are they not wonderful

by booby 7 Replies latest jw friends

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  booby

  So if I have it right, in the Dominican Republic, right next door to Haiti they have huge gatherings that would obviously eat up vast resources, both financially and food stuffs etc. Instead of cancelling and diverting this to Haiti they ask for more money for the "world wide" work. And emphasis every little thing as wonderful on them. of course this would be far more magnanimous then any of the "worldly effortsm since theirs are truly driven by Jehovah's holy spirit

  Hi everyone

  Well today we experienced a unique event- the Dominican Republic received a zone visit from Charles Molohan of NY Bethel and for the first time ever all the Witnesses in the country were able to benefit from the programme together via video linkup to different locations across the country from the main stage in Santo Domingo . There was a total attendance across the 5 stadium and assembly hall sites of 65,185, twice the number of Witnesses in the country! The visit was translated into Haitian Creole, English and sign language.

  A special report was given with the latest on Haiti so here are some of the main points we wanted to share with you. Sadly 104 brothers are now confirmed dead. Many of us have applied to go and help out with any relief but as you'll see from the report, its currently far too dangerous, plus Bethel are struggling to feed all of the bethelites with the few supplies they've received so the more personnel, the more difficult it gets to keep everyone going.

  Attached below is a report we recieved plus an email from a sister in the Haiti Bethel. It's a long read, but important for those of you wanting to know more about our brothers.

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  Report from Haiti - Zone Visit - 17 January 2010

  The day after the earthquake, the Haiti branch made enquires to check that all missionaries, special pioneers, circuit overseers were alive, and what state they were in. Bethel and the Assembly Hall didn't suffer any real damage. The Governing Body started to co-ordinate the relief efforts, in order to provide practical and spiritual help. On Thursday a little after midday, the trucks with aid arrived marked Humanitarian Aid of Jehovah's Witnesses on the side, containing 6 tonnes of food and medicine. This relief effort has been the largest ever organised on the island of Hispaniola .

  The Assembly Hall became the refuge centre for hundreds of injured brothers and sisters. The vast majority were attended to by brothers and sisters who are doctors and nurses from the Dominican Republic who had offered their services. They have attended to hundreds of broken bones and other injuries. They have carried out operations and amputated limbs. The cases requiring most urgent medical attention have been taken over the border into the Dominican Republic to Jimani, where they have been met by a group of Witness doctors, and treated at the hospital there. Many have then been transferred to hospitals in other parts of the country, by ambulance or in the brother's cars. Groups of brothers with Creole interpreters have been receiving the brothers who are brought to the Dominican Republic , providing them with food and medicine, demonstrating true Christian love.

  A brother who went to Haiti to help on the relief effort was interviewed for the New York Times newspaper, as he prepared to cross the border into Haiti . The journalist asked him how he was going to get into the country, and which organisation he was working with to do relief work. He explained that Jehovah's Witnesses were already providing aid to the brothers, and giving them food, and that more supplies were on their way. The journalist was very surprised and impressed.

  104 brothers are now confirmed dead. 10,000 witnesses live in the areas affected by the earthquake. The Bethel family and construction teams have been working to rescue those who are trapped under rubble. Brooklyn Bethel has offered to send a French-speaking doctor. As far as we know the Kingdom Halls survived the earthquake, and brothers are currently taking refuge in them. In one Kingdom Hall, between 300 and 500 witnesses who lost their homes are now living in the hall. The branch in Dominican Republic is working hard to provide aid. 25 tonnes of food and medicine have already been sent from the DR.

  This is only the beginning of the aid effort. The relief work will continue with the help of the brothers throughout the DR. At present, it would not be suitable for the branch to send groups of volunteers into Haiti ; this work is being done by a specialised team. It was asked that donations of food and clothing not be given to Bethel , as it proves more effective and economically viable for the Branch to buy these in bulk. We were asked to keep donating to the Worldwide Work, as this fund will be used to pay for the relief work in Haiti .
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  We have attached some photos of the Zone Visit, we were assigned to the Estadio Cibao baseball stadium in Santiago where 10,983 were present.

  Below is an email from a sister in the Haiti Branch - it is long but for those of you want further information from an eyewitness account it will be interesting.

  Love
• 

  cantleave

  This is so Sickening - it makes me angry
• 

  booby

  below is an excerpt from the email message. Notice how "haiti is FINISHED" and although the e-mail also acknowledged their were over 100 witness deaths, still it is "Jehovah really does take care of us!! It just shows how self centred they are. because "they" survived, Jehovah really takes care of them. To bad about the deaths and destruction over tlhere in Haiti.

  Bottom line is Haiti is FINISHED--received its final death knell--this literally killed the country.

  However, our brotherhood is as strong as ever--had 3 deliveries already from the DR Branch--they sent us a doctor n a emergency clinic has been set up in the class room behind the assembly hall.

  Jehovah really does take care of us!! Monday we had propane n diesel deliveries--without the usual paper transaction, cheques n requisitions, etc. (which they usually adamantly demand!) Also, we had a 40' container come in with lit on Monday n it was quite a challenge for the driver to maneuver that load in our little driveway--we suddenly realize our little Bethel is growing into a major affair!
• 

  booby

  and one more sickening excerpt.

  We suspect not a few of our young brothers and sisters attending universities may have died when they crashed to the grounds.

  One nice experience--one sister was scheduled to attend a lecture on philosophy n she decided she did not need to hear that stuff. As soon as she got outside the entire structure collapsed. Visible proof where 'higher learning' takes you--right into the ground!! Now if any want to attend university--they will have to move to another country--as all their bldgs crashed to the ground!! And believe me--their parents will work to send them there--that is the god they have confidence in--Jehovah is kinda of a sideline one.
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  nelly136

  The cases requiring most urgent medical attention have been taken over the border into the Dominican Republic to Jimani, where they have been met by a group of Witness doctors, and treated at the hospital there. Many have then been transferred to hospitals in other parts of the country, by ambulance or in the brother's cars.

  http://www.ireport.com/docs/DOC-392296

  iReport —

  Jimaní .- Each hallway, every corner and every space that makes up the General Hospital Melenciano of this province is occupied by injured patients who are transferred from Haiti after the earthquake that struck this city last Tuesday, while thousands continue to arrive, especially thosebeing rescued and lives under the rubble with serious injuries.Cry of pain of patients, family's despair and the desire of doctors, nurses, members of the Civil Defense and other personnel who are providing assistance in this center.

  hmmmm

  Sooo out of curiosity, the jws are commandeering which part of the hospital to take care of their own? does that mean patients have to be thrown out of their beds to make room for jw patients and doctors?

  and the hospital just rolls over and says....help yourselves to equipment and theatres!

  Many patients who are referred to the eight field hospitals that have installed the Dominican Republic in the capital of Haiti.From this hospital they are referred to hospitals in Barahona and other nearby areas and the capital, while other health facilities in the region and are overwhelmed.This morning the first lady Margarita Cedeño de Fernandez and Public Health Minister Bautista Rojas Gomez, visited the center to observe conditions, where the latter gave orders and outline strategies for action.Here work Dario Contreras hospital doctors, plastic surgeons, anesthesiologists, and nurses, who have united to help.Doctors say the language barrier has not been a problem fro working, as hundreds of Dominican and Haitian Creole-speaking interpreters have offered.Most trauma patients arrive in the abdomen and other parts of the body, infections, open wounds, among other.The trend, according to doctors who work here, is to continue to increase the influx of patients.Many doctors have reported several days without sleep restlessly providing assistance.
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  nelly136

  http://www.examiner.com/x-17373-Phoenix-Signs-of-the-Times-Examiner~y2010m1d26-Helping-Haiti-Give-generously-but-wisely#comments

  last portion of a reporters article on admin costs of charities.

  The last reply I got was from an elder at a Jehovah’s Witnesses Kingdom Hall. He wrote: “Our kingdom hall is used by four congregations to avoid crowding and to allow us to get to know each other better. Each congregation meets twice a week, attendance averages 110 per meeting. No collections are ever taken in any kingdom hall anywhere in the world. No plate is passed, no dunning letters are sent out. We do not tithe. We have no paid ministers or staff. Each congregation is presided over by an unpaid body of elders, none superior to any other. We have a box at the back of the hall with a slot in the top where people can anonymously contribute what they can, if they wish, to pay for the utilities and maintenance of the building. We keep costs down by all of us – elders and publishers – jointly working together on cleaning and maintenance projects. We have another box where people can drop a contribution, if they wish, to the worldwide work of Jehovah’s Witnesses. That money supports the printing of millions of copies of The Watchtower and Awake magazines, Bibles, and other study aids. These publications are not sold; they are given freely to any who agree to read them. The brothers and sisters who live and work at the world headquarters in New York and in branch offices around the world are all volunteers. None – from the newest laborer to the members of the governing body of Jehovah’s Witnesses – receive a salary. The funds sent in for the worldwide work also support thousands of missionaries in other lands. Our missionaries are not school teachers or social workers. They devote their full time to teaching people the Bible. As all our meetings are about studying the Bible, money is not mentioned. Occasionally a letter is read thanking the congregation for contributions received. Every penny contributed is scrupulously accounted for, and any member of the congregation is free to ask any of the elders for an accounting of what the money was spent on. There is no special collection for Haiti; there is no need. Jehovah’s Witnesses worldwide consider ourselves a brotherhood, and the problems of our brothers in Haiti are the same as if they happened to our literal family members, so there is no need to urge anyone to contribute. Jehovah’s Witnesses in Dominican Republic were on the road to Haiti with relief supplies within hours after the quake hit. Several Witness doctors from Dominican Republic and elsewhere have been working almost nonstop since the quake. Money and other supplies from the Watchtower Society headquarters in Brooklyn, New York, were sent immediately to Haiti and Dominican Republic, and supplies and money are still pouring in. Of course, no repayment will ever be asked for or expected… we know they would do the same for us.”

  Well, that was refreshing. I went to watchtower.org and searched it for references to money, donations, charity. All I found were Watchtower articles such as “Is money your master or your servant?” and “Is pursuit of money making you sick?” Try as I might, there was no way to donate any money to the organization, nor any request for donations. The only mention of money I found, in connection with Haiti, was in a public news release at jw-media.org entitled “Witnesses’ relief efforts well under way for victims of earthquake in Haiti.” A single line at the bottom read, “The Governing Body of Jehovah’s Witnesses is caring for these expenses by utilizing funds donated to the Witnesses’ worldwide work.”
• 

  Highlander

  Yes, boobies are wonderful.
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  bubba flavel

  "Groups of brothers with Creole interpreters have been receiving the brothers who are brought to the Dominican Republic , providing them with food and medicine, demonstrating true Christian love."

  They always throw that one in , makes it sound like they are the only ones doing it while everyone else (non JW) is sitting on thier arse doing nothing.

  The blood issue is going to be a beauty there.. emergency treatment by a JW doctor whether a brother or not....no blood, you'll probably die. Emergency treatment by a "worldly" doctor and recieve blood...ooooh who's a bad boy!