Not much doctrine these days. Just do what we tell you and you'll be fine.

by easyreader1970 17 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

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  easyreader1970

  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.

  er
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  What-A-Coincidence

  good point. I wonder what how much more the words "obedience" "follow" etc. have increased in the last years.
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  Gregor

  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?
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  easyreader1970

  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.

  er
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  sir82

  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"
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  Finally-Free

  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.

  W
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  wobble

  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!"

  Love

  Wobble
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  mustang

  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.

  Mustang
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  Jeremy C

  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.
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  willyloman

  Jeremy: What a shame the Forum is winding down with you just getting started (post 96 of 97)! Excellent points, well written.