by Pete Zahut 24 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
Villagegirl says .....
Its same sort elitism the atheists think they have on this site.
"We are in possession of the true knowledge, not like you scum."
I find that statement to be very disingenuously untrue.
Most atheists such as myself are also humanists, we do care about exposing human ignorance though
and deviously corrupt people who claim extraordinary claims to self empower themselves and exploit the insecurities and ignorance of others to their advantage..
They are not all about how much money they can make. They are more about how much they can keep you from having. Otherwise, why do they insist on no education (even though it is needed to get a decent job)? Why else do they keep their doctrines snaking across people's careers like electric lines snaking across a street in a windstorm? Why do they put boasting sessions and field circus in people's way toward getting more money? If it was just about making money, they would want people to make more and donate more.
Ultimately, it profits them (and joke-hova) more to have people poor than for themselves to get rich. Making it "sinful" to have material things, highlighting only negative things about making money, and having people cut way back on work are all blatant signs that they merely want people to be poor. And this perennial debt--forever paying for nothing--that is another soul programming tool that it is wrong to have money, not just a way to get more themselves. Gone are the days when they at least got new buildings every few years--now they will be paying for new buildings while being stuck with dumps that further stifle the soul. Which is what they really want.
They want us to have the "slave mentality" so that whatever comes to our economy, we'll fit right in.
Disfellowshipping allows them to eliminate anyone who could possibly introduce "independent thinking" into the congregation. If they allowed their members to do their own thing without any consequences, membership (and contributions) would eventually plummet.
Good question.
It's related to purpose. Purpose + Money.
WT wants money by accomplishing their purpose.
Their purpose is to control, micro management of 7mi of people around the world. And they want money doing that because it's their purpose.
Your question is the same of "Why Google does not make food?" or "Why McDonalds does not make software?".
They could turn the WT in a big fast food company if you think just in money. But they don't want to abandon their purpose in first place.
WT purpose: Listen Obey and Be Blessed. Control, control, control....
It also helps that they frequently publish that the #1 cause of people getting DF'd is sexual imorality. So they DF people who are known fornicators, then they DF people who wake up to TTATT, and they give exactly the same announcement for both. The natural assumption to the R/F when a well-known intelligent member with a happy family gets DF'd (for apostacy, because they woke up to the lie) is that he was DF'd because they cheated on their spouse. It makes the congregation band together against them, instictively love-bombing the spouse (if they remain in the congregation) and it makes it easy for them to shun them. If the spouse also leaves, it's explained as depression due to their cheating mate. If they didn't DF people for fornication, there wouldn't be this implicit label of fornicator/adulterer put on the appostates. I think that's a big factor.
As others have said, it's also much about control. If they have to lose a few members to strengthen their grip on the majority who remain, it's worth it. Forcing people to shun their former friends and family forces them to become more invested in the cult. If you've shunned your best friend for 20 years, and then someone challenges the teachings of the JWs, the thought that you shunned your friend for absolutely no reason is too much to bear, and you hold on to the false doctrines just so that you don't have to face the absolutely reprehensible things that you've done.
The organization is all about survival.
Everything else is secondary and takes place in the context of the above.
Your question is the same of "Why Google does not make food?" or "Why McDonalds does not make software?".
They could turn the WT in a big fast food company if you think just in money. But they don't want to abandon their purpose in first place.
WT purpose: Listen Obey and Be Blessed. Control, control, control....
Thanks for all your responses. I agree with the idea that they disfellowship so that they can intimidate or eliminate anyone who may disagree with them. The argument I'm getting is that their mission is to spread the "good news" and obey god's commandments. For the good of the greater number, they disfelloswhip in order to thwart anyone who may be trying to undermine their efforts in accomplishing that purpose much the same way McDonalds might fire someone who was publicaly promoting vegetarianism or speaking out publically or to their coworkers about how bad McDonalds food is.
Pete Zahut - "The argument I'm getting is that their mission is to spread the 'good news' and obey god's commandments. For the good of the greater number, they disfelloswhip in order to thwart anyone who may be trying to undermine their efforts in accomplishing that purpose much the same way McDonalds might fire someone who was publicaly promoting vegetarianism or speaking out publically or to their coworkers about how bad McDonalds food is."
Sorry to be the one to say this, but there's a flaw in your premise, in that it assumes altruism is the primary motivating force in the WTS...
...which is a fundamental mistake.
To use your own comparison; McDonald's is a business first and foremost; it disciplines workers who act inappropriately - not because it wants to altruistically feed the masses (if that were the case, it would give people food for free) - but because McDonald's employees who act inappropriately negatively impact McDonald's financial bottom line, which, in turn, ultimately threatens its survival.
Now, I will acknowledge that altruism does exist at the boots-on-the-ground level (to varying degrees) amongst JWs, but make no mistake; the WTS is - like McDonald's - a corporation.
They don't disfellowship in order to "thwart anyone who may be trying to undermine their efforts" to "spread the 'good news' and obey God's commandments" (no offense).
They disfellowship - ultimately - to protect their bottom line and ensure the Org's survival.
Then why would they be so insistent about Dfing people ? If it's money the Watchtower Org is after, it seems like they'd want to hold on to all the members they can.
This makes as much sense as wondering why Fidel Castro arrested and executed political critics, doesn't he want them to be out in the population working in order to collect taxes from them?
