Blondie, you are incredibly knowlegable about all of this! They are studying the Revelations Book for the 4th Time now. But what perplexes me is that are using the same book (rather than a revised edition) with a paper index for the revisions. With all the $$$ the WTS has why on Earth would they do this??? And also, why study the same book 4 times? Have they ran out of material or book authors?? Can you give me any insight on this matter? Thanks!
Seeking The Truth
JoinedPosts by Seeking The Truth
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78
Watchtower 2007 3/15 -- Is 1914 dropped?
by observer inwatchtower 2007 3/15 is very unusual.
it is titled (when freely translated) "how coming of the christ affects you?".
in the first article there is not speaking about 1914 or invisible presence.
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Why don't YOU believe anymore?
by Crumpet insomeone on another site was asking "what if they are right?
" which made me think about why i know that they are not and i wondered what was your epiphany or road to damascus moment or moments that just made you realise - hey i've been led up the garden path here!.
here was my response but i really think a list of reasons on one thread for easy reference for newbies would be good.
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Seeking The Truth
I grew up in a JW home and attended every meeting plus field service until I was 16 years old and then I left home and the Kingdom Hall. I still went to the Memorial every year but that was it. My father was disfellowshiped for smoking. I questioned why they would treat him so 360 degrees differently when I felt like if they really loved him and wanted him to be a part of the "organization" they would help him; not abandon him... so that was the first thing that struck me as bizarre behavior.
As a young adult (still attending the Memorials only) I wondered why (it appeared) that noone was partaking of the emblems at the Memorial when at other churches every one did. So I began to research it. If there were only 144,000 who could partake of it, then who was counting since 33 C.E.? Surely after 2600 + years that 144,000 couldn't include anyone alive by this time (1990s) could it? But they insisted that to partake if you weren't annointed would mean death; yet the people at the Catholic churches didn't die for taking the bread and the wine.
This lead me to investigate other areas of the "truth" which I had never heard of before. It was surreal to me when I discovered the International Bible Students only came into existence in 1799. Wow, that struck me as odd. But when I found out that they didn't take the name JW until 1931...well that led me to an epiphany! Something wasn't adding up especially since so much of the doctrine is taught about 1914! When I asked questions like well, who was the first JW? The answer was always The Disciples of course! Ok, well then how could a loving and merciful God, Jehovah, allow mankind to be left all alone in this world with nothing but a Bible since 33 CE when Jesus was executed... but waited until 1799 or 1931 to finally make Taze his personal channel???? Something isn't exactly adding up here!
After this line of questions, it became apparent that I was reading apostate literature! I carefully disguised it as wanting to learn more about the origins of my faith. I was told that if the literature I was reading did not come from the WTS then it was apostate. So then I stated than that means that the newspaper is apostate too and the reply was "well, I don't read the newspaper'.
Ok, now coming into the current time, I am attending talks regularly to try to grow closer to Jehovah because I am being emotionally blackmailed about the promise of seeing my two deceased children in the resurrection... and I hear the brother giving the talk say that as unmarried witnesses that we should hold hands with the opposite sex or kiss in such a way as to incite passion. Wait just a minute now; I am single and this concerned me greatly! How do you "court" without holding hands or kissing? Later in his sermon, he said that children should be taught to sit up at the meetings, and not be given coloring books or other paper to draw on, and they should especially not scribble on the literature, that they should have respect... I haven't been back since that day.
Since then I read Crisis of Conscience. I am not looking back but am being abandoned my family. My mother told me that Jehovah will replace me with new children in the new system. What a glorious day that will be I suppose.
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The Day all Jehovah`s Witness`s are put into Concentration Camps!
by OUTLAW inwhen i was a kid,kingdom halls still had windows.thats a while ago..as a kid i was told in the last days,jehovah`s witness`s would be rounded up and be put into concentration camps..i was told,when the government came to take me away and seperate me from my parents,i should wear my warmest coat and boots.as i would have to fend for myself in the concentration camp..i was told never to give up my faith.even if they tied my parents to a stake and was foced to light the fire that would burn them alive.....jehovah`s witness`s are the "happiest people on earth!
".....do you have any happy memorys like mine?...outlaw
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Seeking The Truth
As a newcommer to this site but someone who grew up in the "truth", I can remember windows as a child and then no more windows too... I just never put two and two together until I read this. Why are the windows gone from the Kingdom Halls??? Strange!
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I hate my mother, that Jehovah created.
by vomit ini believe i grew up a good son, for 10 years i stayed in a religion that i did not agree with.
the day my mother got cancer something died with in me.
i didn't feel sorry for her i felt sorry for me.
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Seeking The Truth
I hate my mother too! My mother stood up in my face and told me that Jehovah will replace me with new children in the "New System of Things" because I read Raymond Franz' book Crisis of Conscience. How do you argue with her? I have been trying so hard to find something that I can actually use to make her see the real light!! I was brought up a JW so my childhood was anything but ordinary. My father was disfellowship a long time ago for smoking and then my mother fell away. Only recently having started a new job with a co-worker is a JW has she become fanatical.
They are going on a trip to Bethel (from Alabama) riding a bus full of JW and she was indignant that I didn't love Jehovah because I refused to go (she was paying afterall). If there is anyone out there who has taken the Bethel tour, maybe you can answer this for me: will they see behind the scenes or only a carefully arranged tour? Will they eat any meals at the long tables in the cafeteria that week?
I am trying to find some piece of material that will help me convince my mother that this is not Jehovah's organization. She is not concerned with any of the inaccurate predictions for Armageddon saying the Bible says no man knows the date or the hour. I ask her who has been keeping up with the 144,000 since biblical days began until 1914/1918/1935 when the vancancies were supposedly filled and she said Jehovah has, that he is the Time Keeper. When I asked her why I can't worship Jehovah privately without the aide of the WTS, she quoted the passage about "...where two or more are gathered" so it isn't possible to believe in Jehovah without the WTS because that is Jehovah's organization. Enough already. I can't argue with her I suppose because I don't have enough material to present her with. When I told her about the Beth Sarin house she didn't know anything about it but believed that if the WTS President built it and deeded it to the Oldies then it must be for a good reason.
She keeps reminding me that the WTS is a non-profit organization and that they give the literature away. I remember distinctly when she purchased it from the Kingdom Hall then sold it at the "cost of printing". Why has this changed? If the WTS is so rich why don't they distribute the wealth to helping each congregation pay the light bill rather than having each congretion pay the expenses for a Bethel Brother to come give a talk?
My mother has built a library of all of the old yearbooks, every book that was pratically ever written by the WTS, and yes, even the old records! She didn't find it odd that they used to play the phongraph at people's doors at all. Now she tapes every talk and converts them into CD. She has gone off the deep end.
Now she is drilling me to go to the Memorial. This would be the first year not being in attendance. Should I go because Jesus commands us to "do this in Memorial of Me"? If I don't do it at the Kingdom Hall, where else can do this in rememberance of him? Can anyone help me with this? I am going insane!!