Listener

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Posts by Listener

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  98

  Beards - September 2016 Watchtower

  by Listener in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  the issue of whether beards are acceptable or not is addressed in the september 2016 watchtower - well sort of.

  it is as clear as mud as to whether they are allowed in places like australia, usa and britain.. 17. what are some factors that may affect whether a brother wears a beard?17 what about the propriety of brothers wearing a beard?

  the mosaic law required men to wear a beard.

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  Listener

  There is another mention in relation to customs in the article and they state -
  
  Of course, some clothing that is appropriate in one place may not be appropriate in another. Hence, Jehovah’s people throughout the world take local customs into account so as not to cause offense.
  
  There are a number of things JWs do that are not local customs and cause offense. One of them is knocking on people's doors at 9.30am on the weekend. Another is their practice of shunning. Beards are not one of them.
  
  
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  98

  Beards - September 2016 Watchtower

  by Listener in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  the issue of whether beards are acceptable or not is addressed in the september 2016 watchtower - well sort of.

  it is as clear as mud as to whether they are allowed in places like australia, usa and britain.. 17. what are some factors that may affect whether a brother wears a beard?17 what about the propriety of brothers wearing a beard?

  the mosaic law required men to wear a beard.

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  Listener

  The issue of whether beards are acceptable or not is addressed in the September 2016 Watchtower - well sort of. It is as clear as mud as to whether they are allowed in places like Australia, USA and Britain.
  
  

  17. What are some factors that may affect whether a brother wears a beard?
  17 What about the propriety of brothers wearing a beard? The Mosaic Law required men to wear a beard. However, Christians are not under the Mosaic Law, nor are they obliged to observe it. (Lev. 19:27; 21:5;Gal. 3:24, 25) In some cultures, a neatly trimmed beard may be acceptable and respectable, and it may not detract at all from the Kingdom message. In fact, some appointed brothers have beards. Even so, some brothers might decide not to wear a beard. (1 Cor. 8:9,13; 10:32) In other cultures or localities, beards are not the custom and are not considered acceptable for Christian ministers. In fact, having one may hinder a brother from bringing glory to God by his dress and grooming and his being irreprehensible.—Rom. 15:1-3;1 Tim. 3:2, 7.

  Funny how they say on one hand that even though the Mosaic law made it a requirement for men to have beards they say this about a different matter only a few paragraphs earlier.  Here they say that the law must be followed
  

  
  

  
  The Law showed Jehovah’s strong feelings against clothing that does not make clear the distinction between male and female—what has been described in our day as unisex fashion. (ReadDeuteronomy 22:5.) From God’s stated direction about clothing, we clearly see that God is not pleased with styles of dress that feminize men, that make women look like men, or that make it hard to see the difference between men and women.

  This following statement seems to be the qualifier as to whether beards are acceptable or not.

  In other cultures or localities, beards are not the custom and are not considered acceptable for Christian ministers.

  
  I don't know of any culture or locality that does not generally accept men having beards, it may not be a widely practiced custom but it doesn't need to be done by the majority to be a custom. I wonder when it became important for Christians to even follow local customs?
  
  As for it not being considered acceptable for Christian ministers in certain areas, this is just nonsense. It is a self created, unspoken idea that has evolved from Rutherfords time that makes Elders consider it to be unacceptable. They are basically sanctioning locally made rules.
  
  Although it gives the impression (from the scriptures quoted) that those Brothers with 'titles' are being singled out, all Brothers are considered to be Christian ministers. So if the local Elders don't consider it to be acceptable then that's the law.
  
  So much for their earlier comments made in Para 4

  We do not need detailed lists saying which styles of dress are acceptable and which are objectionable. Rather, we are guided by Scriptural principles that allow room for personal preferences.

  I think there will be a lot of fall out from this as the GB have been far from clear.
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  48

  JW Video Armageddon to occur before 2040

  by Listener in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  sorry i thought it was a new morning worship video but it is 6 months old and has already been discussed on here..  it is presented by gb helper k flodin and about this generation.

  the delusion and hypocrisy runs deep.. he reminds the cult members not to speculate because they aren't supposed to know the day or the hour.

  then he proceeds to speculate that armageddon will occur before 2040.. https://tv.jw.org/#en/video/vodprogramsevents/pub-jwbmw_201511_3_video.

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  Listener

  His expression when he spoke about the year 2040 is priceless, talk about fake. These guys know exactly what the are doing. The purpose of his talk was to make it seem that Armageddon was coming any day.

  The idea that an annointed person is selected around the age of 40 is just ridiculous, particularly when a person baptised prior to the 1930s was considered anointed on baptism, meaning even a 9 year old could be anointed. But that is the mindset they are trying to create and I've got a pretty good idea why. It is more than likely that most of the GB members had a flash of light when they were 40 or older and saw the possibility of getting a GB position. They rarely speak about the time when they had this flash and even discourage it.

  I love this new teaching because it so simply exposes them for the fakes that they are.
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  48

  JW Video Armageddon to occur before 2040

  by Listener in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  sorry i thought it was a new morning worship video but it is 6 months old and has already been discussed on here..  it is presented by gb helper k flodin and about this generation.

  the delusion and hypocrisy runs deep.. he reminds the cult members not to speculate because they aren't supposed to know the day or the hour.

  then he proceeds to speculate that armageddon will occur before 2040.. https://tv.jw.org/#en/video/vodprogramsevents/pub-jwbmw_201511_3_video.

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  Listener

  Sorry I thought it was a new morning worship video but it is 6 months old and has already been discussed on here.

   It is presented by GB Helper K Flodin and about this generation. The delusion and hypocrisy runs deep.

  He reminds the cult members not to speculate because they aren't supposed to know the day or the hour. Then he proceeds to speculate that Armageddon will occur before 2040.

  https://tv.jw.org/#en/video/VODProgramsEvents/pub-jwbmw_201511_3_VIDEO
  
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  96

  New Shunning Video - RC 2016

  by wifibandit in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g20rww_-7ua.

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  Listener

  Shame on the GB for destroying the family.

  Had this been the wife or the husband the shunning policy would not have been invoked, that is how seriously flawed it is.

  They are sitting at the hall with looks of disgust, not sadness and they have no idea what this lady did. In their laps are Holy Bibles (not their usual literature), making it more sickening.

  It seems that the org. wants to bring attention to themselves, with this and the bunker video, they are seriously seeking ridicule.
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  45

  The Ray Franz Saga

  by snugglebunny in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i'm just curious as to how it all happened.. to explain.

  many years back, before ex-jw websites, i called on a local lady in order to design an extension to her already enormous house.

  she was a young, voluptuous gal, married to a much older local business man who spared little expense in order to give his young wife whatever her heart desired.. we chatted for ages.

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  Listener

  You might be interested in a Video interview with a couple of Elders from Ireland who sincerely wanted some answers regarding Ray Franz shortly after he was df'd. Randy Watters has made it available on his Youtube. There were a number of JWs from surrounding congregations that were interested in understanding what had occurred.  These Elders were prepared to incur considerable costs to inquire and even traveled to Bethel in New York.
  
  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KBa9HRSrnFk
  
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  39

  Why do witnesses feel the need to put JW ORG on all their social media sites?

  by stuckinarut2 in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  have you all noticed the obsession witnesses have of putting jw.org on all their social media sites like facebook, twitter, instagram etc?.

  so many put it in their bio section...like some sort of loud proclamation to other witnesses that they are righteous and spreading the message.. it's also very lazy.

  now with no personal effort at all, they can just say jw.org and be "witnessing".

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  Listener

  There's no question about the GB approving it. In one of the monthly broadcasts they have a staged clip of Anthony Morris III and his wife witnessing. She is wearing a badge picturing Sophie and Caleb.
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  53

  "The Bunker" WT Conventions 2016 (Gag Me)

  by Poztate in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  in the very near future the gang will be down in a bunker,cellar awaiting the police,military to break in and take them away to camps or executions .

  (paranoid much) this is the foretold "prophecy" of the governments turning on religion and saving them for last.since the couple portrayed as simplifying their life by getting rid of a lot of material things is shown to be (about) the same age in the bunker we know it must be any minute now that it will happen.

  i have been out for over 35 years and things seem to be getting more bizarre each year.. when did this doctrine really become main stream?

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  Listener

  Postate, that is a good point about the couple being the same age.

  They are, once again, predicting the future.

  They are not giving a precise date but they are showing explicit details of what will happen in the future. They are no different to a fortune teller. I still can't believe that they have done this.
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  46

  Many are leaving their enforced, inbred and inherited religions, and surprise it's not just JWs...

  by UNCONDITIONAL LOVE in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i want to share this great article from an informative website on religion and how it is an age old play on emotions and why many are fleeing from religion, including you.

  the other insightful articles on this website will help to soothe your complex worries and open your eyes to a great reality.. one love.

  http://wakeup-world.com/2015/11/21/waking-up-from-religion/.

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  Listener

  UC, could you put it in your own words or give a summary from your link as to the reason why you think so many are leaving?
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  8

  Approved in 1919?

  by Labate in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  i'm a little puzzled.

  if the wtbts was not approved by jehovah and christ until 1919, does that mean that they were not spirit guided until then?.

  if not, that would explain the countless errors in doctrine up to that time.. if, however, they were spirit guided, wouldn't that indicate that they had already been chosen?.

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  Listener

  Labate, what would explain their countless errors after 1919?