by Terry 43 Replies latest watchtower bible
With many, if not most, congregations, branches, circuits, etc. being registered charities, it's a great way to move money around, even internationally. If a charity (congregation) has to perform a charitible act, it simply cuts a cheque for another charity (circuit, district, WWW, construction project, etc). It would be a nice way to launder money.
W
Watchtower rank-and-file members are used as volunteer labor staying very busy appearing to be doing something important.
What they are really doing is generating publicity which serves to hide the actual purpose of the Watchtower corporation.
What is the genuine purpose of the Watchtower corporation?
POWER INVESTMENT!
REAL ESTATE!
Terry
One of the best posts on JWD!
The WTS are just a group of power hungry men in New York. They have everything available to them from health care,automobiles,a roof over their heads,all utilities paid for,and travel all over the world.........all in the name of religion.
The WTS send out Circuit and District Overseers to local congregations(that are paid by local members) to instruct every rule and regulation to all local Elders. The Elders take these instructions and pass them on to every member. Elders teach the congregations and handle all the discipline. Make sure everyone is kept busy and fears the organization.
Also, WTS prints repetitive material on cheap paper. Save money where you can.Print the same material over and over. Make sure that everyone has their own copy. Send out every member(who are not paid) out in service and make sure that the general public buys these books and magazines.Send money to the WTS. Then the WTS higher ups can travel to exotic locations(all expenses paid) all in the name of religion.
Excellent, Terry.
Couple of random thoughts:
POWER - absolutely. Why else would anyone with tremendous personal wealth run for president, a job that pays $400,000 per year?
Why no TV ministry?
In addition to the un-welcome scrutiny you describe, a TV-ministry would eat up real dollars, real fast. So they would be gambling that it would generate more dollars than it cost. JW believers already give what they can. Would non-JWs be inclined to give to such a marginalized, crack-pot belief system? A belief system that tells them that unless they get up off the couch and participate fully, they will be destroyed at Armageddon? Chances are that the WTS, at some point, has done a feasibility study of the TV market and came to these conclusions.
Another drawback is that successful TV ministries rely on the magnet of a charismatic evangelist to draw viewers and dollars. The WTS does much better presenting as amorphous, omnipotent FDS without a human face.
Terry,
Excellent post and I agree with everything you say. They simply cannot stand the light of day and don't want REAL publicity. They could never stand the scrutiny if the general public analyzed them piece by piece.
It is also good you re-post old material because of the newbies that keep joining the forum.
Fresia,
I also remember years ago them asking for money to 'help' missionaries come home to visit. I was angered by hearing this request because I felt as you do about how they have so much money and where do they get off asking for more money from the working people in the congregation??? I was just appalled at the nerve. I mentioned this to one of the elders and got your typical stupid answer that was supposed to make me feel guilt-ridden and less than generous. But, of course, the answer from Elder Stupid didn't change my mind one bit!
LHG
Why did the on time lawyer and then president for the organization insist he be addressed as Judge Rutherford when he only sat as one for a few
days and never did it again while he served as the President of the Watchtower Society ....the overwhelming power and status to his personal identity
Oh, and he had a very small penis...........sorry to be glib
JHVH took over the Baal attributes.......quite a career I should add: From a Merciless God of War to a merciful God of love.
WTBS took over JHVH OT attributes....... a jealous person. One who does not allow competition. Maybe a thousand years or two may help them make the same progress.....
So, when they talk about honouring JHVH as the souvereign of the Universe I am inclined to say they are honest in their aim (cynical). But they do not divulge the present identity of JHVH.......themselves and their corporate structure. Talking about delusions of grandeur......
The situation could be described as quite similar to those of the early Israelites who offered their offerings on the high places but instead to BAAL or other Gods they offered there to "JHVH their God". Nowadays it's the JDUB walking off their asses for the WBTS and call it sacred services for JHVH.......
Cheers
Borgia
There were a couple of points in Terrys post that I have raised before.
What does the ordinary person know about Jehovah's Witnesses?
I have asked people do they know what JWs believe. After a couple of minutes of blank looks. I usually get "They don't have blood. They go door-to-door. Don't celebrate Christmas or birthdays" Then thats about it in their knowledge of JWs.
This is after about 130 years of the publication of millions of pieces of literature, magazines, book, tracts, brochures etc.
After Billions of hours of preachings door-to-door
Yet the JW is told that the world is in awe of them. But in reality, people don't give them a thought until they get called on again.
The clergy of Christendom are frightened to death of them. The Clergy are too busy with their own problems and congregations, than be worried about JWs. Very few of then even knw what JWs teach, so have no idea what to be "frightened" of.
TV ministry.
Once you are in the public eye through TV, then you come under scrutiny. As can be seen with other TV evangelists.
The WT would never take that chance.
This is interesting. It reminds me of an experience. A few years ago a witness friend of mine joined Quixtar which is the new alias for amway. i heard things in the past about amway, but i didnt know it was a cult at the time. anyway, while hanging out he pulls out what they call "the plan". It all sounded good but my gaurd was up, I figured there was a 90% chance it was pyramid BS. Anyway, I have the skills to set up ecommerce sites and make money, and was told that i could do that with quixtar. anyway, you get a percentage of each sale you make. so i figured i would set up a site, drive traffic to it, and link it up to the quixstar store site. easy money right? wrong. i was not allowed to do this. the ONLY approved method of selling was face to face. I WAS NOT ALLOWED TO USE THE INTERNET TO MAKE SALES AND IT WAS PRESENTED AS AN INTERNET BUISNESS! L O FREAKING L!
Anyway, i then decided to search the net, and I found out they were a big scam and cult. Any REAL buisness would want to sell as much as possible and make the most money possible. Selling face to face is the cave man of selling in this day and age. I a week if you are good you would get 20 people, on the internet thousands of people could buy from you in one week. Then I read a book called "Merchants of Deception" which is written by one of their x higher ups and it exposed the whole thing.
So where am i going with this? well, I had been thinking for a while, why arent the witnesses using more effective methods? everyone i ever talked to gives the experience of doing 8 houses, going to get donuts, and then doing rv's. If you ran this org, and you knew you had the life saving message, wouldnt you be using every single possible method available?
anyway, if you are interested read about quixtar, its so similar to the witnesses, its one of the first things that started me thinking about the org.
The GB surely are not these financial wizards that dream up the schemes and financial deceptions are they? I tend to think that those behind the curtain that is behind the curtain are the real power now. Who's playing who? I just don't see the GB being clever enough to continually keep up the ruse of power without someone VERY clever pulling their strings.
I've had this discussion several times with someone that says it's ALL about the power. I think otherwise. Or more to the point, there are two camps at work. One for power being controlled by one after the money. Ah, what the hey! Maybe I'm way off base?
Show Jah the MONEY!!!!
Then the fifth angel sounded: And I saw a star fallen from heaven to the earth. And to him was given the key to the bottomless pit.
And he opened the bottomless pit, and smoke arose out of the pit like the smoke of a great furnace. And the sun and the air were darkened because of the smoke of the pit.
Then out of the smoke locusts came upon the earth. And to them was given power, as the scorpions of the earth have power.
They were commanded not to harm the grass of the earth, or any green thing, or any tree, but only those men who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads.
And they were not given authority to kill them, but to torment them for five months. And their torment was like the torment of a scorpion when it strikes a man. Revelation 9:1-5
