Drearyweather - "...'the flaming blade of a sword that was turning itself continually'..."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KM5Z6C5T9BE
remember when the public speaker in the kingdom hall or convention related the ten plagues and the parting of the red sea?.
the finale when jehovah closes the red sea and swallows pharaoh's entire army of egyptian men.. when i was a little kid about 5 years old and listened to this story, i would think---wow jehovah is strong.
when i started school and started learning compassion as early as the first grade i started wondering?????.
Drearyweather - "...'the flaming blade of a sword that was turning itself continually'..."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KM5Z6C5T9BE
remember when the public speaker in the kingdom hall or convention related the ten plagues and the parting of the red sea?.
the finale when jehovah closes the red sea and swallows pharaoh's entire army of egyptian men.. when i was a little kid about 5 years old and listened to this story, i would think---wow jehovah is strong.
when i started school and started learning compassion as early as the first grade i started wondering?????.
I had issues with the hard-ass OT God and Revelation as a pre-teen...
...a little less so as a result of certain experiences as a teenager, though.
this article on the latest gallup survey:.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/america-losing-religion-effects-long-093028404.html.
in 1937, 73% of americans would be affiliated with some organized religion; that number remained steady until 1999: (70%); the 21st century brought about a major shift: 50% in 2018; 47% in the latest survey.. children who grew up in households without organized religion are less likely to affiliate to some form of organized religion.. it's not only a generational difference; the growth in those who express no religious preference is also on the rise in generation x (those born between mid 1960's and early 1980's).
truth_b_known - "Humans are wired for religion. Rationalism has caused a declined in Judeo-Christian religions in the west..."
That's it!
I'm a Born-Again Rationalist!!!
whether they go back to door-to-door or not, what will be different?
do you think there will be a noticeable drop-off in attendance as we have read on here that many have left or faded?
will there be a mass selling of halls?
joe134cd - "...They said they were been used to build halls in Africa where people don’t have access to JWdot borg on the internet..."
You mean like this?
Bitch, please (not directed at you, joe).
This isn't much more than dialed-up gazebo built with local materials and elbow grease.
There is no fucking way a quarter-mil from a KH sale in the US or UK was needed to build this.
whether they go back to door-to-door or not, what will be different?
do you think there will be a noticeable drop-off in attendance as we have read on here that many have left or faded?
will there be a mass selling of halls?
john.prestor - "I don't think there will be a mass exodus..."
There's more than one kind of exodus.
As far as I'm concerned, we are the exodus.
so, there's this social game called second life.. there one creates an avatar and can lead a parallel life.
there's a bit of everything, from general environments to adult.
it can be a hub for creative people, it can be a magnet for creeps.
Eden One - "...when I asked about it, they claimed that their congregation Elders were aware of their initiative on Second Life and approved of it..."
I believe that's called "lying".
('Cause there's no fucking way that's true.)
so, there's this social game called second life.. there one creates an avatar and can lead a parallel life.
there's a bit of everything, from general environments to adult.
it can be a hub for creative people, it can be a magnet for creeps.
Eden One - "...Fast forward. Another person comes in, pretending to be a curious visitor. In a couple of minutes the mask falls of. It’s another JW (pretending to be a student)..."
I believe that's called "stealth evangelism".
nwt luke chapt 1.
41 well, as elizabeth heard the greeting of mary, the infant in her womb leaped, and elizabeth was filled with holy spirit 42 and loudly cried out: “blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruitage of your womb!
43 so how is it that this privilege is mine, to have the mother of my lord come to me?
I can do it, too...
...Ephesians chapter 5: verses 5-7; the Bible passage that proves Abolitionists were wrong and slavery is right.
...Genesis chapers 1-3; the Bible passages that prove 150 years of biological science is wrong and creationism is right.
...the entire book of Joshua; the Bible passages that prove peaceful immigration is wrong and invasion/genocide is right.
whether they go back to door-to-door or not, what will be different?
do you think there will be a noticeable drop-off in attendance as we have read on here that many have left or faded?
will there be a mass selling of halls?
Steel - "It think the WTS have played the pandemic quite well. They didn't act like a bunch of selfish and crazy assholes like the evangelicals..."
Agreed.
Don't forget, though, they played ball because it almost certainly fitted with their overall agenda... altruism was not a factor.
Rather, non-compliance might've put their "charity" status in jeopardy, and I've long suspected that the Org's business model is still hopelessly dependent on its tax-exemption*.
Don't kid yourself, BTW.
They have way more in common with selfish, crazy evangelical assholes than you might think.
They're just better at hiding it.
*They caved on the Australian redress scheme at the last minute, when it became painfully clear that their tax-exemption Down Under was approaching the chopping block, after all.
whether they go back to door-to-door or not, what will be different?
do you think there will be a noticeable drop-off in attendance as we have read on here that many have left or faded?
will there be a mass selling of halls?
DesirousOfCHange - "It will be 'spun' that it was Divine Direction that the D2D work be 'phased out' (just as the Paper & Ink printing has been phased out) because it's too dangerous, or it's not productive because everyone must work in this shitty old world, so no one is at home. HOW MUCH BETTER it is to greet people while doing Cart Witnessing!! Yes! It's just like the apostles in the 1st Century who witnessed in the marketplaces because that is where the people were and where they are today!..."
Hmm. Hard to argue with, I gotta admit.
(What a "loving provision" from the Faithful and Discreet Slave...)