I do now, but when I was a JW, I don't think I ever considered it.
Ozzie's Weekend Poll #116
by ozziepost 17 Replies latest jw friends
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Freedom Fighter
Definitely American - but divinely inspired of course......
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Wallflower
When I was growing up in the JWs, it was definitely US, but now I'm older and have left the faith, all the JWs are now THEM.
!!!!
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Englishman
I had never thought about it that way until Eman posted a thread some time back about how the literature was written in American English and how some of it was funny to the Brits. I
Nice of you to point that up, Princess. I'm very upbuilt. We still don't talk much about petting over here, I always thought it was something to do with owning a cat.
Englishman.
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gumby
Everyone should know the dubs sprang from early Jewish christians. Remember.......the congregations today had it's first start with Pentecost and grew to what it is today....... it even says so in the Watchtower!
Gumby
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Steve Egner
I viewed the JW's as an American originated religion, charged with taking the message worldwide.
I often wondered though, why the center of God's interest shifted from Jerusalem to Brooklyn. Especially after I visited Broolklyn.
Steve
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MerryMagdalene
interesting poll..
of, course as an itty bitty j-dub I thought it was/we were "universal"
now, I see it as an American-ized version of some sort of strange Hebrew-Greek myth-meld but I don't think they can really be considered an American religion since they are somewhat anti-American, nor can they be truly called a world religion as they are so anti-world, so I'm not sure what they are...
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BrendaCloutier
Good question, one I hadn't considered in this light.
My answer is Yes, definitely US.
Illogical basis for my answer: (Not that anyone really cares )
JW's believe that they are the only TRUE CHRISTIAN religion. The calling to CT Russell was in the US, hence it is a US cult, er, ah, regligious group. (Yeah, that's it, religious group)
However, christianity as we know it today, was initially developed by Constantine with catholicism, and therefore is from Eastern Europe based on the original christian concepts of the middle east. Further edited and exaggerated by Martin Luther, and other Protest-tants.
So, IMHO JW's are a US bastardized version of the many of the fundamentalist Calvinist-like religions that spran up and flourished in the late 18th and 19th centuries in Europe and even more so in the US with our freedom of speech/religion....
These Protestant Fundamentalists, many of which base their strict doctrins on the teachings of St. Paul, a Roman, who took to Christ's teachings about being "saved" because he couldn't be "saved" by Judaism. Add the use and belief JW's have in the OT and a vindictive Jehovah, and you have a :
Protestant Fundamentalist St Paul Judiastic Middle Eastern mixed up mess.
IMHO
Brenda
PS
Blondie - Shakers formed in the mid-late 1700's in England as a splinter group of the Quakers, originally called the Shaking Quakers. About 100 years earlier than Russellites.
The Eastern Shakers are not at all associated with The NW Indian Shaker Church, formed by John Slocum in the late 1880's. Been to services, awesome!
The Quakers were begun, hesitantly, by George Fox in England in mid-1600's.
sub-note: In 1682 while in London, my own ancestor purchased property in Philadephia Pennsylvania (Penn's Woods) from Wm Penn and came over on of Penn's ships (but not the Friendship Penn was on).