Hecce

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Posts by Hecce

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  182

  Major congregational quake in Southern California

  by Hecce in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  this notice is not official yet and it should be confidential until released thru the proper channels.

  a friend of mine told me about a huge elders meeting in southern california.

  the subject was the relocation and dissolution of some congregations; it seems that this is the result of some project that has been going on for some time and is going to be implemented right now.. please let me know if this is happening all over the country?.

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  Hecce

  A little bit of an update

  Please note that this was initially mentioned three years ago as an unverified rumor; sadly, enough it has proven to be truthful not only on the pilot program but now on a national level. Just a few updates gathered from Southern California here and there:

  Many of the brothers affected by the changes are very unhappy, most of them are just complying against their will, a few are adamant and will be going to the Congregation of their choice. The elderly are the ones mostly affected by this situation. Please keep in mind that the letter that was sent to the elders contained the observation that the brothers were the ones making the final decision as to where they were going; this has been kept secret and the elders are pressuring the flock to just follow instructions.

  As to the use of the Kingdom Halls, I heard of two situations; one very old and dilapidated KH was emptied, all the congregations were moved to some other Halls and the LCD took over the old KH building and the sizable construction fund that the brothers had for renovations. In this particular case abandoning that KH made all the sense in the world.

  In another very desirable neighborhood, a new KH project is under construction. It is the Dunkin Donuts design, and the new place is very close to an excellent double KH, very convenient for the local brothers. About more than ten congregations were involved in this project and the ones assigned to the new facility are mostly not happy at all. In this particular case is very difficult to understand the need other than future commercial profit.
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  11

  Could this be part of the reason for the WT “big relocation” campaign?

  by Hecce in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  cottage grove, minn. (ap) — a struggling minnesota church is asking its older parishioners to leave in hopes of making it more attractive to young families.. .

  grove united methodist church in the st. paul suburb of cottage grove is closing in june, with plans to relaunch in november.

  the present members, most of them over 60 years old, will be invited to worship elsewhere, the st. paul pioneer press reported.

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  Hecce

  Another link

  COTTAGE GROVE, Minn. (Gray News) - Cottage Grove, Minn. (Gray News) – In an effort to reach younger families, the Grove United Methodist Church is telling the old folks to get out.

  The struggling church wants to build a new congregation with a more youthful bent.

  “I pray for this church, getting through this age-discrimination thing,” William Gackstetter, one of those no longer in the target demographic, told the St. Paul Pioneer Press.

  The plan is to shut down the church in June and reopen a rebranded version, probably in November.

  A church memo recommends older members stay away for a couple of years and then consult with the pastor if they’d like to rejoin. Most members of the congregation are over 60 years old.

  “This is totally wrong,” Gackstetter’s wife, Cheryl, told the newspaper. “They are discriminating against us because of our age.”

  The church averages about 25 people in worship each week.

  There’s no full-time pastor. A member of the church delivers the sermon.

  Regional United Methodist congregations are paying $250,000 to fund the restart.

  A specialist in starting new churches has been hired.

  https://www.nbc15.com/content/news/Struggling-Minnesota-church-asks-older-members-to-go-away-567141051.html
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  11

  Could this be part of the reason for the WT “big relocation” campaign?

  by Hecce in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  cottage grove, minn. (ap) — a struggling minnesota church is asking its older parishioners to leave in hopes of making it more attractive to young families.. .

  grove united methodist church in the st. paul suburb of cottage grove is closing in june, with plans to relaunch in november.

  the present members, most of them over 60 years old, will be invited to worship elsewhere, the st. paul pioneer press reported.

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  Hecce

  COTTAGE GROVE, Minn. (AP) — A struggling Minnesota church is asking its older parishioners to leave in hopes of making it more attractive to young families.

  Grove United Methodist Church in the St. Paul suburb of Cottage Grove is closing in June, with plans to relaunch in November. The present members, most of them over 60 years old, will be invited to worship elsewhere, the St. Paul Pioneer Press reported. The church is asking that they stay away for two years, then consult the pastor about reapplying.

  https://minnesota.cbslocal.com/2020/01/21/struggling-cottage-grove-church-asks-older-members-to-go-away/

  After Reading these news I was wondering if there is a similar motive in the big congregational changes that are affecting more than anyone else the elderly within the WT.

  For the last few years the faithful brothers that were taking the lead have been replaced by 30-40 new blood and little by little they have been put to pasture. What is happening now with the fusions is just another step in that direction.
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  17

  Big elders meetings?

  by road to nowhere in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  i hear of whole circuit meetings being held, taking all day.

  maybe just usual yearly stuff, but it seems the local elders immediately held a followup.

  i am sure it will be about better local control, more charity, kindness, that sort of thing.

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  Hecce

  eyeuse2badub

  Thanks for the information about the San Jose area.
• 
  182

  Major congregational quake in Southern California

  by Hecce in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  this notice is not official yet and it should be confidential until released thru the proper channels.

  a friend of mine told me about a huge elders meeting in southern california.

  the subject was the relocation and dissolution of some congregations; it seems that this is the result of some project that has been going on for some time and is going to be implemented right now.. please let me know if this is happening all over the country?.

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  Hecce

  Sorry, I can't be more specific; just to verify that it is happening I am quoting from the "Elders" thread:

  eyeuse2badub3 hours ago

  The relocation of publishers and the reallocating of "servants" is in full swing here in California. It's got the older ones in a full panic but they just try to pass it off as, 'jehovah knows best'! At least 17 congregations in the greater San Jose, CA area dissolved! I'm waiting and hoping that this will come back to bite the wt in the ass!

  The amazing decrease is surely a sign of jehober's blessing! lol lol

  just saying!
• 
  182

  Major congregational quake in Southern California

  by Hecce in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  this notice is not official yet and it should be confidential until released thru the proper channels.

  a friend of mine told me about a huge elders meeting in southern california.

  the subject was the relocation and dissolution of some congregations; it seems that this is the result of some project that has been going on for some time and is going to be implemented right now.. please let me know if this is happening all over the country?.

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  2. 
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• 

  Hecce

  Bumped to support another thread about mysterious elders meetings, plan is in full force right now with a lost of discontent and complaints from the brothers.

  It seems like pretty soon, in some pricey areas there is going to be a lot of Church space for sale.
• 
  17

  Big elders meetings?

  by road to nowhere in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  i hear of whole circuit meetings being held, taking all day.

  maybe just usual yearly stuff, but it seems the local elders immediately held a followup.

  i am sure it will be about better local control, more charity, kindness, that sort of thing.

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  2. 
  3. 
• 

  Hecce

  In California for the last few months the elders have gathering periodically with the CO and some key elders that are assisting him in the fusion of congregations and relocation of publishers; it will be natural for the Body of Elders to meet afterwards as a follow up to the different plans.

  The process is going forward with a lot of complaints and unhappiness from the flock.

  I am going to try to find a thread on the subject of maybe two years ago.
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  31

  Is the Watchtower God's Organization?

  by Atlantis in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  watchtower 1953, may 1st, pg.284, par.16.

  16 is the watch tower bible and tract society god’s woman or universal organization?

  scan: https://docdro.id/qiltnwd: .

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  Hecce

  I don’t think that my friends are reading this information correctly, there is no contradiction in what was published in the article and the subsequent understanding over the years.

  The Watchtower Bible and Tract Society was always, just a legal agency used by the Jehovah’s Witnesses for representation, it was never part of the doctrinal conduct of interpretation for the Organization.

  Over the years they had multiple imaginary entities that were the face of the internal Organization for the flock, in this particular case “The New World Society”; this was one of the many avenues that lead to today’s Christian Congregation.

  I really get tired and mad remembering all of this juggling, I hope that someone else will also remember things this way.
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  8

  Article: Fresno, California JW elder sexually assaulted a 17-year-old girl

  by AndersonsInfo in

  1. watchtower
  2. scandals

  subject: fresno, ca jw elder sexually assaulted a 17-year-old girl sept. 20, 2019 https://www.fresnobee.com/news/local/article235306577.html.

  fresno, ca church elder makes plea deal in sex abuse case | the fresno bee.

  a 45-year-old fresno man, who worked as a police dispatcher in madera, pleaded no contest on friday to charges he sexually assaulted a 17-year-old girl from his church.

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  Hecce

  Offenses like fornication, adultery and other carnal acts create a buzz and gossip in the congregations; child abuse is taboo, mentioned briefly and buried. This his happens even when it is a local case, it seems like the elders act like suppressors of information like this.
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  143

  Fidel Castro and the WT

  by Hecce in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  i am going to engage on a trip to the past and share with you some of the matters that marked the beginning of the jws persecution in cuba.

  you will be surprised that the pattern that was followed is very similar to what happened in other dictatorial countries.. in the cuban case, i am going to surprise you and tell you that like what happened with hitler; the wt was partially responsible for their clash and confrontation with the cuban government.

  during the early 60s the revolution was fighting for survival and they were willing and ready to demolish any perceived enemy to their cause.. a prime example was their war against the catholic church that was the most influential religious entity in the country; it took the supreme leader only a few public discourses to send the vast majority of clergy packing and back to their country, in this case spain.. the jehovah’s witnesses were an insignificant minority but they over estimated their importance and displayed a belligerent attitude, it was known that this was a us based religion and an easy target to connect them with the cia.

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  Hecce

  The Watchtower sent about 100,000 new Bibles to Cuba. This was done early in comparison with other countries, it came out to about one per publisher; it seems like this was based on the fact that the majority of the witnesses don't have internet access or tablets.

  The impact was huge among the flock and they saw as a caring expression form "mother". The Bibles were printed and shipped from the Japanese Branch.

  Information from a friend.