Well put Quendi. I completely agree.
The GB is taking the belt off and getting ready to wield it against any rowdy JWs.
CoC
ironically, in today's wt, jws are encouraged to study the early history of the "earthly organization".
like them [the sons of korah], do you have a desire to study and recount the history of the earthly part of jehovahs organization?
the more you learn about gods organization and how jehovah supports his people, the more real gods kingdom will be to you.
Well put Quendi. I completely agree.
The GB is taking the belt off and getting ready to wield it against any rowdy JWs.
CoC
jwfacts has an article that explains why the great crowd must be in heaven.
i am also aware that many of these are the same arguments that stemmed from the 'awakenings at bethel' so my statements are not simply attacks of jwfact's character (since these arguments are probably not original) but rather his copy and paste of what others have said instead of verifying it as 'fact' for himself.. so here are jwfacts arguments:.
1. he shows that russell and rutherford (at some point) believed that the great crowd were in heaven.. 2. each term that describes the great crowd of revelation 7 is else used to described the anointed by the wt.
tornapart, I'm wondering the same thing.
true, or accurate, knowledge of gods word.
see that jesus is with his disciples today.
the true knowledge known, jehovah.
Below is how I feel about these "truths" that are no longer truths but that the Bible Students were teaching.
As always, thank you Blondie.
CoC
i've found this topic and subject to be extremely powerful.
this is for those who still believe in god, realize the wt is apostate, and trying to help family.
(meaning i do not wish it to be used on trying to turn people athiest, i respect everyone's choices, i just believe and would hate my help to do what i feel is wrong) it might help fix things, or if you are still wondering how to awaken them without scaring them and being instantly shunned.
Bookmarked
is there such a thing as progressive understanding of god's will?
a simple yes or no will suffice, but if you'd like to state why, please by all means do so..
I do believe there is such a thing as progressive understanding.
But saying you were wearing a pair of blue basketball sneakers and then changing it to a black hiking boot on the left foot and then changing again to having one foot bare and one pink sandle on your other foot.........well that's just downright lying and makes you look crazy.
The WTS's understanding is everchanging. It makes them look like downright liars. Don't forget, they like to make their own definitions to words also (example being "generation"). What makes you think their definition of "progressive" fits a normal, sane, human being's explanation?
CoC
inside my head is a tangled ball of wool when it comes to what i believe.
i have days where i believe in a creator and other days when i don't.
then there are times when i refer to this as believing in 'something' but what exactly this something is, i have no idea.
I don't really know what I believe either. But at the present time I am comfortable with that and quite happy.
That's not to say I don't question things. I guess I just don't feel I have to pick a side and worry that if I don't, I'll be destroyed.
But overall great suggestions, especially this one - READ, READ, READ.
CoC
obviously this has been covered to death, but i haven't seen a comprehensive list of stories produced by the media that have been done on the recent abuse cover ups of the watchtower.
today i saw this news story from australia, and i had never seen it.
i wanted to create a thread that can constantly be updated as the media exposes the practices of the watchtower of covering up abuse.
Cool! Great to have all these links in one place. Thanks!
we need not conclude that our loving creator was the first one to make what we know as swords.
adam and eve saw turning in front of the angels something that was blazing.
by the time moses wrote the book of genesis, swords were well-known and used in warfare.
Bookmarked
this is a truly awesome video, with a lovely overall presentation, that uses watchtower literature to explain how the expectations of russell and his followers regarding 1914 differ significantly from what is portrayed in modern publications.. if you're visiting this forum for the first time, please watch it!.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zap6keflhpe.
cedars.
Nice work cedars! Thank you for sharing.
i'm sure many of you have been wondering why the wts has stuck to it's adamant viewpoint of higher education.
let's settle it once and for all.
this will prove conclusively why it's in young people's best interests to avoid higher education.. candace conti has inspired hundreds, perhaps thousands of young girls across america to successfully take on the wts.
Someone request an ass hat?