Are the JW’s were you are getting worked up over having a to go bag (Armageddon bag) ready?

by life is to short 39 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

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  respectful_observer

  I was talking with a Bethelite about this subject recently, as I'd seen a reference on this board to them all having "Armageddon Bags". He laughed and assured me it was more practical than that. The fact that many Bethelites had the same one was due to the WTS arranging for group discount.

  It seems that in the wake of Hurricane Katrina and the tsunami in Indonesia, the WTS thought it was just good practice for anyone to be prepared for short-notice evacuation. (The perfect example is the news of the large earthquake just a few hours ago that has sent pretty much anyone living near the Indian Ocean running for the hills. I'm sure anyone who had a "grab-and-go" bag is really glad they had prepared one.)

  I believe several years ago all congregations received the direction to maintain an emergency contact list (including an alternate contact), so that if everyone had to relocate in an emergency, they'd have the means to ensure everyone made it somewhere safely. I seem to remember that was when they also recommended pulling together a prepared collection of emergency supplies.

  biometrics...hope your bag continues to gather dust!

  R_O
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  wha happened?

  yea, and then when they need to meet up together, they can do so in their own homes according to the bookstudy arrangement........
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  undercover

  This is a tricky area to criticize. In a practical sense, it is good for everyone to have a plan in place in case of a natural disaster, or even man-made disaster. As mentioned earlier, the WTS, in the wake of Katrina, encouraged everyone to be prepared for disasters. To be fair, Armageddon was never mentioned and their "counsel" was pretty much lifted from other agencies that help people in the event of these emergencies.

  Most level-headed dubs that I know of took it at face value, especially after seeing what happened in New Orleans. Be prepared for hurricanes, tornados, ice storms, whatever. A few of the loonier ones may have read into it that the WTS was trying to prepare the flock for an even bigger God-made disaster. And to be cynical, I'm sure that the WTS didn't want to discourage anyone from thinking that. Their plan was two-fold: let's remind people to be ready. The Katrina aftermath caused a lot of headaches for the WTS. They wanted to be pro-active in getting people prepared in case of a similar event. And - well, if they think we're preparing for Armageddon, so be it. They should be anyway. A little fear keeps em in line.

  I've never criticized this around JW family because it only makes sense to be prepared for disasters. And none of my family read into the Armageddon part of it. They took it at face value. Had they started yelling, "The sky is falling!" I might have criticized that, but as long as they were rational about it, there was no point in trying to point out the possibility of a fear tactic being the underlying motive. It would just make me look desparate to criticize. There are lots more substantial reasons to criticize the WTS than this.
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  d

  Yes I keep hearing of this but after all these natural disasters such as the Earthquake in Japan and the Indonesian earthquake just recently, people not just Jw's are scared of what the future holds.
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  blondie

  I think the gobags idea for jws in the WTS grew out of Hurricane Katrina and how unprepared individual jws were and how they slipped through the cracks, not knowing where they went, a fading technique? I don't think the WTS meant this as a way to prepare for Armageddon though individual jws might.
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  breakfast of champions

  Like UNDERCOVER, I don't really want to criticize the idea of encouraging people to "be prepared," but it does seem like a kind of cheap ass way of eschewing the responsibility to do actual charity work and really go out and help people struck by natural disasters. I gues I wonder if this is part of cost cutting as well. . .

  Lets face it, if JWs didn't report on themselves being the first on the scene, most organized relief organization, no one would ever hear of them.

  Dont like to be snarky, but that's kind of what I'm thinking. . .
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  Chariklo

  Well, I don't know.

  I mean, in the pictures, all the JW's are queuing up gazing adoringly into the sky, aren't they, while everyone else is being wiped off the face of the earth. No-one's carrying go-bags. They look as though they've just got what they stand up in.

  I mean, the pictures must be right, mustn't they? No go-bags needed. Jehovah will have it all sorted, won't he?

  Won't he?
• 

  LongHairGal

  LITS:

  When the religion started spouting about this not too long ago, I knew it was because of natural disasters around the world and they were copying what so-called worldly people were suggesting. However, I do have a JW acquaintance that is convinced it is all about "armageddon" coming soon. I then said to her: "well, just WHERE are you going to??" She could not answer me. The truth of it is: if there were a real disaster and people in one geographical area had to flee, most people would get stuck on the parkways and would not get very far. In truth, people with helicopters and private planes would be the only ones to really get out of any area, unless everybody else had enough advance warning time.

  While I do definitely agree that everybody should have a "plan" and a "go-bag" if something is imminent, the whole idea of a go-bag is useless if enough time elapses. You would tend to forget just what you actually have in the go-bag. The damn bag will start to collect dust and then be forgotten. Then, if an actual emergency occurred, you might even forget your wonderful go-bag.

  You have to be balanced and more importantly, be up-to-date on everything.
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  Soldier77

  BoB (Bug Out Bags as normal people call them) are always advisable to have around. You of course can be the extremists and go overboard on your stocks, but to have a bag with essentials to survive for 3-5 days self-sufficiently, is a good thing.

  Remember that in a SHTF (shit hit the fan) situation, do not rely on cell phones to work or being able to get gas easily. The congestion the network receives in a disaster will disable the communications for hours to weeks/months depending on the level and type of disaster. If it is a threat to national security type disaster like 9/11 the government can and will shut down certain levels of communications.

  However, if this is done in a Armageddon hype type thing, then I would be very critical of their reasons for being prepared. Loonies and fanatics are not some of the people I want to run into in a SHTF situation!
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  Nambo

  14 days!, there going to need a bigger bag than that, it will come as a shock to find that the 3 1/2 year persecution that the society claims happened to a handfull of them back in 1919 didnt fullfill that scripture after all, when they discover the 42 months will be when the Beast has authority to persecute all Christians who dont accept the mark of the beast, when for 3 1/2 years, you will not be able to even buy a bottle of water without it, ( I dont recall that happening in 1919).

  Fortunately you have those 800 FEMA camps all prepared and waiting for you in the States, or didnt you know about them?, didnt the Watchtower keep on the watch to bring these to the sheeps attention? Once again sounds like some sleeping Virgins to me.

  A colleague over this side of the pond has informed me we have plenty of these "camps" ourselves, all ready for something big to shortly happen.

  The ones in Anerica, they have recently been advertising for people to man them, anyway, I expect they will feed you once they round folk up for not worshipping the beast, so any bag wont do you much good.