by kneehighmiah 57 Replies latest jw friends
I still think the end of this organization will be like the end of the Soviet empire - not because the common Russian rebelled but because the leadership didn't believe in it anymore and they ran out of money.
Have we reached the point where we can consider that, perhaps, they no longer care what happens to their organizational-idol and they just liquidate?
metatron
Something has got to give. No organisational structure can support that amount of BS indefinitely.
It's a case of adapt or die for the The Bible Students, The Society, WBTS, jwborg or whatever it morphs into next.
Maybe they will go all PAGAN- People Against Goodness And Normalcy.
I live near a "died out" cult's headquarters, the Koreshans. Back at the turn of the century, they wee a powerful little group in my county. They had a few hundred people, and my county was very rural back then. They believed that when we looked at the heavens, we are really looking into the center of the earth. Science started to come out, disprove this theory, and more people left it. Finally, there was just an old lady who still beleived in this. They finally showed her a picture of the EArth from the moon. She then said, "Oh, we were wrong." Anyway, they all died out and their land was gifted to the State of Florida. The State kept the grounds, buildings/commune. You can now tour it, have a nice picnic. I like to go there. I dream of the day the last standing JW says, "Oh, we were wrong."
Unfortunately, if that was the Watchtower's doctrine, then after satellite photos started being taken, they would have announced the new light that "the skies are only symbolically the center of the earth". The Society can stay ahead of almost anything that happens as long as the rank and file are eager to keep believing in them.
Interesting, what we need is some discovery so powerful it smacks them in the face for a good wake up. I do love change. They will be gone eventually. We can accelerate there loss by freeing more people. Posting more information to wake people up. Anyway I am so glad for the internet, a major step forward for mankind.
WIT?
I'm not so sure. The Catholic church survived a similar cult like structure during the dark ages and subsequent centuries. Their survival was based on numerous makeovers and of course "miracles" and absorbtion of paganistic beliefs along the line . Much of their survival was dependent on changing their strict stance on many issues. Since the WTBTS is structured along similar lines, I'm betting they are going to dum down their bigotry when the going gets tough just to survive. Like the Catholic church they will begin to "evolve" a strategy to encourage their folowers to stay in. Jw's, largely, have a cult mind set .A few concessions here and there will win them over. Alternatively, a belief of theirs might coincide with a political reality - say a country or two banning religion -making it an exactitude which might do the trick. You can see from a recent post on the forum that congregations are lauding the new"donation" arrangement and fully believe that the FDS has their well being in mind.
WT will be here longer than anyone of you posters here. WT cults tends to live for centuries and they will adapt. JW has 7.5 millions of followers and suckers into that religion are drawn every minutes especially from developing world. WT will change its doctrines to entice newcomers, but will not go away. Neither A.H nor Stalin were able to supress it. People are drawn into cult with a prospect of martyrdom. WT will continue scare millions with a false warnings that Armageddon is about to happen to lure members. Amish communities survived industrialization and are around. Other American based extreme cults are here with much larger membershipt than WT. I do not see they close doors before 2034.
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I too think their demise will be slow, I would love to be around when it happens, but as I am an old grunter i doubt I will be.
Perhaps I can have "JW's I told you it was all bollocks" on my grave stone ?
If the Jonestown suicide did not happen, thier would still be followers around
If the heaven's gate followers had not committed sucide that belief would still be around.
People have a need to be met, this met some people's needs.
I think a mass suicide is about the only way to eradicate JW. ( maybe not even then) Otherwise they might reduce in numbers, but there will always be some "faithful" and some primed to convert around.
http://www.cnn.com/US/9803/25/heavens.gate/
Metatron, the Soviet Empire belief might just come back. Putin "longs" for the days. They invaded immediatly after the showy self display at the Olympics.
Many people have short memories. Many do not know, or care about history.
nonjwspouse - "I think a mass suicide is about the only way to eradicate JW."
I can't see the majority of the rank-and-file doing that, but the governing body, if they were faced with collapse?
Absolutely.
Without the WTS they would have nothing. They would BE nothing.
