Robotic Elders - Then and Now question.l..

by james_woods 3 Replies latest jw friends

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  james_woods

  I would assume that there a few of us here who are ex-elders...I am at least one, having resigned the "commision" in about 1981 and left the JW world shortly after.

  Here is my question: Do present-day elders live under a greater degree of control from the society (circuit/district overseer, etc) than we used to in my day?

  I never really felt like we were being put under a "microscope" back in the 1975 to 1980 era - but now I read a lot of comments about how paranoid the society has become, and that maybe even the elders feel that they are under the thumb of the ever-present "big brother" WT society.

  Just my imagination, or have things actually become more controlling, even for the local elders?
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  Undecided

  Darned if I know. I left in 1972 when I was a Congregation Servant or something like that and can't remember too much of how it was like except I was overloaded with too much WT slavery to keep the congregation going.

  The only two meetings that the servants had with publishers were, one for adultery, DFed and another sister who's worldly husband was using a light bulb for a sex toy and it broke and she had to go to the hospital. She requested the meeting because she was afraid of what would be said. I just told her I hope she would be OK.

  Ken P.
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  Doubting Bro

  From the big house, there are BOE letters that control every single aspect of congregation activity. From how the meetings are conducted to how the files are kept and everything in-between. Of course, its probably always been that way since this is such a high control organization.

  Practically, it really depends on the CO. The DOs hammer the COs but I've had COs that were completely anal and others (usually older ones) that were actually much more laid back. There seems to be a direct correlation between the CO age and the level of micromanagement. The younger they are, the more likely they are to be heavily involved in every detail.

  I've also seen COs order elders to sack each other, which was an eye-opening experience. He didn't want to get his hands dirty so he spoke to people individually on the BOE to have the guy removed.

  So, I think the pressure has been ramped up on the local BOEs who in turn ramp up the pressure on the congregation. The good news is that I think the number of elders getting discouraged and resigning is increasing. No one is there to take their place which increases the pressure on the remaining elders and they take it out on the congregation, which discourages them and causes them to slow down.
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  OnTheWayOut

  I resigned as an elder August 2006

  It depends on your point of view. The borganization needs more elders,
  so they don't control their lives and actions so much. If they went to
  college or their wife or kids did, that's okay. If they don't support one
  pioneer in the family, that's okay. If they need to miss some meetings,
  it depends on the local congregation and CO, but often okay.

  As mentioned, letters to BOE and procedure passed on from the CO
  do dictate everything that should go on at the KH. Many rank-and-file
  feel free to complain to CO or WTS if things aren't the same here in
  one cong.as they are in other cong. across the land. You could go to
  virtually any cong. and it would seem the same.

  Judicial matters are controlled by the letters and Flock book, and
  CO's have instructed in a way that most all of them would turn out
  the same, no matter who handled them (plenty of exceptions for
  family members, but again, whichever elders handled the family
  members would let them off with a warning). Anything complicated- you
  gotta call Mother (Might change with recent court rulings, even that will
  be done according to Mother's procedure).

  The only difference I see is in SHEPHARDING. For some unknown reason,
  (lawsuits, I expect) the WTS has never given out written instructions on
  how to carry out shepharding. When it is discussed, they remind the elders
  that WTS is not going to tell them how to do this, they just want to know
  that it is being done.