Bethel Meeting at Regional Convention

by MrTheocratic 52 Replies latest jw experiences

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  OnTheWayOut

  I wonder how many were there because their parents "encouraged" them to attend?

  Male bethelites can have their pick of the hot witness chicks.

  There you go. High School seniors and recent grads are told to go to the meeting. Some other young ones go because they had no help from JW mom and dad to go to college and they are expected to pioneer and work at the shoe store, so they would rather go to Bethel. Perhaps, to see the world and perhaps, to get away from mom and dad.

  And the number one reason: They aren't having any Watchtower approved sex and they don't see too many financial boosts in their near future, and they really want to have sex. They might as well become Bethel boys and get the hot girls whose parents will even approve of them. Heck, they may be total losers in their congregation with no hope of ever making MS, but then they can become like rock stars.
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  Gayle

  I find that encouraging, primarily, because I would guess a good percentage (50%?) will leave the organization in time.
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  the girl next door

  Bethel meetings are always well attended because it foots the bill of making appearance for appearance's sake. If you don't attend you must be sinning and are a spiritual reject. It will cramp your opportunities to impress the opposite sex and their parents.

  This is nothing new or shocking or surprising to me. Less than .01% in attendance will actually end up in Bethel.
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  steve2

  Attending a Bethel meeting is one thing. Actually applying for a placement in Bethel is something else altogether. After all, you attended and presumably did not intend to apply. These sorts of meetings are important ones to be seen to be attending.

  A more salient indicator of the "state" of the organization is baptism numbers. How many attend your regional convention and how many were baptized?
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  sparrowdown

  Turning up at a bethel meeting and being selected to go to bethel are two very different things. The first is something you do to appear righteous at a convention the second only happens to a select few with the right theocratic resume and family connections. Most likely none of the ones who attended the meeting will ever see the inside of bethel other than a via a tour.
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  pepperheart

  how many people work at bethel etc in new york now, i have heard about a 1000 so in due time they will need people to replace the ones who leave or die just to keep the wheels turning
  
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  done4good

  As others have said, this means nothing, politics aside even...

  Much of the formalisms and rituals, (such as the Bethel rah-rah meeting), are designed to do just that, serve the purpose as nothing more than a pep rally. Any energy realized from this is short lived.

  The younger ones that are seriously pursuing such a career are only doing so because they have no other viable options. No education, no career, so they think they may want to try to go to Bethel, (not much unlike many who join the military as enlisted for the same reason).

  d4g
  
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  sir82

  Interesting.

  What would you say was the approximate age of the attendees? Used to be, you had to be at least 18 or 19 to even attend that meeting; nowadays I think they open it up to any age.

  I'm curious as to what proportion of those there were teens or even pre-teens. As others have intimated, a lot of the attendance could be due to pressure from parents.
  
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  Sofia Lose

  Religion as a whole is not going anywhere. As a religion, the WBTS will continue to evolve with the times and whoever it appeals to will remain, some test leave may return. That is the inevitable 'truth'.

  SL
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  Half banana

  “Even the Bethel speaker was in amazement and said the future was in good hands”

  It sounds like the Bethel speaker was fully aware things are not hunky dory in Dubland and was amazed that so many idle conventioners should bother to turn up.

  Another thing; I thought there was to be no “future” to worry about since Armageddon is almost on top of us... why bother with Bethel! Whilst dictating to the faithful about the imminence of the end, the only future the org thinks of is in saving its own skin from financial extinction.