Is the Watchtower hurting financially?

by truthseeker 58 Replies latest jw friends

• 

  aniron

  When they brought in the " no charge, contribution only" payment for literature here in Britain, I can't remember the year, even though I was Literature Servant at the time.

  It was put across to the brothers/sisters "When you get your books or mags put a contribution in the box provided at the back of the hall."

  Then this was followed up by a demonstration of placing the literature. Saying to householders "There's no charge, we just accept a contribution for them." Then you kept this money separate and put it in the box when you are next at Kingdom Hall.

  Hold on! I thought isn't this paying twice for the same item. First from the brother when he picks the literature up then when householder gives him money for it, that also goes in the box.

  I raised this point with the PO and Service overseer, who looked at me blankly, then it dawned on them. "Well thats the way the organisation wants to do it, so we do it that way." I said the brothers won't buy it.

  Sure enough when I was taking payment for Literature (books, brochures etc) I could take about between £100-£200 a month. After the change we were lucky to get a £100 in a month. Brothers were even order things like De-luxe Bibles, Insight volumes, videos, etc. Of course they were at "no charge" and I'm damned sure the money never went into the box.
• 

  DannyHaszard

  

  click me i made these signs 1996
• 

  144001

  They've been poor-mouthing the flock ever since I was a kid forced to go to meetings, more than a quarter century ago. Think about it. They don't pay taxes, and, for the most part, they don't pay salaries. Financial problems? I doubt it. But representing themselves as having financial problems is a good way to spike contributions for the month, right?
• 

  by grace

  The BS Society says, "I am not a crook."
• 

  Sunspot

  I've often admitted that I'm not the brightest bulb in the box, especially when it comes to some basically simple concepts.

  One of which is the "literature arrangement" that has been mentioned. I was one of those trusting souls that never questioned the workings ala WTS all the time I was in it. I was also one that had a coin purse that was kept in my well-stocked service bag, and the money collected from placements always went straight into the contribution box. (Never stopping to think that *I* had already paid for it)

  It wasn't until I saw the documents on the Jimmy Swaggart case---and the fact that the WTS and the Hari Krishna had joined forces as "friends of the court" to fight against taxation on religious goods. I could NOT believe it!!! Not only the rubbing of elbows with false (GASP) religionists, but then changing to the donation arrangement (gag), which was the the REAL REASON for implementing that!

  The Swaggart "business" was MY "U.N." that I found so disturbing. The UN thing didn't come out until a few years later, after I had left the WTS.

  How devious and downright sneaky---to keep all this under wraps from the R & F who supports them!!!!! GRRRR.......

  .......Which leads me to wonder, WHY didn't most of us connect the dots to see what the WTS was doing to us???

  Annie
• 

  luna2

  I remember when they changed to the donation arrangement, Annie. It never ocurred to me to look for ulterior motives or secular reasons for it. I just was so grateful that I didn't have to outright ask for money any more. I was so happy to be able to report to my non-JW Mom (who had once offered to pay for the literature I placed herself so that I wouldn't be out there asking for money like some crummy magazine salesperson) that the brothers at Bethel, had seen new light. WhooHoo! Praise Jah! What a moron I was.

  I think there is a self-centered reasoning that goes on. Somehow, for all the years the society has been going d2d selling mags and books, Jah was too dang busy with more important things to worry about how mercenary it looked for his people to be peddling the truth. It was only in our, less primative era in the organizational timeline, that things like this were finally being addressed. Oh, the joy! The light is getting so bright our little eyes were nearly blinded by the brilliance.

  Sometimes I look back at the dub I was, smile sadly....and want to give her a big kick in the ass.
• 

  garybuss

  
  

  http://www.bibletopics.com/biblestudy/84a.htm
• 

  Miss_MG

  Maybe it is going into some pockets
• 

  zagor

  I wouldn’t be surprised a bit. That just show how naïve they were when they were strongly “encouraging” young ones not to attend colleges and universities. It also show how much smarter Mormons were in that regard, they even have their own universities.
  I mean what a hell do they now expect from manual laborers who are struggling to even feed their families let alone to support multi-billion dollars empire, I mean give me a break.
• 

  Mary

  Suggested contributions were given, $1.00 for a set of magazines, $20 for a DVD, $75 for a CD-ROM, etc.

  ROFLMFAO.........ya, I wouldn't want to hang from the end of a rope waiting for this to happen! When they switched to the "donation only" for the literature, even though I was a good Dub at the time, I thought it was a stupid idea. I know first hand how cheap Witnesses are and I knew then and there that it would be a fiasco. Were the GB really naive enough to think that people would pay twice for the literature when they could get it for free? Reminds me of that episode on The Simpsons when Homer takes Lisa to the Isis Exibit. There's a box that says "Suggested Donation" on it. Homer (naturally) laughs his ass off that anyone would be dumb enough to voluntarily pay for something when they can get it for free.

  While the Society apparently doesn't have quite as much cash on hands as what they used to, I don't believe they're really hurting that much. They've got tons of extremely valuable property all over the place, they pay Bethelites and missionaries next to nothing..........they're getting more and more like the TV evangelists who are always crying that the "need more" from the flock and how God will "bless you" if you give to them.

  And even if they were hurting for cash, too frigging bad. This religion basically forbade anyone from getting a good education so they could get a good paying job.......you've got cheese and cracker bros all over the planet who can barely make their rent, let alone give these turkeys anything.

  What idiots.