Posts by committeechairman

66

New 1975? Jan 1st WT 2014

by notsurewheretogo in

this post was taken from reddit exjw but makes a very good point:.

these are two paragraphs of the watchtower of january 1st 2014.... .

i don't know about you guys, but in my mind, i'm seeing a deja vu of the articles before 1975 i've read.

committeechairman

Mean Girls Meme - Stop Trying to Make Armageddon Happen - ITS NOT GOING TO HAPPEN

16

Are Elders given back ground checks before appointment?

by JWOP in

i'm researching a few things, and i'm wondering: are elders ever put through a back ground check either before or after their appointment as an elder?.

The only background check that goes on that I am aware of is only organizational in nature. When the recommendation for appointment or reappointment goes in to the Service Department, as I understand it, there is a check to see if the brother is disfellowshipped or not (or whether he ever has been) and for any other information about him that has been submitted by congregation bodies of elders or traveling overseers. It is not unusual to occasionally get back additional questions about a brother especially if he was disfellowshipped at some time in the past, reinstated, but the judicial committee failed to send the form back to the branch office and they still show him as disfellowshipped.

So, there is nothing procedural that I know of where the typical criminal background check occurs. I will say that generally I DO perform a criminal and sex offender check on the brother that is nationwide (United States) in scope. I do this at my own expense. I would just like to say before I recommend a man that he isn't a notorious axe murderer or child molester and we don't know about it.

54

Premarital sex--how prevalent?

by wafflesandpancakes in

in my old congregation, everyone seems clean.

mostly chaste courtship, kingdom hall wedding, blah blah.. well there are lots of cases of fondling but they were soon forgotton.

when my husband and i confessed to sex before marriage, the elders were disgusted.

committeechairman

I'm pretty sure that there is much more sexual activity that is considered unscriptural going on in the congregations than the bodies of elders are aware of. It probably varies from congregation to congregation but especially among single, young folks I'm sure that some engage in sex outside marriage and then just don't reveal that this occurred even if they continue to be active Jehovah's Witnesses and eventually are given special privileges. Cases like this come up occasionally where the elders are approached by someone with special privileges who has been serving for a decade or more but who committed fornication when young.

3

I need BOE letter 3/3/09 about regular pioneer applicants

by jwstudy in

i read 2011 version of "boe letter index" and found that [boe letter 3/3/09] was.

related to "child abuse" and "regular pioneer applicants".. then i searched [boe letter 3/3/09], but i could not find that letter.. i found the thread on this forum and it said that the pioneer application.

procedure was somewhat changed in 2009 to minimize the responsibility of.

committeechairman

What the letter says about child abuse is in the postscript of the letter and addresses the situation where an applicant for regular pioneer service answers yes to this question on the application:

"7. Have you ever engaged in sexual child molestation? If so, when? (See The Watchtower, January 1, 1997, pages 26-29, and February 1, 1997, page 29.)"

In which case these instructions applied:

"If the applicant has marked “yes” to the question, “Have you ever engaged in sexual child molestation?” and this is the first time the elders have learned of the abuse, please contact
the Legal Department as outlined in the letters dated July 1, 1989, and February 15, 2002, to all bodies of elders. Also, please review The Watchtower, January 1, 1997, pages 26-29
and February 1, 1997, page 29. Thereafter, if the elders wish to appoint the individual as a regular pioneer, they need to send the application, along with a letter explaining the situation, in the postal mail to the branch office. Please wait for a response from the branch office before announcing the appointment."

28

Committee Chairman: tell us about yourself

by crmsicl in

jw
friends

committeechairman

Wow. I wasn't expecting this. I'll try to explain my background in a way that is helpful but which protects my identity and explains why I'm here and why I started posting.

So, I've been reading this forum for a number of years as a guest. In the beginning, it was mainly because (as is the case with a few other forums like this) I could get information about upcoming events within the organization faster than I could anywhere else. What's interesting is that other elders who serve on the body where I do come up with the same information at about the same time I do, so I'm convinced that at least one of them is reading this same forum. Unsure as to whether he is an active poster here, but based on his style of writing it is unlikely. In any case, after a while I saw posts that were directed to elders or others who could answer questions that some of you here deperately needed answers to. As a guest, I couldn't post an answer and some of the stories here are just heartbreaking. So, I decided to go ahead and join under an alias mainly to post answers to those questions in an effort to help.

I don't consider myself an apostate or fader, I've got many decades wrapped up in being one of Jehovah's Witnesses. I don't always like what the governing body is doing or how they approach things, however, I'm not so arrogant as to believe that I know better. Also, I recognize that they are not perfect. The governing body members I've met seem like they want to do the right thing even if they don't get it right all the time. I've served as a elder for some decades and have responsibility on many levels of the organization and still do. We'll leave it at that for the moment because I am well aware that if I were to be identified, regardless of what I post here, I would risk losing all privileges and potentially being disfellowshipped. I think the risk is worth it though to be of assistance to some of you dear people here on this forum.

I don't always agree with what is going on in the organization and I don't always follow directions. However, I am mainly in this to help people. By carefully explaining what the yoke of Christian discipleship is really about, many individuals I work with have their loads lightened. Guilt is not necessary. Those who preach it from the stage? Ignore them. You can decide to ignore elders and others in positions of responsibility who go "beyond the things written".

I think that a time of major adjustment is coming for Jehovah's Witnesses. In my opinion, much of what we believe is solidly based on the Bible. I view some of what is happening with doctrinal changes and lots and lots of rules about small things as an overcorrection that will probably be rectified in time.

I know that there will be lots of folks that disagree with what I've written here and that will object to my chosen course as hypocrisy and support for an organization that they view as "evil". That's OK with me. They are entitled to their opinions. I don't plan to change my approach though...I've been able to make many people's lives more tolerable and that's that I live for.

67

elders wife swapping question

by unstopableravens in

i hear of these stories of elders swapping wives, i remember when i was young hearing of three elders in florida doing this and getting dfed.

my question is this how is it possible to bring this up in conversation?

it seems impossible, how can there be multi elders that know each other willing and the wives?

committeechairman

Emery,

Finally! Someone who knows this happened firsthand. Maybe other folks I've talked to face-to-face were afraid to give more detail.

18

Why do the WT DF for smoking ?

by Phizzy in

committeechairman

Phizzy, the reason you state regarding smoking being related to spiritism is one basis, and is still current. However, the primary reason used in disfellowshipping actions is this one:

The Bible does not mention tobacco, nor does it name the many other drugs that are abused in our day. But it does provide guidelines that have helped Jehovah’s Witnesses to determine what course of conduct would be pleasing to God. Thus, as far back as 1895, when the Watch Tower commented on use of tobacco, it directed attention to 2 Corinthians 7:1, which says: “Therefore, since we have these promises, beloved ones, let us cleanse ourselves of every defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in God’s fear.”

Long before government agencies agreed on the extent to which they should alert people to the harm from tobacco use, The Watchtower, in its issue of March 1, 1935, made it clear that no one who was a user of tobacco could be a member of the headquarters staff of the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society or be one of its appointed representatives. After all servants in the congregations of Jehovah’s Witnesses were appointed by the Society (which arrangement began in 1938), The Watchtower of July 1, 1942, stated that the prohibition on tobacco use also applied to all these appointed servants. In some areas a number of years passed before this was fully implemented. However, the majority of Jehovah’s Witnesses responded favorably to the Scriptural counsel and the good example of those taking the lead among them. As a further forward step in consistent application of that Bible counsel, none who were still smoking were accepted for baptism from 1973 onward. During the following months, those who were actively involved in tobacco production or in promoting the sale of tobacco were helped to realize that they could not continue to do that and be accepted as Jehovah’s Witnesses. The counsel of God’s Word must be applied consistently in every aspect of life. Such application of Bible principles to the use of tobacco, marijuana, and the so-called hard drugs has protected the Witnesses. With the use of the Scriptures, they have also been able to help many thousands of persons whose lives were being ruined by drug abuse. [Proclaimers book (jv) chap. 13 p. 180]

So if a person was in a practice of smoking (not just having tried it once or twice) and refused to stop, disfellowsipping would occur based on 2 Cor. 7:1

19

I have a question for any ex or current elder or co.

by blindnomore in

1 how long does the society keep records of publishers diciplinery actions at cong level and at the branch ?.

2 how would you respond to the society's claim that they are not responsible for the criminal actions of the rank and file?.

committeechairman

1 How long does the Society keep records of publishers diciplinery actions at cong level and at the branch ?

I'm pretty sure the electronic information on this is retained forever at the branch office. Others posts have already outlined the retention policy at the congregation level.

2 How would you respond to the Society's claim that they are not responsible for the criminal actions of the rank and file?

Of course, they can claim anything they want where it comes to legal or criminal liability. Really, it all comes down to a question of whether the criminal actions referred to here were committed as a result of or in the course of the rank and file member's duties connected with the Christian Congregation of Jehovah's Witnesses as a non-profit entity. Previous laws which protected non-profits from liability of member actions (Charitable Immunity) no longer exist.

You might find this link interesting reading: http://www.icnl.org/research/journal/vol4iss2_3/art_3.htm

67

elders wife swapping question

by unstopableravens in

i hear of these stories of elders swapping wives, i remember when i was young hearing of three elders in florida doing this and getting dfed.

my question is this how is it possible to bring this up in conversation?

it seems impossible, how can there be multi elders that know each other willing and the wives?

committeechairman

Each time I have heard this story I ask, "Who did you hear that from?" and "Where exactly did this happen?". Each time (I've been hearing these stories for 20+ years) the answers are vague and inconclusive. I'm sure it is possible that this type thing has occurred, but so far I haven't run across a single person who knows about it first hand. I've served in various parts of the country (the US) and I think that if this kind of thing had happened more than once or twice I would have run across someone who knew about it first hand.

Of course, I might run across them next week. You never know.

14

Question For Elders - Am I being Paranoid?

by The Searcher in

i gave the talk last week on the meaning of the memorial emblems in the 'b' school.

(included subtle 'seeds' as well) i was puzzled to see a member of the service committee come in as part of the spectator group, because he never leaves his family to come into the 'b' school.

(i was wondering if i'd been deliberately assigned the material, to test me).

committeechairman

If there was suspicion of you by the service committee or body of elders, they would have talked with you long before this. Most elders and bodies of elders do not have the discpline and patience to carry out a long-running investigation of someone they suspect of being out-of-line. They are much more likely to just have two elders discuss the matter and ask key questions to draw out where you stand on this.