JW_Researcher

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Posts by JW_Researcher

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  21

  Do you agree with this statement?

  by JW_Researcher in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  do you agree with this statement?

  "leaders (called elders) of a given congregation are selected from within and there is routine and frequent turnover.".

  from: stark, rodney & iannaccone, laurence.

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  JW_Researcher

  the only thing I could think he means is the foreign speaking congs where there is such a short supply of elders and servants that even newly baptized ones have the chance to progress up the wts ladder

  The short supply of Elders is somewhat addressed also:

  Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Witnesses no longer operate underground there. Table 3 shows their growth in the nations of the former Soviet Union since 1990-they have been growing at the remarkable rate of about 30% per year. The Yearbook (1996: 51) reports that there was only one congregation in Moscow in 1990, compared with 40 in 1995. Moreover, these congregations are far larger than the Witnesses prefer, as the Yearbook
  explained "almost all of these could be divided into 2 or 3 congregations if more elders were available". The Yearbook noted that in Murmansk, a congregation having 800 publishers cannot be divided "because there is only one elder". This is because no one else has been a member for more than a year and the Witnesses are reluctant to place leadership responsibilities on someone with so little experience.
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  21

  Do you agree with this statement?

  by JW_Researcher in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  do you agree with this statement?

  "leaders (called elders) of a given congregation are selected from within and there is routine and frequent turnover.".

  from: stark, rodney & iannaccone, laurence.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
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  JW_Researcher

  This looks very much like the etic view of an outsider who does not fully understand or represent the emic experience of those who constitute the group under investigation. The impression he gives is that one can join with an expectation of eventually becoming an elder at least for a while because of the frequent turnover in leadership positions.

  There are a number of other "slightly off" observations that mark the researchers as outsiders.

  It is in the support of a theory they posited in an earlier article that the leadership question emerges.

  This study is the researchers applying their earlier theory to the JWs.
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  21

  Do you agree with this statement?

  by JW_Researcher in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  do you agree with this statement?

  "leaders (called elders) of a given congregation are selected from within and there is routine and frequent turnover.".

  from: stark, rodney & iannaccone, laurence.

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
• 

  JW_Researcher

  Do you agree with this statement?

  "Leaders (called elders) of a given congregation are selected from within and there is routine and frequent turnover."

  From: Stark, Rodney & Iannaccone, Laurence. (1997). “Why the Jehovah’s Witnesses Grow so Rapidly: A Theoretical application.” Journal of Contemporary Religion. 12:p.133-157

  I've been in a number of congregations and I wouldn't say elder turnover was "routine" or even "frequent."

  I'm interested in your thoughts on this.

  Please and thank you.
• 
  9

  Looking for newest Watchtower CD Rom

  by AK - Jeff in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i know that reexamine has it for download, but the site is down.

  any other ideas?.

  jeff .

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  JW_Researcher

  Is the "newest" still 2005?
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  5

  The Evocative Religion of Jehovah's Witnesses (Alfs)

  by JW_Researcher in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  will do look-ups and scans in:

  alfs, matthew the evocative religion of jehovah's witnesses: an anlysis of a present day phenomenon.

  minneapolis, mn: old theology book house, 1991.

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  JW_Researcher

  Book review of Alf from Journal of Church & State; Autumn92, Vol. 34 Issue 4, p883, 2/3p
  
  The Evocative Religion of Jehovah's Witnesses: An Analysis of a Present-Day Phenomenon. By Matthew Alfs. Minneapolis, Minn.: Old Theology Book House, 1991. 518 pp. $27.95.

  This short work (half consists of notes, references, and asides) deals with the major theological and secular beliefs of the Jehovah's Witnesses within a historical perspective. The author summarizes selected court cases involving Witnesses and describes various persecutions in the U.S., Nazi Germany, and elsewhere. He "mainstreams" the group by stressing its positive elements, often from Witness publications, and is uninformed in sociological and psychological theories. Nor is there any indication that the author talked to Witnesses or attended their services. The discussions of theological beliefs are extensive, though they are based on selective, often old publications. The more embarrassing theological beliefs and prophetic failures are ignored. There is no mention of the stress in recent years on obedience to anonymous and self-selected leaders, nor of the group's schisms and apostasies. While the Witnesses have many admirable qualities, the author strives to ignore any negative information. Nor does he mention the structure of the organization. There is no discussion of members' activities, membership designations, or who joins or leaves. Jehovah's Witnesses have grown 40 percent in the U.S. during the last decade, and almost doubled overseas. Yet there is little analysis of these trends. The group remains relatively small with 893,000 members in the United States and 4,279,000 elsewhere. ~~~~~~~~ By JON P. ALSTON, Texas A&M University College Station, Texas
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  17

  Focus Groups and Interviews of Jehovah's Witnesses

  by JW_Researcher in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  the following quote is found in a ph.d. dissertation that purports to have secured permission from the congregational overseer to conduct interviews and focus groups with congregation members.

  this research was conducted in the usa.

  this never would have happened in any of the halls i attended.

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  JW_Researcher

  And, as stated, I'm sure he only provided access to firmly entrenched believers.

  Karen

  There wasn't a bad comment from the publishers to be found. Surprised? J
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  17

  Focus Groups and Interviews of Jehovah's Witnesses

  by JW_Researcher in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  the following quote is found in a ph.d. dissertation that purports to have secured permission from the congregational overseer to conduct interviews and focus groups with congregation members.

  this research was conducted in the usa.

  this never would have happened in any of the halls i attended.

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  JW_Researcher

  Can you post the whole dissertation? Would be interesting. I don't think a doctoral dissertation would in any way resemble a puff piece.
  
  S4

  You are correct that it is, in fact, a scholarly work. If you are interested in the dissertation, please PM me and we can make arrangements. It is in PDF and is 9.5 MB.
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  17

  Focus Groups and Interviews of Jehovah's Witnesses

  by JW_Researcher in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  the following quote is found in a ph.d. dissertation that purports to have secured permission from the congregational overseer to conduct interviews and focus groups with congregation members.

  this research was conducted in the usa.

  this never would have happened in any of the halls i attended.

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  3. 
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  JW_Researcher

  RunningMan wrote: The whole thing looks like he is being set up by the congregation to write a puff piece about them.

  The data collection definitely looks fishy. It is not a "puff piece" really...it is a scholarly work...I just was intrigued by the data collection methods, which as I wrote, didn't match my experience.

  Also the naiveté of someone to use 'I was invited to the Memorial' as a sign of acceptance.
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  17

  Focus Groups and Interviews of Jehovah's Witnesses

  by JW_Researcher in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  the following quote is found in a ph.d. dissertation that purports to have secured permission from the congregational overseer to conduct interviews and focus groups with congregation members.

  this research was conducted in the usa.

  this never would have happened in any of the halls i attended.

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  2. 
  3. 
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  JW_Researcher

  Thank you for posting this.

  The dissertation was in 1995 so these directives were after that date. However, the directives certainly mirror what was my individual experience in the different congregations I attended and Bethel.

  Do you think the claim 'the fact that they invited me to the Memorial shows I was accepted' has much merit?

  We often invited any interested or marginally interested individuals.
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  17

  Focus Groups and Interviews of Jehovah's Witnesses

  by JW_Researcher in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  the following quote is found in a ph.d. dissertation that purports to have secured permission from the congregational overseer to conduct interviews and focus groups with congregation members.

  this research was conducted in the usa.

  this never would have happened in any of the halls i attended.

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  JW_Researcher

  Wasn't there a directive against that?

  Thanks for the idea.

  I will check the BOE letters to see if this was ever addressed. I know Czatt was called an 'agent of Satan' or something for trying to secure surveys in the 1930s or so.