by drew sagan 32 Replies latest watchtower bible
He requested I ignore the troubled history of the WatchTower Society and 'develop confidence in the Faithful and Discrete Slave'
How can you ignore the troubled history of the WTS, since the FDS is in essence the WTS? This is circular reasoning (circular in that one would have to be "looped" to buy into it).
A person ignores it because to give it place in your mind is intolerably painful. The comfortable thing to do is put it out of the mind and not dwell on it.
How long did it take each of you to begin to take seriously your doubts and questions? Than how long did it take before you had the courage to verbalize your doubts, if not to others, even to yourself? Some of us, me included, began this journey years ago and the journey is far from over.
So what the paragraph is telling us is that instead of developing an independent spirit we actually want to be developing a spirit of dependece upon God's organization and the spiritual food they provide.
Look at this from a physical perspective. If I restricted myself to eating only dog food I could probably keep living, but I would probably not be happy or healthy.
W
On a personal note, in similar vein I recently received correspondence from an Elder "encouraging" me to return to congregation meetings, etc. He requested I ignore the troubled history of the WatchTower Society and 'develop confidence in the Faithful and Discrete Slave'. The irony of this is that -- while yet a Witness -- I had professed to be anointed...
Bennyk, did you really feel that you were anointed, were you pretending or was it because you made it in before 1935?
This is a short excerpt from my notes from the district assembly (2005) on Saturday. Same stuff....
"If elders do not do things from the Faithful and Discreet Slave, they are failing to cooperate with Jehovah’s arrangement. There is no substitute for the Governing Body. No divine favor without it. To fail to obey is really to reject the word of Jehovah. Failing to obey is no different than divination or idolatry.
Even if we are asked to perform a task that we don’t agree with, we have to obey. "
I didn't go the next day, but my daughter-in-law was taking notes. Same crap. Guess what! She came back from the convention pretty disgusted. Guess what? She's never been to another meeting.
I also was Elder 1
When you talk about the intelligent being deceived===There was/is a brother in my cong.,one of the smartest people I've known. Went to Peru as a missionary , was a CO there and got burnt on all the corruption he saw. Back here now, he doesn't even open his bible during the meeting, has told me in no uncertain terms that the term "the truth" is a travesty and yet still goes to all the meetings, service ect. and warned me about reading spiritual material other than the Watchtower.
In other words he sees all the things wrong with it but continues on with his head stuck in the sand!
I know both of these guys very well. The are very good people. When I heard them both give these comments I just couldn't help but feel pity for both of them, and how they had no clue as to what they where REALLY saying. Elder 1 is actually one of the most intelligent people I know, but it is so scary to hear someone say that humans need to develop a dependent spirit upon a man made religious structure.
My never-a-jw perspective can't really correlate these statements - "very good" reminds me of someone at the local volunteer groups - and "most intelligent" someone who is both a writer and comedian
Not trying to put them down, it's just that, well, what they do is in some way descriptive of who they are - and their 'work' and comments describe silly people
paduan
"That means that we need to PUT FAITH into the faithful and discreet slave class."
Did the elder mean the FDS, or the Governing Body?
From the convention notes, it sounds like even the speaker confused the GB with the FDS.
Sometimes the Witnesses think they are both the same, but they are not.
Practically though, the GB acts as if it IS the FDS.
I have read comments that when the annointed write in to Bethel concerning a doctrine or teaching, that they are ignored. So much for The Watchtower respecting what members of the FDS have to say.
The only members of the FDS that The Watchtower listens to are the ones located and a part of the corporation.
The Watchtower says one thing, and then does something else! When will they be exposed as the hypocrites they are?
--VM44
Our WT conductor said with a very serious look--'When we read some direction in the WT, it is just the same as if it was in the letter sent to the cong after the Acts chapter 15 meeting.'
B
A Paduan, I know where you are coming from. I tend to look at it from the fact that I was once in the same mental state as them, just like I think many of us where. It's that state of mind we all know to be so powerful over us. It's just amazes me to look back and think about how I was in that mindset. Breaking free from it hasn't changed the fact that I foolishly subjected myself to it in the past. I guess when I see it in others, especially those in whom I know could be much more, it becomes unpleasent to me.
