Watchtower May 2024 Who is being referred to as 'we'?

by Listener 12 Replies latest watchtower bible

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  Listener

  This is the magazine that presents some of the 'new light' from the Oct. 2023 Annual Meeting. It discusses some of the things they have now decided they don't know and revised some of the things they do know, or think they know.

  When they start discussing some of the things they do know, most of them are still guesses and they use qualifiers. So it often boils down to the fact that they do know something that may be a possibility.

  For instance, here are some comments found under the title 'What we do know'

  Rather, it seems that Jesus meant what he said...
  So it seems that there may be ...
  he suggested that there was hope for at least some of them. It seems that ...
  it is possible that ..
  it is possible...
  If a similar development should occur...
  It is also reasonable to conclude...
  Perhaps some of these ...

  As a general comment regarding a bible verse they write

  But Jesus’ comment about the people of Sodom and Gomorrah could well be literal, so it is not hyperbole

  They are all over the place in what they write.

  It is no wonder they are getting more confusing when they write a paragraph like this

  2. Jehovah continues to help us to have a clearer understanding of the major events that lie just ahead. (Prov. 4:18; Dan. 2:28) We can be certain that by the time the great tribulation starts, we will know all we need to know in order to endure faithfully and even prosper during that challenging period. However, we must recognize that there are some things that we just do not know about the near future. In this article, we will first discuss why we have reconsidered what we have said about some of those events. Then we will review some of the things that we do know about the future and the way that our heavenly Father will act.

  They have used the word 'we' a total of ten times in this paragraph. Sometimes the 'we' refers to the Governing Body/FDS and other times it refers to all JWs. However, they don't even attempt to clarify who they are referring to in each instance. In fact, they do the same thing throughout the whole of the Watchtower.

  
  

  
  

  
  
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  Mikejw

  It’s a very arrogant thing to say we and refer to all JWs. Assuming all 8 million suddenly change what they believe all at the same time. We now all believe what we have reconsidered.
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  slimboyfat

  I can’t give examples but I think they’ve always done that. Sometimes in the third person too, such as when they say that JWs recognised the identity of the great crowd in the 1930s. What they mean is that Rutherford/Franz formulated this new idea in the 1930s and JWs accepted it. Since JWs always accept what the Society, and now the Governing Body tell them to think, it is intelligible, even if presumptuous from our perspective, to speak interchangeably about the Governing Body and JWs in general “realising”, “coming to understand”, “recognising” and so on, new ideas.
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  Beth Sarim

  Ive always found it interesting too,, that the Borg inserts us,,we & those pronouns to envelope all the $heeple with everyone,, including the GB. They envelope the $heeple with everyone including the GB to the ones whom the followers are victimized by.

  Infuriating.
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  TonusOH

  I also recall that they would use conditional language in the past. I was growing up in the 70s and 80s, so it may be that the 1975 fiasco led to them being a bit more circumspect during that time.

  It just highlights a problem for the GB: If they are god's mouthpiece but also get things wrong and have to use conditional language, how can you trust anything they say? How can they justify accusing people of apostasy for not slavishly accepting everything they say, when they know they are getting some things wrong?
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  PetrW

  Listener, thanks!

  What I like about it is that it's possible to watch "online" as WT slowly turns into a moloch. They are tangled up in their lies because 110 years since 1914, nothing is working the way they think it should.

  It's becoming more and more obvious - only the lazy fail to notice.

  I don't think it necessarily has to end badly, that there is no way back, to honesty, to repentance, to a change of mindset, to an apology. From time to time, a country or political party will apologize for their past, but let's just say it often takes them decades since they did those things.

  But in the case of the WT, a clear apology for the past would lead to disintegration. That's something that's hard to expect. I'm anxious to see how they manage to pick those turns!
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  Gorb

  The 1995 this generation change was announced with "some witness thought".

  This was the begin of my JW end.

  G.
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  slimboyfat

  Yeah they always do that too. Same with 1975, it was just some brothers got carried away.

  If they ever come out with, “in the past some brothers maintained 1914 was the end of the Gentile times”, they might just have a riot on their hands. Possibly.
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  JW GoneBad

  Take your pick...The Three Stooges or The Keystone Cops! The GB of Jehovah’s Witnesses act like clowns. How can anyone takes them seriously? This article alone demonstrates why this publishing organization is going out of business.
  
  Right out of the gate they reference Proverbs 4:18 in paragraph 2. Jeffrey Winder in the first talk of the 2023 AGM did the same thing...he cited Proverbs 4:18 when talking about how the GB arrive at 'New Light' understandings.
  
  What the hell! Proverbs 4:18 has diddly squat to do with new light understanding of scripture or any such thing. It has everything to do with a father teaching his young son/daughter about the birds & bees of life...the do's & don'ts about growing up. Proverbs 4:19 warns if they fail to follow daddy's advice they'll figuratively trip & fall due to following a wicked, dark path in life. Yet time & time again for decades this verse (Pro 4:18) has been WT's go-to scripture or get-out-of-jail-free pass whenever they've misused/misled the rank and file with their numerous Bible improprieties.
  
  I find myself laughing at the WT GB the same way I laugh at any other humorously incompetent comedy act! 🤣 🤣 🤣
  
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  Beth Sarim

  Laughing at the GB.

  They deserve to be scorned.