^ Same here. The email account I signed up with is obselete. I can't remember it properly.
New site's looking good, btw, Simon
the time has nearly come to switch over to the new forum software.
of course it's not completely finished yet (and never will be) but i think it's good enough to go live with and probably already better than the current one.
i'll give you a quick overview of what to expect and post more detail about the changeover process later.. cloud platform.
^ Same here. The email account I signed up with is obselete. I can't remember it properly.
New site's looking good, btw, Simon
so most would now know of the vile act in sydney last week where a man held hostage over 17 people in the lindt cafe in the middle of sydney.. two people were murdered...a beautiful, educated lawyer,loving mother of three, and a brave, loving young man working as the cafe manager.. this senseless and cruel act has touched everyone deeply, especially in the communities of sydney.
the outpouring of grief and support for the victims and their families has been immense.. i was therefore outraged to have the following comment made by a witness in conversation at the kingdom hall:.
"well, we dont need to be sad, because at least now they (the two victims) will get a ressurection.
"well, we dont need to be sad, because at least NOW they (the two victims) will get a ressurection. If this hadnt happened, they probably wouldnt have accepted the truth becuase of their busy lives or lifestyle"
Aw, how heart-warming and comforting - I guess the same can be said of the 8 murdered children in Cairns.
NOT.
Even as a loyal 'in the box' dubbie, I wouldn't have been able to let such an asinine remark go.
i was talking with two brothers at the kingdom hall the other day.
one of them suggested seeing the new exodus movie.
the other brother says, "i heard it's really violent"!
One of them suggested seeing the new Exodus movie. The other brother says, "I heard it's really violent"!
LOL. Well, duhhhh!
(Exodus 2:11, 12) . . .Now in those days, after Moses had become an adult, he went out to his brothers to look at the burdens they were bearing, and he caught sight of an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his brothers. So he looked this way and that, and seeing no one, he killed the Egyptian and hid him in the sand.
(Exodus 5:13, 14) . . .And the taskmasters kept urging them: “You must each finish your work every day, just as when straw was provided.” Also the foremen of the Israelites, whom Phar′aoh’s taskmasters had appointed over them, were beaten. . . .
(Exodus 9:18, 19, 24, 25) . . .Here I will cause a very great hail to rain down tomorrow about this time, such as has never occurred in Egypt from the day it was founded until now. Therefore, send word to bring all your livestock and all that is yours in the field under shelter. Every man and beast caught in the field and not brought into the house will die when the hail comes down on them.”’” [. . .] There was hail, and there was fire flashing in the midst of the hail. It was very heavy; there had never been any like it in the land since Egypt had become a nation. The hail struck everything in the field throughout the land of Egypt, from man to beast, and it struck down all the vegetation and shattered all the trees of the field.
(Exodus 12:29, 30) . . .Then at midnight, Jehovah struck down every firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Phar′aoh who was sitting on his throne to the firstborn of the captive who was in the prison, and every firstborn of the animals. Phar′aoh got up that night along with all his servants and all the other Egyptians, and there was a great outcry among the Egyptians, because there was not a house where someone was not dead.
(Exodus 14:27, 28) . . .Moses at once stretched out his hand over the sea, and as morning approached, the sea returned to its normal condition. As the Egyptians fled from it, Jehovah shook the Egyptians off into the midst of the sea. The returning waters covered the war chariots and the cavalrymen and all of Phar′aoh’s army who had gone into the sea after them. Not so much as one among them was allowed to survive.
(Exodus 17:8-10, 13) . . .Then the A·mal′ek·ites came and fought against Israel in Reph′i·dim. At this Moses said to Joshua: “Choose men for us and go out to fight against the A·mal′ek·ites. Tomorrow I will stand on top of the hill, with the rod of the true God in my hand.” Then Joshua did just as Moses told him, and he fought against the A·mal′ek·ites. [...] Thus Joshua defeated Am′a·lek and his people with the sword.
(Exodus 32:26-29) [After the golden calf incident] Then Moses took his position in the gate of the camp and said: “Who is on Jehovah’s side? Come to me!” And all the Levites gathered around him. He now said to them: “This is what Jehovah the God of Israel has said, ‘Each of you must fasten on his sword and pass through all the camp from gate to gate, killing his brother, his neighbor, and his close companion.’” The Levites did what Moses said. So about 3,000 men were killed on that day. Then Moses said: “Set yourselves apart for Jehovah today, for each of you has gone against his own son and his own brother; today he will give you a blessing.”
so, i'm visiting family this week who are all jws.
yesterday, it started with one of them talking about a co giving her some points on time keeping for service.
she is now writing a letter before she drives to service, so she can count her drive time.
we are finding ways to "cheat" hours.
That's been done for as long as there was hour reporting. Pioneering, we'd immediately do a couple of persistent 'not homes' or a RV nearby or give a tract to some unsuspecting passerby, then we'd have started the clock. We could then drive miles to the territory, not stressing because of having already started our time. We could count our coffee break if we left a mag or tract with the assistant. All 'creative' hour counting.
I mean, really. Does God really give a crap if you drive to service and count your time?
Nope. But the Org. does.
A friend made a comment about not being able to find the Daniel book on jw.org anymore. His wife said, "maybe it's because they are changing it". Everyone said," oh yeah, that must be it" and moved on.
jw.org has publications back to 2000 (with one or two exceptions like the Insight volumes). The Daniel's Prophecy book is from 1999.
for a while i have shaken my head after learning how jw's interpret (rather corrupt the meaning of) matthew 8:11. i thought it couldn't get any worse.
i was wrong.
the following is an extract of the march 2015 watchtower in pg 27. the writer is explaining the meaning of mathew 25:31-46. enjoy!.
Another one to shake your head at, never a jw, from p. 14, par. 9:
'The second quality that helps those
virgins to be ready is vigilance. Would
it be possible for individual anointed
Christians to get sleepy during a long
nighttime vigil? Indeed. Note that Jesus
says of the ten virgins that “they all became
drowsy and fell asleep” during
the apparent delay of the bridegroom.
Jesus knew well that even a willing,
eager spirit may be hampered by the
weakness of the flesh. Faithful anointed
ones have heeded that implied warning
and have worked ever harder to remain
vigilant, watchful. In the parable, all
the virgins responded to the nighttime
shout: “Here is the bridegroom!” But
only the vigilant ones endured to the
end. (Matt. 25:5, 6; 26:41) What about
faithful anointed ones today? Throughout
the last days, they have responded to
strong evidence that, in effect, cries out,
“Here is the bridegroom”—just about to
come. They have also endured, keeping
ever ready for the Bridegroom to arrive.'
Apart from the fact that, for about 80 years until 2012, both 'anointed' and 'other sheep' JWs were taught the Bridegroom had already arrived back in 1918, so "faithful anointed ones" couldn't have "kept ever ready for the Bridegroom to arrive," the Watchtower article bizarrely interprets Jesus' detail about all ten virgins falling asleep to mean that the five faithful ones actually "worked ever harder to remain vigilant, watchful" (therefore, they didn't fall asleep as Jesus said they did).
"those with the earthly hope who supported christs brothers in the preaching work will have been judged as sheep and will be granted the privilege of living in the earthly realm of the kingdom.
" 3/2015 study wt learn from illustration of talents par 13.. so there you have it, to get salvation you need to only obey the gb and if you obey and worship the gb, then you will be judged as a sheep.
truly those who listen and obey, will be blessed!.
So there you have it, to get salvation you need to only obey the GB and if you obey and worship the GB, then you will be judged as a sheep. Truly those who Listen and Obey, will be blessed!
It was ever thus.
*** w82 4/1 pp. 30-31 par. 18 Survival or Destruction at the “Great Tribulation” ***
"Any who hope to be considered by God’s Judge as 'sheep' to be spared must prove themselves to be 'righteous ones,' actively aiding Christ’s anointed 'brothers,' who form the 'faithful and discreet slave' class. (Matthew 25:33, 40, 46; 24:45-47)"*** w97 9/15 p. 20 par. 19 Who Will Survive “the Day of Jehovah”? ***
"Do your words and deeds identify you as a faithful and zealous servant of God? If so, you can entertain the hope of surviving 'the day of Jehovah' into God’s promised new world. Yes, survival may be your experience if you do good to Christ’s spiritual brothers because they are his followers ..."*** w12 3/15 p. 20 par. 2 Rejoicing in Our Hope ***
"The other sheep should never forget that their salvation depends on their active support of Christ’s anointed 'brothers' still on earth. (Matt. 25:34-40)"
"...what it is is this spanx, this skin-tight stuff they wear.
now, are you sisters wearing this in the ministry?
i can't say that i've ever seen that.
AMIII is one of the "thinkingest people on the planet," so he's entitled to re-name Spandex as Spanx.
giving my speech.
being pinned by my son.. .
the best day ever.. .
Congratulations!
i've never wondered about this before, but i've been on this kick about the supposed infallibility of god.. let's consider for a moment that the flood was real.
god had created the expanse of water in the heavens that shielded the earth from the sun.
this is what he considered to be the the right way to build the earth.
The Philae lander on the Comet has established that Earth's water did not come from outer space via comets.
It hasn't 'established' it. It may have cast further doubt on the hypothesis that Kuiper Belt comets brought water, but that doesn't definitely rule it out (e.g. what about the earth-like water on Hartley 2?) until more data are analyzed. Scientists are also exploring the possibility that the water came from nearer asteroids.
i've never wondered about this before, but i've been on this kick about the supposed infallibility of god.. let's consider for a moment that the flood was real.
god had created the expanse of water in the heavens that shielded the earth from the sun.
this is what he considered to be the the right way to build the earth.
*** w63 12/15 p. 767-8 Questions From Readers ***
Are we to understand from Genesis 8:22 that seasons as we know them today, with their extreme conditions, will exist in the new world?—E. E., United States.
... What Jehovah meant at Genesis 8:22 was that the condition of equable climate that prevailed over all the earth before the Flood would no longer exist. Why? Because the great water canopy responsible for such a condition had fallen, resulting in the seasons described at Genesis 8:22. However, as God produced sudden revolutionary changes in earth’s living conditions by the deluge of Noah’s day, with extremes now of heat and cold, so at Armageddon and with the inauguration of his Messianic kingdom he can produce rapid changes that will ameliorate any hard conditions of winter or disagreeable features of other seasons.
Will this be accomplished by a restoration of the water canopy? Will the Creator again suspend it in space so as to produce a hothouse condition on this earth in order that a uniform temperature may again prevail around the globe? The Bible does not say so, whereas the formation of the antediluvian water canopy was part of God’s creative work on one of his workdays before he began his seventh day by ceasing from such creative works for the earth. His rest day has yet a thousand or more years to go. It is sufficient to say that Jehovah God, who already knows what he will do, will handle matters perfectly.He will bring about the most desirable and enjoyable conditions through his King Jesus Christ. This change, which will do away with unpleasant seasonal conditions, will harmonize with God’s restoration of paradise and his removal of death, pain, sorrow, sickness and crying.—Rev. 21:4; Deut. 32:4.