or are these all free?
do jw's have to pay for watchtower mag?
by finger 15 Replies latest jw friends
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Nosferatu
They work on a "donation system". However, the WTS keeps reminding them that the magazines cost money to print. They in effect work on making JWs feel guilty if they don't pay for them.
Also, if people at the doors don't donate anything, it's up to the JW to cover the cost. Pretty stupid system.
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funkyderek
They're not free because free implies that there were no costs in producing them. They are offered without charge. Or at least that's the BS we were fed (guess the WT have never heard the term "free of charge"). JWs don't have to pay for them but there are suggested contributions for each item, and you know how suggestible JWs are.
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kls
Nothing from the org. is free.
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Scully
You may not have to pay for the publications outright, but when you consider what buying into that belief system costs (your freedom of speech, your freedom of thought, your freedom of association, your freedom to make your own choices) they're pretty damn expensive. JMHO.
Love, Scully
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Sirona
I hear this is something to do with the Watchtower not being taxed for ""Voluntary Contributions"", whereas if they did charge, they would be taxed on their profits. The change to voluntary donations came when certain countries laws changed about taxing.
In the UK they are listed as a charity and therefore enjoy all the benefits of that - despite giving NOTHING to the community.
Sirona
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Elsewhere
No, JWs do not haaaaave to pay or donate for the literature. However, as a Ministerial Servant who worked behind the Literature Counter I was given instructions by elders that I was not to "toss my pearls to swine"... "swine" being anyone who did not make a suitable donation for all items picked up.
Bottom line: If a JW or anyong off the street makes it a habit of not paying... err... donating enough when they pick something up, I was to refuse them any future literature. And yes... we DID refuse to give people items on a regular basis. By odd coincidence the people we refused to give things to would typically thereafter stop attending meetings. I wonder why?
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shotgun
The Devil went down to Georgia he was looking for soul to steal he was in a bind and way behind.....similar situation as with the free literature...everything has a price
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seeitallclearlynow
Elsewhere - that's interesting! I don't remember ever contributing specifically for the literature, yet I know we were supposed to "cover the cost" of whatever we took. In the last couple years, I had completely forgotten about donating for the literature, except for all the videos that I ordered.
And sphere, I've heard it and seen it posted here before that we were supposed to contribute for the literature plus turn in any contributions received - but I had always thought we were allowed to subtract from the householder's donation what we had already "paid" for the literature, to cover our own costs. That's what I always did!!!!!!
So I wasn't much of a Witness after all, and didn't even know it. But I often made my contributions in lump sum checks, and I thought that covered everything. Curious, was I looked down on by the brothers in the literature counter because they didn't actually see me putting a couple of bucks in the box as I picked up the literature???
And did the brothers look down on the ones who wrote checks instead of dropping cash into an unlocked box???
Seriously, all you who handled the contributions at the Hall and conventions, were checks okay?
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stillajwexelder
In theory no -- in practice yes