The Mysterious Coronavirus Spreading Worldwide

[ChocoBro]

8 hours ago, GraceH said:

Do you think we will be meeting via Zoom right through now till the new system? That is if the virus is around even until then? That means that things will never go back to being normal again.

We have a major preaching campaign involving the Kingdom Watchtower planned for November, so it is safe to say the GB expects things to calm down by then. Some  things will take longer to acclimatize. Don't expect a vaccine to solve the problem. In fact, if they fast track this new mRNA vaccine I am steering well clear of it, it is a completely new and unverified method.

 

Corona has always been around and the new strain is here to stay, but they will find better ways of treating severe cases once they understand how Covid19 actually works, especially in terms of the immune system overreaction that seems to cause damage to blood vessels.

 

Don't buy into all the panic. It isn't by far as bad as all the doomsday prophets projected. The virus will certainly mutate (making a vaccine pointless), but it's also likely to become benign. I worry far more about the economic impact, especially on poor countries where our brothers have hardly enough as it is. I also worry far more about the political impact, China is using the chaos to gain control of Hong Kong... good bye "one country two systems", good bye religious freedom?  There could be proxy wars between the US and China in countries with high levels of Chinese infrastructure..... I also worry far more about the mental health impact this is having on already troubled people in my circle of friends, including myself. Suicides are on the rise.  But all everybody ever talks about is the regurgitated garbage on the mainstream media...

 

So yeah, things will never be "normal" again in worldly terms, but some things will return to how they were for a while, there will be preaching, there will be some kind of economy again, at least for a while, there will be countries getting rid of the questionable steps to reign in the spread such as masks.... mass events will probably be out of the question for quite some time. I do expect meetings to resume at least in smaller groups, perhaps. After all, we will be needing to congregate again at some point to upbuild each other. That just doesn't work in the same way on zoom. At least not for "heart people" like me

 

I expect there to be a surge in the preaching campaign and I believe more than before that our media center will receive a vital role in this. Who knows what else will happen. Maybe Jehovah sees it fit to change some things in such a profound way to open the way for the message to reach peoples we never thought possible...

Edited May 23, 2020 by ChocoBro

[Bluebell]

5 minutes ago, ChocoBro said:

We have a major preaching campaign involving the Kingdom Watchtower planned for November, so it is safe to say the GB expects things to calm down by then.

 

 

I don't believe that the campaign is written in stone.......the GB has no more insight into the "virus" future than anybody else...

and we shouldn't forget that the GB cancelled all conventions...even those which should take place in November/December/January...

instead of postpone them

[GoldAussieGirl]

3 hours ago, Todd komaniak said:

I don't think so I think here in Florida by the end of July will not only be going back to meeting with we will be going back to the house to house and service doing cart work I can't wait

I think the main obstacle with door to door won’t be government regulations, but the householders themselves will be opposed to it. 
 

They will either be genuinely worried about potentially catching the virus and won’t want uninvited strangers at their door or will use it as an excuse to stop us coming. I think we will find a mass opposition to our door to door method because of Covid 19

[ChocoBro]

So pessimistic. I am very optimistic about it.

[Bluebell]

1 minute ago, ChocoBro said:

So pessimistic. I am very optimistic about it.

it's common sense 

[EccentricM]

2 hours ago, Foxes53 said:

As long as it is recommended to wear masks when out in public the house to house ministry would not seem possible. I can see cart work returning first.

Our most recent meeting this week said all field service and congregation meetings are still to be suspended for some time, even if the government lifts the lockdown, no carts, no street, no door to door.

 

Our branch instruction basically has said, even though the government is beginning to ease off, it is most likely for economic reasons and money, not for the wellbeing of others, and so we should be acting on wellbeing and love, not material gain. As such our preaching is on hold for the benefit of other's health.

Edited May 23, 2020 by EccentricM

[ChocoBro]

1 minute ago, Bluebell said:

it's common sense 

Just about nothing going on at the moment is common sense. I would argue comparing mass events with tens of thousands of people to small groups of 2-4 people going from door to door isn't sensible either.

 

I would also expect the Governing Body to have better, more accurate experts at hand with a higher level of neutrality and with less "conflict of interests" than the greedy experts that feed half-verified information to the greedy fear-mongering media.

 

There are plenty of reliable medical experts that claim that Covid-19 isnt the apocalyptic plague it was said to be and that things will calm down faster than the fear-mongerers continue to claim.

 

So let's see and pray and hope for the best, shall we?

[ChocoBro]

12 minutes ago, EccentricM said:

Our branch instruction basically has said, even though the government is beginning to ease off, it is most likely for economic reasons and money, not for the wellbeing of others, and so we should be acting on wellbeing and love, not material gain. As such our preaching is on hold for the benefit of other's health.

Did they actually say that? I'm kind of shocked. Economic reasons also have an impact on health and wellbeing. Especially in this time we are living in now, where corporations like Amazon are booming while the little man's sustenance is being choked.

[BenJepthah]

23 minutes ago, ChocoBro said:

Did they actually say that? I'm kind of shocked. Economic reasons also have an impact on health and wellbeing. Especially in this time we are living in now, where corporations like Amazon are booming while the little man's sustenance is being choked.

Not in those words. The Branch directions echoed the CDC guidelines so that Heads of households could make responsible informed decisions which may be more restrictive than what state local or federal governments may be stating.  It was understood that some must work and should provide for their families. The Information advised on How to be safe in public when it was necessary. But advised not to take needless risks.  But that is a different branch.  Just ask your service group elder for a copy.

Edited May 23, 2020 by BenJepthah

[GoldAussieGirl]

15 minutes ago, ChocoBro said:

Did they actually say that? I'm kind of shocked. Economic reasons also have an impact on health and wellbeing. Especially in this time we are living in now, where corporations like Amazon are booming while the little man's sustenance is being choked.

They do, but Jehovah will take care of our basic needs if we are unable to work. The worlds focus is on the economy was the point and that we shouldn’t be in such a rush for things to go back to normal. I think it’s extremely sensible and In the time we are living in we need to trust what they say. It’s for our own protection. It could mean our life. 

Edited May 23, 2020 by shans81

[ChocoBro]

26 minutes ago, BenJepthah said:

Not in those words. The Branch directions echoed the CDC guidelines so that Heads of households could make responsible informed decisions which may be more restrictive than what state local or federal governments may be stating.  It was understood that some must work and should provide for their families. The Information advised on How to be safe in public when it was necessary. But advised not to take needless risks.  But that is a different branch.  Just ask your service group elder for a copy.

That does sound far more sensible in terms of wording.

[BenJepthah]

Anecdotal report on the reopening of houses of worship.   
    A coworker of mine has recently had his church reopen in Ohio, USA.  It was never a large congregation but the attendance ( he is a trustee) was less than ten people.  He expressed that this could not continue as the Church could not be maintained although from the sparse crowd contributions were relatively high. 
      My suspicion is that after a month many will not return to a physical church. 

[Mykyl]

56 minutes ago, ChocoBro said:

 

I would also expect the Governing Body to have better, more accurate experts at hand with a higher level of neutrality and with less "conflict of interests" than the greedy experts that feed half-verified information to the greedy fear-mongering 

We have been told very clearly that no public preaching or kingdom hall use until direction from the branch. It doesn't matter if government officials state its OK, we follow branch instructions. In the UK we received that instruction about 2 weeks after the US.

I guess they take it as serious and not over blown.

[Bob]

1 hour ago, ChocoBro said:

We have a major preaching campaign involving the Kingdom Watchtower planned for November, so it is safe to say the GB expects things to calm down by then. Some  things will take longer to acclimatize. Don't expect a vaccine to solve the problem. In fact, if they fast track this new mRNA vaccine I am steering well clear of it, it is a completely new and unverified method.

 

Corona has always been around and the new strain is here to stay, but they will find better ways of treating severe cases once they understand how Covid19 actually works, especially in terms of the immune system overreaction that seems to cause damage to blood vessels.

 

Don't buy into all the panic. It isn't by far as bad as all the doomsday prophets projected. The virus will certainly mutate (making a vaccine pointless), but it's also likely to become benign. I worry far more about the economic impact, especially on poor countries where our brothers have hardly enough as it is. I also worry far more about the political impact, China is using the chaos to gain control of Hong Kong... good bye "one country two systems", good bye religious freedom?  There could be proxy wars between the US and China in countries with high levels of Chinese infrastructure..... I also worry far more about the mental health impact this is having on already troubled people in my circle of friends, including myself. Suicides are on the rise.  But all everybody ever talks about is the regurgitated garbage on the mainstream media...

 

So yeah, things will never be "normal" again in worldly terms, but some things will return to how they were for a while, there will be preaching, there will be some kind of economy again, at least for a while, there will be countries getting rid of the questionable steps to reign in the spread such as masks.... mass events will probably be out of the question for quite some time. I do expect meetings to resume at least in smaller groups, perhaps. After all, we will be needing to congregate again at some point to upbuild each other. That just doesn't work in the same way on zoom. At least not for "heart people" like me

 

I expect there to be a surge in the preaching campaign and I believe more than before that our media center will receive a vital role in this. Who knows what else will happen. Maybe Jehovah sees it fit to change some things in such a profound way to open the way for the message to reach peoples we never thought possible...

Well said.

 

And the doomsayers weren't working off of data - they were going purely off speculative models which were chock full of assumptions. And I do agree the GB is going to see how this plays out over the summer before giving the OK to use halls again or to have a public ministry. I don't see a public ministry for a while as our safety when dealing with strangers will be prioritized. 

 

I can foresee cart Witnessing coming back before door-to-door, however. 

[BenJepthah]

https://nypost.com/
 

USA free of virus by September?? World by December!! Singapore model predicts. 

[Barbllm]

18 hours ago, BenJepthah said:

Speaking today with our resident Epidemiologist at my facility.  This will not be leaving us. COVID is here to stay. 
    This will result in societal changes. 
        Gone : Buffet restaurants.  Goodby China moon Buffet I will miss you.   Cheap sit down meals ( they were never all that cheap but they are about to get a lot more expensive.) restaurants make money by turning tables . At half capacity this is not possible without doubling the price of food. The good news is Food trucks are popping up everywhere and those are great!!  Goodbye DC-10’s.  This week Atlanta’s International airport was a ghost town. The flight had 5 people on it. So flying will be a luxury reserved once again for the Uber wealthy. Expect less large plains and more smaller private charters.  And how do you take a bus and maintain social distancing??  
     In the hospitals, no waiting rooms ( these must go). Probably nursing homes will have to be entirely reinvented ( a blessing ). Schools rethought. ( homeschooling will be a necessity even though some decry it as a means for Christian parents to indoctrinate their children away from Satan).  Prisons may have to even be redone or we may have to expect them to become much less humane. Or home incarcerations will be enforced in novel ways. 
      I wonder what else is soon to change before Armageddon?

Restaurants may never be the same again.  No more buffet-style dining or salad bars.  More delivery options (GrubHub, DoorDash, etc).  Smaller restaurants may close permanently.

The travel industry will undergo huge changes.  Cruises may never be popular again.  Maybe Covid-19 antibody testing or vaccine results required for travel?  

Perhaps we'll get to a level of herd immunity that will allow for public transportation (buses, subways, etc) to be used as normal.  

 

Higher education will have to change as well, since there's no point in paying $$$ for living in a dorm when you can get a degree mostly (or completely) online.  I can see a lot of university employees being shown the door because they suddenly became redundant.  

 

I don't know if the US will ever get universal healthcare (or Medicare for all) or something like the NHS, but if so, then expect a lot of layoffs as administrative personnel find themselves out of work.  Medical transcription and medical coding/billing can already be done at home or outsourced.  

 

Commercial real estate will change, as people are discovering that they don't really need office space to do their work.  A lot of companies are finding that they don't need to pay to lease a large office complex for 100 employees when 50 of them can work remotely and use Zoom for company or department meetings.  Malls are already pretty dead.  Shopping online is somewhat easier and doesn't require the use of a car or public transportation.  Expect to see a lot more abandoned buildings.

[EccentricM]

2 hours ago, ChocoBro said:

Did they actually say that

Yes, word for word, here at least. Now they also did say each family when it comes to day to day life, work and so on, should act accordingly to their own needs, but to still practice saftey and care for others, to be sensible.  But the announcment was in regard to meetings and field service mainly. That jumping the gun could give a bad witness and harmful to others if we just got right back out there.

Edited May 23, 2020 by EccentricM

[Dustparticle]

28 minutes ago, BenJepthah said:

https://nypost.com/
 

USA free of virus by September?? World by December!! Singapore model predicts. 

I heard the same about 2 months ago. Just wait and see.

[Ms. Piffle]

2 hours ago, Mykyl said:

We have been told very clearly that no public preaching or kingdom hall use until direction from the branch. It doesn't matter if government officials state its OK, we follow branch instructions. 

Yes we were told same.  This morning our elders reminded us that just because states are opening up we are not yet doing so.  The world's motives are not ours.  Then they related (via the CO) the example of Noah.  Even once he knew the ark was on solid ground and the waters had receded (dove brought back fresh olive leaf) he did not leave the ark but stayed put, waited for Jehovah's direction.  We need to do the same.   When we HAVE to go out; work, groceries, meds,  etc. we need to be practicing social distancing and wear masks.  If we do not and we unknowingly give someone covid and that person died, the elders asked, 'might we be held blood guilty in Jehovah's eyes?'

 

     *  My daughter works at a major hospital.  Even wearing all the PPEs, and other safeguards in place, just this morning she started exhibiting c19 symptoms.  So please brothers and sisters, this virus is still very active.  

[Shawnster]

7 hours ago, Foxes53 said:

As long as it is recommended to wear masks when out in public the house to house ministry would not seem possible. I can see cart work returning first.

Why not?  I wear mask at work and talk to customers.  I don't understand why it would be impossible to wear a mask in the ministry 

[Tia]

1 hour ago, Snority said:

     *  My daughter works at a major hospital.  Even wearing all the PPEs, and other safeguards in place, just this morning she started exhibiting c19 symptoms.  So please brothers and sisters, this virus is still very active.  

Prayers for you and yours dear sis! 

[Ms. Piffle]

Thank you  Cyre❣️

[Julie]

With the announcement that KH & public witnessing is still a no go until the branch says otherwise, anyone else like me wondering about Zoom meetings & Isaiah 26:20? I know this fulfilment will take place mainly at Armageddon but will Zoom etc turn out be our interior rooms for spiritual food?

 

Enter Into Your Interior Rooms”

“Go, my people, enter into your interior rooms, and shut your doors behind you,” states Isaiah 26:20. “Hide yourself for but a moment until the denunciation passes over.” This prophecy may have had its first fulfillment in 539 B.C.E. when the Medes and the Persians conquered Babylon. Upon entering Babylon, Cyrus the Persian apparently commanded everyone to stay indoors because his soldiers were ordered to execute any found out-of-doors.

[Julie]

2 hours ago, Snority said:

*  My daughter works at a major hospital.  Even wearing all the PPEs, and other safeguards in place, just this morning she started exhibiting c19 symptoms.  So please brothers and sisters, this virus is still very active.  

Hope your daughter will be OK My daughter had the virus she's pretty sure but came out of it OK with only mild symptoms 

[Ms. Piffle]

Thank you Julie.  She's freezing really bad, extremely bad headache, tired to an extreme she not felt before,  nauseous.   She's a front line worker at a major hospital so high likelihood she's positive for covid.  I'm sure when she can pull herself out of bed she'll get tested.  Many think it's safe to go back to normal, but this virus is still going strong.  Unfortunately the front line workers will continue to take the brunt of the complacency in the world.