1984 WT cover -- Watchtower's Final Failed Prediction? (page 6)

laverite

MidwichCuckoo -

If it was sent to their mobiles, would they know who sent it? Does the sender's number come up?

Would be wild for someone to do this...Almost tempted to go to an assembly just to try...lol.

laverite - I don't think the number is revealed, just the make/model of phone (unless you have 'named' your phone which I believe is revealed in place of make/model). And let's face it, if you're a JW amongst (you believe) fellow JWs, chances are you'll accept a Bluetooth message.

MidwichCuckoo

Ooops, sorry, double post

Vidiot

thetrueone - " ...before when doctrinal proclamations and teachings became invalid, t hey would simple not put them into publication and ask that these pieces of literature be taken off the shelfs of the Kingdom Halls. Now with the advent of the internet all of these publications or easily assessable... "

And therein lies the elephant-sized problem...

The hardasses like Rutherford, Covington, and Jaracz rose to the top of the heap - not by virtue of their "spirituality" - but by their ruthlessness; that is, after all, how the vast majority of corporate CEOs succeeded in the free-market capitalist environment of the 20th Century. In the short term, ruthlessness will almost always prevail over what most people consider "Christian" behavior (altruism, charity, forgiveness, tolerance, etc.).

The success of this prevailing strategy naturally had the effect of reinforcing their view that they had the right tack, but the flip side is that the impossible-to-staunch flow of information, full transparency, and leveling of the playing field inherent in the Internet Age is too radical an environmental change for authoritarian leaders to effectively adapt to. This is a fundamental truth across the geopolitical spectrum, and not unique to the WT situation.

At this point, the only viable alternatives to long-term survival in this environment is adaptation via mainstreaming or extinction.

However, mainstreaming would effectively neuter the WTS; if they dispensed with most or all of the WTS doctrinal eccentricities, they would arguably no longer be Jehovah's Witnesses. That's clearly not an option, but extinction is inconceivable to the old-school hardliners, too, so circling the wagons against the inexorable tide of a 21st Century that stubbornly refuses to follow their eschatalogical expectations seems to be all they have left at this point, hence the almost desperate-sounding anti-everything rhetoric, and scorched-earth-style crackdown against virtually any type of non-WT-ish behavior.

clarity

Laverite,

My cell phone has a setting to either show caller identity or not.

ps. Watchtower Publishing and Real Estate Co. ... lmao! Brilliant!

clarity

FatFreek 2005

Below is the latest image. I will leave the old image intact on Photobucket for those who may prefer it.

You will see it now includes names (several have been corrected) and birth and passing dates. Number 8 is thought to be Aquilla Zook, 1898-1993. Hey, you ex-Bethelites -- please check this one out. Also, husband and wife Steimans. He was a chiropractor at Bethel. Then thought to move to Tampa, FL. Then thought to be disfellowshipped.

We need confirmation. Len.

FatFreek 2005

Many of those names you will find on your WT Library CD. Some have their life story recounted.

Another bit of trivia, here. I couldn't help but notice the ages of most of these folks. Two of them became centenarians . On average, they lived some 92.5 years where the average U.S. citizen lives to 78.3.

Was it the Bethel lifestyle? The food? The lack of stress?

Len

processor

On average, they lived some 92.5 years where the average U.S. citizen lives to 78.3.

You're making a mathematical error here.

These people were on average 81 years old (and still alive) when the picture was taken. So, of course THEIR average lifetime will be higher than 78.3 years. You can also take 20 other people who are already 80 years old - their average lifetime must of course be higher than 80 years.

Vidiot

FatFreek2005 - "Was it the Bethel lifestyle? The food? The lack of stress?"

Maybe a non-smoking, hard-drug-free lifestyle?

cabasilas

Great pic, Len! Thanks for putting this together.

It'd be great to get confirmation on the last name. If any former Bethelite remembers the Steimans perhaps you also would remember their first names?

1984 WT cover -- Watchtower's Final Failed Prediction?

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