I hope they go the way of the Quakers.
Why do some expect the WTS to one day end? It's simply not going to happen folks........
by jambon1 30 Replies latest jw friends
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moshe
Religion is a smorgasbord= there is a religious belief to fit the desires of everybody. JWs have their unique paradise earth belief and they love thinking about the new order. Even if the WT tried to change their domas, splinter groups would spring up populated with diehard JWs who refuse to give up their old WT dogmas.
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yesidid
Actually the Catholic church is a brilliant example.
It has long been acknowledged as one of the most corrupt organizations on earth, for three hundred years it harrassed, tortured and killed any who stood up to it. They kept on growing.
Now we have this pope whom it has been proved, protected pedophiles, and there is no mass exodus.
Witnesses have not committed a fraction of the atrocities of the Catholic church, so why would you expect their demise?
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Think About It
The current downsizing of the WTS and exodus of members is the handwriting on the wall. The organization has seen better days. The WTS organization will adjust itself from it's new worldwide HQ in upstate NY to reign over a smaller membership around the world.
The wildcard would be if the JW GB ever wised up and moved to go mainstream like the Mormans. That along with if China ever opened up could increase the JW membership.
Think About It
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moshe
and there is no mass exodus.
I know what would get a lot of JWs to leave the KH- the tithe. If the WT published new light from the F&DS to bring back the tithe you would see JWs leave the KH in droves as JWs are not the "giving" sort when it comes to money.
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metatron
Let's analyse and articulate this a little better......
You are entirely correct that they "will not end ONE day". No, they will 'end' piece by piece, over 'many days'.
At one time, they took great pride in producing subscriptions to the Watchtower for a century.
That ended abruptly.
At one time, they were very proud of their intensely organized food service at conventions. I can remember policemen getting in line for free, enjoying the food.
That ended too
Brother Knorr was very proud of the factories high quality binding. He hated the idea of paperbacks.
He died. The factory went to paperbacks to save money.
Do you want me to go on? About the 70 hour pioneers instead of 90? How 'bout the '15 minute publisher arrangement? How about the lack of elders? How about the explosion of divorce and family breakdown in the "truth"?
Take note of the recent reports about Branch Offices shutting down.
The Watchtower Organization will not end 'one day'. It will fall apart step by step, brick by brick.
And if they "survive" as just another burned out Protestant sect, mostly broke and humiliated, I will be well pleased.
Actually, I believe the Watchtower is caught in a death spiral. You just have to be patient to see it unfold.
metatron
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sabastious
Actually the Catholic church is a brilliant example.
The WT doesn't have a ten-thousandth of the influence that the Catholic Church has and had. The only way the CC didn't disband is they had their fingers in every system of goverment that mattered, and not to mention unlimited (literally) funds.
-Sab
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Liberty93
The Catholic Church hasn't disbanded because most people are able to ignore the stuff they disagree with. It's a much lower-pressure group.
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Quentin
There will ALWAYS be a wtbts. What form it will have in 10 to 20 yeras is subjective, open to guess work. Be her it will though....money will be, as always, the driving force.
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garyneal
I think my wife is actually beginning to become open to some of the things I have been saying about the organization and about religion in general. However, she is playing Pascal's Wager believing that as long as she follows some of the dictates of the organization, she will be okay on judgement day.
I would imagine that there are a lot of witnesses out there who are like this. Just as there are a lot of Christians who play a similar game with Pascal's Wager.
The big difference, however, is that she (and others like her) are following the dictates of a high control group whereas most Christians are free to work out their own spiritual paths with their Creator so long as they accept Jesus as their Savior. Another thing too is that this religion is her heritage as she is a born in with both her parents and most of her aunts in it. As long as there are witnesses like her in this religion it will never die out completely.
The best thing we can hope for, in my opinion, is for conscious class witnesses to take over and mellow it out to the point to where it is a lot like the seventh day adventist churches.