Designs, we all know your opinion on the matter. If someone wants to believe something that you don't, that is their business. I would rather see someone leave the WTBTS and go to a "delusion" that actually does charitable works and protects children, wouldn't you? You are not adding anything constructive at all.
Protest at district convention in Budapest, Hungary
by cedars 31 Replies latest jw friends
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designs
Data- I remember seeing all of the Born Againer's at the District Conventions and thought even then- Really? fire breathing big daddy, really?
The religious types that show up at the DCs do more to keep JWs in than want to change.
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designs
There are so many landmines when the religious types show up at District Conventions. Would Muslims showing up appeal to a JW to convert, do the Born Againer's have any appeal left when we see the secularization of the Western countries.
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ILoveTTATT
@Designs: Ever heard of "all roads lead to Rome"?
I personally believe in God (or a higher power, if you will), and somewhat in the Bible, although I do not consider it infallible, I think that there are good things that we can apply from it (Love your neighbor? Do to others as you would like them to do to you? Those are good things!)...
Some of my biggest "cognitive dissonance" moments happened WHILE READING THE BIBLE or PREACHING! It is one of the many things that could wake up a Jehovah's Witness.
Examples in my own life:
While talking to a workmate, who was studying religion (like, as a 4-year degree), we were discussing the Tetragrammaton... discussing the "Jehovah said to my Lord"... and I told him that in the Psalms it did appear like that... He told me at one point, "Read the Bible on your own! For once, just, read the Bible WITHOUT any Jehovah's Witness literature!" -Glad I followed THAT advice!! It opened my eyes! At first, I just started reading it on my own, then when I could not understand something, I would go to the WT CD, then I would see that I would not buy that explanation. Then, in my quest for more knowledge, I started reading Bible commentaries online. At some point or another, questions started getting to me. I don't know when, but one day, it just hit me: WHY do we believe in the Paradise? Is it in the Bible at all?? Which, at some point, led me to JWFacts.com.... and the rest is history ;)
Preaching to others helped tremendously too! Another example: While I was in service, I think I read the scripture in Psalms 37... where it says that the righteous shall posses the earth in the NWT... well, I wanted to prove to the lady that our NWT was similar to other Bibles. What a shock it was for me when I read it from her Bible and it said, The righteous shall inherit the country!! (It was Spanish. "Tierra" = Planet Earth, but it can also mean "country" or "land")
Yet another: Also preaching, also trying to use other people's Bibles, I read from one man's Bible where it reads, in the NWT, "Not the angels, nor the Son, but only the Father"... well the "nor the Son" was not in his Bible! Another shock!
I agree, partly, with the statement "Statistically, the fastests way to become an Atheist is to read the Bible"
I have read the Bible, still believe in God, because that is something that I WANT to believe in (Faith is very personal), don't believe in the Bible as an infallible book, DEFINITELY do not believe in JW's...
Either way... ILTTATT
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cedars
Also, designs, Crisis of Conscience and In Search Of Christian Freedom by Ray Franz were both written from a religious perspective, yet nobody can deny their usefulness in helping JWs realise the flaws in their organization. Why should a different rule apply when talking to people?
I'm not defending those who are simply out to convert people to their way of thinking or belief system, but I don't think that is what we necessarily see here.
Cedars
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DATA-DOG
I see Design's point. Still, for me it was defending the "truth" to another religious person that was the catalyst. So what do we do? Say nothing for fear that someone will worship the Flying Spaghetti Monster? At least he's not molesting kids. ( not that I am aware of...) It has to start somewhere, it has to start sometime..
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rmt1
A JW is walking along and hears a humanitarian message. He stops up his ears and walks into the convention center.
Another JW is walking along and sees a humanitarian message. He stops up his eyes and walks into a bar. -
Johnny Joker
@Designs
If you go upstairs on the way of counsciousness, you can not take 5-6 steps at once, can you? By the way I am an agnostic, but I shouted at them, to read the Bible. Is it bad? We are not a religious organization. Even so I write my blog from biblical viewpoint.
Have you saved a JW? I have, app. 300 since 3 years, the starting from my blog. I have a little experience. [but I am not an egoist]
Hungary has 10 million citizen, and about 22.000 JWs.
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cedars
Welcome to the forum Johnny!
Cedars
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Oubliette
Szia, Johnny! Hogy vagy?
Keep up the good work!