Posts by Fernando

4

consciencious objection.

by zeb in

it seems in some countries brothers subject to military call-up can accept non military service instead but in others as in korea they regularly go to jail.. are they offered alternative service in korea ?.

in the book "i wept by the rivers of babylon" by terry walstrom, the author gives clear insights into the ever changing wts opinions on this matter at least in the us.. can anyone enlighten me.. please?.

.

Fernando

At one point (around 1984 I believe) the Watchtower Organisation accepted alternative service provided it was under a criminal conviction.

13

The "Good Cop/Bad Cop" Alternating GB Theory

by ILoveTTATT in

jw
friends

Fernando

I have found it useful to assign opposing views expressed in the Watchtower publications to opposing factions.

( http://www.jehovahs-witness.net/watchtower/beliefs/246453/1/Opposing-salvation-factions-in-the-Schizophrenic-and-Apostate-Watchtower )

45

Up yours!!! Jw religion!!

by Julia Orwell in

jw
friends

i just got a job teaching in a school run by moderate muslims.

the students are muslim and do their prayers at school and have daily quran lessons.

my job is to teach art, english literacy and literature, and history.

Fernando

Congratulations Julia, I'm sure you'll have a blast, and be surprised just how moderate and normal most people can be despite religion.

32

Does the bible have a central theme? Does it prove inspiration?

by GreenhornChristian in

does the bible have a central theme?.

there seems to be a general consensus throughout christian religions that there is a consistent theme throughout the bible.

the seeming evidence of a theme coming from a collection of books written by over 40 different authors over a period of 1500 years is what givse credence to the claim that the bible is an inspired literary work.

Fernando

Personally I have found the central message (or theme) of scripture to be the legal custody battle, over us the children, fought by means of controlling religion versus the liberating gospel message of grace.

Religion	Gospel OT/NT	Main Book/s
Death	Salvation	Psalms/Acts/Romans
Enmity	Atonement/Reconciliation	Leviticus/Rom/2Cor
Bondage	Deliverance/Liberation	Exodus/Galatians
Decay	Restoration	Isaiah/Ezekiel/Hosea

24

To Transfuse or Not To Transfuse

by Chris Tann in

when my son became baptized as a witness at age nine, it worried me that he could now get a no blood card.

i wanted to make sure if blood transfusions were really as disgusting to "jehovah" as i was taught.

i already found out some things about my beliefs that were not true, so it wasn't hard for me to be questionable about this.. i first looked in the reasoning book under blood as to why we don't accept transfusions.

Fernando

Ray Franz, in speaking about the blood doctrine I believe, pointed out how apostate "legalism" leads to a "morass of inconsistencies".

Now it is OK to take parts of donated blood, but not OK to donate blood?!

15

Christians: Question about, "Be obedient to those who are taking the lead among you..."

by Zoos in

Fernando

Ultimately we are all called to obey "the truth" of "the Good News", and to disobey religion/ists.

Did Jesus lead people to, or away from, the elders and Governing Body (Matt 23 esp v15)?

15

Christians: Question about, "Be obedient to those who are taking the lead among you..."

by Zoos in

Fernando

Great question.

What The Searcher said - spot on I believe.

Lead how?

As genuine servant leaders.
No clericalism.
No hierarchy.
No VISIBLE organisation
No coercion
No abuse
Not controlling
Not authoritarian
Not self-centred
Not self-willed

Who lead?

Spiritually mature persons.
Who have been granted the free gift of faith.
Who obey the liberating gospel of grace.
Not legalists
Not moralists
Not religionists
Not materialists
No labels
No titles
No human appointment

Lead where?

To Jesus via the map (5 solas)
Not to "Christless Christianity"
Not to human middlemen (mediators)
Not to self-righteousness via works-righteousness

26

What exactly do the Governing body(TM) do?

by punkofnice in

a genuine question really.. do they actually make desicions or are they simple sock puppets for the lawyers?.

are they just a front (like the queen is in the uk), with little or no desicion making input?.

do they just give talks and make appearances?.

Fernando

CTR described the outcome quite well:

"The endeavor to compel all men to think alike on all subjects, culminated in the great apostasy and the development of the great papal system, and thereby the gospel, the one faith that Paul and the other apostles set forth, was lost - buried under the mass of uninspired decrees of popes and councils. The unity of the early church, based upon the simple gospel and bound only by love, gave place to the bondage of the church of Rome ... Each new reform movement (like Protestantism) has made the failure of attempting to make a creed just large enough for its prime movers ." --WT, Sep. 1893, p. 1572

26

What exactly do the Governing body(TM) do?

by punkofnice in

a genuine question really.. do they actually make desicions or are they simple sock puppets for the lawyers?.

are they just a front (like the queen is in the uk), with little or no desicion making input?.

do they just give talks and make appearances?.

Fernando

The GB quite simply advance apostate clericalism.

Along with its apostate cronies legalism, moralism, supremacist ethnocentrism, and religious Gnosticism.

10

Can you help with a definition for Evolution?

by Fernando in

i'm trying to pin down a definition for evolution, hopefully in plain english, and some questions have come to mind:.

is this a fool's errand?.

has evolution itself evolved?.

Fernando

Thank you too Phizzy, and I look forward to learning more and understanding better.