it is with great interest that i recently read ceders article on the decline of the wts.
his article along with many of the comments really drives home just how many major changes there have been in a fairly short peroid of time.. somewhere in the recent past i could swear that someone had posted a bullet list of major changes with the corresponding year.
when i saw this (or something like it) my first thought was that this simple list made it all the more shocking; and since i have searched and cannot find anything like it.. so i dug around and started one of my own, please feel free to add/corrects events.
Tornapart asked,
Shutting down Branch offices?
Yes, there have been at least a couple of threads on that. Several branches around the world have either closed or will be soon.
http://www.jehovahs-witness.net/jw/experiences/224627/1/New-Zealand-bethel-is-to-be-closed-down
i just commented on another thread about the 144000 and thought it deserved a thread of it`s own seeing how important their appointment is .. those who are selected to rule with christ jesus in heaven are given immortality.
if you or i were selected to survive armaggedon we would not be given immortality , so obviously they are considered a cut above the rest of humanity.. so my question is ,why doesnt jehovah`s spirit directed organization on earth give these people the respect and dignity that jehovah god is going to bestow on them in the future , while they are yet present on earth , instead of ignoring them , and treating them as a lesser class of person than a pioneer ,ministerial servant, or elder.. and suggesting they may be influenced by prior beleifs or have mental problems doesnt say much for their bible education instruction , after all these are dedicated baptized publishers who are counted as the annointed remnant.. smiddy.
...Ceryainly a circuit overseer would know the names so why not the organisation.
They could know if they wanted to, but they don't, possibly because it's an embarrassment to the Society. Since we are 'so deep into the last days of this old system' the number of partakers should be going down, not up. The only explanation offered for this is that some partakers are either being inflluenced by their previous religious beliefs, or they are mentally or emotionally imbalanced, and are mistaken that they are of the anointed.
This sounds more like a rationalization to prop up a broken belief system than an a proper explanation. Keeping track of the partakers wouldn't mean much if no one knows for sure who is really of the anointed, and who is mistaken.
At one time Witnesses said it was easy to know if you had the heavenly calling, that is was as clear as knowing if you were a man or a woman. How could anyone be confused about that? The increased numbers of partakers seems to show that it's either not so simple to know, or the whole doctrinal teaching of the 144,000 is wrong.
What is the Society's way of dealing with this problem? Simply saying 'we have no reason to keep a list of the anointed.'
i just commented on another thread about the 144000 and thought it deserved a thread of it`s own seeing how important their appointment is .. those who are selected to rule with christ jesus in heaven are given immortality.
if you or i were selected to survive armaggedon we would not be given immortality , so obviously they are considered a cut above the rest of humanity.. so my question is ,why doesnt jehovah`s spirit directed organization on earth give these people the respect and dignity that jehovah god is going to bestow on them in the future , while they are yet present on earth , instead of ignoring them , and treating them as a lesser class of person than a pioneer ,ministerial servant, or elder.. and suggesting they may be influenced by prior beleifs or have mental problems doesnt say much for their bible education instruction , after all these are dedicated baptized publishers who are counted as the annointed remnant.. smiddy.
Smiddy,
You make a good point about the Society not knowing who the anointed on earth are. The Organization knows who the pioneeers are, and the ministerial servants, the elders, COs, DOs, special pioneers, missionaries, etc. But the anointed, the ones that will rule side by side with Jesus Christ, who are of an elite group comprised of only 144,000, only a few thousand of which are still on earth, are not kept track of.
It makes you wonder about what is really important to the Society.
Here is the Watchtower that makes the remark,
(W 8-15-11 p22)
"Memorial partakers. This is the number of baptized individuals who partake of the emblems at the Memorial worldwide. Does this total represent the number of anointed ones on earth? Not necessarily. A number of factors - including past religious beliefs or even mental or emotional imbalance - might cause some to assume mistakenly that they have the heavenly calling. We thus have no way of knowing the exact number of anointed ones on earth; nor do we need to know. The Governing Body does not keep a list of all partakers, for it does not maintain a global network of anointed ones."
The Notebook (James Garner and Gena Rowlands)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nkdxuce7leq&list=fl868j_zisuing3g1hj8rtjw&index=2&feature=plpp_video.
if i had such interest in me i may have stayed a witness!.
Henry's reaction was amazing. After listening to the music he spoke clearly, and sang. I was very surprised at the result.
Great news. There are more of the 144,000 left than ever before!
However, the number use to be in decline, which the Society said was proof that we are in the last days. Hers's the quote,
(W 1-15-2000 p13) Subheading, Six convincing lines of evidence [that we are in the last days]…
"Sixth, the number of genuine anointed disciples of Christ is dwindling, though some will evidently still be on earth when the great tribulation begins. Most of the remnant are quite elderly, and over the years the number of those who are truly anointed has been getting smaller.”
But today the number of partakers is on the increase. Here are the numbers.
Yr Partakers
2000 - 8661
2001 - 8730
2002 - 8760
2003 - 8565
2004 - 8570
2005 - 8524
2006 - 8758
2007 - 9105
2008 - 9986
2009 - 10857
2010 - 11202
2011 - 11824
This presents a slight problem for Watchtower. How do they explain this reversal? By suggesting that some partakers are nuts.
(W 8-15-11 p22)
"Memorial partakers. This is the number of baptized individuals who partake of the emblems at the Memorial worldwide. Does this total represent the number of anointed ones on earth? Not necessarily. A number of factors - including past religious beliefs or even mental or emotional imbalance - might cause some to assume mistakenly that they have the heavenly calling. We thus have no way of knowing the exact number of anointed ones on earth; nor do we need to know. The Governing Body does not keep a list of all partakers, for it does not maintain a global network of anointed ones."
it is with great interest that i recently read ceders article on the decline of the wts.
his article along with many of the comments really drives home just how many major changes there have been in a fairly short peroid of time.. somewhere in the recent past i could swear that someone had posted a bullet list of major changes with the corresponding year.
when i saw this (or something like it) my first thought was that this simple list made it all the more shocking; and since i have searched and cannot find anything like it.. so i dug around and started one of my own, please feel free to add/corrects events.
If they were truly chosen of God, why all this dwindling over the years?
You're not looking at it right. Here's how it works.
When there is a growth in numbers, an increase in pioneers and publishers, more KHs being built, more printing presses being bought, and more literature being printed for distrubution to the public, and expansion everywhere, what does it prove?
That Jehovah is moving his organization forward!
But when there is a decline in rate of growth, KHs being sold and congregations merged, Branch property being sold off, a reduction in printed literature, and cost cutting moves being made everywhere, what does it prove?
That Jehovah is moving his organization forward!
Does it make sense now?
- Jack Nicholson character in 'The Shining' (Heeeere's Johnny!)
- Anton Chigurh (the hitman in 'No Country for Old Men')
check it out..
It's being broadcast on the West Coast right now on CBS. Started at 10 PM.
