Posts by Ténébreux

4

Is interpretation of dreams divination?

by dmouse in

i've just watched the old 'joseph and the amazing technicolour dreamcoat' on dvd and i'm a bit confused.. basically, what is the societies viewpoint, and more importantly, the scriptural viewpoint, on interpreting dreams - or using them to predict future events?.

i'm sure the society would look down on anyone saying he had dreams that came true.

yet the bible is full of such instances.

Ténébreux

Not absolutely sure about this, but I would say the difference between prophecy and divination is that God takes the initiative in communicating with the prophet. If you go around looking for signs to interpret or actively inviting communication with the spirit world, that's divination. If you're just minding your own business one day and God jumps out from behind an elderberry bush and gives you a message, then you're his prophet.

29

So..You donate your money, and then you have to pay intrest on it??!!

by Lady Liberty in

good morning everyone "happy thursday!!",.

just reading another thread, and it made me think of a question i could never answer as a jw.

how is it that when your hall wants to build, you recieve the "loan" from the society, but then you have to pay the loan back with intrest??!!.

Ténébreux

That whole arrangement really amazes me. Charging 3% to cover inflation - well okay, they didn't use fiat currency in Biblical times, so I'll give them that one. But also claiming the property purchased with the loan? That's not 3%, that's 103%. That's beyond dodgy.

19

What's your opinion on genetic engineering?

by LtCmd.Lore in

are you opposed to it?

where do you see it heading?.

would you allow your future child to be genetically altered if you knew it would drastically improve them?

Ténébreux

If scientists get seriously into understanding and engineering virii, they could be used as an evolutionary tool. Simply, a virus designed to reprogram the genetics of a specific species could sweep the globe and transform the species almost overnight. I'm sure the thought scares the crap out of a lot of people.

I don't want to sound like a tinfoil hat wearer, but again I'd point out that research like this is paid for by people with lots of money for reasons that are unlikely to be of benefit to the rest of us. While this technology could potentially be used for the great benefit of our species, it is starting off in the hands of people who do NOT wish us to be healthier or longer-lived.

19

What's your opinion on genetic engineering?

by LtCmd.Lore in

are you opposed to it?

where do you see it heading?.

would you allow your future child to be genetically altered if you knew it would drastically improve them?

Ténébreux

I'm not opposed to the concept itself, but the people who have the money to actually do it are not interested in benefiting anyone except themselves. Genetically engineered crops that are pest-resistant and grow more quickly in tougher ground? Sounds great. That could feed the whole world, right? But the sort of thing you end up with instead is corporations slapping a patent on it so they can not only monopolize that variety but SUE anyone else nearby whose crops have become cross-pollinated.

23

Preaching Work is unique identifier

by besty in

several conversations with current jw's have thrown up this validation of their faith.

i can think of several lines of refutation: .

1 - ask 'is increase proof of gods blessing?

Ténébreux

Yes folks, it's true. JWs are the only ones engaged in the preaching work. Because when a non-JW tells someone their point of view, it's called spreading lies and propaganda; when a JW tells someone their point of view then it's called fearlessly proclaiming the good news.

19

What did Jesus approve in 1919 ?

by AlphaOmega in

as an offshoot from this thread (can threads sprout shoots ?)....

http://www.jehovahs-witness.com/12/136253/1.ashx.

... i was wondering if anyone has any quotes / scans of .

Ténébreux

Reading through the Watch Tower magazines of 1920, the difference that stands out most distinctly to me is that they considered all members of the church to be spirit-begotten and with a heavenly hope. There were still two classes of course. The especially faithful ones would be Christ's co-rulers and the rest would have a lower position ministering to them in heaven. Service in the preaching work seems to have been driven more by the hope of a greater reward, rather than by a fear of destruction. Everlasting life on earth was something that would be offered to the rest of the world in general, and they would be given the opportunity to accept or reject this during the 1000 year reign of Christ.

17

I got finish listening to some Kingdom Songs for the 1st time i my life...

by A-Team in

...and i hate to speak ill at songs that praise him, but those songs have made my ears bleed.

and tehy say they don't want people with talent.

::rolls eyes:: .

Ténébreux

Have you heard Farkel play the "love and unity" song in the style of Loonie Tunes? It's hilarious.

Yes, I've heard it. A work of genius.

17

I got finish listening to some Kingdom Songs for the 1st time i my life...

by A-Team in

...and i hate to speak ill at songs that praise him, but those songs have made my ears bleed.

and tehy say they don't want people with talent.

::rolls eyes:: .

Ténébreux

How pleasant to see brothers all dwell in unity

Oh great... now I got the Looney Tunes theme stuck in my head.

40

Memorial Partaker totals for 72 years by request!

by Atlantis in

question from researcher: the other day you posted the australian peak publishers and i was wondering if it would be possible to post the numbers of the "memorial partakers" from 1935 to 2006. that would be about 72 years of totals.. my answer: yes, we can do that for you but it will take a few hours to get everything together and scanned.

i will have to use different forms of wt literature to accomplish this.. unless indicated otherwise, numbers listed show partakers for previous year and some could show: "still incomplete" but they are still listed as a total nevertheless.

cheers!

Ténébreux

Here is a line graph that I made using Excel.

25

Is the Society embarrassed to mention Disfellowshipping / Shunning Policy?

by Gill in

is the watchtower society secretly a little embarrassed by its shunning / disfellowshipping policy.. i haven't seen much in the way of instructions on how to deal with the 'lliving dead' in the watchtower and awake magazines in the last few years.

they tend to talk about df'd persons as 'choosing a course of life that leads to df ing rather than that harsh nitty gritty of how to treat or rather mistreat such people.. is this mistreatment only discussed in the kingdom ministry pamphlets now and deliberately kept hush hush?.

i should imagine the high mortatlity rate due to df ing leading to suicides could be very embarrassing for the organization..

Ténébreux

Any statement that starts with "we" should not have the word "choose" anywhere in it, it's inherently self-contradictory. The "we" refers to the organization, but what exactly is an "organization" anyway? It's an abdication of personal choice to a system of centralized control, that's what.