in reply to the question "which is the greatest commandment of the law?
", jesus replied .
"love the lord your god with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.
Remember that when Jesus spoke, it was to a specific group of people; Israelites in covenant with Jehovah. For them, Jesus' words were an explanation of the terms of the covenant. For them it was not emotional blackmail.
These days Jesus' words are applied to persons outside that covenant. That's emotional blackmail.
what do you think would happen if i told an elder or co "listen, i just thought you should know that i have no intention of heeding any direction from the fds regarding medical procedures"?.
Try it and report back.
it may have actually been egyptian (perhaps much older), but the jews borrowed the tradition from the egyptians.
it was a way for a small priest and ruler minority to alter their physical appearance in line with the "gods".
it was a mark that made this small ruling class "godlike" and different than the rest of the populace... hmmm, interesting.
I don't think the Jews have taken credit for it. Wasn't it a non-Israelite woman who performed the first "Jewish" circumcision, then told her husband "You are a bridegroom of blood to me"? Maybe she was sick of the whole God trip and chose circumcision as a means of showing her husband how his "calling" was affecting her. In such a case it makes sense that she would use a method that would be recognized as related to persons who thought they were chosen by or dedicated to the service of a God.
i am reading old awakes!
at the moment from the link that was posted recently and it's pretty surreal.
check out this paragraph on page 16 of the january 8th magazine "what a man!
I think it was meant to be a joke, kind of a precursor to "Watching The World", a magazine feature in later years. Strange!!!
here is a quote from the 8/15/12 watchtower study simplified edition that just was posted on jw.org.. on page 13 paragraph 12 it says "those who ignore the warnings from the faithful and discreet slave will harm themselves and those they love.".
also, another doozy is earlier on paragraph it likens those who have not read social networking articles from the faithful slave before using, "is like taking a powerful medicine without first reading the warning on the bottle.".
im not even done reading this whole magazine yet, but i thought i'd share these insane comments.
"if ever that slave should say in his heart, ‘My master delays coming,’ and should start to beat the menservants and the maidservants, and to eat and drink and get drunk, the master of that slave will come on a day that he is not expecting him and in an hour that he does not know, and he will punish him with the greatest severity and assign him a part with the unfaithful ones.”
...a little something I learned from WT....karma.
why would satan have wanted to kill jesus if jesus' death would defeat satan and save mankind?
why would satan enter judas at the last supper and get judas to betray jesus, leading him to his death, if this death is what defeated satan?.
Satan didn't want to kill Jesus, he wanted to prove to God that everyone would disobey given the right set of circumstances. Most people will "compromise" (disobey) when faced with serious consequences, like death. All Jesus had to do was deny who he was and he could have lived. He wouldn't do it. He died because he wouldn't go against his Father's will.
Every time Satan faced off with Jesus he was unsuccessful. (Remember the three temptations in the wilderness?) The last time, Satan upped the ante and Jesus still didn't give in. Jesus knew how it would probably end up, that's why he was so upset as he prayed just before he was betrayed by Judas. He knew how hard it was going to be to remain obedient, that Satan was going to throw him into a situation where he (Jesus) would look like he was bringing shame on the very one he was trying to obey.
If Satan could prove that everyone would disobey then he would be right in stating that God was unjust. That's the whole goal, trying to prove that God is an unfit Father. ....and guess who wants the job???
sorry i have not check in the last 3 months my computer was broke.
and my wife and i have been very busy with the new business.
it has been 1 year today we landed in our new home here in wilds of pa. our 22 year old cat is now 23 years old and somedays it acts like it's going to out live us.
Something in the way you wrote leads me to believe that you are really making it. Congratulations!
the reason i ask, is that if you search the wt publications, you will see that it is spelled with only one "p" over 600 times, but also spelled with two "p"s 600 times.. .
very confusing!
any linguistic experts out there that know which it should be?.
D oomed by self-appointed representatives of the God of love, Jehovah
I nvalidated by the rules of a man-made organization
S isters won't talk to you, brothers won't either
F riends abandon you without hearing both sides of the issue
E veryone connected with WT acts as though you were dead
L ove is replaced by disapproval
L oyalty to WT is put before family or friends
O pportunity opens to discover a more genuine way of living
W orthwhile people begin to appear in your life
S ooner or later you realize there may be more to living than you'd been led to believe
H ope begins to take root
I nstead of conditional love you begin to experience the real thing
P eople who comprehend what you are suffering go out of their way to assist
P utting the past behind you becomes easier every day
E nd result is a healthier outlook and a stronger sense of self-identity
D oubt and fear disappear, replaced by a happier and more peaceful lifestyle. You made it!
i have been thinking about this for weeks!.
nothing short of death will be acceptable to my mother!.
i thought of saying i will go to another cong but my parents know people there so that won't work.. help!.
"I don't want to" sounds plausible to me. Let the chips fall where they may.
....so you didn't have to go through the process of being reinstated?
please, share your experiences!
.
People who were JW's in the early '80's may have heard this "experience" at a Circuit Assembly:
Guy studies with JW's, gets baptized. Guy suffers a severe head trauma and drifts away from the congregation. Many years later someone from that congregation sees a familiar face at a Quick Build and inquires of the local congregation. He's told they don't know much about him, he showed up at the KH with amnesia, but studied and qualified for baptism. The same guy studied and got baptized twice!
That's when the C.O. added his own comment: Isn't it wonderful, brothers! This man couldn't remember anything about his past but he recognized The Truth!
Moral of the story: Someone is going to recognize you sooner or later.
