Well, of course we have our fine Mr. Joseph Franklin Rutherford to thank for that grooming snobbery. Apparently (evidently™) he absolutely couldn’t stand any remnants or semblances of his predecessor, Charles Taze Russell. (Oddly enough, at one time Russell himself had been considered to be the “faithful and wise servant.” My how things change!)
Posts by SAHS
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38Talk to my Dad about beards.
by LovingLifeNow inso i spoke to my elder dad the other day, and he asked if i still am sporting a beard.
i said yes, then i said, "i thought the society said its ok to have a neat trimmed beard now?
" he said "no, no, no..if you read the article , it says in countries where it is accepted" so my response was "ummm, its pretty accepted here in america"..which he says "it reflects your spirituality" "if another wittness saw you, they would know you are weak"...i was like, "ok, i don't get it, and i follow christ/god, not men..." then he said in his hall" if a brother came in with a beard , he would not have privelages" then i just gave up, and tried to change the subject..ugggggggggg if these people would just listen to themselves , they would see the sillyness of there teachings...
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23
How Do You Get Most of Your News?
by minimus ini read that many people get their news from facebook.
i look online mostly at fox news and the drudge report.
very seldom do i look at cnn.😎.
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SAHS
For me, CNN is, as the jingle goes, “the most trusted name in news.” It is the top news network in the world’s most powerful country.
Although, I just wish that they would have a more well-rounded coverage, included more international items. It seems that for the past year, it’s been all Trump campaign this and Russian scandal that, and Former FBI Director James Comey this and former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn the other thing – ad nauseam!
Notwithstanding, I have the highest regard for all the CNN news reporting team, especially anchormen Anderson Cooper and Don Lemon, and correspondents Jake Tapper and Michael Ware, etc. They are all top-notch, in my opinion, regardless of whatever politicizing the general focus of their network has been subjected to. (I suppose that, in the end, big business is big business, even in Ted Turner’s big Time Warner enterprise.)
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14
“Winning the Battle for Your Mind”
by SAHS in“winning the battle for your mind.” that is the title of an article in the latest watchtower magazine, of july 2017, pages 27-30. wow, how ironic!
here is the direct link:.
https://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/2017488.
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SAHS
Another point I should mention:
The Watchtower article, at pg. 30, ¶1, cites 2 Thessalonians 2:2, where the apostle Paul advises “not to be quickly shaken from your reason nor to be alarmed either by an inspired statement or by a spoken message or by a letter appearing to be from us, to the effect that the day of Jehovah is here.” Right next to that citation, it cites Titus 1:10, where it warns that “there are many rebellious men, profitless talkers, and deceivers, especially those who adhere to the circumcision.”
The reference in that verse to ‘adhering to circumcision’ certainly reminds me of the Watch Tower Governing Body’s fanatical adherence to their blood transfusion policy – which is another part of the old Jewish Mosaic Law.
Further, at pg. 30, ¶2, the article cites Hebrews 2:15, where Jesus said that “he might set free all those who were held in slavery all their lives by their fear of death.”
Jesus’ mention of those “held in slavery all their lives by their fear of death” sure makes me think of the constant fear of supposedly sinning against the holy spirit and dying at Armageddon (as has been my virtual death row experience since around puberty, in my early teens). Such morbid “fear” is the very essence of mental “slavery.”
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“Winning the Battle for Your Mind”
by SAHS in“winning the battle for your mind.” that is the title of an article in the latest watchtower magazine, of july 2017, pages 27-30. wow, how ironic!
here is the direct link:.
https://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/2017488.
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SAHS
“Winning the Battle for Your Mind.” That is the title of an article in the latest Watchtower magazine, of July 2017, pages 27-30. Wow, how ironic! Here is the direct link:
https://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/2017488
The article begins by saying:
“YOU are under attack! . . . a very dangerous weapon against you. . . . Propaganda! . . . to attack, . . . your mind.”
The article goes on to say:
“What is propaganda? . . . It is the use of biased or misleading information to manipulate the way people think and act. Some equate propaganda with ‘lies, distortion, deceit, manipulation, mind control, [and] psychological warfare’ and associate it with ‘unethical, harmful, and unfair tactics. . . . Many of us are being influenced and manipulated – far more than we realize. . . . men and women have been ‘quite easily led into the most preposterously dangerous behaviour’ – such as ‘genocide, war, racist hysteria, religious intolerance and many other forms of irrational behaviour.’”
Then it goes on to say:
“Since truth is often the first casualty of war, you—like any other soldier in the heat of battle – need a source of trustworthy, reliable information to prevent the enemy from playing tricks with your mind. . . . But remember this basic fact expressed by author Noam Chomsky: ‘Nobody is going to pour truth into your brain. It’s something you have to find out for yourself.’”
Most telling is where it then states:
“Keep in mind that Satan does not want you to think clearly or reason things out well. Why? Because propaganda ‘is likely to be most effective,’ says one source, ‘if people . . . are discouraged from thinking critically.’ (Media and Society in the Twentieth Century) So never be content passively or blindly to accept what you hear. (Prov. 14:15) Use your God-given thinking abilities and power of reason to make the truth your own.”
BUT, then it advises this:
“Be determined to stick to Jehovah’s organization and loyally support the leadership he provides – no matter what imperfections may surface. . . . Surely there is ample evidence to show that you can trust the channel that Jehovah has used for nearly a hundred years now to lead us in the way of the truth.”
Isn’t that interesting – especially when you consider the record of seemingly endless falsehoods and flip-flops promulgated by and disseminated from “Jehovah’s organization,” supposedly the one-and-only channel of “the truth” in the entire world. One can always peruse the detailed synopsis of that in this itemized gem:
http://www.freeminds.org/history/key.htm
And then, finally, the articles actually gives this warning:
“Satan will use fear of man, fear of persecution, fear of death, and any other kind of negative fear to try to dominate you and make you shrink back from serving Jehovah. . . . Have you ever watched a film in which, from your vantage point in the audience, you can clearly see that someone is being deceived and manipulated? Did you find yourself thinking: ‘Do not believe it! They are lying to you!’”
Well, there certainly is a “battle for your mind” alright. But, funny enough, as we here can see, it’s a battle that is actually being waged and sustained by the very organization which has published the article.
Isn’t it so ironic how the fox has been in the henhouse trying to disguise himself as a chicken! (Or, if you prefer, a wolf dressing up as a sheep. Same thing.)
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"Privileges"
by minimus inwithin the organization, jehovah's witnesses know that they must be dutiful and set an example for "worldly ones" as well as for their own brotherhood.
if a witness fails in setting the proper example, they may lose some 'privileges"..... what privileges did you look to have and what privileges did you lose?
?.
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SAHS
“WTWizard”: “I only wish I had the privilege of doing fornication.”
LOL!!!
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17
Let me get this straight according to today's wt a person can make his own decisions
by poopie inon whether or not she chooses to shun?.
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SAHS
Everyone is perfectly allowed to make their own decisions – just so long as they are totally in line with the governing body’s current (daily?) interpretations of the Bible (that is, the fire-from-Yaweh, Moses-and-Aaron Mosaic Law Old Testament part) . . . . or else!
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Huffington Post: When Is A Religion 'Extremist'? [Food for thought!]
by AndersonsInfo inhttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/when-is-a-religion-extremist_us_590de8e3e4b046ea176aeb98.
tim rymel, m.ed.. governments who support “religious freedom” over the equal human rights and dignity of others condone, and even endorse discrimination.. 05/06/2017 11:27 am et | photo – flickr/ justin kern .
government endorsement of any religious ideology creates religious extremism.
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SAHS
What happens if some eedjit reads a book of a similar story, and decides it's true, and kills themselves? Should the author be convicted of murder?
I see your point; however, in the case of Jehovah's Witnesses, their organization puts an arbitrary and unreasonable fundamentalist interpretation on the Bible by the governing body through their Watch Tower publications, which they purport to be coming from God’s one-and-only mouthpiece – but the destructive and dangerous aspect is that they use coercion and blackmail (disfellowshipping) through extreme undue influence.
In your example, a fiction or conspiracy theorist author wouldn’t be responsible for people’s deaths if they were to end up killing themselves or others – unless that same author deliberately held people captive, physically or even mentally, and used brain washing techniques based on fear and dishonest manipulation. Well, that would be another thing. Just think of the famous serial killer Charles Manson. He didn’t need to bother killing anyone himself – he was able to get his followers to do that himself!
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Huffington Post: When Is A Religion 'Extremist'? [Food for thought!]
by AndersonsInfo inhttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/when-is-a-religion-extremist_us_590de8e3e4b046ea176aeb98.
tim rymel, m.ed.. governments who support “religious freedom” over the equal human rights and dignity of others condone, and even endorse discrimination.. 05/06/2017 11:27 am et | photo – flickr/ justin kern .
government endorsement of any religious ideology creates religious extremism.
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SAHS
“steve2”: “JW shunning of family members is extreme - but to carry that further and speak of it being tantamount to "kill[ing]" family members and calling it "psychological violence" is to completely distort the meaning of words.”
It is a known fact that the worst and most harmful kind of abuse is not physical but, rather, emotional – “psychological violence.” And let’s not forget those significant number of folks who have actually committed suicide. (Don’t forget that on this very Website, there is an entire section entitled “Blood, Medical Treatment & Depression.”)
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Today's W.T on GB not being inspired is having ZERO impact on most J.W's
by Isambard Crater inthe congregation i attend had it's watchtower study on thursday night because of l.d.c work this week-end, and another congregation i have some not very spiritual friends in had their watchtower study on wednesday.
from what i have delicately prised out of people, the congregations loved the watchtower study this week, saying it was so encouraging and all the usual stuff, with no-one seeming to realise the g.b.
said they're not inspired, so the spirit int he past has moved them to teach wrong things, and all the other ideas excellently summed up on reddit.. today's watchtower will wash over the heads of most j.w's like it never even happened, the all remaining as loyal as ever, and it makes me so, so sad..
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SAHS
“blondie”: “They usually toss that [in] once in a while;”
They do this just so that, technically speaking, they can say that, Yes, they do acknowledge in their literature that they are, indeed, infallible. . . . . Although, in practice, they will always say that they are Jehovah’s one-and-only spirit-directed organization.
I’m sure glad that I’m now among the ranks who have woken up to actually using their head (other than just for seating their hat/cap).
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Family of Jehovah's Witness mum who bled to death after son's birth win £870k compensation
by NikL indidn't see this anywhere else.. sorry if this was posted before.. http://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/787824/cannabis-found-growing-church-salem-chapel-wales-weed-police.
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SAHS
@NikL: Um, the link you provided in your original post just goes to a Webpage entitled “Police uncover almost 800 CANNABISPLANTS growing in a CHURCH.”