hi alan:.
i have been visiting my jw in laws and had the opportunity to read the june 22nd awake!
the author of the article on creation quotes the big names in the intelligent design movement throughout the article in a very favorable light.
Hi Alan:
I have been visiting my JW in laws and had the opportunity to read the June 22nd Awake! The author of the article on Creation quotes the big names in the Intelligent Design movement throughout the article in a very favorable light. I was just wondering if you were aware of this and what your thoughts were on it.
Jeff S.
i wonder how many readers of the watchtower have noticed the seeming inconsistency of the 144,000 teaching in the april 1st issue?.
after discussing the symbolic nature of the numbers 666 on the wild beast comes this statement:.
"immediately after disclosing the number 666, revelation mentions 144,000 followers of the lamb, jesus christ, who have his name and the name of his father, jehovah, written on their foreheads.".
A very interesting book to read for a totally different perspective on the Book of Revelation is entitled "Joy in Our Weakness-A Gift of Hope from the Book of Revelation" by Marva Dawn. It turns out that the book of Revelation was one of the last books to be accepted as part of the New Testament canon by the bishops of the Catholic Church.
In any case, there are a variety of ways to interpret the book of Revelation and I found the perspective in this book to be rather encouraging and reasonable. Unlike our experiences with the millenialism of the JWs.
I hope you guys enjoy it.
Jeff S.
"A Recovering Millenialist"
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here's mine: .
the wackier they seem to me!!!
the more difficult it is to relate to my JW family members when we speak to each other.
I also have to work at it to understand their jargon at times.
Jeff S.
hi gang:.
i will be interviewed on the jws on monday june 7th at 7am central time usa.
you can listen on-line at www.relevantradio.com.
Hi Gang:
I will be interviewed on the JWs on Monday June 7th at 7AM Central Time USA. You can listen on-line at www.relevantradio.com
They will be taking calls if I am not mistaken.
Jeff S.
Hi:
There weren't any fisticuffs but we had an interesting situation.
There was a young man who was being DFed for drug use I believe. And there was disagreement on the elder body as to whether he should be DFed. One elder was against it and made his views public. The Watchtower Study conductor was on to what was going on. In any case, this elder kept raising his hand during the Watchtower Study and the conductor kept ignoring him.
Eventually, someone asked the Watchtower Study conductor why he was ignoring this elder. So, the next time this elder had his hand up the Watchtower Study conductor called on him. This elder then started to give his perspective on the situation at hand in the congregation. At that point, the Watchtower Study conductor yelled the elder down and ordered that the microphone be taken away from the elder.
It was not long before this elder was deleted and moved to a different congregation.
Jeff S.
anyone remember the old philia mailing list for xjw's?
that was back in the days before the www, when the internet didn't have graphics, and you had to subscribe to mailing lists by sending a request to the particular server and requesting to subscribe.
you then only got text response from all members of the mailing list.
I was on the list back in 1995.
Jeff S.
as a regular pioneer and even if she gave a gift, she'd be removed as a pioneer!
this woman is 80 years old and has been pioneering for over 40 years.
my mother also is a pioneer in a different congregation and she is wondering whether this is a new rule from the society or is something that the local congregation has decided.
We had a situation where a JW man wanted to marry a lady who was studying. They could not have the wedding in a KH so they had it at a reception hall. The entire congregation was invited to the wedding. The elders would not give a talk there and so they got a justice of the peace and a JW friend of the family was going to read some scriptures there. The wedding was scheduled for a Saturday evening. At the Service Meeting a mere two days before the wedding, the elders gave a special needs talk saying that no one from the congregation who was invited to the wedding should attend the wedding. This really split the congregation.
Jeff S.
jeff schwehm, an ex-jw who sometimes posts here, was on ewtn, the catholic network, last night.
he posted an announcement on this forum several days ago.
i thought he came across as a very nice man, sincere and full of conviction.
Hi All:
I take no offense at the critical comments about the Catholic Church. Lord knows that the Catholic Church has very serious problems these days.
I was attracted to the Church by what it officially teaches and by reading history. I realize that much of the history of the Catholic Church and Christianity in general is marred by the failures of the followers of Christ to live up to what Christ has taught us. I am afraid that all Christians fail in this regard to one degree or another myself included.
However, the Catholic Church and Christianity in general teach us that we will not be perfect on this side of heaven and that the Church is, or should be, a place that will help us to live the life of Christ more faithfully. One of the most powerful teachings of the Catholic Church and Christianity in general for me is the Mercy of God. As a JW I had this view of God as a major tyrant who was interested in using weak human beings to prove that He had the right to rule over us. As a Catholic, I realize that God is actually a loving Father who wants to teach us to be more like Him and that is to love others unconditionally.
If you are a Christian, and you believe Jesus is God, you believe in a God that knows exactly what it means to suffer and die. As a Christian, we are baptized into the life, the death, and ultimately the resurrection of Christ. In fact, according to Catholic teachings those who suffer in this life are part of what is known as "the apostolate of suffering". By their suffering they are actually considered more closely ordered to Christ Himself who suffered tremendous pain as a human being. That is why the Catholic Church and other Christian denominations spend so much time and money assisting those in need. Jesus really meant it when He said that when we assist those in need we are really assisting Him. It is also why many Catholics will ask people who are suffering to pray for them. It is because the Catholic Church teaches that when we are suffering we are more closely ordered to Jesus than at any other time. St. Francis of Assisi said that when we suffer in this life it is Jesus lifting us up to His cross to give us a kiss.
As far as my wife is concerned, she also entered the Church. What my wife says is that when she learned of God's Divine Mercy from the writings of a Catholic nun by the name of Sister Faustina, it moved her so much that she decided to become Catholic. In any case, that is her short story.
Thanks again for all of the comments both pro and con. I hope everyone is doing well.
Jeff S.
hi gang:.
this article was published in the local sheboygan press newspaper this morning on my conversion from the jws to the catholic church.. here is the link:.
http://www.wisinfo.com/sheboyganpress/news/archive/feat_15995880.shtml.
Hi Gang:
This article was published in the local Sheboygan Press newspaper this morning on my conversion from the JWs to the Catholic Church.
Here is the link:
http://www.wisinfo.com/sheboyganpress/news/archive/feat_15995880.shtml
Jeff S.
hi gang:.
i will be interviewed on the cable tv network known as the "eternal world television network" (ewtn) about my conversion from the jehovah's witnesses to the roman catholic church.
the program is called "the journey home" and it will air on monday may 10th at 7 pm central time (usa).
Gumby:
How could I get upset with you?????
Jeff S.
