Posts by NotFormer

44

The org. Came out with a Christmas song!!!!

by nowwhat? in

holy nativity batman!

on jw broadcasting.

final song for this year's convention.

NotFormer

Larry Norman had a song entitled "Why Should The Devil Have All The Good Music". The WT probably wrote off "Christendom's" music as the Devil's music, but they've been trending lately to more Hillsong style choruses, I believe*.

I wonder what's driving the trend? WT music has been described as dirge-like, historically, but so what? The WT always had tight control over the sheep; it wasn't like they were allowed to go to other churches where the more upbeat songs made the WT versions sound like crap. So why bother with the change? If it's dull, but all you've ever known, you're hardly going to be champing at the bit for something else.

*From comments posted on this board

44

The org. Came out with a Christmas song!!!!

by nowwhat? in

holy nativity batman!

on jw broadcasting.

final song for this year's convention.

NotFormer

"Glory in the heights above" doesn't have the same ring to it that "Gloria in excelsis Deo" does, but at least they're trying. 🙄

86

Prediction: no more changes for a long while

by slimboyfat in

i’ve noticed a pattern where things don’t go the way i expect them to go and/or whenever i realise there is a trend and, i mentally adjust for the idea that the trend will continue, the trend stops in its tracks.

so on that basis, and given many people, including myself, and active jws, have been asking ‘what changes will the governing body make next?’ perhaps the (disappointing) answer is: ‘nothing much for a while to come’.

maybe they’ve made the changes they want for now, and will wait a while and see how it’s received.

NotFormer

Especially Treasury B'lites - they were not the brightest Bethel had to offer, but by god they were loyal.
Loyal versus capable: interesting trade-off. 😳

18

Do JWs Really Say This?

by NotFormer in

i stumbled, via a google search, upon a part of jw space that is usually heavily defended against outsiders like my good self.

in a discussion, someone started their post with "i (started doing x)... when the slave began to suggest doing so"*.

do pimis really talk that way?

NotFormer

I stumbled, via a Google search, upon a part of JW space that is usually heavily defended against outsiders like my good self. In a discussion, someone started their post with "I (started doing X)... when the Slave began to suggest doing so"*

Do PIMIs really talk that way? I assume that the person is referring to the GB/Bethel, when they say "the Slave". I realise that the GB use the term to describe themselves, kind of like the Royal third person, but I didn't think that the R&F would copy them and use it in general conversation.

*I'm being deliberately vague about the source

3

The Times of Restoration of All Things

by no-zombie in

i thought of something during last weekend's wt study article, that made me think that perhaps we are on the wrong track on how the governing body is going to handle the whole 607-1914 thing.in paragraph 9 it referred to the the messianic kingdom rule as a period as called 'times of restoration of all things' taken from acts 3:21. this period of 'restoration', started in 1914 with jesus becoming king in heaven, and led to pure worship being restored 'soon after that'.and it was the last comment, that got me going.you see, in previous wt study articles (and i went through the 1990-2024 references) this term of 'times of restoration' was applied rather generally and more like a description of what jesus and jehovah was going to do during the messianic rule, rather than a formal title and a fulfillment of prophesy.however, what if the governing body keeps 1914 as jesus' invisible crowning ... but dumps 1918 as the date for the beginning of true worship?

firstly this paragraph reinforces the previously announced removal of russell being a part of the slave class, for obvious reasons.

but if 'true worship' had a soft start around the 1920s and making that the elastic part, then the embarrassment of his teachings and maybe even rutherford's, all of it could be excused as the speech of john the baptist.

NotFormer

nowwhat?, probably not. The recent raft of changes got a lot of people excited and speculating about possible future changes. Dropping 1914 is one of those things on a "Things I'd Like To See" wishlist

It'd probably make sense to do so, but very hard to do in reality.

That being said, although I'm sceptical about some of the suggested changes, I'll always be pleasantly surprised about any that do happen.

85

Disaster preparedness

by ElderBerry in

as your family considers its disaster preparedness plan, please ensure that the secretary has up-to-date contact information for you and your emergency contact.

also, we have re- peatedly seen good results when brothers and sisters are prepared with go bags and are ready to obey direction when they face various kinds of disasters.

please be sure you have a go bag, and review its contents at least once a year.

NotFormer

Blondie, are you implying that the main reason they are now suggesting that disaster preparation is a good idea is because they lost some paperwork? 🤔😱

I find their suggestion of having a go bag (I guess "bug-out bag" is too crude for their liking?) ready interesting. A normal person told to get a bug-out bag ready would probably watch a few YouTube videos on how to assemble one. But being so much about information control as the WT is, I can't see them encouraging the sheep to go off the plantation and watch any old video, especially not from the "Christian" preppers.

So, do they have their own guide(s) on how to make a bug-out bag? Do they have videos on disaster preparation on their website?

A further thought raises its head: everyone from Walmart to high-end survival/camping suppliers sell ready made bug-out bags, from a few dollars, into the thousands. Are there any entrepreneurial JWs providing third party bug-out bags to fellow JWs? The WT carts/trolleys are made by an approved third party provider, and AFAIK, there are all sorts of JW friendly items like bible covers and book bags sold online to JWs. So is there a WT approved provider of "Go Bags" out there*?

*I thought I'd ask the question before I went searching for the answer. I'd be interested to know, if such provider exists, if anyone here already knew about them.

1

Governing Body's New Light on Standards of Dress

by NotFormer in

for the uninitiated, budgie smugglers are a tight pair of men's swimming briefs that leave very little to the imagination.

for some reason favoured by old men on australian beaches... .

in case the writing is too small, here's the transcript:.

NotFormer

For the uninitiated, Budgie Smugglers are a tight pair of men's swimming briefs that leave very little to the imagination. For some reason favoured by old men on Australian beaches...

In case the writing is too small, here's the transcript:

"Outside the Kingom Hall"

Elder 1: The sisters seem to be enjoying the new light on standards of dress!

Elder 2: Wait'll you see the pair of Budgie Smugglers I've got on order when I wear them next week!

Elder 1: ...

18

Watchtower intentionally misleading the court?

by Vanderhoven7 in

seems to me wt lawyers and witnesses cannot be trusted even under oath.. mara mitchell writes.

as far as their family members are concerned, normal family relations continue with the exception of spiritual fellowship.”.

attached is a video on how watchtower presents family members being treated by their family when defending themselves in court.. .

NotFormer

"If this was true, it's very likely the ex JW that brought the case to court would have felt any need to."

Excellent point.

19

Super Duper Awkward

by Slidin Fast in

jw
friends

did anyone else find the teen section on the meeting tonight massively cringeworthy?

i saw two kids who will be laughing stocks for life after their world wide exposure.

complete exploitation in my opinion, unforgivable..

NotFormer

"The powers-that-be always seem to forget that the moment you use shady methods in your attempt to claim the moral high ground…

"…you forfeit the moral high ground."

When you start using the bad guy's methods, you become the bad guy*

*Quote from Tolkien... maybe...

17

"Everyone Wants To Leave"

by NotFormer in

a thread about steve hassan re-emerged and got me looking him up.

his wikipedia entry had a point under "criticism" that there is an underlying assumption in his approach that all members of high control groups ultimately want to leave*.. while it is generally believed that there are a lot of pimos still attending, doing field service and giving lip service to the wt, i doubt that everyone within the congregations want to get out.

it's not always internally and logically consistent, but it's been around long enough for enough workarounds to make it tolerable to emerge.. what do you think?

NotFormer

A thread about Steve Hassan re-emerged and got me looking him up. His Wikipedia entry had a point under "criticism" that there is an underlying assumption in his approach that all members of high control groups ultimately want to leave*.

While it is generally believed that there are a lot of PIMOs still attending, doing field service and giving lip service to the WT, I doubt that everyone within the congregations want to get out. It's not always internally and logically consistent, but it's been around long enough for enough workarounds to make it tolerable to emerge.

What do you think? Do all JWs secretly, deep-down, subconsciously want to leave the organisation?

*This is me heavily paraphrasing, not quoting.