Furuli's new e-book: "My Beloved Religion - And The Governing Body"

[Ann O'Maly]

 

"There was no governing body in the first century CE. Therefore,

the present Governing Body has no legacy and should be

dissolved." - p. 135.

 

😲

 

I know what you're all thinking: 'This is fake news, a hoax. He'd never say that.' But the book is available from his own Awatu Publishers via email for $10 (see Reddit link below). It's was only released a little over a week ago and is a hefty 337 pages long. He relates his long history in the org., that his issues have been brewing over the last 15 years, and what he says gels with what I know from various other sources - some of which are off-grid. While Furuli still believes JWs are the true religion and many core doctrines are correct (including 607!), he blasts the current GB for losing their way, being power- and money-grabbing, amongst other complaints, and he scripturally dismantles the FDS doctrine. He thinks the organization should be restructured so that it is theocratic like in the good old post-1971 days (I'm paraphrasing) rather than hierarchical like the Catholic church (yes, he refers to the Menlo Park court case). He says he approached the GB in the spirit of Matt. 18, and added that,

 

 "The Governing Body received the book, and the members were
informed that if the basic problems discussed in the book could be
settled inside the organization, the book would not be published.
The GB has refused to communicate with me and therefore the
book has been published." - p. 14.

 

He knows full well what will happen to him which, I guess, will prove his point about the GB being autocratic and beyond questioning or correction. 

 

Did anyone expect this bombshell? I certainly didn't! 😆

 

Here's the link to the Reddit discussion:

 

 

[TrueTomHarley]

39 minutes ago, Ann O'Maly said:

I know what you're all thinking:

 Get him to send me a free copy. He can have a free one of two of my works, ‘Dear Mr. Putin - Jehovah’s Witnesses Write Russia’ and ‘TrueTom vs the Apostates’ on Smashwords. In fact, everyone can. I should have one of his. 

Get on it, will you?

[Ann O'Maly]

@TrueTomHarley Ask him yourself 😆

[TrueTomHarley]

2 minutes ago, Ann O'Maly said:

@TrueTomHarley Ask him yourself 😆

I would like to. Had I contact information, I would. It is even possible I did communicate with him once through some sort of channel, but I forget. 

I am curious as to how things will be worded. Is it a ‘call to arms’ which is how the Reddit people will certain see it? Or is it more a personal ‘wish list’? Is it a call to ‘abandon ship’? It doesn’t appear to be, especially since there is no other ship to take its place and even an imperfect ship beats treading water. 

He is a scholar. Is he a scholar AND a doer, or has he just become a scholar? That will surely have a bearing. The physical ministry grounds a person—leave it at your own spiritual peril.

The people of higher education generally assume ‘takeover rights.’ Does he? It will make a difference. To my mind, Christianity emerged as a ‘working class’ religion, and it always remained so. You know the verses: ‘uneducated and ordinary’, ‘not many wise in a fleshly way, powerful, of noble birth’, ‘hidden these things from the wise and intellectual ones’ so as to ‘reveal them to babes’. 

If the tone of his book recognizes these verses, my guess is that he is fine. If the tone is, ‘Time to let the smart people take over’, there could be a problem. It is when the ‘smart people took over‘ in the first century that Christianity strayed so far from its roots as to be unrecognizable. Reddit, always eager for a blowup, will frame it as ‘Battle of the Titans’ with sure dire consequences to one or the other. That doesn’t mean that he does.

Granted, as to higher education, the trouble with not having too much of it is that one finds it difficult to separate the wheat from the chaff, and is thus tempted to dismiss it all as chaff. But there is a difference between saying that this or that policy has a downside, which the present brothers will probably agree with, and saying that we ought to have someone’s head on a platter, which they will not. What side does he come down on?

 

 

[Ann O'Maly]

@TrueTomHarley 

Quote

I would like to. Had I contact information, I would.

It's the Awatu email address in the Reddit post (it's previewed in my OP - you can see it).

[Srecko Sostar]

2 hours ago, Ann O'Maly said:

He says he approached the GB in the spirit of Matt. 18

It is sincerely naive approach. GB elders allow this sort of "communication" only at rank and file level for minor problems among congregants. But, even there, on this low ground field where ordinary members living, almost no one of JW's really understand how Mat 18 have to work when they are faced with internal problems. One reason for that is in elders who also not using Mat 18 with more understanding.

First obstacle is in gradation of "sins" as: "minor and gross". :))

 

[Ann O'Maly]

@Srecko Sostar Naive? Possibly. I assume that his thinking is, if the GB rejects his approach, then at least he's abided by the direction in God's word and can take the moral/scriptural high ground, he has a clear conscience before God, etc. 

[Srecko Sostar]

5 minutes ago, Ann O'Maly said:

@Srecko Sostar Naive? Possibly. I assume that his thinking is, if the GB rejects his approach, then at least he's abided by the direction in God's word and can take the moral/scriptural high ground, he has a clear conscience before God, etc. 

Naive, in sense: if he expecting, waiting for positive answer. 

In matter about his conscience, that is good biblical way how to deal with bro/sis.   

[TrueTomHarley]

3 hours ago, Ann O'Maly said:

The GB has refused to communicate with me and therefore the
book has been published. (RF)

This is not a promising sign. How does he know they refuse to do it? 

I wrote to them once, too, about my work—which does not by any stretch of the imagination take shots at them. I’ve not heard back. That doesn’t mean they ‘refuse.’ The verb reeks too much of adversarial intent.

Perhaps at this very moment, the Bethel brothers have dropped all other considerations to write me a nice little letter.

Shultz and de Vienne submitted their work to Bethel. They write that it was received ‘without comment.’ That is not the same as ‘refuse’ and they only speculated as to why their book met with silence.

[Patiently waiting for Truth]

@Ann O'Maly  This is wonderful news. Music to my ears. I think @James Thomas Rook Jr. would love this too. 

It would be so funny if this book says things that i have been saying on here for a long time. 

Quote  

"There was no governing body in the first century CE. Therefore, the present Governing Body has no legacy and should be dissolved." - p. 135.

I love this. But if I say to much i will be D/fed from this forum, as John Butler was. Even that word 'dissolved' might pose a threat.  

Quote,  " he blasts the current GB for losing their way, being power- and money-grabbing, amongst other complaints, and he scripturally dismantles the FDS doctrine. " 

Mr Rook said similar things and so have I.  

Is this only available as an e-book ?   Is it or will it be available in 'real paper copy' ? 

@TrueTomHarley  Could be the start of something big Tom ?   And before you say it, NO I'm not looking to follow men But it is nice to get an honest / alternative point of view isn't it. 

And the CCJW say that higher education is a waste of time. Um, I wonder why they would say that. 

I think this gentleman and his book proves the point I'm making here. 

 

[TrueTomHarley]

9 minutes ago, 4Jah2me said:

I think this gentleman and his book proves the point I'm making here. 

Usually you have to read a book before you comment on what it proves

[Ann O'Maly]

12 minutes ago, 4Jah2me said:

It would be so funny if this book says things that i have been saying on here for a long time. 

Some of his comments and analyses of scripture echo what 'apostates' have banged on about for decades. I'm particularly thinking of his conclusion here:

"The “faithful and discreet slave” refers to any Christian who is
faithful and on the watch when Jesus comes as the judge in the
great tribulation. It does not refer to a class that gives spiritual
food during Christ’s presence." - p. 72.

Quote

Is this only available as an e-book ?   Is it or will it be available in 'real paper copy' ? 

Yes, and don't know.