by steve2 48 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
The new corporation motto must be: let the publications and the WT website do the talking
Brokeback, I know I harp on the commonality between WTS and multilevel marketing schemes, but this is ANOTHER example. When you're in Prepaid Legal or one of these junk pyramid schemes, you're told to let the tools do the work. The videos, the fliers, your upline, whatever. It doesn't seem to be any different amongst JWs.
Phizzy - "...standing by a cart and not having the skills to sell the religion will not make converts..."
I think by now, they're more concerned with keeping the members they've still got.
dozy - "...the Society really actively discourages any kind of meaningful research...."
Let's be honest.
The Society doesn't really encourage any kind of meaningful anything... :smirk:
Rutherford lambasted the churches of Christendom for leaving their members in appalling Scriptural ignorance and it was he who started the 'let's ridicule the churches' work that led to many JWs at least reading up on, if not studying, the rationale of their own beliefs.
Whilst you can still catch vestiges in the publications of making fun of Christendom (they've toned that down in accord with the more politically correct times in which we live), the average Witnesses own Scriptural ignorance would nowadays easily match that of the nominal members churches of Christendom.
The more things change, the more they remain the same.
Soon they'll have JWs at the door playing phonographs of Rutherford videos of Splane explaining 1914 and 1925 overlapping generations...
Religion is dieing to some sort. Aethism is quickly becoming the most popular religion.
Atheism is a religion like abstinence is a sex position.
I also don't completely buy it that religion is "dying". There are many religious and spiritual people in the world, and there are many spiritualists in the world who are open to belief in ghosts and such without a strong religious commitment. For every Dawkins and Sam "End of Faith" Harris and Aron-Ra, there is someone like Joel Osteen and Deepak Chopra writing bestsellers. With so much trauma today, it is inevitable that many people find comfort in some religious belief.
I also don't completely buy it that religion is "dying"
Population census data from Western democratic countries such as Australia, the UK and New Zealand consistently show that the proportions of the population indicating No religious affiliation or "Athiesm" have grown the fastest in more recent decades. Yes, none of this precludes people have a "spiritual" outlook - but really we are playing with words not religious and/or spiritual movements.
While "megachurches" (especially of the Pentecostal variety) thrive in many communities within Western democracies - they are relatively small as a proportion of the population, and JWs smaller still.
What makes it appear as though religious movements are dominating is their "voice" in media compared to non-religious voices.
