I know a ministerial servant who says "God Bless you", he's seventy something and forgets that we're not supposed to bless people like that.
Do you know the exact rule on that? Is it because blessings were done in blood or something like that?
A few questions for all you experts from my long JW meeting yesterday
by AuntBee 30 Replies latest jw friends
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cameo-d
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Open mind
Have they left you the current (September) Public Edition of the Watchtower?
I'd be very curious to see if they happen to conveniently "forget" to offer it to you.
On page 9 or 10, there's an article entitled "Do You See the 'End Afterward'"? Overall, it's actually a pretty decent article with common sense widsom about considering the long-term consequences of decisions and actions taken now.
But here's why they might not give it to you:
Look for the box on page 9 or 10 that has a picture of an older man talking to a younger man. There's a list of bullet points under the question,
"What would you do if...?"
* A friend invites you to attend a party where alcohol and drugs will be freely available
* A well-meaning teacher encourages you to pursue a higher education at a university
* Someone offers you a cigarette
* Someone wants you to post your personal profile online
(I can't remember the other two items)
This box slyly equates getting a higher education at a university with drug abuse & smoking!
If they haven't given you the September Watchtower yet, ask for it.
Who knows? I could be lying through my teeth.
Or, they might be asking you to put on some rose-colored glasses.
om
p.s. I don't have the magazine right in front of me, so my quotations are from memory. I have not altered the intent of the message at all.
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AuntBee
Funny you should ask.... I think i mentioned it in a PS on my original thread........i didn't even get a free Watchtower out of all that, and felt so ripped off!! Should i call the KH, and ask someone to bring me the current one?
THANKS for that great info from the current mag. wow.
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Open mind
Should i call the KH, and ask someone to bring me the current one?
No. That will look too fishy.
Just ask for the magazines the next time they come by.
You could tell them you saw a Watchtower that had a blue cover with the title: "How Well Do You Know Your Heavenly Father?"
It looked interesting to you, but you didn't pick it up. You'd really like to read it. Or whatever variation of that information doesn't violate your personal ethics.
om
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OnTheWayOut
THey don't discourage college.
From http://www.quotes-watchtower.co.uk/education.html
Kingdom Ministry June 2001 for week starting July 2nd 2001
15 min: Youths—Be Wise in Choosing Your Career. This is the first of three Service Meeting parts that will review Scriptural principles relates to supplemental education. Some Christian youths are pursuing secular careers through higher education, which is having a negative impact on their spirituality. This part is a discussion between two parents and their teenage son or daughter. The youth is at a point where a serious decision needs to be made about future goals. Although some may want to pursue financial advantages, prestige, or comforts of life, the family examine the Bible to see what it recommends. (See Young People Ask, pages 174-5; The Watchtower, August 15, 1997, page 21, and September 1, 1999, pages 19-21, paragraphs 1-3 and 5-6.) The youth agrees that it is wise to pursue a course in life that will serve him or her well in achieving theocratic goals to advance Kingdom interests.
[Emphasis Added]
-- THe Society encourages people to study the BIble on their own without publications or FDS guidance , people CAN come to the Truth just by reading the Bible on their own without the FDS.
From http://www.quotes-watchtower.co.uk/god_s_channel.html:
Watchtower 1964 May 1 p.277-8 Building a Firm Foundation in Christ
8 God's Word is the basis of our faith. As we pore over its pages our mind is communing with God's. Our faith is established and strengthened. We are "always ready to make a defense" by offering "a reason for the hope" that we hold, and we are thereby equipped to teach others the way of life. (1 Pet. 3:15; 2 Tim. 2:2) Why, though, is such emphasis placed on "accurate" knowledge? Why should such care be exercised in our study of the columns of The Watchtower, and of our application of the Scripture texts to the material under consideration? It is through the columns of The Watchtower that Jehovah provides direction and constant Scriptural counsel to his people, and it requires careful study and attention to details in order to apply this information, to get a full understanding of the principles involved, and to assure ourselves of right thinking on these matters. It is in this way that we "are thoroughly able to grasp mentally with all the holy ones" the fullness of our commission and of the preaching responsibility that Jehovah has placed on all Christians as footstep followers of his Son. Any other course would produce independent thinking and cause division. "Now I exhort you, brothers, through the name of our Lord Jesus Christ that you should all speak in agreement, and that there should not be divisions among you, but that you may be fitly united in the same mind and in the same line of thought." (1 Cor. 1:10) If all who are associated in the Christian organization have the mind of God and of Christ there will be unity and all will be built up in maturity of understanding.
Watchtower 1967 October 1 p.590 Finding Freedom with Jehovah's Visible Organization
Since 1879 the Watch Tower magazine has been used by this collective group to dispense spiritual food regularly to those of this "little flock" of true Christians.
Watchtower 1981 February 15 pp.17-19 Do We Need Help to Understand the Bible?
Do We Need Help to Understand the Bible?
Go to the link above and read the entire article, or go to the WatchtowerWatchtower 1981 December 1 p.27 The Path of the Righteous Does Keep Getting Brighter
Jehovah God has also provided his visible organization, his "faithful and discreet slave," made up of spirit-anointed ones ... Unless we are in touch with this channel of communication that God is using, we will not progress along the road to life, no matter how much Bible reading we do.
Our Kingdom Ministry September 2002 (For Britain) p. 8
5 God's Appointed Channel:Bear in mind that our heavenly Father has an appointed channel of communication, "the faithful and discreet slave." That "slave" has the responsibility to determine what information is made available to the household of faith, as well as "the proper time" for it to be dispensed. This spiritual food is available only through the theocratic organization. We should always look to God's appointed channel for reliable information, not to a network of Internet users. — Matt.24:45.
The 'door to door' hours are really not that big of a pressure
Watchtower 1989 January 15 p.15 How Baptism Can Save Us
How Baptism Can Save Us
"Immersion . . . saves us."-1 PETER 3:21, The Emphatic Diaglott.
1. JEHOVAH has specific requirements for those seeking salvation. They must acquire accurate knowledge, exercise faith, repent of their sins, be converted, make a dedication to God, and undergo baptism as believers. (John 3:16; 17:3; Acts 3:19; 18:8) Baptismal candidates must acknowledge publicly that on the basis of Jesus' sacrifice they have repented of their sins and have dedicated themselves to Jehovah. They must also understand that dedication and baptism identify them as Jehovah's Witnesses.
2. The entire baptismal arrangement, including this public expression of faith, is essential for salvation. (Romans 10:10) This was confirmed when the apostle Peter wrote: "Immersion . . . saves us." (1 Peter 3:21, ED) But exactly how should we understand these words? What does the context show?
...
19. There is, of course, a connection between our relationship with God and the work we do.We manifest love for Jehovah by doing the Kingdom-preaching work. In this regard, the late Grant Suiter, a former member of the Governing Body of Jehovah's Witnesses, once wrote: "As I listened to [a certain traveling overseer] speak of the privileges of serving Jehovah and the responsibility to do so, I realized what I should do and what I wanted to do. Thus I made a personal dedication to Jehovah, and about the same time the other members of my family did also. On October 10, 1926, in San Jose, California, all of us together symbolized our dedication to Jehovah God by undergoing water immersion. . . . After the baptism . . . my father said to the elder overseeing the baptism: 'You folks go out with the literature, don't you? We want to do that work, too, now.' So our family started out in the field ministry." Today, qualified persons begin to have a meaningful share in field service even before getting baptized.
Watchtower 1987 April 15 pp.10-15 Gaining Peace With God Through Dedication and Baptism
Gaining Peace With God Through Dedication and Baptism
6 To be spared from God's wrath, those who 'sighed and groaned' had to be marked on their forehead. (Ezekiel 9:4) In ancient times slaves were often marked on the forehead to be clearly identified. Distinctive marks on the forehead and elsewhere might also show that a person worshiped a certain deity. (Compare Isaiah 44:5.) So, in our day, what is the distinctive, lifesaving mark that clearly identifies its bearers as true worshipers and slaves of Jehovah?
7 The symbolic mark is the evidence, as if displayed on your uncovered forehead, (1) that you are a dedicated, baptized disciple of Jesus Christ and (2) that you have put on the Christlike new personality. (Ephesians 4:20-24) Since those thus 'marked' must first make a dedication, we need to know what this involves. Jesus explains: "If anyone wants to come after me, let him disown himself and pick up his torture stake and follow me continually."-Mark 8:34.
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Baptism-For Whom?
11 Jesus commanded that his followers be baptized. (Matthew 28:19, 20) They were to be totally immersed in water and raised out of it. Like a burial and a resurrection, this well pictures a person's dying to a self-centered way of life and being made alive to do God's will. By baptism you identify yourself as one of Jehovah's Witnesses in association with God's worldwide congregation. Baptism validates a solemn agreement made with God. (Compare Exodus 19:3-8.) Your life must be in harmony with his laws. (Psalm 15; 1 Corinthians 6:9-11) Baptism, which ordains you as a minister of God, reflects also a "request made to God for a good conscience" because you know that you are at peace with God.-1 Peter 3:21.
.....13 Before making a dedication, a youth should have adequate knowledge to comprehend what is involved and should be seeking a personal relationship with God. He should understand and be adhering to Bible principles, knowing that he will be held accountable for any infraction thereof. He should also have sufficient experience in sharing his faith with others and know that this is a vital part of true worship; he should truly want to serve God. Naturally, he would not be expected to show the maturity of an adult, but his spiritual progress should be reasonably steady.
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minimus
YOU HAD 2 LIARS AT YOUR DOOR.
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lisavegas420
Oh AuntBee, yes call and ask for a copy and hold on to it.
I once asked a question about a ariticle that refered to a medical article. I looked the medical article up and printed it off and asked the sister how they came up with the information in the Awake magazine, because they didn't agree. She took both the Awake Magazine back and took my printed off about the medical information. After that, I asked about it a few times... She always said she hadn't had time to look over it.
lisa
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eyeslice
And, as with everything with active witnesses, there is an element of self-deception. When I was in, like many others here, I saw things a lot differently.
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greendawn
The video above is great smoking gun evidence, the speaker says we can't oblige you to follow on this issue but then he goes on with several emotional arguments and the ridiculous suicide story that only a total moron would believe, to manipulate them against university education. All caught on "film"! It shows how much they value their followers intelligence.
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halcyon
My take on where the ladies were probably coming from. All references to "I" in the following pertain to what the ladies might have been subconsciously thinking. Items in parentheses are MY personal thoughts.
1) They baptize in the name of the Father, Son and Holy SPirit.
--Hear someone tell you from the platform that this is done. Of course if you hear it from the platform, you believe it. Then at an actual assembly, sit there and let the actual words wash over you, because you're not really listening to the words said, you're just waiting to hear how loud the little group of people is going to be when they say "YES!"
(wait a minute, though ... when they've got you by the nose and they're actually about to dunk you under, do they say it then? I can't remember.)
2) THey don't discourage college.
--Don't try to go and you won't be discouraged. But it's a really bad idea, btw.
3) The GB (FDS) is really not that big of a deal in dictating their lives, so why do i keep pressing that point?
--again, don't try to do anything you've heard you shouldn't do, and it's no big deal. Really, it isn't. They really stay off your back as long as you're obedient, so what's the problem?
4) The 'door to door' hours are really not that big of a pressure or legalistic deal - after all, some are sick in bed and can't do it at all! --
--"We're engaged in a volunteer work ... " (THAT Is one of the big things that got me thinking. Okay, if it's really a volunteer work, I'll quit volunteering. Now what? ... anyway, I don't know how someone could miss this one. The School and Service Meeting have turned into one big sales training class.) Anyway, one could think "it's not a big pressure. I have my routine and nobody bothers me. Sure they tell us to do more, but that's for other people. As long as I'm seen twice a week and turn in my slip, there's no pressure.
5) THe Society encourages people to study the BIble on their own without publications or FDS guidance , people CAN come to the Truth just by reading the Bible on their own without the FDS.
--yeah, I've heard this said, too, so it must be true. I'm sure someone is doing it, somewhere. So yes, it can be done! But I just choose to use these books because it's easiest to go with the flow. Everybody else is doing it exactly this way, and this is the only thing I'm trained to do, so why would I want to do it differently? It would be really really hard to just use the bible anyway, I don't know it well enough to prove all the doctrines from it! But I'm sure some do, so yes, it can be done.