A leaked letter from the Governing Body has announced an enormous shift in the way Jehovah’s Witness elders are to be appointed.
The letter, dated 22 April 2014, reveals that circuit overseers are to assume responsibility for appointing and deleting elders as of September 1st this year.
The change represents a significant decentralization of power, at least with regard to elder appointments, with circuit overseers now ‘kingmakers’ – having the final say in who gets to take the lead in each congregation.
The letter reads as follows…
TO ALL CONGREGATIONS
Re: Adjustment in process for appointing elders and ministerial servants
Dear Brothers:
With regard to Paul and Barnabas’ visit to Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch, Acts 14:23 states: “They appointed elders for them in each congregation, offering prayer with fasting, and they entrusted them to Jehovah, in whom they had become believers.” Titus and Timothy evidently are also recorded as taking part in appointing elders in the congregations. (1 Tim. 5:22; Titus 1:5) In accord with this Scriptural precedent, the Governing Body has decided that effective September 1, 2014, circuit overseers will be responsible for the appointment and deletion of elders and ministerial servants. Additional information will appear in the November 15, 2014, issue of The Watchtower.
We request your continued prayers on our behalf as the preaching work is speeding up and more and more people are beginning to worship God by going to “the mountain of the house of Jehovah.” (Isa. 2:2) Please accept an expression of our warm Christian love.
Your brothers,
Governing Body of Jehovah’s Witnesses
c: Traveling overseers
PS to body of elders:
Please arrange for this letter to be read to the congregation at the first Service Meeting after its receipt or after the next Watchtower Study, whichever comes first. This postscript should not be read to the congregation, and the letter should not be posted on the information board. If the circuit overseer is visiting your congregation, he will read this letter at the conclusion of the next congregation meeting. At circuit assemblies and special assembly days, the letter will be read by the last speaker on the program at the conclusion of his talk. We would appreciate your keeping this matter confidential until the letter is read to the congregation or circuit.
In due course, further direction regarding the aforementioned adjustments will be provided to all bodies of elders.
It will be interesting to see the fine print as to how this new arrangement is to be implemented. If circuit overseers are to have sole stewardship over the appointment/removal of elders, without any oversight at branch level, Witnesses can expect to see elders trying to ingratiate themselves with circuit overseers to an even greater extent than they do presently.
There is also now more scope for differences in personality and minor quibbles between elders and circuit overseers having far-reaching consequences. As mentioned in a recent article, the Menlo Park scandal is a perfect example of what could already happen if a circuit overseer and a body of elders failed to see eye to eye.
Also noteworthy in this letter is the Governing Body’s insistence that the preaching work is “speeding up and more and more people are beginning to worship God.” If this is truly the case, it has yet to be observed in the worldwide report figures. Last year’s growth figure of 2.1% was a mere 1% over the global population growth rate (1.1%), meaning that the organization is barely keeping its head above water once births and deaths are accounted for.
It will also be perplexing for thinking Witnesses that it has taken the Governing Body, ostensibly Christ’s “faithful and discreet slave,” so very long to identify such a relatively unambiguous “scriptural precedent.”
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What saddens me the most is that its the people who most need to know what these changes imply are totally oblivious to the fact. I have got JW relatives who believe that the Catholic is controlled by Satan because of its tolerance of sex abuse. They have got absolutely no idea that Wt has got the same problem. My argument here is if the can’t comprehend something of major importance how would they ever understand (or care for that matter) the implications of who’s name us on the letter head or who appoints who.
if this is indeed true then this is major! They’ve known about that Scripture for a long time. Yet they never did anything about it save to have the circuit overseer looped in on recommendations. No recommendation goes in until the circuit overseer’s visit with some rare exceptions. But now how does this tie in with the Holy Spirit appointing elders? After all circuit overseers most of them at least another.
JB,
In a way I understand your viewpoint, but soley based upon an objective outside look at the changes. I don’t know if you ever experienced being an elder saddled with accomodating the visit of the CO ie: society forms, reports, congregation files, etc. Even exposure to a CO or DO that dotted every i and crossed every t is almost required to fully grasp the move this GB is making.
They have in one fell swoop taken all the starch and power away from the body of elders (if they ever really had any) and focused it on the CO.
They pull every string attached to the CO. This change will probably double the CO’s paperwork. Not to mention alot more direct contact via phone and emails to home office.
So what sounds like a loosening of the strings is actually in real effects strengthing the already stranglehold the GB has over every congregation. There is no positives as respects the increased flow of God’s spirit or enhanced humility of the brothers in the local congregations….they will not be openly competing for the good will of the Corp Regional Manager’s approval for any progress they will make in this insidious cult. I cannot even imagine the bickering and backbiting this change will generate. Most body of elders have very little love for the local CO unless he truly is a man of God…..most of them are corp lap dogs.
Thanks a lot danman, I’m not familiar with the internals, I just remember way back when my dad was an elder and resigned – I think mainly because of pressure the elders started putting on the congregation – but chose to remain a JW. Reading your description, and remembering details from back that time, what you anticipate make sense to me.
***….they will not be openly competing for the good will of the Corp Regional Manager’s ***
correction…”they will NOW be openly……
I noticed that right off the bat, JB.
‘lord’ meaning christ, is often replaced with the name Jehovah, in the NWT. Romans 14 is a perfect example, read any other translation and Lord and God are two seperate people , so when you read it place the name jesus in the spot where lord is and it makes sense. i dont get why in the nwt, often having God then Jehovah in the same verse, [unless its replacing Lord who is christ which why i have no idea.] especially in vs 6 we ‘ read the new living translation then the NWT and see the problem.
it changes the whole meaning and takes away from Jesus his authority that he was given.
Now i know why some persons in the past would say to me that JWS dont believe in jesus. research i have done indicates the name Jehovah was never in the hebrew sriptures [no j sound in hebrew] and i dont think there is a place where jesus says his fathers name . is he protecting his name thus keeping it holy? [sanctifying it?] we pray then this way, our father who is in heaven, hallowed[held sacred?] be thy name?
Hi chatpal,
the letter “J” in hebrew issue is kind of interesting though, eventually, isn’t it “Y” (letter Yod in Hebrew) ?
I recently read a book about how Jesus’ qualities as human, God, – or anywhere in-between – has been subject to discussions and often, even fights throughout centuries in the early Christian world … It’s one of the most debated subjects of Christianity and when I read the explanations about how to consider Jesus’ existance, one can see how far the imagination can reach !
I start to think that this particular aspect is made too complex in the Bible and elsewhere, which could be easily avoided. I’m not sure if the topic itself is so above the human understanding that it’s so poorly described and this led to so much confusion … It sounds as if it’s made on purpose …
that should mean nothing to her roberto, she can just get busy and have no time to go.she can go if she wants, just to pasify the older relatives that might have stress if she isnt there. like i have to for my mom who is 72. fortunately she goes to another hall that im suposed to. I figure It doesnt hurt me to go if i have to. i have no problem avoiding any conversations.
15 years ago. my husband became inactive. no one knows what has become of him. my son stopped going abruptly when he went to visit relatives, its been 4 years no one even asks about him. if they do i say he lives ‘where ever’, and i dont see him much. they dont stand longer than to hear me say more than two scentences anyway.
i have many family in the jws, yet im not close to them most out of state. [my mom is my main source of greif] no one knows that i havent been to the meetings in three months missed many meetings in the past 5 years, no ‘service’ in at least 5 years. no one notices me, and i have never had any freinds either.no one calls or stops, most dont even know where i live.
no one has kept track of my publisher card either its mia! got lost when my husband and i were seperated.
Hello,
If someone wants to know the Scriptural reasoning behind this change and maybe some answers to the more obvious questions like “Why now?”, you can contact us at [email address removed].
Thanks.
Response. Why can’t you just post that information here? Some people may not want to reveal who they are, I for one do not. But would love to hear this explanation. Thanks
Response is a troll who has figured out how to bypass our spam filters. Please be careful when communicating with him.
IMHO the born-in elders will eat it up. I’ve noticed a real lack of critical thinking on the part of most elders in general.
The ability to tow the line for the Coordinator of the Body of Elders seems to be the most important thing in being appointed. Now the CO is added as another layer of schmoozing.
It will up the schmoozing for sure! It will also up the abuse since a single CO could potentially have veto power over appointments.
thanks, that is comforting me. I never cared about this cult for over 25 years and also my 3 children didn’t want to join the cult of their mother but I started to get worried 3/4 monts ago and I really cannot say for what reason.
The reason they say the person is appointed by holy spirit is because the standard is meant to be based on what the bible says. As the bible was written under inspiration, they say that if a person measures up to the bible standard, then it can be said they are appointed by holy spirit.
Is that a serious comment AlanV? Watchtower’s claim that elders are appointed by holy spirit is entirely without basis. For it to even begin to make sense you first need to prove that Watchtower is the present-day reincarnation of the first century Christian congregation, which of course is impossible. And appointing someone just because they “measure up” to certain bible texts as interpreted by Watchtower doesn’t mean holy spirit has anything to do with the process. Surely you understand that?
This letter will be read out before the letter regarding a congregation pledge, am I right? So any elders who may have questioned the new donation arrangement, or even openly oposed it could now face being removed by the CO at his discretion instead of it being a decision for the branch. Can anyone else see a connection between these two new developments or am I just being paranoid?
Looking for answers.
You might have something there. I think the letter should be read today. That does seem awful sudden. They never read letters like this on the weekend. I’m pretty sure the elimination of the one contribution box was supposed to happen at the next midweek meeting.
Given more power, I am afraid their testicles are going to be stronger and stronger! (Jeremiah 5:8) . . .Horses seized with sexual heat, having [strong] testicles, they have become. They neigh each one to the wife of his companion. . .
I don’t see that this move can be anything to do with disclaiming legal liability. The Society appoints Circuit Overseers and delegates to them all responsibility for appointing local elders and ministerial servants.
The Society issues instructions concerning all areas of responsibility of its office-holders and these are to be strictly adhered to. Nobody is free to decide for himself how he will operate or what policies he will pursue.
There is a clear line of responsibility here. The upper echelons of the Society could only disclaim responsibility for the actions of its officers if the Book of Rules were prefaced with some disclaimer to the effect that all rules/guideline/procedures are advisory only and that officers were to determine for themselves in every instance how they will operate.
I rather suspect that the COs always had veto power over elders. But this change will make it easier to sell properties, strip congregations of halls, bank accounts, and donations. The GB is consolidating power. This is how I see it.
Rob – Here you go. The GB has no money and no holdings. Sue them if you want and you get nothing. However the Christian Congregations has tons of money and property. The most a person could get from suing the GB is a judgement. Good luck trying to collect when there are no material assets. Again I won’t be surprise if the directions for choosing elders and ms is something like this, read the qualifications, pray than choose if person is qualified. The GB can then say in a court of law, we did not directly choose these ones, we just provided general guidelines. Where as now, the appointments come directly from the GB supposedly.
You don’t want to reveal who you are? That sounds like a personal problem.
should we assume that your real name is Response ?
Response if you are referring to me. How do you know I am not the one getting some of this information. If I reveal who I am do you think I will still be able to get it. So sometimes one’s not revealing oneself is for a good reason. Just so you know.
The September 8, 1987 Awake! contained articles directed toward Lutherans to answer this question for them. One article is built around quotations from sermons of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a Protestant theologian executed by the Nazis. The article makes several good points about the deprecating view of the Bible held by some Protestant theologians, and about other deficiencies in Protestant religions. Consider the points the articles made on pages 8, 10 and 11:
Note the following excerpts from some of his sermons. Ask yourself: What would heeding his words mean for the Lutheran Church? for my church?
“In religion only one thing is of essential importance, that it be true.” [Quoting from Bonhoeffer] This agrees with what Jesus said: “God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.” — John 4:24; see also John 8:32; 14:6; 16:13.
Are you sure that everything your church teaches is really true?….
Then under the subheading “If Your Church Fails to Act, Will You?” the article said:
If, after making an honest investigation, you are less than pleased with what you see, do more than just complain. A journalist, while commenting on Karl Barth’s statement that a church is its members, logically concluded: “Church members… are responsible for what the church says and does.” So ask yourself: Am I willing to share responsibility for everything my church says and does?….
You may sincerely believe that your church is no part of false religion that God says he will soon destroy. But your life depends upon being 100 percent sure. Are you?
For those of other religions, absolute truth is set as the criterion — everything should be “really true.” They should be “100 percent sure” about their religion. If they are “less than pleased” with what they see, they should “do more than just complain,” because they share responsibility for “everything [their] church says and does.”
Here’s another thought. In the July 15 Watchtower Study article page 9 it says in pg. 2 “The gathering will be complete when the anointed who are alive at the end of this system of things receive their final sealing then are taken to heaven.” So, I am wondering if the Governing Body are getting ready to be taken “alive” to heaven “raptured” “disappearing” to some other country where they can’t be extradited back to the U.S. and are abdicating all responsibilities to underlings before making their getaway?
This is so infuriating. Clearly an attempt by the GB to thwart legal responsibility in abuse cases. I am just wondering if anyone has a legal background or knowledge to know if the Society’s lawyers efforts will be successful? Like if this arrangement was already in place when Candace Conti brought her lawsuit, would the judgment have been any different? I just don’t see how a jury will view this new arrangement positively. Cedars – any thoughts?
The bottom line is the 2-witness rule and the Flock book which instructs elders to call the Society instead of the police first. Also, the fact the Society will not turn over their pedo list OR do away with the 2-wintess rule coupled with their bringing in criminals around children by means of their prison ministry really shows they don’t want to deal with the abuse problem.
JWs are FAR worse than the Catholics. At least the Catholic Church have taken measures to publicly acknowledge they have a problem and means to correct future complaints of abuse. JWs do nothing and make excuses such as WT attorney McCabe said: “unfortunately bad men have infiltrated the congregations.” So if you know this, why not fix the problem???? A Catholic pedo only has access to kids if they belong to a church-owned orphanage OR are an altar child. Otherwise, parishioners really have no risk in taking their child to/from church. On the contrary, JWs children are constantly in clear and present danger. The organization encourages implicit trust in one another and too much time is required to be together (field service, gatherings, meetings, etc.). A single mother with children is not often told the brother she is interested in dating just came out of prison or had a pedo past – she is left in the dark and she and her children are in severe risk. Just look at the Kostelniuk murders in the 1980s – the brother the sister married was a pedo. http://www.amazon.com/Wolves-Among-Sheep-James-Kostelniuk/dp/1926676262
BTW – I live for your comments. Frequently lurk – not active poster here. You are great! lol
You are both correct… that is what they say… it doesn’t make it right.
I have even head them say the bible is like frozen HS and of-course they can thaw it out for you.
Comment meant for: Hakizimana Jean de Dieu
BTW – I live for your comments. Frequently lurk – not active poster here. You are great! lol
Fantastic news that we are now more closely following Biblical principles. Evidentially, we are getting closer to the end as the light gets brighter.
As I understand it, originally elders were elected by the congregation, then in 1938 Rutherford decided that the governing body (himself) would appoint elders. Here we are in 2014 and suddenly the light has shone brighter and now C O’s will appoint elders, why????????
Plausible deniabilty is the first thing that comes to mind, distance the GB from legal responsibility for bad decisions made, cover ups and child abuses comitted by serving elders and servants. Also, any more cases like the Menlo Park scandal and the CO is the one seen to do the hatchet job on those uppity elders, allowing the GB to keep it’s hands clean. Nothing has actually changed, GB is still pulling the strings via robot CO’s. Didn’t someone once say” religion is a snare and a racket”
John,
I would suggest that you watch Mr Cedar’s vlog on the issue of light getting brighter.
There is no scriptural precedent for God allowing for stop gap information, until new light is revealed.
As for this change, why has it taken so long? The scriptures are quite clear, are they not?
Peace be with you
Excelsior!
The interesting thing about the “new light” is that the timing of the new light usually corresponds to the moment when the previous one’s batteries go flat.
Wow , so many organisational changes in such a short time. the end is truly near. lol
Does anybody know where that billion dollars is going once those buildings are sold in Brooklyn? Does anybody know how much money the president of the Society, Don Adams makes in a year’s time or his brother and the Society’s lawyers and where do they all live and do any of them go from door to door and have any Bible studies etc. Just curious.
Also, since the organization is considered a charity I would sure like to see the government look into where the money goes to make sure it’s really a charity and what exactly are their charitable works and are they putting money into off-shore accounts where it can’t be traced?
Circuit Overseers don’t have a home that can be taken away from them if they get sued for appointing an elder who turns out to be a child molester whereas the Society has monies a person can come after and sue.
I am quite sure that this was an “authority” that the GB was very hesitant to want to hand over. But legal protections and liabilities trumped any personal ambition.The “old” administration , under the tutoring of F.W., dealt with public relations and organizational hiccups much more prudently . I may be wrong, but it appears with all of these ‘new bloods’ sitting in the captain’s chair, their approach to things, is not “new light”, but simply ” new ambitions”, and as every F.W. trained Governing Body died out,(which there is none left now) they finally had the ‘freedom’ to show the ambition they always had. Having come from a family with over Six decades affiliated with this organization, I was never crazy about the ones who lead. But now, I must say, according to what I read, that this group of administrators is the worse and this organization can do nothing but deplete in numbers.
Amazing that it took them over 120 years to figure this out!
Yet more distance being made between the grass roots and the head honchos.
The new letter head really freaks me out. How on earth can the JWs not think its dodgy that the GB are practically placing themselves as everyones boss?? they arent even pretending its the Org or Jah through the Org. Just them. A bunch of mouldly old men.
How weird.
The author of this site presents himself as relatively factual information source. Sadly, it appears that he uses loaded language and other questionable tactics to assign suspicious and negative motives to even the most innocuous of announcements by Jehovah’s organization. The constant attempts to understand and apply Scriptural principles to the way the organization is operated reflects a unique commitment to Bible-centered faith practices among Jehovah’s Witnesses. Jesus places great trust in the Governing Body, and this latest information confirms their faithfulness and discretion in upholding this trust.
Defender of the Faith, the good thing about the blogs and the internet world is that it’s open for anyone, like yourself, to present counter arguments.
If there were any counter arguments from the WT side as solid as the arguments themselves, the blogs such as this wouldn’t survive a single day.
And we are not stupid people, believing everything we read. Regarding the loaded language, what about things we may come across in WT about mentally diseased people, etc ? I’m even not mentioning the things I heard during the meetings and on other occasions coming from JW’s about the people who don’t share the same vision as them.
To tell you very honestly, personally I keep myself at equal distance from sites like this and WT. I truly try to remain impartial. The aspects like loaded language and making a small subject bigger than what it really is are important things, but auxiliary to the main subject. For the main issues WT seems to make harm on people, there seem to be no counter argument I could come across.
Just to give you an example, I took extensive time through a site build up by JW’s in defence to the United Nations issue. In all neutrality, I read it through. At the end of my research I felt even angrier about the hypocrisy of it. I wish I only had this site and similar ones about the subject – in JW side arguments there were a big nothing, just word games and failed attempts to justify things like for instance, “being submissive to the governments” …
The real issue here is the weakness of WT for defending itself against often documented accusations because maybe, they simply don’t have a defence. Otherwise, people who only desire their confidence to be confirmed wouldn’t stay out of WT. A lot of “apostates” are faithful people, don’t believe too much what you read and hear, if you ask my opinion.
I can well understand that anything negative I say against your beloved spiritual masters, the Governing Body, who you view as God’s sole instrument of authority on earth, will be deemed by you to be “loaded language” and “questionable tactics.” At least I have evidence to back up the things I say, whereas you have literally zero evidence to back up bizarre claims such as this…
“Jesus places great trust in the Governing Body”
Defender of the faith are you serious. This scripture that is being used is clear as day. It is not the book of Revelation and it is just not clear to the GB. Really? It is suspicious to me this came about after the GB almost having to make a court appearance. But if you really what to get to the matter of things go read the scripture about the account of the alleged meeting of the Governing body in the books of Acts and if read objectively one gets a very different view on the matter. Also were else in the bible is the GB mention and if you say the food distribution case….read that one clearly. It is only talking about the Apostle.
@ Defender of the Faith
“innocuous announcements?”
The April 2014 Kingdom Update page on the anointedjw website reports the following:
98 District Overseers are partaking of the emblems
11 District Overseers have stepped down
68 Circuit Overseers are partaking
17 Circuit Overseers have stepped down
133 Elders Have stepped down
181 Pioneers have stepped down
17 Regional and Branch Overseers are partaking
14 Regional and Branch Overseers have stepped down
4 Missionaries are partaking of the emblems
4 Missionaries have stepped down
I would not refer to any of this as innocuous developments. There appears to be a great agitation taking place within the organization and it’s beginning with the leadership.
You didn’t report that now when the circuit overseers visits there will only be one meeting that week oppose to 2. Thank god!! Letter read this week at all halls.
Hey, I love reading all the solutions to the problems Witnesses are having. You people have it all together. The time has come for us to unite and show the world the right way to run a religion. Who cares how corporate America or Corporate religions run their show? We have the answers. And since we have the answers, God will back us up in establishing a new corporate religion on how to run the show the correct way. It’s time to get off the sideline quarterback bench and rise up and show the team how to play the game the right way. Who’s with me?
I find these comments incredible. If a person does not wish to be one of Jehovah’s Witnesses then don’t or resign. Why is there a need to trash the faith on-line? How much time does this take from the important pursuits of your life? And if they are the only true religion, regardless of what imperfections may affect them as they do every other human, would not the critical tongue be answerable to the Creator of Humanity in His day?
“If a person does not wish to be one of Jehovah’s Witnesses then don’t or resign.”
…That’s just the point. Your dear leaders, the Governing Body, have made it so that a JW can’t simply resign without being punished through his family members, in breach of his human rights.
“Why is there a need to trash the faith on-line? How much time does this take from the important pursuits of your life?”
…Ah, that old chestnut. Jehovah’s Witnesses can spend up to 70 hours per month on their evangelism, PLUS meetings, PLUS family worship, PLUS personal study, but if someone like me puts up a website and posts a few videos on YouTube I’M the one spending too much time on my convictions!
“And if they are the only true religion, regardless of what imperfections may affect them as they do every other human, would not the critical tongue be answerable to the Creator of Humanity in His day?”
…That’s the whole point, isn’t it. ARE Jehovah’s Witnesses the only true religion? Perhaps you could enlighten us with unequivocal evidence that the Governing Body are leaders of God’s sole organization on Earth? As to the “critical tongue” and being answerable to God, what about all the religions your organization habitually trashes in its literature while offering no tangible evidence that their claims to divine direction are any more credible?
I have three(3) questions:
1. why is it that info is constantly leaked?
2. why, if this organizational change takes place on Sept 1, 2014 the discussion regarding it starts Nov. 15th 2014?
3. does anyone remember the CO (initials JC) and I don’t mean Jesus Christ who drove around in a car visiting the congregations with the license plate “1975” ?
Just asking ?
1) these letters are often not read in full (in the congregations), therefore even some in ‘bethel’ might feel that everyone has a right to know the full contents
2) just guessing, but this might be translation + distribution delay; apparently the governing body wanted this policy to get into effect quickly (next service year)
3) don’t know; but what’s your point?
I have seen the damage that co’s can do from the inside, i served as an elders for 9 years, servent for 11, one single co had issues with sex, every second talk was on sex, in one of his more famous talks he said that if a married couple practised oral sex, then thats pornia & you could be disfellowshiped, after the meeting i asked him if that was an outline from the society, he said yes, when i asked to see it he couldnt find it, later another elder & i challenged his statement & prooved him wrong, he refused to retract his comment from the platform, i have also seen so much nepotism thats it makes me sick, in JW world a lot of people are related, thats when nepotism really kicks in, sons, brothers, uncles, in the case of the co mentioned he was an old friend to the coordinator, the cards were always stacked, but if you read Ray Franz’s book, it makes no difference who recomends who, no holy spirit, its not happening, i call it meocratic, another example, last year i decided to grow a beard, i was instantly stripped of my priveledges, didnt care, they even gave a local needs part & stated that a theocratic descision had been made, that if a brother had facial hair he couldnt have any priveledges in the congo, when the co came to town, (new One) he overturned it, i have a copy of the letter, i could do this & that. i even had a meeting with 2 elders, so i said to them what happened to the theocratic descision, ow we got it wrong!!!, no i said it was simply a meocratic discision.
warren, Id have asked the CO, ‘id like to know how someone would ‘find out’ if a couple was engaging in oral sex to begin with’. seems pathetic to me that that issue is even raised considering there are more pertanant ones that are never adressed.
you know what would be interesting, would be to write up a list of the last two years of wt articles that were and will be studied on sunday and see how often they are about enjoyable happy things that will encourage the childen in the audience, a nice story about jesus love, or how to be a good neigbor, [to our actual neigbors], or how to respect the beautiful earth by being a responsible person when it comes to everyday living, just ANYTHING other than the constant referal to the gb and the end and sins and woes and warnings! I had to stop because i was tired of all the negativity. ‘happy’ people? yea right.