Clapping at the meetings and assembly

by NewYork44M 51 Replies latest jw friends

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  ShirleyW

  You said I was intentionally lying about the practice in Episcopal churches

  Please provide post where I use your words "intentionally lying" or word similar
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  LostGeneration

  The funniest shit I ever saw when I was a fully brainwashed JW was when a really popular cat got reinstated. It was like four years after he got DFd, and he has stopped going a few times for months on end. But he was beloved by all who knew him, becuase he was just a great guy, no matter if a JW or not.

  Well, the elder assigned to announce it got up there and this guy was a tried and true true believer. After he said "Scumbag DFd has been reinstated as one of Jehovah's Witnesses" applause breaks out! The look on this guys face is priceless, it looks like he has seen a ghost.

  He starts waving his hands back and forth like "Dumbshits, don't you know you aren't supposed to clap for Scumbag DF, he is the lowest of the low, we just reinstated him because he kept pestering us and we have no other option!"

  Yeah, that was one of the points where I thought to myself "its a cult!"
• 

  blondie

  Here is another way the WTS avoids the issue and allows room for speaking out of both sides of their mouth.

  *** km 4/72 p. 4 Question Box ***

  Is it appropriate for the audience to applaud each part of the ministry school or service meeting?

  Audiences composed of Jehovah’s Witnesses are truly appreciative. It is a fine thing that they want to show that appreciation for the efforts of their brothers and the material they present from the platform. In some parts of the world in our day such appreciation may be indicated by applause. But applause should be spontaneous, from the heart. Also, it is usually an expression of appreciation for something out of the ordinary. And so, at large assemblies, including circuit assemblies, when special programs are arranged for and our brothers devote additional time and effort to their assignments, we find the audience applauding not only at the end of the talk but sometimes during it.

  But should this be true in our Kingdom Halls? Surely there can be no rule against it if it is done spontaneously and out of heartfelt appreciation.But normally we do not applaud these assignments because, for one thing, it can readily become perfunctory and so lose real meaning.

  There is something all of us in our Kingdom Halls can do, however, to show genuine appreciation for the efforts of the one speaking and that is to stay alert during the talk, keeping our eyes on him and showing by the receptive expression on our faces that we are following his thoughts and are benefiting. Also, we often find it possible to talk to the speaker personally after the meeting, letting him know that we enjoyed his presentation.
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  Apognophos

  My congregations have always applauded after demonstrations, despite the request from the KM (I think it was) not to do that. Somehow the demos are deserving of applause even though the talk containing them is not.
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  blondie

  I have been to a few churches (not Episcopal) and say there was no hand clapping. But then the sermon was only 30 minutes and in between the beginning and end of the service. I was surprised to find that some churches and/or religions feel hand clapping is not scriptural.

  http://www.truthmagazine.com/archives/volume35/GOT035049.html
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  JWOP

  I always hated the clapping when my children were babies because it always woke them up and made them cry. It got so that I'd try to cover their ears before the clapping began so they wouldn't wake up in terror from the sudden noise.

  I also remember another incident:
  I grew up when we'd always clap when someone was announced as being reinstated. Then I got disfellowshipped in 1987, reinstated in 1993. The day before my reinstatement my father took me aside to "warn" me that nobody would be clapping -- because there was new instruction that reinstated ones shouldn't be clapped for. He told me this so I wouldn't misunderstand the lack of clapping and get discouraged.
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  Never_Enough

  My congregations have always applauded after demonstrations, despite the request from the KM (I think it was) not to do that. Somehow the demos are deserving of applause even though the talk containing them is not.

  We had an elder move into our hall who passionately enforced the applause-after-demonstration policy. "Perfunctory" doesn't begin to describe the sheer stupidity of clapping for some barely-there demonstration that was hastily thrown together in the lobby during the song before the Service Meeting (where I come from, there were many).

  Someone said earlier that the WT has a way of sucking the life out of everything; applause was no exception.
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  Sittingstraight1212

  I'm NEW!!!! but had to reply. One of our "ELDERS" came to our cong and encouraged us to clap for demos on placing the mags. after 7 years , he now changes it and tell us we can't. RULES. RULES. RULE!
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  WTWizard

  It is all choreographed. Applause when they specifically call for it--I think hissing and booing is more appropriate, especially when the boasting session starts. I would like hissing and booing--loud hissing and booing--every time they try to sing a Kingdumb malady, introduce a speaker, make a point that fornication is bad or otherwise bash normal sex, reinstate someone, or call for more pious-sneers. And for the hissing and booing to continue until they are forced to retract the part.
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  Band on the Run

  Shirley,

  You rushed in to correct me.

  Yet you were referring to a entirely different matter. It is not important.

  It is interesting how clapping is far from spontaenous. Russians clap in unison which scared me during the Cold War. My teacher used it as an example of how bad Russians were. It seems very regimented. I have never attended a show where no one applauded at the end.

  The Episcopal and Roman Catholic churches have a very different towards sermons. They are much more formal than the Witnesses. It seemed strange to me when I first attended that so much a deal is made over the gospel reading. The priest reads it. Incense is usually offered Altho they read from an online version clipped to an elaborately decorated Gospel that is held up in the air. It shows the imptce of Jesus in the religion.

  Clapping or not clapping does not bother me. It is only a social convention. The control of WTBTS is shown by the fact that they must regiment clapping. Considering Jesus told an entire parable of the Prodigal Son, one would assume that reinstatement was applause worthy.