G.B.Are they Manipulative Lying S.O.B.`s / Not Genuine in their Beliefs ?

by smiddy3 14 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

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  smiddy3

  I raise this question for many reasons really ,thinking back on their past history and how they have responded to past failures .that they explain away as human imperfections.

  On the one hand they claim to be Gods spokesperson on earth .The only True religion God is using to dispense his truths at the proper time. And that members of the GB are the F&DS class assigned to do this.

  Or do they deliberately manipulate witnesses vulnerability about world events ,disasters ,earthquakes etc ,to prey on those fears about the GT /Armageddon.

  That they are constantly warned about

  And that it is impending.

  Producing videos that show how JW`s will be persecuted round up and imprisoned simply for being a JW .on a worldwide scale .

  The bunker video ?

  And producing no evidence for justifying such a claim.

  The GB of Jehovah`s Witnesses are deliberately trying to cause a paranoia atmosphere among the R&F hoping to achieve an outcome that will validate their own prophecy and give them more traction .

  The longer they can dangle this carrot of a Paradise Earth and a New System the longer they can live the life they have chosen for themselves .

  But I don`t believe they believe it anymore .
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  eyeuse2badub

  I'm pretty sure that the reason that Ray Franz left is because, try as he could, the lies. the bullshit, the endless meetings, the failed predictions,etc. finally got to him. He no doubt quit believing in the watchtower rhetoric many years before he left. He tired of being a manipulating bullshitter just like many of us on this forum. Once you see the ugly underbelly of this organization you leave, unless you have a very comfortable life style that causes you to close your eyes and shut your mouth.

  just saying!
• 

  Vidiot

  Virtually all the anecdotal evidence we have suggests they really are True Believers...

  ...which shouldn't be all that surprising; they surround themselves solely with individuals who are never allowed to disagree with them.

  At the same time, they also must be aware how often the WTS screws up, miscalculates, and flat out lies... they're right in the thick of it; how could they not?

  Therefore...

  ...they know it's wrong... but believe it's true...

  ...at the same time.
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  john.prestor

  It's a complicated situation and I tend to weigh in on the side that they kind of know they're full of it but they kind of believe it too.

  It comes down to Orwellian doublethink. In the novel 1984 the inner party which controls the government of Oceania riles up the outer party about Oceania conquering their enemies to distract them from the horrendous treatment they receive at their own hands, torture, malnutrition, no freedom of speech or assembly, etc. and the considerably better lifestyle the inner party enjoys, better food, larger apartments, chauffeurs and servants, so on and so forth.

  Later on in the novel a guy named 'Goldstein' writes that the inner party knows Oceania can't and won't conquer their enemies, they're too formidable and there's too many of them and if they do the outer party will turn on the inner party, but at the same time the inner party believes they will anyway.

  You can't get onto the Governing Body without spending decades 'slaving' for Jehovah (their term), which means keeping your mouth shut and doing whatever the present leadership says (so during the present Governing Body's time that was Knorr and then Franz and then the first Governing Body). So they have to believe it at some level, or they couldn't get into that boardroom. But at the same time, do they know that they continue to enjoy a pretty cushy, leisurely, sonewhat luxurious lifestyle because they convinced the faithful that the end is near, and they're they're such wonderful stewards of Jehovah? Yeah, they know that. They know that damn well, and that's why they keep getting so freaked out about the lack of donations and begging for more and more as they begin to grasp that the end may really arrive, their end, not this system's.
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  slimboyfat

  I only have to consider my own mind at different times to realise how complicated a question this is. Who is a true believer? Who really has no doubts? In some ways the nature of true belief is to have doubts. Because to take anything seriously involves thinking about it deeply.

  Which perhaps raises another question. Are there any on the GB who don’t take it seriously? I don’t think there are real signs of that. (Compare some TV evangelists where the signs are rather obvious) There do seem to be genuine signs of mental fatigue from a couple of members, in particular I think of Loesch and Herd. They no longer appear as confident or enthusiastic as they once did. Their early exuberant support of the organisation and its mission may have mellowed into some form of accommodation rather than outright cynicism.

  They all have personal lives, and health issues, and families, and mundane organisational issues and other things that occupy their minds. I would not be surprised if big picture questions about truth and the nature of the religion they oversee is mostly crowded out by other concerns.

  One thing I’ve become increasingly aware of is the ability of people to avoid thinking about things that, from the outside, it seems should be a serious concern. People on the whole are not terribly reflective, especially if reflection would interfere with getting on with life in a way they find immediately comfortable.
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  AudeSapere

  SF wrote: I would not be surprised if big picture questions about truth and the nature of the religion they oversee is mostly crowded out by other concerns.

  I think this is true.

  I would also add that they are intellectually lazy. And that laziness helps them ignore glaring problems within the org and its doctrines.

  The best they can do is 'dumb down' the religion and centralize the message (direct everyone to jw dot org).

  That takes much of the burden off the rank and lets them keep their own relatively cushy life.
  
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  john.prestor

  slimboyfat, I'm with you there, and I see that fatigue on Morris's face too, he doesn't smile much, his voice waivers, there's no enthusiasm in his words... maybe all his tight pants rants wore him out, but more likely it's just old age, and him being more and more aware of how he looks to outsiders what with all the child sex abuse lawsuits. In general terms, things aren't going as planned anymore.
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  Finkelstein

  ...and the real reason for this inherent corruption is that these leaders are control of a vast worldwide publishing empire/Kingdom.

  Food at the proper time = alluring bullshit for the readership base,

  supported supposedly from an accurate and truthful interpretation of the bible.

  an exploitative lie in itself.
  
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  Beth Sarim

  Someone else mentioned the other day that the GB love the attention, admiration and praise they get from the followers. People like Ray Franz probably just could not stomach it anymore.
  
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  mikeflood

  Any RF are a true believer....how do you think they go house to house....now imagine a GB or elder, uber hardcore. Others? Here in this forum or as sympathizers...