RE: "because the real currency that the WT traffiks in is the familial love bonds among family members. Instead of indulgences, they sell you your own family if you tow the line."<<<<
What is wrong with people...
Disfellowshiping: Why the Terror?
by Cold Steel 44 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
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TD
The real question here is if the Society doesn’t have the power to loose on Earth, then how can it disfellowship anyone?
The Society actually does not disfellowship anyone. Your relationship is entirely between you and your local congregation.
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Narcissistic Supply
>>> The Society actually does not disfellowship anyone. Your relationship is entirely between you and your local congregation <<<
As i understand it, each of the KH's are a seperate corporation. So it would be like being disfellow shipped from a small corporation under the umbrella of microsoft. Or a small corporation under the umbrella of apple.
That's awesome.
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cantleave
CantLeave: Of course the Mormon cult is just as harsh.
Is it? And you would know that?
And how do you know about JW's? - oh yeah by reading! How do you think I know about your stupid Mormon cult? Oh yeah by reading. I probably know as much about your religion as you do JW's.
You get you info by visiting Ex-Jw sites and I get my info on your cult by visiting ex-mormon sites.
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TD
As i understand it, each of the KH's are a seperate corporation. So it would be like being disfellow shipped from a small corporation under the umbrella of microsoft. Or a small corporation under the umbrella of apple.
The connection is even more tenuous than that. Religions can be legally organized hierarchically like the Catholic and Presbyterian denominations or they can be legally organized congregationally like the Baptist and Lutheran denominations. There are advantages and disadvantages to both systems.
Jehovah's Witnesses often manage to enjoy the best of both worlds. Legally, they are organized congregationally, but they have their members tricked into accepting a hierarchy that is entirely doctrinal.
Even xJW's sometimes seem to have a hard time wrapping their minds around that.
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Apognophos
But of course this doesn't change the fact that congregations communicate with each other, and will "carry over" one congregation's disfellowshipping to another if a DFed one attends there.
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Cold Steel
Cofty: All cults dismiss the testimony of their former members. It's one of the hallmarks of a cult.
Oh, you’re an expert in cults, then?
Well, then you undoubtedly know that all religions begin as cults.
Do you think that early Christianity wasn’t a cult? The Romans certainly considered it a cult and Pliny the elder called it a “monstrous cult.” The words “culture” and “cult” are related, as you surely know, and the latter is defined as “a religion or religious sect generally considered to be extremist or false, with its followers often living in an unconventional manner under the guidance of an authoritarian, charismatic leader.”
So the person using the word gets to decide which religion is extremist or false, and there is nothing to keep him from deciding that all religions are extremist or false. And if you happen to be an atheist or self-appointed minister of the gospel, you can go nuts labeling every religion you don't like as a cult.
Was first century Christianity considered extremist or false? It was. Did its members live in an unconventional manner? Yes, the scriptures say the early Christians had a form of lifestyle where they consecrated all their possessions to God and donated their excess to the church. And didn’t Peter, by the power of the Holy Spirit, judge Ananias and Sapphira and watch them fall to the ground in death when they attempted to cheat God? (See Acts 5) And wasn’t Jesus a charismatic leader? Indeed.
So based on this, yes, I suppose first century Mormonism, like Christianity, also was once a cult. But the real question is whether first century Christianity and first century Mormonism in the same proverbial boat as, say, the Branch Davidians, Hare Krishnas, Charles Manson’s Family, Aum Shinrikyo, Raëlian Church, Jonesboro, Heaven’s Gate, Order of the Solar Temple, Scientology and other fringe groups? If so, well, we’ll just have to disagree and let people make up their own minds.
As for the testimony of former members, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has a number of scholars not only writing about early Hebrew history and writings, Israel’s history from Moses onward, early Christianity, ancient scripture and cultures, but the Book of Mormon, its claims, the LDS foundational claims and the charges of former members and other anti-Mormons. (See BYU’s Religious Study Center, the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship, and FAIRLDS). These three surpass in scholarship anything I’ve seen in any other sect.
As it stands, “cult” can mean any religion the user doesn’t like, or wishes to demean. The more prestigious books on cults fail to include the LDS church or attack its beliefs. And the books that do tend to be published by evangelical Christians and other wacko groups which are themselves almost always cults.
Ironic, ain’t it?
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Resistance is Futile
Cold Steel, you mentioned that there is a lot of misinformation spread by former members of the Mormon Church. As a current member I'd therefore appreciate your input. Is it true that while Joseph Smith was already married to his first wife he had sex with several teenage women? Do you think he may have used his position of authority in his community to take advantage of young impressionable women in order to satisfy his own sexual impulses?
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cofty
Oh, you’re an expert in cults, then?
Yes
Do you think that early Christianity wasn’t a cult?
Yes it was. Jesus was a self-obsessed, egomaniac. He enticed men to abandon their wives, families and businesses and follow him around Palestine spouting nonsense about Jesus' imminent parousia and pretending to expel demons from epileptics.
Mormonism is laughable. Your made-up history, petty rules, magic underwear and second-rate book with its childish errors are embarrassing.
"Mormon scholar" is an oxymoron like "faith school".
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Joliette
The disfellowshipping thing never made sense to me. Ever. It just seemed evil and unhealthy.