J. Hofer

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Posts by J. Hofer

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  99

  Survey: Who Here Believe In God/The Bible? Who Are Not Sure? Who Do Not Believe?

  by minimus in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  i think there are many that still want to believe in a god but just aren't sure.. personally, do you believe in a god?.

  are you a "spiritual" person?.

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  J. Hofer

  i believe in the dude. http://dudeism.com/
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  178

  Honest survey question on effectiveness of 'apostacy'

  by Simon in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  it seems like lots of people have big dreams of 'destroying the watchtower'.

  it's usually linked to a story of how they were wronged and want some revenge.

  do these 'in your face' attempts to convince people that the truth isn't the truth really have an effect?.

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  J. Hofer

  you can't change a JW, but videos and forums and online articles help a lot once you feel there's something wrong with what you believe. on the other hand some activists (the subliminal image types) sent me straight back to the watchtower when i first started searching (and joined JWN around 2001, don't remember the user name :/)
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  10

  English Speaking Congregations in Mexico...

  by DATA-DOG in

  1. watchtower
  2. bible

  has anyone read a letter or heard of english-speaking congos being shut down in mexico?

  an elder told me that this was happening, and that it was based on a "scriptural precedent.

  " sounds like downsizing with a made-up bs reason to me.

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  J. Hofer

  don't know about mexico, but i know that in some central american countries english congregations are doing just fine. local people use them to learn english, people who got sent back from the USA find a community of their language, visitors from canada and the USA give talks and show how spiritual they are by speaking proper english.

  they did close the bethel there, but the english congregations i know are growing.
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  56

  How can I stay motivated for field ministry?

  by jgnat in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  thus asks my beloved and slow-on-the-uptake jw hubby, who is finding it increasingly difficult to drag himself out the door.

  so far, i've tried to avoid sarcastic comebacks (i'ts boring and useless!

  duh!

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  J. Hofer

  no hassanian here, but for what i know, most people who want to actually sell something or reach people with a message don't go door to door nowadays. there's things like google adwords and stuff, not to mention tv, phones and... mail!
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  38

  What IS the meaning and purpose of EVIL?

  by Monsieur in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  reading about the massacre of the jw family in mexico brought up all kinds of questions again.. from the standpoint of someone who doesn't in believe in 'god' or a 'conventional' god,.

  what is the meaning and purpose of evil?.

  how does it relate to the overall universe and its balance?

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  J. Hofer

  hm yeah. are you talking about compassion? thing is, you'll think about what happened for a week or two and then you'll forget about it. maybe you'll remember it when a similar story hits the news when some time has passed. either way the family doesn't benefit from it. compassion is a nice thing when you can actually do something about a situation. as for the usual "poor children in africa" type of compassion, most people don't do anything about it and talk is cheap. so indeed it's...idk...
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  58

  "Jesus is My Boyfriend" Christianity

  by cofty in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  there is a trend in modern evangelical, charismatic and "non-religious spirituality" that gets dangerously close to erotic love of jesus.. it's something that i first observed during my christian years especially in the lyrics of christian songs and sometimes during open-prayer times.

  if you haven't experienced open prayer you are the lucky ones.

  everybody adopts the shampoo position - elbows on knees, head in hands - and whoever is "moved by the spirit" speaks up for a while, followed by an awkward silence, followed by two people speaking up at the same time, followed by silence, and so on.. anyway back to the topic, here are a few random examples .... "lord i give you my heart.

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  J. Hofer

  that would be a foursome actually.
• 
  58

  "Jesus is My Boyfriend" Christianity

  by cofty in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  there is a trend in modern evangelical, charismatic and "non-religious spirituality" that gets dangerously close to erotic love of jesus.. it's something that i first observed during my christian years especially in the lyrics of christian songs and sometimes during open-prayer times.

  if you haven't experienced open prayer you are the lucky ones.

  everybody adopts the shampoo position - elbows on knees, head in hands - and whoever is "moved by the spirit" speaks up for a while, followed by an awkward silence, followed by two people speaking up at the same time, followed by silence, and so on.. anyway back to the topic, here are a few random examples .... "lord i give you my heart.

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  J. Hofer

  lol, you said hardly
• 
  58

  "Jesus is My Boyfriend" Christianity

  by cofty in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  there is a trend in modern evangelical, charismatic and "non-religious spirituality" that gets dangerously close to erotic love of jesus.. it's something that i first observed during my christian years especially in the lyrics of christian songs and sometimes during open-prayer times.

  if you haven't experienced open prayer you are the lucky ones.

  everybody adopts the shampoo position - elbows on knees, head in hands - and whoever is "moved by the spirit" speaks up for a while, followed by an awkward silence, followed by two people speaking up at the same time, followed by silence, and so on.. anyway back to the topic, here are a few random examples .... "lord i give you my heart.

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  J. Hofer

  jesus is my girlfriend. since he's a trinity, does that make me a polygamist?
• 
  38

  What IS the meaning and purpose of EVIL?

  by Monsieur in

  1. watchtower
  2. beliefs

  reading about the massacre of the jw family in mexico brought up all kinds of questions again.. from the standpoint of someone who doesn't in believe in 'god' or a 'conventional' god,.

  what is the meaning and purpose of evil?.

  how does it relate to the overall universe and its balance?

  1. 
  2. 
  3. 
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  J. Hofer

  If the event was random and pointless, then the human mind is reduced to no greater value or worth than mowed grass.

  in the grand scheme of things, that's certainly the case. which doesn't mean we shouldn't pursue and enjoy the good things in life.
• 
  21

  Gosh, what do you do with people like this?

  by Julia Orwell in

  1. jw
  2. friends

  ok i'm chatting on facebook with a guy who's studying with jws, who isn't yet an unbaptised publisher because he can't kick the cancer sticks.

  now i don't believe in the bible anymore, but i say i do to get a bit of common ground with this guy.

  it's a common attitude among jws.

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  J. Hofer

  marijuana IS better than heroin...