Disagreements between elders

by Gadget 22 Replies latest jw friends

• 

  Santiago

  A young couple recently married, his congregation publicly reproved him, and her JC committee wants to disfellowship her. Since they are both guilty of the same sin it seems unfair. Eventually the appeal committee decides not to disfellowship her but to also publicly reproved her.
• 

  Gopher

  Santiago wrote:

  his congregation publicly reproved him, and her JC committee wants to disfellowship her. Since they are both guilty of the same sin it seems unfair.

  But it IS fair by JW standards. After all you're not DF'd for your offense, but for the amount of repentance you show (or the amount you can convince the judicial committee that you have!).

  Evidently the guy was more repentant. Or he was better connected. Or more spiritual. Or had less of a "past" (whatever that has to do with it).

  Go before a judicial committee, you're rolling the "loaded dice" of justice. They are loaded any old way the elders want to have them loaded.
• 

  Santiago

  Gopher:

  You are so right he was better connected. His father is an Elder and her father is not a JW. Just as a postscript, the congregation had a baby shower for those expecting in the congregation and this couple was excluded, that was kind of sad.
• 

  rocketman

  Hi Gadget,

  As some posters have already mentioned, yes, it can indeed happen that different elder bodies can disagree over a matter, and sometimes, the CO has to step in and mess it up more solve the problem.

  One thing that I think defintely enters into the mix in such matters: pride. The collective pride of a group of men can be quite an obstacle to overcome. If two bodies are wrangling, niether one wants to give in. Call it collective testosterone or whatever, but that's what happens.

  JW congregations, for all their so-called "unity" become in fact very territorial. Jws build a number of "walls" around themselves, and one such wall is the one that exists between congregations, seperating them. A similar thing happens with bookstudy groups. And of course, it happens with elder bodies.
• 

  Gadget

  his congregation publicly reproved him, and her JC committee wants to disfellowship her. Since they are both guilty of the same sin it seems unfair.

  Or how about this one; Two JC's from two different congregations, circuts and districts investigating the same matter. Her elders found that there was no case to answer, where my elders disfellowshipped me. How fair does that sound?
• 

  Gadget

  Rocketman

  it can indeed happen that different elder bodies can disagree over a matter, and sometimes, the CO has to step in and mess it up more solve the problem

  What happens if both CO's bcome involved, still disagree with each other so the DO's are contacted about the matter?
• 

  Euphemism

  Actually, if the CO's are in conflict, it would probably go directly to the Society.

  I've never figured out what the heck the DOs do.
• 

  Prisca

  The owner (non-jw) asked one of the assistants to put a shipping date on the packing slip that was not correct. The owner wanted the customer to think they shipped out the merchandise on time when they actually shipped it out a few days late.

  The good little jw girl (it wasn't me) could not live with this. She went to several elders in her hall and asked for their God Given Wisdom.

  One elder said it was wrong but the rest (including one Elder who worked at the same place as her) said it was ok that she shouldn't let it bother her.

  The girl ended up giving notice to her employer that she would not be working there any longer. She moved congregations as well.

  Though I would have just put the date on the packing slip it bothered me when I found out that the elders said there was nothing wrong with it.

  This reminds me of situations where JWs worked in shops where cigarettes were sold. Some JWs felt it might be wrong to sell cigarettes, but the Society's reasoning was that it wasn't the individual JW that was selling the cigarettes, but the boss they worked for. The JW was working for the shop, hence the "bloodguilt" (if you want to call it that) was with the boss, not the JW employee.

  In the case of the shipping date, the elder may have reasoned in a similar way. It's not the JW employee deciding what date to put on it, but it's the boss' decision. The employee is acting upon the directions of his/her boss.

  Of course, this is one of those "grey" areas where a person's conscience does play a part. If it bothers someone that much, then perhaps they shouldn't act against their conscience. Although if it was a matter where the law was being broken, then common sense would become more of the decider.
• 

  Gadget

  bttt
• 

  Country Girl

  Hair grows, and sometimes shameless people have no earthly clue what to do with it. If it was meant to grow.. I say.. let it GROW! If people want to turn it into a disfellowshipping offence for what God obviously meant to put and STAY there, well so let it be. If it was meant to be short, it would break off before it got that long..but obviously God meant it to be there.

  CG