It's late but I can't stop my brain...
Power struggles like this happen all the time. If I was the President of the WTBTS right now, here's what I'd say to those key guys next to me:
"Congregations are going to be split in half by this matter. Since we are in the wrong and we know how deep this goes and how many molestors are hidden in the org, the only way to perform damage control is to split the trouble congregations up. ANY congregation with a "problem elder" gets broken up immediately. We know how to do this because we do it all the time. The friends are then arranged into new, smaller congregations that can be controlled (PO, Sec. selected by us), and in the interim, we can disfellowship whomever we want with a minimum of trauma. After a month or so, the new congregation will be built with appropriately loyal core members.
"The thing that makes this situation different is that we will have to shut down congregations located in rural areas, where there are not enough publishers to form new ones. In these cases, we are going to have to do something new: The Kingdom Hall will be closed.
"We'll draft a letter in these cases that explaining why it is necessary to shut the hall down for a while. Such a letter will not be doubted by the rank and file if we move quickly enough. In an average hall of 100 pubs, we can break it up into small, managable groups of 10, with an appropriately loyal brother acting as direct liason to the Society, and then advising his home group. We may have to use less-experienced brothers, but they will be far more loyal than the old dogs anyway. Meetings will be held in the same format but at home like the bookstudy."
This was always the reason for the bookstudy anyway--to provide a system of meetings that can go underground when the "tribulation" starts.
If I'm in charge, I know the org is gonna take a huge hit. I know what's gonna go down. But, the majority of the members can still be kept with a few simple changes.
I only write this out to give elders an idea of what's going to happen. If you are an elder, how will you respond? I guarantee that they _already_ know if you're loyal or not and they've _already_ got the pimply-faced MS who'll replace you. That's the beauty of the WTBTS: They've got the channel set up so that they can plug _any_ dumb schmoe in and have him be an elder.
...I should get some sleep.
Goodboy.
Edited by - Goodboy on 15 August 2002 4:24:33
