jgnat

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Posts by jgnat

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  5

  Is Reality Real?

  by frankiespeakin in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i2czg5jo7ck.

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  jgnat

  http://www.ted.com/talks/jill_bolte_taylor_s_powerful_stroke_of_insight
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  29

  WTS one step closer to "1984" - JW literature rewritten in online versions

  by sir82 in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  likely everyone here is familar with the novel "1984" - "he who controls the past, controls the future.

  he who controls the present, controls the past".. take a look at wol.jw.org, insight book, topic "faithful and discreet slave".. current online wording: http://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/1200001485.

  jesus trained the apostles for the role they would have after pentecost 33 c.e.

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  jgnat

  I was thinking recently how much this new, flexible WTS resembles the bureaucrats in 1984. Words don't mean what they really mean. They mean whatever leadership deems it to mean. Evidently.

  I am sorry I threw out my Orwell anthology, a gift from my father, in Christianic zeal. Stupid me. Keep the Aspidistra flying.
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  28

  Question about dinosaurs, prehistoric creatures, and the eventual appearance of humans.

  by pronomono in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  so i was watching shark week a little while ago and i got to the episode on prehistoric sharks.

  they, of course, discussed megalodon, but they also talked about other sharks that were vicious, precise hunters.

  then i started thinking about other prehistoric creatures..... t-rex, raptors, etc...... all vicious animals.

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  jgnat

  I have the dubious distinction of having actually watched a few of Ken Ham's creation videos. His answers are glib, slick. They make sense if you don't look too hard, so his stuff is an easy sell for those who want to cling to an error-free bible.
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  7

  Sharknado 2

  by keyser soze in

  1. social
  2. entertainment

  has anyone, yet, had a chance to watch this glorious epic?

  it is truly a flawless work of art.. i know what you're thinking: it couldn't possibly pack the punch of the original, or surpass it in scope or magnitude.

  but you would be wrong.

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  jgnat

  I smell onion....
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  69

  Said from the platform: "You are not surviving Armaggedon if you are spiritually weak"

  by Daniel1555 in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  today i was at the meeting (i go there about once a month now).

  in the service meeting they had a part where they interviewed the secretary of the congregation.. so one question was: "why are the service reports so important?".

  our secretary explained that the reports are important, because the elders can see, who is spiritually weak.

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  jgnat

  Every time our CEO mandated a morale-inducing event, he got the attendance he wanted...the first year. How easy it is for top leadership to lose sight of the larger picture.
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  37

  New BOE Letter Re. Elders/MS Appointments and Deletions

  by XBEHERE in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  from the wording of the letter it seems that the co has been given carte blanche with appointments and deletions.

  nowhere in the letter does it indicate that any records are sent to and from the co to the branch office.

  even if a body wants to delete an appointed brother and he disagrees his only recourse would be to write a "brief" letter to the service dept.

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  jgnat

  Sure puts the local leadership, all the way up to the CO, in a more culpable position. With these changes, they really need liability insurance. But they don't qualify, not having accredited training. All they have is the stupid handbook and these stupid letters. An intelligent leader would walk away from this "privelege".

  As for demanding a full explanation for a volunteer resignation, the resignee can simply clam up. Let the CO sweat until midnight trying to compose a reasonable explanation for headquarters. What they gonna do? Garnish his wages?
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  24

  What Happens if...

  by bafh in

  1. jw
  2. experiences

  what happens if someone returns to the congregation but stays inactive?

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  what happens if someone returns to the congregation and does not meet with the elders to "confess" their sins while away?.

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• 

  jgnat

  Yeah, what are the basics? The best I could come up with is the couple hundred baptism questions which includes a question about hygiene. If I were to summarize futher, the WTS essentially distinguishes itself from Christendom by way of a long list of things they DON'T believe in (don't believe in the Trinity, infant baptism, passing the offering plate, paid clergy). The WTS doctrine is essentially "believe what we printed this week".

  Compare that the to the neat and tidy Nicene Creed.

  You can be a social Witness for a while I think. Pressure will be brought to bear and you will be snubbed in subtle ways. For instance, you won't "qualify" for the KM. My hubby while he attended was very much like you.
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  151

  If you don't believe in God where do you get the strength to cope?

  by Miss.Fit in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i know there are some here that are going through some tough times.

  some of you do not believe in god.

  some are not sure.. i was told recently by a friend to pray to god for help and he would comfort me.. my first impulse is to pray.

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  jgnat

  Jgnat and LisaRose, do you address your prayers/meditations to anyone in specific? I'm curious how an atheist would handle that. - Phaedra

  I tailor my prayer to my audience. With my husband, I use Jehovah. When sending condolences and best thoughts to an atheist, I'll use words like hope, wish, positive vibes.

  The phrase I use the most often is, "My prayers are winging their way to you now." I do this to avoid the trite, "I'll pray for you." for which the listener understands my good intentions but likely dismisses that I will actually do it. From my years as an evangelical Christian, I've developed the habit of praying on the spot in the midst of a distressing situation. That way there is no doubt that I have prayed about it!

  My internal prayer is to "God", and I do externalize my prayer as to a superior, benevolent being.
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  59

  Is their a new holocaust in the making ? Are jews being made the scapegoats again ?

  by smiddy in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  mass immigration in the world "seems" to have led to a rise in anti -semitism in the west.

  france now has more than six million muslims.. germany now has four million muslims.

  the netherlands has almost one million muslims .

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  jgnat

  I would hazard to say that most immigrants are economic immigrants, looking for better opportunities.

  The border wars with Israel have everything to do with territory and perceived threat. Religious differences are merely trappings.
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  10

  The boiling frog

  by wolfman85 in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  the boiling frog story is a widespread anecdote describing a frog slowly being boiled alive.

  the premise is that if a frog is placed in boiling water, it will jump out, but if it is placed in cold water that is slowly heated, it will not perceive the danger and will be cooked to death.

  the story is often used as a metaphor for the inability or unwillingness of people to react to significant changes that occur gradually.

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  jgnat

  Yes, one of my big disappointments when this myth died. So handy.

  I would use the boiling frog analogy for the six month study/indoctrination process, never faster. The student is lulled in to leaving his all unanswered questions indefinitely. Who has the fortitude after six months to admit it was all a collosal waste of time? Multiply that over 30 years amd you have a lot of trapped people.