The Giant Ferris Wheel of Jehovah's Organization

by truthseeker 9 Replies latest jw friends

  • truthseeker
    truthseeker

    The Giant Ferris Wheel of Jehovah's Organization

    Imagine a huge Ferris wheel that is constantly turning. This is no ordinary Ferris wheel though. Each car is a wheel in itself. You are the passenger.

    There are seven million of these gondolas, all turning, within the giant wheel called Jehovah's Organization. This larger wheel began turning in 1879 and has not ceased.

    Every day, seven million pairs of legs run to keep their wheels turning in the race for life. Any number of activities will keep this wheel running, but the wheel must maintain the same speed as the organizational wheel.

    Meetings, assemblies, conventions, ministry, pre-study, personal study and prayer provide the energy to maintain the wheel's momentum.

    The more activities you participate in, the faster your wheel spins. If you stop one or more of these activities, your wheel begins to slow. This is known as slowing down in Jehovah's organization, because while your wheel is running at reduced speed, the organization wheel is not.

    Each wheel cannot spin faster than the organization wheel because if this were to happen, you would be running ahead of Jehovah's organization.

    The cars on a Ferris wheel usually have windows where you can see other cars. Using our analogy of wheels within a wheel, it is possible to observe the speed of other wheels. An observer in his wheel would notice that some wheels are running at breakneck speed, keeping up with the wheel of Jehovah's Organization.

    Some wheels which started off at high speed are slowing down. The witnesses in this wheel are tired of their spiritual routine and are making their wheel run slower. Remember, the more organizational sponsored activities you engage in, the faster your wheel.

    Other wheels have not only slowed down but have stopped moving altogether. Their wheel has now become inactive; the occupants have found other things to do. The wheel of Jehovah's Organization knows when some of these wheels become inactive. A repairman or elder is sent to fix the problem. This usually gets the wheel moving again.

    Sometimes the wheel cannot be fixed and the occupants are shown the door. This is a dead wheel.

    An observer may note that there are wheels which are running in the opposite direction. This is where the occupant is working against the organization. The occupants in the other wheels know that this wheel's occupant is running to the things left behind.

    Sometimes the organizational wheel reverses course obligating each witness to run in the opposite direction. Are they able to keep up with Jehovah's Organization?

    If you've ever been on a Ferris wheel you will know that while it is possible to see the people above and below you, the structure of the wheel means it is impossible to look directly inside their car, and so it is with our analogy of the organization Ferris wheel. We cannot look into other people’s wheels and see the reasons that their wheel has slowing down or stopped spinning altogether.

    Then there are those wheels which have not only stopped but are empty. These witnesses have left not only their wheel, but the wheel of the organization.

    And now it's our turn. We begin to learn things about the organization that have been hidden from us for so long. New light, changing doctrines, child abuse and our own personal experiences within the organization make our own wheel begin to slow down.

    We start leading a double life - so that none of the other occupants can see our wheel slowing too much to attract attention, we redouble our efforts to keep our wheel moving with all the other wheels. This is a problem in itself. You see, while keeping up with the organization wheel is an effort in itself, it takes double the effort to maintain speed because we no longer have the desire to keep up with this wheel.

    Eventually a repair crew is sent to our car or wheel but they cannot fix the problem.

    For those occupants who have been thrown out from their place or wheel in the organization wheel arrangement, an announcement is made that Brother or Sister's wheel is no longer working and is out of order. We are not to look at their wheel, speak to its former occupants or question why an announcement was made concerning their wheel.

    The same eventually happens to us. Either we voluntarily decide to leave our wheel and the wheel of Jehovah's Organization or we are forcibly removed from it.

    A strange thing happens though. All the time we were in the wheel of Jehovah's Organization, we were constantly running, maintaining speed and doing our best not to slow down. We were unaware of anything happening outside of our wheel - in fact, we were told not to look outside of our wheel as this could distract us, slowing us down.

    Now we are on the outside looking at the huge wheel of the organization. There are the seven million wheels all turning at various speeds. And there is our empty wheel. The sign on it reads "out of order." We are looking from the outside in.

    The interesting thing about the organization wheel is that we were told it was always moving ahead. The reality is that the wheel of Jehovah's Organization is that it is going nowhere, but round and round and round. And so it is with the witnesses in their individual wheels. They are not going anywhere, though they are told otherwise.

    The only time you can really look inside the car on a Ferris wheel is when you are waiting in line to get on. And so it is with us, though we are not getting on, we can look inside a wheel.

    What do we see? Happiness? Joy? Or fatigue and a bored expression on the wheel's occupants as they try to keep their wheel spinning.

    Outside, people are moving about in their own direction and at their own pace. This movement is not possible in our former, tightly enclosed and directionless wheel of spiritual activity.
    As we walk away from this giant Ferris wheel, the organization which seems to be in perpetual motion and its seven million wheels all spinning at different speeds; we recognize that we are actually moving somewhere while they are moving no where.

  • Jeffro
    Jeffro

    There is something missing from this analogy, though it suits it quite well. The wheel is always stopping to let people on and off. As new people join the Ferris wheel ride, about as many realise it's not the ride they were hoping for and get off. Most of the people getting on the wheel are children of people riding in other cars on the wheel.

  • reniaa
    reniaa

    lol I could apply this whole ferris wheel to life itself,

    You say the people are free when they jump off the ferris wheel but isn't the reality just that they find another ferris wheel to jump onto even if its on a singular one all of their own making?

    The only power we have is the choice of choosing the wheel we are on once we are old enough to make that choice but its rare that someone finds first time the wheel thats theirs for life, they have to try a few on for size, lol this analagy could go on forever.....

  • truthseeker
    truthseeker

    Reniaa,

    You said

    You say the people are free when they jump off the ferris wheel but isn't the reality just that they find another ferris wheel to jump onto even if its on a singular one all of their own making?

    The only power we have is the choice of choosing the wheel we are on once we are old enough to make that choice but its rare that someone finds first time the wheel thats theirs for life, they have to try a few on for size, lol this analagy could go on forever.....

    That's a good comment but,

    Not everyone finds another ferris wheel quite like the watchtower society - that's what makes it a cult.

    Age isn't necessarily a factor in making a choice to get off the wheel - it can be a variety of circumstances.

    Besides, not everyone thinks they have a choice to leave the organisation - they're told "but where else can we go?" thus prohibiting them from ever leaving.

    I've left the ferris wheel - I have the freedom to choose the next one if I want, only this time I will be armed with the facts and figures before I decide, if ever, to join any other religion. I did not have these advantages as I was born in the truth.

  • truthseeker
    truthseeker

    Jeffro,

    True, the wheel has to stop, but not to let people off in the conventional sense. In this analogy, it's to let people on.

    Once on the ferris wheel, you're told that you can't leave for any reason.

    It's a figurative analogy of course, so we have to set aside the physical reality of a ferris wheel.

  • reniaa
    reniaa

    I've left the ferris wheel - I have the freedom to choose the next one if I want, only this time I will be armed with the facts and figures before I decide, if ever, to join any other religion. I did not have these advantages as I was born in the truth.

    I was born in too so I understand,

    I once dreamt we were all on escalators the bottom was earth and our human finite life and the top was God, Any religion offers the dream/the hope beyond what everyday mundane life can provide, the richest man on this earth can have face-lifts till he's ninety and all the best drugs but he can't escape the inevitable so this is were the dream comes in and all faiths have a price even if it's only to have 'Faith'.

    They are offering a product and you have to decide if it's worth the asking price.

    As born in JW's we have grown up with the price so it is different for us. at least for our childhood we don't have a choice but we do as adults, the negative consequences may keep us from action but the choice is still before us.

    Thinking about it for me it's more a contract than a ferris wheel, an agreement on both sides but then we stop believing and tear the contract up.

  • truthseeker
    truthseeker

    Reniaa,

    You make good points. All religions offer something, but it's not so near at hand as the Watchtower makes it. Catholics offer a life in heaven, you know you have to live out your days before (and if) you received your reward, so time can continue at a normal pace.

    The Watchtower offers its members Paradise soon, it's always round the corner, always near, but never here and I see myself, my friends and family slowly grow old and discouraged.

    The product or everlasting life, is not, and never has been there's to offer, but they make it seem that only they can deliver it.

    They dangle this product in front of us all the time, promising it's within our reach if only we do everything the "faithful and discreet slave" asks of us without question.

    They are the only corporation I know that for 130 years can promise a product and never deliver, all the while changing the terms and conditions of their contract with you whenever they feel like it.

  • LongHairGal
    LongHairGal

    You heard the expression: Stop the world, I want to get off. Well, this is how I thought of the religion.

    I jumped off this ferris wheel.

    LHG

  • Meeting Junkie No More
    Meeting Junkie No More

    Excellent analogy, truthseeker.

    For me, it felt more like a hamster wheel, with all that running, running, running. So glad I'm off for good!

  • WTWizard
    WTWizard

    I think it's high time to ruin the power supply in the main wheel. By putting soap in the bearings where there is supposed to be grease, it will force out all the grease. And then some salt water will rust it, forcing the whole wheel to freeze in place. And cutting the power supply will make sure it stays permanently stuck, while the bearings are all corroding. Then no one will be able to get the damn thing going again.

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