Posts by willyloman

For a long time, I felt "reform" was the ticket. When a man I've known for many years was appointed to the GB, I wrote him a long, detailed 8-page letter which I labeled a report from the front lines; in it, I outlined a number of changes in congregational/meeting structure which I thought would be beneficial and that were based on private conversations I have had with many brothers and sisters including other elders. Before I mailed the letter I heard from a sister that this GB member had been the featured speaker at some special event on the other side of the continent and that in his closing remarks he had said a number of reactionary things clearly identifying him with the Neanderthal wing of the JW party. So I changed my mind; the letter remains filed away.

If you're interested, the plan was roughly this: Cut meeting schedule back to one night a week and encourage publishers to use the other night for personal study, meeting preparation, bible reading. The new one-night-a-week meeting would last for an hour so as to allow the friends plenty of time for socializing. The format: 40 minutes for a school with all talks focused on biblical topics and scriptures; 5-10 minutes for announcements; a service-related talk not to exceed 10 minutes. The book study, already dealt a mortal blow by spending 3 years in a verse by verse fantasy based on Isaiah, would be laid to rest.

The Sunday meeting would be shortened to one hour, with a 30-minute talk based solely on scriptural admonitions aimed at living a better Christian life, and a 15 minute summary of an the current WT article done in the form of a talk, convention style. The rest of the time would be devoted to announcements, song and prayer.

Do away with field service as a requirement, and replace it with a Saturday morning Meeting for Christian Service and Good Works. At this meeting, my (former) vision was an informal gathering where the elders would have 3x5 cards and would sit at a long folding table with signs indicating the various service "options." Friends could go to the appropriate "desk" and get an assignment. Options would include: Cleaning the KH interior; exterior yard work; visiting JWs who are ill (name, address, phone, map on the 3x5 card); visiting new members of the congregation and taking a 'welcome basket' to them; organizing and leading youth activities, such as softball, field trips, etc. The list was longer and included optional, voluntary evangelizing work loosely based on the present field service arrangement, but you get the idea. All of this "service" would be reported monthly without establishing any special credit to one form of service or another. The results would be shared with the congregation each month so people would know what was being accomplished.

I also included a total revamping of the entire judicial process, including a provision that an elder be appointed as "defense counsel" to accused persons; in the new scheme of things, no announcements would ever be made; discipline would be probationary and for short, specific periods of time, and would be limited to service restrictions; banishment, or DF, would be highly unusual and limited to heinous acts where the perpetrator was clearly unremorseful; such punishment would be subject to automatic review by a "higher court" of area elders who would be selected from among those with many years of experience and who would undergo specialized training.

Further suggestions included creation of a Relief Society, to be run by mature sisters who would care for the sick, depressed and destitute among us. Their work would be funded by the congregation, and these sisters would get professional training in mandatory seminars presented by professionals in the mental health, welfare and social services field.

A "youth ministry" would be established, in which qualified and well-screened volunteers would get special training and then advise youngsters on such topics as: Doing well in school; getting an education; playing on school sports teams without compromising Christian integrity; how to get in to a good college. Other topics would include identifying bad behavior on the part of abusive adults, including parents, and what to do about it.

Re-reading this, it all sounds pretty good, and there may be other suggestions that might be made. However, and this is the most important thing on this page, THIS IS ALL JUST A PIPE DREAM. It ain't gonna happen in our lifetime (unless you're, like, 12). Recognizing that, I have set this dream aside and moved on.

19

Armageddon's not coming / The Cubs aren't going to the World Series...

by logansrun in

jw
friends

.

...my life's been one pipe dream after another.. shocked, yet.............not.. bradley from chicago

willyloman

Dead rising from the grave, 40 days of darkness, dogs and cats, living together!

Phew! Close one.

19

Armageddon's not coming / The Cubs aren't going to the World Series...

by logansrun in

jw
friends

.

...my life's been one pipe dream after another.. shocked, yet.............not.. bradley from chicago

willyloman

He single-handedly held off Armageddon for at least another year, so the preaching work could continue. Think how many will be saved because of his courageous sacrifice.

Jackal: You're right, of course. I've missed several meetings to stay home and watch baseball with the result that my spirituality's suffered and my eyes of faith have blurred, otherwise I'd have seen this (smacks head).

36

Announcing that Elders are no longer Elders

by Spudinator in

in the past year or so a local congregation has had several announcements that "so-and-so is no longer serving as an elder.".

one of these elders has served in the watchtower organization since the 1940's.

one thing apparent is the "organization's" lack of recognition and/or appreciation for its own.

willyloman

Yes, it is part of their sad little culture that they can't even bring themselves to thank a guy (they should thank his wife and kids too!) for all the hard work.

I've seen this happen with pioneers, too. One stepped down because of an illness in the family that took a lot of her time and energy and led her to reluctantly give up her pioneer role. Night of the announcement, they give it to some elder who is very old and in poor health. He gets up, unfolds a piece of paper and sets it down in front of him, grips the sides of the lectern with his hands, and looks out at the audience for a very long time as if to compose himself. Then, in a monotone, he reads, "so-and-so has been deleted as a pioneer." Not a smile, not an expression of warmth or humanity, just the axe dropping, and then he walked away.

You could have heard a pin drop. Many of us knew of this poor sister's situation and felt sorry for her. This made it appear a sentence was being imposed by a harsh judge.

The next elder who took the stage paused momentarily and we fully expected him to offer some praise to this woman, but no, he went on with his part of the program.

Just one of many, many reasons I came to the conclusion this was all totally bogus.

22

Comments You Will Not Hear At The 10-19-03 WT Study

by blondie in

comments you will not hear at the 10-19-03 wt study

review comments will be in black and parentheses ()

wt quotes will be in

willyloman

a recent WT article that praised one German JWs decision to trade in his Mercedes for a Volkwagen

I remember it well; it also said the brother could have easily afforded a large mansion but decided to live in an apartment instead. Was it this article, or another, that concluded that an elder who bought a bigger home than he really needed should have his qualifications reviewed?

It was amusing to see this "strong counsel" go universally disregarded as the "friends" bought nice cars and bigger homes while the folks who followed this advice and decided to forego buying a house sat by and watched the price of homes (in the US) grow increasingly out of sight. Today, those brothers who ignored this advice 20 years ago have half a million in equity in their house and can actually contemplate retirement, while the poor bas***ds who simplified their lives by renting are being forced to try to find cheaper dwellings in their old age and haven't got a pot to pee in.

2

MYSTIC RIVER

by Funchback in

*this is not a spoiler.

feel free to read on*

i went and saw 'mystic river' yesterday (it's my day off!).

willyloman

Maybe it's my dub-trained aversion to violence, or maybe it's because I am a huge fan of the book and of author Dennis Lehane so I already knew the story and the suprise ending, but this movie made me really sad.

I feel it doesn't live up to the hype. It's depressing. The violence is on screen way too long. There are are no characters in this movie you can like or relate to. Penn's getting rave reviews for what in many instances is overacting. Robbins and Harden shine in supporting roles. Laura Linney, one of the best actresses working today, is wasted. Bacon phones in another role.

Buy the book instead. It is brilliant and takes the time to flesh out the characters so you understand what they did.

19

Armageddon's not coming / The Cubs aren't going to the World Series...

by logansrun in

jw
friends

.

...my life's been one pipe dream after another.. shocked, yet.............not.. bradley from chicago

willyloman

This theory of yours, about the Cubs being linked to Armageddon and Steve Bartman = the Antichrist? It makes sense. I mean, think about it. That Outus Interuptus in the stands? Supernatural!

63

Mind of a JW Pedophile--How Would You Answer (From Silentlambs)

by blondie in

the mind of a pedophile

the following is a recent email sent by a child molester

mr bowen, .

willyloman

Gamaliel: Very perceptive.

There are always two rules:

1. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

2. Consider the source.