Dobby
But where is God?
You never mentioned Him on your now leisure filled Sundays.
Posts by Gordy
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16A Reason to Return to Sunday Meetings
by dobby inmy hubby and i ran into a sister from the congregation we stopped attending a year ago.
we were trying to run into a store out of the cold, our son in tow.
that didn't stop her.
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108
Why is the Bible wrong?
by StinkyPantz inthis primarily goes out to other agnostics and athiests.
this week i got into two interesting conversations that i will admit that i was ill prepared for.
one was with a jw friend of mine who wanted to know why i thought jw's were wrong.
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Gordy
Who said the Ark held millions of species?
Just as science can prove that man has one common ancestor.
It can prove that each species has one common ancestor related to that species.
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8
Friendly warning for JW lurkers re: blood in food
by Kingpawn ini work in a meat-processing plant in the us.
one of the products we make is the stuff that becomes roast beef.
i can't tell who for, and we're not their only supplier, but they're big enough to advertise nationwide in america, so..... anyway, when we do our part on my line, before the meat's sent to the next step, we drip blood from the meat's box in the container the raw meat's dumped into.
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Gordy
I was in the Meat Trade for 25 years in Britain. The firm I worked for used to buy its animals live. Which were then slaughtered in line with strict Food Hygiene regulations. On certain days you would get Jewish slaughtermen there as well. Who would kill their animals by cutting its throat, while it was still concious and letting the blood drain away. They would then cut the animal removing certain parts etc. I asked them did they do it following something in the Hebrew scriptures. The Rabbi in charge,said that basically all that scripture required was that the bulk of the blood in the animal be poured out. In other words the animals throat was cut and when the blood had stopped pouring from the cut. Then the animal was said to have been bled and was OK to eat. He said that many of the so called "Kosher" rules were brought in over time, some only within the last hundred years, by Rabbis adding to the Law. That they were all really added man-made rules about how it should be done. Even then not every trace of blood can be removed.
Even washing under cold water and salt will not remove every trace of blood. I've seen meat still oozing blood 2 weeks after.
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32
Wanna know when your gonna die?
by gumby incheck this out!.
i guess i'm off to the wild blue yonder in 2028,march 11th kinda creepy.
http://www.deathclock.com/
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Gordy
Hey! According to the clock I died last year.
Wish someone had told me.
Does this mean I'm in Hell!!
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17
do you think that there is a big exodus due from t
by dannywalsh ini dont know about you guys but im starting to get the feeling that a big fallaway is on the cards in the wt world what with all the recent scandals and the advent of the internet , information is so readily available to those in developed countries ,i feel that especially in developed nations the wt will suffer huge losses due to apathy and their extreme stand on so many issues, that many will become sick and tired of the wt treadmill of life which is so far away from the simplistic beauty of biblical christianity what do you think?
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Gordy
Something Positive
We are often talking about what is wrong - lets start the New Year with something positive
The Christian Century
What's the world's fastest-growing religion? (Hint: Not Islam.)
Sunday, December 29, 2002 12:01 a.m.
As the world celebrates Christmas, it's a good time to take stock of the religion behind this holy day. Contrary to perceived wisdom, Christianity is booming.
For obvious reasons, the big story of late has been the growth of Islam, especially in poor and populous parts of the world. That news contrasts with reports suggesting Christianity is in serious decline. Europe, long the centre of the Christian world, is experiencing falling birth rates, aging congregants and increased secularism. In North America, scandals such as the Catholic Church's over sexual misconduct suggest a faith in trouble.
But all of this ignores the world outside the West. As Penn State University Professor Philip Jenkins explains in his new book, "The Next Christendom," the largest populations of Christians on the planet are in Africa and Latin America--and they continue to grow at phenomenal rates. As a result, "in its variety and vitality, in its global reach, in its association with the world's fastest-growing societies . . . it is Christianity that will leave the deepest mark on the twenty-first century," Mr. Jenkins writes in The Atlantic Monthly.
In 1900, Africa had 10 million Christians, or about 9% of its population. Today that continent is home to 360 million Christians out of 784 million people, or 46%. Latin America has 480 million Christians, and Asia another 313 million. By 2025 Christians will be by far the world's largest faith at 2.6 billion, with half of that in Latin America and Africa, and another 17% in Asia.
As Professor Jenkins notes, this boom will redefine regions, politics and Christianity itself. While the liberal and secular West has long been pushing for greater reform in its churches, the fast-growing Christian populations of the Southern Hemisphere are flocking to more radical sects such as Pentecostalism, or are demanding a return to more conservative forms of Catholicism. What this rift will mean for governing bodies like the Vatican is unclear.
Given Christianity's influence in countries that are moving toward democracy, religion itself is likely to play a key role in the ultimate shape of these nations. The record has been encouraging to date, with African and Asian church leaders using their popularity to insert Christian principles of justice and morality into the political realm, such as the role played by South African churches in ending apartheid. At some point, however, these nations will face questions about church-state divides or tolerance for religious minorities. Given the growth of Islam in the same areas, it also raises the potential for more conflicts like those in Sudan, Nigeria or Indonesia.
What does this mean for the traditional Christian centres of Europe and North America? The centre of Christianity is definitely moving to Africa, Latin America and Asia, though interestingly those adherents are bringing their religions back to Europe and the U.S. Declining birth rates in Europe will likely bring greater immigration, much of it fuelled by active Christians from poorer regions like Africa. This is already happening; Professor Jenkins cites London's Kingsway International Christian Centre, founded in 1992 by a Nigerian pastor, which is now said to be the largest church created in Britain since 1861.
America, with its faster birth-rates and immigration, will continue to see Christian growth for years to come. Even with all of its diversity today, the number of Jews, Muslims, Buddhists and Hindus in the U.S. is exceedingly small, amounting to only 4% or 5% of the population, and that percentage isn't likely to change much in the foreseeable future. America may not see Africa's Christian boom, but the vitality and change that has marked Christianity for so long will continue to mark the American experiment too.
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14
Who joined another religion
by JH in.
how many of you out there joined another religion, since leaving the watchtower?edited by - jh on 11 january 2003 20:38:28.
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Gordy
For the past two years I have attended an Elim Pentecostal church here in England.
My son and daughter are also attending now as well.
Never felt so free and closer to God now, than in all my 30 years as a JW.
The people are a joy to be with.
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31
WT Payments.
by caspian injust recieved a new letter from the society.
it is another begging letter for contributions, in it they explain the british tax relief given to them as a charity .
for every 1 pound donated the goverment will give them an extra 28p if it is donated under the gift aid arrangement.
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Gordy
This method of giving through the tax system is not new.
When I was a JW I did it about 10 years ago.
The local congregation did it also if you gave a certain amount per year the congregation could claim the tax back. My congregation used to get about 600 to 800 pounds at the end of the tax year back from the Inland revenue.
Edited by - Gordy on 11 January 2003 8:36:26
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Gordy
Hey Core,
Have been trying to e-mail you.
But it keeps coming back address unknown.
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Gordy
Hi Danny,
Glad you written on here I lost your address.
Hey bay64me
I know Keith and Louise Johnston very well.
Yes Core, he was a CO briefly then Louise got pregnant.
I was a JW on the Wirral for nearly 30 years.
Anyone wants to write to me can do so on [email protected]
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26
Colored Shirts?
by Marcos inwhat is the wt policy on shirts for the brothers?
are they supposed to be only white shirts?
my son, no a sort of waning mormon said that he thought it was funny that the witnesses here copy the mormons (white shirts only).
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Gordy
Here in Britain when I became a JW in 1971, no one said anything about having to wear a white shirt.
I hated white shirts so never wore one.
I've worn, blue, green, purple, lilac any colour except white.
The only thing they didn't like was loud gaudy ties "it would distract the audience" the elder said.
That was until a Circuit Overseer came who wore the loudest ties you could imagine. Then after that all us brothers did so.