Has anyone had an in-depth discussion with an active, believing JW about this? It is a huge conundrum for the GB. If they are the FDS along with the other members of the remnant, they should seek input from the other members of the FDS......If they feel they don't need to get input, they are essentially saying they are modern day apostles and therefore what they say must be inspired by God, since this would mean God is using only them to feed the "domestics." I brought this up to my JW mom and she said I'd have to ask my brother since he knows more about that kind of thing than she does, she just knows it's the truth and that's all she needs. The problem is my brother won't talk to me about much at all let alone ANYTHING that has to do with religion.
Only the Governing Body is the FDS
by Listener 45 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
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moshe
Has anyone had an in-depth discussion with an active, believing JW about this?
I had a discussion on Thanksgiving day with a JW lady- I went out in field service with a car group of JWs- here is what a loyal sister said to me about the F&DS-
I asked the sister this, why we were waiting for the others to come back to the car- new generation teaching stuff.
The anointed don't have any speacial knowledge or spiritual insight over and above the great crowd, right? "YES", she answered
The F&DS direct the GB and provide the meat in due season, right? "YES"
The GB looks to the F&DS for direction, right? "YES"
Then how do the F&DS turn from anointed with no insight into anointed with spiritual insight? - uh she didn't know about that
had she ever met one of the F&DS " "NO"
Had she ever seen the name of even one GB member called one of the F&DS? "NO"
Can you explain how all this works? " No, we just have faith that is does"
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Ding
Yup, Moshe, all very mysterious...
... just put all your trust in the organization
... that's the bottom line...
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MrMonroe
The concept of the Governing Body representing the FDS is an evolving doctrine.
In 1981 the Watchtower declared:
While alive on earth, Jesus’ faithful apostles were especially responsible for providing spiritual teaching for the “household of God.” Appointed ‘shepherds’ of the “flock,” as well as others, also had similar responsibility. However, the apostle Peter shows that such stewardship of divine truths actually was committed to all the ‘chosen ones.’ Hence, each respective member of the congregation made a contribution to the building up of the body. Thus we see a clear Scriptural basis for saying that all anointed followers of Christ Jesus make up God’s “servant,” with Jesus as its Master. Accordingly, that servant, or “slave,” as a collective body provides spiritual food for all the individuals of this congregation, which make up the household of “domestics.” These individually benefit as recipients of that food. (March 1, 1981, pg 26).
In the past 29 years new light has "evidently" shone on God's organization to indicate that it is not, after all, the entire slave class that feeds the domestics, but a tiny representative body.
Here's the real question, however: to whom was this revealed -- the entire slave class ... or a tiny representative body in Brooklyn? Is this a case of history repeating itself ... the faithful slave class being sacked by the religion's leader, just as it was in 1917?
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Mad Sweeney
Could this new light be, in addition to a power grab, a reaction to the growing numbers of partakers? I think it is possible. This borganization is reactive, not progressive. They re-opened the gates to heaven what, five or six years ago? That was a reaction to time running out on the 1935 group. At that point the number of partakers started taking off at rates not seen in decades. Then, in reaction to that, the GB marginalizes those new (and all the rest of the old, too) partakers by saying they rank somewhere below local elders.
Everything they do is a reaction. They have no foresight except when it comes to real estate investing, and that's not the GB's doing; it's a separate department.
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Terry
Mystical superstition: all of it.
When anybody asks me if I believe this or that I always reply the same way: "I use to be superstitious but I gave all that up."
They balk and try to tell me that being "religious" or "spiritual" or blah blah blah isn't SUPERSTITION (heaven's no!) but it is_____fill in the blank___.
I apologize for using the wrong word and then pull out a pocket dictionery so I can clarify my thoughts.
Reading: "Superstition is a credulous belief or notion, not based on reason, knowledge, or experience."
Then I shrug my shoulders and say, "Huh, I guess I was right after all."
Jehovah's Witnesses are superstitious, credulous and naive.
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sabastious
Jehovah's Witnesses are superstitious, credulous and naive.
Tribal even.
-Sab
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moshe
The WT has avoided an in depth article on how the the anointed becomes the F&DS, who this group is and how does the WT know they exist. How did the F&DS provide the meat in due season to the JWs in years past, but in today's WT world the F&DS doesn't communicate anything to the GB. Just how and why did this change take place? What scriptures do they use to explain their changed dogma, here? They have really mucked up the long help view that the holy spirit speaks to F&DS, which in turn uses the GB to feed the other sheep.
The pushing back of Armageddon as a result of the overlapping 1914 generations has created ongoing doctrinal dilemmas for the WT writing dept. Funny isn't it, how the JWs are too stupid to even notice that the GB has fooled them again?
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Aussie Oz
''Similarly, today a limited number of anointed men have the responsibility of representing the slave class. They make up the Governing Body of Jehovah’s Witnesses. These spirit-anointed men oversee the Kingdom work and the spiritual feeding program. As in the first century, though, the Governing Body does not consult with each individual member of the slave class before making decisions.''
I don't think they are saying that at all.
I do think they ACT like that, yes.
They speak of themselves (GB) as representing the slave class as a whole. That is technically different to saying they are the slave in its entirety. And technicality is important in this battle against them.
I can see how by not consulting the rest of the class, they make themselves the only, and thats obvious to us when reading between the lines. But in the eyes of a JW you may show this to, it is not saying what it is saying, if that makes sense.
I'll say it again, yes they behave like they are the slave, they don't consult the rest of the 'class', they are taking all the glory to themselves and putting themselves above everybody else including Jesus, but i don't think that WT is them claiming to be the slave. They are not saying only the GB are the FDS. To do that they would have to disband the entire notion of the 144000.
not often i disagree with something!
oz
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Band on the Run
Today during my prayers a new insight flooded me. I am a member of the faithful and discreet slave. In fact, rather than part of a corporate body, I am the faithful and discreet slave. Penises have their place but I view them as very limiting. As the nuns proclaim, Jesus was male only the better to teach him true humility about his lowly state. Why would God favor a bunch of old men in Bethel over moi? They may claim scripture but I can also cite a scripture here, a scripture there, everywhere a scripture, Oh, and old macdonald had a farm....
I am uniquely qualified. People at Bethel most know these clowns. How can they believe? Furthermore, I am near sixty,my great-grandfather was a member of the remnant. The group was sealed. There is no way these men can be anointed.
Even the president of the United States must someday stand naked. Bobby,
