On another thread discussing possible changes to the NWT, the post refered to a 2nd-hand report of a CO leaking possible changes to 5 verses where "loose conduct" would be replaced by "brazen conduct." Although it is merely speculative at this point, I would like to remind those of you who did attend the 2012 DC this summer about some important evidence that supports this theory. If the program is still available on jw.org, feel free to see this for yourselves.
I attended the DC in July (Midwest location) and took thourogh notes. Yes, it was pure torture. But I attended as an insider and to get some mental exercise for sharpening my anaylitical and critical thinking skills. Plus, I prefer to keep a pulse on current events from the inside so I can relay the info to my friends within the XJW community. Also, as a fader with many dear friends still stuck in the movement, it's a good idea to be visible from time to time. Anyway...
Please refer to the Saturday morning section of the program and notice the talk entitled "Guard Your Heart Against the Works of Flesh: Fornication, Uncleanness, Brazen Conduct" (cited scripture was Gal 5: 19-21)
I noticed immediately that the word "loose" had been changed to "brazen" not only in the title but throughout the entire talk. In this talk, there were 4 Bulletin Points about guarding your heart:
I) How to guard against cultivating wrong desires
II) How to guard against bad choices in entertainment
III) How to guard against envy
IV) The effect recreation could have on your relationship Jehovah
Once the sited scripture was read, the speaker paused before jumping into bullent point I., Desires ( BTW: the 3 subtopics in Bulletin I were Flirting, Pornography and Homosexuality). I took notes of what he said verbatim. Here is what the speaker said before delving into the "meat":
"Now, we've had additional understanding on this scripture. You may notice it says "loose conduct," but a more appropriate word is "brazen." What does that mean? Brazen means 'without shame.'"
He proceeded to dive into Bulletin Point I and covered flirting. When a married man or woman flirts, it is "disrespectful to Jehovah" and "opens doors to treachery." Additionally, "some dancing can be classified as flirting."
In Bullet Point II, porn is compared to "nerve gas" and a "device to start down that path of destruction" and it "feeds degraded sexual desires." The speaker reminded us of Job who "made a covenant with his eyes not to look at virgins."
Bullet Point III sited Gal 5:24. The material on this talk was somewhat different than usual. Remember, the manuscript of this talk was prepared by WBTS--possibly written by the GB themselves. This particular discussion on homosexuality was unusually directed to girl-on-girl action. "It is more and more common to portray women with other women." I also noticed an attempt to make this message more modern or to better fit with today's culture: "We do not hate the people, but we do disapprove of the wrong conduct." After reading the infamous "that is what some of you were" scripture in 1 Cor 6:9 & 10, the speaker said this, verbatim:
"We offer the opportunity to change. God's word assures us that it's a choice not to act upon improper desires." (The loaded language here is obviously used to debunk the nature/nurture explaination for homosexuality. ie: "You say it's not a choice and you were born that way? ok! well, you can choose to not act on it! So don't you see? God gives you the freedom of choice! Yay!)
OK--so where am I going with all of this??? Well, if you've noticed, the manuscripts from many DC talks are later printed as WT study articles about 9 months later. Now, if the rumors are true about a NWT change and a super top-secret last-minute 8-hour special Elders Meeting sometime after Jan 1, 2013, then I suspect that it will indeed be about changes to the NWT and "brazen" will be the main adjustment. By the time this talk is released in a WT study article next spring, the new bible verse will be up to date and the theme/title will fit the scripture. The DC speaker admitted that "we (whoever "we" refers to) have had additional understanding on this.." and gave the definition of "brazen." Additionally, the 2010 Shepherd the Flock elders' manual was the first time I noticed the words "brazen" anywhere. It has steadily increased in WT literature for the R&F and now it's on a very important convention part. It has not officially been presented as "new light" yet, but I can assure you, the elders have already been prosecuting JWs for "brazen" conduct since 2010 when the new manual came out. Perhaps many JWs who found themselves trapped by this much broader word and faced judicial action have become vocal about it so WBTS may feel that an official change finally needs to be made--pronto.
Why so serious? See for yourself! Re-read the elders' manual about "brazen" conduct. This vague, broad word is a giant net that can be cast over the R&F and snag people for things that were formerly allowed to slip through. According to this talk, simply flirting (and by inclusion, dancing) is filed under "brazen." In fact, just about anything can be labled "brazen" by any elder on a power trip with an axe to grind. It reminds me of the way the media uses the word "terrorist" or the way cops can charge a person for "resisting arrest" if they simply flinch while being thrown onto concrete. This change would give ridiculous draconian power to individual elders or corrupt elder bodies who rule toxic congregations. Imagine that one single parent sister who's late to every meeting and gets "talked to" about several times. If there are elders A-hole enough, they could consider her continued tardiness a "brazen" action of disobedience and walla--brazen is a judicial matter now. Officially! If an elder talks to you about any issue and it's repeated, the act of doing it again could be considered "brazen" even if it's something stupid like chewing gum at the hall! How about counsel received at a shepherding call? "Brother, we'd like to see you increase your hours in the field ministry." Meeting attendance, punctuality, participation, allowing your kid to go to college after being told not to...any of these things can be shoehorned into the "without shame" definition! I'm a critical thinker and I try to avoid the slippery slope fallacy wherever possible, but I honestly believe there is reason for serious concern here! Agree? Disagree? Check out the DC program and Elders' Manual again and couple that with this upcoming special meeting and see if you guys think that your friends still inside are about to face a newer, stricter ambush of judicial action.