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truthseekerEffects of the changes if the book study is amalgamated with the TMS

We're pretty sure what will happen next week but not why.

This thread is just for a list of changes that will affect those who still go.

1) No more private book study arrangements. The book study host will ask themselves "why?"

2) No more congregation book study overseers. They will ask themselves "why?"

3) No more Monday evening goodie nights

4) No more shepherding in the conventional way

5) Coverage of the new bookstudy likely to be reading the questions with no reading of paragraphs

6) The bookstudy contribution box will be redundant

7) No more Saturday bookstudy groups for field service

8) No more bookstudy groups assigned to clean the Kingdom Hall

9) No need for the service overseer to visit each bookstudy and encourage them

10) No more congregation bookstudy picnics!!!

 

How does this benefit JWs?

 

1) One less meeting to get dressed for - more time for personal pursuits or just plain old movie night

2) Less incentive to go out in field service as your absence is less likely to be talked about

3) The elders no longer have to worry about conducting this meeting

4) As there will be no CBS overseers, you are LESS likely to be harassed for your time sheet

The JWs might make an extra effort to attend both meetings BUT, nothing will actually have changed for them - it will be easier to miss meetings now that congregation book study overseers no longer exist -

Who will keep track of the faders?

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sir82Re: Effects of the changes if the book study is amalgamated with the TMS

I disagree with 4 & 7, and maybe 8 & 10.

Many, if not most Kingdom Halls have at least 2, often 3, sometimes 4 or 5, congregations meeting there.

Assuming that half the congregation typically goes out in service on a Saturday morning, there just simply wouldn't be room for 150 - 250 people meeting for field service at the Kingdom Hall every Saturday morning. Conditions would be overcrowded, parking would be scarce, people would get discouraged & just go home.

I think they will maintain small groups just for "field service centers" for Saturday mornings. Perhaps the "CBSO" role will morph into a sort of "mini service overseer" (MSO ) role for the smaller group. And it would probably make sense for the new MSO to shepherd his group, and also make sense for that small group to be assigned KH cleaning.

I wonder, if my speculation holds, if "shepherding" calls will be more focused toward "do better in the field ministry"...a private visit from the MSO explaining "how to be more effective in the ministry", family by family. Ugh.

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OnTheWayOutRe: Effects of the changes if the book study is amalgamated with the TMS

1) No more private book study arrangements. The book study host will ask themselves "why?"

Yeah, there are a few members who love being the limelight by having this arrangement
in their home.  But so many are elders and elderettes who would love to kick it out of
thier home.  Many are pressured to do this, and the dubs use their toilet paper, dirty their
dishes and drink their coffee, but occasionally bring a snack for others to share.  Most
hosts will be grateful. 

2) No more congregation book study overseers. They will ask themselves "why?"

Most overseerss will be grateful that they can kick back and listen while someone else
conducts.  A few will hate it, but feel so wonderful that the FDS has addressed the
problems of busy lives and made things so much better for faithful JW's to serve.

3) No more Monday evening goodie nights

That's a small bright spot on an otherwise gloomy sky.  The vast majority are
grateful to have another evening free- free at last, free at last.

4) No more shepherding in the conventional way

7) No more Saturday bookstudy groups for field service

8) No more bookstudy groups assigned to clean the Kingdom Hall

I don't know about working these out.  They will have to keep the groups assigned to
individual elders for the cleaning and shepherding and hounding and there may still be
some organization by groups to field circus.  I am almost positive that the Borg will
spin this toward the elders that they have even more responsibility toward their group
with this change, but they will allow it to cause more slack.

5) Coverage of the new bookstudy likely to be reading the questions with no reading of paragraphs

I bet not.  They like to read to reinforce the doctrines.  I bet they just cover tiny segments at
a time, taking more than a year to finish a book.  That way, they don't need to cover books
again and again, since they will no longer cover material faster than they print new stuff.

6) The bookstudy contribution box will be redundant

Wasn't it virtually useless before this change.  Most dubs put in at the main meetings.

9) No need for the service overseer to visit each bookstudy and encourage them

I found this was always like the contribution box.  It was mostly useless anyway. 

10) No more congregation bookstudy picnics!!!

Where have you been?  The organization hates anything like that label.  There are
no "CONGREGATION" or "CONG. BOOK STUDY" PICNICS.  The Borg never liked
this type of fun, as someone always worried about members having sex or heavy petting
in the woods or alcohol causing someone to punch an elder in the mouth, or simply having
"sisters" get into a catfight. 
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daniel-pRe: Effects of the changes if the book study is amalgamated with the TMS
The book study was always my favorite meeting; it felt more REAL somehow, more close and intimate. You could get to know people much better because you saw them every week. I think what a lot of elders will be saying is that this change is meant to "strengthen the brotherhood," when, in fact, many of them probably feel exactly the opposite.
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Hope4OthersRe: Effects of the changes if the book study is amalgamated with the TMS
2) Less incentive to go out in field service as your absence is less likely to be talked about

Even though I do not attend meetings, I find this the most appealing.

hope4others

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95stormfrontRe: Effects of the changes if the book study is amalgamated with the TMS
So, I guess there'll be one less trip JWs will have to make for their programming sessions.
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hillbillyRe: Effects of the changes if the book study is amalgamated with the TMS

killing the BS will impair whatever social skills JW's still have. Back in the 70's the BS was the only thing I ever really liked to go to.

You got to talk to people and work as a small group... a little personal contact goes a long way in making a good org.

Someone in NY needs to read the playbook... they are taking every option away that gave them a way to 'team build'... no work at assemblies, now, no close contact meetings. Like most of the other grand ideas they have used this one will backfire too.

How many JW's will start night classes with an extra night? I missed a lot of Tuesdays and Thursdays as most night semesters used those days for classes.

Hill

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BizzyBeeRe: Effects of the changes if the book study is amalgamated with the TMS
they are taking every option away that gave them a way to 'team build'... no work at assemblies, now, no close contact meetings.
Good point.  It will widen the gap between elders and rank and file and strengthen the hierarchical nature of the power structure, if that is even possible.
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DunkRe: Effects of the changes if the book study is amalgamated with the TMS
Can someone post a copy of the letter to the BOE?
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Graham G.Re: Effects of the changes if the book study is amalgamated with the TMS

Excuse me, I'm new here. First entry.

Was this announced on the Bookstudy? I have not been to the meetings for over 3 years. 46 yrs old, male. Born and raised as a witness. Completely burned out with the wts 3 yrs ago, never went back, but Happy and Cheerful every since! :-) 

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MidwichCuckooRe: Effects of the changes if the book study is amalgamated with the TMS
6) The bookstudy contribution box will be redundant
That's a point...what will happen to all the excess boxes? Will they just be relabelled (we do NOT pass a collection plate) and put in KH?
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sacoltonRe: Effects of the changes if the book study is amalgamated with the TMS
Most likely there has been too many snitches that report back to the CO on things they have seen at the BS house.  Things that would not sit right with the organization.  A certain DVD like "Pirates of the Carribean"?  An XBOX game that seems "overly violent"?  Perhaps certain choices of paintings or decorations that seem "unwholesome"?  I always felt that BS night was when your house gets inspected and judged.
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chickpeaRe: Effects of the changes if the book study is amalgamated with the TMS
Most likely there has been too many snitches that report back to the CO on things they have seen at the BS house

too true, that, sacolton!!!

we had a series of conductors in the 10 years we hosted the CBS and one righteous over-much elder, bro pain in the @ss, COUNSELED us for having a chess board as it was based on warfare..... what a moron!! i am sure i would have been DF'd if they knew i taught my kids chess as part of their homeschooling cirriculum.... and poker too.... helped them to count, add and subtract!!

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yadda yadda 2Re: Effects of the changes if the book study is amalgamated with the TMS

While this change is long overdue, it will be interesting how they pitch this scripturally, particularly in terms of one of their favourite scriptures...Hebrews 10: 25 & 26....."not forsaking the gathering of ourselves together....and all the more so as you behold the day drawing near..."

For years the brothers have been brow-beaten with obnoxious illustrations about how attending all five meetings is as important as hanging onto a cliff by all five fingers of your hands, how missing just one meeting is like turning your nose up at a personal invitation to join Jehovah for a meal, blah blah blah....

It was a sign of real spiritual weakness and a lack of respect and submission to the Governing Body's leadership to miss the book study.  Now this change is suggesting that those who have been "forsaking" the book study were probably right all along.....

It sends a signal out that all those 'weak' ones who have been irregular with their meeting attendance were justified, because all along it was all a bit too much to expect of everyone anyway.  The rebels have been rewarded!!

Some will start to think "well, if only attending two meetings a week isn't 'forsaking the gathering of yourselves together', then perhaps just attending the Sunday meeting isn't 'forsaking the gathering of ourselves together' either.

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DogpatchRe: Effects of the changes if the book study is amalgamated with the TMS

Hillbilly is right on!

Russell took with him all the real people,

and Rutherford created clones of his drunken self.

that's what's left in people skills.

guilt.

fear.

false promises.

cool!

bust out the koolaid!

 

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DogpatchRe: Effects of the changes if the book study is amalgamated with the TMS

The Truth (as I seen it)

According to Jehovah's Witnesses

by Gary Busselman

GOD is the creator, but since he only created Michael,
and Michael created everything else, ("all other things")
that would seem to make Michael the real creator,
but only in a sense, since Michael is Jesus and Michael said to Satan,
"the Lord rebuke you" makes the Lord powerful over Satan,
however when Michael had to throw Satan out of heaven in 1914
he had to do battle with his own creations, Satan and His Angels,
and in 1918 when he selected Joe Rutherford to be his earthly channel
and had to put the truth in the mind of Joe
so Joe could write the truth in the Watch Tower
and build Beth Sarim.

All this would be hard to understand if it were not for the "salvation" doctrine,
which is easy to understand since the living evildoers
will all be made dead at Armageddon
and the dead evildoers will be made alive at Armageddon,
thus the living sinners will die and the dead sinners will live,
except the dead who are made alive will not really be made alive again
but when they die God kinda makes a sort of computer chip, in a sense,
of all the information in their brains,
like their memories, thoughts, and personality
and keeps this stored in heaven
and the Angels that don't join up with Satan help
and then after Armageddon, God makes a perfect replica body,
and somehow inserts this memory chip in the perfect replica body
and then he will judge that new creation of the old person
who was dead but is now alive, sort of,
by how he treats the anointed who are mostly dead
but are represented by the Governing Body, who are not inspired
but only receive Divine direction,
and by how well he follows the directions of the Organization
and if he sins he dies.

To survive Armageddon, the only way is to be serving God
in the only Organization that has the truth, Jehovah's Witnesses.
The truth is defined as the current teachings of the Governing Body
which largely consist of denying their own past teachings
and condemning views that are held by other groups
that the Governing Body will someday adopt as their "new light"
and "the truth". Serving God is defined as attending the five weekly meetings
of Jehovah's Witnesses, reading all of the weeks lessons before the meetings,
including underlining the answer to the questions at the bottom of the pages
in the paragraphs with a red marker, (yellow highlighter is optional
as long as it is used in moderation) answering any questions you may come up
with by yourself, while you keep those questions secret and to yourself,
by looking up the proper subject headings in the Index published by the Society
and referencing to the proper Watchtower article
while attending meetings for field service
and going out in cars to try to recruit new members into the group
and to solicit contributions to be turned into the group leaders
in exchange for Watchtower publications that members paid for
at the Kingdom Hall using the voluntary donation arrangement
that was adopted after the Society failed in their attempt to defend Jimmy Swaggert
in the Supreme Court of California
after the Superior Authorities fell out of love with him
and charged him with avoiding sales tax on literature sales
and all Witnesses must do this or they die.

Loyalty to "Jehovah's Organization" is important
since surviving Armageddon is contingent on how well
we vindicate Jehovah's name which is really YHWH
and pronounced Yahweh by most Biblical scholars
only since that was changed to sanctify
and it now is to exalt Jehovah's Name, not to vindicate anymore,
and to announce the kingdom that was set up in heaven in 1914 after Jesus
returned invisibly in 1874
and again in 1914 for the separating of the sheep and the goats
by selling Watchtower publications door to door
and then in 1995 this was changed to
not separating the sheep from the goats
but to require all Jehovah's Witnesses to believe
that the separating of the sheep and the goats will be a future event
to begin after the start of the Great Tribulation
except that Jesus had to actually start his judging of the sheep and the goats in 33 AD
and that he only picked 144,000 Jehovah's Witnesses
and the number was filled in 1935
and then the earth was going to be used for the testing ground
for all the re-created dead sinners and Jehovah's Witnesses for 1000 years
because this all ties into the date of 1914
which was arrived at by Nelson Barbour by adding 30 years to William Miller's
failed Apocalypse expectation date of 1844 which was arrived at by adding a
year to the previously failed date of 1843, to arrive at 1874, which when
the end didn't come, he added 40 more years to come up with 1914 which
Charles Taze Russell adopted and changed to 1915 when the Apocalypse didn't
come in 1914 then to 1918 when it didn't come in 1915, then he died.

This is all so simple that a child could understand
especially in view of the fact that the seven trumpets of Revelation
were the seven Jehovah's Witness District assemblies from 1922 to 1928,
starting with Cedar Point, Ohio and ending with Detroit, Michigan,
only they weren't called Jehovah's Witnesses then
but since Jehovah picked them in 1918 he waited until 1931
to give them his name while the generation living in 1914
and of the age of understanding, about 12 or 15, when World War One broke out,
except it had been breaking out for a number of years before 1914,
meaning that the generation that saw 1914 would by no means pass away
before Armageddon started and "by no means"
indicates that the majority would be living and never die
since Jesus told Joe Rutherford that "Millions Now Living Will Never Die"
by an angel and Joe wrote a book about the dead Princes,
Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and others would be resurrected to the earth in 1925
and live in a house he built for them in 1929 in San Diego, California
except he lived in it himself
because he thought the start of World War Two would be the beginning of Armageddon
and then he died.

Usually this is best understood by believing the truth as Nathan Knorr and Fred Franz
wrote about it in the Watchtower since they knew that service was the answer
and that six thousand years since Adam and Eve ended in 1975
and that maybe, might, could, should be the start of Armageddon
but they don't remember writing anything about 1975
and they couldn't say for sure when Eve was created
and besides so many were going to prison because they were loyal to God
by refusing alternative service to active military duty
and no one was taking organ transplants or buying Girl Scout Cookies
and then they died.

Sometimes the truth comes as flashes of light and the vaccinations,
and organ transplants are now all okay and the drafted boys don't go to prison
but stay at home to be elders and pioneers instead of going to jail
and the sheep are waiting and the goats are waiting too
and the generation of 1914 waited too,
then they died.

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Meeting Junkie No MoreRe: Effects of the changes if the book study is amalgamated with the TMS
Welcome aboard, Graham G!  So glad you joined us!
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Meeting Junkie No MoreRe: Effects of the changes if the book study is amalgamated with the TMS

Sorry, double post.

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BryanRe: Effects of the changes if the book study is amalgamated with the TMS

I see this as a firmer grasp for control. The book studies can be very casual and un-witness-like activities after the study.

This way, cool-aid packets do not need to be sent to each study location. They only need to be stored in the back room of God's Waffle House!

 

Bryan

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sacoltonRe: Effects of the changes if the book study is amalgamated with the TMS
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