Doubting Bro

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Posts by Doubting Bro

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  269

  Have your JW Relatives Explained about Generation/Overlap Change to You ?

  by flipper in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  after reading on the way out's thread about his mom explaining the generation overlap to him it kicked this idea into my head to make this thread .

  i thought it would be helpful to see if anybody here has had jw relatives or friends try to explain this " generation overlap " theory to you as a faded or inactive witness and what happened in the conversations.

  so please feel free to post your experiences.

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  Doubting Bro

  I was making the point that based on the fact that it's been "almost 100 years [that] have passed since 1914, we now know that Jesus could not have had in mind a 20- or 23-year generation, so we can now infer that Jesus was referring to a period of time as a 'generation.'"

  Or the simplier answer would be that since generation is such an easily understood word, then perhaps the 1914 date is the incorrect starting point and not this inaccurate definition of the word generation? Nah, because if that happened, the GB would be in the position of having to pick a new time for the last days to start and that would be much harder to pull off than what they came up with. What a second, haven't they done that before? Why yes, I believe 1874 was the first WTS date that was to be the beginning of the last days.

  Your example about the definition of planets isn't a good comparison. Since when does the IAU order people shunned because they don't believe in their definition of planet? For that matter, when did the IAU claim to be spirit directed?

  Didn't the WTS greive the holy spirit when they originally defined the generation as the ones who saw 1914, then changed it to the wicked living in the last days, then changed it to the annointed in the last days? I would think that Holy Spirit would have guided them correctly at least one of these times? Why would they be directed to proclaim something that wasn't accurate?
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  49

  How many times (after high school) have you fallen in love?

  by UnConfused in

  1. social
  2. relationships

  and how far apart were they?.

  thanks.

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  Doubting Bro

  1 time - we've been married for about 15 years!
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  12

  Lessons Learned....

  by AllTimeJeff in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  want to briefly address why i am here.. i did say i was done with jw forums.

  and i am in a sense.

  i would like to announce a couple of things.

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  Doubting Bro

  Glad you're back. I've always enjoyed your posts. Although I will say your choice of football teams is somewhat disturbing!
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  25

  For those who is still in the org, do you still study for the meetings?

  by asilentone in

  1. jw
  2. friends
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  Doubting Bro

  NO, its a passive aggressive thing for me. I could underline the materials in 5 mins if I wanted to but I want people to see how uninterested I am. I don't even have the gumption to do a counter study to try to correct teachings. Probably haven't commented in a couple of years.

  Interestingly enough, I was one who tried to do a good job in studying. I would look up info not only in the WT pubs but outside sources like eSword. I would often comment on how other translations rendered verses (of course with a WT spin). What amazes me is that I would often read contrary info and just dismiss it outright! I recall preparing for the Daniel bookstudy and looking up historical info on 607 etc and just thinking the secular sources were completely wrong. It goes to show you that people will just dismiss the truth about the truth until they are ready to accept.

  My wife also doesn't prepare. I wouldn't say she ever really studied, just underlined and wrote scriptures down. But she hasn't done that for a while.
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  44

  Struggling

  by EmptyInside in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  it's just my personality to go the fade route, but i can't handle it anymore.

  i lost respect for myself.

  i won't write a da letter out of respect for family.

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  Doubting Bro

  Empty & 5th - I understand exactly what you guys are going through and I'm right there with you. I wish I had some words of wisdom, but I don't. Just knowing that others are going through similar circumstances can be of some comfort.

  When the choice is staying around a religion that exerts such high control (or anything for that matter that exerts that type of control) or losing the most important things in your life (wife and kids) there really is no good choice. I hate that the WTS forces that type of choice on a daily basis. I just heard of another family being destroyed because the wife doesn't want to be a JW any longer but the husband does. It can sap your will to live on some days.

  I wish things would reform but I know deep down that that will never happen. The future from where I sit is pretty dark.

  I guess all that we can do is take it one day at a time and hope that we'll be able to wake up those that mean so much to us.
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  11

  elder school 2011

  by inbetween in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  we received a letter announcing elder school starting fall 2011, it will be one whole week !!!!!.

  the kms school for 1 1/2 days were already long enough, now 5 long days ?.

  what can possibly be taught in 5 days ?.

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  Doubting Bro

  TOH is right. I remember them reading something at the last CA regarding these special schools but don't remember the details. Here in the US, the 2 day KM schools are going to be held this fall.
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  68

  Change in meeting attendance procedure - can't figure out why though

  by sir82 in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  per a recent letter to elders:.

  beginning september 1, there will be a change to the way attendance is recorded at congregation meetings.. currently, attendance is counted at 4 of the 5 meeting (public talk, wt study, congregation "bible" study, and service meeting).. but after sept. 1, meeting attendance will only be taken at 2 of the meetings - during the "first quarter" of the wt study, and also at the cbs.. .

  no reason in given for the change in the letter, and i can't figure out why myself.. the numbers are not published anywhere - the only "official" record is a 6 month average the co puts together during his visit.. why request less information from the congregations, especially when it "costs" nothing to accumulate it in the first place?

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  Doubting Bro

  But they were already getting it. Now, the CO will have no idea how many are only attending the first part of the meetings. Remember, they used to count during the PT and during the WT. The difference was/is sometimes very noticable and I've heard more than one CO comment on it. I've seen local needs parts given on it. Without the data, they really won't be able to comment.

  We know the WTS is a micro-managing organization. So to see them drop a piece of their micro-management is a bit puzzling. It's probably not that big of a deal but they generally do things for a reason.
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  68

  Change in meeting attendance procedure - can't figure out why though

  by sir82 in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  per a recent letter to elders:.

  beginning september 1, there will be a change to the way attendance is recorded at congregation meetings.. currently, attendance is counted at 4 of the 5 meeting (public talk, wt study, congregation "bible" study, and service meeting).. but after sept. 1, meeting attendance will only be taken at 2 of the meetings - during the "first quarter" of the wt study, and also at the cbs.. .

  no reason in given for the change in the letter, and i can't figure out why myself.. the numbers are not published anywhere - the only "official" record is a 6 month average the co puts together during his visit.. why request less information from the congregations, especially when it "costs" nothing to accumulate it in the first place?

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  Doubting Bro

  I agree with Sir's point on the lower attendance at the WT study. You usually lose between 5-10 folks and rarely pick up any latecomers at that point.

  OTWO makes a good point regarding starting to publish the number of attendees and use that as their official "membership" count. That should always be higher than the number of publishers because you could count the younger kids who aren't publishers yet. It would also narrow the gap between peak and average.

  Still, why reduce the amount of info being collected? This can't just be random.
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  68

  Change in meeting attendance procedure - can't figure out why though

  by sir82 in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  per a recent letter to elders:.

  beginning september 1, there will be a change to the way attendance is recorded at congregation meetings.. currently, attendance is counted at 4 of the 5 meeting (public talk, wt study, congregation "bible" study, and service meeting).. but after sept. 1, meeting attendance will only be taken at 2 of the meetings - during the "first quarter" of the wt study, and also at the cbs.. .

  no reason in given for the change in the letter, and i can't figure out why myself.. the numbers are not published anywhere - the only "official" record is a 6 month average the co puts together during his visit.. why request less information from the congregations, especially when it "costs" nothing to accumulate it in the first place?

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  Doubting Bro

  That is very strange. They're so obsessed with numbers that to reduce any number taking is out of line. It really doesn't take any time to actually take a count.

  The thing is that most people never bother to look at the attendance numbers so I'm not so sure they could use that as a smokescreen for dropping other numbers. The Memorial attendance is the only attendance number that most people pay attention to.

  I don't see how this would have anything to do with the rumored CO changes. By the way, my circuit is getting a new CO this year. I would think if they were going to drop the program, they would have just extended the current stays rather than pay for the expense of relocating these folks.

  If they want to really save JWs time and effort, then drop the turning in of fs time.
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  14

  Not doubting in private

  by 5thGeneration in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  can anyone please help me find this wt quote.. it was from around 1999-2002.. where it says it would be wrong to have any doubts, even in private.

  something to that effect.. thanks.. 5th.

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  Doubting Bro

  I believe the statement is in the Flock book. Not sure if there's a WT article refered to there or not. Don' have a copy at the moment.