Posts by stevenyc

however,if misdirected,self-examination that prompts to look for our"identity" or to search for answers outside our relationship with jehovah or the christian congregation will prove to be pointless and can be spiritually fatal.

* never would we want to `experience shipwreck concerning our faith`!-1 timothy 1;19.. .

stevenyc

However,if misdirected,self-examination that prompts to look for our"identity" or to search for answers outside our relationship with Jehovah or the Christian congregation will prove to be pointless and can be spiritually fatal

I absolutly agree with the WT here!!!

if misdirected,self-examination that prompts to look for our"identity"

Misdirection is the key. If anyone posts something here on JWD with external references that your not sure about, ask them to expain. If the WT writes something and quotes externals sources, ask them to explain their sour.........Hmmmmmm...Oh, now I get it. You can't ask them.

So, What I think they're *really* saying here is, until the WT starts provides the sources for their information, stick to the JWD.

Steve.

http://www.jehovahs-witness.com/11/85349/1.ashx

52

I am new and scared

by franki in

jw
friends

i am terrified to be writing this because i am officially being bad.

i am talking with other "sinners".

i do not want to be a witness.

stevenyc

Hi, Franki, and welcome to the site.

Each situation and circumstance is different. I?m relating my story to let you know that many others have had similar situations as yours. After reading your post I felt a knot in my stomach, and my memories are over 10 years now.

When I left my father was a high ranking Elder in the congregation. Some of my sibling had left / Disfellowshiped under similar circumstances to yourself. Soon after I left, I moved in with my ?worldly? girlfriend. After a few months I introduced her to my parents, but scared of the shunning, I didn?t tell them of our cohabitation. It became pretty obvious to them, after a year that we were living together, however, we all choose (silently) to ignore this. At one time a group of Elder approached my father to find out where I lived for a ?discussion?. My parent had already been through then shunning of a family member, so my father said he didn?t know my address. Technically true, he didn?t know my address, even though he knew where I lived. We had my parents over for food many times, and we went to see them many times. Occasionally, when my girlfriend and I were ?caught? with my parents, they would introduce my girlfriend as my wife!

My recommendation would be not to force the issue, but also, don?t be untrue to yourself, or your boyfriend. This can be very difficult I know. Your parents love you more than you can imagine. This religion controls people through fear of extermination, at Armageddon or now through the shunning. Ultimately, for my parents, their love for me let them cope with the fear of the sect. Love is incredibly powerful.

Once again, welcome, and I look forward to seeing many more post from you.
Steve.

17

A side benefit to exiting the borg

by AK - Jeff in

my wife and i made the fade in the past year or so - a side benefit is now beginning to become apparent.

our adult daughter, who was somewhat estranged due to being df'd has come back into our lives.

[we never did completely shun her, as we never agreed fully with that, but it was always strained because we were under the guilt trip].

stevenyc

How good it is to return to the natural unconditional love that we were intended to show to those we love

Fu####g A man, Fu####g A!!!!!!!!

Steve.

40

Jude and 1 Enoch

by Leolaia in

use of 1 enoch elsewhere in jude.

jude 4 = 1 enoch 48:8-10, 81:1-2, 108:6-7 .

jude 6 = 1 enoch 10:4-12, 12:4, 15:3-7 .

stevenyc

Excellent essay Leolaia, Thank you for the time and effort you put in and sharing you research.

With regard to he official canon, I'm currently doing some research and this reminded me of something CT Russel wrote in Zions Watchtower July 1896: (highlight and underlining mine)

But, says one, you seem to take no notice of that remarkable passage so frequently quoted by our Faith Cure friends, "These signs shall follow them that believe, In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; they shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick and they shall recover."--Mark 16:17,18.
Yes, we are aware of this claim, but we have two objections to urge. First, neither observation nor history attests the fulfillment of such a statement. Of one thing we all have evidence; viz., that those signs do not now accompany belief in Christ. Nor is there evidence that they extended beyond the apostles' days and the time of the miraculous gifts. Even then, we have no record of all these things being fulfilled in all that believed.
Second, the oldest and most authentic Greek manuscripts (the Sinaitic and Vatican MSS.) do not contain these verses at all, but end at verse 8. It seems evident that Mark's gospel was originally incomplete and that some one undertook to finish it for him about the fifth century; for the Alexandrine MS., written in the fifth century is the oldest Greek MS. which contains the last twelve verses. Read these spurious verses carefully, note the marginal reading in the Revised Version, note their untruthfulness in the light of facts, and mark them in your Bible.

So it appears Paster Russell didn't hold to those untruthfull scriptures. However, the NWT does.

P.S. I think they're removed in the upcoming "Newer World Translation of the Holy Scriptures" 2007 (Patent Pending).

Steve.

19

To nights bookstudly

by IP_SEC in

you see this from time to time that the society will quote a reference or commentator with out actually giving a reference.

the book study tonight has two such statements.. *** cl chap.

25 pp.

stevenyc

IP_Sec

LMHO ROTF - Discovering "the truth" hidden in references - Priceless!

? Designed to be used by those who understand little or no Hebrew? Covers 27 major categories and almost 300 subjects
? Numerically coded to Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible for ease of use
? Indexed by Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek words, scripture references and subjects
? An essential resource for those seeking to increase their understanding of the Old Testament

I know its old hat stuff on this site, but for those who don't yet know where the NWT comes from, here it is:

During a court trial in Glasgow, Scotland in 1954, Franz was asked by the Government lawyer just who the translators were. Franz replied under oath: "That is an absolute secret. It will never be revealed now or even after death." Only someone with something to hide would be so intent on secrecy. He was asked: "What happens if somebody submits a translation. Does the committee examine it? Mr. Franz: No. I give it my 0.K., then the President, Mr. N. H. Knorr, has the last word." He was further asked to explain how "translations and interpretations of the Bible were made." Franz replied that they emanated from God: "passed to the Holy Spirit who, invisible, communicates with Jehovah's Witnesses - and the publicity department." Which is Franz.

When asked in a Scotland courtroom if he could translate Genesis 2:4 into Hebrew, Franz replied that he could not.

Later, the information on who put together the New World Translation came out.
The people responsible are Nathan Knorr, Albert Schroeder, George Gangas, Fred Franz, M. Henschel.

Fred Franz: 2 Credit Hours Bible Greek, 21 Credit Hours Classical Greek, University of Cincinnati, Dropped out junior year.

Everyone else had a high school education.

Steve

22

The cross............ Why the denial of what it represents???

by coz in

i have talked with some jw's recently and they seem to make a big deal out of this.

whut is up with that???

?

stevenyc

Hi Coz,

And welcome to the site.

There nothing really up with it being either a cross or a stake. The important *Christian* thing is the sacrifice itself. JW's love this because it lets them think they're true students of the bible, knowing the *true* torture device. If you check their references you'll see it not as solid as they think.

Once again, welcome, and looking forward to seeing more posts from you.

Steve.

19

To nights bookstudly

by IP_SEC in

you see this from time to time that the society will quote a reference or commentator with out actually giving a reference.

the book study tonight has two such statements.. *** cl chap.

25 pp.

stevenyc

IP_Sec

I think they get the first quote from here:

Robert Girdlestone, Synonyms of the Old Testament (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Eerdmans, 1897)

Contemporary stuff eh!

Steve.

22

Sin in the New System...?

by stevenyc in

.

does anyone know what would happen to a person in the new system if they committed a sin?.

steve.

stevenyc

FairMind,

Thanks for the reminder, its been a little while for me.

Hummm, is it possible to Sin after the thousand year reign?

Steve.