yknot!!!! - So excited to see you're posting again. We've missed hearing from you.
Doubting Bro
JoinedPosts by Doubting Bro
-
238
Active JW understands flaws in WTS doctrine but believes in the Bible
by flamegrilled inperhaps this is a common topic for newbies on the site, but i have browsed for a while and not seen this exactly answered.. as an active jw who understands the flaws in wts doctrine, but believes in the bible, how do i identify a form of worship that meets all the criterea:.
1) by this all will know you are my disciples if you have love among yourselves (john 13:35).
sure i know that not all jws do this, and that people from other religions or non-religious people do this also, but as an official doctrine jws will not kill one another in war, and in general there is a genuine effort to exercise "agape" love not widely found in the world at large.. 2) preach the good news.
-
-
-
19
File a lawsuit against a fellow 'Christian" and you may get disfellowshipped...
by QuestioningEverything inmy very dear friends brother died tragically at work a few years back-the employer's were at fault 100%.
my friend cindy, her mom lily and his wife tammy-(all witnesses-not their real names) filed a lawsuit against the company and won a judgment of $1.2 million dollars.
the check was cut and cindy and her mom haven't seen one penny of the judgment.
-
-
Doubting Bro
Sorry about the formatting. I thought I had it straight but when I posted, I see it's a mess. Anyway, that elder isn't following his own stupid rule!
-
19
File a lawsuit against a fellow 'Christian" and you may get disfellowshipped...
by QuestioningEverything inmy very dear friends brother died tragically at work a few years back-the employer's were at fault 100%.
my friend cindy, her mom lily and his wife tammy-(all witnesses-not their real names) filed a lawsuit against the company and won a judgment of $1.2 million dollars.
the check was cut and cindy and her mom haven't seen one penny of the judgment.
-
-
Doubting Bro
The worst they can do to her is to remove "privileges". So, if she was a pioneer, then she could get deleted but that's about it. She needs to speak with another elder or the CO.
According to the Shepherd the Flock of God book (elders manual) pages 133,134 - this is the rule:
Taking Brothers
to Court
22. At 1
Corinthians 6:1-8, the apostle Paul gave strong counsel that Christians should not take other Christians before secular courts to settle personal disputes that should be settled with
the help of the congregation elders.-w97 3/15 pp. 21-22; w8611/15 p. 20; g83 2/8 pp. 13-15; w7311/15 pp. 703-704. •
If an individual ignores God's Word on this matter, it may affect his congregation privileges.
•
There is no difference between taking an individual brother or sister to court and taking
to court a corporation whose owners are all Jehovah's Witnesses. The spirit of 1 Corinthians 6:
1-8
would be violated by relying on the secular courts to settle business disputes among corporations that are made up entirely of brothers.
23. However, there are
legal matters over which the congregation does not have authority and which may therefore be taken to a secular court for judgment without violating the principle or
the spirit of 1 Corinthians 6: 1-8. These include:
•
Getting a divorce decree, child custody and support, alimony.
C
hapter 12 hapter 12 hapter 12hapter 12
133
•
Obtaining insurance compensation. If a person suffers loss or is injured in or by an automobile
owned by
a spiritual brother, it might be necessary legally to sue the brother in order to
obtain compensation from the brother's insurer.
•
Being listed among creditors in bankruptcy procedures.
• Probating
wills.
•
Certain countersuits. For example, if a worldly creditor sues a brother, it might be necessary for
th
e brother, for his own protection, to file a countersuit even though spiritual brothers
may be included in the action.
• If
a brother takes legal action against another baptized Witness, it would not be a violation
of 1 Corinthians 6:1-8 for the one being sued to defend him self or to countersue. This
is true whether the matter was first taken before the elders or not.
-
220
2011 Watchtower publisher statistics with analysis
by jwfacts inthe 2012 yearbook has released the publisher statistics for the 2011 service year.
a scan of the report can be found at http://www.jwfacts.com/images/2011-publisher-report.pdf and i have started updating the graphs at http://www.jwfacts.com/watchtower/statistics.php.
as expected, it is following on from similar trends to the last 15 years.
-
-
Doubting Bro
I think Hawaii came in at the beginning of the 2011 service year (Sept 2010). What about Alaska? I thought that branch was merged in as well but maybe that was done the year before?
-
-
-
Doubting Bro
The Borg has some potential legal issues in Australia and got some pretty bad press in the UK over calling those who left "mentally diseased". Nothing real big but every little bit helps.
So good to see you and your family doing well. Your story is an inspiration!!!
-
82
What really ended the book study in private homes?
by Alfred init's been over 3 years since the book study in private homes was discontinued and some jws are still scratching their heads over it.
although a letter was read to all congregations explaining that "book study night" would now be "family worship night", there was still much speculation among jws as to the real reason behind this decision (the great tribulation was about to start, jehovah was simplifying the lives of jws, to lessen the burden of poor jws who had no money for gas, etc.)...
but as we all know, decisions like these from the gb invariably have some ulterior motive behind it... and discussion boards such as this one usually finds a way to dig up the truth for all to see... but after reading several threads on this subject, i'm really not sure we've uncovered all the facts yet.... so i have to ask... what do you believe really ended the book study in private homes?
-
-
Doubting Bro
I think shepherd summed it up perfectly. A combination of very poor stats and not enough elders to lead the small groups. I recall after I "stepped aside", I had to conduct about everyother week because the elder assigned wouldn't show up and there was no MS assigned to the group.
I also think they may have believed that cutting down to one midweek meeting would increase the TMS/SM attendence. In the congregation I go to, I don't think the numbers have moved. At first, it did increase but after a few months, attendence reverted to the mean.
-
4
Kansas City Bishop Indicted on Child Endangerment Charge
by blondie inas catholic groups keep working to set legal precedents regarding religious leaders being required to report child abuse, those hurt by the wts can benefit by using those laws.. http://www.cnn.com/2011/10/14/justice/catholic-bishop-indicted/index.html?eref=mrss_igoogle_cnn.
.
-
-
Doubting Bro
Good. They should be held accountable. Out of all members of society, one would think that religious leaders would be at the fore front of protecting children. It seems they were at the fore front of harming children and still are.
-
73
C.O. Jonsson's response to Watchtower's latest 607 articles
by wannabefree inhttp://kristenfrihet.se/vtsvar/vtsvar1.pdf.
(thanks to augustin for bringing this to our attention in another thread.
).
-
-
Doubting Bro
Quendi - I agree with your point. Taking Daniel 4 and giving it a minor and major application is pure creative thinking. However, I think its much easier to argue that 1914 means nothing because Jerusalem wasn't destroyed in 607 (FACT) verses saying that Daniel 4 doesnt' have a major application that stretches 2,520 years into our time (theological interpretation).
Putting them together is certainly more powerful if the person believes 607/1914 because of the WTS interpretation of Daniel, but I know for me, I always believed Daniel to have the "major" application because I believed 607. Without 607, I quickly realized that the explaination of Daniel was actually given by Daniel himself and that it was a huge stretch to think he meant anything more than he explained. Interestingly enough, when Daniel was talking about the future, he actually said so. So why didn't he say so when explaining the tree dream?
-
24
For those still "in" the W.T , a Moral Question.
by wobble infor those who are still in the jw/wt religion for whatever reason , and to whatever extent, i ask :.
how high would you rate your moral standards ?.
where do you stand on telling lies, upholding truth, deceiving others etc ?.
-
-
Doubting Bro
I'll answer but would like to see your answers as well:
How high would you rate your moral standards ? I do not see myself as morally superior to others. How do you define morals? Are they based on rules from holy writings, society norms or do you see them as a code which a person decides to live by? I obey the rules of the land, try to treat others the way I wish to be treated, love my family and am loyal to my wife. I'm certainly not perfect but try to "do the right thing". I'm not always successful.
Where do you stand on telling lies, upholding truth, deceiving others etc ? I try to be honest and recognize there are times when that doesn't happen. Upholding truth? What is truth? Seriously, the 2 things I know to be true are that 1) I'm going to die and 2) I have to pay taxes. Everything else is relative truth.
Does the end justify the means ? Yes in some cases. Don't kid yourself. Do you think the politicians are looking out for you? Do you think your company gives a damn about you? Everyone is expendable and if you don't look out for yourself, no one else will.
Where do you stand on associating with people who do not act in a way you approve ? I don't judge how others act as long as they don't hurt their fellow man.
How do you feel about how the world of normal people views you ? Don't care. I care about how my immediate family views me. I'd like to be known as a great guy, but I've learned that seeking others approval just sucks your soul. Life is too short to be concerned about that.
How do you draw the line on what you will not do at the bidding of the WT ? I do not give them money and if they forced tithing then I would leave. If blood became an issue for my family, I would leave. Basically, I go to meetings to appease my wife. I make an appearance in service every now and then. Otherwise, I don't do the the bidding of the WT.
What is personal integrity ? That's a difficult question. What was important at one point is not important now.
-
73
C.O. Jonsson's response to Watchtower's latest 607 articles
by wannabefree inhttp://kristenfrihet.se/vtsvar/vtsvar1.pdf.
(thanks to augustin for bringing this to our attention in another thread.
).
-
-
Doubting Bro
Sorry P Sac! I posted right after reading the article without reading the other comments!!
Right, the appointment is where they get their "authority" from. Jesus as usual is just a sidebar.