2023 Governing Body Update #8 / BEARDS!!!

[Golfguy74]

4 minutes ago, Dustparticle said:

When a brother who has a beard gives a talk just tell him "You did a good job Pastor Russell".

Or . nice talk brother, I see you had eggs for breakfast

[Golfguy74]

22 minutes ago, luisenriquereyes said:

"... The razor cuts and ingrown hairs have passed away." 😁

 

NOOOOOOOOOO, I hate facial hair on me. We must have razor's! I hope that a razor isn't considered a sword as I would have to learn to shave with a plowshear

[nicolette]

8 hours ago, Tortuga said:

I would love to see a picture of the dining room at WHQ on Monday morning...

I had a similar thought as well.. Granted this announcement is for the entire worldwide Brotherhood 🙃 but do you think some in Bethel would grow beard.. I’m just thinking outside the box..

[Ross]

22 hours ago, Ross said:

In the UK beards have been “mostly acceptable for appointed men for the past few years. (Apart from Bethel and assembly speakers,)

 

I have a part at the assembly tomorrow, so I will be keeping my beard this time. It will feel very strange. 

Well it felt very strange being on the assembly hall platform with a beard! I wasn’t the only one, quite a few throughout the program.

[Dolce vita]

I admit:  When I read all your comments, I had no idea that many brothers obviously aspired to be bearded and experienced the razor 'painfully'. It's a real surprise. So it's moving to know that all those hairless cheeks were only hairless out of submission. Beautiful! However it looks like the GB has opened Pandora's box. What next ? Eager to see.

 

[DarinS]

19 hours ago, Kwabena said:

I'm trying to imagine Br. Noumair with a goatee and a handlebar mustache 

 

 

Well…….Imight have seen that…… he and his brother both

They could probably grow in a day…. Because of their ethnicity.

It was kind of funny looking when I was a kid

[bobby]

this is an old photo from earlier this year but this what i look like with a beard 

[Dhanyel]

People are already asking me if in the future men will be able to have big hair too, the topic seems to have no end, people are very excited 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

Take it easy people 

[Pjdriver]

12 hours ago, TrueTomHarley said:

 

I was surprised that Watchtower had so little impact. At the time, I thought that here and there beards would soon be appearing. Didn’t happen. Beards occurred rarely among the publishers and never (in my area) among the elders or servants. 

 

Yes I noticed that. But the negative view of beards is so ingrained in us  that no one (locally) dared to take the first step, unless it was for some health reason. No one enjoys being looked down on.

 

I think even after this, there will be some old timers in the truth who will look down on those who decide to grow a beard. Old habits are hard to break.

 

That’s why Brother Lett and the GB had to be very clear about not judging. Even after that Wt. article about beards, they left it up to elders personal opinions. The problem with that is  personal opinions were based on the old view that had been deeply ingrained in elders.

 

The world hasn’t viewed modest beards in themselves as bad... in a long time now.  

Just a preference like the style of your head hair. 

 

Judge Rutherford got a little extreme in his personal views on facial hair. However, he was a powerful force used by Jehovah in other ways, without a doubt.  I loved his boldness. It was needed in those turbulent times for the organization.  

Brother Russell and the many first century bearded anointed christians  must be grinning and shaking their heads right now. 

 

I hope we don’t get the  compressed spring effect with beards. Like the illustration of the parent who is overly restrictive with a child. Then when the do finally get freedom, the go off wild and crazy to the other extreme. 

 

 

 

Edited December 16, 2023 by Pjdriver

[Desert Dan]

11 hours ago, 1MKnight said:

 

Whoa now... Still need to trim those beauteous bristles.

 

I hard a rumor that some of the brothers in the areas of the US like the Pacific NW wore beards.   That could of been false information, but had you seen that?

[Lee49]

10 minutes ago, Dhanyel said:

in the future men will be able to have big hair too

Gone are pretty much these days !

 

[Michał]

 
Yes I noticed that. But the negative view of beards is so ingrained in us  that no one (locally) dared to take the first step, unless it was for some health reason. No one enjoys being looked down on.
 
I think even after this, there will be some old timers in the truth who will look down on those who decide to grow a beard. Old habits are hard to break.
 
That’s why Brother Lett and the GB had to be very clear about not judging. Even after that Wt. article about beards, they left it up to elders personal opinions. The problem with that is  personal opinions were based on the old view that had been deeply ingrained in elders.
 
The world hasn’t viewed modest beards in themselves as bad... in a long time now.  
Just a preference like the style of your head hair. 
 
Judge Rutherford got a little extreme in his personal views on facial hair. However, he was a powerful force used by Jehovah in other ways, without a doubt.  I loved his boldness. It was needed in those turbulent times for the organization.  
Brother Russell and the many first century bearded anointed christians  must be grinning and shaking their heads right now. 
 
I hope we don’t get the  compressed spring effect with beards. Like the illustration of the parent who is overly restrictive with a child. Then when the do finally get freedom, the go off wild and crazy to the other extreme. 
 
 
 

I got the feeling that brothers in the 1920s who wore a beard some of them at least wanted to follow a man (brother Russell) so that might explain the strong reaction against beards at that time.

In Poland for a long time beards were worn by arrogant professors, and Untidy homeless people so it was completely normal for brothers not to embrace beards. Most of Polish society looked down at men with beards. In my life at least two worldly people at work asked me why I didn't shave (i had 2 day growth)

However, in the last 20 years a lot has changed. in Polish right now people usually from the younger generation don’t think anything bad about beards in fact, they think they really cool.


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[jwhess]

3 hours ago, Rodejong said:

 

I think he's in his late 80's isn't he? Started pioneering in 66

Br. Lett is a year younger that me.  He is about 75.

[DancesWithWife]

My wife came into the room where I watch sports. It was a hockey game, the NHL. It was between periods where the NHL analyze or break down the game. As she came in, I said look at Henrik Lundqvist, the man on the far right. Look how sharply dressed he is. And I like the beard on him. I thought one day, we will get to wear beards, look sharp (most brothers already are well dressed). I looked at Henrik and thought how he was appropriately dressed. I told Debbie, one day at the meeting we will have brothers on stage like this. Little did I know a few days later...Here is a photo of former New York Ranger, Henrik Lundqvist. 

[Qapla]

26 minutes ago, DancesWithWife said:

It was a hockey game, the NHL

 

Hopefully, it was a game where the Tampa Bay Lightning were winning

 

 

 

[Paul s]

It's good to remember that being well groomed applys to beards as well. We have a brother in our congregation who has a neat and clean beard and it's never seen as a distraction because he keeps it well groomed the same as with his hair, but I have seen others who have grown breads and they look so scruffy as if they've just not bothered to shave. I suspect we'll get some kind of reminder in the future that we need to keep our beards as well groomed as our hair

[DancesWithWife]

3 minutes ago, Qapla said:

Hopefully, it was a game where the Tampa Bay Lightning were winning

 

It was the Boston Bruins playing Buffalo. I used to have a favorite team. Now I just enjoy a game now and then. My first NHL game in person cost me $13 for the ticket in the lower bowl. I just went on the NHL site for the Seattle Kraken, the team that is close to us for the outdoor game is $110-650 a ticket. Little out of my price range. 

[Pjdriver]

1 hour ago, Michał said:

I got the feeling that brothers in the 1920s who wore a beard some of them at least wanted to follow a man (brother Russell) so that might explain the strong reaction against beards at that time.

The problem with that reasoning is that you have to correct the wrong view toward Russell, not make a rule that you cannot serve in the congregation with a beards. Not everyone with a beard was trying to be like Russell. Maybe they wanted to be like Jesus and the Apostles.

 

 Hind sight is 20/20 I guess. 

 

 

Just to clarify something. Just because many knew this was not a scriptural requirement....that does not make them disloyal or faultfinding. In fact, many were loyal in spite of knowing it was unscriptural.  

[MullumMiss]

1 hour ago, DancesWithWife said:

 

I have often said the same when a male on tv with a beard looked well presented.

This guy is a spunk.  I think 35-40 years ago this is what my husband looked like with a beard.  Now both his hair and beard are snow white so I don’t like a beard or moustache on him.  

[DancesWithWife]

1 minute ago, MullumMiss said:

This guy is a spunk

Is that a good thing?

[MullumMiss]

6 minutes ago, DancesWithWife said:

Is that a good thing?

Its an 80s term for handsome 😎

I found a pic of my husband when we were in Bali in June.  This is his beard which he always grows on holidays, mainly cos he hates shaving.  I don’t like a beard on him.  

[AquaticaWaverly]

On 12/15/2023 at 1:37 PM, Gimestr said:

My brother in law threw out his razors this morning lol

Lol ... I guess he forgot he still has to keep it groomed -- shave cheeks and neck to shape it so it won't be scraggly or scruffy. The Grizzly Adams look or Duck Dynasty look are definitely not an option for someone who wants to look like a respectable minister 😄

 

I'm thinking many brothers will probably want to grow a beard now. But truth be told, not everyone looks good in one. It depends on the way the facial hair grows in, the length, color, shape, etc. They sometimes age the man in an unflattering way. Just my fashion 2 cents ... from a woman's perspective.

 

 

Edited December 16, 2023 by AquaticaWaverly

[kejedo]

My now deceased husband wore what he called a goatee when we met (1970s.)It was actually a soul patch. He also wore a mustache b/c he did not like his smile. Didn.t matter to me. We had a good service day. Nobody was sporting a beard. I imagine it may be warmer in upcoming weather. Hmm. Will watch the carts. 

Edited December 16, 2023 by kejedo

[BLEmom]

7 minutes ago, AquaticaWaverly said:

Lol ... I guess he forgot he still has to keep it groomed -- shave cheeks and neck to shape it so it won't be scraggly or scruffy. The Grizzly Adams look is definitely not an option 😄

 

I'm thinking many brothers will probably want to grow a beard now. But truth be told, not everyone looks good in one. It depends on the way the facial hair grows in, color, shape, etc. They sometimes age the man in an unflattering way. Just my fashion 2 cents ... from a woman's perspective.

Beards are like bow ties….not everyone can pull them off. 

[Cushi]

😆