"2012 D/A Insight 3" "WHY YOU SHOULD NOT BE ANGRY WHEN ELDERS ACCUSE YOU OF WICKED CONDUCT" Example Used Hannah!

by Bubblegum Apotheosis 9 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

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  Bubblegum Apotheosis

  Think about this tasty thought I learned Today, I am using my own examples. Ponder please, the example they used as being the "annointed appointed of Jehovah", that's the irony of the example the Slave used.

  After three months of missing meetings you decide to get your clothes together, you get dressed and leave for the Kingdom Hall. You are anxious and do not want to hear anyone's stupid remarks, you want a shot of upbuilding Bible truths and can't wait to leave. You find your spot close to a "Emergency Exit", open you book-bag, and sit with your eyes to the ground.

  "Concerned Carl" (the elder) walks up and the first thing that roll's off his tongue is, "hey Joe, where is your tie? You know better than that!" you retort, "Oh, I must have forgotten, you know it's the first meeting in three months I have been to?" "Concerned Carl" replies " I noticed you have not been here, what's your problem? The "End" is so close, you don't want to get swept away like all those demons in Noah's day!" you reply, "If you were so concerned how come you never called, I thought Book Study overseers cared!" "Concerned Carl"digs in deeper "Well really, you never have been that strong of a publisher, I have my hands full with our giant Kingdom Hall."

  A sister is accused of commiting adultry and brought before a judical committee, "Angry Art" tells sister "Accused" it's because you wear those tight dresses that are not modest, you know better than that!" After the dust settles, one outside elder proves "Sister Accused" did not committe adultry, it was wicked chatter from a fiendish elder's wife that started this whole debacle. What lesson can we learn from these two examples of elders treating you like Shit?

  Jehovah's Witnesses that have been spoken to harshly, or accused of wicked conduct by the elders (Elys), need to follow the example of Hannah's conduct! When Hannah was accused by Ely(modern day elders) for being a drunk, what did Hannah do?

  Instead of rebuking Ely, Hannah knew Ely was the annointed priest from Jehovah! (modern day elders). Elders are not perfect, they will at times speak harshly on matters they have incomplete or incorrect information. Some elders might say wicked things to you or your family, they might accuse you of evil conduct, but you must realize they are just like Ely "Jehovah's annointed, appointed spirit directed men" which demands you respect them, even if they are wrong!

  " Hannah's Prayer for a Son 1 Samuel 1 NLT

  9 Once after a sacrificial meal at Shiloh, Hannah got up and went to pray. Eli the priest was sitting at his customary place beside the entrance of the Tabernacle.[d] 10 Hannah was in deep anguish, crying bitterly as she prayed to the Lord. 11 And she made this vow: "O Lord of Heaven's Armies, if you will look upon my sorrow and answer my prayer and give me a son, then I will give him back to you. He will be yours for his entire lifetime, and as a sign that he has been dedicated to the Lord, his hair will never be cut.[e]"

  12 As she was praying to the Lord, Eli watched her. 13 Seeing her lips moving but hearing no sound, he thought she had been drinking. 14 "Must you come here drunk?" he demanded. "Throw away your wine!"

  15 "Oh no, sir!" she replied. "I haven't been drinking wine or anything stronger. But I am very discouraged, and I was pouring out my heart to the Lord. 16 Don't think I am a wicked woman! For I have been praying out of great anguish and sorrow."

  17 "In that case," Eli said, "go in peace! May the God of Israel grant the request you have asked of him."

  18 "Oh, thank you, sir!" she"

  Respect your local Elys, Hopni's and Phineas!
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  DesirousOfChange

  Guess I slept thru that one too.
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  LongHairGal

  Bubblegum:

  Your post is good but it brought back some memories that make me angry.

  I was always of the opinion that the elders, and certain other idiots there, think they can spout any garbage that comes out of their mouth and heap it on certain people they view as deserving of whatever criticism (or sarcasm) they may feel like throwing out. Whether these idiots are motivated by self-righteousness, power, cruelty, jealousy or whatever I don't know. There were too many self-appointed critics in the religion and I had to tell a few off. I would not be very polite now to any idiot who ever presumed to speak in such a way to me, a grown woman.

  The reason the religion likes to quote (or misquote) certain scriptures is that they are trying to justify their "right" to be abusive or intrusive to the people there.
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  Bubblegum Apotheosis

  LonghaireGirl: I love your insights in this matter, thank you for taking the time to post instead of complain! I was very disappointed the writing committee used the example of a faithful woman "Hannah" and turned her into a door-mat, scratching post, or urine wall the "spirit appointed men" are able to trample on, another way of saying "your feelings don't matter!" Not focusing on the real issue Jehovah recorded for the Jews, and now Christians, paves the way "for wicked men to advance from bad to worse". Watchtower H.Q. is not stupid, they know we are burdened by men who are not qualified to watch your pet, lest the "flock" of Jesus Christ. Turning the focus back onto the rank and file, buys more time until more Sheep finally start to scratch their heads, or endure some hard emotional times.

  The topic should have been, "What Example Did Hannah Show While Surrounded By Wicked Men?" Or "When Wicked Men Abuse Their Privelege As Shepperds", "How To Endure The Slap Of The Wicked One's Tongue!"?

  @DOC, what fine comments did you write down while attending the District Assembly? You appear to have slept through some very thought provoking talks and odd concepts. Nothing caught you as being "strange or distorted scriptural applications?

  You are someone who says they "desire change", why not share some of your notes with our human brothers and sisters here? I would love to hear your take the Society's use of Paul's words in Acts Chapter 20, or were you asleep during that nugget?

  Eli's Wicked Sons

  12 Now the sons of Eli were scoundrels who had no respect for the Lord 13 or for their duties as priests. Whenever anyone offered a sacrifice, Eli's sons would send over a servant with a three-pronged fork. While the meat of the sacrificed animal was still boiling, 14 the servant would stick the fork into the pot and demand that whatever it brought up be given to Eli's sons. All the Israelites who came to worship at Shiloh were treated this way. 15 Sometimes the servant would come even before the animal's fat had been burned on the altar. He would demand raw meat before it had been boiled so that it could be used for roasting.

  16 The man offering the sacrifice might reply, "Take as much as you want, but the fat must be burned first." Then the servant would demand, "No, give it to me now, or I'll take it by force." 17 So the sin of these young men was very serious in the Lord's sight, for they treated the Lord's offerings with contempt.

  This example was misapplied to victims of bad conduct, who are told to "shut up" and "Obey the life-saving direction provided by the men who are guarding your souls!" Why does the Watchtower Society feel the need to neuter their followers?

  While replying to your thoughts, I came across James MacDonald's thoughts on these chapters of 1: Samuel 1,2

  "Introduction to 1 Samuel:

  It's worth examining the first 3 chapters of 1 Samuel as a whole to contrast and compare all the people presented, who
  and what they represent, and how they relate to our own calling and ministry. Throughout all these examples a common
  thread is discovered that regardless of title, office, position or lack thereof, personal obedience is always elevated above
  all other qualifying factors. Within the lives of these characters we see how God deals with bad spiritual leaders, our own
  role in the process, and what we should seek to emulate."

  "Q: What can we learn about Eli by the way he jumped to conclusions about
  Hannah?
  A: He either wasn't used to seeing people pray, or he'd become
  accustomed to seeing people drunk. (?) In either case, he seems to lack
  the ability to discern good from bad behavior. (Note the play on words by
  Hannah: "I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but I have poured
  out my soul before the LORD.") He easily concedes to her situation,
  invoking God's name, without really knowing what her petition is about.
  (Again, no spiritual discernment on either end of the spectrum.)

  Q: What does this say about Eli as a spiritual leader? (Elders, COs, DOs, Top Brass)

  A: He wasn't much of one. As the High Priest he seems to have become
  more accustomed to worldly behavior than inspiriting spiritual behavior;
  he might just be "going through the motions" as holder of an office.

  "Q: How are Eli's sons described in verses 12 & 13?
  • As "worthless" (NASB) or "wicked" (NIV) men. Literally, the term
  "Sons of Belial" is applied which was a Hebrew way of saying base,
  worthless, or wicked men. (Paul uses this phrase in 2 Corinthians
  6:15 to refer to Satan.)
  • They did not "know" the LORD. Eli's sons, acting as priests, had no
  personal experience of, nor fellowship with, the LORD. They're
  working IN the church-so to speak-but are not OF the church. It's
  strictly a job for them.
  • They did not follow the customs of the priestly service.

  Q: What is wrong with the way they handled sacrifices as described in v.13-
  14?
  A: "Now this shall be the priests' due from the people, from those who
  offer a sacrifice, either an ox or a sheep, of which they shall give to the
  priest the shoulder and the two cheeks and the stomach." -Deuteronomy
  18:3 They were taking for themselves whatever they wanted rather than the portions allowed and designated by God"

  http://www.walkwiththeword.org/Studies/01_OT/09_1_Sam/09_1_Samuel_01-03_Study_Notes.pdf
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  Anony Mous

  Well, Eli's sons died and he broke his neck in the end. The same will happen to the WTBTS condoning and excusing these wicked men.
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  Bubblegum Apotheosis

  Ely fell down and broke his neck, his two sons were killed but the Society forgot to put this valuable lesson together.

  Lesson learned, deflect the unholy conduct of Ely, his two evil sons and make it an issue of submission under duress from the "older men", even when they have lost their mind. The Slave does not focus on it's own henchman, it's always the Sheep who need to examine, test themself, keep pace with Jehovah's charriot, "make sure of all things".

  How long ago has it been since the Slave has asked itself, if it was keeping pace with Jehovah's Charriot? The pretense given to our brothers is sisters in last week's Watchtower, "bring all your problems before the holy men, they won't judge you are your wife, they are here to help!" Appointed by the Watchtower does not qualify anyone to provide family counsel, couple's therapy, issues with porn or sex, or depression, this guys have problems tying their own spiritual shoes! "Physican Heal Thee Self!"
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  Bobcat

  Bubblegum:

  sisters ... "bring all your problems before the holy men

  I commented at the meeting that 'elders weren't the only source of wisdom in the congregation, but that Titus 2:3 says that older women were a source of family counsel for younger women.

  Guess how that comment went over.
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  Bubblegum Apotheosis

  Hi Bobcat, you were called back into "the reprogramming room" and told "never to think again out-loud"? I had a heated debate with the COBE at the time he was being pushed into place. His motives were transparent, if you disagreed with his six grade education you were "marked", pulled off the talk schedule. Two other elders were in the back-room with me while discussing a different approach to emptying the Kingdom Hall savings, leaving no sizeable balance for opperations.

  We had lost three of our biggest old-timer givers, I brought my case with charts, graphs of the potential coming short-fall, without our dear "old-time givers" we were heading for touble. I was chastised for a couple of months, as not having enough faith in Jehovah, our Kingdom Hall was in arrears for three years, how is that for "planning before you donate your whole saving to the Borg?

  We picked a sharp elder, who had to beg and plead with the sheep, to try to get us out of this hole the knuckleheads got us into. The Bible gives us clear direction to save money for times of famine. I was against dumping close to six digits, which left us with four digits in our opperating account. Punished for doing our jobs, it's a thankless job to tell the truth, the way you did bring up the "older women" who could give just as good, if not better counsel than the "older men" which many don't read their magazines or study all their spiritual manna!
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  Bubblegum Apotheosis

  Hi Bobcat, you were called back into "the reprogramming room" and told "never to think again out-loud"? I had a heated debate with the COBE at the time he was being pushed into place. His motives were transparent, if you disagreed with his six grade education you were "marked", pulled off the talk schedule. Two other elders were in the back-room with me while discussing a different approach to emptying the Kingdom Hall savings, leaving no sizeable balance for opperations.

  We had lost three of our biggest old-timer givers, I brought my case with charts, graphs of the potential coming short-fall, without our dear "old-time givers" we were heading for touble. I was chastised for a couple of months, as not having enough faith in Jehovah, our Kingdom Hall was in arrears for three years, how is that for "planning before you donate your whole saving to the Borg?

  Ecclesiastes 11
  New Living Translation (NLT)
  The Uncertainties of Life

  11 Send your grain across the seas,
  and in time, profits will flow back to you.[a]
  2 But divide your investments among many places,[b]
  for you do not know what risks might lie ahead.

  We picked a sharp elder, who had to beg and plead with the sheep, to try to get us out of this hole the knuckleheads got us into. The Bible gives us clear direction to save money for times of famine. I was against dumping close to six digits, which left us with four digits in our opperating account.

  Punished for doing our jobs, it's a thankless job to tell the truth! You know the merits of some of our very wise "older women" Paul spoke of! Smart Sisters who could give just as good, if not better counsel than the "older men"! I noticed a growing trend of men who don't read their magazines or study all their spiritual manna anymore. They are leaving Jehovah's wasting the fine meals being prepared by the Chefs at Swanson's and Banquet! DON'T GET MAD, GET HANNAH!
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  LongHairGal

  Bubblegum:

  It is good of you to point out the "merits of some wise older women". However, the religion doesn't want to hear that.

  I won't speak for other women, but I was not of the "mind" that I would have even wanted to be approached about giving counsel to anybody!

  My problem with the presumptuous idiots in the religion is that they went out of their way to intrude their noses into my business and give unwanted advice. They think they can pull this garbage with single women. I learned to keep my business to myself in order to avoid these types of situations but sometimes somebody overstepped and I had to tell them it was not their business.

  They have no regard for boundaries and this is something I would not tolerate.