by praiseband 47 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
Ok, for those of us non-, and never before-JW's, will someone please explain what the big deal is about having responsibility for microphones is all about? We do use microphones in our church, but ....I mean whoever is in charge of any technology that day sets up microphones. It could be anyone in the church, male or female, young or old, the pastor, the janitor. It's really not much different than turning on the lights!
Praise
it is the start of the road to being MS then elder - so brothers generally (or used to) make a big deal of it
Yes, there is so much to understand about this crazy cult! Ha, I couldn't believe that handling a mic was such a sought after privelege! I thought the ex jw's were having a little fun with me when I heard that one.
Within the org, there is a lot of emphasis put on how much you do and how well you look to others. Too much admiration of men instead of boasting in our weakness and the Christ. But as stated above, a big deal about so many things that don't matter to anyone but the person doing it and all those working to a position.
abr
Microphone duty is a sacred privilege--so sacred that those in the congregation who lack a Y chromosome cannot perform it. You must make a contract with God before you're allowed to touch the sacred microphones. Even at that point, you must have God's smile of approval upon your humble soul--as determined by the double-honored elders--before you can touch them. Indeed, you must be a shining example to the old and young before you are allowed to join the hallowed ranks of the microphone holder.
Mock not the microphones, my friend. Only the elite may grasp their silky black exteriors, caress their soft pop screens, and have the awesome responsibility of turning them "on" or "off." Yes, you desire this ability, do you not? Even now your heart races with anticipation.
Praiseband,
I was a JW for many years and I still can't explain it. I laugh now when I think of how many "Brothers" would clamor for the "privilege". It is quite embarassing when I look back on it now. How the JW's ever figured out how to get people to line up to work for free, and claw at each other to do so, I will never know.
Funny story:
One congregation that was in a neighboring town seemed to have a lack of men wanting to "reach out" for "privileges", so the Presiding Overseer decided to use his daughter to handle the microphones for the Watchtower Study one Sunday. It caused quite a stir and apparently was the source of much embarassment to the congregation because there was a flurry of activity in the congregation for a while thereafter. The whole thing seems like one big joke now when I look back on it. What a wierd religion.
exjdub
I've posted this before but it is my only mike duty story... I remember in the 70's when we started to use audience mikes for comments. Being a 'Mike' attendant was a big deal. It was usually given to young brothers, never sisters. These mikes were on about a 3 ft. long boom so the attendant could reach those near the middle of a row. Picture this, it happened about three times in one WT study. A long winded pioneer sister was sitting in the middle of a long row and had her hand up on nearly every question. The young mike handler would have to stand with one leg right up against the leg of a middle aged sister in the end seat and lean way over to reach sister blabby. The only problem was that this young man, about 17 yrs old, wore those super tight stretchy polyesther pants and he was hung like a mule. Honest to Jah, you could easily see he'd been circumscised. So each time blabby was called on he's standing with his crotch about 18 inches from the face of the end seat sister for a minute or two that seemed like an hour for those who could see the situation. The middle aged sister flushed bright red from her neck up to her ears each time. Before the end of the meeting she got up and moved to the back of the hall. I've often felt she should have tucked a dollar bill into his shirt pocket!
Thanks for your answers. You guys are so funny, I'm glad to see that even though a lot of your past history was probably pretty harsh, you can still have a crazy sense of humor!
..you must be a shining example to the old and young before you are allowed to join the hallowed ranks of the microphone holder.....and have the awesome responsibility of turning them "on" or "off."
LOL
I needed that laugh...
YC
I remember mike duty very vividly. It seems I got stuck with it almost every other sunday and I hated it. The dam cords were always tangled and the numbnuts running the amp was either stoned or asleep and forgot to turn them on. Or he would forget to turn them off and I would always smack my mike into floor or a wall making for a delightful explosion sound. Then everyone wold turn around to see what assclown did it this time. I always had a special talent for injuring people with them to. Fun times they were.
Thanks for bringing this topic up and allowing me re-live yet another nightmare.
