April 2011 WT: Shoving the Faithful Slave down our throats again

by brotherdan 40 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

• 

  laverite

  Darth, you wrote: "Well considering the GB really didn't come into true existance till the '70's thats to be expected." Would we necessarily expect greater emphasis decade after decade after their official "birth?" Obviously, before they were official, no attention paid per se, and that's expected to increase. But you look at any ten year period 77 to 87, etc. and it seems to me that they've really increased in their directness about their position and claim to authority each decade since they came to be.

  I haven't done any content analyses per se, so this is only a personal impression. Wish there were some kind of sociological content analysis on this out there. Would make a good research project.
• 

  Terry

  "He has delegated some authority
  to a faithful slave class, made up
  of faithful spirit-anointed Christians. That
  slave class, in turn, appoints overseers in the
  Christian congregation"

  So much jargon! Special jury-rigged words and invented definitions.

  What sane person could read this and derive any meaning from it without a cult indoctrination up front?

  The authority delegated to this class is entirely fictionalized bootstrapping. What scripture/what quote and out of whose mouth?

  To come up with this you have to cut and paste from here and here and there and there and force a "meaning" on all of it.

  Jehovah has this mediator---one mediator--with man: Jesus.

  The Watchtower has created a bureaucracy wedge between Christ and mankind. A double decker "class" of anointed and peons under them.

  As if that weren't enough there is a further division between the Governing Body of anointed and the peon anointed!

  More slices than an extra-large Pizza!
• 

  Mad Sweeney

  What sane person could read this and derive any meaning from it without a cult indoctrination up front?

  None. Which is why they split the Watchtower into two versions: Public (also known as the PR version) and Study (aka. The Kool Aid version). They only spout this baloney in the kool aid version.
• 

  thetrueone

  Its hierarchal power placing by using diversionary slight of hand.

  I think the boys in Brooklyn are slowly seeing their kingdom starting to crumble, with HQs continually shutting down

  and all the rest. So its not surprising they would renounced themselves in this fashion for they have more the reason to now.

  Another example of their own nervousness is the video they put out last summer where the phrase we preach the Truth was said

  many times throughout the film.
• 

  Billy the Ex-Bethelite

  Prepare for "Apostolic Succession". Although the Reasoning book calls that "Not a scriptural teaching", they have adopted it in every sense. They may not use that expression, but that's exactly what they are claiming.
• 

  sd-7

  The funny thing? Towards the end of my stay in WT-Land, a newly minted young elder commented with this exact same analogy. He said that we should follow Jehovah's organization the same way the Israelites followed the pillar of cloud in the wilderness. I did notice that Jesus is basically out of the picture here. Salvation is not in any way connected with him in this article. It really is idolatry.

  But of course, there are no prophets today, no such thing as apostolic succession, and the 'faithful slave' is made up of imperfect men. It's just that obeying them means "in no small manner" that you won't die. "No small" is a clever of way saying "big". Which means your salvation will depend, in a "big" way, on obeying them. (Like saying it would not be out of harmony with God's purpose for 1975 to be the big A means that it WOULD BE in harmony with God's purpose.)

  This is just...add sugar, cyanide, and water, then stir briskly. Makes enough for 7,500,000+.

  

  --sd-7
• 

  bob1999

  "Do you clearly discern the evidence of divine
  guidance? Jehovah uses his organization
  to guide us....."

  "Of course, those taking the lead in the
  earthly part of God’s organization are not
  perfect—but neither was Moses."

  Just what everyone needs, imperfect divine guidance!

  Peace
• 

  drewcoul

  Billy......Wasn't Apostolic Succession what they use to claim that Jehovah has always had F&DS on earth? If not, what is it they use?
• 

  brotherdan

  No way. They don't claim apostolic succession....yet. Here is their definition of apostolic succession from the reasoning book:

  Definition: The doctrine that the 12 apostles have successors to whom authority has been passed by divine appointment. In the Roman Catholic Church, the bishops as a group are said to be successors of the apostles, and the pope is claimed to be the successor of Peter. It is maintained that the Roman pontiffs come immediately after, occupy the position and perform the functions of Peter, to whom Christ is said to have given primacy of authority over the whole Church. Not a Bible teaching.

  They DO say that the apostles were the first faithful slave class and that this class continued uninterrupted. But they do not claim to be heirs of apostleship.
• 

  drewcoul

  I just read that when I got out my reasoning book.....However what do they use to back up the idea that the FD&S has always been here? I remember studying about that about 25 years ago when I was about 13 or 14 studying with a pioneer brother who studied with me.