Posts by Socrateswannabe

16

Speculation on future donation arrangements

by respectful_observer in

in the aftermath of this year's annual meeting and the recent tremors of cash shortfalls within the organization, i began thinking "what could they do next to bring in more $$$.".

many here have speculated that we're seeing incremental moves toward "tithing" (of course they would never call it that).

a recent thread (can't find it right now) highlighted that they recently raised the "suggested per publisher donation" at the circuit assembly significantly (tripled it?)..

Socrateswannabe

I think the OP by respectful_observer could be right on the mark. The accountants at HQ want steady cash flow coming in, not random contributions, and they've really already started doing a "lite" version of this in the US. Last year they had congregations to take what were essentially pledges from members. The congregations then informed the branch of the total pledges for their congregation and were strongly encouraged to contribute that amount to the branch each month. Because they were anonymous pledges by the members, the total added up to much more than would be realistically donated. So congregations have struggled to try to fulfill their pledge. How is the shortfall met? I would venture that in most congregations there are a few families that have some money, and some of those families have someone serving as an elder. It's those families who make up the slack.

The only change in scenario between what is happening now and the OP's scenario is that congregations will be told how much to contribute for each publisher. That could happen any day now.

16

Effect on youths of Bethel and construction cuts

by Tornintwo in

jw
friends

i know quite a few youths (late teens to early twenties) who have the goal of full time service, as bethelites or international construction, so they're doing the required slog of pioneering in order to achieve this goal.

this is a goal which has been excitedly set out for them the last few years or so at assemblies etc.

now they see the cuts, surely they are going to be discouraged and disillusioned.

Socrateswannabe

There has been a lot of encouragement coming from the bOrg lately (including from JWBroadcasting) for young people to get trade skills so that they can work in construction at HQ, assembly halls, and international construction projects. The organization's main focus in the past few years has been construction. How do you go from that to almost a dead stop? Mindboggling.

49

Are Circuit Overseers next?

by Londo111 in

last year saw the elimination of the district overseer...and circuit overseers now must retire at 70. how long until the circuit overseer is no more?

of course, the role might still exist, they would simply not get paid.

they would have to care for their own expenses.

Socrateswannabe

I can't remember where I saw it but recently the bOrg crowed about spending upwards of $100 million a year for CO expenses. Eliminating that in one fell swoop might be too much temptation for them to bear.

8

More Conditioning in Sunday's Watchtower

by Socrateswannabe in

have you read the article, "this is our place of worship" in the july 15, 2015 study edition of the watchtower?

it is the study article for this coming sunday.

note the brainwashing techniques they're using to condition the jws to a total takeover of their kingdom halls, in the excerpts below.

Socrateswannabe

Have you read the article, "This Is Our Place of Worship" in the July 15, 2015 study edition of the Watchtower? It is the study article for this coming Sunday. Note the brainwashing techniques they're using to condition the JWs to a total takeover of their Kingdom Halls, in the excerpts below. The highlighted words and phrases are the most telling in my opinion. Even though the individual congregations donated all of the money to build these halls and volunteered the labor, the WTS is now telling the R&F that they were "provided" to them. Provided by whom? The implication is that they are provided by the big O--the Organization/FDS/GB! Which leads them to draw the conclusion in the final paragraph, namely that these buildings do not BELONG to you anymore--they are the Organization's--to do with what they please.

Para 9: Since November 1, 1999, more than 28,000 beautiful new centers of pure worship have been provided for congregations worldwide. That means that during the last 15 years, on average, five new Kingdom Halls have been provided every day of the year.

Para 10: Efforts are being made to support the construction of Kingdom Halls wherever they are needed. This loving provision is based on the Scriptural principle that the surplus of some might offset the deficiency of others, in order that "there may be an equalizing. As a result, beautiful new centers of pure worship have been provided for congregations that would otherwise never have had the financial resources to build a Kingdom Hall for themselves.

Para 12: Whether we can help out on a building site or not, all of us can have the privilege of supporting such projects through our donations.

Para 19: A Kingdom Hall is a building dedicated to Jehovah. Therefore, it cannot rightly be said to belong to any individual or congregation, whatever its legal title may indicate.

61

Today's Special Day Assembly Expenses and the $10,499 Deficit. Silent Majority?

by Tenacious in

today i attended a one-day assembly in my hometown.

i knew when it came time to read the afternoon expenses that it would be an incredibly high and ridiculous amount that was nowhere near the real expenses for that day.

sure enough, after lunch came the announcement.

Socrateswannabe

We had our assembly within the past couple of months and the total expenses were $19,000. Keep in mind, this is for a one day assembly because there are no more two day assemblies. So that means the assembly hall has a revenue of $38,000 a weekend X 50 weeks a year, or $1,900,000/year. Our expenses used to be around $6-8000 for a two day event. The building was paid for two decades ago. That's some pretty interesting math.

53

Funny Names with Double Meaning

by dig692 in

jw
friends

just saw the episode of the simpsons where bart calls moe's tavern and asks for "amanda huggenkiss" and it made me laugh again .

amanda huggenkiss.

hugh jazz.

Socrateswannabe

Then there's the law firm of Dewey, Cheetem, and Howe

53

Funny Names with Double Meaning

by dig692 in

jw
friends

just saw the episode of the simpsons where bart calls moe's tavern and asks for "amanda huggenkiss" and it made me laugh again .

amanda huggenkiss.

hugh jazz.

Socrateswannabe

My favorite of Bart’s prank calls:

Moe: Hello.

Bart: Is Mr. Freely there?

Moe: Who?

Bart: Mr. Freely, initials I.P.

Moe: Hey! I.P. Freely here? Hey everybody, I.P. Freely!

Bart: Ha, ha, ha!

Moe: Listen you little…

12

To Kill A Mockingbird and Prequel

by Socrateswannabe in

jw
friends

are you a fan of harper lee's "to kill a mockingbird"?

i read the book as a child and have read it many times since.

miss lee obviously wrote the book to entertain us, and she accomplished that.

Socrateswannabe

Terry: True enough that I can't judge a book without having read it. And I know that Atticus is fictional, regardless of who he was patterned after. For years though, I've had it in my mind that Lee's father was something like him, and I don't want to destroy that. Maybe I'll come around though, over time. I'm glad to hear that you liked it so much. And yes, I regretted calling it a prequel, even though it was written before TKAM, but it's not really a sequel either, so I guess it's just another novel.

Littlerockguy: Yes, but we can still have our idols, can't we?

12

To Kill A Mockingbird and Prequel

by Socrateswannabe in

jw
friends

are you a fan of harper lee's "to kill a mockingbird"?

i read the book as a child and have read it many times since.

miss lee obviously wrote the book to entertain us, and she accomplished that.

Socrateswannabe

NewYork44M: Wow, I guess you have to have a pretty thick skin to be a CPA!

12

To Kill A Mockingbird and Prequel

by Socrateswannabe in

jw
friends

are you a fan of harper lee's "to kill a mockingbird"?

i read the book as a child and have read it many times since.

miss lee obviously wrote the book to entertain us, and she accomplished that.

Socrateswannabe

MILLIE210: Of course you're right about Scout. I think we would all like to have her childlike innocence and genuineness. You could even say the same for Jem and Dill. Dill got physically ill when he saw how Tom Robinson was being mistreated at the trial. There are almost too many role models to list. Tom Robinson was one of the foremost--right up there with Atticus, but many minor characters were admirable too.How about Judge Taylor for appointing Atticus to defend Tom and Sheriff Heck Tate for his support of Atticus. I love the section of the book where Jem has to read to Miss Dubose, as she struggles successfully to get free of her addiction before she dies. Atticus said she was the bravest person he knew. Mr. Dolphus Raymond was 50 years ahead of his time in his views toward race relations, and Link Deas was an uncommonly reasonable man for hiring Helen Robinson when she became a pariah after Tom's arrest. And there are others.

Really, how does the bible stack up to this? To Kill a Mockingbird has taught me how to live. If I could be 1% the man the fictional Atticus Finch was, my life would be so much better than if I struggled my entire life to live by bible standards.

WASANELDERONCE: I know you're right. The new book has value and gives insight into the mind of Harper Lee. I should want to read it but TKAM has meant so much to me, I'm not sure I can bring myself to read the new book, no matter its value.