a while back at our co visit, he commended the cong.
because our average hours had gone up.. we went from around 7.3 to about 7.5. i recall the days when anything less than 10 was considered awful.. of course now, they don't even print the hours in the km or anywhere.. i was wondering how these numbers compared to other congregations?.
It's slowly dropped over the past twenty years from 8.8/9.0 to 7.5/7.7.
Sister Bumwipe and Brother Depends (you know, they survived til 1975 and were the generation that saw 1914 ...) at 0.25 of an hour don't help the averages mind.
But then we had a pioneer removed but who carried on doing the hours of a pioneer so that added almost an hour to the joe publisher averages for twelve months a couple of years back! When he got his badge back the average dropped again. Ha Ha!
i'm happy to join every ex-jw.borg site i can and support in whatever way i can.
i now regularly donate to these sites when available.
i'm bitter but i don't hate jws because they were brainwashed like we all were.
Welcome!
Child Abuse and Australian Royal Commission is certainly known by some elders here in the UK. A few of these are perturbed by it. Even less act upon it. I know for certain it factored in the resignation of one well known middle ranking elder in our circuit (along with money grabbing broadcasts and letters).
(Middle ranking = did smaller CA parts, was a Cong. Secretary who did circuit accounts and stuff.)
i seem to recall years ago that someone posted some watchtower "art" with a typical wiping out the wicked at armageddon scene - you know, city blocks crashing to the ground - guy with a gun, cars falling into crevices, and there was a middle aged guy with his eyeglasses/spectacles hanging off his face led dead in the foreground.. it was suggested that in this was supposed to be ray franz.
not in words but in what the character drawn looked like.
a sort of sick "in-joke" for schroeder and jaracz worshippers in the writing department.. am i dreaming this?
I seem to recall years ago that someone posted some Watchtower "Art" with a typical wiping out the wicked at Armageddon scene - you know, city blocks crashing to the ground - guy with a gun, cars falling into crevices, and there was a middle aged guy with his eyeglasses/spectacles hanging off his face led dead in the foreground.
It was suggested that in this was supposed to be Ray Franz. Not in words but in what the character drawn looked like. A sort of sick "in-joke" for Schroeder and Jaracz worshippers in the writing department.
Am I dreaming this? Was it in the Revelation book or some WT article in the late 80's?
I know this forum will not disappoint in it's response!
maybe this is a start to combating the sex abuse epidemic?
.
http://www.sceneoftheworld.com/2015/12/dad-spanks-guy-for-dating-his-underage.html.
a while ago the user vinman started a forum thread called: "ray franz was an idiot".
the reaction to it was quite negative but i have to admit that the title of that thread was intriguing to me.
by nature i am an iconoclast.
I just recently bought a copy of CoC. I have dipped in to it at several points and have found that what Ray Franz says happened has the absolute ring of truth to it. The lack of bitterness and ranting by Ray makes his words all the more powerful.
It has cemented my desire to remain mentally distanced from the "self-preserving at all costs" and the "self-aggrandising" of the governing body. Any good motive they have ever had has become submerged into these two cravings.
Thank you Ray. And thank you to those who tell about him on the internet!
don't know if anyone else caught this subtle but malicious photo from the 12/13/15 wt study article.. not sure how to post pictures here, but the photo is on the website's copy of the article, just below paragraph 12:.
http://www.jw.org/en/publications/magazines/w20151015/give-us-more-faith/.
note the 3 pictures in sequence tell a "story":.
FAMILY STUDY
Dad: (Who has either fallen out with his body of elders and wants to get the XXX away or may just have a screw loose, who knows): "OK loved ones, let's go where the need is great!"
Wife: "Yes dear, let's get away from Brother and Sister negative who read all the old publications and keeps telling me about "failed prophecies"!"
Daughter: "I'm home schooled anyway so yay! One long holiday!"
Son: "But we can't take my dog with us!"
Dad: "Don't worry son, we're going to South Korea. They really love dogs in South Korea."
so yesterday was a lovely day where i live and so instead of going to the meeting we went, as a family, out for the late pm/early evening to have a bbq.
we were far more relaxed than if we had gone to the meeting.
we spent far more time talking that if we had gone to the meeting.
@Konceptual and @confused
It is so much easier when you resign from being an elder. But you have to resist the urge to help your ex elders especially if there are few elders. You can feel guilty.
Step one is to get your wife to accept you are the way you are without running to the elders. Hammer home points you think will make her give you a free pass at home. E.g. Child abuse/generation/parents getting old, sick and dying even though they truly believed they would be in paradise by now.
Do they really want the same for their kids? Kids are paramount to most women.
why is there a huge cull going on of all bethels around the world?.
about 80% cull within the next year?.
some have been in bethel for decades and will be sent packing, the 20% of bethelites who stay will have to do their own food, laundry and clean their flat.
@Vidiot "... hard-core loyalists."
... of the right age. (i.e. early thirties for CO's - even less for new Bethelites)
when speaking with brothers, i can see they really like the jw.org site more than magazines and books.
i can imagine them publishing more and more articles and news as it's more dynamic and creates a sense of alert with brothers looking for new articles to read instead of the boring monthly magazines.. but when it comes to the jw broadcasting, it's something different.
even elders admit they aren't watching the monthly broadcastings.
Certainly having good results my way. You may recall the uber-pioneer sister sneering at the dancing trolley cart; but get this -
In 2014 the school overseer in our hall "stepped aside/got removed" from being elder. He's quietly continued since as a "brother in good standing" being used to read/pray.
I asked him if he has ever thought about serving as an appointed man again and we got onto the jw broadcast about the overlapping generation explanation and he said:
"Freddo, when you can show me an overlapping generation in the bible without using a made-up flipchart I'll think about serving as an elder again. Until then I'll stay as I am."
I grinned and said "I don't suppose Jesus had one of those on the mount of Olives!".
He smiled ...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gmbpbb5k_mc
What a bunch of crap.
No mention of the long time explanation of the generation that held sway until the Awake masthead change in 1995 - the generation that saw 1914. Just like questions from readers in the past - a question no one asks or cares about or is relevant. Trying to deflect us onto when WTF ... sorry FWF ... was baptised.
Not the real questions that probably kept the US mail in business for a few weeks like "Is this really the best you can come up with? I mean really?"
One elderly sister said to me about a month back "Freddo, did you understand the broadcast about the generation?" I white-lied and portrayed apathy and said "I find the broadcasts discouraging Sister, they all seem to be about money lately."
She said "I know! But you must watch this generation explanation Freddo - it's just one big cop out!"
