Posts by Olin Moyles Ghost

508

Most-Ignored Scriptures by JWs

by Mad Sweeney in

the watchtower has been known for over 130 years as a great scriptural cherry-picker.

they pick out disparate unrelated verses and combine them to support the wackiest of wacky doctrines.. on the other hand there are many scriptures they almost never address, whether because they contradict wt doctrine or because they simply don't have a clue what they mean or how to spin them to the wt advantage.. one of these is revelation 19:1 that mentions a "great crowd" "in heaven.

" the only time it is ever brought up it is dismissed.

Olin Moyles Ghost

Bump for MadJw--care to explain how "the Bible far surpasses the knowledge of men"? For your convenience, I'll copy my earlier post below:

----------------------------------------

MadJw: the things one learns from the Bble (not church) far surpasses the knowledge of men- except for science and technology.

Ha! Good one. So your position is that the following nuggets of "Bible Truth" far surpass the knowledge of men? Please explain.

Exodus 21:7-11 - God permits and condones selling your daughter as a sex slave
Deuteronomy 22:28-29 - a man who rapes a virgin is required to marry her--according to God's "perfect" law that "far surpasses the knowledge of men"
Revelation 22:7 - Jesus tells John that he's "coming quickly"--it's almost 2,000 years since those words were recorded and he isn't here yet (oh yeah, that's right, you believe he's been "invisibly present"--whatever that means--since 1914...it's still not "quickly"...Ha!)
Of course there's the whole notion of a global flood just over 4,000 years ago--another laughably absurd proposition from the Bible...and the list goes on and on...

508

Most-Ignored Scriptures by JWs

by Mad Sweeney in

the watchtower has been known for over 130 years as a great scriptural cherry-picker.

they pick out disparate unrelated verses and combine them to support the wackiest of wacky doctrines.. on the other hand there are many scriptures they almost never address, whether because they contradict wt doctrine or because they simply don't have a clue what they mean or how to spin them to the wt advantage.. one of these is revelation 19:1 that mentions a "great crowd" "in heaven.

" the only time it is ever brought up it is dismissed.

Olin Moyles Ghost

MadJw: the things one learns from the Bble (not church) far surpasses the knowledge of men- except for science and technology.

Ha! Good one. So your position is that the following nuggets of "Bible Truth" far surpass the knowledge of men? Please explain.

Exodus 21:7-11 - God permits and condones selling your daughter as a sex slave
Deuteronomy 22:28-29 - a man who rapes a virgin is required to marry her--according to God's "perfect" law that "far surpasses the knowledge of men"
Revelation 22:7 - Jesus tells John that he's "coming quickly"--it's almost 2,000 years since those words were recorded and he isn't here yet (oh yeah, that's right, you believe he's been "invisibly present"--whatever that means--since 1914...it's still not "quickly"...Ha!)
Of course there's the whole notion of a global flood just over 4,000 years ago--another laughably absurd proposition from the Bible...and the list goes on and on...

20

Any person without the mark will be executed?

by ldrnomo in

the daily text for today is a good way to show dubs that you talk to that everyone except jehovah's witnesses will be destroyed.

i have found that when i do get a chance to say something to a dub about this they usually say "we don't judge so we can't say who will be destroyed" the borg was kind enough to put it in writing for me:.

today's text:saturday may 1 2010(put a mark on the foreheads of the men that are sighing and groaning over all the detestables things that are being done.ezekial.9:4. .

Olin Moyles Ghost

Glad to see they're sticking with the "marked for survival" doctrine. While the WTS tries really hard not to put it in writing that only JWs have a chance at surviving the Great Tribulation, their interpretation of Ezekiel 9 makes it crystal clear. You MUST have "The Mark" and The Mark includes being a dedicated, baptized JW. If you don't have The Mark, then, according to the WTS, you will be killed at Armageddon. (though I think there's a loophole for children of JW parents who haven't yet reached "the age of accountability")

55

What Little Rebellious Things Did You Do When Still A JW?

by Seeker4 in

where there little things that you did just to express yourself and feel like you weren't just some robot clog in a machine?

i was thinking of stuff i did over the years: .

read whatever books i wanted, even apostate ones over the years.

Olin Moyles Ghost

Let's see...when I was a believing JW, I did a lot of the same "rebellious" things mentioned previously:

Watched movies and listened to music as I saw fit; included R-rated movies and hard rock frowned upon by the WTS
Went to rock concerts and nightclubs on occasion
Went to bars/pubs regularly (not sure how rebellious this is, because I know plenty of JWs who go to bars more often than I do)
Never went to meetings when on vacation (again, most JWs that I know--except for the most self-righteous ones--don't go to meetings when on vacation)
Did as little actual field service as possible (typically worked with my family, did "calls" which meant a couple of not-at-homes and then a nice long break and some errands)
Made conscious decision not to "reach out" for "privileges"--simply decided it wasn't worth the hassle, and reasoned that nowhere does the Bible say you have to be a MS/Elder/Pioneer to make it to the new system...
Discussed politics with "worldly" and JW friends/co-workers, taking "non-neutral" positions

Just to mix things up a bit, here are a few things I did that were NOT rebellious:

didn't participate in birthday/holiday parties at work (developed a knack for not being around when those things came up)
didn't vote in political elections
for the most part, I didn't talk to DF'd people (though I would smile/wave/say 'hi' to them)

26

Real Peace and Security-When? Outline !!!

by yknot in

a wonderful darling man was so kind as to anonymously pm this to be shared with the board...... consider it 'food at the proper time'.

kudos for anony-brother.

for actual outline.... http://www.sendspace.com/file/o58i6h.

Olin Moyles Ghost

Thanks for putting this out there, yknot and thanks to your anonymous friend for providing it.

As others have stated, the "special" talk is really just another public talk. Back when I was in, I considered the "special" talk to be just another talk. In fact, it's typically more basic and more bland than your average public talk (and that's saying something).

As a whole, it looks like this is another snoozer. I like the admonition at the beginning for the speaker not to speculate. That's too funny.

Notwithstanding the dry/bland nature of the talk as a whole, I think the following sentence in the outline might pique the interest of some JWs: "We have reached the time when significant developments and earthshaking events prophesied in the Bible are to occur." Now, this statement is purposely vague, but I could see Witnesses getting excited by this. The "spiritually strong" ones who enjoy researching the "deeper" things will over-analyze the "we have reached the time" language. I can imagine these JWs talking in the car group "In all my 40/50/whatever years in The Truth, I've never heard the FDS say 'we have reached the time...' That means the Great Tribulation is practically here." But, just like the generations (pun intended) of JWs who came before them, they'll be wrong.

19

Local needs talk this past Tues at my wife's cong

by isaacaustin in

jw
friends

on social networking and facebook was specifically mentioned, as well as how 'dangerous' it is..

Olin Moyles Ghost

Excellent news, Isaac. As Princess Leia said in Star Wars, "the more you tighten your grip, the more star systems will slip through your fingers."

508

Most-Ignored Scriptures by JWs

by Mad Sweeney in

the watchtower has been known for over 130 years as a great scriptural cherry-picker.

they pick out disparate unrelated verses and combine them to support the wackiest of wacky doctrines.. on the other hand there are many scriptures they almost never address, whether because they contradict wt doctrine or because they simply don't have a clue what they mean or how to spin them to the wt advantage.. one of these is revelation 19:1 that mentions a "great crowd" "in heaven.

" the only time it is ever brought up it is dismissed.

Olin Moyles Ghost

Great topic. Try these:

Luke 21:8: He said: “Look out that YOU are not misled; for many will come on the basis of my name, saying, ‘I am he,’ and, ‘The due time has approached.’ Do not go after them. [In other words, Jesus said don't follow religious leaders who say The End is near.]
Matthew 8:11: But I tell YOU that many from eastern parts and western parts will come and recline at the table with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of the heavens [so Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob are in heaven?]
Luke 16:19-31 (parable of rich man and Lazarus) [total acid trip that throws a wrench into JW beliefs regarding the afterlife]
Luke 10:7: So stay in that house, eating and drinking the things they provide, for the worker is worthy of his wages. Do not be transferring from house to house. [this verse explicitly states NOT to go house-to-house]

4

Very Accurate and Creative (Not)

by Kum Vulcan in

you must have been given the example below in your dealings with jws and blood.

at least i have been told the same stupid thing over and over again by every jw, i've had any discussion on the topic with and by any speaker on the platform when it came to the "abstaining" from blood.. here it goes: "if your doctor told you to abstain from alcohol and you had it injected in your veins, didi you really follow your doctor's advice?

(a self -righteous "i gotcha now" look follows....).

Olin Moyles Ghost

I would turn the argument around on the JW as follows:

If your doctor told you to abstain from MEAT, does this mean you can't have a LIVER TRANSPLANT?

And to answer your question about why the WTS uses this type of reasoning, I would say they use it because it works. It's easy to understand and easy to remember. The fact that it's scientifically dubious and logically flawed doesn't matter. It's the equivalent of a sound-bite. And just like the sound-bites that politicians use (for example, "death panels"), they don't stand up to scrutiny...but that doesn't matter because the target audience doesn't subject them to scrutiny.

28

Does Anyone Like the New Songbook?

by metatron in

jw
friends

i'll try not to be 'knee-jerk' critical about this subject but do any witnesses like the new songbook?

ok, they got rid of some awful lyrics about molesting bees - and downsized references to the ever redundant jesus - but the music itself sounds like forced piano practice.

trying to sing these slow, pedantic tunes is awkward and painful.. i haven't seen any witness e-mails about this 'wonderful provision from jehovah' and his faithful hacks, so i wonder if the rank and file aren't enthused either.

Olin Moyles Ghost

When the new songbook came out, one JW I know said that the new songs were musically "better" and easier to sing than the old songs. I should point out that this JW is a major "know-it-all" who considers himself an expert in music and has an interest in telling me positive things about the org., so that probably influenced what he told me.

I first heard the new songs at the memorial. Maybe it's just my "bad attitude" but I think the new songs (at least the ones played at the memorial) suck even worse than the old ones. And that's saying something!

68

What Are Some Of The Dumbest Beliefs JW's Have?

by minimus in

jw
friends

i know there are a lot.. one belief i never understood is that blood fractions might be ok for a christian but not "whole blood".

to me the "blood doctrine" is ridiculous from a scriptural point of view..

Olin Moyles Ghost

Pick just about anything from Daniel or Revelation. Such as:

The 7 trumpet blasts are 7 district conventions in the 1920s.
The 2300 days of Daniel 8:14 began in 1938 when a Watchtower article about Organization was published and ended at the 1944 Annual Meeting when the WT's board of directors amended the corporate charter.

...and plenty more...