when i was an elder, most of the elders were pretty independent 40 to 80 year olds.
they had no issue speaking up to the circuit overseer.
i wonder what the average elder is like now.
From what I have seen in my wife's congregation, the elders there are clueless. Two of them are barely in their 30s and have no children, one is in his 40s, but is so busy with his own dealings he doesn't have any time, and the last is in his 60s and is so involved with WTS projects that he is never around.
They leave the two younger ones who have time to shepherd the flock. In this case, that means brow beating them when they don't agree and generally being unkind and uncaring.
in a separate thread, there's been intense discussion about how the gb is still seeking to tighten its grip on the rank and file.
the latest evidence is the january 2013 watchtower which rolls out hugely predictable statements about not doing anything to upset one's (jw) family by, for example, being in email contact with a disfellowshipped witness.
it's hard to stifle the yawns.
What is funny is that if my wife were ever DF or DA (unlikely to ever happen) I believe my MIL would likely still just go ahead and talk to her. I think my MIL is only in because my wife is. If I could just get them BOTH out...
so, in a tit for tat agreement with my wife to do something i wanted to do, i agreed to go with my wife for saturday and sunday to the district convention.. for most of the day, i simply read other things, paying little attention to what was going on.
my wife could care less if i am paying attention, more that i am there to wrangle little ones who are being distruptive so she can listen.. but one of the things i did catch, was that they highlighted "four satanic teachings".. one of which was that "you need a higher education to succeed in this world".
so higher education is now satanic??
One of the other "Satanic Teachings" was the acceptance of the Homosexual lifestyle.
Honestly, I zoned out at that point, so I can't tell you the other two.
so, in a tit for tat agreement with my wife to do something i wanted to do, i agreed to go with my wife for saturday and sunday to the district convention.. for most of the day, i simply read other things, paying little attention to what was going on.
my wife could care less if i am paying attention, more that i am there to wrangle little ones who are being distruptive so she can listen.. but one of the things i did catch, was that they highlighted "four satanic teachings".. one of which was that "you need a higher education to succeed in this world".
so higher education is now satanic??
Believe me, it was difficult not to lose it several times. I had to laugh at the drama... Of course the girl who marries the unbaptised guy has a hard time. It wasnt so much that he was unbaptised and more to do with the fact that he was a giant man child!
so, in a tit for tat agreement with my wife to do something i wanted to do, i agreed to go with my wife for saturday and sunday to the district convention.. for most of the day, i simply read other things, paying little attention to what was going on.
my wife could care less if i am paying attention, more that i am there to wrangle little ones who are being distruptive so she can listen.. but one of the things i did catch, was that they highlighted "four satanic teachings".. one of which was that "you need a higher education to succeed in this world".
so higher education is now satanic??
So, in a tit for tat agreement with my wife to do something I wanted to do, I agreed to go with my wife for Saturday and Sunday to the District Convention.
For most of the day, I simply read other things, paying little attention to what was going on. My wife could care less if I am paying attention, more that I am there to wrangle little ones who are being distruptive so she can listen.
But one of the things I did catch, was that they highlighted "Four Satanic Teachings".
One of which was that "You need a higher education to succeed in this world". So higher education is now Satanic?? I almost left. My wife looked at me when the speaker said it and she could tell I was not happy.
I made a point on the way home when talking to my kids to bring up that the unemployment rate of people without a college degree is TWICE that of people with a Bachelors degree, four times that of someone with a Masters, and 8 times that of someone with a Doctorate. To say nothing of their income potential.
I told them "Believe what you want, but you WILL go to college and get at least a Bachelors degree. You can pioneer or not or whatever you like AFTER, but just consider it an extended part of High School for you." Of course, we all know that if they go off to college they will learn some critical thinking skills, which is just fine by me.
are there any active elders/ms or higher out there who can advise if one of the requirements for appointment is that the person's fs time is equal to or greater than either the congregation's average or the national average?
this used to be the case, but may have been relaxed.
also is the branch still approving appointments?
Back in the day, I used to pad them to make sure. I never really counted, why bother? It always seemed so arbitrary.
Then again, we used to laugh at the people who were in the "secret service". They would show up to meet, say they had a study or call to check on, leave as a pair and disappear only to show up at a break, then disappear again and show up right as everyone was calling it a day. Yet, they always seemed to be pioneers.
so my husband and i have a son who will be 2 years old next month and i really wanted him to be socialized more.
ever since we stopped going to meetings, we have been pretty much shunned even though there has never been an "official" reason for it (df, da..).
i am terribly introverted, so it's difficult for me to get out there and talk to people but our son is a people-person and i wanted him to have more peers to be around.
freshstart, good for you for trying to do what is best, don't beat yourself up.
My wife took all of our children to music classes when they were little. There is a program called Kindermusic which starts as young as two and is more about rhythm and just enjoying some music. Plus it is interactive with the parents and kids. My kids loved it, and my wife was even able to do it when she was pregnant.
Plus, she got to meet a bunch of non-JW parents. Because it is community based, these ended up being a lot of the same parents we later met at Kindergarten, and many of the same kids. So my kids always started school knowing a couple of the other children in the class.
so we are seeing wt videos aimed at children, a feature for children in the watchtower aimed at young children, just how long until we start seeing some form of a sunday school for young children?.
i know in the past it has been ridiculed by the wts, but the reality is that it is a better method for teaching children than sitting in the kh where they can't sit still for more than 5 minutes anyway..
So we are seeing WT videos aimed at children, a feature for children in the Watchtower aimed at young children, just how long until we start seeing some form of a Sunday School for young children?
I know in the past it has been ridiculed by the WTS, but the reality is that it is a better method for teaching children than sitting in the KH where they can't sit still for more than 5 minutes anyway.
hi ex-jws on this board.
i have a question that needs answering.
for years i have read on this board ex-jws, born-agains, and other anti-jw group condemn jws for "false prophecies".
The real question: Were those Christians in the first century claiming to be the sole representative of God, and claiming divine inspiration in their prophecy? Were those Christians saying, in effect, "This is what Jehovah has told me."
Another question regarding the "partial prophecy" of 1 Cor 13:9-10: Is any part of what they are prophesying failing to come true? I can say for a certain the sun WILL come up tomorrow, but if I say "It is going to rise at 2:00am in Modesto California, Jehovah told me so" then I am wrong, and that is a false prophesy.
In the first instance, I have not said anything wrong, but it also does not reveal the all of the information because I do not know at what time the sun will come up, nor am I going to run around telling everyone at midnight that it is going to come up REALLY SOON!
Partial prophesy will not at any time be wiped out, or changed, by further understanding. False prophesy will be shown to have failed.
Saying that the likes of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob will be ressurected in 1925 can be shown directly to be false. Saying that Gods kingdom will come on earth in 1914 (not in heaven as they would have you believe now) did not happen, and is therefore false.
By placing direct, measurable, statements we can confirm that what they said did not come to pass. Therefore, they are false prophets.
who would win?
.
or...... maybe they won't fight and it could be the greatest team up in history!.
I dunno, it could go either way. Since, like the WT, Sparlock only has the power over you that you give him.
