acting very “fidgety,” they told Armand he could no longer take communion with them. Stunned, he didn't even think to ask, “Why?!” They left as abruptly as they came, leaving him officially separated now from the church he had so adamantly defended for years. Apparently there was a conflict between Armand and the church elders over church attendance and his questioning of the church doctrines, which in those days was grounds for excommunication.
I was in the midst of a lot of trouble in those days, a lot of questioning of my own. Ya. I was eventually told one Saturday night at the door by the elder of our district that I was not to take communion any more because I was showing doubts. I was pestering them with questions around there. Laughs. I couldn’t help it. Ya. They were justified questions, I believe, to this day.
I began to think about every statement in the Apostles’ Creed the congregation was saying. ‘Do you actually agree, believe all those statements, literally?’ And I had to say to myself, no, I don't really.
But it had to hit me like that, to just catch myself one morning, instead of just standing up with everybody else to recite in unison, which is fine in itself, I thought, no, you don't agree with all that.
So, in other words, I had to begin to be honest with them. I didn't come antagonistically at them, see. I asked questions. And they were questions often they didn't like. I couldn't help that. That's not my fault. (Laughter).
More saddened than angry, his continuing interest in theology led him to spend many a long night at the home of Homer and Joanne VanderMey in heady theological discussions with ministers and fellow church members who delighted in discussing church doctrine and the articles of faith they knew so well.
