”Everything bad you hear about us is a lie! Even the stuff that’s actually true!”
Newest Anti-Apostate Tactics
by Anna Marina 18 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
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truth_b_known
It's drummed into your head by the Circuit Overseer, no extra research, even if it is JW literature, and no extra scriptures. We were told that the slave knew all of the extra research that we want to bring out, and the FS decided to leave it out and so should we! "We don't know more than the slave, do we? So leave it on the cutting room floor," was the C.O.'s words.
Wow! I left totally in 2010, but stopped attending meetings in 2007. I always remember people being praised from the platform for doing extra research for the benefit of the congregation. Now members are under strict orders to just be intellectually lazy and only listen to repeat.
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DATA-DOG
You are expected to follow the program without deviation. Who are YOU to “rush ahead” of what is provided at the right time? What are you, anointed or something?? How dare you think too deeply or believe that you can somehow expound on an issue? Don’t you think the Writing Department would have it all covered??
I remember being eyed with suspicion for reading the NWT ( pre-Silver Sword/Bible for dummies ) and highlighting passages/tracing footnotes during meetings or conventions. Thank goodness they didn’t see me using a Concordance!
The members are expected to STFU and follow along and answer the paragraphs as instructed. How can the poor GB make it any easier?? They give you the questions and the answer... How can some of you be so disrespectful??
DD
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LV101
They were yelling yrs. ago from platform not to quote scriptures in paragraph. I understood because a couple of JWs liked to show off their bible knowledge and blather on and on.
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Anna Marina
truth_b_know - yes that's how I remember it.
DD - a CO arrive and cut up our cong. The elders in the new cong were as you describe. I was shocked by their attitude. One of them said to me that if the Soc said black was white and white was black he'd believe them. So I stumped him by saying, "what if they say adultery is ok?"
Actually his mate (other elder) used to go round making dirty phone calls. He's still in. I got thrown out for sticking to what the Bible said at Dan 1:1 and Dan 2:1 plus behaving like a Christian.
LV101 - I maybe heard some things like that (can't remember). But some stuff could be totally ignored. Now that's changed.
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RubaDub
to whack in legitimate scriptures and get the elders to quietly pass over what you just said as they hunt around for someone else who will give the right answer.
@Anna Marina ...
Wow, you gave me flashbacks from 40-50 years ago when my father was doing the WT study. We had a couple of brothers who would go off on a tangent (one was of the annointed) and sometimes give some "way-out" answers and opinions that were different from the "standard" answers.
He would say nothing, let them talk, just smile, and then pick on someone who he knew would give the "correct" answer.
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LV101
Oops - not to quote scriptures NOT contained in paragraph.
AM - they are quite the authoritarians.
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waton
In arecent wt study, the example was given of an elder encouraging a sister giving motr spritual answer' wt writers killing 2 birds with one stone. approving females to violate the "lords commandment" of 1 Cor. 14, and being more spritual, toeing the line, spiritual goose-stepping
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LV101
AM - hahaha - I recall like it was yesterday because after the clergy class would make the remark to please stick to only scriptures quoted when answering she'd go right ahead and answer the following Sunday with all her added scriptures. She had serious clout via her clan in the area and that particular hall who ran the circus for yrs. It was great! I didn't like sitting through all of it - I doubt 99% of them knew the scriptures like she did but looking back now it's great she totally ignored anything they said.
I heard another story re/set up for memorial - certain table cloth coverings? I didn't pay much attn. because I'd heard she was always going off about something. Anyway, she brought her special linen table runner (table cloth) for the event and the Gestopo in Crooklyn must have demanded certain beige/cream whatever color or local elder didn't approve of what she brought in and didn't use her item(s) or picked one up -- she called whoever was in charge and let them know they were wrong and hers was more appropriate - oh my/hilarious.