Ok, maybe I have too much time on my hands, and my imagination runs wild. Maybe I've read too many Robert Ludlum novels, and I can see a conspiracy in just about anything. But sometimes, I just have to wonder...
In my congregation the elders were very rigid about the most stupid things. I was counseled for trivial things like biting my nails, having a moustache, or for many other foolish reasons. But when I went to work for a political party, the Service Overseer thought it was very cool, and seemed very intrigued by my job. I was never counseled for compromising my neutrality. But there was another brother, a Ministerial Servant, named Tom. He had an oily quality about him, kind of like the gunk you get in your comb. He could get away with anything. He cheated many brothers, including myself, out of thousands of dollars and never even got reproved. He was an alcoholic, went to strip bars, swore a lot, watched porn, and other things. He once shattered a man's femur in a barroom brawl, and the elders didn't even reprove him for that when they found out. People complained to the elders constantly about him for years, and to this day he remains a Ministerial Servant. Instead, some of the people who complained about him were warned that if they persisted they could be disfellowshipped.
Tom was useful to the elders though. He was mobile. He could move in any circle, and was good at getting information out of people. If the elders wanted to know something about someone, Tom could find it out. No one that Tom focused on ever made "progress" in the congregation. Ever. I know he did it, and I made it a point to occasionally send them some disinformation through him when it suited me. I had more than a few laughs as a result.
It was almost as if they deliberately sent him out to gather information about the members of the congregation.
I wonder if this is practiced in most congregations, and if it is practiced by the Society on a larger scale. Suppose, for instance, that the Society became concerned about the number of people who leave the org. Since the internet has become so popular, greater numbers of people are finding out the truth about the cult. I'm sure we can safely assume that this site and others like it are carefully monitored by the Society in an effort to identify those who are on the edge and thinking of leaving the cult.
What if they decided to take things a step further. What if they decided to send someone out among those who have left in an effort to get to know them, and gather information about those who are sitting on the fence? What if someone like that was gathering information about protests, or legal actions? If done correctly, someone could even unknowingly become a dupe of the Society. They could avoid disfellowshipping someone like that, but rather, just keep the person on a very long leash, only to be discarded later when no longer useful.
Why would they do this? To get rid of those who are trying to fade. To get rid of those with doubts. To get information about upcoming lawsuits so they can have the upper hand in court.
To maintain control.
Like I said, I have too much time on my hands.
Walter
Ontario District Overbeer