"the Society teaches"

by somebody 26 Replies latest watchtower bible

• 

  galaxy7

  I wonder if the older JWs know there are new teachings, how do they keep track as the light changes every five minutes
• 

  blondie

  Galaxy 7, the older ones learn the new light from the same source as "young" ones. Very rarely, does the WTS discuss a clarification of doctrine in any publication other than the WT study article.

  What I noticed at the meetings, is that people said:

  "The paragraph says"

  "The magazine says"

  "The slave says"

  Never

  "the Bible says"
• 

  dustyb

  hah, you wanna know somethign funny?? When i used to work at Best Buy, instead of saying, "Best Buy offers a 3 year service plan", we said "We offer a 3 year service plan". it gives a bit of ownership to the person, but the person really doesn't own the company.....
• 

  cyber-sista

  The society says (or teaches) is an all too familiar term to me. I was in the middle of a situation in the congregation where I was attending and was forced to write "the society." The elders told me if I write a letter and the society says such in such then that will be the final word on the matter. They were confused and wanted to know what the society said or taught on the matter. When I received the answer to my letter, and shared it with a few who were in the middle of the situation they were in awe of my letter as they felt "it was a letter from Jehovah." (Looked like a form letter to me)
  

  Well to make a long story short, when I got the letter and the elders didn't like the answer I got (it supported my side of the story) and wrote the society a letter thinking I had not stated all the facts, and I was told later by one of them they received a letter and the society said: blah blah blah and it was now supporting their side of the issue, but I never got to see that letter. By that time I was so digusted by the stupidity of the whole thing and the whole elder abuse thing I didn't really care what the society had to say. I wrote a final letter to see if I could find out what their second letter to the elders was about, but the society never wrote back, so I will never really know now what the society said or teaches--in the end there was no definite answer or consistency to any of it--it was all about as clear as mud to me.
• 

  Room 215

  The 1998 WT that Somebody quotes is/was intended to ``coach" the dubbies into avoiding that ``the Society says" catchphrase when in the company of outsiders, or for any outside who actually reads the magazine thay may have been left with him/her by a JW going door to door.

  Its purpose is to perpetuate the myth that JWs are a free-thinking, logical lot, and that their beliefs are a result of personal conviction formed by an independent study of the Bible, that the beliefs they share with their brethren are a result of the compelling logic/rightness or ``truth" of whatever the particular JW belief is under discussion at the time, and NOT by coerced acceptance of ``what(ever) the Society says.".
• 

  galaxy7

  Around my house the favorite saying is

  you cant understand the bible without the aides of the society such as the watchtower, which is all we need as it feeds us spiritually
• 

  FirstInLine

  Yeah I remember my mom or the talk-giver reffering to the society or about asking the society and many time it hit me "who the f#$& is this society?"

  What really irks me though are these loaded questions in the Watchtower or Awakes like "Many people in Christendom think that xyz is actaully xyz but what does the BIBLE say? At Somedeadguy chapter 5 verse one-is-just-as-good-as-another we can clearly see that by removing the context xyz is actually abc. So we can truly rejoice in the truth that the truth has truthfully provided."
• 

  darkuncle29

  At Somedeadguy chapter 5 verse one-is-just-as-good-as-another we can clearly see that by removing the context xyz is actually abc. So we can truly rejoice in the truth that the truth has truthfully provided."

  Very funny Dude!
• 

  Uzzah

  What the Society teaches takes priority over even what the Bible says. The Society will twist and distort scripture according to the point they are trying to make. Since the Bible doesn't cover most of modern life, the Society happily fills in where the Bible leaves off.

  Take blood transfusions as an example. The Bible only says abstain from blood and even that there is some question as to whether the injunction was just regarding the eating of blood not necessarily about life saving medical treatment. (God apparently forgave David's men for not bleeding an animal properly yet to save one's life with blood you are eternally condemned unless 3 men forgive you).

  But look at the convoluted mess now regarding blood and medicine. You need a weekly newsletter to keep up with the policy changes. When it comes to this issue it has nothing to do with what the Bible says it is entirely "What is the current understanding" or "What does the most recent Watchtower teach us?"

  But no, this isn't a high control religion at all. (sarcasm intended)

  With almost any issue affecting modern life, I'd challenge any active Witness to challenge an elder, 'But Bro Elder, where does the Bible teach that?" At best they could point to a loosely applied scriptural principle, often from the Old Testament which they themself teach doesn't apply to modern Christians.

  Uzzah - Fatigued, pissed and ready to steady some arks again
• 

  itsallgoodnow

  Yup. We don't want to give the impression we are in a cult sect. But try to teach something outside the "dictates" of the society, and see what happens... not pretty.