Nic: What changed about a decade ago to cause the upswing?perhaps the overlapping idea is opening the floodgates. If Friederich the great Franz was not the end of the "call" the possibility was seen for more overlappers in the second group, they asked, perhaps, why not go for broke? by reason of insanity we would still get paradise on Earth!
Watchtower crackdown on anointed expansion - are they reaching for a solution to the expanding numbers problem?
by slimboyfat 63 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
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nicolaou
prologos, I'm sure I recall the WT stating that the 'earthly hope' was not a safety net for those mistakenly claiming anointed status.
I'll see if I can dig out that quote..
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talesin
that means we still could have 72001 genuine partakers
The term 'genuine partakers' is an oxymoron and let's keep in mind that none of it's genuine in the true sense of the word.
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prologos
tale sin: none of it's genuine in the true sense of the word. you are absolutely correct, but I am just applying the given wt terms to show how wrong the whole house of cards is. seeing that it is based on the ramifications of the snake talking. BSW I meant a minority 71 999 partakers*, assuming there is a "pure" wt 144k. * there might be at least that many closet, private, uncounted partaker.
nicolaou:: that is why I stated that they will get that reprieve by the "reason of insanity" defense, after all, wt certified them.
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slimboyfat
What changed about a decade ago to cause the upswing?
As soon as the 1935 cut off date was abandoned the numbers claiming to be anointed shot up.
Sorry I did not mean to imply that sisters don't claim to be anointed too. Just that if a brother claims to be anointed who has not also been appointed an elder the wording of this article seems to cast doubt over the claim.
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nicolaou
As soon as the 1935 cut off date was abandoned the numbers claiming to be anointed shot up.
Ah yes, thanks for the reminder Slim'
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careful
Both millie210 and prologos have valid points. M210's words "deliberately vague in print" and prologos's "every word is carefully chosen" need not be mutually exclusive. Yes, SBF may well be on to something. These WT study articles are indeed carefully written and worked over repeatedly by the time they appear to the R&F. On the other hand, the "anointed" topic itself is steeped in mystery.
Why is it that this "anointing process" (nice pick up on that term, prologos) has never been described by those who have gone through it? All the current GB members started proclaiming their anointed status by partaking of the emblems at one memorial observance, in a specific act at a specific time, that is, they came out of the closet from previously being just one of the other sheep. Almost all the R&F plebeians would love to know just what this entails (see one of the few threads I've started here: http://www.jehovahs-witness.com/topic/4881263357853696/rick-tunon). So why have those in power intentionally kept this matter that the Witness masses crave to have revealed so secret? Surely they too must have wondered about it themselves when they too were merely one of the other sheep. Doesn't it strike you as odd that this secrecy has existed for years when nearly all the masses would love to have it solved? Why is it kept so "deliberately vague" in spite of the natural curiosity about it? -
smiddy
Slimboyfat
If I remember correctly the numbers never went below 8000 , and they hung around that figure for decades , and then gradually started to increase , to the point they are now over 15000 participants.
The Society has controlled the numbers of all those being appointed in there organization sanctioned by the G.B.
Elders M.S.etc. Etc.
All except the most important appointment , the anointed , so it seems. Which the Society seems to have no input whatsoever , they are not involved in there appointment , they dont seem to have any impact whatsoever who is an anointed person .
Isn`t that strange ? The most important appointment and they have no involvement in it ?
The anointed are the ones to rule with JC as Kings , not the elders or MS ,DO, or whoever
smiddy
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ResearcherNY
careful, you raise some very interesting points that I hope I can help address. I've only been able to locate a single description of an anointing experience, which I found on jwtalk, and I can explain in detail what happened psychologically that prompted it and so forth. If you're interested, PM me. Or I can just post it here. It's included in a paper I'm preparing for publication that addressespecially particular type of quote unquote mystical experience, which many other types of Christians have experienced and interpreted differently. The only reason the supposedly anointed witness interpreted this experience as an anointing process is the social context. I can go into more detail if you'd like. But in answer to your more general question, why not explain the anointing process? First, because it's likely variable, and if not everybody agrees on it then it will look bad. Second, because if you leave it mysterious it will seem more mysterious, when in fact it's rather mundane if the description I found can be generalized -
talesin
prologos, understood. Any partaker who is genuine, would have to be certifiable. "Chosen by God"? That's where I was going, but realize I wasn't clear.
sbf, it sounds like the WT is saying no women. I wasn't seeing that as an interpretation, rather, a 'New Light'(TM).