How is it all
set up?
The
organization of Jehovah's Witnesses is structured
hierarchically. At the highest level is the Governing Body,
which is made up of about a dozen men (the number fluctuates).
These men have deliberative and legislative authority in
questions of theology, morals, and congregational discipline.
They answer to no other humans apart from themselves, and they
appoint whomever they desire to be members of this group.
Below them are the Branch Committees, each of which is in
charge of a certain region or zone of the world. The zones are
divided into districts, and each district is headed by a
traveling overseer, who makes sure that all that occurs in the
district is in keeping with the guidelines created by the
Governing Body and Branch Committees. The districts are, in
turn, divided into circuits, and each circuit is headed by a
traveling overseer, who answers to the district overseer. The
circuit overseer visits all of the congregations in his
circuit and makes certain that the elders in each congregation
are doing their jobs as outlined by the Governing Body and
Branch Committees. Each local congregation has a body of
elders, and all elders are appointed by the Branch. The local
elders and circuit overseer may make recommendations, but no
congregation is autonomous. All congregation members,
including ministerial servants, pioneers, and congregation
publishers are expected to be obedient and submissive to the
elders. The authority structure may be summed up as follows:
Governing
Body
|
Branch
Committees
|
District
Overseers
|
Circuit
Overseers
|
Elders
|
Ministerial
Servants, Pioneers, Congregation Publishers
Although
the literature of the organization frequently refers to a
"faithful and discreet slave class," which is said
to be made up of all those who are anointed (i.e., those with
a heavenly hope), and claims that this class passes on
spiritual information to the other members, the anointed ones
as a group never confer together to make any sort of decisions
about theology, morals, or discipline. The Governing Body
claims to represent the slave class, but acts independently of
it. There is no consultation with the rest of the anointed
about any matters whatsoever. It is true that the Governing
Body are all anointed, and some of the members of the other
levels in the authority structure are too (though not all),
but the vast majority of anointed ones fall into the
bottom-most category and are just as much under the authority
of the elders and higher levels as anyone else is. The
"faithful and discreet slave," therefore, is not at
all a part of the authority structure.
The
current system resembles more the authority structure of the
Catholic Church then it does the first century Christian
congregation. There is no evidence in Scripture of a standing
Governing Body, which made decisions on matters of theology,
morals, and congregational discipline. Acts 15 mentions only a
special council that was called in Jerusalem, which all elders
in the vicinity attended. There is no evidence of any other
council until the post-apostolic period.
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