by ukescott 10 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
Mormons claim that they don't have paid cleargy. It is true if they are taking about local churches.
But they have so many paid leaders in their organization: The General Authorities made up of the first presidency, the twelve apostles, and the Seventies, and seminary institute teachers, branch office administrators and staffs in each country, and etc.
What about the WTS? Who are the "paid cleargy"? How well are lay JW's informed of this?
Circuit and District overseers are the paid clergy of the wts. Congregation elders aren't paid.
I would say most, if not all, jws are aware of this.
CO and DO give up a real true income to get a lifestyle. They are given home and car and local congregation members give them cash under the table (not implying anything illegal). For what they have to do, it ain't worth it, really. Unless they budget those cash handouts wisely, they don't get any retirement fund. Some are able to establish an income from social security or investments before they start the CO work.
They all mainly do it for the prestige.
GB members really get the breaks. They receive virtually no salary, but travel all over the world (if they are healthy enough) and all they gotta do is give the same talk over-and-over to pay for the visit. They get the best apartments in New York because of seniority. (They can fire lay-off send senior bethelites with nice apartments into the preaching field and take their apartments.
I don't know, after conversations with several men in the 'traveling' work I'd say that they average 70 - 80,000 dollars a year. I always wonder how much gets reported to the IRS.
Don't forget seminary teachers aren't clergy. The people who are paid in the LDS church do non-clergy work (like lawyers, janitors etc..). The 12 apostles live the law of consecration whereby all they have is given to the church and they then muct rely upon the church for their financial survival. These men also have in general been very financially successful so will receive back a fraction of their contribution.
when i was young the magazines cost 70 cents and my parents would let me keep the money if i placed them. does that mean, for a short stint, i was paid clergy?
bethel
I always wonder how much gets reported to the IRS.
None of it. Taking a page from the hated "Christendom", the leadership of Jehovah's Witnesses set up the " Order of Special Full-Time Servants". Travelling overseers and Bethel family members are members of this order. As such, they have taken a "Simple Vow of Poverty", which exempts them from taxation.
For an interesting view of the benefits of being a member of the "Order", see http://www.ojd.state.or.us/tax/taxdocs.nsf/($All)/C21C9F93FCB674CF88257118007914FB/$File/JehovahsWitnesses4708Opinion.pdf
GB members really get the breaks. They receive virtually no salary, but travel all over the world (if they are healthy enough) and all they gotta do is give the same talk over-and-over to pay for the visit. They get the best apartments in New York because of seniority. (They canfire lay-offsend senior bethelites with nice apartments into the preaching field and take their apartments.
And unless they expose the other GB members like Ray Franz has they get to stay in "the house of God' (Bethel) until they get a ride on the rapture express.
Jer 48:13 just as the house of Israel was put to shame because of Bethel that they trusted in.
1 Kings 12:28-32 Then he made two gold calves, and he said to the people, “Going to Jerusalem is too difficult for you. Israel, here is your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt.” He set up one in Bethel, and put the other in Dan. This led to sin; the people walked [in procession] before one of the calves all the way to Dan. Jeroboam also built shrines on the high places and set up priests from every class of people who were not Levites. Jeroboam made a festival in the eighth month on the fifteenth day of the month, like the festival in Judah. He offered sacrifices on the altar; he made this offering in Bethel to sacrifice to the calves he had set up. He also stationed in Bethel the priests for the high places he had set up.
The circuit and district overseers received generous contributions from Jehovah's Witnesses. Over the years, I saw envelopes passed to them that contained money. This was especially true of the more affluent JWs. And these always had access to the Watchtower representatives. They often wined and dined together.
As regards the Governing Body members, it should be noted that one does not have to be rich to live like the rich. These members, as noted, traveled extensively, had the best accomodations and always given "carte blanche" wherever they went. At the headquarters, they had nice apartments overlooking Manhattan and had access to certain things that others at Bethel did not. I remember being told that one always visited the farms and brought back the filet mignons to keep in his private reserve. Such were the perks of the job.
"The General Authorities made up of the first presidency, the twelve apostles, and the Seventies, and seminary institute teachers,"
The first presidency and the twelve apostles and the seventies - those are all names or positions used by the Mormons - so are you sure yo uare talking about JWs and not about LDS?
TOH
