Telling family about "new light"

by Billy the Ex-Bethelite 31 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

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  Billy the Ex-Bethelite

  Okay, now it's my turn to start a thread about the GB/FDS "new light" now that it's been well covered by many threads.

  I've noticed that a few have brought this subject up with dub family who accepted WT "new light" without objection, saying that it "made sense" for the FDS to only be the GB. So I have an idea of how to bring this up with my family in such a way that will highlight that this doesn't make sense... at all.

  And the timing of this whole thing is incredibly convenient for me since it wasn't that long ago that this came up with my parents and I said that the WT interpretation of the FDS in Matthew was out-of-context and flawed. I also stated that I didn't have any confidence in whatever they taught because it could all change in a snap with a short paragraph in a WT study article.

  Rather than bring up first thing about the revised identity of the FDS, I'm going to make an issue of a huge change that was mentioned at the Annual Meeting. And that they'd better not be talking much about the current teachings about the FDS, because that's all going to change and they don't want to be embarrassed by advocating "old light".

  Among the many credits for great ideas, I gotta mention Leo's thread. There's still more points that I found and want to use, but I'll start with the list from her opening post.

  • The Faithful and Discreet Slave was NOT appointed at Pentecost 33CE, meaning that there has not been a continuous line of members of the Slave Class on the earth down through the ages. The Slave Class was only appointed for the first time by Christ in 1919.
  • The “domestics” of Matthew 24:45 are all those who are fed spiritually by the Governing Body, whether of the anointed or “other sheep”.
  • The events described in Matthew 24:46,47 now refer to Jesus coming during the Great Tribulation and giving the Governing Body their reward in heaven along with the rest of the anointed.
  • The “belongings” of Matthew 24:47 refer to all of Christ’s heavenly and earthly interests.
  • Despite founding the Watch Tower Society, Charles Taze Russell was not part of the Slave Class because he was not alive and serving at Headquarters when Christ made his selection in 1919.

  I know that these are the main things that will give my folk's a WTH reaction. But I have to reveal the "new light" about only the GB being the FDS and their mystical powers as the FDS only when they come together and sit in their magic room on their superpowered chairs.

  • The Faithful and Discreet Slave is a small group of anointed brothers during Jesus’ presence serving at Watchtower Headquarters who are directly involved in the preparing and dispensing of spiritual food. The individual members of the Governing Body are not the Faithful and Discreet Slave. They only act as the Faithful and Discreet Slave when they are working as a collective body in making decisions regarding the dispensing of spiritual food.

  I thought FWFranz made a great point that will press my Dad's buttons...

  "This supposed new teaching about the FDS is in some ways eerily similar to what Herbert W. Armstrong taught. Briefly, Armstrong taught that the "truth" of the bible had been almost completely lost for 1800 or so years commencing with an apostacy that started shortly after the death of the apostles. According to Armstrong, God would raise up and appoint an endtime prophet/teacher who would restore all the long lost truths of the scriptures. Now the WTS is saying that the appointment of the slave did not occur in 33 CE, and didn't actually happen until the beginning of the last days."

  That comparison to Armstrong is priceless.

  And I'll have to find out if they've heard that there has been a new addition to the GB... and he's younger than two of their children. The addition of such a young guy will certainly be a surprise.

  Frankly, my parents aren't young and won't simply pack up and leave the cult. But when WT does crazy stuff like this, it certainly should make my folks less confident of the stuff coming off the WT presses and spilling out of the WT clergy mouths.

  Anybody tried something like this yet? Any other thoughts on how to crack hard nuts?
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  fakesmile

  billy, it is unconscienable to let your family get ripped off by a publishing house. but is it less unconscianable to break their faith? that is not sarcasm, i am really interested in other opinions as i am torn between the options myself.
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  Billy the Ex-Bethelite

  fs,

  For my siblings and me, it's more a matter of having our parents respect our decision to be inactive.

  Although I haven't made it a huge point to completely destroy their trust in Watchtower Corporation, we've had enough honest conversation that they don't "put their trust in men." And I've tried to do this without completely undermining their faith in God and hope of a future reward. I certainly remember all the mental anguish I went through, so I try to go gently with them.

  Of course, all of our situations are different. The fact that I served at bethel for many years and personally knew most of the GB, makes my situation very different from most JWs. I can discuss, examine, and question the beliefs and changes without it seriously raising the red flags of "apostate mental disease."
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  oldlightnewshite

  Your first point about Pentecost and the spirit will probably rattle the most bones. I'm trying to put myself of 15 years ago (when I was strong in the ways of the force) in the chair at a meeting when this one is revealed. Even I would have been able to pick the holes out of that one. My reaction would probably be 'what are they thinking?' and 'somebody is manipulating their own position'. Older folks are used to remembering the ancient partakers from years ago with quiet awe and reverence. Taking away their special badge at this time might jar some JWs minds. After all, they were super holy, right?
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  Leolaia

  I just got off the phone talking about the new light with my mom. We talked about it yesterday but I read more about it with her. She is an ex-JW but her sister is still a die-hard JW. My mom is so amazed to hear about the new light, and I pointed out the logical inconsistencies, and she just had to say that she couldn't believe she had been a part of that religion. I know her sister will roll with it, no problem, she has been a faithful JW since the fifties. My mom is tempted to ask her about it, or see what she would think, but I can't see any good coming from that, other than opening a can of worms (they never talk about the fact that my mom 'fell away' from the 'truth'). I asked my mom, can you imagine changing what you believe at the drop of a hat just because what some people in Brooklyn say? I mean, I could consider the new idea, but I have my own brain and I can examine whether the new idea is better or more logical than the older one. My mom then told me her experience of when she was studying to be a JW, and that when she was a study she could freely question anything, and decide for herself if it is the truth, but after she was baptized, that no longer applied.
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  JohanHenze11

  One is always warned to do not go ahead of Jehovah , here is the opputunity to go ahead of Jehoavh before it becomes official in the WT magazine ! Here is an opportunity to shake their foundation and a reason to love the net thing even more so we are ahead of the rank and file witnesses !
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  nugget

  new light equals new nonsense. I toild my mum that the new member of the GB was the same age as me. She stated he couldn't really be a member of the anointed and God would sort it out. I said well mum that may be the case but in the mean time he is part of the elite who will tell JWs what to believe and how to behave. You will have to follow him regardless of what you think. Also other people who supposedly have a close relationship with God picked him and saw no problem with it. Why would God tell them to do that or perhaps they misheard.
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  EmptyInside

  Good points here to share with Witness family,to get them thinking a little bit. I told my mother briefly about the new information. She said it made perfect sense,without going into details or scriptural references. Most Witnesses never fully understand old light,so when "new" light comes around,they are happy to except it.
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  breakfast of champions

  Sunday I had a talk with my wife about what the "new light" at the AM could possibly be (I already knew, of course) She just said she really never paid attention to any of that stuff, and I told her That's exactly what they're counting on.

  Anyway, she was with the FS group yesterday and the topic comes up as one of the sisters got an email about the meeting. I think she's wondering how the hell my "guess" was SOOOO dead on! I explained to her if you paid close attention to what has been written in the WT over the past few years, they were really priming everyone for the change. So she says It really makes more sense this way. . . I said Sure it does, but the thing that doesn't make sense is how for A HUNDRED YEARS THEY COULD NOT CORRECTLY UNDERSTAND A PROPHECY ABOUT THEMSELVES! She had to agree that was absurd.

  Here's the interesting part, though. I said I think there's going to be a whole bunch of whacky changes coming down the pike e.g. scrap 144000 being a literal number. She said There's no way they can so that, that would upset too many people! I said Maybe, but you'd be surprised. I then told her about the Hale Bopp folks who returned a $3K telescope to the store because it was defective. Why? Because they couldn't see the UFO trailing behind the comet.

  I said Belief is powerful. You'd be surprised what people will swallow when their whole worldview is at stake.

  I know she's thinking about things now. . . .
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  King Solomon

  BOC, good point about WTBTS feeding the new light unofficially for a long period of time, then finally officially announcing the policy and the R&F's reaction is, "well THAT makes sense!" exactly because that WAS the answer they had been provided for all those years prior!

  It's just a slight permutation of the manner in which the WT magazine provides both the question AND the answer in study articles, so the JW only need 'hunt and peck' like a chicken to find the answer within the paragraph. Only in this case, the GB provided the answer repeatedly years before they actually asked the question, and when they finally "asked", the well-trained JW was patting themselves on the head, proud that they already knew the answer before it was provided (like they were really smart, or in-tune with the moves the GB makes, yet not smart enough to see the strategy).

  Pretty insidious strategy, actually, although not surprising: JWs wants people who are smart, but not too smart (which reminds me of the guy who was denied a job as a cop, after being told that he was "too smart to be a cop")