A little experience that happened very recently:
Another brother, an elder, and I were talking, I was explaining to him and giving him several examples of how a couple of the elders in our congregation were blatantly trying to run their own show, parading themselves around as "representatives" of the body, when the other brothers didnt know what the hell they were talking about. They are using their "elder powers" to bully and push people around, causing a bit of angst and hurt feelings. I was bringing this to the attention of friend-elder, and asking him "why dont you all see and know what these guys are doing... don't you talk??" Anyways, the conversation got a little heated, as my frustration was continuing to build.
He said something along the lines of "well, Jack, I am not here to talk against the other members of the body..I wont do that..." Oh, ok, like you are all a little clique, a "special" team??? Whatever. Go ahead and ignore the obvious.
Then, THE QUESTION. It went like this:
"Jack, it is always important to remember that the brothers are imperfect. And this is Jehovah's organization. And no doubt you agree that this is the case. So Jack, you know that Jehovah sees and takes care of everything, and Jack don't you agree that Jehovah is directing his organization right here on earth through his FDS, the governing body, and the elders?" .....PAUSE.....
Now alot happened in the .82 seconds in that pause... Keep this in mind.. he was alone with me, so no second "witness" to the conversation. He wasnt "hunting" for a reason to string me up. I also realized that this question was not one that was thrown out there for any other reason other than a parroted group of words, right after the "all men are imperfect" phrase.
Two distinct possibilities here: Did he really want me to answer the question? Or was it just an inculcated mechanism ingrained to this elders brain to elicit a response from anyone "not of the same mind".? I think the latter.
So I didnt answer his question. I didnt wuss out, I just saw the situation for what it was. I quickly did the sidestep, explaining to him that this was not what I meant, but rather this and that and this..... His attention was diverted, and off we went on another tangent.
Honestly, I was a little taken aback by the question itself. Here is an elder, not really knowing what he is asking, and not really understanding how he will react if he gets an answer he is not prepared for. He is merely puppeting, or parroting words and phrases. The kicker is that if you provide the "wrong" answer to the question, you instantly trip a different switch in the mind of the Borg, all sorts of alarms and bells and whistles go off in his head, and all of a sudden things take a right hand turn down the road of "investigations" and "inquiries" into Brother Harper's spiritual condition, or lack thereof. Phone calls are made, emails are sent, and the body of elders is in a tizzy.
He also mentioned that our (Vic and I) lack of meeting and field service attendance had caused him quite a bit of concern lately, as surely there must be something going terribly wrong. I replied, " ummmm, no, in fact quite the contrary... we are really enjoying the peace and quiet, as well as the lack of DRAMA that goes on. There is NOTHING wrong with us! It sure is nice to not have the burden of dealing with the petty bickerings, gossip, and foolishness that goes on DAILY in the congregation. Wouldn't you agree that it would be nice to leave that behind, brother?"
He mumbled something, then complained of a headache, and it was getting late, and he hadn't eaten, and........ off he went.
Today's Lesson:
Be prepared for THE QUESTION, and how you will deal with it, answer it, or sidestep it. It WILL come up, and wether you are in, out, fading, or whatever, you all need to be ready with the reply that is appropriate for YOU.
Jack Harper, Tech49