Principles of Opperation

            I understand that those who visit our blog arrive here with differing viewpoints and experiences – and with differing views of Russell, the Bible Students and Jehovah’s Witnesses. You are entitled to your views, and, while in another context, I may debate them with you, none of our blog contributors will debate doctrine here. Our principal moderator is Dr. de Vienne. Her word is final.

            The world is often an unhappy place. We are sorry for your unhappy experiences, and we’ve had our own. In the last eighteen months two or three have come here with religious or personal issues. This blog is not the place to vent those. We can’t weigh the merits of your complaint. We weren’t witnesses to your difficulty. And this is a history blog.

            Please don’t come here believing we owe you anything more than courtesy and do not come expecting us to hurt you. If you come here expecting hurt, you will find it even if it is unintended. If you assume a belligerent attitude, you’re views and questions will find no place on this blog. I’ve instructed our resident Pixie to delete your comments and additional comments by you will not appear no matter what the content.

            If you’ve been hurt by religion, some self-analysis may be in order. You may want to revisit the issue, especially if it is an old one. If you reject what some call the authoritarian structure of your religion, you are free to do so. The three of us who edit this blog cannot address those issues. Jesus suggests you talk the issues out with the one who offended you. Even if the issue is decades old, it is not too late.

            If you don’t want to live by your religion’s standards, that is your choice. This is not the place to vent. Comments that fall into that area don’t show up here. The comments that concern me most are those from people who are suffering in some way. Because most of those are anonymous, we can do nothing to alleviate it. Explore your resources. I’m a great believer in prayer. It works. For those who are Witnesses, I recommend a now very-old Watchtower article from 1958 entitled Your Prayers Tell on You. It is, I think, the best article on prayer ever to come out of the Watchtower.

            In the past we’ve had three at least who believed themselves more knowledgeable than we are. If you are, share your knowledge. We share. You should too. Rude comments won’t show up in the comment trail. We’ve had one who believed himself a true genius saying he was in the top 99 percent nationally. Almost everyone is in the top 99 percent. Think about it. Rachael and Jerome are – to borrow a line from a very old movie – smart cookies. There is no lack of genius on this blog if that’s the measure.

            Our measure isn’t personal genius. It’s adept, accurate presentation of facts. If we sometimes plod to get the facts, that’s okay. If we depend on others to rub our nose in them, that’s good. It’s the facts that matter, not how we get to them.

            We don’t acknowledge every comment. If you come here for personal validation, we probably can’t give it to you. The Internet is a very poor place in which to seek that. We appreciate the comments we get. We moderate out about five percent of the comments because of the issues stated above.

            Those with personal issues, no matter what they are, have my deepest sympathy. As a Christian, I suggest you peer deeply and prayerfully into the issue, even though that is always a painful experience. As a fellow human, I suggest you find a confidant who will give you honest feedback. Resist blaming God for the actions of his human worshipers. If I could help you at this distance, I would. It is impracticable, and that’s not what this blog is about. If we don’t separate the blog from other issues, it loses its value.