Oh, the good life ... at what cost?
- Imagine for a moment that you could attain a position of adoration from seven million people.
- Imagine that all of your everyday needs were supplied for you simply for talking about a pie-in-the-the-sky vision.
- Imagine having millions of slaves who regularly sent you endless amounts of hard-earned money to fund such a "delusion"
- Suppose you could write, change, and exempt yourself from the rules that an entire sub-culture lived by.
- Imagine a free legal team at your disposal to justify, protect, and defend your every action.
- Imagine that your entire environment waited with baited breath for your next statement, wrote it down, and took it as gospel.
- Suppose you were led to believe you were closer to God than most everyone and that you were one who had the power to alter the course of history..
- Consider having a staff of "front people" who would not only protect your access but would take responsibility for anything that might reflect badly on you.
- Think of what it would be like if others believed that you should be treated the same as Jesus.
And yet, this is the world for those within the walls of the Watchtower boardroom.
While members of the Governing Body of Jehovah's Witnesses are the focus of doubt and condemnation by former members, one has to wonder how many critics might "sell out," compromise, and accept the position as God's supposed mediator to enjoy the benefits of playing the game, even to the detriment of millions of suporters who seem to relish their servitude.
Perhaps I am weak, evil, and selfish, but with a life of obscurity I would have probably thought long and hard about refusing such an anointing from people who were already bent on worshipping someone. Would you?