after i left the jws and moved out, it was weird having all these evenings to myself.
i think sunday was the easiest day to get used to without meetings.
it just made my weekend a bit longer.
How did you react to the sudden free time? Did it take a while to get used to?
For the first two years my 'conditioning' caused me to sometimes feel awkward even uncomfortable, for the most part I felt relief that my time was now my own. Its year 3 for me and except for a little inner wrestling about going to the Memorial (which I didn't attend) I am now free of ALL guilt!
god or the wts?
god or the wts?
is there anything we can give god or jesus to earn/buy everlasting life?
Will of God/as interpreted by the WTS Devoted to God or the WTS? Dedicated to whom? Are you slaves of God or slaves of the WTS? It affects the decisions you make , and right now too many JWs are not making the right decisions according to the WTS. Concluding Comments Well, folks, this is basically only the windup for next week when the ball is let fly. Selfishness abounds in the WTS. Money is not flowing and the people are not going, to the meetings.
I agree with your insights here Blondie.
There is theory and there is practice, what this WT says in theory is pretty good. It's knowing what the WTS 'really means', knowing they'll decide how it should be applied and practiced by the un-spirit directed little people who make up the congregations...That's the problem.
god or the wts?
god or the wts?
is there anything we can give god or jesus to earn/buy everlasting life?
Hello Blondie. I like the larger type it's much easier to read .
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3 ".... selfishness is one of the greatest obstacles to obeying the law of the Christ and 'loving Jehovah our God with our whole heart, soul, and mind and loving our neighbors as ourselves.' (Matthew 22:37-39) Being imperfect, we are inclined to be self-centered..."
Before the rebellion all the Angels were perfect. Adam and Eve were also perfect. Why must we always blame imperfection for our own poor judgement?
Must have been/buzz phrase meaning the WTS is reading into the scripture
Absolutely. They're speculating and stating their opinions as fact.
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Blondie, I have to run out, I'll finish your review this evening. For the record though, your the type of thinking/questioning woman that would make an excellant Elder/Overseer.
which jw doctrines, collective personality traits and general history do you find to be the most destructive or disagreeable?
i personally found the doctrine of the other sheep which makes the christ inaccesible to most jws, the devilishly complicated moral code, and the hideously totalitarian behaviour of their leadership to be the worst things on a long list that i've prepared regarding what's unacceptable to me in that society.
i remember when i was arguing with the elders about the fds and their claim to total spiritual supremacy and they were telling me that the idea of democracy departs completely from their way of thinking, here they have a theocracy and that even "talking about the right things at the wrong time" is basically a crime in other words sit and wait for the fds to reveal it at the so called right time, and i should accept things as they are and not as i want them to be otherwise i get thrown out.
The GB and those who follow their lead are oppressive and heavy handed with the congregation, conditioning everyone to be afraid, causing them to constantly gauge themselves against the 'Organizationally Correct' view which causes them to be unnecessarily restrained in their thinking, their speech and their behavior.
The Unfaithul Slave is constantly manipulating and controling God's people with guilt and fear forcing them into living un-nessasarily small lives purely based on their own reasoning.
The Evil Slave has also taken the individuality of everyone away, leaving them as empty shells of the persons they once were.
They also see things in the Bible that aren't there and teach them as Divine Truths.
tijkmo's post on watson's "hypothetical" thread got me wondering again...just what the heck is it to sin against the holy spirit according to jw beliefs/teachings?
for something so important as to be "unforgivable" it has always seemed awfully vague to me (so vague that i was sure as a kid that it must be masturbation and for years i felt the great weight of ultimate doom heavily upon me).
is it intentionally vague, do you think, just to keep everyone on their toes and hyper-paranoid or am i missing something?
the reason I ask this is because of one of the posts on what the Jws say about sin against the HS. how could they know if it is only a force? mnb77
That's a good question. I think it has to do more with whom the spirit originates and that would be God. The fact that Jesus made the statement and not the WTS makes it an important mystery to solve.
once again while meditating in my pod, thoughts began to enter my mind.
thoughts that i did not ask to recieve.
consider: if we believe murray gel-mann there is nothing supernatural about quarks, they have charge and spin and no holy grail.
I am not claiming I have the topology all worked out and in place but I am claiming that the base of consciousness is motion detectors or motion sensors, as some of the learned may put it, at that unitary level.
Do any of you sense a difficulty in accepting this physical base of the physical theory of consciousness
Hmmm, the mechanics of self awareness...deep. Some of the language used is over my head, yet I think I get it. Your saying consciousness is based on a cause and effect relationship with our suroundings, right? How would you factor in our intuitive abilities into that?
i just finished "state of fear" by michael crichton.
it's his usual mix of great story-telling, did-he-really-die suspense, and his take on science.
very readable and enjoyable.
That about pegs it, doesn't it?
LOL Yes it does!
Baptized in 75. The people who studied with me never made a big deal of the 7000 years thing, just that they passed, so it didn't factor into my decision.
Left in Jan. 2002 after they 'marked' me for my interest and pursuit of OBE's.
just wanted to pop in and say hello to everyone.still think of many people here and care for yahs.. i'm doing well and i am really over alot of this jw's bullcrap!
whoo hoo,how nice is that huh?.
i'm off to look for some fluff..... .
I'm doing well and I am really over alot of this JW's bullcrap! Whoo hoo,how nice is that huh?
That's really great!
looks like everyone missed it.
i will clue everyone in.
first, in the way of history, the wtbts got linked up with the un as an ngo (non-governmental organization).to do so, the watchtower had to conform to the rules.
Oroborus21
I think positive articles of UN affiliates are simply that, a story about the food program or humanitarian programs. Perhaps in a way this may "soften" the old view of the UN but these could hardly be seen as "advertising" for the UN.
Why write Pro articles at all??? Will they next write about the humanitarian programs being done in Iraq by the US and it's allies? How is writing articles favorable to the UN staying neutral??? The WTBTS exists to advance a particular religious belief. It is NOT a news organization.
