Joe Smith
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 Posted: Wed Aug 20, 2008 12:13 am Post subject: jw's Just do what we tell you |
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http://www.jehovahs-witness.com/12/164466/1.ashx
Not much doctrine these days. Just do what we tell you and you'll be
fine.
Since they came out with the Study edition of the Watchtower magazine in
January, I have noticed a trend. Some of you have probably noticed this
as well if you have been attending any of the meetings.
With the exception of changing their base doctrine about "this
generation" and 1914, the articles don't discuss or reveal or even
reiterate doctrine anymore.
All of the articles are about how Witnesses should behave towards one
another. Marriage mates, parents, children, elderly. They are about how
Witnesses should dress, how they should act in public, how they should
continue to be obedient to the FDSC, and how they should reject
activities that could lead them to apostasy. (As a side note, I have
noticed that the FDSC and apostasy are referenced in each magazine if
not each article!)
All of the recent books that have been released follow that same theme.
They don't teach doctrine but teach how Witnesses should behave. Even
the last assembly and convention followed this line of thinking.
I asked my wife (who doesn't suspect that I am an evil apostate at
heart) about this and she says she has noticed the same thing. But, of
course, to her it is an indication that the time left is short and that
Jehovah is getting his people in order for something big. She thinks
that this is why the book studies were junked as well. When I asked her
why they went to so much trouble to stress its importance only to get
rid of it, she said it was a test. The relationships that we should have
been building while in those book studies will come into play in the
near future and if we shrugged off the book study for all those years,
we will be in for a rude awakening. Yeah, that is what she has convinced
herself. I followed this up with a question about people who are new to
a territory and have just moved to the congregation. They would never
have had a chance to get to know the locals in the small social setting.
She said Jehovah would take care of these.
But I digress. My main point was to say that the Society seems to be
drifting away from doctrine and are now moving towards "crowd control."
I'm not sure why ... yet.
IP: q6i6hGfSSoRyOwxo
Re: Not much doctrine these days. Just do what we tell you and you'll be
fine. 19-Aug-08 08:55
good point. I wonder what how much more the words "obedience" "follow"
etc. have increased in the last years.
IP: f/FUzOcaOqwYfFCL
Re: Not much doctrine these days. Just do what we tell you and you'll be
fine. 19-Aug-08 09:17
I have been wondering what kind of "food" they are serving these days.
As I suspected, no more meat and potatoes, just vanilla pudding and
frequent reminders of who the boss is. Are they are dialing them into a
nice, mainstream, church on Sunday denomination?
IP: aF9uYSYYlgDIo2DY
Re: Re: Not much doctrine these days. Just do what we tell you and
you'll be fine. 19-Aug-08 09:25
Honestly, Gregor, I am not sure.
At times it seems like they are dumbing everything down and trying to
make the religion more palatable but still exclusive.
Then at other times it seems only like they are tightening their grip on
the dedicated JWs and they are demonizing everybody else in the world.
IP: q6i6hGfSSoRyOwxo
Re: Not much doctrine these days. Just do what we tell you and you'll be
fine. 19-Aug-08 10:07
She said Jehovah would take care of these.
That's pretty much the standard response for anything that doesn't make
sense.
"What about the hundreds of millions of children & infants who will be
killed at Armageddon?"
"Jehovah will take care of them"
"Who's going to be manufacturing the clothes, tools, fruit baskets, and
assorted other stuff we see in pictures of paradise, if all that humans
will ever do there is conduct Bible studies, pick fruit, and pet lions?"
"Jehovah will take care of it"
"What about this mountain of evidence that the earth was not fully under
water 4400 years ago, that human civilization is more than 6000 years
old, that Jersusalem was not destroyed in 607 BCE, etc. etc. etc."
"Jehovah knows the answer"
IP: AjWwyYVdJNb6fr6j
Re: Not much doctrine these days. Just do what we tell you and you'll be
fine. 19-Aug-08 10:17
I noticed the trend beginning years ago. The books were being
progressively dumbed down for a long time. I think the governing body
lost its last great creative liar with the death of Freddie Franz.
IP: zLSL21sqHnkqMmbN
Re: Not much doctrine these days. Just do what we tell you and you'll be
fine. 19-Aug-08 10:31
It could well be that sites like these have ripped all their
non-scriptural doctrines to shreads,so if they dont draw attention to
them the R&F wont think about them too much. Well done all on JWD!
Or could it be that the new Prophet at Brooklyn is Austin Powers "Oh
do BEHAVE!"
IP: BFGiOEPjEZi9TXJb
Re: Not much doctrine these days. Just do what we tell you and you'll be
fine. 19-Aug-08 10:37
All of the recent books that have been released follow that same theme.
They don't teach doctrine but teach how Witnesses should behave. Even
the last assembly and convention followed this line of thinking.
The modern Puritans, sure enough. Next thing it will be stocks and
pillories on the KH lawn. They've already got a uniform, ala dress
code.
Somebody posted a pix of a Puritan a while back; all you need add was a
bookbag.
IP: XHrEthuWe+iNXux719-Aug-08 10:39
Re: Not much doctrine these days. Just do what we tell you and you'll be
fine. 19-Aug-08 12:48
I believe that this is out of necessity. As the internet emerged onto
the world scene and became an integral part of all of our lives, this
was the first crack in the Watchtower's dam. The crack has been
widening with the increasing amounts of readily available information
regarding Watchtower teachings and policy.
Never before in history has the Watchtower leadership had to grapple
with people all over the world getting access to the writings of Russell
and Rutherford, downloadable copies of branch manuals, scans of letters
to the bodies of elders, and most recently; damaging court documents
regarding the pedophile issue. You are correct when you state the the
organization is now focussing on crowd control. The only question is:
how long will the rank and file put up with this before they begin to
vote with their feet.
The abundance of information on the internet is partly why I believe
that the publications are being dumbed down, and the worship programs
are now totally micro-managed from Brooklyn. If they open up and
expand on various teachings to great length (i.e. 1914 chronology, for
example) there is too much information in the net which deconstructs
their convenient and one-sided arguments. To try to delve into such
matters too deeply means that this will stimulate more of the rank and
file to really think about such teachings. That is not what they want
to happen.
What we see now is a more belicose "chest-beating" by the Governing Body
where they assert the exclusive truthfullness of their teachings, and
scare the membership into total conformity of thought. This will not
succeed in the long term. It can hardly be considered a viable long
term strategy for the spiritual health of its members. This constant
drum-beating on giving soldier-like submission to the GB while
demonizing any dissenters will throw up more and more red flags.
Looking for some answers on the net will become more and more desirable
to the rank and file.
What this manipulation and coercion by the GB will do is continue to
wear people down, and further discourage people. The programs have
become so dry, robotic, and mechanical, that there is very little
spiritual refreshment left. As time continues onward with no "end of
the system", people will become more and more complacent. Those who
are thinkers and who truly care about people will most likely begin to
fade and realize after some internet research that they were not alone
in their concerns.
IP: CWAGERdp9XTvB6vi |
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