Blondie's Comments You Will Not Hear at the 10-26-08 WT Study (ELDERLY)

by blondie 20 Replies latest jw friends

• 

  Billy the Ex-Bethelite

  Good Job Blondie & commenters!

  Hold on, didn't the District Crapvention Drama this year criticize Scolios for "promoting good works"? Didn't they condemn him for encouraging the doing of good rather than just preaching, preaching, and more preaching? Now they change their tune and "promote good works"! Why didn't they nitpick and explain how more or less important each task for the elderly compares to door-to-door hours? Is regularly caring for an elderly JW more or less important than a home Bible study? What if the Bible study isn't progressing? What if the elderly professes to be of the anointed (Christ's brother), is that more important than caring for an OS?

  As an elder, the conditioning we receive is that the visible teaching the flock and preaching with the group are more important than the unnoticed caring for physical needs of an individual sheeple... anybody can do that. But only the elders can have the "privilege" of judicial committee meetings, which are very important. No brother ever became a CO because he did a really good job at vacuuming the homes of the elderly. When the CO visits, he looks at the columns of the publisher record cards. There is no column for time and money spent helping the elderly. Regardless of what they say in this Botchtower, helping the elderly is of no importance except for some Public Relations appearances.

  Another point as an elder is following the lead of Jehovah of giving lip-service to supporting the weak and elderly, but not providing anything practical. (Jesus was another matter since he is recorded for physically helping, healing, feeding, and encouraging. So, he's not referenced in this lesson.) In this Botchtower lesson it talks about how Hojovah appreciates, loves, supports, blah, blah, blah, but really he doesn't heal them, pay their bills, clean for them, or even speak to them. He puts out a lot of words of supposed encouragement, but nothing real... they just have to wait, and wait, for the Kingdumb. So, the elders follow his lead in lip-service of commendation and appreciation, but jack-squat in practical assistance... that can be delegated to Blondie until the Kingdumb fixes everything.

  As already mentioned, most of those "faithful older ones" wouldn't be impoverished, eating Alpo, and living in another JW family's garage, if they hadn't listened to the WT false prophecies about how the end was sooo close, millions now living will never die, "stay alive til 75", and such rubbish that discouraged them from saving for a comfortable retirement. How sad.

  B the X
• 

  Mary

  Billy said: No brother ever became a CO because he did a really good job at vacuuming the homes of the elderly. When the CO visits, he looks at the columns of the publisher record cards. There is no column for time and money spent helping the elderly. Regardless of what they say in this Botchtower, helping the elderly is of no importance except for some Public Relations appearances.

  That basically sums up the whole situation Billy. In the Borg, it's all about "quantity", not "quality". I find it interesting that you can't count time helping out elderly ones on your Field Circus Report, but if you go and weed the gardens at headquarters, you can.
• 

  passwordprotected

  Paragraph 3 of this study article is particularly offensive to Christians where is says "Jehovah and the "faithful and discreet slave" deeply appreciate all their past and present contributions to the kingdom work."
  
  The "faithful and discreet slave" are put on the same level as Jehovah? Where does Jesus fit in? Is He or is He not King of Kings and Lord of Lords? Was He or was He not given all authority in heaven and on earth and a name above every name?
• 

  BluesBrother

  Fine words in today's study - a casual reader of the magazine could really believe that they meant it...but in my experience there is no provision for the older ones

  What happens is that it is left to the conscience of the few kind souls who do that kind of thing . There are sometimes programmes to assist the one or two elderly who are prominent, either by past glory, family connections or damned persistence at nagging. They may be rota'd for collection on meeting nights, shopping and that - then the congo can show the C/O that they do care for the elderly. But the rest, can go hang and just fall off the radar..It is not real care at all. After all, that would get in the way of the Ministry, and that cannot be allowed...

  Billy put it so well, I quote:

  When the CO visits, he looks at the columns of the publisher record cards. There is no column for time and money spent helping the elderly. Regardless of what they say in this Botchtower, helping the elderly is of no importance except for some Public Relations appearances.
• 

  skeeter1

  The older ones are the ones who have likely seen even more of the WTS's changing doctrines and hypocrisy. But, they stay faithful for the carrot. I think of them as either a truly selfish bunch or "burried head in the sand" types. I think this article is meant to give them a special award for putting up with the WTS crap all of these years. I understand at the local one-day assembly, there was a puff piece on older JWs. A few elderly people were put on stage with a few of the younger ones and asked questions about faith.
• 

  boyzone

  This Watchtower makes me really angry.

  I'm regarded by my elderly witness dad as a "dog thats returned to its vomit" and been overreached by Satan, yet I'm the ONLY one that takes care of him and mum. Mum's been suffering with Cancer recently and is undergoing chemo, they're also moving house which entails alot of downsizing and getting rid of stuff. Guess who's doing alot of the donkey work for this? Thats right, the daughter who's described as a satan controlled, vomit eating dog.

  Where is the congregation in all this? A big, fat nowhere.

  I do all the bloody work, they get all the credit. Bastards.
• 

  Scully

  I'm going to need a copy of this article for when I start hearing about how my elderly JW family members need my help and financial assistance, when they've been treating me like I'm dead for the past 10 years.

  I'll be redirecting the responsibility for their care to the Loving™ Organization™ that they chose to serve over having a relationship with their own flesh and blood.
• 

  DoomVoyager

  Blondie, Mary, Billy, excellent comments as always! But this:

  Why does the WTS use such stilted language, elderly "ones," young "ones," older "ones", what is with this "ones"?

  AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH! Finally! Someone else who is bothered by this! What the christ is the meaning of it all? I've never heard ANY non-JW use the term "ones". There is no such this as a plural "one!" One is one! "Ones" is either two, or three, or perhaps "several"! I know I'm a pedantic little shit, but it bothers me SO MUCH with their stupid "ones". I feel like breaking things. Preferably the GB's skulls.
• 

  LongHairGal

  I wasn't present for this WT but know all about it. I know somebody who was glad they didn't attend because they couldn't stand to hear all the comments from the hypocrites who do absolutely nothing to help the elderly but are instead looking around the hall expecting somebody else to.

  Doomvoyager,

  I also was piqued by their use of the word 'ones' when describing the categories of people. I could not help but feel that it sounded condescending like as though they were describing ants on the ground. Just who do these people think they are?

  LHG
• 

  watson

  Reason for study:

  Warm the hearts and the pocket books of the "blue hairs." Sorry, know it's brutal, but I get the feeling that they are buttering up the older "ones" so that the WTS will be remembered in wills.