esther

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Posts by esther

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  31

  Interpretation of Scripture

  by chacha in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  can the bible be interpreted correctly only by the watchtower?.

  do you believe that the bible was written to all people?

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  esther

  pom, you said

  Regarding sin, we are born in sin. All of Jericho was in sin. Do you believe all who were destroyed in the flood weren't worthy of that judgement? Or you don't believe that happened either? Curious...How much "sin" does a man have to do in order to be worthy of destruction?

  If I made a mold to make something and it was sufficiently flawed for me to want to destroy it and I still used it, I could not then blame what was reproduced for the flaws. So, no, I don't believe that everyone is worthy of destruction simply because they were born.

  esther
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  24

  Why did Jesus not start his ministry till 30?

  by LadyBug in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i have often wondered this.

  his sole purpose in coming to earth was to make disciples and the sacrifice.

  he knew this.. so why did he wait till 30 yrs of age to dedicate himself to his father?

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  esther

  sixofnine, you say

  Francoise, I like the way you write. Fiction. I worry a bit the way you present what Jesus and God did or didn't do as a reality you seem to know.

  Isn't that what religion has been doing for centuries.

  esther
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  9

  Recognized by Baptism or Service Report?

  by Josh in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i have been wondering for a while now:are jw's recognized as such by their public baptism or by .

  the service report they turn in every month?.

  when i was studying,i was constantly told that to become a jehovah's witness,one had to make a. public declaration by getting baptized.2 1/2 yrs after i was baptized,i was stripped of all my privileges.

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  esther

  Hi Josh, welcome to the board. You asked

  I have been wondering for a while now:are JW's recognized as such by their public baptism or by the service report they turn in every month?

  A CO once said that you can't be a witness if you are not actually witnessing. This has been the case for a long time, as far as I know.
  I didn't know that there was a specified amount of time you were supposed to spend in FS, unless you were pioneering, though. I wonder how the GB came to that figure. It is not scriptural, anyway, and neither is reporting time in FS.
  Maybe the publisher numbers are declining because more people are realising that the GB does not have divine direction.
  esther
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  24

  Why did Jesus not start his ministry till 30?

  by LadyBug in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i have often wondered this.

  his sole purpose in coming to earth was to make disciples and the sacrifice.

  he knew this.. so why did he wait till 30 yrs of age to dedicate himself to his father?

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  esther

  BEW, I don't know why Jesus waited until 30 to be baptised. Your comment regarding the reason the WTS doesn't pick up on this

  Wouldn't have so many converts huh.

  on its own could lead to many interesting discussions.
  esther
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  31

  Interpretation of Scripture

  by chacha in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  can the bible be interpreted correctly only by the watchtower?.

  do you believe that the bible was written to all people?

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
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  esther

  pomegranate, the reasons I don't think the bible is God's word have nothing to do with any religion. There are a few reasons, but it would take too long to go into them all. But one example is, why does God say in one place that a man will die for his own sins, but in another place he allowed many men to die for the sin of one man at Jericho? This was not just a case of an unexpected event, because God actually sent the Israelites to fight. There are more reasons than this one example. However, now I am an exJW I am no longer prepared to insist that my belief is the true one
  esther
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  3

  Dance Like No One is Watching

  by waiting in

  1. watchtower
  2. medical

  dance like no one is watching .

  my brother-in-law opened the bottom drawer of my sister's bureau and lifted out a tissue-wrapped package.

  "this," he said, "is not a slip.

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  esther

  When I became a JW, I had the same thoughts as everyone else. 'Armaggedon isn't far away'. So I stopped keeping things for a special occasion. I didn't want to take the chance that the nice things would be destroyed at Armaggedon without me having a chance to use them. Well, that is one good thing about having been a JW
  esther
  edited for grammar
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  42

  Notes from 2001 District Conv.---Friday

  by LostMyReligion in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  here are a few notes i took at the friday session of the 2001 "teachers of god's word" district convention.

  i thought i would share these upbuilding theocratic point with my new friends, along with my thoughts as i was listening to the program.

  1st instruction of the day: sing loudly and listen to the prayer!

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  esther

  Thanks LMR, Loved your notes and your comments. Hope it eases the boredom when you think of the enjoyment you are giving to us. I would like to add a few comments of my own as well

  We may have been tired when we got here, but the next 3 days will be like a vitamin shot---energizing us for activity when we get home.

  my thoughts 'exhausting us into inactivity when we get home'.
  

  Maintain spiritual cleaness both morally and doctrinally. Beware of apostates!

  my thoughts, yes beware, you could find out the truth
  

  Satan takes more delight in making JWs his victims that anyone else! What is he looking for? Attitudes and heart conditions make us his targets.

  That is scary. Satan never used to be able to read our thoughts.
  esther
  happy to be missing the dc
  edited for spelling
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  12

  If Witnesses Had To Be Honest in F.S.

  by NikL in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  witness: hi.

  witness: right.

  witness: oh yes.

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  esther

  NikL, great story. Actually, I once worked in FS with someone who did tell the householder that her religion was false and she would be destroyed. The householder didn't want to continue the conversation after that, for some reason.

  esther
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  41

  Perversion of Baptismal Vows

  by AlanF in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  an appendix in the book contains some 120 questions along with hundreds of scriptural "proof texts" that the proselyte is then expected to study.

  12 jesus commanded his followers to baptize new disciples in the name of the father and of the son and of the holy spirit.

  the following quotation shows what the proselyte is expected to study just prior to baptism:.

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  esther

  Amazing, you said

  The benefit of that teaching at the time, if I were to employ it now, would be to legally argue that I was never part of the organization, and therefore cannot be disassociated or disfellowshipped. It would be very difficult for the Society to do much about those of us who were baptized before 1985, and have since left the Big-O. We could perhaps fight being shunned.

  I was baptized well before 1985, so that is a really useful tip for me. Thank you.
  I suppose that I just expected the same questions to be asked at every baptism, so I never took any further notice of the questions. I wonder how many do actually take notice of them, even now?

  esther
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  59

  What is your favorite nickname for the Society?

  by slipnslidemaster in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i've heard the borg alot.

  one of the recent posts had the matrix.

  some the firm.. i think that i like the matrix, so far.. what's yours?.

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  esther

  While I often use other terms, my favourite is the borg. To be in, you need a 'collective mind', no individual thoughts are allowed. Also, how you spend your time is controlled. It is considered a waste of time if what you are doing does not comply with what the GB considers to be good for the collective, otherwise known as the organization.

  esther