this topic i digress about why the watchtower relaxing the rules of disfellowship is essential for its survival.
many things i'm going to say are not my ideas, some are, the point is, i'm condensing everything in a logical and concise way.. the first thing we have to keep in mind is that the wt's main objective in instituting disfellowship has always been not to lose members because of the damage that a dissident could do, or to avoid gaining new members because of the bad reputation of a confessed sinner in the his/her region.
in the end, the more active members, the more money to the coffers.. in this case of disfellowship due to apostasy, to avoid any spark, texts were sought out of context that even prohibited saying "hi".
The Bulgaria capitulation was mostly loopholed weasel-wording…
…but…
…I am also reminded of state flags in Chilean KHs, (grudgingly) signing on to the Aussie CSA redress scheme, and, of course, the big one…
…telling the rank-and-file to stay home during Covid.
Kinda makes you wonder what other little budges they’ve had make, and just how many. 😏
on february 22, 2023, anthony morris iii was officially removed from the governing body of jehovah's witnesses.
a few months later it was revealed that the watchtower bought him a house in lumberton, north carolina.. however, and correct me if i am wrong, since leaving the gb nobody has reported seeing tony attending jw meetings or participating in field service.
in fact nobody has reported seeing him anywhere, not even at a local liquor store.
Easiest thing in the world…
… watch and see where he already frequents, work your way up to him at the bar, and order whatever he’s already having for yourself.
It would, admittedly, have to be a long con…
…and all we might get is confirmation of stuff we already think we know.
with what is arguably the biggest change to jw life in recent decades (the scrapping of publishers counting hours) what does this lead to?.
in my mind these are the results;.
1) a massive decrease in 'preaching hours'.
Pretty sure they’ve already lost most of the “contributing members”…
…at this point, the tourniquet ain’t working any more.
They’re trying to cauterize the stump. 😏
this topic i digress about why the watchtower relaxing the rules of disfellowship is essential for its survival.
many things i'm going to say are not my ideas, some are, the point is, i'm condensing everything in a logical and concise way.. the first thing we have to keep in mind is that the wt's main objective in instituting disfellowship has always been not to lose members because of the damage that a dissident could do, or to avoid gaining new members because of the bad reputation of a confessed sinner in the his/her region.
in the end, the more active members, the more money to the coffers.. in this case of disfellowship due to apostasy, to avoid any spark, texts were sought out of context that even prohibited saying "hi".
Not to mention that the internet has inadvertently enabled the XJW community to create a pretty decent support system to help more vulnerable former Witnesses not feel alone…
…and most on the verge of exiting (for whatever reason) know it by now…
…which would go a long way in making the threat of shunning and ostracizing a lot less scary.
I’m really starting to wonder just how far they’ll be willing to go to keep their tax-exemption...
on february 22, 2023, anthony morris iii was officially removed from the governing body of jehovah's witnesses.
a few months later it was revealed that the watchtower bought him a house in lumberton, north carolina.. however, and correct me if i am wrong, since leaving the gb nobody has reported seeing tony attending jw meetings or participating in field service.
in fact nobody has reported seeing him anywhere, not even at a local liquor store.
A better alternative?
Befriend him, take him to the pub one Friday night, get him good and soaked, discreetly hit “rec”, and just let him talk.
Nobody gets hurt… hell, he probably wouldn’t even remember.
Spycraft 101…
…if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.
on february 22, 2023, anthony morris iii was officially removed from the governing body of jehovah's witnesses.
a few months later it was revealed that the watchtower bought him a house in lumberton, north carolina.. however, and correct me if i am wrong, since leaving the gb nobody has reported seeing tony attending jw meetings or participating in field service.
in fact nobody has reported seeing him anywhere, not even at a local liquor store.
Cameras? Seriously?
Borderline harassment.
Not cool.
He’s an old man. A grumpy old man, but an old man, nonetheless.
this afternoon just after lunch.
i spotted 2 of the nicer elders in the congregation walking up the drive.
i didn’t answer the door.
“it takes 5 times more effort and money to get a new customer than what it takes to keep an existing customer happy.”
Ah, but the WTS has always valued growth far more than its ability to retain members as evidence of its legitimacy.
Not to mention that it’s also tended to view the membership as an army more than a fellowship… and in authoritarian regimes, troop morale takes a distant backseat to discipline and order.
And they definitely don’t regard the rank-and-file as anything like “customers”.
this topic i digress about why the watchtower relaxing the rules of disfellowship is essential for its survival.
many things i'm going to say are not my ideas, some are, the point is, i'm condensing everything in a logical and concise way.. the first thing we have to keep in mind is that the wt's main objective in instituting disfellowship has always been not to lose members because of the damage that a dissident could do, or to avoid gaining new members because of the bad reputation of a confessed sinner in the his/her region.
in the end, the more active members, the more money to the coffers.. in this case of disfellowship due to apostasy, to avoid any spark, texts were sought out of context that even prohibited saying "hi".
Hmm… well thought-out, and definitely worth considering.
They’ve allegedly had outside financial consultants come in and advise them, and if that’s actually the case, the recent mainstreaming attempts are almost certainly a result of that.
I wonder if said consultants essentially deduced what you just did, and spelled it out for them in a way they could grasp and accept.
The ultraconservative Old Guard wanted a fucking Army marching in lockstep, unified in thought and action against a hostile, doomed world.
But…
…maybe the moderates were able to genuinely grasp that a less draconian and punitive Fellowship (or at least, a more convincing appearance of one) has a better actual survival probability in said world.
with what is arguably the biggest change to jw life in recent decades (the scrapping of publishers counting hours) what does this lead to?.
in my mind these are the results;.
1) a massive decrease in 'preaching hours'.
For a good long while, I suspected that a handful of the Old Guard actually wanted the faders, fakers, and fence-sitters to GTFO… until Covid made the GB realize just how many of us there were.
I think they may be proceeding from the mistaken assumption that “lightening the load” will motivate folks to come back… without fully grasping that the heavy load was never really the problem.
A lot of us have reiterated stories of still-in friends and family who regularly try to buttonhole us by saying “You know it’s the Truth, don’t you?”
I’ll wager the GB’s the same way, but more…
…the Org’s evolved to only allow True Believers to climb the ladder… therefore, it follows that only the Truest Believers make their way to the top, and it’s reinforced by the fact that no one’s allowed to disagree with you once you’re there.
I think it’s entirely possible that the WT leadership truly cannot grasp that the faders, fakers, and fence-sitters don’t want out because they’re weak, stubborn, or sinful…
…they want out because they know it’s not the Truth.
No amount of mainstream reform - sincere or otherwise - is gonna change that.
with what is arguably the biggest change to jw life in recent decades (the scrapping of publishers counting hours) what does this lead to?.
in my mind these are the results;.
1) a massive decrease in 'preaching hours'.
NotFormer - “…(they) lose their main carrot 🥕 and stick 🏒.“
Nice, thanks.
I’d have put it that way, too…
…but these days, I’ve had trouble telling the carrot and stick apart.
Tends to happen when you use the carrot as the stick, I suppose.
😏
