by scotoma 24 Replies latest jw friends
@ Wild Thing: I predict the next technology they will begin utilizing are billboards. The hightech kind, that can change messages and pictures
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Considering how frequently "New Light"™ is affecting WT lately, electronic billboards that can be changed quickly is the only way WT can go...
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@ pixel: I've seen JW ads on TV from time to time...They look a bit like the ones the Mormoms do.
You mean something like, "I'm a pedophile....and a Jehovah's Witness"?
They have been using TV. It has been mention of it in the yearbook in the account of a certain country or countries... Perhaps it was Italy. Cannot remember exactly....
Not to the degree that had been using radio, 3 stations I believe, nationwide coverage, produced radio shows, a real tool for getting the word out. But no television stations, tv series, just movies shown here and there during convention periods and rarely nationwide only locally, an occasional PR interview before or during convention/assembly periods. The WTS is not conducting or ever did a tv campaign...too hard to control....but a website....hmmm based on the comment below, why are impersonal contacts on the internet now preferred.
*** jv chap. 25 p. 572 Preaching Publicly and From House to House ***
Although radio and television broadcasts have been used to spread the Kingdom message, Jehovah’s Witnesses recognize that the personal contact made possible by house-to-house calls is far more effective. It affords better opportunity to answer the questions of individual householders and to search out deserving ones. (Matt. 10:11) That is one of the reasons why, in 1957, the Watch Tower Society sold radio station WBBR in New York.
Lol @ ADCS
Sir82:
Right about radio. TV pushed radio out completely by 1955.
Although they have occasionally used TV it was as Blondie mentioned in connection with a convention.
If you were to poll JW's you probably wouldn't find many that have seen a JW TV presentation. Certainly nothing worth of their claimed mission. Especially when you compare it with Pat Robertson's empire.
I suppose the angel in mid heaven could always make the rocks talk as a last resort.
Jehovah’s Witnesses recognize that the no personal contact made possible by house-to-house calls is far more effective to keep Jehovah's Witnesses occupied with "busy work". It affords better opportunity to answer the questions not answer any questions of individual householders but refer them to JW.Org and to search out deserving ones only those willing to serve Watchtower.
What's missing? How about the invention of anything!
JWs use technologies invented by others. Even then, they are generally well behind "the cutting edge" of anything. Remember how many years we were all discouraged from having computers and using the internet? Now they promote JW.ORG like they invented the internet. (Silly!)
The one exception would be the development of the Multilanguage Electronic Publishing System (MEPS) by members of the WTBTS.
In my experience, most JWs do NOT correctly understand what MEPS is and what it isn't. Most seem to think it somehow translates from one language to another. It does not.
The WP article about MEPS says it, "is a system for offset printing in a variety of languages and character sets. The system, completed in 1986, was designed by the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society. The MEPS program is used for laying out written material in different languages with different character sets. The program was designed based on responses from the organization's own translators about each language."
To be fair, I suppose it is an achievement of some merit. Although I would ask anyone that is considering pointing to this as a "big deal" to consider two things:
I believe the answer to the first question is fairly obvious: Realistically, it would not rank very high by any objective standard. If you don't agree, then answer this simple question: Which would you rather give up for the rest of your life, MEPS or your iPhone? I thought so.
The answer to the second question is a bit more tricky. JW apologists would be tempted to say something like, "They didn't have Jehovah's Holy Spirit!"
My response would be, "Really? Are you saying that every other technological development was invented, designed and developed without Holy Spirit?" (Careful!)
Anyone that believes that just unwittingly implied that the only piece of "technology" which Holy Spirit inspired was MEPS. Not a very impressive track record. (OK, I know JWs like to say that the codex was a bit o' technology inspired by Holy Spirit, but I'm not buying that as "technology.")
In simple terms, engineering is a three-step process:
With that in mind, it becomes obvious that the real reason no other publishing company invented MEPS (or something like it) is that there simply wasn't a sufficient need for them to devote the required resources to develop a solution. It's as simple as that. (Remember, the WTBTS not only had a unique "need" in the printing/publishing industry, but the also have the advantage of unpaid, slave labor).
In fact, MEPS is really just a print layout system that utilizes and incorporates many existing technologies to fill a very specific need which the WTBTS had that no other publishing company had. Again, all those pre-existing technologies which are used by the WTBTS were apparently developed by humans under the influence of Satan's rulership.
It's not like they invented the printing press or the computer or discovered electricity.
So the one example of a "technology" created by JWs/WTBTS under the direction of Holy Spirit is an interesting, but relatively minor, achievement in the historical annals of publishing companies and religious organizations.
And again, that's the best they've been able to do under 100 years of Christ's Invisible Rulership: MEPS.
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I visited Bethel in the 1980's and, as it was explained on our tour, commercial printing companies had toyed with the idea of a MEPS-type system prior to WT, but it was not a commercially viable concept (for-profit coroporations have to actually earn their money and are accountable to shareholders, unlike WT which has no accountability and a book full of blank checks to rely on). As Wikipedia verifies, "worldly" publishers have no reason to print their magazines or books in a gazillion languages, so there's no need to have a system that makes it possible to publish in a gazillion languages.
WT developed MEPS for its own unique needs, but it added no value to anything else outside of WT.
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Multilanguage Electronic Publishing System
(MEPS, formerly called Multilanguage Electronic Phototypesetting System[1]) is a system for offset printing in a variety of languages and character sets. The system, completed in 1986, was designed by the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society.
The MEPS program is used for laying out written material in different languages with different character sets. The program was designed based on responses from the organization's own translators about each language. Before MEPS there was no system available for printing in many languages, due largely to the economies of many countries where production of literature in their languages was not financially viable.[2]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multilanguage_Electronic_Phototypesetting_System
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ADCMS: WT developed MEPS for its own unique needs, but it added no value to anything else outside of WT.
Point: The WTBTS takes, but doesn't give back.
They are users.
WT didn't invent this, but they did raise the bar to a new high for all others to strive for:
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