Though I have no basis to believe this, I suspect any major change still remains at the least a couple years down the road when more of the GB have passed away and the expectations surrounding this Sept11 thing end up in disappointment.
Perhaps they are just slowly conditioning the membership for future changes such as a "complete review of our understandings and beliefs in light of where we are in the stream of time".
They have already succeeded in dumbing down the flock and making their present beliefs vague and wishy washy. At this point, I don't think they'd have an extremely difficult time reinventing themselves.
I just find it frustrating that they expect their members to put so much weight and confidence in their present teachings, while at the same time telling them they have to abandon "cherished doctrines" whenever they change their minds.
If you wanted to control someone, Pureheart, ambiguousness is the way to do it. The weak-willed and less knowledgable of the flock will ride along with it all, and the ones who question it will be thrown out and called devils, and vomit-eaters....perfect.
The GB will get more and more into coercion, and they will have got no time to ... "review of our understandings and beliefs in light of where we are in the stream of time".
If you once go preaching from door to door, and you come to Mrs. Taylor, proclaiming her the established Kingdom of Jehovah, and the end of disease and death; and the female house-inhabitant (Mrs. Taylor) says: Oh yes, I know it! Mr. Greg Venter (gentechnic-engineer) is saying this will become true in about 5 years, and his industry is now working on this inventions .... and you otherwise say: Oh No, Mrs. Taylor, you have got to wait until Jehovah brings us healing, but after armageddon... and if on the other hand you is deep frustrated about this fact.... then, I think, the GB will come into a little bit of stress.
Thanks for informing us of this. In the last 5-10 years, it seemed that the WT had nothing exciting. When compared with the decades before. Even the hard-hitting articles about the millenium, hell, Catholics, Hitler, Armageddon, Trinity, etc., were exciting and it seemed informative. Then, it became very ho-hum. Then with the generation change, it was moribund and comatose!
Maybe they are preparing the the numbed, bored minds of the faithful to give up even what beliefs they have left.
Welcome to the board and I'm glad to meet you. It's a very kind thing to do for your wife to attend! I wonder how many folks are still going through the motions? Plus, as the "truth" becomes increasingly dull, how many will leave, who are attending for reasons like yours?
Just wanted to say that the thoughts in Paragraph 13 stood out for me as well.
Of course, I think most Witnesses would say that the writer was directing those words to ones newly associated with Jehovah's Witnesses, who might have to relinquish "personal ideas" or "cherished doctrinal views."
But I wonder myself. I too thought the comment interesting in that it is found in the context, not of an Awake! article, or a "supplementary" Watchtower article, but rather directly in a study article, given that probably 95% of those who considered it are already dedicated, baptized Witnesses.
