independent_tre

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Posts by independent_tre

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  17

  Another guilt trip Watchtower this past Sunday.

  by easyreader1970 in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  i won't go into the article as a whole because it's discussed in another topic here.

  but i truly despise the way that the watchtower tries to guilt or frighten people into going out in field service.

  not only will jehovah kill that person (unfairly) if you don't preach to them, but he'll kill you too!.

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  independent_tre

  ^^^^^LOL @ "ham-shanked" Never heard that term..

  Weird thing is fear never motivated me, and is a poor way to motivate ianyone into action ( especially for long periods of time). I used to want to believe that JW's really didn't preach a message of gloom and doom, but that is exactly what it boils down to...

  ...I also simply had enough of the WT weekly guilt trips..every other magazine had you feeling like you weren't doing enough, but then the society put a spin on that and said people were feeling depressed because they thought they were not doing enough for Jehovah. So really it's a self-induced guilt trip - the slave had nothing to do with making people feel bad. What a bunch of self-serving......
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  19

  I find myself just getting "tired" of waiting for the End of the world. U2?

  by booker-t in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  is the end of the world just a fantasy in religious people's mind?

  i am really beginning to believe we were all just made to believe in a fairy tale.

  i still love jehovah and jesus but my faith is just wasting away behind waiting for a change such as the rapture/armaggeddon/paradise earth.

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  independent_tre

  Every culture has it's Armageddon, end times scenarios. So do most religions. If it(whatever it is) comes, then it comes. It's nothing I have control over. I refuse to live with a cloud of doom over my head as the organization would have you do. It's not healthy. And it's ruling by FEAR. A definite mind control tactic. When someone lives in fear it's very hard to research things rationally. The organization keeps people in fear with telling them they aren't doing enough and that you have to do more more more to get through Armageddon. The organization also uses one's children against them. If you're not a good Witness then your children are going to die. And then you'll be bloodguilty. What a rotten thing to say to loving parents!!!! And don't bother saving for retirement as Armageddon will be here and you won't need it. And now there are elderly ones with NOTHING. That's LOVING. Salvation is a gift from God. We can't earn it. We've all fallen short of the glory of God so how could we possibly earn it?????? Thankfully God is the judge and not a body of elders!!!!

  Mandette

  Mandette - I really love this post, it's exactly how I feel I'd been mislead to preach a message of 'doom and gloom' - not Christ's message of salvation. I've never been motivated by that kind of fear and I hate that it's used to guilt trip so many. Excellent post
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  6

  JWS and Sports

  by luffy in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  does anyone know why jws are not supposed to participate in sports and what is their view towards watching sports on the tv, ie a game of football..does not playing sport extend to not watching and what are the biblical reasons given?.

  .

  thanks.

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  independent_tre

  having a 'competitive spirit' is also frowned upon by the WTS
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  26

  Time is running out for the Society

  by truthseeker in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014. january 1, 2015. .

  less than seven years remain before we see january 1, 2015. what will the watchtower's message be then?.

  how can they explain to the flock that jesus christ is now ruling in his 101st year?.

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  independent_tre

  Even though the WTS has no problem finding new believers to replace the old, there are real victims of this sort of eschatological indoctrination. My parents have decided to make an unwise decision regarding the house they own - I believe it's called a reverse mortgage, anywho, this really points to their deep rooted conviction that they don't have to plan for old age or retirement. They never even talk about it.
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  17

  Is it true that 95% of JWs still believe the door was closed in 1935?

  by 1914BS in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  i get that kind of feedback when i talk to dubs that i know .

  how about your experiences.

  do the jws you talk to really keep up with the tidal wave of wt doctrine changes?

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  independent_tre

  This may be slightly related to this topic ( how JW's treat 1935), but I really don't understand what this daily text was getting at. I even asked an elderette what were they were trying to say with this teaching, and her reply was.."I don't know, but whatever the slave feeds us, I'll accept it even if I don't understand it". Here's the text, taken from the Friday, January 4, 2008 daily text [ Examining the Scriptures Daily]:

  "Happy and holy is anyone having part in the first resurrection." - Rev. 20:6. When did the first resurrection begin? In a vision, the identity of the "great crowd" was revealed to John by one of the 24 elders, and these elders represent the 144,000 joint heirs with Christ in their heavenly glory. (Rev. 4:4;7:9 -15; Luke 22:28-30) Since John was still a man on earth when the elder spoke to him, John must represent anointed ones on earth. Thus, it seems that resurrected ones of the 24-elders group may be involved in the communicating of divine truths today. The correct identity of the great crowd was revealed to God's anointed servants on earth in 1935. If one of the 24 elders was used to convey that important truth, he would have had to be resurrected to heaven by 1935 at the latest. That would indicate that the first resurrection began sometime between 1914 and 1935. w07 1/1 2:5, 10, 11

  - I'm sure folks read this shrugged their shoulders and read the next daily text the next day. That seems to be the jw norm when you come across some doctrine that really seems new or foreign....FYI - Just when you thought the WTS was trying to become more mainstream and move away from numerology and dates
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  19

  thinking vs. feeling.. must we choose just one ?

  by caliber in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  thinkingthinkers decide based primarily on logic, and when they do so, they consider a decision to be made.

  they tend to see the world in black and white and dislike fuzziness.

  feelingfeelers decide based primarily through social considerations, listening to their heart and considering the feelings of others.

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  independent_tre

  Why are the two mutually exclusive, when in fact both phenomena that can be found in any one person at the same time? The very fact that one is cognizant of his/her feelings means they are capable of thinking and feeling at the same time, probably in varying degrees depending on the situation.

  Personality theorists believe that these go along a continuum and use tests like the Myers Briggs to determine personality types.

  I remember taking one for career counseling and I was an ISFJ ( Introverted, ???, Feeling, ??and something else, I think judging)
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  37

  Any Thoughts On Eating Cloned Animals??

  by minimus in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  does that idea bother you?

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  independent_tre

  No. Just ain't natural....

  I'm amazed at how many are convinced it's okay because of the lack of evidence of harm, when in fact there has been no long term research studying the effects of consuming cloned or genetically altered meat. Funny, I'm taking a graduate level public health course right now and while we haven't touched on the subject of clones - historically, people always got sick and died from seemingly harmless things and activities. They were exposed to many harmful microbes and bacteria without their knowledge. It wasn't until later that scientific evidence showed just how harmful certain things in our enviroment can be.

  And while I'm at it, I don't trust the FDA either. That government agencies is in shambles and things deemed okay today are recalled tomorrow. Too little, too late in many cases.

  Plus it's just ICKY!!!

  just say no to dolly....

  ( and microwaves and splenda... but I'll save that conspiracy theory rant for another thread)
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  132

  What Is Your Present Status In The Organization?

  by minimus in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  are you disfellowshipped?

  disassociated?

  a fader?

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  independent_tre

  I like the term 'newbie fader' so I'll borrow that. I haven't been to any meetings in 2 to 3 months, but immediately prior my attendance was sporadic due to some health issues, so I don't think anyone misses/missed me.

  Sammie - l love the strong conviction in your post and your powerful stance against the WT, one day I hope to grow up and be just like you!
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  8

  Can i just ask about the public and non public watchtowers..

  by dobbie in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  for those of you that know, is there any difference between the two?i haven't been here for a few months and wondered if the public wt is tolerant and friendly than the witnesses one,and if the witnesses one was more hardline, covering the more controversial things?would just be really interested to find out if the public one has articles more designed to catch householders out, without putting anything in them that could put them off ie discipline (shunning) or blood etc.

  thanks!

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  independent_tre

  They are keeping a rather tight grip on the Study edition WT's, even making access to copies very limited. I was once given an extra study ed. WT, by accident, and one elder literally hunted me down to get that 1 extra copy back, telling me that I didn't need more than one. But I also know of some congo's that arent so strict.

  Makes me think they are trying to hide the more crazy, less appealing dogma, and I don't think it has anything to do with printing costs, because you can still get as many public ed. as you like. My question is, if it's all from the Bible and all supposedly 'truth', why hide anything???
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  18

  "Accept Jehovah's Authority" - Study Article 24th Aug

  by passwordprotected in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  what space does that leave for jehovah?

  the theme text is 1 john 5:3 which refers to the un-burdensome commandments of god.

  quite what that scripture has to do with authority is puzzling, as it talks about the love of god not jehovah's authority.

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  independent_tre

  No claim of infallibilty(sp); yet they want everyone to OBEY, OBEY, OBEY...