Hope and Endurance in Brooklyn

NewYork44M

There may be a few that are aware that hope and endurance are the theme of the current two-day circuit assembly. Last weekend I attended the assembly at the Brooklyn assembly hall. While I slept through much of the program here are some of my highlights while awake:

Experiences: Using the theme of endurance several long time pioneers gave their experiences. A typical experience was a 20 plus year pioneer with many-many problems, including health, financial, family, and depression but despite it all they endure in the ministry. The stories were very depressing to listen to. I couldn't help but think that these are people who "bet the farm" that Armageddon was just around the corner then made no alternative preparations for life either financially or emotionally.

Education: They came down very hard on education. But this was the first time I remember that they gave a reason why. They stated that when a child goes to college the society loses the kid to the world. So the only logical solution is to do all we can to prevent these kids from going to college and getting a career.

Baptisms: Attendance at the assembly was almost 1,700 and only eight people were baptized. Most were children, and will probably fade away after high school.

Meeting attendance: The circuit average attendance is as follows: Sunday 95% of publishers, Thursday 90% of publishers, and Tuesday 85% of publishers. What they failed to mention is that the Brooklyn Heights congregation is included in these figures and this congregation usually averages an extra 100-200 people because of visitors.

Donations: The air-conditioning in the hall is going bad so we all need to donate. No mention of the fact that they just sold a property with a probable excess of 100Mil in profit.

blondie

The question is do young people leave because they go to college or do they go to college because they want to leave?

The WTS wants to reward the ones that pioneer in spite of difficult odds and make the rest of the audience ashamed because they aren't doing as much.

Elder to Brother AveragesThreeHours: Brother InAWheelchair put in 40 hours this month.

Brother ATH: That's nice. He's still unemployed isnt he?

Elder: But if Brother IAW can put in 40 hours....

Brother ATH: How many hours did you put in this month?

Elder: Sees someone on the other side of the hall he has to talk to.

czarofmischief

The circuit average attendance is as follows: Sunday 95% of publishers, Thursday 90% of publishers, and Tuesday 85% of publishers.

It is so freaking WEIRD that a RELIGION relies on statistics so exclusively and exhaustively. I'm used to seeing those kind of numbers at car dealerships, amway distributors, and pyramid schemes. WHY ARE THEY SO CONCERNED WITH NUMBERS?

Talk about a religion not meeting the needs of the people! If religion is the opiate of the masses, the dubs aren't even a broken aspirin tablet. They provide NO SOLACE AT ALL, only more pain, misery, and demands for more work. Why does anybody even go? It's such a miserable event.

CZAR

galaxy7

Education: They came down very hard on education. But this was the first time I remember that they gave a reason why. They stated that when a child goes to college the society loses the kid to the world. So the only logical solution is to do all we can to prevent these kids from going to college and getting a career.

Imagine if there is to much education they might figure out 607 is the wrong date

Odrade

Oh thanks. reading about their continued efforts to keep their sales force uneducated and desperate was just what I needed to start my day angry. My stomach hurts. I hate the WTS.

Why don't people see it, I see these faithful witness parents, and deep down they must know that the stand on higher education is just plain stupid, but they still just follow along. By the time the kid wakes up and says they are going to school, most opportunity for scholarship/easy application or counseller assistance is long gone... what a waste.

NewYork44M

They provide NO SOLACE AT ALL, only more pain, misery, and demands for more work.

Actually, based upon the program if you are not in pain and miserable you are not doing enough. If it is solace that you want, you have come to the wrong place.

willyloman

Meeting attendance: The circuit average attendance is as follows: Sunday 95% of publishers, Thursday 90% of publishers, and Tuesday 85% of publishers. What they failed to mention is that the Brooklyn Heights congregation is included in these figures and this congregation usually averages an extra 100-200 people because of visitors.

Most circuits would KILL to have attendance figures that high. When I stopped going, the typical numbers here were closer to 90/80/70, and this was an area that got a lot of visitors, too. And they count everybody at these meetings, even young children asleep on the floor. If they counted the actual number of PUBLISHERS at each meeting, the figures would be considerably less. We had a PO once who asked the elders to keep a list of the people in their respective book studies who weren't at the Sunday and Thursday meetings. I created a little chart and kept it in my meeting bag. After several weeks, I noticed that of the approximately 22 people in our book study, on average about six of them were missing from any given meeting. That's less than 75% attendance from my small, unscientific study. But I bet it's typical. You take 75 publishers in a congo of 100, throw in little kids and visitors, and it's pretty easy to get to 85 or 90%.

Badger

Hope and Endurance in Brooklyn

Despair and Surrender everywhere else.

cyber-sista

Education: They came down very hard on education. But this was the first time I remember that they gave a reason why. They stated that when a child goes to college the society loses the kid to the world. So the only logical solution is to do all we can to prevent these kids from going to college and getting a career.

Seems like they had loosened up on education for the past 10 years or so or so I thought. I know of many JW kids who have gone to college, but I also know the talking to I got when my daughter--still living at home--was attending a community college. I thought it was just the congo I was in, but maybe the elders are getting a stricter message from the top now. Who knows--it's just creepy. I feel so much for the young ones who are stuck in there...

truthseeker1

<sarcasm> Of course they are getting more strict. The end is just around the corner still. </sarcasm>

Hope and Endurance in Brooklyn

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