No Small Change.
by Lost in the fog 4 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
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TonusOH
So, that's why they went through with consolidating control of the KHs:
records show that Kingdom Hall Trust’s (KHT) income has risen significantly. In 2019, it was £6.66mn, jumping to £104.41mn in 2020, before reaching £133.23mn for the financial year ending 31 August 2021.
There was a lot of money sitting out there, just out of reach. Not anymore!
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eyeslice
Yet another scam no doubt.
Years ago, the congregation we were in had very little money. We were in a mining community at a time when the miners were on strike, followed by mass mine closures. I don't recall any funds every being sent from Bethel but one thing I know for sure is the local congregations rallied round. So, even though we had next to no money, I know because I was the accounts servant at the time, we managed to buy an old church. Again with virtually no money, and no support from Bethel, we renovated the place. We made it a beautiful building that was admired by the local community - often folks would stop by and tell us they got married there or went there to Sunday school. A few years down the line we were told by the Circuit Overseer that the effort in maintaining the old place was too much and rather than spend a weekend a month on property maintenance, we should consider a 'quick build' and re-locate to hall with minimal maintenance needs. I was an elder by then and was the only one who spoke out against idea.
So we in the end we sold the old hall and built a new one. I had stepped down as an elder at this point but still helped out with the build. Again, no cost Bethel everything was funded, including a loan from the society by the local congregation.
Since then, and I haven't attended in 20 years now, the new hall has become home to three congregations with at least one of the congregations being forced to sell their existing hall and travel further to this new hall.
This hall, paid for with the money, labour and pride of the local congregation has since been given away to this Kingdom Hall Trust entity.
One thing for though, should there every arise the need for any expensive maintenance, the first people asked to put theirs hands in their pockets isn't going to be the Kingdom Hall Trust but the locals. Seems to me the cash flows in just one direction.
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Mum
eyeslice: I didn't think a church would ever be converted to a kingdumb hall, but you actually know of one. I have a friend in Chico, California who told me of a church building there being converted into "some kind of Jehovah's witness place." I told her I couldn't believe they would move into a former church because they believed Satan lived there. Wow. Apparently, I'm still learning about them.
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ThomasMore
It has been common for JWs to buy buildings that were formerly houses of worship employed by other faiths. They re-dedicate the building to Jehovah and remodel. Keep in mind that the building is dedicated to the doing of Jah's will.
Google Menlo Park, CA to read about the first KH WTC took ownership of and sold. When the BOE objected, they DF'd some and deleted the rest. The KH was sold and now all the KHs are owned by the Trust.
JWs say that the GB has the righjt to do this. Well, read the account of Jezebel, Ahab and Naboth and then decide if this precedent isn't a near perfect fit.
Naboth had a field he cultivated. Ahab wanted it. Naboth would not sell, and said it was unthinkable to sell his hereditary possession (a gift from God). Ahab was despondent with unsatisfied covetousness. Jezebel employed 2 good for nothing men to make a false accusation against Naboth - a capital offense no less. Naboth was executed (stoned). Ahab took the field. The end for Jezebel and Ahab was gruesome and by divine mandate.
Now tell me that what WTC has done does not align perfectly with what Jezebel and Ahab did. If any elders object to the sell of a KH, WTC deletes them and may even DF them if they don't recant. WTC takes the money and the cong is left with nothing other than directions to a new KH further away.
Any apologists here? This is your chance to twist scripture and apologize for what WTC is doing.