Elders=voice of God?

by simplesally 10 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

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  simplesally

  Well, at first when I saw that Bill Bowen was saying that elders are the voice of God, I thought, Oh what an exaggeration!!! But then I got to thinking............. At my committee meeting one of the elders asked if I had confessed to Jehovah, when I said yes and that it was easier to do it to Jehovah because I didn't have to see his face, I could just hide in the palm of his hand, he tried to mileed corrected me and said that WHEN YOU CONFESS TO THE ELDERS, YOU ARE LOOKING AT THE FACE OF JEHOVAH.

  I wanted to walk out right then and tell him either I was in the wrong religion all along or he was totally "out there"........... I should have walked out and said that both things were true no "or's" about it!
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  mustang

  ...and this same Elder will parrot the Generation change from the platform and CAN'T EXPLAIN IT!!!

  This is NOT THE SAME JW'S I left 30 years ago. What a crock of hypocrites!!! INFALLIBLE MEN/UNTRAINED wannabe CLERGY are now the FACE OF GOD. You can't have it both ways!!!

  Mustang

  How Do You spell BLASPHEMY Class
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  JamesThomas

  Actually what he said was probably true. Considering "Jehovah"(Yahweh) was a cruel tribal god of war, far more violent, murderous and nasty than most any other mythological entity, including Satan. Yup, the more I think about it, the more I say he was right on. JamesT
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  rocketman

  Simplesally, your experience indeed goes to show that at least in some respects, what an elder says is revered as the word of God. BB's statement raised my eyebrow when I first heard it, and I thought 'oh boy, not the best word-choice', but in reality, in a certain sense it is true.
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  UnDisfellowshipped

  Elders equal the Voice of God?

  The Watchtower, June 15, 1957 Issue, Page 370:

  It is vital that we... respond to the directions of the “slave” as we would to the voice of God, because it is His provision.

  The Watchtower, November 15, 1991 Issue, Pages 19-20:

  Throughout the years, the Scriptural role of elders has gradually become clearer. Today, we see that eldership is an appointive position. Elders are appointed by the Governing Body of Jehovah’s Witnesses or its direct representatives. That body, in turn, represents “the faithful and discreet slave.”

  The Watchtower, February 1, 1993 Issue, Page 16:

  7. With the coming of the Messiah, Jesus Christ, God used him and his immediate apostles and disciples to serve as His spokesmen. Later, the anointed faithful followers of Jesus Christ were to serve as a “faithful and discreet slave” in communicating to Jehovah’s people how to apply Bible principles in their lives. Godly subjection meant recognizing the instrument Jehovah God was using.—Matthew 24:45-47; Ephesians 4:11-14.

  8. The facts show that today “the faithful and discreet slave” is associated with Jehovah’s Witnesses and represented by the Governing Body of these Witnesses. That body, in turn, appoints overseers in various capacities—such as elders and traveling representatives—to direct the work on a local level. Godly subjection requires each dedicated Witness to be in subjection to these overseers in keeping with Hebrews 13:17: “Be obedient to those who are taking the lead among you and be submissive, for they are keeping watch over your souls as those who will render an account; that they may do this with joy and not with sighing, for this would be damaging to you.”
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  DJ

  When I heard Bill say that, I thought that he was right but I also thought that he should have clarified it. It was too profound of a statement for a curent jw to accept, therefore he just sounded apostate. IMO. We have to bear in mind always, that a jw is constantly listening for a reason to discredit anyone else when they speak against them. I feel that it was a mistake to say without explaining what he meant. To your average jw, he sounded liked a loon. After all, your average jw doesn't even know that they really do view elders as the voice of God. If we could get them to really comprehend that, ....well maybe we would get somewhere with them!
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  UnDisfellowshipped

  DJ, I do agree pretty much with what you said.

  A more completely accurate statement would have been "The Elders directly represent the Governing Body, who directly speak for God."
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  Will Power

  good morning...

  Maybe Mr. Bowen said it on purpose, for all those witnesses who unconsciencously think (because they have been subliminally taught to) that elders do speak for their god. That way when they hear it said out loud, like Mr. Bowen did, they can deny it as apostate lies, then the next time they are in front of an elder, or committee, and are being told something or made to think something totally unethical, immoral or unchristian, they won't think twice but stand up and speak out and NOT BE AFRAID!

  just my 2

  will
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  outnfree

  Raised my eyebrows, too, but only just raised my eyebrows. It's a blunt statement, sure, but blunt statements carry force and make people sit up and take notice.

  Yes, Bill could have clarified. And maybe he did clarify it in his interview. But TV editors like things that make people sit up and take notice. So they may have edited out any explanation. Even if the statement allowed some JWs to rationalize away their submission to Brooklyn via the elder body on a technicality so-to-speak, it does a good job of making the general public aware of just how intimidating and powerful are the elders in the Watchtower organization.

  Who is Bill trying to warn/assist/reach? The general public needs to be reached and warned, so that they won't think of JW's as benign. The survivors of abuse at the hands of JWs and the Society's screwy "justice" system need no warning, but are being reached and enlightened as to where they can go for assistance and understanding, i.e. silentlambs and affiliated support groups. They are also being informed that some are pursuing justice in secular courts and that they might have a chance to do the same, if that's something they've desired to do.

  I think the CBS report was positive overall.

  outnfree
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  Sentinel

  My mother sure thinks so.

  Poor elders. They must get so tired of members going to them with such trite and pidily stuff, asking their opinion, etc. Of course, since some JW's have so much inner conflict, making any decision for themselves is difficult. This is especially so of the women, who are constantly being told to honor their husbands and allow them to be the head of the house; but to also abide by all the rules and regulations of the society.