i've read alot of posts here regarding jw's and freemasonry, and so far i've seen the usual conjecture by non-masons, and a few well written opinions of the inquiring minds among us.. i'm a former jw from texas, and a current freemason in houston.
my question is:.
what specifically does the wts say as far as masonic membership.
The Principals of Masonic Law by Albert G. Mackey reads of a similar structureas th WTBT$
It should, therefore, be the object of every Mason, to avoid the censure or reproach of his Brethren, by strictly confining himself as a point within that circle of duty which, at his first initiation, was presented to him as an object worthy of his consideration.
There are a lot of similarities and coincidences.
i have published more than 200 'daily text' comments in german, and will now start translating those into english.
they will be published here:.
http://dailytext2.wordpress.com/.
Love Nov. 11, 12, and 15, 2013 so far. Tons of laughs and thoughtful interpetations.
i have recently converted a bible student and he had just started out as an unpublisher publisher.
however since knowing ttatt i have been looking for a subtle means to deconvert him without any problem coming out of it.. this man had grown to have a strong fondness for the organisation and he is also in the process of indoctrinating his other two children, as his bible study conductor, he put so much trust in me and believes everything i say.. i am sure i can succeed in exposing the watchtower?, but has anyone tried it ?, any suggestion will be appreciated.
I am deprogramming my children and a couple of family members. Flipping the switch and letting them see the dreadful downside of the coin is a real eye opener. Asking tons of what if questions is really helping them think. Biblically and casually breaking down the birthday, christmas, and a few other WTBT$ doctrines is a real eye opener.
They get to see how unloving and uncaring the organiztion really is. How it judges, divides families, robs them of a healthy well-balnced life and will bleed them dry to their bare minimums if the person allows them too.
********************MEN have a lot of perks remember. They get to be know-it-alls ,
spiritual bullies, and they dress up like executives and insite fear in women and children.
Who would have ever thunk the Elders were big ole bullies in disguise.
the jw date-worshipped memorial has just completed its bleak worldwide commemoration.
that wasn't a dust cloud you saw; it was a millionfold hearts limply beating themselves into another round of great tribulation expectations.
i was knocked into a deep, deep sleep by the imagined experience of being at several thousand consecutive kingdom halls as the platformed drones spat forth the predictable sludge that, once released, hits and stains white clothing and bleach is useless.. we know that memorial attendance worldwide has dipped for two consecutive years since 2011 when it reached a high of 19,374,737 and for the promised land, obama's usa, the all time memorial attendance high was also 2011 when it hit over 2.5million (2,563,518) but shrunk in shame back to 2,502,055 in 2012 and spluttered upwards a handful or two to 2,504,114 last year.. so, what was attendance at the date-obsessed bore-fest this year in your neck of the woods?
i've read the walsh trial that indicates the societies stance of ' unity at all costs, even if we're wrong ' but that sounds more like conformity to me.
so how do other religions or movements justify the range of beliefs within their respective movements?
for example, the born again movement, a massive range of beliefs, but they don't insist on conformity.
There is the illusion of a united doctrine. Bottom line is at the Kingdom Hall it's their way or the highway. An elder once said "we are picky about who we let in." While he was speaking to the whole congregation. Only after you conform to their way are you united with them. Go against the grain and they won't even call on you to comment.
after knowing ttatt for many years now...i had made up my mind long ago that after 2014, i would no-longer subject myself to the boredom, pain, and frustration of following this cult...the wt...the borg.. so...i made up my mind that since the wtbts/gb makes such a big deal as to the "significance" of the year 1914 and this year 2014, there can be no greater time for me to leave it all behind.
i daydreamed of how awesome and telling it would be if everyone that could ( because i do know that some have personal circumstances of their own, as i did too) would just .... walkout...never to attend/step foot in a kingdom hall from that moment on.. independence day of sorts?
there is too much evidence, too many videos, blogs, books, news reports and lawsuits for me to keep lying to myself.
AND THE TRUTH SHALL/WILL SET YOU FREE. John 8:32
just to share a little about me:.
i was recently appointed an elder, about 6 months ago now, and that is exactly two years after my awakenning, but funny that the appointment came also about 2 years after i had completely lost all faith in god and had been leading a full time anti-jw life .
makes you wonder the role of the holy spirit in the entire nomination or appointment process.. .
I hope you show a lot of love and compassion and scare the hell out of them, They'll be like what were we thinking. LOL
Then the hardest elder will try to bogart his dogmatic dominating influence on you. You'll just become a broken record saying gotta show love, show love, show compassion keep repeating over and over again then ask them can you have a minute to pray to Jehovah to reagin your strength. LMBO
Then start the record over.
You will have them shaking in their boots
put yourself in the org's position - distasteful as that is - and come up with a solution to solve the problems of not only recovering their stock market losses, but also, ensuring an increase in their dwindling revenue stream.. the major problem is, donations are voluntary (with no future guarantees) whereas pledges are compulsory - in the heart and mind of the giver!.
however, far too many will probably forget/refuse to keep up their monthly tax - with no way of knowing who is 'paying the man', and who is not.
master stroke - make plan a 100% certainty to fail in the first year, based on the 'anonymity' of the setup.
Interesting
a non jw relative who is a staunch critic of the wt attends the memorial with us every year, but just because she enjoys worshiping with her relatives.
she fought against my parents becoming witnesses before i was born.
she owns the book 30 years a wt slave and suggested i read it.
Your relative shows great insight
ive given this new arrangement a lot of detailed thought and how greatly it benefits the wt and how much it puts a strain on each congregation.. first, let me explain how the old arrangement worked.. you had 3 donation boxes in each kingdom hall.
one for worldwide work, one for kingdom hall construction and one for congregation contributions.. the congregation contribution box accounted for about 60-75% of all donations.
the world wide work box probably accounted for 20-30% and the kingdom hall construction for about 5% of the contributions.
I think the Elders in my hall are already seeing it for what it is worth. There is a lot going on in my congregation. Alot of Elders trying to squeeze out smiles through their anguish.
They know something is really fishy going on
