Reflections on the assembly - please help!!!!

by insearchoftruth 19 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

insearchoftruth

Good Morning,
One of the two district assemblies was this past weekend in Hampton VA and my wife was very excited to attend, but she only attended about 1.5 hours on Friday and then I attended the morning session with her on Saturday. Not sure how these number compare with past years, but about 5200 folks were in attendance (by their count) and it appeared that about 20 folks were going to be baptized.
Here are couple of my thoughts on what I heard, I kept notes, but they were in my wife's binder, so was unable to grab them this morning.
Most of the speakers I heard slammed higher education....and they tried to tie that back to the bible, that was sort of a reach if you ask me...wasn't Luke involved with medicine in some way??
There was of course a lot of talk on how bad the world is today, one of the gentlemen said that the "scene of the world is changing from bad to worse" and another guy said that the devil is a deadly force on the earth today...
One of the presenters said that the problems that we face are due to the following three isssues: 1) Material Dependence, 2) Rebellion against bible principles, 3) Decline in morality. Statements like this are so broad based, but I could see all the jw's just nodding their heads like they had heard something from a great oracle... This same presenter said that in today's age that the world teaches that the bible is of no value...I was able to counter this by reading to my wife that it seems in Texas they are going to allow schools to have courses using the bible as literature.
There was a lot of talk of the anointed ones and joining ourselves with the anointed ones. Other presenters used the term faithful and discreet slave. I asked my wife afterwards if these were one and the same and she did not know, so she called the pesky sister to confirm, and of course they were. I asked about the closing of the anointed class, got the runaround from the sister, I really do not think she understands the 'new light'.
The presentation on yielding the 'sword' of scripture was interesting and really seemed to hit home with my wife. The presenter said that one should not just read scripture, but should explain and isolate, understand the history and then see how it applies. I am sure his intent was that this will all be done with wt literature. What was interesting about this is when we got home and my wife called the pesky sister to ask about the anointed question, she let her know that right now she does not want to study the wt publications, she wants to read the bible and learn how to understand it. HOW DO I USE THIS TO AN ADVANTAGE...I would love to get her some good non WTS sources on bible interpretation, do any of you know of anything I can use. And what can I say to her that she can use to push back on the sisters when they tell her that the bible teach book is synonomous with reading the bible.... In my opinion, I have an opportunity here, as long as I can make sure that my wife realizes that one does not need a stack of books written by men to understand the prinicipals that the bible is presenting.
A question for you all, in the doctrine/beliefs of the witnesses, is the NT written only to the anointed. There was a presenter who spoke on Revelations 22:17 I believe, talking about the best invite one has ever recieved. As he introduced this he said that 'the anointed have extended this invitation'. Is this because the NT is not written to the great crowd.
Another question, what is the present service requirement to be a publisher, is it only 15 minutes per month (on an aside, I asked my wife if publisher, district overseer etc is from the bible, she said she doesn't know...she wondered why I asked, well I told her that one of the things I had read in a wt publication is that trinity is not from the bible, and that I really respect that the jws try to be bible based.....could see her trying to process this thought.

I know I have heard about the way that the JWs bash others beliefs, but this was the first I have seen/heard. In the three hours or so we were at the assembly, they blasted the cross as an idol (but did not mention that Jesus did not die on a cross), ridiculed celebration of holidays, multiple slams on higher education, a lot of discussion on how important it is to be faithful in meeting attendance, service time etc. The presenters also lifted up what a gift it is that 'Jehovah' has continually brought them such wonderful literature to study.
In summary, what I took from the few hours I was there, higher education is bad, there is a lack of commitment to fs, meeting attendance must be down, and there was a lot of talk of F&D Class/anointed. Also I think each of the presenters made sure that they mentioned how close we are to the end.
Can any of you all give me ideas how I can use what I saw/heard to drop some ideas for my wife to hear.
I would love to have her actually read the bible rather than WTS literature, what can I use from scripture to ensure that she realizes that the bible is a book that is written for people, not organizations and one should read it without the bias of an organization or others trying to slant their interpretation.
WTWizard

I will start with the 15 minute requirement for a publisher. That is so that those with major health problems that are not able to get a full hour can be counted as publishers, and keep those numbers climbing toward that dreaded 7 million mark (and, they hope, through). As far as I know, it is only for those who are infirm or otherwise not able to get a whole hour a month.
Personally, I would rather just turn in a blank slip (or no slip). That way, if they do push through 7 million, I can't be blamed for having a share (and the hounder that fakes a report for me can be sued for fraud). Why let their already inflated, fake numbers grow even higher by turning in a time slip?
Quandry

In summary, what I took from the few hours I was there, higher education is bad, there is a lack of commitment to fs, meeting attendance must be down, and there was a lot of talk of F&D Class/anointed. Also I think each of the presenters made sure that they mentioned how close we are to the end.
These are good things to focus on with your wife. If you have children, would she be willing to encourage them to wash windows or waitress for a living, forgoing a college education, even if they are very intelligent? How does she see this as beneficial for hundreds of thousands of young people in this organization?
The F&D Class-this group is getting larger....how is this possible? Why would they have "new light" saying that the window of opportunity may still be open when for decades they said that the "cutoff date" for the heavenly class was 1935? Well, they have to account for new ones claiming to be of the annointed in some way....also, if the annointed are all chosen by 1935, and the governing body of JWs have to be annointed, and this system keeps going on, how will they get new members? By now, those that could have been annointed even on the last day of 1935 are getting very old.
NOW is the time to ask questions....lots of them.....and force the JW to do research to find the facts. Plese look at the Freeminds website, especially look into dates that the JWs have given as the time of the end in the past, the doctrinal flip-flops, and so many other things.
IT IS NOT "WRONG" FOR YOU TO RESEARCH...even though the Witness would discourage you, stating that the information you are pursuing is all apostate lies. Find out for yourselves before making a life-altering decision.
Let us know how this evolves.....
Quandry

I wanted to also add-go back to the beginning.
Few, very few, JWs know that the founder, Russell, believed that God resided in the Pleiades star system, or that he used measurements from a pyramid to come up with the 1914 date. The witness that studies with your wife may not even know. Yet the WTS is always extolling the virtues of the first President of the WTS and his knowlege of "truth."
insearchoftruth

The question is how to present some of this information without appearing to be apostate, which is what she has been taught with her and her families many years of association with the wts.
Suggestions as to questions to ask to get her doing her own research would be very appreciated. Is it the proclaimers book that Mr. Cameron uses so effectively in Captives of a Concept?
metatron

How many Witnesses are happy? How many were half awake for hours during the program?
Happiness is the purpose of life. If anyone says something else, tell them that they are choosing something else that isn't happiness - and why would they want to do something for eternity that doesn't relieve their depression now?
In the right circumstance, the above argument can be devastating.
metatron
mouthy

Your a brick to go to the assembly. You must love her. Does she know that as they measured the distance of the Pyrimid to find the date for 1914- they used to say the Pyrimid was NEXT to the BIBLE....
Also the founder of the WT said no one needed an organization to worship GOD?
I hope she sees the light ((((HUG)))
garybuss

I have two acquaintances. He drinks alcohol, she's hooked on Darvocet. She watches the alcohol mess him up but thinks she's fine, and he complains about her going to bed on a three day Darvocet high but he thinks he's fine.

He can't help her while he's drinking, but he won't stop, and she can't help him while she's high on prescription pain killers, but she won't give them up. Both of them depend on the other to not focus on their own delusions.
still_in74

A question for you all, in the doctrine/beliefs of the witnesses, is the NT written only to the anointed. There was a presenter who spoke on Revelations 22:17 I believe, talking about the best invite one has ever recieved. As he introduced this he said that 'the anointed have extended this invitation'. Is this because the NT is not written to the great crowd.
yes, according to WTS the NT is written only for the annointed. Everything for the GC is "extended" to them by/through the annointed.
Not sure where Jesus actually said that His teachings are only for a small 'class' of Christians that would then share what He really meant with everyone else, and that these ones would only be enigmatically referenced to so that all christians over the next 2000 years would never actually understand the bible or ever come to an "accurate" understanding - thus NOT being fully equiped for every good work.
The WTS likes the "by extension" phrase, "The annointed, and by extension, the Great Crowd..." - "when we read the bible, and by extension bible based publications, we...." etc etc.
still_in74

I wanted to also add-go back to the beginning.
Few, very few, JWs know that the founder, Russell, believed that God resided in the Pleiades star system, or that he used measurements from a pyramid to come up with the 1914 date. The witness that studies with your wife may not even know. Yet the WTS is always extolling the virtues of the first President of the WTS and his knowlege of "truth."
going back to the begining is what did it for me. It is undeniable.
As for the pyramid, Russell used pyrmidology to support his 2520 years calculation. In the same way he eisegetically interpreted scripture, he also eisegetically applied pyramidology.
He had come to the original calculation of 1914 with his misapplication of scripture.

Reflections on the assembly - please help!!!!

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