Good find, thanks. I think I posted a comparison of the scientology, lds and jw "we're not a cult" ones a while ago, but this was far more thorough. I think the very existence of the "Are you a cult?" question in the FAQ should be sufficient to judge the group to be a cult. It's very unlikely to be a frequently asked question if the group isn't a cult. You don't see catholics or lutherans or whatever spending a lot of time trying to defend against accusations of being a cult, and if they do they're defenses of christianity as a whole, not their own particular brand of it. Cults meanwhile have well exercised defenses and only defend themselves.
OneEyedJoe
JoinedPosts by OneEyedJoe
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We are not a cult!
by Londo111 ini thought the writer here did a good job comparing the faqs of several high control groups.
hopefully this will be useful to someone out there.. http://thoughtsonthingsandstuff.com/we-are-not-a-cult/.
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January jw-tv broadcast with Lett
by bohm inlett is back with a vengance!.
* the last money-begging effort increased donations by 15% for two months; a letter by a 13 year old who donated is read out loud.
* since last may "so many good things have happened".
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OneEyedJoe
How do they actually spend money "in the field?" Aside from special pioneers (which are being let go, so that can't be it) what money are they spending to further preaching? Maybe you could include money spent supporting COs, but really most of the COs expenses are taken care of by a special resolution at the individual congregations, so they shouldn't be expected to donate more to the WWW for that. They're cutting back on literature, so that's not how they're spending more in the field either. Where's the money going?
Something tells me that they got feedback from the May broadcast that "we aren't giving more money if you're just going to keep spending wastefully" and they're trying to walk the line by showing some fiscal responsibility without making it clear that they've really botched things up to this point (and that they clearly do not have god's blessing). Something tells me, though, that their "we need more money so we can spend it in the field" nonsense isn't going to get them much unless they're going to be more specific. Especially since starting at the beginning of this month they stopped paying the special pioneers that got the boot.
Edit: Looks like John Free and I had a similar though...
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Really beautiful Watchtower article about truth
by Anders Andersen inthis is the singlemost best watchtower article i have ever read.. it almost brought tears to my eyes (please note the almost ;-)).
"what is truth?
"this question is one which every sincere christian should ask and seek to answer.
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OneEyedJoe
JWs do accept truth wherever they find it. It's just that for them "truth" means whatever the WTS says. So if an apostate/infidel were to preach to them the doctrine of the watchtower, they'd recognize it as truth and embrace it. -
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Is Religion dying out? An exaggerated view from the WTBTS
by RULES & REGULATIONS inawake!
november 2015. is religion dying out?
millions of people with differing viewpoints have chosen to take an identical action.. .
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OneEyedJoe
Atheists being at the bottom of that chart seems surprising to me....everything I've seen indicates that atheists (or at least the "not affiliated") are the fastest growing religious group in the US. It doesn't make sense that their retention could be so low... -
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Is the term "worldly" outdated?
by A.proclaimer inyesterday i had to listen to the co from a spanish congregation on the phone.
he said the fds has been gradually moving away from the word "worldly" and teaching jws not to use the term anymore.
has anyone heard this in their congregation or heard the term "non-believers" used before?
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OneEyedJoe
I wouldn't say it's outdated exactly. It is no longer officially used and there's been some token admonition to stop using the term, instead favoring nonbeliever or non-JW. However, I only think I heard it officially advised against once which seems entirely insufficient given the decades of use the term got.
Because I've seen no decline in the frequency with which the term worldly is used, I would be more inclined to categorize this as a new insider doctrine. It's yet another in a long line of things that are hidden from potential recruits and the world at large in order to protect their image, but once in long enough it will be learned.
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A 2016 new years resolution for the world
by bobld inall gov't of the world permanently delete remove from their constitution "freedom of religion.
" why remove from the constitution because we will have world peace.i have move to say about freedoms of.......... who will nominate me for the nobel peace price?.
just two ex freedom of religion.ultra-orthodax jew refuses to sit next to woman on airplane.female saudi student died after male medics were prevented from entering the women only campus the list goes on and on.what no human right u.n.. how about this hundred years ago catholics weren't allowed to read the bible(some say they were illiterate)but the pope or holy see they must go to church or they would burn in hell for ever an ever.was this religious freedom or mind control by the holy shit.this mind control still goes on to this day..
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OneEyedJoe
If you're OK with people having freedom of religion then what's the problem with it being in the constitution? -
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Reasons for Stagnation in Growth. AKA YearBook Numbers!
by ttdtt inso why has the growth flatlined?
why is less time spent in the ministry?
why have aux pios droped by 1/3rd?.
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OneEyedJoe
I don't think you can really compare the mormon numbers to the JWs. From my understanding, the mormons use some neat tricks to pad their numbers. If the JWs counted people like the mormons do they'd probably be in the 15 million range as well. Mormons count anyone who's ever been on the roster unless specifically removed (in JW terms DF/DA) and this can sometimes include people who have moved away and died. You'd have to count everyone who's faded to really have a comparison. -
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A 2016 new years resolution for the world
by bobld inall gov't of the world permanently delete remove from their constitution "freedom of religion.
" why remove from the constitution because we will have world peace.i have move to say about freedoms of.......... who will nominate me for the nobel peace price?.
just two ex freedom of religion.ultra-orthodax jew refuses to sit next to woman on airplane.female saudi student died after male medics were prevented from entering the women only campus the list goes on and on.what no human right u.n.. how about this hundred years ago catholics weren't allowed to read the bible(some say they were illiterate)but the pope or holy see they must go to church or they would burn in hell for ever an ever.was this religious freedom or mind control by the holy shit.this mind control still goes on to this day..
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OneEyedJoe
While I 100% agree that religion is a scourge on humanity, I don't think trying to ban it is the right way of eliminating it. -
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CO visit; going to meeting.
by SG098 inhello everyone!just a little background info, i haven't been to a meeting in over a year.
my wife has asked me to go with her tonight to help watch our son since it's the circuit overseers visit...my wife wants to be able to pay attention and get something out of the meeting since our son is 1yr old he can be a handful some times.. a few things of note about the situation:.
- i'm going to the meeting no matter what.
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OneEyedJoe
SIAR - I think there was already a thread related to this CO talk outline:
http://www.jehovahs-witness.com/topic/6670687083167744/inspired-error-new-phrase-among-jw-co
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Michio Kaku: can universes form from "nothing" ?
by Brokeback Watchtower inhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jlchmi0cc00
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OneEyedJoe
I always enjoy Michio Kaku when I come across anything he's done on various TV shows and such, but I agree that this was sorta poorly done. I suspect, though, that this has more to do with how it was cut together than it was a problem of his being unable to explain things clearly (though he did seem a little rushed as well when talking about string theory and dark matter).