JeffT

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Posts by JeffT

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  13

  Star Of Bethlehem To Appear July 3, 2015? Oh Really?

  by millie210 in

  1. social
  2. current

  this meeting in the sky is known as a conjunction.

  this conjunction between jupiter and venus usually isnt rare, but this is the closest they will have been in 2,000 years!

  together, they create the rare star of bethlehem.

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  JeffT

  They are also going to be in close conjunction on August 27, 2016. They were also about this close together in August 2014.
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  11

  We can no longer support "religious freedom" says the ACLU

  by StarTrekAngel in

  1. watchtower
  2. scandals

  http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/congress-should-amend-the-abused-religious-freedom-restoration-act/2015/06/25/ee6aaa46-19d8-11e5-ab92-c75ae6ab94b5_story.html

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  JeffT

  Belief is a private matter not a secular one. Christians who work at state or federal jobs should obey the law. Performing a civil marriage ceremony is like collecting taxes part of the job nothing more. Serving a customer is just conducting business nothing more. Christians should differentiate between the secular and the religious and be taught how to do so.

  Spot on! If you don't want to rub elbows with people you don't like, go live alone somewhere.

  As a side note; good for the ACLU for sticking up for the Sikhs in the army. If you know anything about the reputation they have for fighting ability you know the army needs more of them. There's a Sikh religious center down the street from me. They put up with a lot of crap from idiots that think they're Muslims.
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  11

  We can no longer support "religious freedom" says the ACLU

  by StarTrekAngel in

  1. watchtower
  2. scandals

  http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/congress-should-amend-the-abused-religious-freedom-restoration-act/2015/06/25/ee6aaa46-19d8-11e5-ab92-c75ae6ab94b5_story.html

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  JeffT

  By my reading of the article, your post title is exaggerated. What the ACLU no longer supports is the RFRA. It looks to me like they are still doing what they always did, stand up for EVERYBODY's beliefs, not one groups over another's.
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  24

  My thoughts on the RC 2015

  by StarTrekAngel in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  having endured three days of dashing attempts at further indoctrination, i feel the need to write up some of the stuff i left with.

  it is just good therapy.. right away the change was noticeable in the air.

  the assembly hall in la feria, tx still smells like new.

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  JeffT

  I'd like to hear that story as well.

  It's funny how they make a big deal over inviting the public, and then say stuff that will scare the bejesus out of anybody with half a functioning brain.
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  5

  'Covenant' Marriages -- A new type of marriage, harder to divorce

  by rebel8 in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  as i understand it, covenant marriages are available in a few states.

  they are a supersonic, superfine version of conservative marriage.

  it's harder to divorce--it has to be with certain causes or agreement of both spouses.. covenant marriages have been criticized by human rights advocates as a potential tool for abusive spouses to restrict the escape of their victims.. in at least one state, the couple must receive premarital counseling and the signature of the counselor before obtaining a covenant marriage.

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  JeffT

  According to Wikipedia covenant marriages are legal in only 3 states (Arizona, Arkansas, and Louisiana). They are a voluntary option in those states. So far only about 1% of couples opt for such a marriage. I suspect that if push came to shove a good lawyer could figure out a way around the divorce restrictions.
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  81

  The incredibly white NAACP leader

  by Simon in

  1. social
  2. current

  this is a bizarre story.. there is a woman who is the local leader of the naacp who is obviously trying to mislead people into believing she is black who is actually white.

  very white.. she obviously gets a tan regularly but looks more orange.

  yes, orange really is the new black!.

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  JeffT

  The crazy just got crazier.

  http://www.thesmokinggun.com/documents/bizarre/rachel-dolezal-discrimination-lawsuit-786451

  She has some real issues, in my opinion.
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  8

  Was the Economic Collapse of 2008 and the obvious Money Grab by the Organization a Coincidence?

  by My Name is of No Consequence in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  let me start off by saying that the org has always been trying to get money.

  but is it a coincidence that they have been so in-your-face about it since 2008?

  in 2008, most of the world experienced an economic drop-off that it has not witnessed since the 1930s and is still struggling to recover from..

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  JeffT

  If that was the main reason for the recent money grab, then shouldn't it have happened way before 2008?

  Again, I don't think so. The GB are hide-bound in how they do things. It would have taken some time for them to even notice that flogging people for donations wasn't working, then formulate a response to the problem, then implement the response. And, I don't see how what happened in 2008 would have led them to doing what they're doing now.
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  8

  Was the Economic Collapse of 2008 and the obvious Money Grab by the Organization a Coincidence?

  by My Name is of No Consequence in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  let me start off by saying that the org has always been trying to get money.

  but is it a coincidence that they have been so in-your-face about it since 2008?

  in 2008, most of the world experienced an economic drop-off that it has not witnessed since the 1930s and is still struggling to recover from..

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  JeffT

  There isn't any way to know for sure, but I suspect not. I think the big factor was the loss of income from magazine sales. Up until 1990 magazine sales were what we business people refer to as a "cash cow." They were selling millions of dollars worth of magazines a month, there was no downside, publishers paid for the mags whether they went to the public or not. With a supreme court decision that year, those sales would be taxable. Rather than pay taxes on the sales the WTBS decided collect a "donation" instead. Income plummeted.

  IMNSHO what we're seeing now is an effort to replace that lost income. Also my opinion - they should have just paid the taxes, they could get some MS to do the paperwork for free, and they would have kept the income stream.
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  21

  New Light on HOLIDAYS and BIRTHDAYS? (September 2015 Watchtower)

  by FusionTheism in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  watchtower-- simplified study edition, september 2015, "is your conscience a reliable guide?":.

  in ancient rome, some christians had different opinions about certain foods and celebrations.

  what advice did paul give them?

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  JeffT

  The title of the article is "Is Your Conscience a Reliable Guide?"

  This is the final paragraph:

  "How fine it is when our goal is to bring our lives ever more into harmony with Jehovah’s" {read Governing Body's -JT} "standards and ways! To that end, the conscience can be an invaluable tool. By regularly immersing ourselves in God’s Word," {read "Watchtower Publications - JT} meditating on what we find, and striving to put it into practice,we train our conscience. It will thus prove to be a valuable asset in our Christian life!"

  As I suspected, the answer to the question posed in the title is "No."
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  12

  Ever been on a "snipe hunt"?

  by kairos in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  if you are a jw, that is.. "there's the kingdom over there!!

  ""armageddon is near""we're in the last of the last days""we will have three day conventions next year... jehovah willing""the work is speeding up""it's an invisible presence".

  snipe hunt.

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  JeffT

  Where I went to college it was "Side-hill Dodgers" but the idea is all the same. And yes, it always ended with beers and laughing. Upon thinking about it, it usually began with beers, too.