Listener

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Posts by Listener

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  10

  Could the WT have paid of large loans when it sold NY properties?

  by StephaneLaliberte in

  1. watchtower
  2. scandals

  it seems that everyone is taking for granted that the sociaty has made 1 billion in profit.

  could anyone tell me why it would not be a posibility that the society had a large number of mortgages attached to these properties?

  wouldn't that explain the latest monney grab from the congregations?.

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  Listener

  It is a possibility. They could have used these properties as leverage. Many investors do it, they buy an asset then use the value of that asset to borrow money to buy another asset or invest in a money making venture. They continue to use the money making asset to borrow more money to invest further. Some people accummulate dozens of properties by this method and owe a lot of money.

  If the WTBTS had done this and used the borrowed money to invest in hedge funds they probably lost a lot of money during the financial crisis.

  In Australia it is a pretty easy thing to do a title search on a property but it costs money. The title search shows if there is or was a mortgage attached at some time to a property, they are recorded on the title to establish third party interests. The WTBTS would probably be reluctant for this information to be made permanent and would be unlikely do this.
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  171

  New to The Jehovahs Witness Faith and need some help

  by jnjburkett in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  hello there i am new to the faith and have been studying for about a month.

  i am very excited and hungry for the truth and have not missed a meeting or study since the memorial.

  we do about 2 bible studies a week.

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  Listener

  Let's say you join the religion and your brother thinking that you know what you're doing, decides to get baptized as well. He then decides to do his own research and finds it is not the truth, discusses this with the elders and gets disfellowshipped because he will not change his view.

  This would mean that you will be required to shun him, you will not be able to speak to him, you cannot socialize with him or have anything to do with him. He will no longer be a part of your life and it is you that needs to cut him off, you have no choice and you are not allowed to secrectly associate with him. If a serious family matter came up and he needed to be informed then you would be allowed to communicate this to him, but nothing else. How would you feel about this?

  This is no hypothetical situation, it is happening all the time and a reason why many are here trying to warn others or the heartbreaking consequences.
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  63

  Great campagne in Portugal (ex-JW)

  by TJ Curioso in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  i like to tell you what we've been doing these past few days here in portugal (ex-jw).

  we create a brochure and printing, so we can send to the maximum of congregations in portugal.

  some individuals were also covered in this campaign.. the title of the pamphlet is: "when will the kingdom arrive?".

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  Listener

  The brochure is very good but I wonder if you have substantiated all the claims against each of the years? There needs to be a reference included against the statements made for each of the years so that the reader knows which Watchtower article these claims were made.
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  31

  My Elderette is attempting to change the subject again

  by Faithful Witness in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  we were in the middle of discussing their use of god's personal name, and miss k was not able to find one place in the bible, where jesus actually said the name out loud (that wasn't a quote from the ot).

  we had started out by talking about jesus being "the way, the truth and the life.

  " then she stated that one of the purposes of jesus' coming to earth, was "to make god's name known.

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  Listener

  It's great that you come here and post in detail about what is being said. No doubt many of us have heard it all but the way you are dealing with it is very helpful. Not only do you show a lot of confidence, which is encouraging to observers but you disect the conversations for us and I know I'm learning from it.
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  39

  Vacation Destination: Looking for Input

  by confusedandalone in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  so when the kids get out of school we plan on going away for 3 to 4 weeks for vacation but we want to go somewhere that is actually enjoyable and not just packed full of things for the kids to do.

  cruises are out, to confining.

  i live in the u.s. so i want to abroad an continue to get the kids passports stamped so they can be exposed to as many cultures as possible.. .

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  Listener

  The majority of people here are dark skinned to varying degrees and 90% of people have black hair. They sell products in all the chemists to promise to lighten their skin and the products sell very well.

  We, as white Australians are actually the odd ones out. We took our children to Kuala Lumpur on one trip and our daughter said she felt very uncomfortable because she felt like she was the odd one out, funny thing is that it hadn't occurred to me until she mentioned it, everyone really just seems to fit in. We have since taken our daughter to Singapore and she is still raving about it, she enjoyed it so much and she has forgotten all about her initial nervousness.

  These countrie's economies rely heavily on tourist income and are frequented by people from all over the World. They are really multicultural places. It is often the locals who say they are being mistreated because of a preference to deal with tourists. This is because the staff and shop owners think that it is the foreigners that are more likely to tip well or spend well as they have the money. So it is not so much about the colour of your skin but your accent and purse.

  If you have blonde hair or even blue eyes you are more likely to be starred at and made a fuss of.

  The Russians and the Indians are not well liked by other tourists because of their behaviour. Unfortunately just yesterday morning we were sitting next to a couple and the husband had been burnt by a toaster because an Indian man had shoved/pushed him into it because he was in a hurry to fill his plate from the buffet.

  I think it does make a difference as to the type of hotel you stay at and in some of these countries hygeine is an issue but the better hotels are more affordable anyway.
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  39

  Vacation Destination: Looking for Input

  by confusedandalone in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  so when the kids get out of school we plan on going away for 3 to 4 weeks for vacation but we want to go somewhere that is actually enjoyable and not just packed full of things for the kids to do.

  cruises are out, to confining.

  i live in the u.s. so i want to abroad an continue to get the kids passports stamped so they can be exposed to as many cultures as possible.. .

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  Listener

  As we live in Australia we are close to the Asian countries and in the last few years we have been travelling there several times a year.

  Right now we are in Krabi, Thailand and it is just beautiful. There are gigantic sandstone outcrops everywhere and very tropical. It is warm and humid all year round.

  With the amount of time you have it is easy to travel from one nearby country to another. Hong Kong is amazing to see a metro lifestyle with heaps of things to see and do. We love nearby Macau which is a short ferry ride away and is considered to be the Las Vegas of the East. Then there is Singapore which is very clean and very safe. This is a modern city but with a touch of the old, there are food hawker centres everywhere. The choice of attractions seem endless.

  Thailand is beautiful, that is if you get away from the Capital of Bangkok and Phuket is an Island Tourist resort area. The food is the best in the World and people are happy and friendly.

  Malaysia has a lot to offer as well. It is not as modern or clean as Singapore but accommodation is cheaper and the shopping is good.

  English is not a problem in these countries and travel is not difficult.
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  43

  Keep Seeking First God's Kingdom - RC 2014 - Sunday

  by OwnAccord in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  a world without satan (revelation 20:2,3,7,10).

  romans 12- joy in the kingdom hope.

  the spirit.. demonstration: family worship.

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  Listener

  You've done such a fantastic job OwnAccord. Strange but it makes me want to attend just to hear for myselft that they are really saying all these stupid things that they have no bible backing for, I just can't believe the amount of propeganda they are spewing in order to excite the great crowd.

  They have no idea what God will arrange and yet they are telling the flock to pick their location to live and their lifestyle.

  "This opposer of Jehovah will be in a prison like condition."

  So will someone just have to think of doing evil and they will be imprisoned? These men are also deciding how Jesus is going Govern the Earth.
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  7

  GET A CLOSE INSIGHT INTO HOW RUTHERFORD made excuses in Court

  by Terry in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  we are all familiar with the flip-flop on the generation teaching which, in effect, demonstrates watchtower interpretations do not stand the test of time and must be changed.

  the words of god suddenly become the opinions of men, time after time.. the teachings and interpretations of pastor c.t.

  russell changed often during his lifetime in regards to dates and pyramid speculations.. next, with judge rutherford, the wildest exaggerations of his imagination were proclaimed to be god's own mind revealed to man in the pages of his many books!.

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  Listener

  This comment made me laugh. Also the irony, it was these charges that have turned them into the big business they are tody.

  MR. BROWN. That is right. Now did the Great Creator arrange with Judge Rutherford to write those books and sell them for $2.50 for 10?
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  50

  "Keep Seeking First God's Kingdom!” Regional Convention 2014 - releases and info

  by OwnAccord in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  info from someone at the regional convention:.

  (sorry about the format).

  matthew 6:33 keep on seeking first the kingdom.

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  Listener

  Very detailed.

  I wonder what they mean by this change

  NEW ADJUSTMENT IN THINKING

  2 Cor 12:2-4- 3rd heaven represent an (3rd represents the kingdom in elevated

  position)

  Adjustment:

  3rd heaven is messianic kingdom!

  Paradise is physical,spiritual, and heavenly!
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  39

  ELDER BOOK to be HANDED OVER to Min.of Justice (FINLAND)

  by RagingBull in

  1. watchtower
  2. scandals

  jehovah's witnesses to hand over top-secret manualon friday finland's jehovah's witnesses will give their religious rule book to the minister of justice and the minister of the interior so that it can be inspected to ensure that it's in line with finnish rule of law.

  jehovah's witnesses will hand over their secret rule book to the minister of justice, anna-maja henriksson, and the minister of the interior, paivi rasanen.

  image: heikki saukkomaa / lehtikuva until now, only senior members of the jehovahs witnesses committee have had access to the congregation's secret book of rules.. the disciplinary activities of the jehovah's witnesses committee have been criticised for violating human rights.. according to anna-maja henriksson, finland's minister of justice, the purpose of the handover is to examine the book and determine whether its rules and regulations run counter to finnish law.. henriksson and interior minister paivi rasanen met on thursday with the leadership of the jehovah's witnesses in helsinki.

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  Listener

  I don't think the sherperding book explains the reprecussions of disfellowshipping - with the shunning and exclusion that follows, even amongs most family members.