by african GB Member 12 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
Surely it does'nt take a rocket scientist to see that this is just another church,
one wonders if they deliberately ignore the facts and continue to control and dictate their way of thinking onto the RF JW's while they know this is not as true a religion as they make it to be.
AfricanGB,
Good question, I think years of indoctrination, takes its toll on their thinking capacity, and when they get an inkling of doubt,, cognitive dissonance kicks in,, after all they have a lot to loose if they even start doubting and where else can they go?'.
I think to some extent many believe their own bulls*t......
If it was purely business than we would see a push for 'Purposeful Living' where JWs would attend college (heck Gilead could be expanded into a minor college if it wanted to), restructure young adult ministries similar to the Mormon's (who either pay their own way or are sponsored by locals), talks about how donations of such and such level toward the ministry could be counted as 'time' etc..... Socially we would see more opportunities than FS FS FS!!! I don't think they would have childcare (pedo problem waiting to happen) but they would have a room designated for the families of little ones....and maybe even some community outreach like adopting a park or highway to keep clean. They would strive to make the JW brand appear more friendly and abundant.......while maintaining authority......(again totally rip off the LDS)
They would also get rid of any medical quackery liability.......not outright say they were wrong but simply stop bringing up the blood issue entirely! No card/document renewals, talks, comments or articles and allow it it be buried with time......a good example of this would be what JWfacts (Paul) brought up on another thread regarding the Awake and medical advice and women bobbing their hair....which I searched the CD and evidently is still considered to be 'current light' as it has never been reversed.
"The bobbed hair craze is sure to lead to baldness, sooner or later. The reason for this is that human hair is like a tube sealed at the free end. When the hair is cut, the oils which are the life of the hair become dissipated. The reason why men grow bald so quickly is that they have their hair cut so frequently and, in addition, wear tightly fitting hats, which cut off the circulation of the scalp. The reason why women, hitherto, have had such beautiful hair is that they have not cut it; and the twisting and folding of the hair has helped to retain the natural oil." Many women have turned against the fashion of bobbing the hair, and are letting their hair grow again. Golden Age 1924 November 19 p.100
http://www.jwfacts.com/watchtower/medical.php
They would shift to make partaking an all enclusive event so as to blurr the number claiming anointed.......while keeping the literalness of 144,000.
I could go on and on.......driveling away idea after idea as if I was Woodworth incarnate ....(and do a damn better job than Smalley!)
People believing their own lies does happen, yes. But, ever since I read "Crisis of Conscience" I don't think those men are sincere or even religious. How can you claim to be the channel that Jehovah uses to communicate with the faithful if you know full well that whatever happens in the WTS is just the result of the deliberations of a group of old men?
I can believe that the rank and file, and many elders and overseers do believe the stuff. I don't think that is true of branch presidents or whatever it is called. I certainly don't believe that the board of directors of the corporations related to the WTS believe anything they tell you guys.
Ray Franz went up and up their ladder and was honest enough to recognize things were not as they were supposed to be. The only man of all the members of the GB to have done that. This doesn't speak well of the rest of them.
Down deep i feel they don't beleive all the crap they teach.
How can they when they know as a self glorified group they do not receive anything out of the ordinary from "Jehovah".
No special revelation!
No miracles!
No vision!
They should be smart enough to realize that all the books that have been written since 1870 are useless and nothing
written by them as "prophets of God" as they have called themselves have come true. NOTHING
Their books are useless and that's why they can't even be studied at the book study as they used to in the past.
It will take humility to acknowledge that and they know they would destroy the lives of many if they would admit they have been wrong all along.
Besides why would they want to give up their earthly kingship ?
Yes..
The GB really does believe..
And..
It`s all about Business..
It`s no Accident the WB T$..
Is a Multi-Billion Dollar organization..
WBT
........................... ...OUTLAW
I agree with Yknot. If they wanted to they could follow the example of the Mormons. Whatever people think of the LDS church and its beliefs they have a good reputation in the community. JW's seem to be intent on looking like crackpots.
I have to wonder, though, if the leadership is simply stuck. They may know that the teachings are bogus, but just can't think of a way out of the corner they've painted themselves into.
One thing I think we need to remember: these guys on the GB have given a large part of their lives to the cult, to stop believing is too emotionally painful for them to give way to doubt now. They are too involved they are in too deep they have too much to loose, this acts like a heavy weight on their declining mental capacity. Just like a person who has selective memory they repress anything that brings doubt to the surface and so in order to have mental comfort they keep suppressing any nagging doubts. The more they have to loose the stronger the hold.
It is easier to keep on believing and rationalizing than it is to face the truth and admit to themselves they have wasted their lives and given up so much on a worthless religion the mind will preform great acrobatics in order to keep in the comfort zone.
http://tip.psychology.org/festinge.html
Overview:
According to cognitive dissonance theory, there is a tendency for individuals to seek consistency among their cognitions (i.e., beliefs, opinions). When there is an inconsistency between attitudes or behaviors (dissonance), something must change to eliminate the dissonance. In the case of a discrepancy between attitudes and behavior, it is most likely that the attitude will change to accommodate the behavior.
Two factors affect the strength of the dissonance: the number of dissonant beliefs, and the importance attached to each belief. There are three ways to eliminate dissonance: (1) reduce the importance of the dissonant beliefs, (2) add more consonant beliefs that outweigh the dissonant beliefs, or (3) change the dissonant beliefs so that they are no longer inconsistent.
Dissonance occurs most often in situations where an individual must choose between two incompatible beliefs or actions. The greatest dissonance is created when the two alternatives are equally attractive. Furthermore, attitude change is more likely in the direction of less incentive since this results in lower dissonance. In this respect, dissonance theory is contradictory to most behavioral theories which would predict greater attitude change with increased incentive (i.e., reinforcement).
Scope/Application:
Dissonance theory applies to all situations involving attitude formation and change. It is especially relevant to decision-making and problem-solving.
Example:
Consider someone who buys an expensive car but discovers that it is not comfortable on long drives. Dissonance exists between their beliefs that they have bought a good car and that a good car should be comfortable. Dissonance could be eliminated by deciding that it does not matter since the car is mainly used for short trips (reducing the importance of the dissonant belief) or focusing on the cars strengths such as safety, appearance, handling (thereby adding more consonant beliefs). The dissonance could also be eliminated by getting rid of the car, but this behavior is a lot harder to achieve than changing beliefs.
Principles:
1. Dissonance results when an individual must choose between attitudes and behaviors that are contradictory.
2. Dissonance can be eliminated by reducing the importance of the conflicting beliefs, acquiring new beliefs that change the balance, or removing the conflicting attitude or behavior.
The way out would be admitting it's all bogus. The governing body is not stuck in the same way the rank and file are, and THAT should matter to them if they really cared about fellow humans.
I also agree with Ynot. If they were all about the business, they would mainstream to some extent like the LDS. Of course, many (myself included) still consider the LDS a cult but they are more a part of the mainstream than JWs. And, I get the sense they are wealthier as an organization and as individuals.
I think from the GB right on down, they may not believe every doctrine, but they do believe they are being used by God. If you think God is using the organization, it doesn't matter what the doctrines are because if they're wrong, its because God wants them to be wrong for some reason. It's only when you really question if God is behind the organization that all the bricks fall.
