Why does the Society allow women to speak in the congregations?

by Badfish 29 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

  • Eustace
    Eustace

    So if you wrote a list of "crazy things" people do when drunk you would also include incest?

    If you're a guy and a female relative wants to have sex with you, unless you avoid getting drunk there isn't really much you can do...

    And if it happened, how would you even know?

  • biblecheck
    biblecheck

    ---> Eustace When you think about it, it was Lot's daughters who got him drunk with the intent to shag him.

    So really, they were the ones who were guilty of date rape. So really, they were the ones who were guilty of date rape.

    Wow there's a real theme of blaming women for the stupidity of men going on in this forum.

    First someone tries to convince us that "because Eve ate the fruit first" - so women are thus lower than men.

    And now we have someone blaming Lot's drunkedness and incestual behaviour on his daughters? LOL

  • biblecheck
    biblecheck

    ---> Eustace If you're a guy and a female relative wants to have sex with you, unless you avoid getting drunk there isn't really much you can do...

    And if it happened, how would you even know?

    Eustace you are either a virgin or an idiot.

  • Eustace
    Eustace

    Don't women often say they got drunk and woke up to find out they'd been date raped?

    I think you're playing into the sexist canard that only women can be victims of sex crimes.

  • Eustace
    Eustace

    Of course in most cases of non-consensual incest it's the male relative who is the victimizer, and in most cases it's the older relative who is the victimizer.

    I admit the bible tells a unusual tale of daughters date raping their own father, but nonetheless that's the story it tells.

    Stranger things have happened, I reckon.

  • CubanGringo
    CubanGringo

    Interesting question and one I've been pondering recently. I'd been reading some of the content related to Malawi and the organisation's determination to be 'no part of the world' (or, at least the organisation was happy for others to take the hard stance while they stood by and cheered.) The determination to take such a hard and literal stance seemed odd and inconsistent - I thought back to the sisters doing the 'convivial chat' routine and, while they could suggest we are but onlookers, the whole thing was designed to teach - brudders and sisters were supposed to pick up lessons and so there's no reason to play games with language: if you're up there on the stage and covering methods of improving the ministry then you are teaching. What the society was doing was playing loose with the intent of God.

    While I, like yourself, have never felt it's actually appropriate that this constraint is applied, like yourself: if it's in there and part of the inspired scripture base then the JWs really should take it as literally and apply as strongly as they do other scriptures.

  • freydo
    freydo

    tresdecu

    Post 539 of 542
    Since 5/2/2008

    Good Question! (based on that scripture you quote)

    I would say they are allowed to comment/give talks beacuse when they comment or act out a demo / talk they are technically not "teaching"...just commenting.

    It's funny, cause usually the sisters are smarter than the bros. anyway. :-) I remember being so nervous condicting Bk study when I was an MS because several of the sisters comments were better than any conducting / "teaching" I could do!

    A couple of things come to mind in terms of having a place.

    Children eg, are not above their parents - but some times it gets that way and then there is trouble.

    Second, if I have an inate talent for let's say art, but that talent is not developed and I wind up as a salesman, is the world a better place? It's not that certain abilities don't transfer. What I am saying is that when natural ability is misdirected the results are often at best unfortunate, and at worst disasterous. From a cultural standpoint, women naturally make better homemakers than firemen. They keep the culture stable in their natural role. And matriarchal societies are not known for longevity. It's not that Rosie can't rivet - but that's not what she was best designed for nor desires to be in her heart. I once heard that there's only one thing for a woman that's worse than being thought of as a sex object. It's not being thought of a a sex object.

    As a sidenote. When I was a kid I could hit a baseball. To my dying day I will believe that had our family not moved to the country that I would have played pro ball and been seriously good. I was ok good in other athletic areas, but not like baseball - and especially power hitting.

    ps- Most little girls don't desire to grow up to be accountants.

  • irondork
    irondork

    Adam was not deceived, but the woman was thoroughly deceived and came to be in transgression.

    If I was God trying to sort this out I would be much more inclined to forgive and promote the one who was decieved than the one who disobeyed me in full comprehension of his actions.

  • cobaltcupcake
    cobaltcupcake

    I used to ask that question too. The TMS was started to teach brothers how to speak so they could give public talks. They added sisters later on, and they have to give a demonstration rather than stand at a podium and teach the congregation.

    Giving comments - it always seemed to me that the scriptures were pretty clear that women shouldn't be making comments during a meeting, but I agree with the cherrypicking comment. It's Bible verse a la carte.

    Not that I agreed with the suppression of women's voices. My ex-husband used to let me speak quite freely at home and he considered himself a radical thinker in regards to women's place in the congregation. LOL!

  • blondie
    blondie

    Can speak if not teaching "in the congregation." Teaching potential male converts is okay, after all in the bible Priscilla helped teach Apollos...right?

    Married sisters have to go through to their husbands if they have a question, but single sisters can go directly to an elder...does that mean that elder is her head?

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