I was recently being ragged on my a jw friend and he was raggin on me for not goin to the meetings. He said I am foresaking the gathering of ourselves. I then said where in the bible does it say I must attend 5 meetings a week spread over 3 days? I said what if there were 20 meetings a week. He said there are not. I said the bible speaks of one day to worship, the sabbath. Anyone else have any ideas in this area?
Why 5 meetings a week?
by G Money 32 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
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AlmostAtheist
I said what if there were 20 meetings a week
Sweet! Of course when it comes to Bible backup, all they need is the Faithful and Discreet Slave scripture to excuse all that crap.
Dave
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blondie
Actually, there weren't 5 meetings a week, they evolved over time.
They didn't have weekly public talks until the 40's when the TMS started being developed to train the rank and file brothers to give talks. (the women weren't added until 1958 I think.)
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yb75 p. 199 United States of America (Part Three) ***Back in the 1940?s the Theocratic Ministry School soon produced many qualified brothers who could give public talks. Thus in January 1945 a worldwide public speaking campaign was inaugurated. Each speaker prepared his own discourse, but the Watch Tower Society ensured uniformity of presentation by selecting the subjects and furnishing one-page outlines for these hour talks. This public meeting campaign began with a series of eight talks, the first entitled "Will Man Succeed as a World-Builder?"
The Praise and Testimony meetings were replaced with the service meeting in 1932.
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jv chap. 16 pp. 246-247 Meetings for Worship, Instruction, and Encouragement ***The Bulletin, a folder containing information directly related to the field service, contained a brief testimony, then called a canvass, that was to be memorized and used when witnessing to people. During the greater part of 1923, at the first of each month, as a stimulus to united efforts to advertise the Kingdom, half of the Wednesday-night Prayer, Praise and Testimony Meeting was set aside for testimonies regarding the field service.
At least by 1926, monthly meetings where field service was discussed were called Workers? Meetings. Those who actually participated in such service were usually the ones that attended. At these meetings, methods being used to witness to others were discussed, and plans for future activity were made. By 1928 the Society was urging the congregations to have such meetings each week. In another four years, congregations were beginning to replace the Testimony (or, Declaration) Meeting with what had come to be called the Service Meeting, and the Society encouraged everyone to attend.
They didn't start studying the WT until 1922. Look at some old WT volumes and there is no study article and no questions.
They did have to equivalent of a book study, they studied Russell's books, Studies in the Scriptures.
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yb75 p. 44 United States of America (Part One) ***In those early days, "Dawn Circles" were held on Friday evenings. These Bible studies were so named because volumes of Millennial Dawn were used. Ralph H. Leffler recalls that Sunday evening usually was devoted to a Bible study or a discourse on the Scriptures. What was known as a "chart talk" might be given. What was this? He explains: "Under the front cover of Volume I of Studies in the Scriptures there was a long chart. . . . That chart was enlarged to the size of a banner . . . and could be purchased from the Bible House in Allegheny, Pennsylvania. That chart was hung on the wall in front of the audience for all to see as the speaker for the occasion went about explaining its many arches and pyramids. The chart was a graphic illustration of the main Bible events from man?s creation to the end of the millennium and the beginning of ?ages to come.? . . . We learned much about Bible history from these ?chart? talks. And they were delivered frequently."
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Outaservice
ASK YOUR FRIEND WHY HE DOSEN'T FOLLOW THE BIBLE EITHER. ASK HIM WHY HE DIDN'T GREET YOU WITH A HOLY KISS AS THE BIBLE ADMONISHES!
OUTASERVICE
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blondie
Here's the killjoy nonscriptural answer to "holy kiss" in the congregation. Why can woman give each other a kiss and people don't think they're lesbians, but if guys... I guess guys can hold hands in Africa.
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w90 8/1 p. 25 The Romans Get the Best of News ***Paul told the Romans to "greet one another with a holy kiss." However, he was not here establishing a new Christian custom or religious rite. In Paul?s day, a kiss on the forehead, lips, or hand was often given as a sign of greeting, affection, or respect. Hence, Paul was merely referring to a custom that was common in his day.?Romans 16:16.
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w93 10/15 p. 15 Finding the Key to Brotherly Affection ***In apostolic times Christians were wont to greet one another with "a holy kiss" or "a kiss of love." (Romans 16:16; 1 Peter 5:14) Truly an expression of brotherly affection! Today, in most parts of the earth, a more appropriate expression would be a sincerely friendly smile and a firm handshake. In Latin lands, such as Mexico, there is the greeting in the form of a hug, truly an expression of affection.
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w98 10/1 p. 19 Local Cultures and Christian Principles?Are They Compatible? ***STEPHEN, a Witness from Northern Europe, was assigned as a missionary to an African country. While strolling through town with a local brother, he was startled when the brother took hold of his hand.
The thought of walking down a busy street holding hands with another man was shocking to Stephen. In his culture such a custom has homosexual connotations. (Romans 1:27) Nevertheless, to the African brother, holding hands was purely a gesture of friendship. The rejection of the hand would signify a rejection of the friendship.
What if a custom does not please us? Should it automatically be rejected? Not necessarily. The custom of males holding hands, mentioned earlier, was perfectly acceptable in that particular African community. When the missionary noticed that other men were walking around holding hands, he felt more at ease.
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Evanescence
How can you possibly go to meetings five times a week?
I mean how long does meetings go for again? and to add on there is field ministries!
Evanescence
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Gill
Five meetings a weak is ESSENTIAL for them to keep control of your mind.
The minute you start to miss meetings their control on you starts to slip.
Then you gradually start to wake up from the nightmare that is being a JW.
I can see no other reason for them insisting that JWs attend every single meeting otherwise they are considered spiritually weak. It's just a mind control thing.
My advice - 'Run JWs and don't look back!'
When I hear my parents argue against the points on the WTBTS that I try to put to them, all that comes out of their mouths is literally regurgitated word for word from one WTBTS publication or another. They're both as thick as two short planks (sorry but I have to speak the truth on this issue) and the only way this material could be lodged in their dense heads is that they sat in a semi comatose state through countless meetngs their brains absorbing so much crap from the FDS! Then, if you hit a key phrase, they automatically spout WT doctrine. Funny to watch and listen too. Yet when you ask them to explain what they mean by that... now that's another story, they can't. And if you challenge them with stompers that you've learnt through your own studies of WT history and the bible they stand like robots that have had their power cut. No real reasoning goes on in their minds!
How I despise the WTBTS! And yet so many members are trapped in a semi comatose state and will NEVER escape until they die.
That's why 5 meetings a week are ESSENTIAL and all that crap studying and preaching. If you had the time to think, you just might start to wake up and smell the shit.
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ljwtiamb
There are more changes on the horizon! New light is a comin'!
Just as the wts has simplified, by a monthly Awake! magazine, fewer convention releases, new corporation arrangements, etc.
Believe me, new meeting arrangements are on the way! Then, the same faithful jw apologists will talk about how wise the fds is in providing such adjustments.
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steve2
I always thought there were five meetings a week because when this teaching first came "in", the GB brothers literally believed there were only five days in a week. After the teaching was implemented, some eager-beaver Witness asked, "why aren't there 7 meetings a week, after all there are 7 nights?" The GB suddenly realised there was a weekend as well. Too late!! But they got their own back by insisting that the brothers and sisters go door knocking in the weekend. That way, there literally was no weekend.
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Sirona
LOL @ steve2
This used to be my point aswell when I stopped attending. They'd say "you've left Jehovah" and I'd reply "No, I've stopped going to the hall, there is a big difference. Who says I have to attend a hall three times a week? Who says? " Then they'd spout the whole gathering yourselves together crap and I'd say "other churches also gather together, just once a week" LOL
Sirona