by 00DAD 92 Replies latest jw friends
Thank you, Leolaia. These facts and figures say it all.
Ah, the simplicity of Jesus' message!
CoCo
[I was unaware that the term "governing body" antedated the Knorr regime; I thought it was coined at the time control was wrested from the presidency and, well ...]
As always Leolaia You are amazing!
Marked and saved--thank you, Leolaiai
The Governing Body in recent years has described itself as the "spokesman" and "representative" of the FDS, though it apparently never seeks the view of those on whose behalf it speaks. Nor, indeed, did the Governing Body ever seek the permission of the FDS to become its spokesman. (This, of course follows the pattern of Judge Rutherford, who sacked the majority of the Governing Body (board of directors) in 1917 because it tried to stop him publishing a personal opinion he believed was "new light").
The July 15, 2010 WT said doctrinal development was the role of a select few members of the FDS: "When the time comes to clarify a spiritual matter in our day, holy spirit helps responsible representatives of 'the faithful and discreet slave' at world headquarters to discern deep truths that were not previously understood. The Governing Body as a whole considers adjusted explanations. What they learn, they publish for the benefit of all."
A 2009 article served as probaby the biggest slap-down for any uppity members of the slave class who thought they atually should have a role in dispensing God's "new light". In it the Watchtower said: "They do not believe that their being of the anointed gives them special insights beyond what even some experienced members of the "great crowd" may have. They do not believe that they necessarily have more holy spirit than their companions of the 'other sheep' have. They do not expect special treatment; nor do they claim that their partaking of the emblems places them above the appointed elders in the congregation." (""The faithful slave and its governing body", The Watchtower, June 15, 2009, pages 23-24) In other words, members of the FDS may think they are part of God's channel, but they'd better just shut the f*** up and obey their "spokesmen".
And yet, consider this: in the April 15, 2011 article, "Do You Discern the Evidence of God's Guidance?", the WT declared that the slave class appoints overseers in the Christian congregation. (p. 4) It directs the preaching and distributes spiritual food through articles, convention talks, letters and messages from travelling overseers (p.4,5). And, as the final paragraph of that article points out, survival into the new world depends on "humble willingness to follow God's direction" through the directions of the slave class. Obey the slave class or die.
All in all, quite a lot of contradictions that the average JW will ignore: the FDS (a) has powers to appoint overseers and is used by God to reveal new light, but (b) is never consulted and members of it are not permitted to express their view if they see things a different way.
Well said MrMonroe. One of the things I'm hoping to accomplish by means of my survey is to dispel the myth that anointed ones are "happy" to let the Governing Body hijack the role of dispensing spiritual food on their behalf. It's interesting that 6 of those who have so far completed my survey have declared themselves to be "active" members of the anointed. 83.3% of these six anointed have challenged the idea that the Governing Body serves as God's sole channel of communication, and 50% challenged the idea that the Governing Body does not need to have any communication with them. Only 1 of the 6 was in total agreement with the Society's teachings.
I appreciate it's very early days, but wouldn't it be great if (either this year of next) we got a significant number of anointed to voice their opinions against the Governing Body??
The fact that they do not keep such a record is conspicuous by its absence because if they did we could work out exactly how many there have been since the founding of the WBT$. Hypothetically, that number, coupled with the number of Christians from the first century until Russel would, without doubt, exeed 144,000 and would expose the doctrine for the lie that it is.
The thread that deals with this crucial topic is fascinating and worthy of more research.
Obviously our research has limitations but I always struggled to believe that the number of 144,000 had not been exeeded. I'm certain that they knew this and the 'Great Crowd' teaching was a direct response to this which would, of course, create somewhere for the surplus to go.
Sorry to repeat myself, but this always nagged at me in the back of my mind like an alarm and I don't think I ever really bought in to it.
The fact that they do not keep such a record is conspicuous by its absence because if they did we could work out exactly how many there have been since the founding of the WBT$. Hypothetically, that number, coupled with the number of Christians from the first century until Russel would, without doubt, exeed 144,000 and would expose the doctrine for the lie that it is.
The thread that deals with this crucial topic is fascinating and worthy of more research.
Obviously our research has limitations but I always struggled to believe that the number of 144,000 had not been exeeded. I'm certain that they knew this and the 'Great Crowd' teaching was a direct response to this which would, of course, create somewhere for the surplus to go.
Sorry to repeat myself, but this always nagged at me in the back of my mind like an alarm and I don't think I ever really bought in to it.
Sorry for posting that twice. My mouse pad is ultra sensitive.
I literally have repeated myself!
Here is the link that I somehow failed to provide in my previous post:
Great stuff btw
OODAD: I think the term is used by the religion to give itself more of a spiritual facade. Why the anonymity? If it were comprised of REAL people, they would have made an appearance in the courtroom in Australia recently. I am not surprised they didn't show up. That would be like my imaginary friend showing up!
