Think about the conventions of old. They were long, brutal and completely dominated by men who considered themselves good speakers. Why did they feel they had a right to command everyone to gather to these conventions? Consider the April 2012 Kingdom Minstery for the answer:
Our District Conventions
—Powerful Testimony to the Truth1 Ancient Israelites gathered three times a
year for seasonal festivals. Although only the
males were required to attend, often entire
families traveled to Jerusalem to enjoy these
happy conventions. (Deut. 16:15, 16) Such
events gave opportunity to reflect on and
discuss important spiritual truths. What are
some of these truths? One is that Jehovah is
a generous, loving Provider. (Deut. 15:4, 5)
Another is that he can be relied on for guidance
and protection. (Deut. 32:9, 10) Israelites
could also reflect on the fact that as a people
for Jehovah’s name, they must properly
reflect his righteousness. (Deut. 7:6, 11) Today
our annual district conventions benefit
us similarly.
^ This is incredibly eerie to me. The Watchtower treats their rank and file like they are from the ancient world. The festivals they are refering to are called the "Three Pilgrimage Festivals."
The Three Pilgrimage Festivals, known as the Shalosh Regalim (???? ?????), are three major festivals in Judaism — Pesach (Passover), Shavuot (Weeks), and Sukkot (Tents or Booths) — when the Israelites living in ancient Israel and Judea would make a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, as commanded by the Torah. In Jerusalem, they would participate in festivities and ritual worship in conjunction with the services of the kohanim ("priests") at the Temple in Jerusalem.
After the destruction of the Second Temple and until the building of the Third Temple, the actual pilgrimage is no longer obligatory upon Jews, and no longer takes place on a national scale. During synagogue services the related passages describing the holiday being observed are read aloud from a Torah scroll on the Bimah (platform) used at the center of the synagogue services. During the Jewish holidays in modern-day Israel, many Jews living in or near Jerusalem make an effort to attend prayer services at the Western Wall "emulating" the ancient "pilgrimages" in some small fashion.
Now notice how the Watchtower defines their annual conventions:
Today our annual district conventions benefit us similarly. [similar to the Festival of Tabernacles]
The Pilgrimage Festivals were a source of joy in part because they were a break from their normal lives which were not all that peachy. A "festival" is a gathering for a specific purpose, but it's supposed to be enjoyable, energetic and different from daily life. To compare packing a bunch of people into an auditorium for 6 hours while they listen to monologues is a direct insult to the word festival. There is little difference between a convention and a congregational meeting. A huge part of the festivals, along with ANY ancient festival, were huge feasts to look forward to. The conventions never had anything like that, and they eventually stopped serving food altogether. They even discourage you from going and getting a burger.
I have realized that the Watchtower WANTS to be ancient Israel with a modern twist. The world calls them a restorationist group, but it should be speaking about restoring Ancient Israel, not early Christianity.
-Sab