AnnOMaly

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Posts by AnnOMaly

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  103

  That does it ! I'm leaving ! ! !

  by Billy the Ex-Bethelite in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  leaving the university with my degree!.

  exams are finished and it's just a matter of days before i walk.. i was certainly stressed about doing this.

  i'm older than my classmates and armageddon was sooooo close!

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  AnnOMaly

  
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  59

  "They've made us debt FREE !!!"

  by gingerbread in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  so proclaimed the brother that read the wt letter tonight that explained the new kingdom hall funding arrangement.. everyone in the hall claps .... well, like it was the last talk on the district convention.. he says 'what bank would wipe out a debt of $200,000 ???

  only jehovah's organization!

  isn't this wonderful !!!".

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  AnnOMaly

  Yes - AnnOMaly.

  Any congregation who had (earlier in the week) agreed to a 'resolution' to send a lump sum every month is now "on hold". The new letter states that each publisher in the congregation will get a 'survey' slip to fill out.

  

  Wow!

  (Um, any chance of making this supplementary letter available to view?)
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  59

  "They've made us debt FREE !!!"

  by gingerbread in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  so proclaimed the brother that read the wt letter tonight that explained the new kingdom hall funding arrangement.. everyone in the hall claps .... well, like it was the last talk on the district convention.. he says 'what bank would wipe out a debt of $200,000 ???

  only jehovah's organization!

  isn't this wonderful !!!".

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  AnnOMaly

  I can't believe the Legal/Finance Dept haven't factored in the potential long term loss by forgiving the loans. It must be one of the reasons they're grabbing any surpluses from every cong., circuit and region so that they can invest and get decent returns instead.

  After the letter was read the brother said that there was a change in that method (they had received a NEW letter of instructions on Wednesday). All congregations must take a survey - with each publisher/family committing to a monthly contribution.

  gingerbread, are you saying there was an addendum to the letter we've seen? Whether the Hall was mortgaged or not, ALL congs must do the survey?
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  59

  "They've made us debt FREE !!!"

  by gingerbread in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  so proclaimed the brother that read the wt letter tonight that explained the new kingdom hall funding arrangement.. everyone in the hall claps .... well, like it was the last talk on the district convention.. he says 'what bank would wipe out a debt of $200,000 ???

  only jehovah's organization!

  isn't this wonderful !!!".

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  AnnOMaly

  There's a shiny, new KH, less than a year old in my area and the congs using it are by no means well-off. They got a hefty loan from the WTS. At the time it was all in the planning stage I thought it was going to be a HUGE financial burden on them for the next decade or so - how were they going to manage to maintain the payments? They're going to be jumping for joy over this letter and, as sure as eggs is eggs, donations are going to dwindle ... and they still get to enjoy their shiny, new KH!
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  25

  Short Online Course (Free) on the Fall and Rise of Jerusalem in 587BCE by Tel Aviv University

  by digderidoo in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  for those interested in the fall and rise of jerusalem in 587bce tel aviv university are offering a short 6 week online course through coursera in october 2014.. i have done a couple of coursera courses, they are always of the highest quality put together by scholars of whatever the subject matter is about.

  universities tend to offer these as tasters and short introductions into their specialities.. you can get the information on the following link the fall and rise of jerusalem | coursera.

  emory university are also offering a course through coursera on the bible's prehistory, purpose, and political future starting may 26th the bible's prehistory, purpose, and political future | coursera.

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  AnnOMaly

  Cross-referencing - http://www.jehovahs-witness.net/jw/friends/263816/1/What-are-these-free-classes-good-for-The-Fall-Of-Jerusalem-By-Tel-Av-iv-U#.U2tpn4FdXYk

  Thanks for another heads up. The 'Fall and Rise of Jerusalem' one is tempting.
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  59

  "They've made us debt FREE !!!"

  by gingerbread in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  so proclaimed the brother that read the wt letter tonight that explained the new kingdom hall funding arrangement.. everyone in the hall claps .... well, like it was the last talk on the district convention.. he says 'what bank would wipe out a debt of $200,000 ???

  only jehovah's organization!

  isn't this wonderful !!!".

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  AnnOMaly

  OK, so thinking out loud:

  The branch can scoop up congregations' surplus funds, so there's a nice influx of cash for the WTS;

  If the resolved amounts can't be met, there's to be no soliciting of funds but the cong. will be reminded of (guilted about) their pledges.

  HOWEVER, rather than the equivalent of the KH loan being paid indefinitely, could it be that the resolved monthly contributions to the Construction work would drop off in the long term? Here's why:

  The letter says that if the cong. already has a monthly loan repayment, the elders propose a resolution to at least meet that monthly repayment (no confidential survey taken beforehand - it's only the Halls that don't have loans or current regular payments to the Construction work that take the confidential survey - besides, before a cong. took out a loan with the WTS, a survey was done beforehand anyway). Every May the elders convene to review how the cong. is doing meeting their resolved amount and if it is still realistic for them.

  I see this possible scenario. A cong. with a loan/mortgage feels they've had it wiped - that's what p. 1 of the letter says, after all. Whoopee. The elders propose a new resolution matching the monthly loan repayment. But because the pubs. think they don't have to pay back the debt any more, they become less motivated to keep up their donations like before. May comes along and the elders find that, for the previous few months, there has been a shortfall and reminders (guilting) from the stage has done little to address the problem. So they decide to take a new financial survey; publishers pledge less to the Construction work, and a new resolution for a lesser amount is proposed and carried. Next year, rinse and repeat until donations reach some sort of equilibrium well below what was resolved in the 1st year of this new arrangement.

  Does this scenario fly? What do you all think?
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  14

  Dating the writing of a Bible book

  by stirred but not shaken in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  while doing the research over the last several years that lead me to conclude that the wt.

  society was in error, i was introduced to the possibility that the writings of all scripture was completed by the early to mid 60s ce.

  the reasoning that is used in the publications varies.

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  AnnOMaly

  I know it's not the same as having a hard copy in your hands, but FWIW, you can access the official version of Jonsson's book at,

  http://kristenfrihet.se/english/gtr4/contents.htm

  The chapters' page numbers are hyperlinked.
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  26

  Quotes from the Watchtower that you agree with 100%

  by nicolaou in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  just curious.

  add your quotes with no commentary if you like, it should be obvious why you agree.. the dangers of being deceivedthe really sad fact is that very often the person who is deceived or deluded tends to hold on to his belief in spite of strong evidence proving otherwise.

  perhaps he gets so emotionally attached to his belief that he simply shuts his eyes and closes his ears to any evidence that might challenge it.. the watchtower, 01/09/ 2010 p10/11.

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  AnnOMaly

  *** w11 8/15 p. 4 The Internet—Making Wise Use of a Global Tool ***

  "Do not become an “Internet Eve.” Be critical and suspicious of the information. Before trusting it, ask: (1) Who published this material? What are the author’s credentials? (2) Why was this published? What motivated the writer? Is there any bias? (3) Where did the author get the information? Does he supply sources that can be checked? (4) Is the information current? In the first century, the apostle Paul gave Timothy advice that applies with equal force today. Paul wrote: “Guard what is laid up in trust with you, turning away from the empty speeches that violate what is holy and from the contradictions of the falsely called ‘knowledge.’”—1 Tim. 6:20."

  *** w91 12/1 p. 7 Is Any Religion Good Enough? ***

  "A religion that teaches lies cannot be true."

  *** g03 9/22 p. 24 The Piñata—An Ancient Tradition ***

  "We found that for many people in Mexico, the piñata has lost its religious significance and is considered by most to be just harmless fun. ...

  "... A main concern is, not what the practice meant hundreds of years ago, but how it is viewed today in your area. Understandably, opinions may vary from one place to another. Hence, it is wise to avoid turning such matters into big issues."
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  12

  Helsinki Times Article: "The End of the World" - Lengthy interview with many former JWs

  by AndersonsInfo in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  http://www.helsinkitimes.fi/finland/finland-news/domestic/10435-the-end-of-the-world.html.

  the end of the world.

  last autumn, jussi k. began to plan his disassociation from jehovah's witnesses.

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  AnnOMaly

  Excellent article; heart-rending stories. I liked how it was shown that the jw.org website says one thing about shunning but talks and WT articles say another. I, too, wish Jussi well.
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  34

  Feeling disloyal

  by stirred but not shaken in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  i've been visiting here for about a year or so, but didn't really feel compelled to participate other than reading the various posts that interested me.. there's been that uncomfortable feeling of being disloyal to god, the organization, many friends and relatives.. i've been associated since birth.

  after 65 + years of service within this organization and actually enjoying that time, it troubled me to find myself wanting to express feelings that were contrary to all that time of "faithfulness".

  those years were filled with progressive "privileges and responsibilities" even at a high level, and there was considerable success in our evangelizing activity.

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  AnnOMaly

  Welcome stirred.

  That is some tall order - deconstructing and reconstructing your belief system after 65+ years in the Org. Your feelings of being 'disloyal' are normal, especially for a long-timer with many decades of conditioning, and they will fade over time as you gain confidence in your new loyalty to what is actually truthful.

  Looking forward to reading more from you.