BluesBrother

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Posts by BluesBrother

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  26

  Watchtower Study: How Strong Will Your Faith Be?

  by RULES & REGULATIONS in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  the watchtower—study edition | november 2021. study article 47. how strong will your faith be?.

  16 note the example of geydi, a sister from guatemala.

  her husband, edi, was murdered as they were returning home from a congregation meeting.

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  BluesBrother

  I see a lot of negative speculation in this thread , not based on facts. In the example given , the bereaved widow finds support and comfort in her faith. This could be said of any Christian Church and has been widely attested by many people. She also found support from her friends and social network, again a common experience

  I do not like the article though for other reasons. It states categorically that “ Jehovah will see to your material needs” . Oh yes? If you lose your business but have good friends they may be able to help but that is hardly the hand of God.

  All in all an article to say , whatever happens just keep on serving with the WT and you will be fine…..

  We shall see .
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  9

  "A thousand years as one day"

  by Awakened07 in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  the scripture saying: "...one day is with the lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.

  " (2. peter 3:8) is often used both by jehovah's witnesses and others, to show that a day can literally mean a thousand years in the eyes of god.

  this is then used especially for the creation story, and for the fall of adam and eve.

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  BluesBrother

  Like many things, this is something the WT used to talk about a lot and use it to discuss the age of Adam , the creative days and so on. Now it is almost never mentioned and those time periods have been quietly dropped. I am sure you are right when you say

  “When I just read that scripture as-is, it simply tells me that God is 'outside of time'; time does not apply to him.”
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  11

  GB Says You Can Fellowship Without Being Reinstated

  by Sea Breeze in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  there is another way to fellowship with your loved ones after disagreeing with the wt besides getting reinstated.

  all you have to do is fling yourself off a boat and start drowning, says watchtower:.

  "suppose, then, a member of a christian congregation boating on a lake were to see another boat containing a disfellowshiped person capsize, throwing the disfellowshiped one into the water where he struggled to stay afloat.

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  BluesBrother

  This is the article That I referred to in a recent post about the changing nature of the attitude towards the d/f’d. Times have changed and the pendulum has swung back to much stricter attitude today. Notice this part :

  “As to disfellowshiped family members (not minor sons or daughters) living outside the home, each family must decide to what extent they will have association with such ones. This is not something that the congregational elders can decide for them. What the elders are concerned with is that "leaven" is not reintroduced into the congregation through spiritual fellowship “

  I know some older dubs who still cling to this opinion if they had to deal with it. However, if you quoted this article I am sure that it would be disregarded as old light and that things have moved ahead
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  11530

  It's been a long 9 years Lloyd Evans / John Cedars

  by Newly Enlightened in

  1. watchtower
  2. scandals

  original reddit post (removed).

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  BluesBrother

  As Ex JW’s we are a totally disparate bunch of people and I have never seen anyone claim that we adhere to a strict code of morals as the JWs do. We only expect statements to truthful and accurate.

  HOWEVER, there are limits and I have no reason to disbelieve these allegations. I have never paid him any money , only watched some videos. I agree with others that the man is done with, after this.

  I only hope that those who supplied him with information can find another channel to get their info out.
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  10

  Well what do you know gb finally understanding social isolation or shunning.

  by Yomama in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  update some upstanding jw are experiencing social isolation isnt that what df and da people feel?reap sow karma..

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  BluesBrother

  “We must acknowledge they worst of the situation before us. The shunning works only because those who shun value the WTs approval over their relationships. “

  O k I get what you are saying, it is like the old song that “It’s the Universal soldier who really is to blame....without him Hitler would have stood alone”.

  However, I can feel some sympathy, we were once members who practiced shunning, because we thought it was the right thing to do. They are duped . As Ray Franz said .. “ we are victims of victims “
  
  
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  8

  Japan closed 638 Congregations why??

  by Witness 007 in

  1. watchtower
  2. scandals

  japan had huge publisher growth till the year 1998.. 1998 - 222,912 publishers 3802 congregations.. 6 years passed.. 2004 - 217,555 publishers (-5,357) 3,164 congs.

  what was the reason?

  "this generation of 1914" failed doctrine or the internet..

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  BluesBrother

  Looking at the 2021 report..for Japan Average Publishers were 212,911. They have 2959 congregations.

  I can remember when Japan was held as the shining example. They had so many Pioneers, and the growth was extraordinary. We were told they never missed meetings and always were sat attentively before the opening song....

  It got so that it became a congregation joke, we would groan if they mentioned Japan “ Oh no ,not them again “

  How art the mighty fallen.
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  15

  Coercion at its worst: religious mandated shunning

  by Yomama in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  by patrick haeck any comments on article?.

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  BluesBrother

  “Good post. I really don’t see HOW anybody can stop people from shunning.“”

  The WT could modify it in one simple article. I remember back in the 70s when the attitude toward the d/f’d was different. Articles gave examples of , say you spot a d/f’d sister whose car had broken down, they say it would not be showing neighbour love to refuse to help , as we would to anybody. They said then that it was a withdrawal of spiritual fellowship . I know at that time some level of family contact was practiced but no attempt to “ bring them back”

  That did not last. The pendulum swung back and now they are stricter than ever before…

  
  
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  7

  JW case about documents in Germany

  by Gorb in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  interesting, and strange story about jw case in germany.. g.. https://hrwf.eu/germany-jehovahs-witnesses-sue-german-museum-for-archive-of-nazi-era-abuses/.

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  BluesBrother

  Seems the Museum bought the docs in good faith from a non JW member of the family against the terms of another’s will bequeathing them to the WT.

  what the hell! Why not do a deal with the museum, have copies in their museum in Warwick and have done with it?
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  3

  A JW experience I recalled this morning.

  by joe134cd in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  i recalled an experience, that happened to me as i was awakening to the borg.

  i really brought home to me, just how asleep the r&f are to the vices of the org.

  at the time i had just learnt on the internet how the org was using quick builds/ refurbishment to get the titles of the halls e.g menlo park.

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  BluesBrother

  Yes,….. it follows from the delusion that “The Society must be right” and “It is all Jehovah’s organisation “ . So they just go with flow like good little sheep.

  It reminds me of Orwell’s “Animal Farm” and the cart horse , Boxer. Boxer tries to think things over for himself, but all he can come up with is, "If Comrade Napoleon says it, it must be right," and he takes up a new personal motto: "Napoleon is always right" (5.22). Because the other animals admire Boxer's work ethic, they follow his lead..

  Unfortunately Napoleon,the chief pig was evil and they sent Boxer to the knackers yard once he had done all he could.
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  20

  New Documents if you want them!

  by Atlantis in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  2021-september 20, assisting asylum-seekers from russia.

  click the image to zoom in.page 1. https://postimg.cc/vxd6tkq7page 2. https://postimg.cc/mchy3cyspage 3. https://postimg.cc/gt29knwypage 4. https://postimg.cc/ywdnwbgj-------------------------------announcementjanuary 14, 20222022-01-14 announcements.

  page 1. https://postimg.cc/2qrktfvspage 2. https://postimg.cc/4ybzyfmk--------------------------------2021-12new medical documents.

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  BluesBrother

  I see that they still provide children’s “blood cards” in the form of Identity Cards for young ones…. I get that an adult is free to choose but it does not seem right to place this on a child.

  Thanks Atlantis , as always ☕️🧁