Quandry, a veteran member here (since 2006 with 3400+ posts), sent me this thoughtful reply after my first post a few days ago. I'm reposting it as a new thread to see if others would like to comment on the point she brings up on the rising number of 'anointed' ones. I had mentioned that I've been mainly out of JW contact (officially anyway—a few ex-J dubs/inactive ones I have kept in contact with minimally) for over 20 years. Now I've taken an interest again, so have joined this forum, gone on line here and elsewhere to read others' take on the organization (= O), try to learn what's been happening, etc. The internet's birth has really made a difference in being able to talk candidly about the O. It's rather remarkable to me. It used to be you'd have to secretly buy books like Ray Franz's, Jim Penton's or C O Jonssons' to get this insider stuff, and you had to be super discreet about it too. I remember one bro., who found out I had read this material, after a WT study article on apostasy in '85 or so, called me from out of town just to check & make sure I'd 'faithfully' disposed of it all. Now it's all over the internet! No wonder the GB is running scared re: the net . . .
Quandry's original words:
Welcome to the forum.
Yes, I'll bet if you left several years ago you were indeed confronted with changes. The generation of Matthew 24 has seen a lot of "new light" to the point where it is rediculous...overlapping generations....I'd explain it but to me it defies explantions.
Also...the number of annointed seems to be climbing continuously! I believe it is up to over 10,000. Others can correct me if I'm wrong. It is hard for me to keep up with the celestial chariot these days...
My reply:
Quandry,
Thx for your thoughts and empathy for my situation. The number of memorial partakers must be of great concern to the GB & other Bethel heavies.
I think they really believe that Jehovah operates toward them in the spirit of Peter where in Acts 10 the apostle needs God to clobber him and give him a kick in the butt via 3 repeated visions, AND have an embassy arrive from Caesarea, AND journey there the next day, AND witness holy spirit fall on Cornelius' household—and only then does he get the message that something new is afoot. Not that God gives visions now, but the same 'duhh' mentality seems to be at work. It's really rather remarkable how they have backed off on the nobody's-anointed-after-1935 mindset. I remember Freddie Franz giving a talk in which he said (in his grating squeaky voice) 'NOBODY's being called to heavenly life any more' unless some previously called one has proven unfaithful. I also remember how anyone who wasn't at least 60 y.o. and began to partake was viewed with suspicion, even if he was an elder who'd been in for many years. Then there were/are always those crazy Firpo Carr types to really muck up partaker stats!
I guess what has transpired is that the above-menioned kick in the butt etc. à la Peter thing, along with a real need for more GB members(!)—weren't they down to just 5 or 6 for a while there?—must have caused them to reconsider. It looks like they are only 'believing' (or at least giving serious credence to) those partakers who are at least middle aged and have years of full-time service. But they have surely opened up a can of worms with this change . . .
This rising number of other partakers must have them in a tizzy. I remember how one very conservative elder who worked in a special way for the Society once said to me when he saw younger people partaking back in the 70s, 'How disgusting . . . something so sacred too!'
I found this chart on another website:
[IMG]http://img247.imagevenue.com/loc357/th_22986_mem.partakers_79_08_122_357lo.jpg[/IMG]
Year Partakers
2000 8661
2001 8730
2002 8760
2003 8565
2004 8570
2005 8524
2006 8758
2007 9105
2008 9986
2009 10857
2010 11202
Anyone's observations will be appreciated on this matter. One thing I remember from back in mid-80s: it was Richard Osterling's Time magazine religion column, I think. He had gone out to see the 'paper baggers' (?) protesting at Brooklyn and one of them said, 'We want heaven too.' Is this now manifesting itself within the O? I suppose it's inevitable now that they got 50-some-year-olds on the GB.
I also want to thank many of you who have welcomed me here, made thoughtful comments on so very many posts by others. I must admit, I'm quite overwhelmed at what I'm finding here & elsewhere (I wish I had more time to peruse the old posts!). Again, no wonder the O is vilifying the net .
Cheers.