Posts by jwfacts

27

CO asked for everyone 20 years old & younger for a group photo

by LevelThePlayingField in

there was a co visit in ohio a couple weeks ago.

when he was finishing up his sunday talk he said that he would like if "all the children that are from this congregation, not if you're just visiting, but from this congregation to come on up on the stage right after the meeting because i want to get a picture of you.".

i thought to myself, why?

jwfacts

I remember getting on stage for that sort of photo decades ago. I would love to see it now, as most in the photo would have now left.

21

Help with article on Watchtower Changes due to Legal Pressure

by jwfacts in

at https://www.reddit.com/r/exjw/comments/8j8fj9/what_legal_requirements_have_forced_the/excircuitoverseer started an excellent thread on areas watchtower has changed due to legal pressure.

this has promoted me to gather the information into an article.

there is a number of points that i would like to expand on, and need assistance in finding information.. the article is at https://www.jwfacts.com/watchtower/blog/changes-due-to-legal-pressure.php.

jwfacts

Thanks for all the ideas.

Diogenesister
- What about the book study? Im pretty sure that was moved to KH from private homes due to fear of litigation, we know the rubbish about "cost of fuel"they came up with was a cover.
- Flags in peruvian KHs??? -
- Child protection policy in Aus and UK?

Thanks Diogeneisister these are worth adding.

I remember an old brother back in the 60's (when I was a young pup) telling me that before Rutherford had a divine flash from heaven and he unilaterally changed the name to Jehovah's Witnesses, the organization prided itself in not being a "religion" but rather in being a Bible Society. But then the USA tax laws changed (in the 30's?) making religious organizations tax exempt, Miraculously and by divine intervention, new light from above, praise jah, helped the JW 'society' to then registered as the JW "religion" and thereby take advantage of "Satan's wicked system of things"! Sneaky and sly ()and sometimes intoxicated) old Rutherford needed to make sure HIS religion lived on! This old brother had a little inside information on Rutherford because he "served" at Beth-hell in the 30's.

eyesuse2badub - Interesting, I wonder if there is any way to prove the link. I had thought it was just a marketing ploy on Rutherford's behalf.

gone for good, is this link available for you?

Thanks for the link, it will see what I can extract from it.

Are you sure there is any causal link between the Bulgarian case and the doctrinal change on civilian service? That seems like a pretty big assumption. For example, after refusal to register JW in Germanyas public-law corporation due to, inter alia, prohibition on voting, WTS didn't overruled it, despite the fact that the recognition by Germany was much, much more important than registration in Bulgaria.

What time period/event are you referring to in Germany?

The document at https://www.jwfacts.com/images/bulgaria-echr-app-28626-95.pdf specifically mentions medical care and military service when coming to an agreement for registration in Bulgaria. https://www.jwfacts.com/images/bulgaria-press-application-28626-95.pdf discusses the blood issue.

This is also the period of time they were associated with the UN, so there was active political involvement going on. Whilst there was no Watchtower statement admitting the real reason for the UN fiasco, political recognition seems most likely.

21

Help with article on Watchtower Changes due to Legal Pressure

by jwfacts in

at https://www.reddit.com/r/exjw/comments/8j8fj9/what_legal_requirements_have_forced_the/excircuitoverseer started an excellent thread on areas watchtower has changed due to legal pressure.

this has promoted me to gather the information into an article.

there is a number of points that i would like to expand on, and need assistance in finding information.. the article is at https://www.jwfacts.com/watchtower/blog/changes-due-to-legal-pressure.php.

jwfacts

At https://www.reddit.com/r/exjw/comments/8j8fj9/what_legal_requirements_have_forced_the/ExCircuitOverseer started an excellent thread on areas Watchtower has changed due to legal pressure. This has promoted me to gather the information into an article. There is a number of points that I would like to expand on, and need assistance in finding information.

The article is at https://www.jwfacts.com/watchtower/blog/changes-due-to-legal-pressure.php

Here are a list of questions I have.

1 - When did the announcement for disfellowshipping change to "[Name of person] is no longer one of Jehovah's Witnesses."

2 - Examples to back up the following comment - Originally, when a member was disfellowshipped, the reason for their removal from the congregation was announced at the same time. However, several cases were taken to court where the member claimed they had been slandered. Similar cases were pursued by members of other Churches and won.

3 - Examples to back up the following comment - The change away from following Bible guidance on physical discipline has been required to avoid legal issues for members, and in order to for legal recognition in some European countries where spanking is illegal.

4 - I do not have a good understanding of the following topic yet, or how this will change the retention of forms about JWs (particularly those that don't sign) or the public. - The European Union passed the General Data Protection Regulation or GDPR, effective from May 2018.

5 - Information to support the following comment - Knorr and Franz feared legal bans because of df'ing people for joining the military so they came up with the term "disassociation" instead and claimed they did it to themselves automatically.

I am happy to correct and add to the article, so feel free to offer suggestions.

27

who has been out the longest?

by stan livedeath in

who has been out of the cult the longest ?.

i'll start--i resigned in 1971, but attended occasionally as a non-interested husband to keep the wife sweet, untill my last circuit assembly in autumn 1980. no connection with the cult since then.

so--its either 47 or 38 years, depending on how you see it.. which begs the question--why am i on this site now ?.

jwfacts

For those of you that left just prior to 1975, why? Didn't you think that just in case it is true you should wait until after 1975?

31

A non-Witnes who accepts 607 BC?

by careful in

an eyebrow raiser to be sure.

i can understand the clergyman being so baptist that he'd still use the name jehovah since it was popular in english and german churches for a long time during and after the reformation, but 607?.

see ¶ 6 under the heading "the historicity of the book of daniel".

jwfacts

607 is likely taken from Watchtower publications, as it is so intrinsically tied to 1914, and neither history or the Bible. 607 works back from 537, which is a Watchtower date, made up when Watchtower realized 1914 was wrong due to their being no year 0. Instead of change to 1915, they moved 606 to 607, and then 536 to 537.

607 doesn't naturally flow from the end of 70 years, as Watchtower states, since Babylon was destroyed in 539 and Jeremiah 25:12. shows the 70 years end with the fall of Babylon.

16

They have a point...

by James Mixon in

last week in the sunday meeting a sister made a comment and collapsed, a massive heart attack.

one of the young brothers is a fireman and he gave her mouth mouth and according to the doctor this saved her life.

so if she had missed the meeting that day she would have surly died because her husband is not in great health.

jwfacts

not forsaking the assembling of ourselves.

That is a vague statement. No indication of how often, where at, or what for.

16

They have a point...

by James Mixon in

last week in the sunday meeting a sister made a comment and collapsed, a massive heart attack.

one of the young brothers is a fireman and he gave her mouth mouth and according to the doctor this saved her life.

so if she had missed the meeting that day she would have surly died because her husband is not in great health.

jwfacts

I knew a JW mother and wife that was run over and killed outside a kingdom hall on memorial night. So it shows how important it is to never attend a memorial.

7

Highlights from Leaked Bethel Videos - part 6, Brooklyn tunnels

by neat blue dog in

here's some pictures of the tunnels that used to connect the various bethel buildings after they stopped being used, as well as a diagram.. .

.

jwfacts

How did they get council approval to tunnel under roads, since they didn't own that land? I thought only public utilities companies could gain legal rights.

49

"You owe Jehovah humility and HONESTY" - an email from a JW

by Wake Me Up Before You Jo-Ho in

hey forum goers.

i'd like your opinions on constructing an email reply to this shocker below.

bit of background about the sender: she is a middle-aged, cheery uberdub whose siblings left when a schism occured in her congregation in canada way back when.

jwfacts

WT exegesis

That is a bit of a faux pas. In Watchtower's case it is Eisegesis.

19

Help me with the disfellowshipping topic, how is it NOT scriptural

by LevelThePlayingField in

many have said that jesus never shunned anyone.

yet it seems that the apostle paul said to shun an unrepentant sinner, "stop keeping company" and "not even eating with such a man" 1co 5:9-12. it seems like shunning is what paul wanted us to do.

but honestly, it doesn't seem right to me.

jwfacts

Sir82's post is excellent, showing that the Bible discusses "marking" people that do not adhere to Christian standards, even restricting association, but not complete isolation and shunning of that person. Watchtower has created a policy that does not appear in the Bible, and introduced the word disfellowship for that policy.

http://www.jwfacts.com/watchtower/disfellowship-shunning.php has a section that shows the numerous ways that Watchtower applies its practice of disfellowshipping beyond the Bible.