Something seems amiss with the idea that 'freedom of religion' incorporates the idea of allowing religions the freedom to pratice methods that inherently deny freedom to the people of the religion. This feels like an abuse of the freedom granted in the first place. Is it proper that freedom to act should include freedom to act in such a way as to deny freedom?
Hoping4Change
JoinedPosts by Hoping4Change
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21
How much time before U.S. persecution starts?
by sd-7 ini was reading barbara anderson's recent entry on free minds, and it made me think--the society's recent maneuvers in real estate, moving things to canada, etc.
does this mean jws in the u.s. will be facing problems from the government soon?
if so, is anyone knowledgeable enough to give an educated guess as to how soon this might happen?.
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Oct.15th WT GB Tells JW Rank & File-You are Our Belongings Stay Humble
by flipper inthe mind control in this latest oct.15th is amazing.
our lurking jw friend sent us this and it basically tellls witnesses that their opinions don't matter and only god is good .
it belittles independent thinking and explains that each rank and file jw is owned by the alleged " faithful and discreet slave " .
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Hoping4Change
Those with an earthly hope SHOULD THEREFORE , recognize Christ as their head and BE SUBMISSIVE to the FAITHFUL AND DISCREET SLAVE and it's GOVERNING BODY and to the MEN APPOINTED as OVERSEERS in the congregation. "
I am dying to see a scan of this article. This statement alone should be enough to make anyone want to gag and run as fast as they can. They dont want to be called a cult, but they continue with this nonsense.
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Brenda Lee, former Jehovah's Witness exposes Watchtower org. on national T.V.
by koolaid-man inhow exciting it was to see former jehovah's witness brenda lee, author of the book "out of the cocoon" on secret lives of women which aired on we, women's entertainment network.
the program aired on sept. 8 and will be rebroadcast on sept. 29,2009. brenda will be our special guest on the conference call saturday september 12 at 7 p.m. est.
brenda will share her experience on how she got to be on this national program.
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Hoping4Change
Here is a bit of Brenda's clip:
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Lawrence Beamen - America's Got Talent an ex-JW??
by AdaMakawee intonight while watching the show in the promo leading up to his performance, lawrence talked about being raised in a cult (he did not use that exact word) but said he was always told he was not good enough, also that he was brainwashed.
made me think perhaps he is an ex jw too.
he's from the walnut creek ca area now but apparently grew up in mississippi.. ada.
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Hoping4Change
It will be interesting to see if he responds. My first thought was 'ex-jw maybe?', when I saw the clip last night.
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Is Shunning an Act of Revenge?
by cameo-d in.
does wt demand an act of wickedness to prove loyalty to the institution?.
is shunning a wicked act of revenge?.
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Hoping4Change
Having read these "publications" and listen to that given "from the platform", I can say with %100 absolute certainty that there is ABSOULTELY ZERO love, agape or otherwise given on this matter. Any pretending or presupposition for it to be so is a clear indication of a misunderstanding of love in any form; agape or otherwise. Even "disciplinary love" is not covered/described by the actions and teachings of the WTBTS on this matter.
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Is Shunning an Act of Revenge?
by cameo-d in.
does wt demand an act of wickedness to prove loyalty to the institution?.
is shunning a wicked act of revenge?.
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Hoping4Change
Shunning is a form of neutrality
Shunning for any other reasonbesides those explicitly mentioned in the bible is not a neutral act; it is an act of loyalty to the WTBTS and done so out of fear.
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Is Shunning an Act of Revenge?
by cameo-d in.
does wt demand an act of wickedness to prove loyalty to the institution?.
is shunning a wicked act of revenge?.
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Hoping4Change
I would think that it would behoove any/all JW Apologists here to provide a proper response to Mary's post. Not snipets of disagreement or snide/non-arguments; but a well put together essay addressing all the points made by Mary and why they think they are not true or do not apply. Barring any kind of such a response, how can any JW apologist response be taken seriously?
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It's WT leaders, not elders, who are responsible for all the harm. My Geneva, Switz. lecture posted here for new ones & Sola Scriptura to read
by AndersonsInfo inkeep it secret has been wts child abuse policy for years.
he said the policy that jehovah's witnesses have on how to handle cases of child abuse is without equal in the religious community.
why keep these forms secret?.
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Hoping4Change
I found Reniaa's asking of the question curious. Reniaa - Isn't waiting for and wanting other/false religions "destroyed for their past sins and mistakes" exactly part of the modus operandi for Jehovah's Witnesses? (From all the literature and talks I have heard, it seems to me that it certainly is.) If you have any problems with the FACTS presented, why wont you adress them directly rather than wondering about Barbara's motive? The plain truth is that there is and have been problems with this organization and they have failed to step up to the plate, acknowledge and apologize for their errors, and then fix them. It seems the organization has the same problems as addicts do; they are addicted to their own methods of operation (secrecy, non-disclosure and cover up). And as is common knowledge, an addict can not be helped until the addiction is acknowledged and active measures to remove the addiction are taken.
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JW Defenders- Is WTS Right to Insist You Stay Away From these Websites?
by OnTheWayOut ini read these threads and there are a few that bend over backwards to say why wts is correct on this issue or that issue.. they act like typical jw's that refuse to acknowledge points that may show that wts is not following the scriptures or that wts goes beyond the scriptures in a way that is not supported by others.. the point could be the blood issue or shunning or whether 1799 or 1914 was the start (or finish?
) of the last days or whether there is a faithful and discreet slave class or not.
i don't want to harp on each point.
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Hoping4Change
I'm not interested in disowning the truth or believing information provided by apostates.
Spike - but what about information that is truth that just happens to come from those called 'apostates'? Certainly you aren't suggesting that the mere label of 'apostate' means that they can't possibly have truthful information? Doesn't truth stand on its' own regardless of its' source? And shouldn't every posited piece of information offered as 'truth' be investigated by everyone to determine its' truthfulness? And once the truthfullness has been determined, isn't it proper to acknowldge such truth, no matter where it came from?
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JW Defenders- Is WTS Right to Insist You Stay Away From these Websites?
by OnTheWayOut ini read these threads and there are a few that bend over backwards to say why wts is correct on this issue or that issue.. they act like typical jw's that refuse to acknowledge points that may show that wts is not following the scriptures or that wts goes beyond the scriptures in a way that is not supported by others.. the point could be the blood issue or shunning or whether 1799 or 1914 was the start (or finish?
) of the last days or whether there is a faithful and discreet slave class or not.
i don't want to harp on each point.
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Hoping4Change
......God's disaproval
Can someone please explain to me when Jevovah has ever disapproved of telling the truth, revealing the truth?
I tend to be especially fond of this: Luke 9:49 and Mat 16:12. Now Jesus was Jewish, not a Jehovah's Witness (i.e member of the Organization calling themselves "Jehovah's Witness" which takes it's guidance from the Watchtower and Bible Tract Society). Was Jesus ever rebuked for revealing the wrong actions/beliefs of the Sadduceess and Pharisees? Certainly if Jesus was not rebuked for revealing/showing the truth, and a Chirstian should aspire to act as Jesus has, then certainly no one can be condemned a non-Christian for revealing truths and wrong actions/beliefs?
For all the claims to being imperfect, why cant JWs simply say "We have been wrong about ...." (fill in the blank).
While good/noble motives may be preferable when revealing truth, the truth is the truth regardless of where it comes from (again see Luke 9:49).