Divergent

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Posts by Divergent

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  31

  Latest on UK Court Case - Unbelievable!

  by skeeter1 in

  1. watchtower
  2. child-abuse

  jehovah's witness elder denies cover-up at church over 'massaging half-naked schoolgirls'jun 20, 2014 12:53by ciaran jonesdevoted churchgoer mark sewell rejected suggestions his seniority in the barry congregation meant allegations of child abuse would be "swept under the carpet".

  mark sewella former jehovah's witness elder today denied massaging half-naked schoolgirls because he knew his church would "cover up" the allegations due to his position.. devoted churchgoer mark sewell rejected suggestions his seniority in the barry congregation meant allegations of child abuse would be "swept under the carpet".. the businessman, 53, denies 10 historic sex charges against girls and women in a period spanning more than eight years.. during cross-examination by prosecutor sarah waters it was put to the defendant that he "took the risk" of massaging topless schoolgirls because he believed his standing in the church would spare him from allegations of wrongdoing.. ms waters said: "what i'm suggesting, mr sewell, is that it was a cover-up and no-one was allowed to talk about it.".

  greying sewell, wearing a navy suit over white shirt and patterned blue and yellow tie, told merthyr crown court: "not at all, no.".

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  Divergent

  It took ALMOST 30 YEARS for justice to be served???!!!
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  18

  Malawi Party Card vs US Passport HYPOCRISY of Gibbering Buddy

  by hamsterbait in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  as we all know jws were persecuted in malawi, beaten tortured and murdered, because they would not purchase (for about 70 cents) a card saying they support the political rule at that time.

  if they did they wd be df .. what must a us citizen do in order to get a passport - and how in god's name do the wt leaders get one without a compromise nobody else wd be allowed to make?.

  is this another case like the change on vaccinations in 53,because nathan homo knorrr knew he cd die of tropical diseases touring the third world.

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  Divergent

  U.S. citizens do not need to make an oath when applying for a passport
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  11

  Ramifications for Wt if Finnish government was successful in prohibiting shunning

  by joe134cd in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i was just thinking today of the ramifications for the wt if the government of finland was successful in its case against shunning practices, and eventually this was implemented all around the world.. the question this would raise is do they obey gods commandments or that of mans.

  jehovah has implemented a scriptural policy through the fds of disfellowshipping.

  it's a loving provision that helps the wrong doer see the errors of his ways and draws him back to jehovah.

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  Divergent

  Have a read at the official policy:

  Do Jehovah’s Witnesses Shun Former Members of Their Religion?

  Those who were baptized as Jehovah’s Witnesses but no longer preach to others, perhaps even drifting away from association with fellow believers, are not shunned. In fact, we reach out to them and try to rekindle their spiritual interest.

  We do not automatically disfellowship someone who commits a serious sin. If, however, a baptized Witness makes a practice of breaking the Bible’s moral code and does not repent, he or she will be shunned or disfellowshipped. The Bible clearly states: “ Remove the wicked man from among yourselves. ”—1 Corinthians 5:13.

  What of a man who is disfellowshipped but whose wife and children are still Jehovah’s Witnesses? The religious ties he had with his family change, but blood ties remain. The marriage relationship and normal family affections and dealings continue.

  Disfellowshipped individuals may attend our religious services. If they wish, they may also receive spiritual counsel from congregation elders. The goal is to help each individual once more to qualify to be one of Jehovah’s Witnesses. Disfellowshipped people who reject improper conduct and demonstrate a sincere desire to live by the Bible’s standards are always welcome to become members of the congregation again.

  Source: http://www.jw.org/en/jehovahs-witnesses/faq/shunning/

  "Those who were baptized as Jehovah’s Witnesses but..... are not shunned

  IF, HOWEVER....."
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  34

  How to become an MS in no time

  by Batman89 in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  the method i used lol.

  1) be a good servant and make sure your wt and pub are always underlined every meeting(great for appearances).

  2) comment every meeting(a "sure way" to know someones "spiritually qualified").

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  Divergent

  Fastest way: Move to a small congregation / group which is in desperate need of brothers =)
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  16

  "The truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth"

  by suavojr in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  as current witnesses, ex-jw's, believers, non believers.

  the topic of what truth is, has been the dominating thought and motivation to many of us here.. so, what is truth?.

  a question that has lingered since the dawn of our consciousness and it will stay as long as the human race is around.. .

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  Divergent

  The dentist pulled out the tooth, the whole tooth, and nothing but the tooth ;)
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  13

  If someone refers to the "greek scriptures" is that a sign of JW indoctrination?

  by scotoma in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i recently had a casual conversation at a bar on the subject of atheism.

  they used the expression "greek scriptures".

  i didn't pursue it but it made me wonder..

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  Divergent

  Nerds enjoy reading the geek scriptures ^^
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  31

  How I Ended Up On JWN...

  by Divergent in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  this is the story of how i ended up here on this site.... .

  i was stuck in a situation where reaching out took forever, an eternity.

  it was ridiculous - no matter what i did, there was always more to do.

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  Divergent

  FastJehu - Looks like I was that monkey too ;P

  Never a jw - You wrote: "You are here because someone didn't tickle your ears." WRONG.I am here because I didn't tickle other people's ears

  Bob - Didn't you hear the new understanding? Who are sheep or goats would only be determined at the great tribulation

  Finkelstein - Talking about judging, it's amazing how elders can remember petty things that happened a long time ago & bring them up much later. It seems as though they have an elephant memory of every single mistake that an individual has made in the past, even those insignificant ones! (FYI I never had any major ones) I found out that such "issues" were raised when the elders were deliberating on whether to appoint me (they were not even issues at all, but they just HAD to find some "weakness" in me as an excuse so as not to appoint me). Seriously, WTF?

  Stuckinarut - You asked why I wanted those positions. Was it for recognition or pride, or was it to help people in the cong more? My reply - it was for BOTH reasons. I KNEW that I would be able to accomplish more for those in the cong if I was able to serve in a better capacity and reach my full spiritual potential. As a matter of fact, I was often helping others in the cong in whichever ways that I could (however, the elders were turning a blind eye & often did not take any notice of it or acknowledge it). As for pride, I will honestly say: YES - it was definitely for pride! HOWEVER, there are 2 types of pride. The pride that I'm referring to is NOT the selfish type of pride, but it was self-esteem, self-respect, & self-worth that I valued. I wanted to be proud of myself - I'm sure everyone here also desires to have self-pride, wouldn't you? It's only natural to want to feel that way. However, that was not how I felt. I was consumed with negative feelings, feeling self-conscious & miserable. If I don't feel good about myself, how could I help others? Not being able to make spiritual advancement (not because I didn't qualify but because my sincere efforts were constantly blocked by the elders) only worsened the situation

  Whatthehadas - Agreed. It's extremely frustrating to see other brothers being appointed easily while you're stuck & going nowhere. A less zealous brother from a small cong would get speedily appointed while those from larger congs could end up being stuck for years and years. Mine was a large cong ;P

  AudeSapere - Small mistake, no big deal

  Kate - You said "There are many elders who love the power that comes with the position and don't want to share that power. From the platform you will constantly hear we need brothers to reach out, but really they want brothers who will be company men and agree with the most dominant elders. They want young brother who are drones to follow orders as elders"

  Totally agreed. One of my "problems" was that I was NOT a good ass-kisser. I SUCK at sucking up to people. This could be a reason why I never made elder. What you said about dominant elders is true - there were a couple of them in my cong & other meeker & milder elders would simply go along with what they say, even though they may not be in agreement. They would prefer to be silent rather than to exercise their right to speak out. I agree that there are many good & decent elders. However, the rule is that there MUST be a consensus and every elder MUST be in agreement with recommending an individual for appointment. So supposing there are 10 elders, let's say 9 of them are decent & 1 is an asshole. The 9 decent elders are NOT able to recommend that individual for appointment if the asshole elder objects, although he is clearly outnumbered and even though that individual is entirely deserving of it. Sad but true
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  31

  How I Ended Up On JWN...

  by Divergent in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  this is the story of how i ended up here on this site.... .

  i was stuck in a situation where reaching out took forever, an eternity.

  it was ridiculous - no matter what i did, there was always more to do.

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  Divergent

  Thanks for all your replies! Probably won't be able to reply to all of you guys though, but appreciate the comments =)
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  20

  Frozen and Sparlock the warrior wizard

  by NewYork44M in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  given that magic is from satan, this is what we learned from the horrible story about the little boy and sparlock the warrior wizard.

  i am curious to know if witness kids are allowed to see the movie frozen.

  i am not a big disney fan, but this movie was wonderful.

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  Divergent

  Based on my understanding:

  It depends on the degree of magic involved. For Harry Potter, the general view is that magic not only forms the whole theme of the movie, but the magic involved is "dark magic," thus making it unsuitable

  On the other hand, Disney movies are children-friendly & cater to almost everyone. There is more emphasis on family values rather than magic. Of course, magic is featured from time to time, but it's presented in such a light-hearted way that it becomes sort of acceptable as "friendly magic"

  I always believed in being balanced & rational. Hey, if you want to take things to the extreme, even Mary Poppins is a magic film & thus Christians should not watch it!

  Anyway, never met anyone with such a restrictive conscience that they avoid Disney movies!
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  31

  How I Ended Up On JWN...

  by Divergent in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  this is the story of how i ended up here on this site.... .

  i was stuck in a situation where reaching out took forever, an eternity.

  it was ridiculous - no matter what i did, there was always more to do.

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  Divergent

  This is the story of how I ended up here on this site...

  I was stuck in a situation where reaching out took forever, an eternity. It was ridiculous - no matter what I did, there was always more to do. I felt like a donkey chasing a carrot dangling off a stick in front of me - no matter how hard I tried & exerted, I would never be able to reach it. The elders were picky, fault-finding, over-analyzing my life, finding reasons as to why they should not give me further privileges, instead of looking at my positive qualities & finding reasons as to why they should (there were many). I did qualify, I was very sure of it. Unfortunately, I was a victim of congregation bureaucracy, having my spiritual progress hampered by elders who seemed to be intent on giving me a hard time

  Reaching out & not getting there had a reverse effect on me. I was frustrated, tired, & drained. Instead of trying harder & doing more, I slacked off. I am an individual who needs constant motivation, and not attaining what I was reaching out for was a definite motivation killer

  Things could have turned out differently, though. If I had been helped to make further advancement by the elders, I would be an elder myself by now & I wouldn't be here. If I had married a lovely, zealous pioneer sister, we could be pioneering happily together & I wouldn't be here. I could have easily ended up NOT being here if things had worked out better

  It's ironic how my joy was killed by congregation bureaucracy, & as a result, I found my way here...